{"id":23308,"date":"2021-11-18T22:30:41","date_gmt":"2021-11-18T22:30:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pinballnews.com\/site\/?p=23308"},"modified":"2021-12-03T17:53:38","modified_gmt":"2021-12-03T17:53:38","slug":"pintastic-pinball-game-room-expo-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pinballnews.com\/site\/2021\/11\/18\/pintastic-pinball-game-room-expo-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"PINTASTIC PINBALL & GAME ROOM EXPO 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The final leg of our 2021 US tour brings us to the town of Sturbridge, around an hour’s drive west of Boston. The Sturbridge Host Hotel & Conference Center is the venue for the Pintastic Pinball & Game Room Expo<\/a>, hereafter just called Pintastic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The<\/a>
The entrance to the show<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The Sturbridge Host Hotel and Conference Center is a complex of buildings housing the reception, the pavilions, a pool, numerous accommodation blocks, multiple conference rooms and at least two large show halls. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The<\/a>
The hotel end of the complex<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The complex has seen multiple expansions over the years, so there is a mix of styles across some of the different blocks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here’s a look around a few of these areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The<\/a>
The hotel’s reception area<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"The<\/a>
The corridor from reception to the pavilions area<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"The<\/a>
The pavilions<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"The<\/a>
The pool area<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Pintastic has been running since 2015 and has a large team<\/a> working in the months leading up to the show on its many different aspects, such as the free play machines, the vendors, the seminars, the publicity, the website, the logistics and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the free play machines they have built a custom game registration, check-in, game information and fault tracking system called MyFlipR which allows game bringers to register their machines, have them tracked as they are brought into the building and have any faults which develop logged against them for the maintenance crew to address.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The<\/a>
The entrance for the free play machines<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"The<\/a>
The machine registration team at the show<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"One<\/a>
One of the machine signs with a link to its details page, sale price and contact number<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Thursday<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We arrived at Thursday lunchtime as the Free Play Room was being set up ready for the public opening at 6pm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The<\/a>
The Free Play Room<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Some<\/a>
Some of the machines in the Free Play Room during set-up on Thursday<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Some<\/a>
Some of the machines in the Free Play Room during set-up on Thursday<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"The<\/a>
The central aisle will be filled with more machines later<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

