So, more pictures from The Pinball Hall Of Fame in Las Vegas, then, and this time round, I'm concentrating on some of the classic pinball machines there which may not have incredibly complex multi-mode gameplay, but certainly have some gorgeous designs associated with them. And here are some of them:
Some of the pinball machines closest to the window.
Gottlieb's 'Abra Ca Dabra' from 1975 - love the backglass.
Stern's 'Nugent' from 1978 - nobody beats the Nuge, esp. not with these classic stylings.
Gottlieb's 'Punk' from 1982 - there's nothing quite like reflecting gritty DIY rock aesthetic with a glitzy pintable, eh?
Continuing with the rock music theme, here's Bally's 'Capt. Fantastic' from 1975, based on the film version of Tommy, with Elton John on the backglass.
Gottlieb's 'Centigrade 37' from 1977 - is this a Fahrenheit [EDIT: 451 - damn you, Michael Moore!] pastiche? Again, awesome sci-fi stylings.
Incredibly rare 'Impacto' machine from Europe circa 1975 - the IPDB page for the game notes that this is the only copy in the U.S.
Gottlieb's 'Rock Star' from 1978. Neat.
Possibly the grooviest machine in there - Gottlieb's 'Domino' from 1968.
And that concludes our random look at some of the neatest-designed machines in there. The final report of our three from the Pinball Hall Of Fame will examine two or three of the quirkiest or coolest more recent machines exhibited there - ones I actually spent some notable time playing!
Comments
Fahrenheit 451 actually.
Posted by: Tetsuo | December 10, 2006 9:45 AM
I'm responding a lot today, aren't I?
I think it's most amazing that the machines look so clean and new. I've played precious few 90s machines that sparkle like this.
Posted by: John H. | December 10, 2006 11:09 AM
Oops, thanks, Tetsuo - I was halfway between 451 and 911, heh.
Posted by: simonc | December 10, 2006 2:22 PM
Hey Simon! Lori's Diner near the Powell Street trolley turnaround in San Francisco has some playable vintage pinball machines, including [I think] the impossibly groovy Domino. Bay Area geeks should stop in and drop a few quarters next time they hit the nearby EBGames...
Posted by: Chris Baker | December 11, 2006 9:12 AM
Not that I'm namedropping, but I think I took NGJ 'inventor' Kieron Gillen there for lunch, one time, and he dabbed the grease off his sandwich!
Posted by: simonc | December 11, 2006 1:26 PM
Dabbed the grease?! That's an NGJ story in itself!!!
Posted by: Chris Baker | December 11, 2006 8:58 PM
where's the william's joust machine? as one of the only head-to-head 2-player machines, it's got to be worth a mention.
Posted by: j.m.Ratkos | December 12, 2006 4:11 AM
You know, I didn't see Joust there, though I've played it at California Extreme, I think?
Posted by: simonc | December 12, 2006 7:21 AM