# Noah Crable on His Surprise Run to the 2026 IFPA National Championship Final **Source:** Kineticist **Type:** article **Published:** 2026-03-20 **Beat:** Pinball **URL:** https://www.kineticist.com/news/noah-crable-interview --- ## Analysis Noah Crable, a competitive pinball player from the Boston area, discusses his unexpected runner-up finish at the 2026 IFPA National Championship. The interview covers his entry into pinball through digital games (Pinball Hall of Fame, Pinball Arcade), his approach to learning rules and mastering machines, his tournament preparation strategy, and his observations about regional pinball scenes and competitive play styles. Crable credits his success to location practice, rules guides, and learning from stronger opponents. ### Key Claims - [HIGH] Noah Crable finished second at the 2026 IFPA National Championship — _Matt Owen opening statement: 'Congratulations on your second-place finish in the 2026 IFPA Nationals!'_ - [HIGH] Crable was introduced to pinball at age 6 through Pinball Hall of Fame: The Gottlieb Collection on Nintendo GameCube — _Noah Crable: 'I first discovered pinball at around age 6. I was big into video games and got the Nintendo GameCube port of Pinball Hall of Fame: The Gottlieb Collection as a birthday present one year.'_ - [HIGH] The Boston pinball scene has improved significantly over the past 10 years — _Noah Crable: 'The Boston area is thankfully a gold mine when it comes to pinball, especially compared to about 10 years ago when I first started.'_ - [HIGH] A Boston location gained new ownership in 2024 and operates as a Stern showroom — _Noah Crable: '[Location] after years of being a fairly ignored location, gained new ownership in 2024, serving as a Stern showroom and has a lot of their newest releases.'_ - [HIGH] Crable played States tournament in New Hampshire at Funspot rather than Massachusetts — _Noah Crable: 'I played States at in New Hampshire against quite a few incredible players from the New England area'_ - [HIGH] Crable won his final match (for the States tournament) on Black Knight (1987) by using inlane passing/shatzing techniques — _Noah Crable: 'The final match was insane! I went 3-3 against my opponent and got to choose the final machine, (Williams, 1987)... I had learned that shatzing/alley passing the inlanes could result in massive scores.'_ - [HIGH] The Chicago pinball scene features more dedicated/serious players compared to Boston — _Noah Crable: 'Up in Boston, a lot of the players that I encounter are players who might put one game on a machine and leave, while in Chicago, the players seem way more dedicated.'_ - [HIGH] Crable creates rules guides published on Kineticist — _Noah Crable: 'part of the reason why I write the guides on and Kineticist is so that I can write them down and understand the intended progression of the game.'_ ### Notable Quotes > "I was especially entranced by Victory (Gottlieb, 1987) and Tee'd Off (Gottlieb, 1993) with the goals of having to hit shots in a certain order to progress through the game." > — **Noah Crable** > _Explains the foundational appeal that drew him into pinball—structured shot progression mechanics from his early digital experience._ > "if I were to approach physical pinball the same way I do digital pinball, I would need to retain as much rules knowledge as I could." > — **Noah Crable** > _Articulates his core methodology: translating video game rules mastery into physical pinball competence._ > "The main mistake I make in tournaments is feeling that I've mastered flipper skills on a game and ignore them when I really shouldn't." > — **Noah Crable** > _Candid self-assessment of competitive weaknesses; reveals the importance of continuous mechanical improvement._ > "I feel that pinball audio goes really underappreciated and helps with my enjoyment of the game." > — **Noah Crable** > _Highlights sensory/design elements of pinball often overlooked by newer or casual players._ > "I was frankly shocked to learn that I had won - though I looked quiet on the outside, I was thinking to myself, 'Oh man, what's next?! I can't believe I did it!'" > — **Noah Crable** > _Reveals his emotional reaction to winning States—an unexpected breakthrough moment in his competitive trajectory._ > "having played on such difficult copies, it was like I had an advantage when I joined the tournament." > — **Noah Crable** > _Underscores how machine condition and difficulty variance across locations affects tournament performance._ > "They also have a much more aggressive play style on average compared to myself, and that's something I'm still trying to learn, being able to nudge a game without risking a tilt and knowing at all times where the ball might be heading." > — **Noah Crable** > _Identifies a key skill gap he's working to close—aggressive nudge control and spatial ball awareness._ > "Jason was able to beat the 15 million point score I managed on just 3 balls! That was a lot of fun and just plain impressive to watch." > — **Noah Crable** > _Demonstrates respect for opponent skill and ability to maintain composure and positivity even when outplayed._ ### Entities | Name | Type | Context | |------|------|---------| | Noah Crable | person | Competitive pinball player from Boston area; 2026 IFPA National Championship runner-up; rules guide author for Kineticist | | Matt Owen | person | Interviewer; lifelong gamer and media enthusiast; pinball player and broadcaster | | Pinball Hall of Fame: The Gottlieb Collection | product | Nintendo GameCube pinball game; Crable's entry point into pinball at age 6; features Victory and Tee'd Off | | Pinball Arcade | product | Digital pinball collection that deepened Crable's interest; featured Twilight Zone and Star Trek: TNG; no longer available for purchase | | Pinball FX | product | Digital pinball platform continuing to release Williams machine ports; Crable hopes it serves as entry point for new players | | Game of Thrones | game | Stern 2015 machine; Crable attended launch party; represented new complexity level in physical pinball play | | Godzilla | game | Stern 2021 machine; exemplifies modern design with straightforward early game but deeper late-game rules progression | | Twilight Zone | game | Bally 1993 machine; key game that solidified Crable's interest in physical pinball; used in States tournament | | Star Trek: The Next Generation | game | Williams 1993 machine; fully engaged Crable into the hobby via digital version; used in States tournament | | The Uncanny X-Men | game | Stern 2024 machine; Crable chose it in every group during North American Championship; known for difficult scoring mechanics | | King Kong: Myth of Terror Island | game | Stern 2025 machine; Crable's strategic 'ace' choice during States finals | | Black Knight | game | Williams 1987 machine; Crable's final match selection at States; won using inlane passing/shatzing techniques | | NBA Fastbreak | game | Bally 1997 machine; helped Crable win against Eric Stone by mastering left orbit and ramp timing | | Eight Ball Deluxe | game | Bally 1981 machine; difficult against Jason Zahler due to bumper house ball generation | | Bad Girls | game | Gottlieb 1988 machine; Crable's frequent strategic choice in playoffs; Jason Zahler scored 15M+ on 3 balls | | Mata Hari | game | Bally 1978 machine; one of Crable's favorite older games and frequent playoff selection | | Funspot | venue | Tournament venue in New Hampshire; made exceptional strides in pinball offerings over past year; hosted States | | Kineticist | organization | Publication/platform where Crable publishes rules guides for pinball machines | | IFPA | organization | International Flipper Pinball Association; organizes National Championship and competitive rankings | | Jason Zahler | person | Competitive pinball player; finalist in 2026 IFPA Nationals; aggressive play style that inspired Crable | | Eric Stone | person | Competitive pinball player; defeated by Crable on NBA Fastbreak | | Boston area pinball scene | event | Regional competitive and casual pinball community; improved significantly over past decade; multiple venues with diverse machine collections | ### Topics - **Primary:** Digital-to-Physical Pinball Transition, Rules Knowledge and Learning Methodology, Competitive Tournament Strategy and Tactics, Regional Pinball Venue Quality and Community Culture - **Secondary:** Machine Condition and Difficulty Variance Impact, Aggressive Play Style Development, Competitive Scene Dynamics (Boston vs. Chicago), Flipper Skill and Mechanical Mastery ### Sentiment **Neutral** (0) ### Signals - **[competitive_signal]** Noah Crable's unexpected runner-up finish at 2026 IFPA Nationals signals emergence of new competitive talent; his progression from States to Nationals in same season indicates rapid competitive development. (confidence: high) — Crable: 'I was frankly shocked to learn that I had won' (States); interview title indicates 'Surprise Run to the 2026 IFPA National Championship Final' - **[venue_signal]** Boston-area pinball venues have experienced significant growth and improvement over past 10 years, with new ownership and Stern showroom model creating better infrastructure for competitive play. (confidence: high) — Crable: 'The Boston area is thankfully a gold mine when it comes to pinball, especially compared to about 10 years ago' and '[Location] gained new ownership in 2024, serving as a Stern showroom' - **[community_signal]** Rules guides and tutorials are emerging as critical learning infrastructure in competitive pinball community; Crable and others creating detailed documentation to help players master complex rule sets. (confidence: high) — Crable: 'part of the reason why I write the guides on and Kineticist is so that I can write them down and understand the intended progression of the game.' - **[community_signal]** Significant cultural differences exist between Boston and Chicago pinball scenes; Chicago appears to have more dedicated, serious competitive players while Boston has more casual/transient players. (confidence: high) — Crable: 'Up in Boston, a lot of the players that I encounter are players who might put one game on a machine and leave, while in Chicago, the players seem way more dedicated.' - **[gameplay_signal]** Machine setup, wear, and condition significantly affects tournament performance; Crable attributes competitive advantage to practicing on difficult/worn copies before facing easier Chicago machines. (confidence: high) — Crable: 'the machines I'd played up here in Massachusetts [were difficult], but having played on such difficult copies, it was like I had an advantage when I joined the tournament.' - **[historical_signal]** Digital pinball collections (Pinball Hall of Fame, Pinball Arcade, Pinball FX) serve as critical entry points for new players into the hobby; Crable's experience exemplifies this pathway from video games to competitive physical pinball. (confidence: high) — Crable: 'I first discovered pinball at around age 6... got the Nintendo GameCube port of Pinball Hall of Fame' and later 'The Pinball Arcade was what fully got me into pinball' - **[design_philosophy]** Modern pinball machines feature intentional early-game accessibility with late-game rule depth (exemplified by Godzilla); this design philosophy allows casual and competitive players to engage at different levels. (confidence: medium) — Crable on Godzilla: 'has a fairly straightforward early game (light a battle at the ramps and then start it at the scoop), but later in the game, you get deeper into the rules' - **[content_signal]** Kineticist emerging as platform for detailed rules guides and machine tutorials; appears to be serving similar archival/educational function as older guide sites. (confidence: medium) — Matt Owen: 'I'm sure that he'll continue to whip up excellent rulesheets and tutorials for the latest pinball machines, so be sure to check back here whenever a new Stern drops' - **[personality_signal]** Competitive players employ multi-modal learning: location practice, video tutorials, rules guides, and match play against stronger opponents; documentation (writing guides) aids personal understanding and mastery. (confidence: high) — Crable: 'I love watching tutorials... and of course, part of the reason why I write the guides on and Kineticist is so that I can write them down and understand the intended progression' - **[product_strategy]** Stern leveraging showroom model at locations to improve accessibility to newest releases; signals strategy to maintain visibility and trial opportunities for new machines in competitive regions. (confidence: medium) — Boston venue 'after years of being a fairly ignored location, gained new ownership in 2024, serving as a Stern showroom and has a lot of their newest releases.' - **[competitive_signal]** High-level competitive players exhibit distinct play styles (aggressive nudging vs. conservative play); mastering these different approaches is identified as gap Crable needs to close for future advancement. (confidence: medium) — Crable: 'They also have a much more aggressive play style on average compared to myself, and that's something I'm still trying to learn, being able to nudge a game without risking a tilt' --- ## Transcript Like what you're reading? Get pinball news, analysis, and deep dives delivered to your inbox. Get pinball news, analysis, and deep dives delivered to your inbox. Note: This interview has been edited for content, clarity, and length. Matt Owen: First off, congratulations on your second-place finish in the 2026 IFPA Nationals! Let's start with your introduction to pinball. How long have you been playing pinball, and what first made you interested in it? Noah Crable: I first discovered pinball at around age 6. I was big into video games and got the Nintendo GameCube port of Pinball Hall of Fame: The Gottlieb Collection as a birthday present one year. I was especially entranced by Victory (Gottlieb, 1987) and Tee’d Off (Gottlieb, 1993) with the goals of having to hit shots in a certain order to progress through the game. A few years later, I learned by chance that the developer of that game planned to do an updated version that accounted for tables from other manufacturers, as well as the older Gottlieb ones. The Pinball Arcade was what fully got me into pinball and especially learning how each machine worked, with Twilight Zone (Bally, 1993) and Star Trek: The Next Generation (Williams, 1993) being the machines that fully got me into the hobby. Though The Pinball Arcade isn’t available for purchase anymore, Pinball FX still releases digital versions of a lot of the Williams machines and I hope to see people get into pinball through that game. As for real-life pinball, my earliest memories of playing