# ARCADE REPORT: Modern Pinball NYC (July 2018) **Source:** Knapp Arcade **Type:** article **Published:** 2018-07-01 **Beat:** Pinball **URL:** https://www.knapparcade.org/arcade-report-modern-pinball-nyc-july-2018 --- ## Analysis Personal visit report to Modern Pinball arcade in NYC from July 2018, comparing it favorably to Sunshine Laundromat. Author played Tri-State Selfie League machines including Gorgar, Wheel of Fortune, The Shadow, Addams Family, and Spider-Man, and noted the venue's family-friendly pay-by-hour model and extensive pinball collection. ### Key Claims - [HIGH] Modern Pinball has no food or drink, operates on a pay-by-hour model, and is harder to park at than Sunshine Laundromat — _Direct venue description from personal visit_ - [MEDIUM] Modern Pinball is better suited for families with children than Sunshine Laundromat — _Author's comparative opinion based on venue characteristics_ - [HIGH] Fish Tails (Tri-State Selfie League machine) was out of order during visit — _Direct observation from gameplay session_ - [HIGH] Modern Pinball features Dialed In, Scared Stiff, White Water, and Aerosmith among its collection — _Machines observed at venue_ ### Notable Quotes > "Modern is completely different than the last arcade I wrote about, Sunshine Laundromat, but both are awesome in their own ways." > — **Author (Knapp Arcade)**, Opening > _Establishes comparative analysis framework between two NYC pinball venues_ > "Modern Pinball is probably the better destination for people with kids in tow who can only go to one place. Kids can play as many games as they want without worrying about quarters and there's no bar." > — **Author (Knapp Arcade)**, Mid-article > _Key differentiator highlighting family-friendly aspects of Modern Pinball_ > "People who want to enjoy a beer while they play and see a few less common pins should probably check out Sunshine first." > — **Author (Knapp Arcade)**, Mid-article > _Recommendation positioning Sunshine Laundromat as better for adult/social gameplay_ ### Entities | Name | Type | Context | |------|------|---------| | Modern Pinball | organization | Pinball arcade venue in NYC (3rd Avenue area), pay-by-hour model, family-friendly, no food/drink service | | Sunshine Laundromat | organization | Pinball venue in Brooklyn; compared to Modern Pinball; allows drinks, different pricing model | | Tri-State Selfie League | organization | Pinball league organizing gameplay on specific machines across venues | | Gorgar | game | Pinball machine; Tri-State Selfie League game played by author | | Wheel of Fortune | game | Pinball machine; author's first time playing; Tri-State Selfie League game | | The Shadow | game | Pinball machine; Tri-State Selfie League game | | Addams Family | game | Pinball machine; Tri-State Selfie League game | | Spider-Man | game | Pinball machine; Tri-State Selfie League game | | Fish Tails | game | Pinball machine; Tri-State Selfie League game; was out of order during visit | | Dialed In | game | Pinball machine at Modern Pinball; noted as fantastic | | Scared Stiff | game | Pinball machine at Modern Pinball | | White Water | game | Pinball machine at Modern Pinball | | Aerosmith | game | Pinball machine at Modern Pinball; author's recent favorite | | Knapp Arcade | person | Author of venue report; visiting pinball arcades across Tri-State Area | ### Topics - **Primary:** NYC Pinball Venues, Tri-State Selfie League, Venue Comparison and Recommendations - **Secondary:** Family-Friendly Arcade Experiences, Pinball Machine Collections ### Sentiment **Positive** (0.85) — Author expresses enthusiasm for both Modern Pinball and Sunshine Laundromat, describes the venue experience positively, and makes favorable recommendations. Tone is friendly and encouraging throughout. --- ## Transcript My quest to visit as many pinball venues in the Tri-State Area as possible, leaving terrible scores in my wake, continued tonight with an impromptu trip to New York City’s Modern Pinball. Modern is completely different than the last arcade I wrote about, Sunshine Laundromat, but both are awesome in their own ways. Modern has no food or drink, is pay by the hour and is not as easy to park at. It’s worth the trip though. There’s tons of great pins there. I didn’t have much time, so I focused my gameplay tonight on the Tri-State Selfie League pins. I played Gorgar, Wheel of Fortune (for the first time ever), The Shadow, Addams Family & Spider-Man. Alas, the other selfie league game Fish Tails was out of order. There was a bunch of other great pins that I would have loved to have played given the time, including the fantastic Dialed In, Scared Stiff, White Water & my recent favorite Aerosmith. Sunshine wasn’t family unfriendly, but I’d say that Modern Pinball is probably the better destination for people with kids in tow who can only go to one place. Kids can play as many games as they want without worrying about quarters and there’s no bar. People who want to enjoy a beer while they play and see a few less common pins should probably check out Sunshine first. Again, you can’t go wrong with either place. So how did I randomly end up at Modern today? My family and I went to the Museum of Natural History this morning. After a great time there and a fantastic Mexican lunch at a place across the street called Cafe Frida we were going to drive home. The problem was that it was rush hour and it would have taken more than an hour and a half to do the drive. So, we decided to let the traffic die down and kill time by going for a walk...in the rain. I tossed Modern Pinball into my Nav just for kicks, never thinking that we’d walk that far...over an hour. Well, we hit Broadway, Times Square, 5th Avenue and the top of the Empire State Building before finding ourselves nearly at Modern. Whew. I’m beat but it was a great day in the city. Here’s a bunch pictures of Modern Pinball. Enjoy and make sure to check it out if you ever find yourself near 3rd Avenue in NYC. Have a great weekend everyone! _(Acquisition: raw_text, Enrichment: v1)_ --- *Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 060f291b-4cab-4efc-9b3c-c2c25238e50b*