I think the issue is that Pop music in general just doesn’t fit well with Pinball.
I can’t provide a detailed explanation as to why this is, but it just doesn’t FEEL right. Somehow the rhythms, phrasing, and lyrical themes of the typical Pop tune just don’t quite gel with the action in a pinball game.
All I know is that games like ACDC, MET, KISS, and IM almost instantly lock me into a groove of mechanical action, lights, sounds, and music that all fits together and sort of gives the same thrill a musician experiences when playing a perfect riff “in the pocket”, whereas the Pop games I have played like Elvis and Beatles just don’t generate that level of immersion.
Also, the radical changes in the music industry since the days of the dinosaur bands shouldn’t be overlooked. For numerous reasons beyond the scope of this thread, it’s almost impossible for a modern act of any genre to establish the kind of intergenerational staying power that becomes enough of a “phenomenon” to influence the wider popular consciousness to a degree that sustains long-term marketing and merchandising (including pinball) opportunities.
There are probably demographic factors in play as well, another topic too complex to unpack here. When I was in school in the 80s, the kids that tended to hang out in pinball-rich venues like bowling alleys, arcades, and pool halls tended to be more in the rocker/metalhead/stoner camp than Pop fans. (Just an anecdotal observation by one guy, but looking back it does seem as if it was that way.)