
If you’ve got Osaka on your Japan travel list and you’re even faintly interested in pinball, The Silver Ball Planet is a must-visit location.
Pros | Cons |
---|---|
Hundreds of machines | Choice can become overwhelming |
Inexpensive to play (and then some) | You’ll need physical cash to play |
Wide array of themes and machines to play | Few really older titles if that’s your style |
Score: 4.5/5
It’s pretty much a given that every time I visit Osaka, I’m going to drop in on The Silver Ball Planet.
Look, here I am on my most recent trip, doing a full walkthrough of what’s on offer before having more than a few games:
Support Alex Reviews Tech
Alex Reviews Tech is an independent, ethically run tech reviews site, and it needs your help to keep going. Support independent media by becoming a sponsor through Patreon, Ko-Fi or Paypal! (Spoiler: If enough folks do this, I'll be able to get rid of the ads)
Donate via PayPal
Find out more about how you can support Alex Reviews Tech here.
And here I am again back in 2023 doing much the same thing:
Any guesses as to what happened when I was in Osaka back in 2020?
So, yeah, I’m a fan of the place, but like any other tourist attraction, it has its upsides and downsides… and the name on the site is “Alex Reviews Tech”, and pinball counts as technology, so it seems as fitting a target for a review as any other. Let’s get into it!
Silver Ball Planet Osaka: The Good stuff
No prizes for guessing what’s written on my wallet…
-
- The price is RIGHT: Most of Silver Ball Planet’s games are set – and have been every time I’ve visited, and 2020 wasn’t my first rodeo there – at 100Y per go, roughly $1 AUD. That’s nicely price competitive for an Australian gamer where some newer titles often demand $2 a go.
What’s more, some older titles are set at only 50Y each. One new promotion that Silver Ball Planet was running while I was there was a selection of more classic electromechanical titles (think 70s pinball) at just 10Y each.
That’s superb value, and honestly the cheapest per-credit pinball I’ve ever played, and I’m quite old and can well remember when the way that you reserved your next game was by putting a coin down on the machine.
That coin was a 20c piece back when the selected array of machines was still somewhat current, but 10Y equates closer to 10c.
It’s also super handy, because while Japan has shifted more towards contactless payments, cash is still king, which means that you’ll more than likely end up with a wallet full of small change, including plenty of 10Y coins. 10Y pinball games give you something quite fun to do with all that rattly metal.
- The price is RIGHT: Most of Silver Ball Planet’s games are set – and have been every time I’ve visited, and 2020 wasn’t my first rodeo there – at 100Y per go, roughly $1 AUD. That’s nicely price competitive for an Australian gamer where some newer titles often demand $2 a go.
Anyone fancy a Close Encouter… of the 10Y kind?
- No smoking: OK, this is a personal pet peeve, but it’s still important. Japanese arcades generally have a strong reputation in the gaming community, but there’s also – and especially for the more ‘retro’ arcades that have been there a long time (I’m looking at you, Mikado Game Center Ikebukuro) a strong tendency for them to emit the distinct stench of cigarette smoke. Even the places that have stopped smoking still tend to reek. Silverball Planet is smoke free, which means I can breathe easy – and spend even more time there.
- A few new machines every time: Pinball has shifted more towards the “home” market of enthusiast collectors willing to pay the high prices for new machines, with actual arcades and venues rather thin on the ground, which makes checking out new machines rather hard.
The Uncanny X-Men (2024) is a much better table than its predecessor.
Every single time I’ve been in Silverball Planet, I’ve found at least a few new machines to try. This time around, the new Stern Uncanny X-Men table and Chicago Gaming Company’s Pulp Fiction caught my eye – and more than a few of my 100Y coins. - Well spaced out: This might seem like an odd plus, but the reality that I’ve found in places that do have pinball tables is that they’re often shoved up against walls or placed in ways that makes them harder to play than they should be, because you can’t get your arms around the table and move around as you need to in order to maximise your play experience.
All without tilting, naturally (fingers crossed).
Realistically, Silver Ball Planet could throw in a few more machines on its floor than it does, but instead it keeps them nicely spaced apart, making it a better venue for play even when it is quite busy.
Silver Ball Planet Osaka: The Bad stuff
These are, I should point, out, minor quibbles… but ones that might affect how much you enjoy your visit, so they’re worth pointing out.
- Bring cash — of the physical kind: If you’re heading to The Silver Ball Planet, bring cash. As noted above, this isn’t an expensive place to visit per se – and it’s free to enter – but you will need either coins or folding-type cash to enjoy it, because there’s no capacity for contactless payments or play. I guess that suits the slightly retro feel of the place, and there are change machines near the front desk so you can quickly stock up on 100Y coins to your heart’s content and/or the limit of your wallet. But it’s still worth keeping in mind if you’ve otherwise been using your credit card or phone to pay for other attractions in Japan.
- Retro only goes so far back: The Silver Ball Planet does have some classic machines, but not anything I could spot that dated much further back from the 1970s, though I’m happy to be corrected on that score if somebody spots an older table in the video above.
Pac-Man is one of the more geriatric machines, and while it’s “old”… pinball goes back a lot further than this.
