Pinball on Location
There is so much pinball in the Pacific Northwest, you just need to know where to look! We just returned from a road trip down the west coast where we managed to stop at several iconic pinball locations, and I thought it would be a perfect time to share some of what we saw, and talk about how you can find pinball on your next trip off island.
The Map
Before I tell you about the exciting locations we got to visit, let me show you how I discovered them.
Whenever I’m in a city with a bit of time on my hands, I pull out Pinball Map. It started in Portland, but has become the de facto global database for public pinball machines. You can search for a specific machine you’re interested in trying, or search by location to see what’s nearby.
I started by collecting all the locations with more than 20 pinball machines along our route and researched which ones looked the most interesting. With the help of a couple online pinball communities I refined the list to a small set that we could actually visit.
You don’t need to go on a road trip to find lots of exciting new pinball machines to play though. Next time you’re in Seattle or Bellingham, take a look and see what is near you.
My Favorite Locations
Icebox Arcade, Ballard
Housed in an old packaged ice facility, Icebox has one of the best collections of classics on the west coast (along with all the moderns you’d expect). The machines are in great condition, and are often featured in tournaments around the greater Seattle area. If you happen to watch any of these tournaments, it can be really fun to then go play the game and see just how hard it can be to reach the scores they achieve.
Icebox has really taken the name to heart though, and the space is basically unheated. Bring a coat!
Pacific Pinball Museum, Alameda
This road trip was our first time getting to visit the Pacific Pinball Museum, and it far exceeded my hopes. The machines were organized by era, leading you from the very early days of what is considered pinball, all the way up through modern machines and even some custom homebrews. They have an entire room featuring women in pinball, the staff was extremely friendly, and every machine featured a description about its background and why it’s interesting. Maintaining this many machines is a serious undertaking and they’re killing it!
If you find yourself in the Bay Area, this is a must-see in my opinion.
Wedgehead, Portland
Alright, I’ll stop the list with just these three. Wedgehead is one of the first locations I learned about when I started down the pinball path. I originally found them from their podcast, which is one of the best resources for learning about the history of pinball machines, designers, and locations.
They have a rotating set of about 20 machines across all eras that are extremely well maintained and setup hard. Similar to Icebox, playing these games gives you a taste of what tournament pinball feels like. Your ball times will be short, but with an all-you-can-play pricing model, it removes the stress and is one of the most fun locations in my opinion.
Find Some Pinball
There are so many pinball machines out there, and despite my best efforts, Tiltshift will always only have a very small subset of them. The only way you’re going to get to experience the rest is to go out and find them on location.
If you want to get really crazy, the NW Pinball and Arcade Show is the first weekend of June in Tacoma. They’ll have hundreds of machines, and I’ll be there all three days. See you there?