Game Time

TACOMA TRIP: Once a year, for a few years running now, we head down to the expo center in Tacoma for an annual big pinball and arcade show.

This Sunday, that was #1 on our to do list. We had a great time as usual. More games than ever before, and lots that were new to us. I'll have CJ tell you a bit more about it.

One pinball game I'd never seen before was Alien Poker. Interesting theme. The playfield was super busy.

It was made by the Williams company, in 1980. I kind of love the font they used.

And what was this?! How was it we've never seen an Elvis pinball machine before?!

Made in 2004 by Stern, it has all sorts of sweet little details.

You can't really see it very well in the photo below, but in the chute where your ball disappears back into the machine, it has a little medallion that says "Elvis has left the building."

The machine has a soundtrack of "See See Rider," "Blue Suede Shoes," All Shook Up," "Hound Dog," "Jailhouse Rock," "Heartbreak Hotel," and "Burning Love," all of them actual recordings from either Elvis' famed "68 Comeback" television special or his fabulous "Aloha from Hawaii" television special.

The only thing I didn't like about the pin was the face on the dancing Elvis. Kinda creepy, definitely not Elvis like.

Fresh off the heels of the disco party we helped host last weekend, this machine caught my eye.

Loved the illuminated mirror ball atop it!

It was a party in a pinball machine.

While I certainly know of "The Hustle," I did not know there variants, like the Tango Hustle and a Boston Hustle. Hmm. ... 

A few of the pinball machines were next gen, with playfields that were just large computer monitors.

I played this Battlestar Galactica-themed one.

It would take some getting used to. The machine 'moves' when you hit flippers and as the (virtual) ball bounces off bumpers and stuff, but there was a lag between pressing the buttons and the flippers working that was problematic to me.

Likewise, this machine Christian played Jaws on was really just a big computer, with dozens of different games. He didn't like the way the playfield was animated, said it was distracting.

We spent a lot more time checking out the vintage machines than the new ones. 

My photo is terrible, but I found the graphics on this Capersville pin intriguing - so very '60s.

Midcentury modern meets the Jetsons, to my eye. The machine was made by Bally in 1966.  According to Internet Pinball Database, Jerry Kelley was Capersville's artist. He reportedly shared that the inspiration for the art for the game was a 1965 French detective movie 'Alphaville,' starring American actor-singer Eddie Constantine. 

We also played a number of stand up consoles. Here, CJ, wearing a Centipede shirt, plays Centipede. 

Below the kids play an old favorite, Bubble Bobble.

For whatever reason, there are in inordinate number of clown-themed pinball machines. 

I don't know who Gigi is, or why she's hanging out with clowns, but I think she should find some new friends. (The game is by the D. Gottlieb company, from 1963.)

There were some driving games, of course, including a fun Super Bug console.

And then there were random old games that were, IMHO, just pretty terrible. This game seemed to have an apt name. How many quarters has it gobbled for so little fun?

Sad graphics from Rip Off.

This old arcade game, Space Encounters, by Midway was pretty fun. The plane-style steering wheel moved in an out to decrease speed and it was surprisingly responsive.

There was always a line at Stern's The Pabst Can Crusher pin, just a couple of years old.

And, of course, we had to play the classic Flash Gordon pin, complete with a soundtrack by Queen.

 Ming was as merciless as ever.

 This  newish-1965 Mustang pin was in the tournament players' only section. 

 We also checked out a cool Houdini-themed machine. Loved the Ouija board 'speller' they included.

 This "Hot Doggin' " machine just screamed '70s. 

The worst game I played all day was something called Trog. It involved a T-Rex who punches its enemies. Um, everyone knows a T-Rex isn't built for boxing.  

Here's what CJ had to say about the show. ...

On 10 June 2018, I went to the Northwest Pinball & Arcade Show at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center, south of us in Tacoma. The NP&AS is an annual event, and 2018 is the event's eleventh year, according to its website. The event featured over 400 pinball and arcade games, dating from the 1950s to this year's releases.

There was a jarring difference in atmosphere between the outside of the room and the inside of the room. Outside, the sun was shining through the windows, and some of the only sounds were coming from a small (think the size of a living room, at most) pinball and arcade section. According to the main page of the event's website (linked above), the NP&AS draws over 4,000 different pinball and arcade collectors annually. Judging by my perception at the event, I believe the "over 4,000 people attending" claim to be true. The event was held in theTacoma Convention Center's 13,400 sq. ft. ballroom on the third floor.

While most of the pinball machines were on the left side of the convention room, most of the arcade games were on the right side. I spent more time in the arcade section, and my favorite arcade game at the event was R-Type II. At one point, Annabelle and I made it to Stage 26 in the original Bubble Bobble. This is the furthest we've ever gotten in the game (100 stages).

At a later point, Annabelle and I attempted to succeed on a Dance Dance Revolution game. Both of us failed terribly due to the fast pace of the required inputs.