At the far end of the building, the Vendor Hall was also being readied, although that room doesn’t open to the public until Friday at 11am.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The<\/a>
The Vendor Hall during set-up on Thursday<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"The<\/a>
The Vendor Hall during set-up on Thursday<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"The<\/a>
The main tournament takes place in the Vendor Hall too<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Here’s the list of the 63 pinballs set up in the Vendor Hall by lunchtime on Saturday:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vendor Hall<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Addams Family, The<\/td><\/tr>
Aerosmith<\/td><\/tr>
Aerosmith<\/td><\/tr>
Aerosmith<\/td><\/tr>
Avengers, The: Infinity Quest<\/td><\/tr>
Avengers, The: Infinity Quest<\/td><\/tr>
Avengers, The: Infinity Quest<\/td><\/tr>
Avengers, The: Infinity Quest<\/td><\/tr>
Aztec<\/td><\/tr>
Baywatch<\/td><\/tr>
Cactus Canyon remake<\/td><\/tr>
Cue<\/td><\/tr>
Demolition Man<\/td><\/tr>
Domino<\/td><\/tr>
Elvira & the Party Monsters<\/td><\/tr>
Flipper Clown<\/td><\/tr>
Godzilla (Premium)<\/td><\/tr>
Godzilla (Premium)<\/td><\/tr>
Godzilla (Premium)<\/td><\/tr>
Godzilla (Premium)<\/td><\/tr>
Godzilla (Premium)<\/td><\/tr>
Godzilla (Pro)<\/td><\/tr>
Godzilla (Pro)<\/td><\/tr>
Godzilla (Pro)<\/td><\/tr>
Godzilla (Pro)<\/td><\/tr>
Guardians of the Galaxy<\/td><\/tr>
Guardians of the Galaxy<\/td><\/tr>
Gulfstream<\/td><\/tr>
Guns N’ Roses (Limited Edition, JJP)<\/td><\/tr>
Halloween<\/td><\/tr>
Hercules<\/td><\/tr>
Hot Wheels<\/td><\/tr>
Houdini<\/td><\/tr>
Judge Dredd<\/td><\/tr>
Jurassic Park (Stern)<\/td><\/tr>
Last Action Hero<\/td><\/tr>
Led Zeppelin (Premium)<\/td><\/tr>
Led Zeppelin (Pro)<\/td><\/tr>
Legends of Valhalla<\/td><\/tr>
Legends of Valhalla<\/td><\/tr>
Metallica<\/td><\/tr>
No Fear<\/td><\/tr>
Operation Thunder<\/td><\/tr>
Pinball Magic<\/td><\/tr>
Riverboat Gambler<\/td><\/tr>
Roadshow, Red & Ted’s<\/td><\/tr>
Simpsons Pinball Party, The<\/td><\/tr>
Star Trek: The Next Generation<\/td><\/tr>
Star Trek: The Next Generation<\/td><\/tr>
Star Wars (Pro)<\/td><\/tr>
Star Wars Pin (Comic Art)<\/td><\/tr>
Star Wars Premium<\/td><\/tr>
Stranger Things<\/td><\/tr>
Tales from the Crypt<\/td><\/tr>
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Stern)<\/td><\/tr>
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Stern)<\/td><\/tr>
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Stern)<\/td><\/tr>
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Stern)<\/td><\/tr>
The Mandalorian<\/td><\/tr>
Transporter: The Rescue<\/td><\/tr>
Volcano<\/td><\/tr>
Whitewater<\/td><\/tr>
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

There is a separate custom-built Seminars Room of which we will see more a little later, once the first seminar begins at 7pm today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, a special Extra Ball Lounge is available to guests who purchase a limited edition pass when registering. These sold out quickly, so only a small number of guests and event staff will get to play these games.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The<\/a>
The Extra Ball Lounge<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Here’s a list of the 23 pinballs set up to play in the Extra Ball Lounge:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Extra Ball Lounge<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
AC\/DC (Luci)<\/td><\/tr>
Attack from Mars<\/td><\/tr>
Bride of Pinbot, The Machine:<\/td><\/tr>
Cirqus Voltaire<\/td><\/tr>
Congo<\/td><\/tr>
Dialed In!<\/td><\/tr>
Dracula, Bram Stoker’s<\/td><\/tr>
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off<\/td><\/tr>
Full Throttle<\/td><\/tr>
Guns ‘N Roses (DE)<\/td><\/tr>
Guns ‘N Roses (JJP, LE)<\/td><\/tr>
Houdini<\/td><\/tr>
Indianapolis 500<\/td><\/tr>
Metallica (Pro)<\/td><\/tr>
Monster Bash<\/td><\/tr>
Shadow, The<\/td><\/tr>
Shadow, The<\/td><\/tr>
Tales of the Arabian Nights<\/td><\/tr>
Theatre of Magic*<\/td><\/tr>
Twilight Zone<\/td><\/tr>
Walking Dead, The<\/td><\/tr>
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory<\/td><\/tr>
WWF Royal Rumble<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table>
* indicates machine was not working or switched off when we made this list<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

