# CHICAGO AREA PINBALL SITES 2018

**Source:** Pinball News Website  
**Type:** article  
**Published:** 2018-10-09  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.pinballnews.com/site/2018/10/09/chicago-pinball-sites-2018

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## Analysis

Dan Marquardt's October 2018 guide to pinball venues in the Chicago area, updated annually before Pinball Expo. The report lists 19+ locations featuring modern and classic pinball machines, with updates on current game rosters at various barcades, arcades, and entertainment venues throughout Chicagoland.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Logan Arcade is a recommended pinball destination in Chicago — _Featured prominently in the list of best pinball sites_
- [HIGH] The Chicago pinball scene has improved due to the popularity of barcades — _Opening statement: 'Mostly due to the continued popularity of barcades, there are numerous locations all over the Chicago area with fun pinball machines available to play'_
- [HIGH] Brixie's in Brookfield features Iron Maiden Premium, Star Wars Premium, Game of Thrones Premium, Ghostbusters Premium, and Total Nuclear Annihilation — _Specific listing with update notation for October 2018_
- [HIGH] Bottom Lounge features a diverse pinball collection including Bobby Orr Power Play, Seawitch, Addams Family, Creature from the Black Lagoon, Funhouse, and Metallica — _Detailed pinball list credited to Gavin Miller_
- [HIGH] Headquarters Beercade (River North) rotated in Houdini, Guardians of the Galaxy Pro, Iron Maiden Pro, and a 1977 Bally Eight Ball — _Specific venue update for October 2018_

### Notable Quotes

> "It only gets better and better to go out and play pinball machines in the Chicago area."
> — **Dan Marquardt**, Opening paragraph
> _Sets positive tone about Chicago pinball scene growth_

> "Mostly due to the continued popularity of barcades, there are numerous locations all over the Chicago area with fun pinball machines available to play."
> — **Dan Marquardt**, Opening section
> _Identifies barcades as primary driver of venue proliferation_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Logan Arcade | venue | Chicago-based pinball arcade featured in venue guide |
| Emporium Arcade Bar (Wicker Park) | venue | Chicago barcade location with pinball machines |
| Galloping Ghost Arcade | venue | Brookfield arcade location |
| Bottom Lounge | venue | Chicago venue with 9+ pinball machines including Metallica and Bugs Bunny's Birthday Ball |
| Headquarters Beercade (River North) | venue | Chicago beercade with 20+ pinball machines |
| Brixie's | venue | Brookfield location with five clean modern pins |
| Uptown Arcade | venue | Chicago arcade with nine pinball machines including Star Wars Pro |
| Replay (Andersonville) | venue | Chicago location featuring Spider-Man Vault Edition, Kiss Premium, X-Men LE |
| Dan Marquardt | person | Author of annual Chicago pinball venue guide, published prior to Pinball Expo |
| Pinball Expo | event | Major annual pinball industry event that guides are published before |
| Pinball Map | organization | Community resource listing pinball locations; provided information for this report |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Chicago pinball venue landscape, Barcade growth and popularity, Pinball game collections at venues
- **Secondary:** Pinball Expo event preparation, Modern pinball machine distribution

### Sentiment

**Positive** (0.85) — Enthusiastic tone about scene growth, optimistic framing of venue expansion and machine availability. No criticism or negative commentary present.

### Signals

- **[community_signal]** Chicago identified as major pinball hub with extensive venue network; Logan Arcade featured prominently (confidence: high) — Multiple dedicated venues, annual guide publication, Pinball Expo connection
- **[market_signal]** Barcade model driving pinball venue proliferation in Chicago area during 2018 (confidence: high) — Direct statement: 'Mostly due to the continued popularity of barcades, there are numerous locations all over the Chicago area'
- **[product_strategy]** Premium and LE tier modern games (Star Wars, Game of Thrones, Iron Maiden) distributed across Chicago venues in 2018 (confidence: high) — Multiple venues featuring Premium and LE versions of current Stern releases

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## Transcript

Date: October 2018 Location: Various, Chicago, IL, USA Each year, just prior to Pinball Expo, Dan Marquardt updates his report on the best pinball sites in the Chicagoland area for those visiting the metropolis. Here is his look at the pinball scene in the Windy City for 2018. It only gets better and better to go out and play pinball machines in the Chicago area. Mostly due to the continued popularity of barcades, there are numerous locations all over the Chicago area with fun pinball machines available to play. Here is a list of the locations I have enjoyed visiting so far. Some of the sites articles referenced are by M.G. Brown. Pinball Map has many more locations listed on their website. They very kindly gave me permission to use information from their excellent website for some of my updates. | | | --- | | | | Logan Arcade Logan Arcade | Replay in Lincoln Park Replay in Lincoln Park Emporium Arcade Bar (Wicker Park) Emporium Arcade Bar (Wicker Park) Lemming's Tavern Lemming’s Tavern | | | | | | --- | --- | --- | 5. | Brixie’s – Brookfield See previous report Update: An awesome wall of five super clean pins. Iron Maiden Premium, Star Wars Premium, Game of Thrones Premium, Ghostbusters Premium and Total Nuclear Annihilation are the current titles. | | | Brixie's in Brookfield Brixie’s in Brookfield | | | | --- | | | | Galloping Ghost Arcade in Brookfield Galloping Ghost Arcade The pinballs were busy Gameworks in Schaumburg Level 257 Level 257 Chicago Street Pinball Arcade Chicago Street Pinball Arcade | | | | | | --- | --- | --- | 10. | Bottom Lounge – Chicago Pinball list courtesy of Gavin Miller: Bobby Orr Power Play x 2, Seawitch, The Addams Family, Creature from the Black Lagoon, Funhouse, Gilligan’s Island, The Champion Pub, Metallica and Bugs Bunny’s Birthday Ball. Bottom Lounge in Chicago Bottom Lounge in Chicago | | --- | 11. | Round 1 – Aurora Aerosmith LE, Guardians of the Galaxy LE, Star Wars LE and a Ghostbusters Pro. Article coming very soon. | 12. | Headquarters Beercade (River North) – Chicago Headquarters’ second location features over twenty top pins which are listed on their website. Update: Houdini, Guardians of the Galaxy Pro, Iron Maiden Pro and a Bally Eight Ball from 1977 have been rotated in. | | | Headquarters Beercade (River North) Headquarters Beercade (River North) | | | | --- | | | | Emporium Logan Square Emporium Logan Square --- | 14. | Brauer House – Lombard Update:Six pins, including Iron Maiden Pro, Total Nuclear Annihilation and The Who’s Tommy. | | | Brauer House games Brauer House games Five & Dime Five & Dime 16. | Uptown Arcade – Chicago Update: They now have nine pins including a Star Wars Pro. | 17. | FTW – Chicago Update: Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead and Medieval Madness are the current pins. FTW in Chicago FTW in Chicago 19. | Replay (Andersonville) – Chicago Update: Spider-Man Vault Edition, Kiss Premium and X-Men LE are the current pins. | |

_(Acquisition: raw_text, Enrichment: v1)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 91ee1b47-62ca-40d0-903c-b58406c9e597*