Flip Frenzy came back to Replay Bar on Thursday night with an ACT-inspired twist, and the room delivered exactly the kind of fast, chaotic energy the format promises. Qualifying was a flat-out scramble — find an opponent, play a game, find the next one, repeat until the clock ran out — with only five machines on the floor for the frenzy this time round (Black Knight had been whisked away to TazPin). Scoring stayed tight all night too, with plenty of players battling it out for that all-important finals cutoff line, where every single win and loss carried real weight.
Topping that qualifying scramble was Wes Keys, with Joshua Hesketh, Simon Voigt and Patrick Hewitt tied close behind to round out the top four and punch their tickets to the final. As top seed, Wes also earned the right to trim the finals machine lineup down from five to four, eliminating Star Wars and leaving Deadpool, Iron Maiden, Metallica and Alice Cooper's Nightmare Castle to decide the night.
The final itself was a bit of an experiment, borrowed straight from the ACT crew: four players, four machines, all running in parallel, playing a single round across all four games at once. Scoring followed a Pinburgh-style points system — 3, 2, 1 or 0 points depending on where you finished on each game, for a possible maximum 12 points if you swept the round — a fitting nod given Pinburgh had only just wrapped up on the week prior.
It shook things up too. Wes Keys carried top qualifying form into the final but couldn't quite hold the top spot, ultimately settling for third. At the top of the table, Joshua Hesketh and Simon Voigt finished locked together on points, forcing a tiebreaker on Star Wars (which seemed fitting since it was excluded earlier) to separate them — Joshua came out on top to take the win, with Simon claiming second. Patrick Hewitt rounded out the four.
Special mention to Matthew Rose, who came down for his first ever tournament and didn't leave empty-handed — he picked up the wooden spoon TAPP Mug for his troubles. Great first outing, and hopefully the first of many.
There were some great comebacks and upsets scattered through the night to keep everyone on their toes. On Deadpool, the right ramp was shooting beautifully off the plunge — plenty of players nailed the super skill shot there, and it never stopped being satisfying to watch. Metallica, on the other hand, was the night's reality check, with a tilt so tight it forced everyone to rethink how hard they were willing to nudge.
Big thanks to Stern Army for sponsoring the Stern translite prize, and as always to Replay Bar for their continued support in hosting us. And a shout-out to everyone who came down and played — the room full of players trading games all night is what makes these events what they are.
Thanks also to Lynden for supplying some of the photos of the night — send-ins like that are always welcome. If anyone else wants to contribute moments, quotes, photos, or even take a turn writing one of these recaps, we'd love to hear from you.
Get ready, Tassie pinball crew — Flip Frenzy is back, and this time we're borrowing a twist from ACT Pinball! Come down to Replay Bar and get your flippers warmed up for a night of fast, friendly, high-energy pinball.
Here's how it'll roll: qualifying is a flat-out Flip Frenzy, so the clock starts and you just keep playing. Grab an opponent, play a game, then go find your next match — the goal is to squeeze in as many games as you can before time's up. It's chaotic in the best way :-).
Then comes the bit we've pinched from the ACT crew. The top 4 qualifiers head into a 4-round matchplay final across 4 machines — but you'll all be playing in parallel. You move from game to game and play all 4 at the same time staying in position. It's a fun, fast way to run a final.
Replay Bar will be open for drinks, the machines will be primed, and we'd love to see you there. See you Thursday night!
Main Tournament
This tournament is IFPA-endorsed and results are submitted for IFPA ranking points.
Flip Frenzy
Timed format where players play as many games as possible. Graded based on average games played (÷2) if no finals, or fewest qualifying games (+1) if finals exist. Also known as Pinball! Pinball! Pinball! format.
Group Match Play
4-player groups · 4 games/round
Players compete in groups of 3 or 4 on a series of machines. Points awarded by finishing position. Scored by wins over multiple rounds.