Making a pinball machine is a very tedious task. With tons of moving and non-moving parts needed to be wired in place. Playfields being put together and designed so the game plays smoothly. So where does it start and let\u2019s look at how pinball machines are made.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 4 steps for making a pinball machine are:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Every step of the process when making a pinball machine is key. As they\u2019re expensive machines, it\u2019s essential that care is taken to do everything the right way. Below, we\u2019ll go through all of the necessary steps to make a pinball machine in more detail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before there are any parts ordered or any prototypes built there will be many people working together on the design of the game itself<\/strong>. Designing includes choosing parts and electrical components and creating the art for the table. This can take many months and even up to a year before a machine is ever made.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Companies will start with a title. Whether it\u2019s an original idea, a band, TV show or movie, they need to figure out the theme before they start putting anything together. This is essential to sort out the necessary licensing<\/strong> before they spend any money building the machine. If a company is declined a license for a specific theme, all the time spent building it would be wasted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once the title is sorted, it\u2019s time for a large multidisciplinary team of designers and engineers to start the creation process. Designers will work on the game concept with programmers. They\u2019ll also work with mechanical engineers to make prototype parts<\/strong>. These parts will make the pinball machine function properly<\/a> and avoid any mistakes in the design process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Artists then start working on the backglass and playfield art sketches. These sketches have to go to the licensing agency before they are approved to actually make the art. Once they\u2019re approved, they will send the finished designs to another company to print the artwork onto the field and backglass<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Electrical engineers<\/strong> will work on the wiring and circuitry maps. This will make wiring everything up much easier. Mechanical designers<\/strong> will help put together all the drawings, from electrical diagrams to the artists\u2019 sketches. These will go through revisions to figure out what designs will work best. Software developers<\/strong> can then start making the programs to run the machine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Most companies have templates<\/strong> they use for most of their machines that they then alter to make it fit specific themes. This allows big companies, such as Stern, to save time that would otherwise be spent developing new software for every individual machine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Model makers work on designs<\/strong> for characters or specific targets on the playfield. They will handle any theme related builds, making prototypes so an outside company can recreate them in bulk. Sound designers work on the music and sound effects the machine will be making.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Animators use the theme sketches to process animations for the backglass display<\/strong>. They\u2019ll create any videos that are shown on the display of the backbox and take care of all the moving text.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Writers create the manuals for the machine and any technical documents that are required for the owners of the machines. Accountants handle the money going in and out<\/strong>, keeping track of costs of the building process. These costs can get expensive really quickly when you\u2019re dealing with licensing and making custom models for each machine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then there are marketers and salesmen<\/strong> working with distributors to sell the upcoming game. They\u2019ll help line up sales before and after the pinball machine is built so the company can expect to get some return on their investment early on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before any pinball machines are actually built, a company will make a prototype called a \u201cwhitewood\u201d<\/strong>. This whitewood playfield will have parts glued onto it to recreate how the machine will work. Lights, custom targets, lanes, bumpers and the whole field will be put together to try the game before any money is spent properly manufacturing it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhitewood\u201d Prototype<\/p>\n\n\n\n This whitewood field will go through various revisions, with parts being moved around to figure out if anything in the designs won\u2019t work<\/strong>. The board will be connected to a wired harness to ensure the wiring harnesses work. After the whitewood is developed and wired up, goes through enough revisions and has any issues fixed, parts are finally ordered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Since all of these parts come from third party companies, they need to be rigorously tested<\/strong>. Any electrical components need to be wired up to make sure there are no blown fuses or faulty parts before they can be put into machines.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe 4 Steps For Making A Pinball Machine<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
1. Licensing And Prototyping<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
2. Sketches And Templates Are Developed<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Engineers<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Model Makers<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Marketing Team<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
3. Making A Whitewood Prototype<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Lots Of Testing<\/h4>\n\n\n\n