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California Extreme

eventactive57 mentionsFirst seen Jun 1, 2011Last seen Dec 23, 2025

Profile

California Extreme is an annual pinball and gaming convention/show held in the Bay Area, established by at least the early 2010s. It serves as a major hub for the pinball community, hosting tournaments, early access gameplay opportunities, and attracting both casual and competitive players. The event is closely associated with Bay Area pinball culture and has been featured in pinball documentaries like Flipped.

Aliases

No aliases

Relationships

No relationships

Facts

  • achievementFeatured in Flipped documentary footagemedium
  • attributeMajor Bay Area pinball event that epitomizes pinball culturehigh
  • attributeHosts pinball and arcade machineshigh
  • attributeAnnual pinball and gaming convention/showhigh
  • attributeAttracts long-term community participants with 10+ year engagementhighfrom 2010
  • attributeScheduled same weekend as Pinburgmedium
  • attributeVenue for pinball tournaments and competitionshigh

Claims

No claims

Recent Mentions (58)

  • Arcade/pinball event in 2015 where Jay Adelson and Ron Richards conceptualized hardware-based solution

    Over Ten Years in the Making, Scorbit is on the Verge of a BreakoutOct 26, 2025
  • Historic pinball tournament event where Dave competed in 2003; featured notable players like Neil Schatz and Keith Elwynn.

    Episode 1: The Classic Pinball Podcast - Pintastic pinball show previewJun 22, 2019
  • Annual arcade and pinball show held in July in Northern California; major collector showcase; attracts rare and prototype games; community gathering for arcade enthusiasts

    The Spinner Is Lit - Episode 66 Summer BreakAug 27, 2024
  • July 2019 pinball and arcade show in Santa Clara, California; features pinball, arcade games, video games, and pre-video mechanical arcade

    episode 17. solo on a dark and stormy nightJan 7, 2019
  • Annual gaming convention where Jim Martin played his first pinball tournament

    The Spinner Is Lit - Episode 53 The Fallout ShelterFeb 8, 2023
  • July 2020 pinball event, cancellation status unknown as of May 20, 2020 episode recording

    Episode - 31. the odessey, or the waybac.

Contradictions

  • Existing: California Extreme is a pinball eventvsConflicting: Mention 5 describes an arcade/gaming event in 2015 where a business pivot occurred, but does not explicitly identify this as California Extreme
    Resolved
    kept_existing · Mar 2, 2026
  • Existing: California Extreme is an annual pinball/gaming conventionvsConflicting: Mention 3 references 'Concord Champ 2025' at 'The Flipper Room' location, not California Extreme
    Resolved
    kept_existing · Mar 2, 2026

Related Glossary Terms

No linked glossary terms

Mar 21, 2020
  • Annual pinball expo; 2020 event canceled; virtual alternative planned for July 5 with online seminars

    episode 32. rebooting normal lifeJun 7, 2020
  • Annual West Coast arcade machine show in Santa Clara, CA; major venue for pinball and arcade gaming; features tournaments, seminars, and multiplayer experiences

    Episode 77_Cruel SummerJul 29, 2025
  • Arcade/gaming expo in California where Joe Abate displayed his laser disc collection restoration work

    The Spinner Is Lit - Episode 74_Joe Abate_OperatorMay 1, 2025
  • Annual arcade and pinball festival that Jeff Rivera attends regularly

    Episode 125 - Interview with Jeff Rivera 7-8-15Jul 14, 2015
  • July 29-30, Santa Clara CA; vintage arcade and pinball show; convention-style at Hyatt; Spencer attended 2 years prior

    The Spinner Is Lit - Episode 6: Pinball Show the LoveMay 29, 2017
  • Major pinball show in California; growing attendance creating crowding issues; tournament format changed to Bay Bird match-play format

    Episode 165 – Orange CrushApr 22, 2021
  • San Jose pinball and arcade show; October 2021; smaller than usual; organized by Mark and TJ

