Pinball has been a very popular game before the era of computer games. It’s name suggests the essence of pinball: the role of the pins. By default on a sloping table the rolling ball should always be pushed back with two 3-7 centimeter pins. Gravity brings the ball down towards us, and we use the pins to shoot it back.

The roots of pinball go back to an eighteenth-century parlor game, the bagatelle. In this game the French nobles tried to push the balls into the holes in a board with the help of a small cue. It became an independent toy when in 1870, a toy manufacturer from Cincinatti replaced the cue with a spring-operated pin. Another milestone was the invention of the 'tilt' system to make cheat more difficult.

The 1950s was the golden age of pinballs. In the 1960s, many innovations were introduced, such as falling targets, various jumpers, and an improved scoring system that also allowed two or even four to play on a machine. From the late '70s, pinball has become electronic. Relays have been replaced by chips, components are more reliable, lighter, easier to manufacture and maintain.

Nowadays, the pinball is not only an entertaining tool, but also a sports equipment, which is full of stories, the latest cinematic films and TV series are the inspirers for graphic design. There are more and more competitions organized in Europe, and there is a growing tradition of organize the HPO (Hungarian Pinball Open), which is represented by all European countries. 200 players play on this international tournament. Most machines allow multiplayer mode, so each round is played in turn by 4 players. Players with routin can score their names in the rankings with the points they gain, motivating others to play even better.

With a strong competitive spirit in pinball, the best ones can also compete in European Championships and World Championships. It’s interesting that in 2011 and in 2012 the gold medal was won by the Hungarians on the European Championships. Krisztián Szalai, László Horn, Zoltán Zsifkovics, Gábor Solymosi represented our small country. Players from the United States are also aware that Hungary is a major pinball mastership, not least the world's second-largest private collection is in the country. Several Hungarian players have podium finishes in international competitions. They are like Kane from Kung Fu - appearing somewhere and the air freezes when they stand in front of the pinball machine as if they were feeling the spirit of the machine.

It's a good idea to start in the first round with inland pinball competitions, the 15-year-old Hungarian Pinballclub Association and sports clubs established in more and more cities.
Nowadays, ordinary people are fond of decorating their office or apartment with a single piece, but the masses still plays in pubs and game arcades.