Compared to, say, the Australian Pinball Museum in Nhill, there’s less of a full focus on the history of pinball and being able to play it through the ages – though that’s maybe a directly business-centric move, as there’s little doubt there’s a little more pull in from a 2024 digital machine than something that the Fonz might have thumped around. Not a huge problem, but it might be nice to have one or two truly classic machines to play.
- Some out of order machines: This is more or less an inevitability, because Pinball machines are physical devices that get a lot of wear and tear absolutely due to the nature of their usage. It’s still a little bit heartbreaking to walk past a machine that’s out of order, however. Speaking of heartbreaking…
- I really wanted to play Stern’s Godzilla: OK, OK, this is 100% a subjective, personal wail of anguish, but one of the tables I was 100% ready to play on my visit was Stern’s 2021 Godzilla.
It’s a superb table (that I fear I will sadly never own unless you really want to drop a lot of money into the Patreon, hint hint…)… and it wasn’t on the game floor this time round, just Sega’s patently boring 1998 machine based on the terrible US movie of the same era. Boo!
The Silver Ball Planet Osaka: Alex’s Verdict
I’ve long tried to point out that reviews are a mix of the subjective and objective, and anyone who wants to argue that a review can be 100% objective is deluded.
Because that’s true, every critic has their own viewpoints, experiences and even the testing process can reveal different aspects of anything you’d review.
As should be pretty clear, I’m a big fan of places where I can play a lot of pinball, and The Silver Ball Planet is absolutely one of my favourite places to do so when I can. This review is necessarily subjective as a result. Take that as you will.
If you’re at all keen on pinball, or even if you simply played a little in your youth and want a change of pace from Osaka’s better known tourist locales, it’s well worth a visit.
Persona 3 Reload: Aigis Edition (Xbox Series X) (Exclusive to Amazon.co.uk)
$292.87 (as of February 17, 2025 18:37 GMT +11:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)NBA 2K25 - Xbox Series X
$39.00 (as of February 17, 2025 18:37 GMT +11:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 Heart of Chornobyl - Xbox Series X
(as of February 17, 2025 18:37 GMT +11:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 (Xbox Series X)
$77.61 (as of February 17, 2025 18:37 GMT +11:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)Split Fiction - Xbox Series X
$59.00 (as of February 17, 2025 18:37 GMT +11:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)IMBZBK 3 Pack Privacy Screen Protector for Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra Tempered Glass 3 Pack Camera Lens Protector Accessories Anti Spy case Friendly, Support Fingerprint Reader
$12.74 (as of February 17, 2025 18:40 GMT +11:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)Wireless Earbuds, Bluetooth 5.3 Headphones with HiFi Stereo Sound, 48H Playtime with LED Power Display Charging Case, IP6 Waterproof in-Ear Earphone with Mic for Sport
$29.99 (as of February 17, 2025 18:40 GMT +11:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)Power Board, Power Strip with 3 USB Ports (2 USB C), No Cord Extension Cord, Double Adapter, Travel Adapter, USB C Wall Plug, Cruise Essentials for Home, Office, Bedroom, Travel Accessories
$17.98 (as of February 17, 2025 18:40 GMT +11:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)LϟK 2 Pack for Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra Screen Protector with Auto-Installation Tool, Tempered Glass, Scratch-Resistant, [Military Grade Protection] Film
$15.29 (as of February 17, 2025 18:40 GMT +11:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)Power Board, Power Strip with 4 USB Ports (2 USB C), No Cord Extension Cord, Travel Power Plug, Travel Adapter, USB C Wall Plug, Cruise Essentials for Home, Office, Bedroom, Travel Accessories(Type I)
$16.98 (as of February 17, 2025 18:40 GMT +11:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)Apple iPhone SE (2020, Gen 2) 64GB - Black (Renewed)
$219.00 (as of February 17, 2025 18:36 GMT +11:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max (256 GB) - Black Titanium
$2,203.74 (as of February 17, 2025 18:36 GMT +11:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)Samsung Galaxy A05s Smartphone (6.7 Inch Display, 4G, 64GB/4GB Memory, 50MP Camera, 5000mAh Battery, Android 13, Dual SIM, No Contract) - Black
$199.55 (as of February 17, 2025 18:36 GMT +11:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)OPPO A60 5G - Nebula Red, (CPH2683AU Red)**, 6.67", HD+ LCD, 4GB/128GB, 50MP/5MP, Dual SIM, 5100mAh, 2YR
$277.00 (as of February 17, 2025 18:36 GMT +11:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)MOTOROLA moto g04 - Concord Black
$147.00 (as of February 17, 2025 18:36 GMT +11:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)Was this useful to you?
If so, please consider becoming a Patreon, Ko-Fi or Paypal supporter Alex here (again).
I feel strongly that independent tech media is a needed resource to help people make smarter tech buying decisions -- and I also very much like to help people use that tech once they've got it.
This is what I do, but I can't do it without your support.
If this article has helped you out (or you've just enjoyed it), please consider helping support what I do by becoming a sponsor today!
Become an ART Patron
Donate via PayPal
Find out more about how you can support Alex Reviews Tech here.