    The Spinner Is Lit -Episode 42 - Shows, Road Trips, And Queso CheeseNov 16, 2021
  • California pinball/arcade show, mixed retro gaming focus, video game integration, one-room venue, beer pricing $14

    The Spinner Is Lit - Episode 52 Unwrapping 2022Dec 30, 2022
  • Gaming event in California where Eric Stone and George competed together; Eric's first pinball tournament experience

    #51 - The Pinball Asylum - The Classic Pinball PodcastMar 16, 2021
  • Annual pinball and arcade show attended by Ron and Bruce; features rare vintage machines and tournament play; 2016 event had Keith Elwin dominating tournament

    Episode 2 – Sophomore Jinx?Jul 21, 2016
  • Gaming expo/convention in Santa Clara, Bay Area; host mentions planning to attend this weekend

    Toy Story 4 (Jersey Jack Pinball 2022)Aug 3, 2022
  • Two years prior, streamer discovered virtual Congo here; tournament venue

    Congo (Williams 1995) Virtual PinOct 1, 2019
  • Arcade/pinball event where streamer played Godzilla and interacted with community members like Flipstream

    Unreal Tournament 99 CTF 288M ScoreOct 28, 2021
  • Annual arcade/pinball event where Kingpin is available to play

    Virtual Pinball in Virtual RealityMar 5, 2020
  • Historical pinball tournament; Jason Lewin was top classics qualifier ~15 years ago

    INDISC 2023 Classics I Playoffs - SemifinalsOct 23, 2023
  • Major pinball event in Bay Area; Xyren plans to compete there; earned 1,238 WPPR

    PNP Ep. 561- Xyren Silvers: The Sk8boarding Pinball Prodigy/Covid Kid From From Boise IdahoMar 28, 2024
  • 2015 show in San Francisco where Scorebit founders had initial concept conversation

    ScorbitJul 12, 2022
  • Large arcade/pinball event where paper scoresheet problems inspired D'Angelo to develop tournament management software; annual tradition

    Episode 70 – Blue SwedeNov 23, 2017
  • Arcade/pinball event where Andre teaches pinball strategy classes

    Jurassic Park Premium (Stern 2019)Oct 4, 2021
  • Arcade/pinball event where Manu briefly played Led Zeppelin Pro version and walked away unimpressed

    Led Zepplin Premium (Stern 2020)Dec 20, 2021
  • Arcade/retro gaming event where Jon Hey discovered and first played TNA around 2017-2018

    Total Nuclear Annihilation VPX with Scott DanesiMay 22, 2023
  • Tournament where Manu competed and placed 16th

    The Big Lebowski (Dutch Pinball 2016)Nov 29, 2020
  • Pinball event where host played Elvis machine; noted condition was poor

    Virtual Pinball: Elvis (Stern 2004) with PuP PackAug 26, 2020
  • Pinball/arcade tournament featured in Wizard Mode documentary

    Wizard Mode World PremiereMay 2, 2016
  • Large pinball competition venue/event featured in the documentary

    WIZARD MODE WORLD PREMIEREMay 4, 2016
  • Venue where scenes from Pinball Donut Girl were filmed; provided location and pinball machine access

    Pinball Film Seeks FundingOct 15, 2011
  • Gaming convention where one scene of Pinball Donut Girl was filmed

    News in BriefJan 1, 2012
  • Show where Skit-B announced Experts of Dangerous

    New Game Round-upJun 1, 2011
  • Arcade/pinball expo in August 2023 where pre-production Venom units likely to appear

    Confirmation that Stern Pinball's Next Cornerstone Game Will Indeed Be Playable at Comic-ConJun 21, 2023
  • Gaming convention where DRI374 conducted interview with Randy Martinez about Masters of the Universe artwork

    Taking Stuff and Running...Stern Pinball Masters of the Universe Coming in 2023?Aug 4, 2022
  • Pinball/arcade event going remote this year with Zen Studios sponsorship/support

