Classic Rock: Learn How to Play Jersey Jack’s Elton John Pinball Machine

Steve Ritchie has had a long-storied pinball career. Starting out in Atari’s short-lived pinball division, he released some of Williams / Bally’s most popular titles before moving to Stern along with many of the other designers from the company. He currently resides as a designer for Jersey Jack Pinball. Elton John was his first JJP design, released at the tail end of 2023, and the table plays differently from almost any other table released by the company, emphasizing a lightning-fast layout and more simple rules than a lot of their other machines.

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This table seems to have quite the following among pinball fans, and I totally understand why, I love it a lot myself! The modes are as simple as following the flashing arrows with some slight complexity from the wardrobe items. The multiballs are easy to access and not too overwhelming in their presence, and the game has a clear sense of progression, with various side modes unlocking as the player completes the drop targets or albums. Elton John is my favorite Jersey Jack table at the time of writing this article and I hope this guide can explain why and provide insight for playing this great Steve Ritchie machine in a tournament setting.

Quick Facts about Elton John Pinball

The flamboyant performances of pop singer Elton John are chronicled in this table, covering over 50 years of his music.

• Kineticist game listing: Elton John Pinball
• Manufacturer: Jersey Jack
• Year: 2023
• Design: Steve Ritchie
• Code: Bill Grupp, Joe Katz, Duncan Brown, Ted Estes, Jason Allen, Taylor Snyder
• Mechanics: Dan Molter, Chris Talko, Nick Jensen, Ernesto Velazquez, Dan Lachcik
• Art: Christopher Franchi, John Youssi
• Animations: Olaf Gremie, Mark Molitor, Jean-Paul De Win
• Sound: Pierce Colbert

Playfield Overview

From a distance, the layout of Elton John can be best compared to Steve Ritchie’s previous machines Star Trek (Stern) and Rollergames. The left eject is located at the far left of the playfield like the one on Star Trek, and is used to start honky cat hurry-up, and as the first shot of several 3-way combos. Directly next to the eject is a small standup target used during some modes but is primarily used to light honky cat hurry-up and is often lit green to add a ball during multiball modes. I personally prefer backhanding this left standup target rather than aiming for it from the right flipper.

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The left orbit whips behind the back of the playfield to send balls to the upper flipper, though there is also a magnet at the apex of the orbit that can hold and release balls during bumper-related modes. In front of the left orbit are three shots, two of which are best made using the upper flipper; the tiny dancer target, the piano ramp, and the backstage shot. The tiny dancer target is marked by the appropriate sculpt and can be hit from any flipper – I like aiming for it with an early left flipper shot – and is important as it lights the croc locks at the crocodile VUK. The side ramp is the most difficult shot on the game and requires a late flip from the upper flipper to effectively make, but players who can reliably loop this side ramp are rewarded, most prominently during the lucrative signature stage multiballs. Lastly, the backstage shot is a simple target in front of a lane that feeds it, with posts that can hold the ball as wardrobe items are collected. The best way to reliably make the backstage shot is to hit the right ramp and then make an early flip to it from the upper flipper.

Gating the bumpers at the top of the playfield are a replica of Elton John at his piano, which serves as a mini display; but also three shots, the two ramps and the drop target bank. Both the left and right ramps are unique in that they have spinners in front of them, and that instead of feeding an inlane, they feed the flippers directly, encouraging fast gameplay – with the right ramp feeding the upper flipper. Between the two ramps are three drop targets, in a similar position to the WAR drop targets from Rollergames and just as important. These drop targets are called the “rocka-box” by the machine as it essentially serves as a jukebox in the game’s rules; players collect albums by completing the drop targets and each album gives a different award, eventually qualifying the “encore modes” after five drop target completions. The drop targets can be hit from any flipper, even with early flips from the upper flipper!

