Data East’s Tales from the Crypt, released in 1993 and designed by John Borg, channels the gleefully ghoulish HBO horror anthology — hosted by the cackling Crypt Keeper — onto a fast, gadget-laden playfield. With three spinning targets, twin up-kickers, six eyeball targets, a captive ball, and an autoplunger shaped like a door handle topped with the Crypt Keeper’s head, it’s a wonderfully macabre machine dripping with B-horror atmosphere, complete with a shaker motor for extra shudders.
The scoring is built around frenzy modes and multiball. The clever play is to kick off the frenzy mode via the right ramp and then launch multiball to stack them together for big points. You can start the first multiball at either the Crypt or the center scoop beside the right ramp, and the captive ball is your friend — hitting it on the left side adds a ball, and in some multiball modes it lights up as a “clone” to show it’ll add a ball when struck. The twin spinners drive the jackpots, with the left spinner building the lit jackpot and the right spinner the lit double jackpot.
A handy bit of control: press the plunger to lock in your chosen mode before starting it. Fast, spooky, and full of personality, Tales from the Crypt is an underrated Borg machine that captures all the campy horror charm of its source. For collectors who love a deliciously dark theme and a deep multiball-and-frenzy ruleset, it’s a devilishly entertaining table. Heh-heh-heh — welcome, boils and ghouls.