The past, present, and future share a show floor at Pinball Expo 2026
Summary
Ars Technica’s Pinball Expo 2026 piece surveys the revival of pinball as a hardware and maker-centric hobby, highlighting Stern’s dominance, modular and open-SDK designs from Multimorphic, and a thriving homebrew scene. It covers show-floor highlights, new games like Fallout, and a growing ecosystem around DIY tooling, VR hybrids, and community-built content. The article frames Pinball Expo as a crossroads of traditional arcade craftsmanship and modern, collaborative design.