My nieces and nephews (ages 2-13) went crazy for Jurassic Park. It probably doesn't have to be high end for them to like it--it's all new to them so if it has a cool toy or special effect, that will probably be just as good as Medieval Madness to them.

Pirates of the Caribbean
Theater of Magic

The kids will like anything

At that age they are not worried about deep rules sets, they just want to have fun

Open playfields are great as they can see the ball, AFM, Ironman, spiderman

AFM for sure.

The Simpson's Pinball Party or Funhouse are relative bargains and have lots of neat stuff going on.

They may not like IM due to how fast the play is. Very quick games.

All kids like my Hobbit. Fun stuff toys and beasts popping up. Plus it has a dragon!

AFM and MM are easy choices if you're rolling in dough.

WCS is a great game for kids. My boys also like RFM.

I also think NBAFB is underrated for kids.

MM - my nieces and nephews all love to bash the castle and rescue the princess!!!

It doesn't need to be an expensive game...
South Park is easy and fun.
Flintstones is kid friendly
Cyclone or Hurricane
Party Zone
Pirates of the Caribbean
Shrek
No good gofers
RBION

Just saying.. you don't need an A-list game for the kids to have A-list fun.

I concur that you don't need a high dollar game. My kids are young and like MM, but they never pass up playing Funhouse or Highspeed.

If you can swing it I'd go with a Addams Family. I have Addams and Monster bash sitting next to each other and my youngest niece ( she is going to be 4) loves to play them both. They are the first games she want to turn on. On the newer game standfront she also enjoys Lord of the rings Wizard of oz Hobbit and Mustang, go figure.

I noticed kids tend to like games with 2 flippers. Upper flippers get forgoten or ignored.

Only pin my whole family has enjoyed is AFM - had nearly 50 games and AFM is far and away the most popular with everyone.

going from MB to AFM would be a bad move. AFM has nothing on it. Kids will not be impressed. RFM would be more impressive to kids. But if they like MB that much, they like the ease of it as well. JP is a great pick. Awesome toy, great shot layout and great rules.

Some games that are easier to keep the ball alive with cool toys to interest them would be

TH
POTC
RTC
TOM

Maybe even SM as kids will like the theme and the game has longer ball times.

Of the 20 games I have owned, WCS is by far the most popular with kids. I coach hockey and baseball so I have had the pleasure of hosting many many teams of young players between the ages of 6 - 15 and that is pretty much across the board despite the age. They seem to like the simplicity of the game-play and scoring goals.

Even my friends (non-players) still miss my WCS. Fortunately, I still get to play it sometimes because I sold it to a friend who is a big football (errr ... soccer) fan.

My kids love hobbit. Easy to get multiball and longer ball times. Plus the machine is simply awesome!

My daughter is 9 and her favorite game by a mile is WOZ.

This x 1000. I'd recommend SM, but my son (who has very good skill for a 7yr old) still struggles with the 3rd flipper on 2 of our games.

I'd personally recommend seeing if there are any local MM, WCS, CV, RFM, Data East SW, and POTC as my little guy has gravitated to those many times over the years.

Kids like games with big obvious stuff to shoot for, that will do things without too much skill being necessary.

WCS is a huge one. "Shoot the goal" is really obvious, and when they get it by the goalie they feel like they accomplished something.
Theatre of Magic is another winner with the magic trunk.
MM with the castle.

Scared Stiff, natch!

They will love it!

I second No Good Gophers and passing on AFM if you already have MB (or vice versa unless you are building a large collection).

WoZ/Hobbit are beautiful, but as others have pointed out, there are a lot of relatively recent "older" games that will appeal to kids (NGG, WCS, Pirates, Shrek, various superheroes)... would you rather have nice used examples two of those or one new WoZ/Hobbit?

I think Revenge From Mars or Star Wars Episode 1 are perfect games for kids. Kids tend to like the interaction with the holograms.

Other great games that should keep their interest include:

Rocky & Bullwinkle
Bugs Bunny Birthday Bash
Champion Pub (Bash a Boxer and play with some great toys)
No Good Gofers
Cirqus Voltaire (Ringmaster, rolling ball and great animation)
Medieval Madness (Castle)
Attack From Mars (funny martians)
Cactus Canyon Continued (Lots of great upgrades in the CCC code)

Good luck and be sure to share some pictures of your new game!

Marcus

My kids' favorite is far and away MB. But they tend to play the other games more because MB got them so into pinball. WH20 is a popular one but a little more challenging with the third flipper. STTNG once they got a little more skilled (the cannons never get old for kids). But I agree with the people saying WOZ. That seems like the only game kids might like even more than MB. I've thought about getting one for that reason as well. Let us know how it turns out!

My kids grew up with a variety of pins in the house. But when their friends would come over, they'd go straight for the RFM. Something about that combination of pinball/video sucks them right in. Bite sized modes to accomplish, plenty of easily achieved multiball opportunities, etc.

Kids all seem to love my getaway.. they otften leave balls in play on my taf to jump on it.

I sold my MB and my youngest kid never forgave me for it- lol. Now, after many years, I finally located another one in stunning condition.
In its absence, my kids have loved Williams IJ and really enjoy my TAFG. Awesome themes on both.
As they've gotten a bit older, the newer Sterns (MET/TWD/GoT/GB & ST) have become very popular with them and their friends.

Why not look into Junk Yard? Fun, understandable theme, wide open playfield, not terribly expensive, and has great art and some toilet (literally) humor. I think that might be another winner with the kids.

I'd recommend a game that tends to be more forgiving and have longer ball times.
TOM, WCS, and TSPP come to mind. Also Rocky and Bullwinkle has fun toys and animation.
Games like Ironman can have short ball times and be frustrating for younger players.

Sound like money is not an issue for you. Dump 'Hobbit' for WOZ . Your family would also like Data East STAR WARS absolutely .

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My kids liked World Cup Soccer '94, White Water, and Breakshot the most out of the games I've owned.

My kids like WCS. Scoring goals is an easily understandable task and gives immediatw positive feedback. The dog on the backglass is very friendly. For someone playing the actual rules, it is fun and tough. Playing Germany in the Final Match is an adreneline rush that never gets old. For around $2500, great value.

My 2 and a half year old daughter LOVES Iron Man. AFM is a close second. My other games do not hold her attention; however, that said, she is just really having fun watching the ball and you tend to see the ball a lot on those games. She also LOVES Frogger.

i agree World Cup Soccer is an instantly appealing game.

i disagree with some posters that long ball times are a good thing. the last thing you want to do is bore them. sometimes more challenging games can keep a kid coming back for more, while a game where they flail around for minutes at a time can have them wondering when it'll end, and result in them walking away with balls still in play.

AFM
FT
POTC
RFM
SWEP1
Avatar
WOZ

Shrek, Avatar and Scared Stiff.

cincyITguy once Heighway has multiple titles in production, you'd be a good candidate for one one of their pins and a pile of their swapable play fields!

If 2 year old love the "Big-O" beam, maybe it's time for "Honey I shrunk the kids" & "Honey I blew up the kid" on family movie night?