Come for history, culture, engineering—and pure pleasure
It takes a minute for your eyes to adjust to the dim interior. Then you hear it—the clicks, thumps, buzzers, and bells of the dozens of pinball machines and vintage electronic games lining the walls of Chattanooga’s Classic Arcade Pinball Museum.
As your eyes adjust you start to see the polished surfaces of the old wood-rail machines, the lurid red demon gracing the Gorgar machine, the flashing LED displays and monitors on the newer games. Depending on the time of day, you may see young hipsters or elderly aficionados hunkered over the games; you’re sure to see children of all ages playing eagerly, some on tiptoe and oohing with excitement.
By then, the friendly attendant has slapped a band around your wrist—that’s right, you pay once and get to play all day, even if you step outside and return. Since there’s no pressure, you can take your time and explore the history of pinball even as you try out a few exhibits. Read the antique signs on some of the pinball machines warning minors away.
That’s because pinball used to be highly suspect as a gambling tool; indeed, one old wood-rail machine up front was actually a payout machine, dispensing nickels like a slot machine. Pinball was banned in many major cities for years.
Now, though, pinball has lost its sinister panache and become something else entirely: an engineer’s playground, a cultural historian’s dream, and a child’s favorite Saturday afternoon. Whatever your pleasure, the science, the cultural history, or the thrill of the games snapping and vibrating under your fingertips, you’ll find something to love at Classic Arcade.
As you walk through the museum, you’ll find yourself starting in the first half of the 20th century and moving forward in time. The older wood-rail machines have basic electromechanical controls and no electronic components; sounds are generated by bells and chimes, while gear-driven score reels track points.
As you wander deeper, you can find solid-state games that use electronic technology to track and display scores. Displays advance from dot matrix to monitors—even complex setups with monitors and mirrors, giving the illusion that the ball in play can disappear into the screen display.
The art advances, too, from simple wood inlay and paintings to exaggerated silver-era comic art to photorealism-style designs. The experience becomes more intense—Gorgar features a heartbeat that gets faster as the score rises, while the enormous Hercules game (restricted to one play per customer to keep its delicate innards in working order) uses a pool ball and (for smaller players) one person on each side to man the flippers. The most recent games use multi-level ball tracks, hidden doors, video displays, and even after-market plastic action figures to engage every sense.
The arcade games are excellent, too, though perhaps less exotic—imagine spending as many hours as you like at Ms. Pac-Man, Galaga, or Street Fighter, without having to fish in your pocket for quarters.
It’s no wonder manager Walt Schaffeld, a graphic design enthusiast, comes early to play 1999’s Revenge from Mars, or technician and co-owner Dave Alverson waxes enthusiastic about the principles of physics that animate the games.
Never played pinball before? “There’s a whole world under the glass,” as Walt says. “Most people have played games on a phone or home console, missing out the tactile experience of feeling the ball bounce around the pins or shaking and nudging the machine to change the dynamic a bit.”
Aficionados, meanwhile, can savor a collection that goes back years, including rare machines, meticulously maintained, and enjoy a chat with knowledgeable staff.
You can visit the Classic Arcade at 409 Broad Street (across from Lupi’s) Wednesday–Thursday and Sunday 1–9 p.m., Friday–Saturday 1–10 p.m. A bustling Friday night is always fun, but if you’re a real pinball fan, I recommend coming during a rainy afternoon in hopes of finding Walt or Dave and having some deep conversation about the history and mechanics of these gems. Heck, you might even persuade them to let you peek under the hood of one of the games undergoing renovation.
You’re also encouraged to reach out about scheduling private events. Anything from a birthday party to a bachelor/ette party is welcome, and large groups get a 15 percent discount. Reach the Classic Arcade at chattanoogapinballmuseum.com or facebook.com/ChattanoogaPinballMuseum