From the Archives: Top 10 Nostalgic Arcade Games to Own (and the Pinball Machines You'll Actually Find)

Wanting an arcade machine at home is one thing. Finding one, getting it working, and not going broke in the process is another. Here are the ten most nostalgic arcade games to own — and then, more importantly, the list of pinball machines you'll actually come across on the second-hand market, with their production runs, observed prices, and pitfalls to avoid. Spoiler: they're not the same ones you'll find in "most expensive machines" lists.

First, an honest note about the numbers

Let's be upfront: production numbers for video arcade cabinets are unreliable. The industry's reference databases (Museum of the Game / International Arcade Museum, BrentRadio) themselves acknowledge that their lists come "from rumors, memories, and speculation." Depending on the source, Pac-Man is credited with 100,000 cabinets (US) or 400,000 worldwide; Asteroids with 70,000 or 100,000. So we won't claim precision on this front.

Pinball, on the other hand, is well documented. The IPDB (Internet Pinball Machine Database) provides, machine by machine, production runs confirmed by the manufacturers. That's why the second half of this article, dedicated to pinball machines, relies on solid numbers — unlike the first half.

Top 10 Nostalgic Arcade Games to Own

1. Black Hole (Gottlieb, 1981) — the dual-playfield pinball machine

A main playfield... and a second one, underneath, played upside down, visible through a glass panel. In 1981, this was science fiction. 8,774 units produced, making it one of the easiest Gottlieb System 80 machines to find. Median asking price recorded on Pinside: $1,975 (July 13, 2026). For that price, it's probably the most impressive machine you can put in your living room. Our guide: Black Hole (Gottlieb, 1981).

2. Pac-Man (Namco / Midway, 1980) — the ultimate cabinet

The best-selling arcade game of all time, by any ranking. An original Pac-Man cabinet in good condition is a museum piece — and the main risk when buying is the CRT monitor, whose restoration often costs more than the cabinet itself. Worth noting for pinball enthusiasts: Bally produced a Mr & Mrs Pac-Man (1982) and a Baby Pac-Man (1982), a truly unique pinball/video hybrid.

3. Gorgar (Williams, 1979) — the first talking pinball machine

"Gorgar... speaks!" The first pinball machine in history to synthesize speech — a seven-word vocabulary, and a heartbeat that speeds up with gameplay. 14,000 units: this is one of the most common Williams System 6 machines, and therefore one of the most affordable. Median asking price: $1,995. Our guide: Gorgar (Williams, 1979).

4. Space Invaders (Taito, 1978) — the founding act

The cabinet that launched the golden age. Original Japanese cabinets and "cocktail" versions are rare and expensive; conversions and re-releases are legion. Always verify the motherboard's authenticity before buying. Bally also made a pinball version in 1980: Space Invaders (Bally).

5. Xenon (Bally, 1980) — the first female voice in pinball

A transparent tube running across the playfield, artwork by Paul Faris that became iconic, and the first female voice in pinball history. 11,000 units, median asking price $2,662. A spectacular machine at a still-reasonable price. Our guide: Xenon (Bally, 1980).

6. Defender (Williams, 1980) — the hardest cabinet

Five buttons, a joystick, horizontal scrolling, and legendary difficulty. Williams also released a pinball version of Defender in 1982: Defender (Williams, System 7). Both are collectible.

7. Eight Ball Deluxe (Bally, 1981) — the quintessential "classic" pinball machine

Billiard theme, iconic voice callouts, crystal-clear rules. 8,250 units. It's one of the rare pre-DMD pinball machines still in the Pinside Top 100 (#86 as of July 12, 2026). Median asking price: $4,000 — pricier than average for its era, precisely because it's excellent. Our guide: Eight Ball Deluxe (Bally, 1981).

8. Donkey Kong (Nintendo, 1981) — the birth of Mario

The cabinet that made Nintendo a giant. As with Pac-Man, the buying concerns are the monitor and board authenticity. The circulating production numbers (around 132,000 units) should be taken with caution — see our caveat above.