    Let's ride bikes!Jul 27, 2020
  • Convention Kyle attended early in his community engagement

    Around the Playfield: The Kyle Spiteri InterviewJun 26, 2025
  • Major arcade and pinball gaming convention/expo in California featuring hundreds of playable machines, vendors, and homebrews

    California Extreme 360°: An Immersive ExperienceAug 23, 2024
  • Early major tournament; one of founding ~10 annual events in early IFPA era

    Episode 351: Brian Shepherd, the IFPA Man Behind The CurtainNov 17, 2022
  • Arcade/retro gaming event; Carl visited Winchester Mystery House during trip to California Extreme approximately 20 years ago

    Exploring the Winchester Mystery House – A Haunted Pinball Machine from Barrels of FunOct 13, 2025
  • Tournament Johnny regularly attends with good success

    Episode 277: Surviving Johnny ModicaSep 1, 2020
  • Retro gaming/arcade event where Jay Adelson conceived the idea of adding automatic score capture device to machines.

    Episode 214: ScorbitAug 9, 2019
  • Major expo event that adopted limited qualifying format alongside Texas Pinball Festival

    Episode 19: Bob MatthewsFeb 6, 2017
  • Pinball tournament with good reputation per Trent

    Episode 24: Trent AugensteinMar 3, 2017
  • Regional circuit event in Bay Area that draws national-level competition from West Coast

    Episode 158: Andrei Massenkoff…on the fly!Oct 5, 2018
  • Pinball and gaming conference where Dwight attempted collaborative wizard mode invention for Ghostbusters; audience reception poor, blamed for code delays (humorously).

    Episode 226: Dwight Sullivan returnsOct 31, 2019
  • Major arcade and pinball convention; sometimes conflicts with Pinberg scheduling; recommended as alternative for tournament play

    Episode 116: Imoto “Arcade” HarneyMar 20, 2018
  • Major Bay Area pinball event that epitomizes pinball culture for Miller; featured in Flipped documentary footage; scheduled same weekend as Pinburg

    Episode 42: Mike MillerMay 22, 2017
  • Annual tournament where DeAngelo began competitive play; inspired development of It Never Drains software to address tournament efficiency issues

    Episode 15: Karl DeAngelo, iepinballJan 14, 2017
  • Tournament where Bowen serves as organizer while also competing; he finds simultaneous organizer/player role 'very harrowing'

    Episodes 3 & 4: Bowen Kerins, part 1 & 2Nov 8, 2016
  • Arcade/gaming event in 2015 where Adelson pivoted Scorbit concept from app to hardware solution

    Over Ten Years in the Making, Scorbit is on the Verge of a BreakoutOct 16, 2025
  • Venue where speaker played Jaws 50th Anniversary before show opened; early access gameplay

    Tiermaker: Pinball Machines Produced in 2025. Streamed from Raccoon City Arcade.Dec 23, 2025
  • Previous tournament where commentator provided Walking Dead finals commentary; location where Zach competed

    Concord Champ '25: Quarters, Game 1/4 on The Walking Dead by Stern. Streamed from The Flipper Room.Nov 18, 2025
  • Major pinball event where Michael previously filmed with camcorder without proper white balance adjustment, resulting in poor video quality

    The Panasonic Enigma: Camcorder or mirrorless for the Pocket Rig PF? Ranted at Raccoon City Arcade.Aug 26, 2025
  • Pinball/arcade event where Ron and Brian introduced Jay to pinball machines

    DPP #221 "Scorbit Interview!"Dec 16, 2025
  • Annual pinball/gaming convention/show. Kyle first attended ~2010-2011, has attended almost every year since, indicating long engagement with community.

    Dirty Pool Podcast - Ep13 - Kyle Spiteri - Motorcycles, Cats, and Stern Support GuruJul 23, 2025
  • Pinball tournament/expo event being covered

    California Extreme 2025 - RecoveryJul 24, 2025