pinheads

200+ machines, three days, one very tilted grin – APE 2026 delivered in a big way

Last week, team ausretrogamer packed the bags, grabbed the flipper fingers, and headed to Adelaide for the inaugural Australian Pinball Expo (APE), held at Morphetville Racecourse from July 3-5. Three days. 10am to 10pm. Wall-to-wall pinball. If that sentence alone doesn’t get your silverball senses tingling, we don’t know what will.

Chicago may have the original Pinball Expo, but down under we’ve now got APE – and on this showing, it’s giving Chicago a genuine run for its money.

video source: ausretrogamer via Facebook

Getting There Was Half the Fun (Actually, No – The Venue Was)

First things first: Morphetville nailed the fundamentals. Easy public transport access, and critically for an event with this many machines and this many punters – plenty of room to breathe. Even at peak capacity with the venue absolutely packed with like-minded pinheads, we never once felt cramped shuffling between banks of machines. Big tick for the organisers on venue choice alone.

The Sheer Scale of It All

We’re talking well over 200 pinball machines, plus a handful of classic arcade cabinets thrown in for good measure. The lineup spanned the full history of the hobby – vintage Electro-Mechanical (EM) machines with their glorious push-up ball troughs and knockers, right through to the bleeding edge of 2026 pinball manufacturing. Stern, Jersey Jack, Chicago Gaming Company, Barrels of Fun, P3 Multimorphic, Pinball Brothers, and Dutch Pinball Exclusive all had a serious presence on the floor. Whatever era or flavour of pinball gets your multiball going, APE had it.

The Home-Brew Hero: Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

One of the most delightful surprises of the whole expo wasn’t a factory machine at all – it was a home-brew build of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, cleverly repurposed from a Pinball 2000 cabinet and tech stack. Seeing Marvin, the Babel fish, and assorted Douglas Adams weirdness rendered on a hacked-together playfield was a genuine highlight, and a great reminder of just how creative and skilled the DIY side of this hobby can be. Don’t Panic indeed.

The Machines That Kept Pulling Us Back

With 200+ tables to choose from, you inevitably gravitate toward a shortlist, and ours ended up being a genuinely eclectic mix:

Dutch Pinball Exclusive’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland – a genuine surprise packet that we didn’t expect to love as much as we did
Barrels of Fun’s Winchester Mystery House – moody, atmospheric, and dripping with theme. This was also BEST IN SHOW!
P3 Multimorphic’s Portal – bringing Aperture Science’s twisted logic to the playfield in style
Stern Pinball’s Foo Fighters LE, Stranger Things, Rush, and Dungeons & Dragons – Stern showing why they remain the workhorse of modern pinball manufacturing
Hankin’s Empire Strikes Back – a stunning original-run classic, Vader glowering down at every ball in play
Jersey Jack Pinball’s Elton John and Harry Potter – JJP’s signature big-screen spectacle and toy-packed playfields on full display
Bally’s Theatre of Magic – simply stunning, and every bit as blingy in person as its reputation suggests

Honourable mention to the sheer variety of theming on the floor, from Jurassic Park raptors lurking beside the machines, to Alien, John Wick, Austin Powers, Medieval Madness and Cactus Canyon standing shoulder to shoulder. There really was something for every taste.

A First-Timer That Felt Like a Veteran

For a debut event, APE 2026 punched well above its weight. The organisation, the venue, the sheer breadth of machines on the floor, and the obvious passion of everyone involved made this feel like an expo that’s been running for years, not one finding its feet for the first time. Big respect to the organisers and every contributor who made it happen.

Roll on APE 2027 – we’ll most definitely be there.

Scroll slowly and soak it all in – Enjoy!