LEGO Pinball Machine Gets You From the Shire to Mordor

LEGO Lord of the Rings Pingball Machine

Master builder Jonas’ latest creation is the epitome of geekiness, as it brings together Lord of the Rings and LEGO, in the form of a fully functional pinball machine.

Jonas, who isn’t exactly at his first LEGO build, has put a lot of thought into creating this pinball machine. Over the course of 12 hours, he used more than 2,000 LEGO pieces to put together this Lord of the Rings-themed contraption that not only looks great, but it can also help you pass the time.

“Odd-mashups are way more interesting than mashups you would expect. But the real reason for the mix with Lord of the Rings was simply that I hadn’t built something from my favorite movies for ages,” explained Jonas in an interview with Jennifer from The Brothers Brick, when asked why did he choose Lord of the Rings as this pinball machine’s theme. “Furthermore I planned the pinball machine in a pretty large scale, so I had to watch out to have the right amount of bricks in the right colors available. After collecting bricks for Middle Earth creations over the last few years, choosing to use that color palate would be a safe bet.”

Included in this arcade masterpiece are some of the most iconic locations from Middle Earth: Hobbiton (the ball shooter lane), Helms Deep, Ortanc, Weathertop (one of the bumpers), Fangorn, Minas Tirith, and even the Black Gates of Mordor that have taken the role of flippers.

In fact, Jonas pointed out that getting the flippers right didn’t actually present a challenge to him, but the pin turned out to be problematic. The play features, while difficult to implement, are now Jonas’ favorite part of the final creation:

“I mostly tend to build creations that focus highly on the aesthetics, colors and details. To push me out of that comfort zone I decided to build something that had to have real working features. A pinball machine seemed to be something that could be fun to build and fun to play with later.”

Since he has tackled various themes in his builds, ranging from Star Wars and Star Trek to District 9 and Deadpool, I must admit that I would like to see more such geeky pinball machines. The LoTR LEGO arcade was created specifically for the Iron Builder contest on Flickr, but I don’t think that such a talented builder needs incentives like this one all the time to produce remarkable contraptions.

It’s really amazing what some people can do in such a short amount of time with so many LEGO pieces. The project must have been thought out beforehand, but it’s still very impressive that Jonas has managed to put together a complex arcade machine in just 12 hours. This should really be seen as a proof of determination, as I think that Jonas’ pinball machine exemplifies more than just his creativity.

Be social! Follow Walyou on Facebook and Twitter, and read more related stories about the LEGO Discworld characters, or the LEGO Doctor Who set that went on sale in December.

[via The Brothers Brick]

LEGO Pinball Machine Gets You From the Shire to Mordor

LEGO Lord of the Rings Pingball Machine

Master builder Jonas’ latest creation is the epitome of geekiness, as it brings together Lord of the Rings and LEGO, in the form of a fully functional pinball machine.

Jonas, who isn’t exactly at his first LEGO build, has put a lot of thought into creating this pinball machine. Over the course of 12 hours, he used more than 2,000 LEGO pieces to put together this Lord of the Rings-themed contraption that not only looks great, but it can also help you pass the time.

“Odd-mashups are way more interesting than mashups you would expect. But the real reason for the mix with Lord of the Rings was simply that I hadn’t built something from my favorite movies for ages,” explained Jonas in an interview with Jennifer from The Brothers Brick, when asked why did he choose Lord of the Rings as this pinball machine’s theme. “Furthermore I planned the pinball machine in a pretty large scale, so I had to watch out to have the right amount of bricks in the right colors available. After collecting bricks for Middle Earth creations over the last few years, choosing to use that color palate would be a safe bet.”

Included in this arcade masterpiece are some of the most iconic locations from Middle Earth: Hobbiton (the ball shooter lane), Helms Deep, Ortanc, Weathertop (one of the bumpers), Fangorn, Minas Tirith, and even the Black Gates of Mordor that have taken the role of flippers.

In fact, Jonas pointed out that getting the flippers right didn’t actually present a challenge to him, but the pin turned out to be problematic. The play features, while difficult to implement, are now Jonas’ favorite part of the final creation:

“I mostly tend to build creations that focus highly on the aesthetics, colors and details. To push me out of that comfort zone I decided to build something that had to have real working features. A pinball machine seemed to be something that could be fun to build and fun to play with later.”

Since he has tackled various themes in his builds, ranging from Star Wars and Star Trek to District 9 and Deadpool, I must admit that I would like to see more such geeky pinball machines. The LoTR LEGO arcade was created specifically for the Iron Builder contest on Flickr, but I don’t think that such a talented builder needs incentives like this one all the time to produce remarkable contraptions.

It’s really amazing what some people can do in such a short amount of time with so many LEGO pieces. The project must have been thought out beforehand, but it’s still very impressive that Jonas has managed to put together a complex arcade machine in just 12 hours. This should really be seen as a proof of determination, as I think that Jonas’ pinball machine exemplifies more than just his creativity.

Be social! Follow Walyou on Facebook and Twitter, and read more related stories about the LEGO Discworld characters, or the LEGO Doctor Who set that went on sale in December.

[via The Brothers Brick]

Duck Hunt Pinball Machine By Skit-B Pinball

attachment

Hunting for a pinball machine that pays homage to a NES light gun classic? Look no further, friends.

Of all the nostalgic things remembered about the NES, Duck Hunt has to be up there with Super Mario Bros., Konami Codes, and blowing cartridges to make them work. Nothing feels more retro-y ...
Continue Reading on Walyou

Bioshock custom rig is Big Daddy of pinball machines, gives players a taste of Rapture

Bioshock custom rig is Big Daddy of pinball machines, gives players a taste of Rapture

If you're going to revisit a certain underwater dystopia, you might as well have a ball. At least that's the approach being taken by Sweden-based DIYer rasmadrak, who has decided to build a Bioshock-themed custom pinball machine just for kicks. The project is filled with lots of neat little touches from Rapture, including Little Sister vents and a few Big Daddy homages. The builder also does a pretty good job of drilling into the details and providing insight on the creation process -- like the challenge in using two different systems such as Arduino and chipKIT together, for example -- via detailed posts in the Poor Man's Pinball! blog. The project proved to be a pleasant shock to the system for fellow pinball aficionado Ben Heck, who gave the project a sprinkling of Heckendorn love via Twitter. Pinball geeks can also follow the saga, so to speak, by checking out the source link below.

Filed under:

Bioshock custom rig is Big Daddy of pinball machines, gives players a taste of Rapture originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Aug 2012 23:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Twitter (Ben Heck)  |  sourcePoor Man's Pinball!  | Email this | Comments

Star Wars Pinball Machine’s 20th Anniversary

attachment

The Star Wars pinball machine brings back memories in so many different ways. It was created 20 years ago, to keep the Star Wars spirit alive in a time when the world started forgetting about this space saga.

The Star Wars pinball machine was created in December 1992, so there ...
Continue Reading on Walyou

The Engadget Interview: Ben Heck talks Raspberry Pi at Maker Faire (video)

The Engadget Interview: Ben Heck talks Raspberry Pi at Maker Faire (video)

It's really no surprise that we bumped into the legendary Ben Heck at Maker Faire Bay Area 2012. Still, he was kind enough to give us a few minutes of his time. We talked about the Raspberry Pi, robot luggage, portable 3D printers, pinball machines, pretzels and cheese curds -- oh my! Just take a look at our video interview and don't miss the outtakes at the end.

The Engadget Interview: Ben Heck talks Raspberry Pi at Maker Faire (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 21 May 2012 16:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments