Gilligan's Island GC!

For some reason, I enjoy a game much more when I actually have to pay to play it. Maybe it's because of childhood memories, or maybe something too readily available becomes less attractive? Whatever the reason, I almost always take the chance to play a classic in the wild.

We're not spoiled with pinball machines on route where I live. In fact, I can count them on one hand, and they are almost all owned by friends of mine. Anyway, I was driving to our cottage this summer, with my wife and mother in law in the car. Just as we passed by the local bowling place, I saw a familiar friend. Even though the moment flashed by quickly, I was quite sure that the sun faded side art belonged to a Gilligan's Island. The next day, I persuaded the two women to go bowling and have an ice cream, and my feeling was confirmed.



This Gilligan's Island was an import from Germany, and certainly not in the best condition. That didn't stop me, however. I had to test it. I had only tested this title briefly some 7 years earlier, in a pinball convention.
I was surprised how well it went! I kept getting extra balls and felt like I eventually conquered the game. It actually got to the point of being embarrassing, as my mother in law was waiting. But I was having the game of a lifetime..ish! It reminds me of a story from a friend who spent his birthday party having his best ever game on Terminator 2. He felt a bit bad letting his guests wait for more than an hour, but what could he do? Unlike him, I actually felt so bad in the end that I had to let the ball drain a couple of times. Still, I got a score that was good enough to make me grand champion. This is not an every day thing for me, even on factory hiscores, as I'm definitely not a good player.



Comparing my score to the world rankings would be embarrassing, but I'm very happy with my 200.739.570 points.