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The right side of the playfield contains three major shots. First is the crocodile VUK, which can hold up to 2 balls in it at a time and is used to start Crocodile Rock multiball once enough balls have been locked there, releasing balls to the right inlane otherwise. The right orbit is the opposite side of the right orbit, but is slightly easier to hit owing to the right orbit’s wider entrance. Lastly is the game’s “showstopper” shot, the rocket VUK, gated by a drop target. This VUK sends balls flying around the back panel of the machine and towards the left flipper, is the primary way of collecting rocket fuel for Rocket Man multiball and starts that multiball when available.

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Scoring on Elton John is lower than average for its era, with the best scores surpassing 500M and billions being almost impossible unless you’re willing to persevere and try for every milestone in the machine. 30M would be considered a good starting point for players new to the machine and wanting to learn it.

Getting Started with Elton John

• Choose your skill shot at the start of each ball, and after locking balls for either Crocodile Rock or signature stage multiball. The skill shot moves from top to bottom and back, so a well-timed plunge is required. Then nail any flashing upper flipper shot to score a super skill shot.
• Select a song at the start of the game. During songs, shoot for the flashing notes to light wardrobe items at the backstage shot; these items make the song easier to complete or more valuable. Once the mode is completed by scoring the third wardrobe item, victory laps are enabled for the rest of the song and increase in value if multiple songs are completed on one ball.
• Complete the drop targets to collect albums. After the fifth album is scored, encore modes become available. These are started after enough orbit, target, piano ramp, spinner, or backstage shots. Only one encore mode can run at a time though multiple can be queued up. A high-scoring Champ Multiball is lit after all five are played.
• Crocodile rock locks are lit at the crocodile VUK by hitting the tiny dancer target, or from “advance croc” skill shots. The first Crocodile Rock multiball requires 2 locks and is 2-ball, subsequent ones require 3 locks and are 3-ball.
• Rocket fuel is scored from certain album awards or with shots to the rocket VUK / drop target. Rocket Man multiball is lit at the rocket VUK after one tank on the display is filled, but the player can hold off on starting the multiball until up to five tanks have been filled. Both this multiball and the above crocodile multiball can be played at the same time for 2x scoring.
• Spell ELTON JOHN at the major shots to light signature stage locks at the piano ramp. From left to right, the multiballs range from “easy, but low scoring” to “very difficult, but high scoring”. Use the action button to change which multiball will start.
• Milestones are scored throughout the game for completing certain objectives. Collect any four milestones to light the piano ramp for final tour.

Elton John Skill Shot

The skill shot on this machine is as simple as waiting for the award you want to be lit up as you plunge the ball. From top to bottom, these are: big points (200k), bonus X, spot star, rocket fuel, and advance croc MB. If you plunge with just enough strength so that the ball feeds the upper flipper, hit any flashing shot to score a super skill shot worth more of what you selected with the plunge (ie. if you selected adv. croc, it would boost the jackpot values for the multiball). The longer the game, the quicker the award moves.

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In the late game as the award becomes more and more difficult to time, it might be a better idea to full plunge and go for the skill shot at the drop targets instead. While this scores way fewer points it instantly awards an album, and those become quite difficult to collect during the late game as the number of drop target hits increase.

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Songs in Elton John

There are 15 songs in the game, but the player only chooses one using the flippers and action buttons at the very start of the game, and then they are played in a random order from there. While each song has a sequence for which shots are lit at what times, it is generally advised to play songs that are slightly less than or more than 5 minutes in length, providing ample time to collect all three wardrobe items and then shoot for victory laps.

Progressing through the songs is very simple. All the player needs to do is shoot for the flashing note shots, which start yellow and turn orange/red for level 2 and level 3, respectively, and decrease in number as the level increases. Once each level is complete, the backstage shot lights to collect the wardrobe item for that level: glasses, shoes, then outfit. The first item doubles all song scores for the next 30 seconds, and the second item gives 2x progress for the next five lit mode shots, making it easier to complete level 3.

