Aztecs, Outlanes, and Multiballs: Pinball Gallery in April

Bride of Pinbot here, emerging from my coil-powered cryochamber to deliver your latest pinball recap. This time, I’m digging into the action from Week 3 of the Southeastern PA Pinball League’s Spring 2025 season. With a chilly-but-clear 47°F on the thermometer, it may have felt brisk outside—but the action inside Pinball Gallery was cranked up to redline. From brutal EMs to finely-coded moderns, 38 players battled it out across five rounds. Let’s flip through what made the night pop.

Arcade overload? In the best way.

Located in Malvern, PA, Pinball Gallery is more than just an arcade—it’s a time-travel device for flipper fanatics. With 78 pinball machines spanning over five decades, it’s one of the most diverse lineups in the region. You want early solid-state oddballs? They’ve got ’em. You want modern Sterns dripping with RGB inserts and precision-engineered mechs? Absolutely. And the pricing structure means you can actually afford to experience that breadth. It’s the kind of venue where league players, casual fans, and collectors alike all find something to sink their flippers into—and probably discover a machine they’ve never played before. If you’re hunting rare titles or trying to master that one machine that always eats your quarters, this is your battleground.

Dino-mite Duel in the Spotlight Match

The standout match of the night was a full-blown jungle safari on Stern’s Jurassic Park (Premium)—a 2019 Keith Elwin design that’s been dominating tournament lineups for good reason. With kinetic inlane action, combo-heavy scoring paths, and cleverly risk-rewarded modes like T. rex encounters and chaos multiballs, it’s a game that punishes hesitation and rewards control.

This particular game in Round 1 turned into a 105-minute epic, practically qualifying as its own era of pinball history. Stefano Pinti, ranked 22nd in Pennsylvania, proved he was the apex predator here. Navigating the map’s Paddock progression and successfully stacking control room modes without falling prey to the game’s notoriously hungry outlanes, Stefano walked away with the win.

Behind him, Mark R. Lariviere showed resilience on a layout that loves to punish early flipper flips. Meanwhile, Mike Rudowsky kept pace with a well-timed Chaos multiball and a slick right ramp combo that netted him key points before a drain derailed the comeback. And let’s give credit to Harry Jaber—even without a current IFPA ranking, he braved the park like a pro and gave us all something to cheer for.

From Classic Ballys to Boutique Beauties

With so many machines in rotation, there’s no shortage of standouts. Here’s a closer look at a few of the flipper-filled gems that shaped this tournament:

Aztec (Williams, 1976)
One of the last EMs from Williams before they went solid-state. Aztec is a widebody that rewards patience and accuracy—perfect for players who can nudge without nudging themselves into a tilt warning. The bonus multiplier ladder is everything here, and those stand-up targets lining the sides might as well say “trapdoor to drain” for how many games they’ve ended early. Built at a time when skill shots were still being discovered, Aztec demands attention, not speed.

Roller Disco (Gottlieb, 1980)
A fever dream of neon and leg warmers. This game is one of the few that screams “1970s skating rink” in both art and sound design. It’s got one of the more unusual layouts of the early solid-state era, with upper playfield action and tight orbits. The scoring isn’t super deep, but mastering the drop targets and center spinner gives it a strange addictiveness. In tournaments, it’s often an equalizer—don’t count out the EM wizards on this one.

Metallica (Pro) (Stern, 2013)
An iconic music pin with serious tournament credibility. This John Borg design is loaded with toys—Sparky’s electrocution, snake jaws, a hammer that smashes the captive ball—and a deep Lyman Sheats ruleset that rewards stacking modes with multiballs. Key to scoring is strategic use of Crank It Up and timing Fuel multiball just right. It’s a love letter to flow and risk management, and when it drains, it’s usually your fault.

Creature from the Black Lagoon (Bally, 1992)
This John Trudeau creation is deceptively simple. The “Find the Girl” mechanic and the drive-in movie jackpot make it more narrative-driven than most. The holographic creature in the lower playfield may be one of the most ambitious toys of its time, and it’s become a cult classic—despite a reputation for uneven scoring. Still, it’s a blast to shoot and looks fantastic under UV lighting.

Pulp Fiction (SE) (Chicago Gaming, 2023)
Designed by Mark Ritchie (yes, that Ritchie), this machine is proof that retro can still rip. Classic 80s-style layout, linear ruleset, and snappy flipper response make this a sleeper hit among players tired of deep-code marathons. No ramps, no endless modes—just solid shots and cool sound bites. It’s a nod to old Bally games with a modern edge.

The Who’s Tommy Pinball Wizard (Data East, 1994)
Talk about commitment to theme—this machine literally blinds you during Tommy Mode, forcing players to play with no visual feedback for an entire ball. It’s chaotic, it’s bold, and it doubles down on the musical’s legacy. Plus, the rotating flipper mechanism and wizard mode make it both gimmicky and memorable—perfect for league night pressure cookers.

Bone Busters Inc. (Gottlieb, 1989)
A haunted house meets slapstick humor with very un-subtle ghosts and an extremely “late 80s VHS” vibe. Not exactly a high watermark in competitive pinball history, but its wide-open layout and quirky rules make it a lovable oddball. Every league needs a wildcard machine, and this is it.

Who Took the Trophies?

Nathaniel Gibson stepped up big this week. With over 570 IFPA events behind him and a current 35th state ranking, Nathaniel leaned into his veteran experience, making smart shot decisions and adapting across eras of pinball. Whether it was a spinner rip on an EM or stacking jackpots in a modern, he played the board, not just the game.

Geoff Warke, ranked 99th in the state, showed that consistency matters more than flash. Across five rounds, he kept his scores high and his mistakes minimal. Then came Keith Saroka, just a notch above Geoff in the standings, who leaned on fundamentals to grind out big points on some of the trickier machines.

And let’s not forget Matt Strzelecki, a known top 10 player in Pennsylvania. His fourth-place finish here may not be headline-grabbing, but it was a measured, strategic performance that kept him in the mix right through the final ball.

Pennsylvania’s IFPA Top 10

One Cool Night, One Hot Tournament

With a clear night sky outside and a blizzard of bonus multipliers inside, Week 3 of the Southeastern PA Spring League was a full-flip spectacle. From the scream of Metallica’s riffs to the clicky chaos of Aztec’s steppers, this tournament reminded us that pinball spans decades—and every era still has something to prove.

Congrats again to Nathaniel Gibson, who made mastery look effortless. And huge thanks to Pinball Gallery, a venue that delivers history and hype in equal measure. Whether you’re a fan of Gottlieb’s goofy ghosts or Stern’s precision-coded beasts, this is one stop that always pays off.

Stay tuned for more league night coverage, pinball matchups, and whatever other chaos the outlanes throw at us. Until next time—keep those flippers up, and your bonus held.