There are various signs and banners in the corridors detailing the weekend’s tournaments, rules of pinball etiquette and various designs for the Pintastic logo from famed pinball artists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Play<\/a>
Play nicely<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"The<\/a>
The tournaments schedule<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"The<\/a>
The 2016 show logo by John Youssi<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"The<\/a>
The 2017 show logo by Zombie Yeti<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"The<\/a>
The 2018 show logo by Christopher Franchi<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"The<\/a>
The 2019 show logo by Joel de Guzman<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The Free Play Room opened to the public at 6pm, although there were more games being brought in throughout the evening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"6pm<\/a>
6pm and time for the Free Play Room to officially open<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Still<\/a>
Still plenty more machines arriving outside<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Here’s a list of the 113 pinballs set up to play in the Free Play Room on Saturday lunchtime:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Free Play Room<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
2001<\/td><\/tr>
Addams Family, The<\/td><\/tr>
Alien Poker<\/td><\/tr>
Amigo<\/td><\/tr>
Atlantis<\/td><\/tr>
Beatles: Beatlemania Pinball, The (Gold)<\/td><\/tr>
Big Guns<\/td><\/tr>
Black Hole<\/td><\/tr>
Bobby Orr’s Power Play<\/td><\/tr>
Bonanza<\/td><\/tr>
Carribean Cruise, Point Blank<\/td><\/tr>
Casino<\/td><\/tr>
Club House<\/td><\/tr>
Corvette<\/td><\/tr>
Count-Down<\/td><\/tr>
Cyclone*<\/td><\/tr>
Dancing Lady<\/td><\/tr>
Domino<\/td><\/tr>
Dracula, Bram Stoker’s<\/td><\/tr>
Drop-A-Card<\/td><\/tr>
Duotron<\/td><\/tr>
Earthshaker!<\/td><\/tr>
Elvira’s House of Horrors (LE)<\/td><\/tr>
Embryon<\/td><\/tr>
Fire<\/td><\/tr>
Fire Queen<\/td><\/tr>
Fireball<\/td><\/tr>
Fireball<\/td><\/tr>
Fireball Classic<\/td><\/tr>
Firepower*<\/td><\/tr>
Flash<\/td><\/tr>
Flash Gordon<\/td><\/tr>
Flight 2000<\/td><\/tr>
Flipper Clown<\/td><\/tr>
Gladiators<\/td><\/tr>
Gorgar<\/td><\/tr>
Gorgar<\/td><\/tr>
Gorgar<\/td><\/tr>
Grand Lizard<\/td><\/tr>
Grand Lizard<\/td><\/tr>
Grand Slam<\/td><\/tr>
Guns ‘N Roses (JJP, Standard)<\/td><\/tr>
Hollywood Heat<\/td><\/tr>
Hot Hand<\/td><\/tr>
Hot Shot<\/td><\/tr>
Hurricane<\/td><\/tr>
Hurricane<\/td><\/tr>
Jackbot<\/td><\/tr>
Jungle Queen<\/td><\/tr>
Jurassic Park (DE)<\/td><\/tr>
Kewpie Doll<\/td><\/tr>
Knockout*<\/td><\/tr>
Laser War<\/td><\/tr>
Lethal Weapon 3<\/td><\/tr>
Liberty Bell<\/td><\/tr>
Lost in Space<\/td><\/tr>
Mars: God of War<\/td><\/tr>
Mata Hari<\/td><\/tr>
Melody<\/td><\/tr>
Metallica (Pro)<\/td><\/tr>
Meteor<\/td><\/tr>
Motordome<\/td><\/tr>
Mousin’ Around!<\/td><\/tr>
NASCAR*<\/td><\/tr>
New York<\/td><\/tr>
Oh Yeah!<\/td><\/tr>
Out of Sight<\/td><\/tr>
Phantom of the Opera*<\/td><\/tr>
Pinbot<\/td><\/tr>
Pinbot<\/td><\/tr>
Pincraft<\/td><\/tr>
Poker<\/td><\/tr>
Red Baron<\/td><\/tr>
Rick and Morty<\/td><\/tr>
Rob Zombie’s Spookshow International<\/td><\/tr>
Robo War<\/td><\/tr>
Rock Lives!<\/td><\/tr>
Seawitch<\/td><\/tr>
Shaq Attaq<\/td><\/tr>
Shaq Attaq<\/td><\/tr>
Sharkey’s Shootout<\/td><\/tr>
Simpsons Pinball Party, The<\/td><\/tr>
Simpsons, The<\/td><\/tr>
Sing Along<\/td><\/tr>
Skateball*<\/td><\/tr>
Soccer<\/td><\/tr>
Solar City<\/td><\/tr>
Solar Fire<\/td><\/tr>
Sonic Spinball<\/td><\/tr>
Sorcerer<\/td><\/tr>
South Park<\/td><\/tr>
Space Station<\/td><\/tr>
Speak Easy<\/td><\/tr>
Spy Hunter*<\/td><\/tr>
Star Trek (Bally)<\/td><\/tr>
Star Trek (Bally)<\/td><\/tr>
Star Trek (Bally)*<\/td><\/tr>
Star Wars (Pro)<\/td><\/tr>
Star Wars Trilogy<\/td><\/tr>
Star Wars: Episode 1<\/td><\/tr>
Stars<\/td><\/tr>
Street Fighter II<\/td><\/tr>
Superman<\/td><\/tr>
Team One<\/td><\/tr>
Terminator 2: Judgement Day<\/td><\/tr>
Time Warp<\/td><\/tr>
Twilight Zone<\/td><\/tr>
Volcano<\/td><\/tr>
Wiggler, The<\/td><\/tr>
Wild Fyre<\/td><\/tr>
World Poker Tour<\/td><\/tr>
WWF Royal Rumble<\/td><\/tr>
X-Files, The<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table>
* indicates machine was not working or switched off when we made this list <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The first of the show’s seminars began at 7pm when Levi Nayman hosted a talk and demonstration on how to do commentary for live streaming of pinball matches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Levi<\/a>
Levi Nayman<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