9. Black Knight (Williams, 1980) — the first two-level pinball machine

Williams' first multi-level pinball machine, with its magnetic ramp and "Magna-Save" feature. 13,075 units. A Williams System 7 that has aged very well, with prices slowly climbing: median asking price $3,000. Our guide: Black Knight (Williams, 1980).

10. Haunted House (Gottlieb, 1982) — three playfields

Gottlieb outdid Black Hole: three levels of play (a main playfield, an upper one, and a lower one). 6,835 units. It's now the most expensive Gottlieb System 80 of the bunch: median asking price $3,500. Our guide: Haunted House (Gottlieb, 1982).

The Pinball Machines You'll Actually Find (and Why These Ones)

"Top collectible pinball" lists are full of machines at $10,000 produced in runs of 3,000. That's great for dreaming — but if you're concretely looking for a machine to buy this year, you'll come across different titles. And there's a mathematical reason: these are the ones manufactured in very large quantities between 1979 and 1985, during the last great production peak of solid-state pinball.

Pinball Machine	Manufacturer / Year	System	Production Run	Median Asking Price (US, 12 months)	Our Guide
Firepower	Williams, 1980	System 6	17,410	$2,000	Guide
KISS	Bally, 1979	Bally MPU	17,000	$5,500	Guide
Gorgar	Williams, 1979	System 6	14,000	$1,995	Guide
Black Knight	Williams, 1980	System 7	13,075	$3,000	Guide
Xenon	Bally, 1980	Bally MPU	11,000	$2,662	Guide
Black Hole	Gottlieb, 1981	System 80	8,774	$1,975	Guide
Eight Ball Deluxe	Bally, 1981	Bally MPU	8,250	$4,000	Guide
Haunted House	Gottlieb, 1982	System 80	6,835	$3,500	Guide
Centaur	Bally, 1981	Bally MPU	3,700	$4,700	Guide
Volcano	Gottlieb, 1981	System 80	3,655	$1,800	Guide

Production runs: IPDB, as listed on Pinside machine pages. Median asking prices (adjusted 12-month median) recorded on Pinside on July 13, 2026. These are asking prices on the US market, not sale prices.

Why these machines, and not others

Compare: Medieval Madness was produced in a run of 4,016 units, Cactus Canyon at 903. Firepower, on the other hand, at 17,410. When a machine was manufactured four times as many, four times as many survive — and four times as many appear on the market. It's as simple as that. Add to this that 1979–1982 was the absolute peak of the industry (operators were installing pinball machines everywhere), and you get today's second-hand stock.

These machines share three other decisive advantages for a first purchase:

• They're simple. No motorized ramps, no controlled magnets, no dot-matrix display. Fewer things to break.
• They're well documented. Schematics, repair guides (pinrepair.com, PinWiki), and parts are available.
• They're repairable. And that's the next point.

Price benchmarks in Europe

The Pinside prices above are US-based. In Europe, based on actually observed listings (Flippermarkt, FlipperFrance, Pinside EU, 2020–2026):

• Non-working / "as-found" machine: approximately 900 to 2,300 EUR. Observed example: a Black Knight (Williams, 1980) sold for 1,300 EUR in January 2025; an Eight Ball Deluxe "for tinkerers" at 900 EUR.
• Serviced, working machine: approximately 1,600 to 2,800 EUR. Observed examples: Firepower "ready to play" at 2,000 EUR (June 2026); Gorgar with serviced boards at 2,500 EUR; Xenon with rebuilt boards around 1,600–1,950 EUR.
• Serviced Gottlieb multi-level machine: 2,500 to 3,300 EUR (Volcano, Haunted House).
• Full restoration (reproduction playfield and backglass, repainted cabinet): up to 7,000–8,000 EUR asked... and not always sold.

These are observed asking prices, for reference only. Beware of European "price guide" lists still found online: several haven't been updated in over ten years.

