On this episode of Game the System podcast, Marc Matt and John talk a boat load of pinball! Including impressions of the brand new Munsters pinball machine from Stern, the news that 1989 Arcade Bar is getting three pinball machines, Link's Awakening remake (not a pinball machine), a new Australian number 1 ranked pinball player, and EVO Japan 2019 (also not pinball)!
See the Best in Australia and the World - Women's Pinball Championships (and a Player Feature Teaser!)
Helena Walter is your IFPA Women's World Pinball Champion for 2017.
Two events almost back to back that celebrate and promote women in pinball - and they can't get any bigger than these! The IFPA Women's World Pinball Championships just completed in the USA with Helena Walter taking 1st place. And the upcoming Australian Women's Pinball Championships on the Gold Coast on March 31st.
Game the System is very proud to have contributed to the IFPA Women's World Pinball Championships prize pool as diversifying and therefore growing the sport is one of our goals. So it is with great pleasure to see that the championship was live streamed on Twitch, and garnered great support and attention from the community and widespread media.
The fun continues past the World Championships though, and soon - March 31st to be exact - we will see Australia's very first Women's Championship, and we can't wait to see who is crowned the first Australian number 1 women's pinball player! As of the 17th March there are a massive 22 players registered for this inaugural tournament:
1. Hollie Mills
2. Esther Ahronheim
3. Naiomi Goodwin
4. Kirsty Watt
5. Irene Watt
6. Dana Pepcak
7. Michelle Clark
8. Vicki Wills
9. Mel Geeves
10. Chelle McIntyre
11. Lee Hutchinson
12. Christine Allgaier
13. Leolie Bayley
14. Shellie Mills
15. Alana Kelly
16. Michelle Wykes
17. Emily Cosson
18. Tanya Lowe
19. Sarah Bishop
20. Evelyn Singh
21. Cheryl Wright
22. Carole Quinn
To compliment the excitement and build up of this event, Game the System will soon be posting our 5th Player Feature, and while we can't give too much away until we are ready, we can at least say that it is indeed one of the incredible players on the above list! Would you like a hint? How about a teaser with the photo below!?
The countdown to the 31st is on!
State of Origin - How Does your State Stack Up in the Australian Championship Series
The Australian Championship Series for the 2016 season is upon us. Almost all of the 32 invitees will be arriving in Melbourne tomorrow, Thursday the 9th, to play some side tournaments and - more importantly - get a feel for the machines for the main event that starts on the Saturday.
Jack Hutchinson show's us how they save a ball up there in Brisbane. Photo by Matthew Venables photography http://mvenables.com
Who's going to win is one question, but Australia has four states being represented in the championship too, and which one do you think is going to perform better? Well one measure that could be used is which state will have the most top 10 finishers by the end, and the answer to that is not as cut dry and one might expect!
Let's have a quick look at some of the numbers and run some analysis:
Players Attending:
- VIC - 13
- NSW - 8
- QLD - 8
- SA - 2
Players Ranked in the Australian Top 20
- NSW - 7
- VIC - 4
- QLD - 4
- SA - 2
Historically Highest World Ranked Player
- SA - Robert Macauley
Pinball 'Majors'* Tournament Champions
- NSW - 2 (Paul Jones 2016 Brisbane Masters champion, Marc Bell 2015 Batcave Masters champion)
- VIC - 1 (Jordan Tredaway 2016 Melbourne Matchplay Championship champion)
* Pinball circuit majors are considered as tournaments that adhere most stringently to IFPA rules of structure for qualifying as well as finals, entry requirements and adjudicating. The following are considered to be in this list: Brisbane Masters, Batcave Masters, Australian Pinball Championship, Pinball Expo, Queensland Pinball Open, and Melbourne Matchplay Championship.
So Victoria might have the home town advantage, as well as the most amount of players competing. Meanwhile NSW has a larger contingent of highly ranked and accomplished players, and South Australia the most experienced and decorated player. Unfortunately, Queensland can't even take the prize for travelling the furthest - New Zealand's number one ranked player David Peck would have something to say about that, and I'm sure will be happy to throw a spanner in the works and take the Australian Championship Series trophy across the ditch!
It's going to be very interesting to see how the tournament plays out over the coming days, and you will be sure to hear the news here first as it comes to hand. And remember, whatever state does eventually come out on top, it doesn't matter as long as we beat - as long as we beat - as long as we beat New Zealand!