# Winchester Mystery House Pinball Machines Now Shipping; Beetlejuice Playfields Being Populated; The Making of Star Wars

**Source:** Knapp Arcade  
**Type:** article  
**Published:** 2026-01-08  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.knapparcade.org/blog/winchester-mystery-house-pinball-machines-now-shipping-beetlejuice-playfields-being-populated-the-making-of-star-wars

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## Analysis

Barrels of Fun has begun shipping Winchester Mystery House pinball machines with improved wiring designs. Spooky Pinball is actively populating Beetlejuice playfields with machines expected to ship before end of month, with several units planned for Pinball at the Beach in early February. Stern Pinball released a behind-the-scenes 'Making Of' video for Star Wars: Fall of the Empire, and Tested was granted rare factory filming access at Chicago Pinball Expo.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Winchester Mystery House pinball machines have begun shipping to customers — _Author states 'Barrels of Fun's new Winchester Mystery House pinball machine recently began shipping to customers'_
- [HIGH] Two Winchester prototype machines are on location for public play at Ayce Gogi in California and Glow in the Park in Wisconsin — _Author mentions 'two of those games on location for the public to play, one at Ayce Gogi in California and one at Glow in the Park in Wisconsin'_
- [HIGH] Barrels of Fun has improved wiring layouts under the playfield for Winchester — _Author states 'Since the initial prototype games, Barrels of Fun has worked at cleaning up the wiring under the playfield'_
- [HIGH] Spooky Pinball is actively populating Beetlejuice playfields and expects shipping before end of January — _Author states 'Spooky Pinball recently shared a short video of its employees hard at work populating the playfields of the first Beetlejuice machines. Hopefully we get to see Beetlejuices start shipping before the end of the month'_
- [HIGH] Multiple Beetlejuice machines will be available to play at Pinball at the Beach (Feb 6-8, 2026) — _Author states 'The upcoming "Pinball at the Beach" show...is supposed to have several Beetlejuice machines for the public to play'_

### Notable Quotes

> "Barrels of Fun's new Winchester Mystery House pinball machine recently began shipping to customers. The first few machines that shipped were prototype games that were built by the Company's engineers."
> — **knapparcade (author)**, opening section
> _Confirms Winchester production has reached customer shipping phase with initial prototype units_

> "Since the initial prototype games, Barrels of Fun has worked at cleaning up the wiring under the playfield."
> — **knapparcade (author)**, mid-article
> _Indicates iterative design improvements being made post-launch, addressing potential reliability concerns_

> "Spooky Pinball recently shared a short video of its employees hard at work populating the playfields of the first Beetlejuice machines. Hopefully we get to see Beetlejuices start shipping before the end of the month."
> — **knapparcade (author)**, mid-article
> _Confirms Beetlejuice is in final manufacturing stages with shipping imminent_

> "Stern often does not allow videos to be taken during its factory tours."
> — **knapparcade (author)**, end section
> _Notes Stern's typical restrictive policy on factory documentation, making the Tested video access unusual_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Barrels of Fun | company | Boutique pinball manufacturer; has shipped Winchester Mystery House machines with improved wiring designs |
| Winchester Mystery House | game | Barrels of Fun pinball machine now shipping to customers with prototype units on location |
| Spooky Pinball | company | Manufacturer actively populating Beetlejuice playfields with expected shipping before end of January 2026 |
| Beetlejuice | game | Spooky Pinball machine in final manufacturing stages; multiple units planned for Pinball at the Beach event |
| Stern Pinball | company | Released 'Making Of' behind-the-scenes video for Star Wars: Fall of the Empire; typically restricts factory filming |
| Star Wars: Fall of the Empire | game | Stern Pinball machine featured in 'Making Of' behind-the-scenes documentary series |
| Pinball at the Beach | event | Annual pinball tournament and expo event in St. Pete Beach, Florida (Feb 6-8, 2026); will feature Beetlejuice machines for public play |
| Ayce Gogi | location | California venue hosting Winchester Mystery House prototype machine for public play |
| Glow in the Park | location | Wisconsin venue hosting Winchester Mystery House prototype machine for public play |
| Tested | media | YouTube channel that filmed inside Stern Pinball's factory during Chicago Pinball Expo; rare access to restricted area |
| Chicago Pinball Expo | event | Annual event where Stern conducts factory tours; Tested was granted filming access |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Winchester Mystery House production and shipping, Beetlejuice manufacturing and release timeline
- **Secondary:** Stern Pinball factory operations and behind-the-scenes content, Pinball at the Beach event and machine availability, Product quality and engineering improvements

