A few weeks ago I wrote a story about the wealth of video game documentaries that were out there or coming soon, and one of the commenters mentioned Tilt: The Battle to Save Pinball. I hadn’t seen this before, and hadn’t even heard about it. It’s a documentary about the Pinball 2000 project that Williams Electronics, the world’s largest pinball manufacturer at the time, initiated to try and meld video games and pinball machines into one gaming unit. The effort ultimately failed, and signaled the death blow for pinball machines.

Director Greg Maletic could have focused on the entire history of pinball, from the early beginnings as “bagatelle” in the 1700s, to its current near-death rattle, but instead he chose to single out the Pinball 2000 project from Williams. He was able to speak with all of the players involved, except for the actual plug-pullers at Williams, and it’s an amazing documentary that stands as a testament to what could have been.

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