Once the player has collected the outfit after completing level 3, song victory laps starts and lasts for the remainder of the current song. All lit shots while victory laps are running score 3M + 100k per shot to a maximum of 5M, and the values for subsequent rounds of song victory laps on the same ball are multiplied by +1x, so try to collect as many full item sets as possible!

Albums, Encore Modes & Champ Multiball

The center drop targets will always advance the player towards collecting albums after enough hits. The first few albums can be collected with any combination of center drop target hits but as the game progresses, these restrictions become tighter and eventually require full drop target completions.

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The main reason to go for albums is because of two awards early on: the fourth album awards 15 seconds of ball save, and the fifth album enables the encore modes. Encore modes are 30-second timed side modes that can be started at any time, so long as an encore mode isn’t running or the encore mode has already been played.

The five encore modes are:

• Tiny Targets – Started after 8 shots to the tiny dancer target. All target hits (including the drop targets) score bonus points, and the left standup target increases the multiplier for these values.
• Super Bennie and the Jets – Started after 6 orbit shots. All bumper hits score increasing values starting from 100k per bumper. Great to have with a multiball as every ball plunged feeds the bumpers.
• Backstage Frenzy – Started after 5 backstage shots. All switches score points, hit the backstage shot to boost their value. As above, great to start during a multiball.
• Super Spinners – Started after 1000 spins (they’re opto spinners so this is easier than it seems). Every spin while super spinners is active scores values starting from 10k per spin.
• Piano-Matic – Started after 5 piano ramp shots. Loop the piano shot for 500k + 500k per shot, with “looping” shots in immediate succession scoring even more. By far the toughest encore mode to do well in.

After playing all five encore modes, the piano ramp will light to start Champ Multiball. This being a public guide I won’t spoil it here, but the scoring is based on the player’s performance during the preceding encore modes and it starts with an excellent display / light show. The player can continue to play encore modes after Champ Multiball, but the number of shots needed for each mode will drastically increase.

Multiball Overview

There are three “main” multiballs on Elton John: Croc multiball, Rocket Man multiball, and signature stage multiball (which has four different sub-variations). The former two multiballs can be played at the same time and boost all multiball jackpots by 2x if stacked, but signature stage multiballs are mutually exclusive. However, the player can advance towards and lock the first & second balls for signature stage during any multiball – they just can’t lock the third until the multiball ends.

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Add-a-ball is lit at the left standup target during all multiballs once the ball saver has expired. It can be relit by scoring a super jackpot and can also revive multiballs if the player collects it during the grace period.

Crocodile Rock Multiball

Crocodile Rock multiball is the “basic” multiball of the game and, like many multiballs of its type, serves as a utility to help make progress during the early game with the safety of having multiple balls in play. Hit the tiny dancer target to light lock, then shoot the crocodile VUK to lock each ball. The first croc multiball starts after 2 locks, but subsequent ones require three locks, and they eventually start timing out. You can also light or collect locks via the “adv. croc MB” skill shot but it will stop collecting locks after the first croc multiball is played.

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There’s not much to be said for scoring during Croc multiball – all shots are lit for jackpots and can’t be made again, and the drop targets count for three jackpots (one per target). After enough are scored the crocodile VUK is lit for a super jackpot, and if another ball is quickly locked there after scoring a super jackpot, it will be doubled for 2x.

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I prefer using Croc multiball to focus on the center drop targets/albums rather than explicitly going for jackpots, but there is another multiball described below that can help make this one slightly more valuable…

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Rocket Man Multiball

At the start of the game, a fuel tank can be visible at the bottom right of the display. The player adds fuel to this tank by collecting “add fuel” from the drop targets or by hitting the rocket VUK for 50 units of fuel. Once 500 units of fuel have been obtained, the fuel tank will be full, and the rocket VUK will start Rocket Man multiball. Alternatively, the player can keep collecting fuel units to boost the multiball, making it more lucrative and easier. These boosts are given at intervals of 100 fuel units after the fuel required to light Rocket Man multiball.