To illustrate his points, several matches were played on an Attack from Mars<\/em> pinball which were streamed and had live commentary added. The first saw Bowen Kerins play against Mitch Curtis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Commentating<\/a>
Commentating on the Attack from Mars match<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Bowen<\/a>
Bowen and Mitch play for a prize pot of $3<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The Free Play Room stayed open until 2am and reopens on Friday at 10am, with the Vendor Hall also opening at 10am on Friday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Friday<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were still more games arriving in the Free Play Room and others being worked on as the doors opened to the public at 10am. More are expected until around 1pm according to the organisers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Setting<\/a>
Setting up and adjusting the games as the doors open<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"10am<\/a>
10am and the Free Play Room is officially open<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, the first of the days presentations was starting in the Seminars Room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tasker Smith, a Technical Instructor at MIT spoke about the concept of flow states and how they can be channelled to improve your gameplay and get into ‘the zone’.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Tasker<\/a>
Tasker Smith<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

He explained how, when a flow state is achieved, a person will experience a narrowing of their focus, how they become immersed in what’s happening now, will have a reduced sense of self-awareness, a distorted sense of time passing and achieve exceptional performance. He went on to describe the conditions and techniques players can use to take advantage of this state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Tasker's<\/a>
Tasker’s Flow States seminar<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Later in the afternoon the seminars resumed at 2pm when Mike Minchew presented his seminar about pinball flyer collecting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Mike<\/a>
Mike Minchew<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Mike spoke about the way flyers evolved over the years and how the quality of their printing and production can be used to determine the relative financial positions of various companies. He also held regular quiz questions, distributing prize packs of flyers to those with the correct answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Mike<\/a>
Mike talking about how flyers helped build the pinball industry<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

After Mike, Jersey Jack Pinball game designer, Eric Meunier, presented his story of the making of the Guns ‘N Roses pinball.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Eric<\/a>
Eric Meunier<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Accompanied by a Collectors Edition model, Eric related stories about the creation of assorted elements which go to make up the game, including the collaboration with the band and Slash in particular, the recording of the voice calls, getting approval to use certain music tracks, how the cabinet and display artwork was created, the evolution of the playfield layout and getting sound effects which matched the pitch of the track currently playing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Eric<\/a>
Eric with a Guns ‘N Roses machine<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

You can watch Eric’s presentation from the Pintastic YouTube channel here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n