physical pinball with the mindset I do now were at the launch parties for Game of Thrones (Stern, 2015) and (Stern, 2016) at a now-closed location called . Both games were at a new level of complexity to me and taught me that if I were to approach physical pinball the same way I do digital pinball, I would need to retain as much rules knowledge as I could.Noah: It depends on the machine. On a lot of older tables, rules knowledge is a very low priority for me outside of knowing what results in the highest ratio of points per minute (ie, shooting a lit spinner, and how to light that spinner). Newer tables are more comparable to a video game in that they offer lots of ways to get a potentially high score, or on some machines, offer a few options and encourage the player to create their own, which assumes that the player is willing to learn the rules anyway. For instance, Godzilla (Stern, 2021) has a fairly straightforward early game (light a battle at the ramps and then start it at the scoop), but later in the game, you get deeper into the rules, having to travel to different cities to progress to the next battle and find ways to boost your powerup meter. The main mistake I make in tournaments is feeling that I’ve mastered flipper skills on a game and ignore them when I really shouldn’t.For the record, I love both old and new machines about equally, it just depends on what I’m in the mood for. (Bally, 1980) and (Bally, 1981) are two of my favorite older games and they feel quite a bit different from each other, with the former being a standard knock down the drop targets and rip the spinner game, and the latter having quite a few shots that require accuracy and timing as well as a 2x/3x playfield rule that can greatly impact scoring.Noah: I just approached States/Nationals the same way I always do with any other tournament: by playing on location. However, I also love watching tutorials, especially for the older machines that I’m not as familiar with. taught me how to play some of these machines long before I ever actually encountered them, and recently I’ve been using the to learn rules for older machines and ones that don’t have guides already. And of course, part of the reason why I write the guides on and Kineticist is so that I can write them down and understand the intended progression of the game.Noah: The Boston area is thankfully a gold mine when it comes to pinball, especially compared to about 10 years ago when I first started. I enjoy locations where I can hear the machine at a good volume, as I feel that pinball audio goes really underappreciated and helps with my enjoyment of the game. Lately, my #1 location has been , which, after years of being a fairly ignored location, gained new ownership in 2024, serving as a Stern showroom and has a lot of their newest releases. I also play at both of the locations which specialize in older machines (and are incredibly well maintained), as well as and which have a mix of old and new machines.Noah: Well, there’s , of course. But outside of that, I feel that there is a physicality to pinball that is unmatched by other video games or game-adjacent hobbies. Even when I first started out playing digital pinball, I always wondered how the machines worked and was fascinated by what their designers intended to accomplish with the game mechanics. I distinctly remember being absolutely hyped a few years ago when (Stern, 2023) released, seeing the playfield design and especially the right orbit shot, as someone who loves some of the more experimental pinball layouts. Every game that releases is another chance to learn new rules, new strategies, and new shots to make (or recover from).Noah: I played States at in New Hampshire against quite a few incredible players from the New Robert Englunds area, not because I found New Hampshire to be “easier” (it’s States, it’s guaranteed to be difficult!) but just because it was easier for me to access than the Massachusetts location. Funspot has made some exceptional strides in pinball over the past year or so and the game list for finals proved that: I put a lot of faith into (Williams, 1993) and of course Star Trek: The Next Generation for my mid-aged picks, and used King Kong: Myth of Terror Island (Stern, 2025) as the ace up my sleeve in case anything went wrong.The final match was insane! I went 3-3 against my opponent and got to choose the final machine, (Williams, 1987), a slightly less common game that I had practiced on during the hour before the tournament began. I had learned that shatzing/alley passing the inlanes could result in massive scores and progress, and used that rule knowledge to win the game. I was frankly shocked to learn that I had won - though I looked quiet on the outside, I was thinking to myself, “Oh man, what’s next?! I can’t believe I did it!” But I don’t think I would’ve won if it weren’t for the help of all the people I’ve played against in the