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Will the Kit Plans be Available?

mrdandyman — Sat, 23 Jun 2018 20:06:47 GMT

I'm wondering if or when the plans for the mini pinball game will be available.

I'll have access to all the tools I need (and hopefully time enough) to build a mini-pinball machine this summer at my local makerspace. I'm taking a CAD class too, so hopefully I can design new parts as for class projects

Ball density

davidpizon — Wed, 22 Nov 2017 22:18:12 GMT

I never cared for the physics of smaller steel pinballs. They lack of control and wild ricochets cheapen the play experience.

A denser material should be used for the ball. Ben briefly mentions lead in the second video. I would have gone with depleted uranium. If those are inappropriate for a toy, what about tungsten?

Why do you actually need a ball loader?

zepatrik — Fri, 08 Sep 2017 21:30:27 GMT

I would just make a channel for the ball in a way it would be loaded by gravity. Keep it simple . That way you could also save some (quite a lot) pins.

What's Your Favorite Pinball?

makerkaren — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 17:48:41 GMT

element14's The Ben Heck Show

Join the Ben Heck team every week for amazing hacks! Watch them build and mod community-inspired projects using electronics!

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Mini Pinball Kit

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Pinball has evolved a lot over the years. Scores used to be displayed with mechanical numbers that would rotate as you racked up points. That evolved into using 7-segment displays, then LEDs, and now some even used monitors to track players and points. Some mechanisms have gotten more sophisticated, while others remain classic. At the Midwest Gaming Classic, as well as my local arcades and bars, I've tried out quite a few pinball games. I've found that different things draw me to love some games more than others. Sometimes it is the theme. Sometimes the flow and feel of the game makes the ball seem to travel smoother making it superior to others. Sometimes there is a certain mechanism or feature that just makes the game more fun. I especially like the games that have a mini play field at the top that feels like playing a mini game where it is fun to see how long you can keep the ball up without the fear of losing the game if it drains. I've played games where the LEDs are just too bright and it hurts to look at or the ball is difficult to track through the lights and displays. My favorite games are a mix of old and new either because of smoothness of play or fun theme/mechanisms.

What's your favorite pinball game and why?

What pinball game would YOU want?

makerkaren — Fri, 31 Mar 2017 20:30:37 GMT

element14's The Ben Heck Show

Join the Ben Heck team every week for amazing hacks! Watch them build and mod community-inspired projects using electronics!

Back to The Ben Heck Show homepage

Mini Pinball Kit

Featured Bonus Content

See All Episodes

I've been to a reasonable amount of arcades throughout my life. I spent quite a few days slinging quarters into machines at Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum. Despite this, I never paid much attention to pinball games. I wasn't very good at them. A lot were more expensive to play than other video games. I never became interested or invested. Working alongside Pinhead Ben here, it's difficult to not be cured of that. With his passion for pinball, I've learned a lot about the games through osmosis. One thing I didn't realize, was how well thought out the themes, storylines, and gameplay were. I always thought you just hit a ball around, get points for hitting things, and that was it. With some nice artwork to make it enticing. Boy, was I underestimating the creativity that goes into these things.

Most pinball games have a theme; over the last 30 years or so, they are more commonly licensed themes such as a TV show, movie, or band. Within that theme, there is a sort of storyline or modes that you have to play through to get the chance to beat the game. Hitting different targets and getting to different lanes of the playfield gets you more points and unlocks missions that you can complete to work your way through to the next mode. Progressing to the next mode will frequently enable a new, interesting mechanism such as opening up a door or a monster appearing. Since beginning working with Ben, I've paid more attention to the games, figuring out exactly what I need to hit and when to make things happen and progress through the game. It really can be a game of skill, not just chance.

For our mini pinball kit, we don't have any themes in mind. Licensing is expensive, so we likely won't be able to support any themes that are properties of Warner Bros, Marvel, Disney, or even smaller outfits with more niche characters and titles, but that doesn't mean we can't get creative with our themes.

What theme would you want in YOUR pinball game? Can you come up with a storyline with corresponding mechs to keep it interesting? Do you have any questions about pinball game development?

Tell us in the comments below!