Bally

The Addams Family

Pinside Rating

This game received 1350 approved Pinsider ratings and currently rates 8.566 _/10

8.566

Top 100 ranking

This game ranks 1st in the game group "The Addams Family". The group itself ranks #23 in the Pinside Pinball Top 100.

Score breakdown

Score breakdown in the 4 main categories:

Game Design: 8.666

Artwork: 8.432

Sounds/Music: 8.225

Other Aspects: 8.662

Pinside staff rating

This is how we, the very knowledgeable (wink wink) Pinside.com staff & moderators rate this game. 8 of us have rated this game.

8.653

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This title is part of group: "Addams Family, The"

The Addams Family

The Addams Family Gold
(Special Collectors Edition)

Found 793 ratings (with comment) on this game

There are 793 ratings (that include a comment) on this game.
Currently showing results page 2 of 32.

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7.976/10

9 months ago

ALF

Mustang1985

Pinside member

Oswego, IL

1y 25,000 4 19 22

I just restored mine and its great added mirrored back glass and led and extra lights to see playfield better
Fixed lots of ramp directions for better angles to the flippers. Mine plays great now. Color dmd.
Im gonna keep it for a long time. Maybe forever

Mustang1985 currently owns this game.

9.120/10

9 months ago

MIK

squeek2m

Pinside member

<1y 20,000 1 9

very neat&addicting pin...lots of fun shots/modes...a couple very cool ones being the Thing grab & the automatic shot made by the flipper...

squeek2m edited previous rating on August 04, 2023.

8.159/10

9 months ago

NAT

natgreystar

Pinside+ Frequent

1y 51,050 225 9 83 2

Everyone loves this game. It's just all around fun. I think its worst problem was probably the audio quality. I always enjoyed this game and every bit of it was fun but a lot of the samples always seemed distorted or muffled. This pin with upgrades is a great experience.

natgreystar edited previous rating on December 19, 2023.

7.932/10

10 months ago

JJP

Pomz

Pinside member

Buffalo, MN

5y 35,150 36 3 39

Classic game. Plays good but doesn’t have the same appeal that new games have. It’s fun to play but it just isn’t very deep and seems dark. I still enjoy playing it and the toys are fun but I think this is held up by nostalgia. At 10k it could be one of the most overrated games for the price.

9.700/10

10 months ago

AND

CC_Andyman

Pinside member

North Canton, OH

1y 20,000 5 1 6 1

I consider this game one of the three perfect pins in existence, along with Medieval Madness and Creature from the Black Lagoon. These three games embody absolutely everything a pinball machine should be, from top to bottom. Outstanding.

CC_Andyman edited previous rating on January 12, 2024.
CC_Andyman has this game on the wishlist.

2 Pinsiders flagged this. 2 Pinsiders starred this!

8.280/10

11 months ago

BD

Threetreys

Pinside+ Frequent

Fort Worth, TX

4y 43,150 104 7 9

Oh, Addams Family. What a cautionary tale you have become. You were too successful, too popular, too iconic . . . The heavy price for success. I remember back in the day when it was just you and your friends MM, TZ and Indiana Jones sitting high and mighty in the top 5 of Pinside ratings. And look at you now - with each new release falling further and further down the list. What happened? When did it become trendy to knock you? I hear it on location and at festivals all the time “Meh - what is the big deal? My Mando shoots better than this.”
I do not have an answer. But I want you to know I was there in the beginning. And there was pinball before Addams Family and there was pinball after Addams Family. Anyone who looks back fondly on the machines of the 90s and thinks “that was the golden age” owes you a debt of gratitude. You showed the world how to take a licensed theme and turn it into a gold mine. Every movie or TV themed pinball machine owes you. Including your more respected cousin Twilight Zone. Twenty thousand units did not ship because Addams Family was a cultural phenomenon. It was a moderately successful movie that was soon forgotten before the sequel was even released. This game sold because it blew everyone's mind. Now, I know you have to rate things not based on how they were but how things are. I am not one of those guys that is going to tell you Citizen Kane is the greatest movie of all time. I understand why it is significant and how influential it is - but if you say do you want to watch Avengers: Infinity War, Raiders of the lost Ark or Citizen Kane - I am not picking Citizen Kane. But let us give credit where credit is due - this game opened the door and set the blue print for all that was to come after.
But let us get to a review . . . Cabinet, playfield and back glass are all solid. It is real art based on the film. The cabinet and play field - while certainly serviceable - do not stop you in your tracks. Sound for the time is good and the call outs by Raul Julia and Angelica Houston are memorable and set the bar for licensed based games in the future. I remember the 1st time I heard “out to the cemetery” I looked at the playfield saw tomb stones on the plastics and knew to shoot for that area. As opposed to someone saying “shoot the upper left scoop”. It was simple and made sense without taking you out of the theme. I heard someone say “there is no flow” about this game. All I can think is that there must be two definitions of “flow” in the cosmos. This game set the standard for flow. I have also heard people say the rule set is shallow and I guess if we’re going to compare it to Jersey Jack POTC you are right. But on the other hand – “are you freaking kidding me?!” I have owned the game for years and still have not completed Tour the Mansion (and yes, I know I suck).
Look, all I ask is this . . . Look around - see this pinball community. Believe me - this game played a big role in where we are now. Sure, it is no Godzilla - but join me and raise a glass of your favorite beverage and toast this iconic, popular and best selling game and say “Thank You!” for without it you would be playing Diablo IV and reading reviews of the next Zelda game.

