Top 10 Best Modern Pinball Shots Ever Designed

A great pinball shot is more than a ramp or an orbit.

It is a piece of engineering that makes you want to shoot it again.

The best shots have that perfect combination of difficulty, trajectory, flow and reward. You know exactly what you're trying to hit, you know when you've made it cleanly, and when the ball comes back exactly where you expect it to, it feels fantastic.

After looking at some of the most talked-about shots and ramps in pinball, these are ten that stand out for us — with a strong focus on modern machines and the kind of shots that make you want to play a game just for the pleasure of shooting them.

1. Godzilla – The Building Shot

The building shot in Godzilla is almost the definition of a modern pinball shot (shot 6 in the image).

It isn't just a target. You shoot through the building, interact with one of the machine's most important toys and immediately feel like you're doing something inside the world of Godzilla.

The geometry is also excellent. It is challenging enough to reward accuracy but accessible enough that you can build confidence with it.

That combination of shot quality, physical interaction and theme is extremely difficult to beat.

It's one of the reasons Godzilla remains one of the greatest modern pinball machines.

2. Medieval Madness Remake – The Castle

The Castle shot in Medieval Madness Remake might be one of the most satisfying shots ever put on a playfield.

The ball appears to jump the moat before entering the castle, and the physical interaction that follows makes the shot feel like an actual event rather than simply hitting a switch.

It is a brilliant example of how a relatively simple shot can become memorable through mechanical design and theme.

And it comes from Brian Eddy, whose approach to playfield design has influenced modern pinball enormously.

The Medieval Madness Remake keeps that classic experience alive while giving collectors a modern machine to play and customise.

3. Attack from Mars Remake – The Saucer

The flying saucer shot in Attack from Mars Remake is another classic.

The game has a wonderfully open fan layout, with its major shots accessible from both flippers, making the geometry incredibly intuitive. The saucer takes it further: you don't simply make the shot — you hit a physical object suspended above the playfield and watch the whole thing react.

It is simple, readable and ridiculously satisfying.

Our Attack from M

ars Remake Pinball Mods are designed for the modern version of this classic.

4. Jurassic Park – The T-Rex

The T-Rex shot on Stern's Jurassic Park is one of those shots that immediately communicates what the machine is about.

You are not just shooting a ramp.

You're feeding the T-Rex.

The shot has a very distinctive visual target, and hitting it cleanly feels considerably more rewarding than hitting a generic standup target would.

It is also a great example of how a shot can become memorable simply by giving the player a clear physical objective.

That's part of what makes Jurassic Park such an enduring modern machine.

5. Iron Maiden – The Upper-Playfield Shots

Iron Maiden: Legacy of the Beast has some seriously demanding geometry, and its upper section is one of the best examples.

The machine is packed with shots that require precision rather than simply pointing the ball in the general direction of a ramp.

The best part is how those shots interact with the rest of the layout. A successful shot can change the rhythm of the ball and set up the next opportunity.

It is exactly the kind of design that makes a Keith Elwin machine so rewarding.

If you're interested in the designer behind it, our Keith Elwin Pinball Machines Ranked takes a closer look at his approach to modern pinball.

6. JAWS – The Upper Playfield

The upper playfield on JAWS deserves a place on this list simply because of how satisfying it feels when everything comes together.

Getting the ball into that section and then successfully working the shots creates a completely different rhythm from the main playfield.

It is a great example of using a smaller playfield to create a concentrated shooting challenge.

And, of course, there is the added satisfaction of knowing exactly what you're trying to accomplish: you're hunting the shark.

The upper playfield is one of the features players regularly single out when talking about satisfying shots on modern machines.

If you own one, our JAWS Pinball Mods give you plenty of ways to take the visual side of the machine even further.

7. TRON: Legacy – The Lightcycle

The Lightcycle shot on TRON: Legacy is one of the most visually distinctive shots of its era.

The geometry works beautifully with the theme, and the way the ball enters the Lightcycle area gives the player an immediate feeling that they're doing something specific inside the TRON universe.

It is also a machine where the overall shot layout feels incredibly coherent.

The game doesn't just have good shots.

The shots belong together.

And that's a big part of why TRON: Legacy remains such a visually and mechanically distinctive machine.

8. Avengers: Infinity Quest – The Captain Marvel Ramp

Keith Elwin's Avengers: Infinity Quest is full of shots that look almost unreasonable when you first play the machine.

The Captain Marvel ramp is one of the best.

It is narrow, demanding and extremely satisfying when you get it right. There is a real sense of precision involved rather than simply relying on a broad target area.

That's something Elwin does particularly well: making difficult shots feel like something you can eventually master rather than something that is simply difficult for the sake of being difficult.

Players frequently single out the ramps and loops on Avengers: Infinity Quest when discussing satisfying modern layouts.

9. Foo Fighters – The Combos

Foo Fighters takes a slightly different approach.

Instead of one enormous mechanical shot stealing the show, the pleasure comes from linking shots together.

Once you get the machine flowing, you can start chaining ramps, loops and other shots into combinations, creating exactly the kind of rhythm that makes modern pinball so addictive.

It is a reminder that a great shot isn't always about where the ball finishes.

Sometimes it's about where the next shot takes you.

The flowing combos on Foo Fighters are regularly mentioned by players when discussing satisfying modern layouts.

10. Pirates of the Caribbean – The Cannon Shot

Jersey Jack Pinball deserves a place on this list, and Pirates of the Caribbean has one of the most memorable shots in modern pinball.

The cannon shot is special because it feels like a complete sequence rather than simply a target. You first work towards loading the cannon, then use the action button to fire it across the playfield at the HMS Dauntless.

When the shot connects and the ship goes down, it feels like you've actually accomplished something inside the game rather than simply hit a switch. It is exactly the kind of physical, interactive design that makes a pinball shot memorable.

The game also has some fantastic ramp and upper-playfield shots, but the cannon is the one that really stands out. It is a perfect example of why Jersey Jack machines deserve to be part of any conversation about the best modern pinball shots.

More Modern Shots That Could Become Classics

And the list may look very different in a few years. Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye already has some seriously interesting shots and combinations that could become part of the machine's legacy, while Sonic the Hedgehog brings its own collection of fast, distinctive shots that feel perfectly suited to the theme. And with Fallout now arriving, it is still too early to say which shots will ultimately become fan favourites — but the new machine certainly has the potential to add a few memorable shots to the modern pinball conversation. These are exactly the kinds of newer games that could make future versions of this list very different.

What Makes a Shot Great?

The best pinball shots usually have several things in common.

They are readable. You know what you're aiming for.

They are challenging. Making them consistently requires skill.

They have good geometry. The ball behaves in a satisfying way when you make the shot.

And ideally, they have personality.

A great shot doesn't feel like something that could have been copied onto another machine. It feels like it belongs there.

That is why the best modern designers put so much thought into their layouts. A playfield might contain only a handful of major shots, but those shots have to work together constantly.

When they do, the result is magic.

And when you find yourself repeatedly shooting the same ramp simply because it feels incredible every time you hit it, you know the designer got it right.