Pinball Bay Area

The rules and details of the Pacific Pinball Exposition Tournaments are now available.  Here’s a quick rundown of what we have planned.  For the full rules, click here.

If you are interested in helping with the tournaments, there is a sign-up sheet here.  Helpers get $20 worth of entries for each 2-hour shift.  Novices will get free entry into the Novice tournament as well as one Open/Classics entry.  Helper entries are transferable to friends/family (i.e. if you are playing in the tournament but your wife/girlfriend works as a scorekeeper, you can use those entries.)

PPE Open:  $10 per qualifying ticket, PAPA-style qualifying, Unlimited re-buys.

Qualifying begins Friday at 2:00pm and end Saturday night at Midnight.

Finals are on Sunday starting at 2:00pm.  Cash prizes will be awarded directly after finals are completed.

Classics Tournament: $10 per qualifying ticket, PAPA-style qualifying, unlimited re-buys.

Qualifying begins Friday at 2:00pm and end Saturday night at Midnight

Finals on Sunday starting at 10:30am.

Novice: $5 entry, no “re-buys”. Players play 4 games 2 times each and the highest score on each game is
recorded. Scores are ranked and points are awarded. The top 12 players will advance to the finals with
top qualifiers given advantage in seeding. Depending on attendance and schedule, the top 16 may
qualify.

Novice will be on Saturday only.  Register between 10 am and 1:30 PM.  Qualifying ends at 5:30 PM.

Kids: $5 Entry, no “re-buys”.  Kids play 2 games 2 times each, and the highest score on each game is recorded.  Scores are ranked and points are awarded.  Final placing is determined by point totals.

Kids will be on Saturday only.  Kids may enter at any time after 10am, but must complete their games by 5pm.

Pin Tac Toe

Players are organized in 3-player teams.  Play is between teams in a head-to-head, single-elimination format.  Either bring your friends or we can match you up with others to make a team.  The teams select games on the main show floor and challenge the opposing team.  The winner of each game gets to place an X or O on the Pin Tac Toe sheet.  The winner of the match is the team which gets three in a row.  The winning team will advance to challenge other teams.

Image from You Remember that: http://www.yourememberthat.com/media/2173/Pinball/

Another season has come and gone for the EBPL.  EBPL is a pinball league based out of Phoenix Games in Concord.  There’s a great mix of people, pinball, and competition.  What adds to the truly special nature of the league is the strong support by the venue.  In fact, new pins were just added to the line-up.  8 games are available for play at all times in the front room.  League members get an additional five to play in the backroom.

The competition was fast and furious with a cut-throat single elimination format.  There were around 23 competitors total.  League performance during the regular season determines byes and first choice of play or order.  Coming into this melee I was therefore at a significant disadvantage.  Having only made around 8 league nights, I was ranked in the 20s, and all of my competitors got to pick their franchise games against me in the first round of our play.

Justin showed just how enthusiastic players get when competing.  However, he seems to get especially enthusiastic in this regard when it comes to Elvira: Scared Stiff.

League founder and main honcho, Kevin kept track of all the action. 

Players who were knocked out early quickly regrouped into Tommy Dollars games on a fantastic-playing Theater of Magic with purple flippers and LEDs. 

Jim Vierra took top honors for the evening.

The top 4 finishers (left to right): David (2nd), Jim (1st), Keith (4th), Jonny O (3rd)

I played solid and did well as an underdog going into each competitive round at a disadvantage.  I had two breakout games.  On Scared Stiff I got the Wizard Mode and put up a solid 120M on a tough Addams Family which had high scores in the 250M range (I’ll get those pretty soon :-).  My toughest loss?  Losing by a mere 5000 points on Black Knight 2000.

Congrats to Jim for taking top honors and to everyone for coming out and competing.  Extra super double thanks to Phoenix Games for the great games and hospitality.

To view the complete results bracket, click here.

Creative music video mixes in the sights and sounds of pinball.  Very catchy.

Now can you check out Andrei Massenkoff’s big win to take the title of PAPA World Champion, including a short post-victory interview with the champ!

I forgot I had this video.  I made it for a seminar last year.  I added a quick voice-over and put it up on youtube.

Action is slowed down around 30% to make it easier to follow.

For more detailed information about nudging check out Pinball 101 (rentable on youtube).

Pins and Needles is celebrating their 1-year anniversary.  Congratulations to Molly and Keith.  Here’s a video of their combination pinball arcade and tailoring/alterations store.

An okay techno track by the band Doubleclick.  Why someone would name themselves after one of the most despised internet ad firms is beyond me though.

Andrei Massenkoff, just after winning the Pacific Pinball Exposition Tournament in 2009

Andrei Massenkoff, a pinball wizard from San Francisco, has just captured the most prestigious crown in the pinball universe by winning the Expert Division of the Professional Amateur Pinball Association (PAPA) World Championships, held annually in Pittsburgh, PA, among an international field of top competitors.  Through three days of grueling qualifiers, he went into the Playoff rounds as the the 3rd highest seed, and then went on in the Finals to unseat reigning champion Keith Elwin, who has won the event a staggering three years in a row.

Andrei went into the event ranked 11th in the world, and had a 3rd place finish at California Extreme.  He took 2nd at the PAPA event last year and should move into top 5 territory in the World Rankings with the victory.

Massenkoff, a longtime competitor and member  of the Bay Area Pinball Association, extends the legacy of the club which includes previous World Champions Bowen Kerins and Rick Stetta.

For his efforts, Andrei takes home a check for $10,000, and in keeping with the tournaments tradition, a very large trophy.

EDIT: http://funwithbonus.tumblr.com/ has a pic of Andrei’s trophy, which is taller than he is!

Somewhere between the cereal box bargain games and the all-out CNC-routed Ben Heck effort falls this friendly looking homemade pinball game.