Threetreys currently owns this game.

5 Pinsiders starred this!

7.952/10

1 year ago

AFJ

Its_me_aj

Bite Me Cake Company

Pueblo, CO

9y 85,350 1,112 46 27 1

It took me a long time to understand the hype behind this game until I had a chance to spend some personal time on it. I totally understood why it received the praise it does. It’s a fun all around game and very easy to start a game over and over again.

Its_me_aj currently owns this game.

2 Pinsiders flagged this.

8.160/10

1 year ago

ARF

WestCoastAussie

Pinside member

1y 34,550 136 13

TAF has the single greatest call out in pinball history. In my humble opinion. "It's Showtime", gets me just as much today as when the game first came out. And, every time I see that backglass lit up enticing me to play I just give in.
TAF is fun. A big part of the reason why it's the highest selling pinball in history. Fun yes, but not the deepest game out there. With the benefit of playing it now, compared to some of the amazing fare we're constantly blessed with, it can seem a slightly shallow and repetitive game. Then you start to hit the shots and remember just how fun hitting the bookcase and locking a ball with Thing is. Then you get a ramp with the 3rd flipper and get a shot through the pop bumpers. And you just smile.
TAF introduced a lot of people to pinball when it first hit. Machines were in every arcade worth its salt. Front and centre so it could be seen. And, as I keep saying, it's FUN. Enough said.

WestCoastAussie edited previous rating on April 18, 2023.

3 Pinsiders starred this!

5.210/10

1 year ago

AJK

gamble89

Pinside member

1y 32,550 37 5 6

Ill never understand the hype about this game. Cool theme , i dont like the shot angles. I’ll occasionally play ome game on it but i have no desire to play game after game .

6 Pinsiders flagged this.

8.645/10

1 year ago

???

tblaze

Inactive member

Buffalo, MN

1y 9,500 6

Great game. I would love to see a remake.

3 Pinsiders starred this!

8.800/10

1 year ago

RIK

rikity

Pinside member

5y 46,900 43 6

I used to go to the arcade by myself and play this one almost every day. Truely a lasting classic!

2 Pinsiders starred this!

7.881/10

1 year ago

PTL

Deepblue89

Pinside member

2y 40,650 10 29

A cramped playfield that’s dark, no room to do much of anything interesting with the ball. Jackpots are restricted to side shots, and the seance feature produces random chaos that is not fun. I dread this game in competitions.

It’s a high stakes game that takes dedication in order to become proficient with each ball, but it’s just not that fun to shoot. The theme is done well, the sounds and visuals are great, and getting Tour the Mansion is rewarding, but it’s just not a very interesting layout. Lawlor would top this game many times over in his career. Doesn’t deserve its title of “best selling pinball game of all time.”

Deepblue89 edited previous rating on March 08, 2023.

8.576/10

1 year ago

UWU

Thegamerskunk

Pinside member

1y 26,050 57 2 35

Its the best-selling pinball machine of all time, ofc its a classic! Great game with fun gimmicks!

Thegamerskunk edited previous rating on December 01, 2023.

8.980/10

1 year ago

CSF

JurassicPark

Pinside member

Springfield, VT

2y 27,300 33 3 46

The classic that opened up doors that pinball games would never have reached without this fantastic licensing-intro title. Clever theming, awesome playfield layout, fantastic callouts as well as clever toys and creative artwork throughout. Biased because of it being the first pinball I remember playing and it being located at the corner market down the road from my childhood home, but nonetheless has stood the test of time. Fantastic title all around.

