PinballMachine
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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.
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.
Ben Heck gets into the pinball business for real, pre-orders begin in January
Benjamin J. Heckendorn, the name likely conjures images of shrunken gaming consoles and specially modified controllers. But the modder extraordinaire also has an unapologetic love for pinball. He completed his first flipper project in March of 2007, a Bill Paxton-themed machine loaded with classic quotes from the actor. Then in 2011, he undertook an amazingly complex game based on the beloved, meandering (and highly overrated) show Lost. Now he's teaming up with John Popadiuk, a renowned maker of limited run pinball machines, to offer his chrome-balled gaming visions to the public. The two are working together on a creation called Ben Heck's Zombie Adventureland. All the artwork will be hand-drawn and each machine hand-assembled. How many will be made and how much it'll cost for the privilege of putting one of these in your home or arcade (or home arcade) is still a mystery, but pre-orders begin in January and you can bet they'll sell out quickly.
Ben Heck completes the Bill Paxton Pinball machine, reasserts supremacy
Just in case you thought Ben Heck was being caught up by his acolytes, our favorite superhero modder has come back today with the completed Bill Paxton Pinball machine. You might remember the rough version of this glorious homage to one of the world's most mediocre actors from that time we visited Ben at his home / lair. It has now been fully fleshed out, painted, spit-shined, tested, and slapped with a badge of completion. You want to see it in action? We've got video of that. You want to see how it was built? We've got video of that too. You'll find the moving pictures after the break, but don't neglect the source as it also contains photo galleries and a walkthrough of the design process.