What to Check Before Buying (in This Order)

1. The playfield, under the inserts. This is the only truly deal-breaking defect. A playfield worn down to bare wood can be replaced... when a reproduction playfield exists for that title, which is far from always the case. Inspect with a flashlight at a low angle.
2. The backglass. Flaking screen printing is irreversible. A reproduction, when available, costs hundreds of euros.
3. The CPU board, and especially the battery. On Bally (1977-1985) MPUs (AS-2518-17 and -35) and Gottlieb System 80 boards, a battery (a NiCd rechargeable cell on System 80) is soldered directly onto the board. It always ends up leaking. The electrolyte corrodes traces, IC sockets, and components — and, as the community's reference repair guides put it, the corrosion "behaves like cancer": if any remains, it comes back. This is the #1 failure on these machines.
4. The displays. Original plasma/gas displays fade over time. They can be replaced, but at a cost.
5. The coils and wiring harness. Check that no wire has been "repaired" with electrical tape by a creative previous owner.

Good news: a corroded CPU board drives the price of a machine down — and that's precisely the easiest issue to fix properly today. A dead playfield, not so much. Buy a machine with good mechanicals and dead electronics, never the other way around.

And if you're aiming higher?

If your budget and patience lead you toward machines from the 1990s — Medieval Madness, Attack from Mars, Twilight Zone — read our top 10 most sought-after collectible pinball machines and what they're worth. And to understand why this entire market is waking up, our in-depth article: Retro revival: why vintage arcade games are making a comeback.

FAQ

What is the best first pinball machine to buy?

A Williams System 6 or 7 (Gorgar, Firepower, Black Knight) or a Gottlieb System 80 (Black Hole, Volcano). They were produced in very large numbers (14,000, 17,410, 13,075, 8,774...), they're simple, well documented, and asking prices run around $1,800 to $3,000 in the US, or 1,600 to 2,800 EUR for a serviced machine in Europe.

Why do you always see the same pinball machines on the second-hand market?

Because they're the ones that were produced in the largest quantities. Firepower: 17,410 units. KISS: 17,000. Gorgar: 14,000. Conversely, Cactus Canyon was produced in a run of only 903 units. The more a machine was produced, the more survive, and the more frequently they appear on the market.

How much does a 1980s pinball machine cost in Europe?

Based on European listings observed between 2020 and 2026: approximately 900 to 2,300 EUR for a non-working or "as-found" machine, and approximately 1,600 to 2,800 EUR for a serviced, working machine. Serviced Gottlieb multi-level machines (Volcano, Haunted House) go for 2,500–3,300 EUR. These are asking prices, not an official price guide.

What is the most common failure on a 1977–1985 pinball machine?

Corrosion caused by the battery soldered onto the CPU board. On Bally (1977-1985) MPUs and Gottlieb System 80 boards, the electrolyte leaks and attacks traces, IC sockets, and components. A battery-free replacement board eliminates the cause of the problem permanently.

Should you buy a non-working machine or a working one?

It depends on what is broken. Dead electronics can be properly replaced for a few hundred euros. A playfield worn down to bare wood cannot: you'd need a reproduction playfield — when one exists — and a full restoration. Always inspect the playfield and backglass before the displays.

Is a video arcade cabinet easier to maintain than a pinball machine?

Not necessarily. A vintage cabinet relies on a CRT monitor, which is difficult to replace and expensive to restore. A pinball machine has more moving parts, but they're mechanical, well documented, and available — and the electronics can now be replaced with modern boards.

Sources & further reading

• Pinside machine pages — production runs (IPDB) and median asking prices, consulted July 13, 2026: Black Hole · Haunted House · Volcano · Gorgar · Firepower · Black Knight · Xenon · Eight Ball Deluxe · Centaur · KISS
• IPDB — Black Hole (#307, 8,774 units) · Haunted House (#1133, 6,835) · Firepower (#856, 17,410) · Gorgar (#1062, 14,000) · Black Knight (#310, 13,075)
• BrentRadio — Arcade Production Numbers and Museum of the Game — Production Numbers Thread (both sources acknowledge that video arcade production numbers are approximate)
• pinrepair.com — Bally (1977-1985) repair · PinWiki — Bally (1977-1985)
• Flippermarkt and FlipperFrance — European listings observed between 2020 and 2026