past, including those whom I won against during States (quite a few of which also had to result in tiebreakers).Noah: The trip to Chicago was also my very first time travelling by myself, so it was a little stressful, but the stress quickly faded once I learned how everything worked. Chicago was fairly comparable to the Boston area from what I saw of it, but the pinball scene felt very different down there from what it was like in Boston. Up in Boston, a lot of the players that I encounter are players who might put one game on a machine and leave, while in Chicago, the players seem way more dedicated. Interestingly, I noticed quite a few of the games in Chicago felt easier to play than the machines I’ve played up here in Massachusetts, but having played on such difficult copies, it was like I had an advantage when I joined the tournament. I enjoyed my trip a lot and wouldn’t mind travelling to play in tournaments more often.Noah: I was dreading having to play against , , and . All three are amazing players and great friends who have inspired my play style in a few different ways and I knew that if I were paired up against any of them, it would be incredibly difficult to beat them. They also have a much more aggressive play style on average compared to myself, and that’s something I’m still trying to learn, being able to nudge a game without risking a tilt and knowing at all times where the ball might be heading. Noah: NBA Fastbreak (Bally, 1997) helped me win a match against Eric Stone but it was a hard-earned fight, one that started with a house ball and ended once I found the timing on the left orbit and ramp shots. But against Jason Zahler things went quite differently; I hadn’t found the timing of the midtown ramp on The Uncanny X-Men (Stern, 2024), which seemed to change over the course of the day, and some of his choices were ones I lacked experience with (Eight Ball Deluxe (Bally 1981) was truly vile, with the bumpers providing two house balls for me in a row). It was amazing being able to play against Jason, though, especially for the final match, and especially during that round on Bad Girls (Gottlieb, 1988) where Jason was able to beat the 15 million point score I managed on just 3 balls! That was a lot of fun and just plain impressive to watch, and shows that even that late in the day, Jason played well in spite of fatigue, something I still need to learn how to control myself. Matt: When it comes to choosing games during playoffs or finals for a tournament, what's your strategy? Do you think it's better to choose a game that you're comfortable with, or one that you think your opponent will do poorly on? Noah: It depends on the opponent but I generally prioritize the former, and if I think my opponent will do lousy on it then that’s an added bonus. During the North American Championship, I picked The Uncanny X-Men in every group, partly because I had a good round of it during practice and partly because I knew that a lot of people struggled with that machine and finding ways to score points effectively on it. For older games, I instead picked the games that I was most comfortable with which often resulted in choosing Mata Hari (Bally, 1978) and Bad Girls. I picked (Gottlieb, 1986) once, but after a first game on it that went well, the machine took pleasure in making me look like a horrible player for the rest of the weekend.Noah: My only other hobby is collecting and archiving VHS tapes. Not very related to pinball, but archiving the contents and print dates of these tapes is pretty comparable to how I create my rules guides, and like with pinball designs, I always found some of the decisions on these VHS tapes to be fascinating. And Williams did release promos for their pinball machines on VHS at one point! I heard Data East might have done some too, but those haven’t seen the light of day yet; hopefully soon.Noah: , (Stern, 2024), and . Sorry, (Bally, 1994), I love you too, don’t worry!Thanks again for Noah for taking the time to answer my questions and for the length and care he put into his responses. Based on his performance in competition over the past few months and his desire to travel more, I hope to see him on the Stern Pro Circuit soon! Regardless, I'm sure that he'll continue to whip up excellent rulesheets and tutorials for the latest pinball machines, so be sure to check back here whenever a new Stern drops so you can check out his latest guide. Matt Owen is a lifelong gamer and overall media fiend. He can often be found playing endless hours of games or watching an absurd amount of movies and television: action, horror, mystery, and sci-fi in particular. When he's not bingeing entertainment media, Matt enjoys reading and writing fiction, playing pinball, broadcasting, and attempting to cook. _(Acquisition: web_scrape, Enrichment: v4)_ --- *Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 66fa02b3-2caa-4258-a0d8-99753dbee14b*