I went to The Bumper Factory twice in two days during some of my limited time in NYC. That's a pretty solid endorsement right there. Even better, they have the deluxe versions of many machines while some arcades only offer the stripped down versions.
For example, at The Bumper Factory, their Godzilla machine features the building that crumbles to the ground as it gets destroyed. That's pretty cool, and certainly adds to the fun.
If you are a good pinball player, you will certainly find the pricing model to be vexing. I do enjoy going to a place where all the games are set to "free play". But $15 for 30 minutes, even in Manhattan, feels steep. Largely that's because I am a good enough player that a few bucks can keep me busy for over an hour.
That said this is a great place, and a great price, to teach younger kids the game. And that is exactly what I did with my nephew.
What I discovered was that on Monday, despite the hours posted on Yelp, The Bumper Factory was still open. However, the games were not set to free play, and instead of taking the admission fee I was able to simply use quarters to play. Woo hoo! I had one of the best games of my life on Guardians of the Galaxy. One ball alone was kept in play for the better part of fifteen minutes. Had I been paying by the half hour, that victory would have been tinged with sorrow.
One other small ding against the place is that the Stern machines which feature the Stern Insider Connect feature were not activated. This is always a bummer, and also why I wasn't able to find this really nifty arcade on the Stern Pinball site.
Most of the machines are new and in great shape. The space is pretty small and cramped, but it is NYC. From the arcade's website it also looks like there is a $35 all day rate, which I think I would much rather pay than $15 for 30 minutes. I'd have to take some breaks for coffee and pizza, but there are nearby options for both.
More than anything, it's great to see pinball making some kind of comeback and salute the good folks at The Bumper Factory for putting in some machines in a space where kids can discover this great game. read more