Pinball machines are popping up all over. Is this a trend or something old becoming cool again? We decided to investigate mostly because our company has a couple big pinball fans in our midst and we hope that it’s both a trend and becoming cool again.
We talked to Luiza Flodr of Video Amusement, which is a company that rents video games, pinball machines and more. Flodr told us “the pinball machines are making a resurgence. We have rentals just about every weekend for pinball machines. Also, the pinball machines are the most requested item for corporate long term rental.” Rental rates start at $295 for a single day, but package discounts are available.
You can see all the pinball machines that Video Amusement has in their collection on the pinballowners.com website (they currently have 77 machines available).
More evidence here in the Bay Area are the growing number of people you see at bars or other venues playing pinball. Just this past weekend, I was at Molotov’s just to play their Attack From Mars and had to wait for one group to play and during my second game another group of folks came by just to play (they were disappointed that the Creature from the Black Lagoon was out of order).
There were already a few leagues in the Bay Area, but San Francisco now has one called the San Francisco Pinball Department (SFPD) and I myself have started playing in the league. You can check out some photos from the league on our site here.
At many conferences we’ve also seen ‘relaxation lounges’ or chill zones where they have some video games and pinball. I think almost every large tech conference we’ve shot recently has done this and the pinball machines are always a hit. If you’ve got an event upcoming, consider some pinball. We can even give you some expert (er, well, enthusiast) tips on the games that makes them even more fun to play!
