Have a Pinball Machine, Man

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The Simpsons Pinball Party is a great pinball machine, full of fun toys and funny references to the show we’ve all loved at some point. We had a particularly nice example of the machine come through the shop last week. It looked even better when it left.

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Stern came out with The Simpsons Pinball Party in 2003, and went on to produce around 4,000 machines. (IPDB)
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It’s based, of course, on the TV cartoon, which is in its 29th season now, with more than 615 episodes to its name. (IMDB)
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The game is well-regarded among fans and pinball enthusiasts alike, and it’s usually pretty well-played, too, resulting in cabinet fade and playfield wear.
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But not this game! This one was the brightest cabinet we’ve ever seen, and the playfield was perfect.
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We added Cointaker LEDs throughout the machine.
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We changed out the rings, cleaned the entire game, and gave it some special touches, too, including Super Bands, and color-coded post rubbers.
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Interesting note on this game: All the voice work was by Dan Castellaneta, Nancy Cartwright, and Hank Azaria, custom recorded for the game. Cabinet and backglass art was created by Simpsons’ guru Matt Groening’s team. (IPDB)
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Here’s another special touch we like to add to this game: A green LED to make the nuclear towers glow that special shade of radioactive.
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Here’s one of those toys that help make this game so great: The mini playfield in the upper left corner of the game looks just like the family’s living room.
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Another cool feature: Homer’s head swivels depending on game action. Enjoy the game, Erik! It’s a good one!