Pinball is a video pinball game that Nintendo released for the Famicom in Japan on 2 February 1984. It was developed by Nintendo R&D1 and HAL Laboratory and is based on a Game & Watch unit of the same name. Satoru Iwata and Satoshi Matsuoka programmed it; according to Iwata, it was HAL's first game for Nintendo.
The table spans two screens. Knocking the ball into a bonus hole opens a Breakout-like stage in which Mario carries a platform to catch the falling Pauline. Because computing power was limited, curved surfaces were approximated as a series of squares for collision detection. HAL later reused the engine for Roller Ball on the MSX in 1984.
The game reached the NES in North America on 18 October 1985 and Europe in 1986, and it sold over 1 million units. Hamster re-released the arcade version on Switch as Arcade Archives Pinball on 30 August 2019.123
Names and releases
| Region | Title on the box | Platform | Date | Publisher | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NA | Pinball | NES | Oct 18, 1985 | Nintendo | 1 |
| NA | PinballNintendo e-Reader cards | Game Boy Advance | Sep 16, 2002 | Nintendo | 1 |
| NA | PinballVirtual Console; Japan 2 December, PAL regions 15 December 2006 | Wii | Nov 19, 2006 | Nintendo | 1 |
| JP | ピンボールPinbōruFamicom | NES | Feb 2, 1984 | Nintendo | 3 |
| JP | VS.ピンボールVS. PinbōruNintendo VS. System; North America October 1984 | Arcade | August 1984 | Nintendo | 1 |
| EU | Pinball | NES | Sep 1, 1986 | Nintendo | 1 |
| JP | ピンボールPinbōru | Famicom Disk System | May 30, 1989 | Nintendo | 1 |
| WW | PinballVirtual Console | Wii U | Oct 24, 2013 | Nintendo | 1 |
| WW | Arcade Archives PinballArcade version | Switch | Aug 30, 2019 | Hamster | 1 |
| WW | PinballNintendo Switch Online (Nintendo Classics); Japanese Wikipedia cites 27 May 2022 | Switch | May 26, 2022 | Nintendo | 1 |
Also known as: ピンボール JP3Pinbōru JP3Vs. Pinball WW1
Box art by region
NA Pinball 
EU Pinball 
JP ピンボール
Box art © its publishers, shown to identify each release. Scans: libretro-thumbnails.
Version differences
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AudioArcade (VS. Pinball)
The arcade VS. Pinball adds in-game music, among other changes, compared with the Famicom original.3
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ContentNES/Famicom
The cartridge contains graphics that never appear in play: a fourth bonus rollover, Pauline walking and falling off a ledge, pop-up bumpers and one-way gates.2
Where to play legally today
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Nintendo Switch Online Subscription
Reception
The game sold over 1 million units, and Game Machine ranked VS. Pinball as Japan's 24th most successful table arcade unit in September 1984. Later reviews were mixed: Nintendo Life gave it 6/10, France's Tilt 15/20 and Germany's Power Play 3.5/10, calling it fun but overpriced.1
Sources
Checked: 2026-10-13Text reviewed: 2026-10-13
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