Just like Croc multiball this is a relatively straightforward multiball. Hit 7 unique jackpot shots to light the super jackpot at the rocket VUK, then repeat the process again but with more shots required.

Signature Stage Multiballs

Spell ELTON JOHN by hitting every major shot once to light lock at the piano ramp. ELTON JOHN stars can be spotted from “spot star” from the skill shot or by completing the STAR lights at the return lanes, which also increase the bonus X. The first multiball requires only one completion of ELTON JOHN to light all three locks, but subsequent ones require more.

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The lit multiball differs based on which insert is flashing. The tour dates on the left correspond to easier multiballs with longer ball saves and more jackpot shots lit than the two on the right, but the ones on the right have higher scoring. The qualified signature stage multiball can be changed by pressing the action button.

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The four signature stage multiballs behave as follows:

• 1970: All shots score jackpots, with combo shots adding +1x to the jackpot value. Super jackpot is lit after 2 jackpots, each subsequent super jackpot requires 2 more jackpots to light than the last.
• 1975: Behaves the same as above, only with less shots lit for jackpot at a time and a slightly shorter ball save. The jackpot shots change position with every super jackpot scored.
• 2009: Drop targets light jackpots (one target lights one jackpot). The drop target inserts change color during this mode, and matching colors increases jackpot scoring.
• 2023: For experts and masochists only. One shot is lit at a time for jackpot which moves from left to right. Super jackpot lights after 1 jackpot is scored, each subsequent super jackpot requires 1 more jackpot to light than the last.

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While the jackpot sequence differs for the four multiballs, the super jackpot in each is scored the same way – shoot for the side ramp after scoring enough regular jackpots. Looping the side ramp (hitting it repeatedly) adds +1x multipliers to the super jackpot with each shot and scores SUPERSTAR letters, with a 100M superstar jackpot awarded for completing SUPERSTAR. The progress towards completing SUPERSTAR carries across games until the word is completed.

There is a wizard mode for playing all four signature stage multiballs called super stardom, but I haven’t reached it quite yet...

Final Tour / Milestones

Final tour is lit at the piano ramp after completing four milestones, though there are ten total milestones in the game. Once the player starts final tour, if they want to keep playing for more milestones, they can press the action button to delay it. Each milestone completed makes final tour either easier or more valuable.

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The ten milestones require mastery of all aspects of the game and are:

• Collect all three wardrobe items in one song
• Collect all 30 albums from the drop targets
• Start Champ Multiball
• Score 2 super jackpots during croc multiball (or one 2x super jackpot)
• Start Rocket Man multiball with at least 4 fuel tanks filled
• Collect a 3x super jackpot during any signature stage multiball
•  Complete SUPERSTAR with signature stage super jackpots
• Start Super Stardom
• Collect 3 Honky Cat hurry-ups
• Complete a 3-way combo

Noah's Strategies

• I always go for spot star off the plunge personally. I can easily reach Crocodile Rock multiball without the locks being spotted, and the option becomes moot later as it stops awarding locks after the first multiball. Rocket fuel is a close second, especially if I’m very close to having another full tank.
• If the backstage is lit for a wardrobe item, always go for it! More points are always a good thing, and the second item makes it much easier to access song victory laps and put the hammer down on opponents. Remember, the best way to hit the backstage shot is by feeding the upper flipper via the right ramp, and then making an early flip to it from the upper flipper.
• The drop targets aren’t worth aiming for during single-ball play, especially when you could be making song/wardrobe item progress instead. Instead, use Crocodile Rock & Rocket Man multiballs to focus on the center drop targets, then get encore modes running while those multiballs are active. And if add-a-ball is lit, don’t sleep on it. As mentioned, it might be easier to hit it from the left flipper than from the right.
• I tend to prefer 1970 and 1975 for signature stage multiballs just so I can guarantee I get some points and use the ball save to progress toward other rules.