The Last Pinball Machine Factory 240
The New York Times is running a story about Stern Pinball Inc., which they say is the last pinball factory left worldwide. The story describes working there as a "game geek's fantasy job." The company president, Gary Stern, acknowledges the lack of demand, but he plans on sticking around. He also expects the industry to rebound within the next 10 years. We've previously discussed a slightly smaller version of pinball.
"Corner shops, pubs, arcades and bowling alleys stopped stocking pinball machines. A younger audience turned to video games. Men of a certain age, said [Pinball Hall of Fame operator Tim Arnold], who is 52, became the reliable audience. ("Chicks," he announced, "don't get it.") And so for Mr. Stern, the pinball buyer is shifting. In the United States, Mr. Stern said, half of his new machines, which cost about $5,000 and are bought through distributors, now go directly into people's homes and not a corner arcade."
shifting... (Score:5, Funny)
Much easier to get the "unlimited life" hack ... (Score:5, Funny)
(Pinballs are basically big steel bearings... place HD magnet at the bottom pass the flipper and voila! Unlimited life.)
Never did manage to leverage that little tidbit of knowledge to get a date...
Oblig Futurama on suppositories (Score:1, Funny)
Fry: I can't swallow that!
Professor: Good news! It's a suppository!
Oblig # 2
Zoidberg: Hmm. We'll need to have a look inside you with this camera.
(Fry opens mouth)
Zoidberg: Guess again.
Nah.... (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Pinball is too expensive... (Score:3, Funny)
I think, if pinball or arcades are to survive, they must start to appeal to young adults. Think about the popularity of video game poker, trivia, golf, hunting, whatever in bars: if you can find a way to make pinball appeal to those people, it can have a comeback in a major way.
Of course, if I knew how to do that, I'd be sending a resume off to Gary Stern right now.
Re:pinball is the video game for old people (Score:5, Funny)
Re:stern pinball sucks (Score:3, Funny)
Don't you?
Re:pinball is the video game for old people (Score:2, Funny)