8.986/10

1 year ago

DON

DC747

Pinside member

Leawood, KS

6y 22,000 3 12

I'm on my second owned addams so I've had one at my disposal for many years. The game was so far ahead of its time--hence the 20,000 copies. It still drives me absolutely bs crazy when the magnets cause an undeserved drain. And, no "ball save" gets more annoying with every new pin that comes out. But it's still so fun and rewarding when you have that crazy ball and it's going nuts with jackpots that I really don't think its popularity and price will ever go south...

DC747 currently owns this game.

9.700/10

1 year ago

RFI

Retroworks

Inactive member

Middlebury, VT

1y 8,500 6

Does Morticia say "Don't hurt yourself" or is it "Don't touch yourself". Top 5 game

7.376/10

1 year ago

EKS

PanzerKraken

Pinside member

Boynton Beach, FL

2y 70,550 3,065 7 47 1

Considered one of the top games and best sellers, but just was never a big win for me. It did feel like the start of the big changes to come from the way IP's were being pushed in the 90s and themes for games. Some fun features for sure like the bookcase diverter, though kind of ugly in it's stock form. The Thing grab was always so neat to see when this came out. Game has lot of love for the IP and decent enough rules. A big negative for it's fun factor is that it lacked a ball save mechanism, which to me is very much important feature that pinball developed as a standard in the 90s.

8.300/10

1 year ago

???

Tinroof

Pinside member

Trenton, MO

1y 17,500 3 7

Played this game every chance I got, wish I had it in my collection.

8.216/10

1 year ago

NTR

pete_sake

Pinside member

Longmont, CO

3y 25,150 4 6 10

Lawlor nailed it. Love this game. The sounds track and voices are amazing and perfectly timed. Always hard to pass this game up if its open. timeless

pete_sake edited previous rating on January 25, 2024.
pete_sake has owned this game in the past.

9.027/10

1 year ago

DAD

imnitguy

Pinside+ Frequent

2y 36,900 39 7

Awesome game. When I have a very good game on TAF I feel extremely satisfied. It is amazing this machine was built so long ago and still holds its own against much newer technology which I think speaks to its excellent design. For me the game is simply fun. The call outs are great and of course SHOWTIME! What an amazing into to multiball. I think many snub their noses at TAF because of the premium they command but the market is what it is. I also believe that due to the complexities of licensing this game will never be remade despite many likely hoping it may.

imnitguy edited previous rating on March 17, 2024.

8.820/10

1 year ago

JLS

joolsvstheworld

Pinside member

Melbourne

1y 28,650 14 2 7

In my top 3 most played, I revisited this after a good 15 year gap and found the love for it again straight away! Brilliant on location, but I might get a bit bored of it if I owned it. Some repetition and not as deep as modern machines, but undoubtedly an all time classic and a brilliant example of a well licensed movie machine.

9.642/10

1 year ago

JRF

slugginchamp

Pinside member

Lake Forest, IL

2y 16,250 4 6

I mean, what hasn't already been said? This game is an A+ for theming, sounds/callouts, the mansion room design, Thing, the flippers auto-flipping in rhythm to the theme, the magnets... Solved my midlife crisis by getting this machine into my collection - cheaper than a Corvette, less problematic than a trophy wife, less embarrassing than a toupee.

slugginchamp currently owns this game.

9.560/10

1 year ago

???

cyberbear

Pinside apprentice

Glasgow

5y 18,750 43

Finally had the chance to play this, bloody brilliant! makes the vast majority of stern games look pointless. So engrossed in this game, no wonder it sold so many. I so wish I had one, Bally & Williams simply the best.

8.344/10

1 year ago

PIE

SilverballGamer

Pinside member

4y 57,650 29 5 87

I mean, what do you expect? It’s the most successful pinball machine ever made AND one of the most iconic. Of course it’s a great game.

Pro’s:
Great layout and ruleset. It’s clear a lot of effort was put in this game. The ruleset was, at the time, groundbreaking for its depth.

The toys were, at the time, groundbreaking! Toys like Thing to this day have never been recaptured, and thing flips have never been correctly recaptured.

Sound is good for sure, and is nearly as iconic as the machine itself.

Art on the backglass and playfield is pretty well done in my opinion, and isn’t obviously a John Youssi art package.

Con’s:
The train wreck shot is kind of pointless, it could have been better utilized for sure.

Cabinet art package is a little bit bland, not bad by any means though.

The ruleset is, at this point, a bit simple. It’s still a lot of fun to play, though.

Overall, a great game (as it should be).

8.836/10

1 year ago

>>>

Polypin

Pinside+ Frequent

1y 69,800 137 28

A classic play-field worth learning.

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There are 793 ratings (that include a comment) on this game. Currently showing results page 2 of 32.

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