The Winchester Mystery House pinball by Barrels of Fun now haunts the Game Room!
The ghosts have a new address: the Game Room in Holving welcomes the Winchester Mystery House pinball machine from American manufacturer Barrels of Fun. A rare machine, with only 525 units made worldwide, and probably one of the most astonishing pinball machines of recent years. Grab a lamp, we'll show you around.
The strangest house in the world
The machine is inspired by a very real place: the Winchester Mystery House in San José, California. Its owner, Sarah Winchester, widow of the heir to the famous Winchester rifles, kept builders working there almost non-stop for 36 years, from 1886 until her death in 1922. Legend has it that she kept building to appease the spirits of those killed by Winchester rifles.
The result: a maze of around 160 rooms, thousands of doors and windows, staircases that lead… to the ceiling, a door on the first floor that opens onto thin air, and the number 13 hidden all over the place. The house can still be visited today and is a listed historic landmark in the United States.
A pinball machine that takes you round the mansion
On the machine, each game is a guided tour… that goes wrong. You choose a room, head there, and each room hides its own game mode: the Foyer, the dining room, the kitchen, the basement, the séance room, Sarah's bedroom, the Grand Ballroom, the Witch's Cap… Around fifteen rooms in total, all unlocked since the latest software update in early October. Along the way, you collect keepsakes, escape angry spirits and face the ghosts of the house.
What makes the machine unique are its clever touches:
- Holographic ghosts: a hidden screen creates a “Pepper's Ghost” effect, the old theatre illusion, to make spirits appear in the middle of the playfield.
- A hallway that changes direction: as in the real house, you never know where a hallway leads. A turntable with 3 entrances and 8 positions sends the ball from one room to another.
- The Stairs to Nowhere, a nod to the mansion's absurd staircases: a magnet catches the ball in mid-flight.
- A collapsing tower that reveals a secret passage for the ball.
- Spooky multiballs: the Séance multiball or the Wheelbarrow Ghost multiball. The balls are held prisoner on a real séance table, under a crystal ball.
- Depth for experts: three flippers plus a mini flipper, four metal ramps, two magnets, drop targets and an action button to “run” and flee the spirits.
- A horror film atmosphere: a large 15.6-inch HD screen, mood lighting that changes with the apparitions, a subwoofer and a shaker motor that makes the cabinet tremble.
Behind the machine is a team of enthusiasts: designer Karl DeAngelo, a world-class pinball player for whom this is a first machine, Eric Priepke on code, Brad Albright on art, Joshua Clay and Julian Brown on animation and Jeff Dodson on music. When it was released in late 2025, the 525 units sold out in record time.
To get you in the mood, here is the official trailer for the machine, by Barrels of Fun:
Relic no. 335, signed by the whole team
Our machine is number 335 of 525: each one has its numbered “Relic” plaque, with crystal ball and candle, fixed to the cabinet. It crossed the Atlantic from the Barrels of Fun factory in Houston, Texas, in a crate that says it all: “serious FUN inside!”. And a lovely surprise when we opened it: the back of the backbox is covered in the signatures of the Barrels of Fun team who built it. A real collector's item.
An unboxing with loving care
A machine of this calibre deserves to be welcomed properly. Our friend Sacha, aka GRSPinball, came over to unbox it and fine-tune every setting with great care. Under the hood, the modern electronics of the FAST Neuron board, and under the playfield, a forest of cables that shows how much work goes into such a machine. Thanks, Sacha!
Thank you, Top Game
A big thank you to Top Game for the alternative backglass, drawn by Brad Albright, the machine's artist: the mansion's Grand Ballroom and its ghosts, with silver mirror effects. And thank you for truly outstanding service. Passionate professionals, just the way we like them.
Come and visit the mansion
The Winchester Mystery House joins over 40 pinball machines on free play in the Game Room, alongside the Stern, Jersey Jack, Bally and Williams machines in the collection. Book your evening, with friends or as a couple from one of our holiday homes, and explore the mansion… if the spirits let you!