### Sentiment

**Positive** (0.78) — Author expresses enthusiasm for products shipping and behind-the-scenes content ('I love seeing behind the scenes of how games are made'). Tone is informative and excited about upcoming availability and events.

### Signals

- **[event_signal]** Pinball at the Beach event will feature multiple Beetlejuice machines for public play in early February (confidence: high) — Author states 'The upcoming "Pinball at the Beach" show...is supposed to have several Beetlejuice machines for the public to play'
- **[market_signal]** Beetlejuice production in final stages with shipping expected within 3 weeks of article publication (confidence: high) — Spooky released video of playfield population; author expects shipping 'before the end of the month' (January 2026)
- **[announcement]** Winchester Mystery House shipping confirmation with prototype units on location at two venues (confidence: high) — Author confirms machines 'recently began shipping to customers' with prototype units at Ayce Gogi and Glow in the Park
- **[product_strategy]** Barrels of Fun implementing wiring layout improvements post-launch to address playfield reliability (confidence: high) — Author notes 'Barrels of Fun has worked at cleaning up the wiring under the playfield' with visual documentation provided

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## Transcript

News Winchester Mystery House Pinball Machines Now Shipping; Beetlejuice Playfields Being Populated; The Making of Star Wars k knapparcade January 8, 2026 Barrels of Fun's new Winchester Mystery House pinball machine recently began shipping to customers. The first few machines that shipped were prototype games that were built by the Company's engineers. As I mentioned in previous articles, two of those games on location for the public to play, one at Ayce Gogi in California and one at Glow in the Park in Wisconsin. I hope that more show up on location so that I can get pictures and some games in on one. Since the initial prototype games, Barrels of Fun has worked at cleaning up the wiring under the playfield. Below is the first image of the new and improved wiring layout. Speaking of new games on the line, Spooky Pinball recently shared a short video of its employees hard at work populating the playfields of the first Beetlejuice machines. Hopefully we get to see Beetlejuices start shipping before the end of the month. The upcoming "Pinball at the Beach" show, which takes place at the Tradewinds Resort in St. Pete's Beach, Florida is supposed to have several Beetlejuice machines for the public to play. That's less than a month away, February 6th through the 8th. Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Download the video instead. This morning, Stern Pinball released a new video in its "Making Of" series. I love seeing behind the scenes of how games are made. This one is for its recent game, Star Wars: Fall of the Empire. The Making of Star Wars: Fall of the Empire Pinball - YouTube Stern Pinball Stern Pinball Search Info Shopping / •Live • Another cool behind-the-scenes video about Stern Pinball's factory recently made its way to YouTube. This is cool because Stern often does not allow videos to be taken during its factory tours. The popular YouTuber channel "Tested" was allowed to film the factory tour at last year's Chicago Pinball Expo. If you missed Stern's annual factory tour at the show, this is a great way to see what it was like. Inside Stern Pinball's Factory! - YouTube Tested Team Inside Stern Pinball's Factory! Tested Team Search Info Shopping / •Live • Posted about 1 month ago k About knapparcade Site administrator Comments (0) Please sign in to join the conversation. No comments yet Be the first to share your thoughts on this post! Related Articles Stern Officially Reveals New Pokémon Pinball Machine 3 days ago Dutch Pinball is NOT Working with Stern to Release Back to the Future 3 days ago Pokémon Reveal Tomorrow?; Beetlejuice Pinball on Location 5 days ago Subscribe to Updates Get the latest pinball news, blog posts, and event announcements delivered to your inbox Subscribe StripeM-Inner

_(Acquisition: raw_text, Enrichment: v1)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: c36693f5-101d-421b-9f43-43ca35257674*