Skee-ball Barn (AKA Studio 28)

[GAcoaster]

In the spotlight:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comments and discussions welcomed!

[GAcoaster]

I love playing Skee-Ball (and so does God according to Kevin Smith ), and I miss playing on traditional machines. I have to go to Keansburg to play a decent game now days.

[Yoshi]

I have always liked Skee Ball and also prefer the older machines. I liked how it used to be set up where you could win a prize just from playing Skee Ball rather than collecting tickets like the current setup because with a good score, you could win a prize versus just winning tickets not enough for a prize (except the little junky prizes) now.

 

In the building where the Wii Experience was, there was also some older Skee Ball machines that were removed either last year or the year before that had the setup with a prize for a certain score. They seemed to be overlooked. There were also a bunch of 25 cent skill cranes in that room that were in the Boardwalk last season and this season but seemed to have been removed sometime in May or June and replaced with newer cranes that cost 50 cents and 1 dollar to play.

 

I also don't like how both arcades in the park have been taken over with Skill Cranes with expensive prizes. I like Skill Cranes but the ones with DS and PSP systems or iPods are almost impossible to win (I have never seen anyone win).

[Yankees99]

This is where I perfected my Skee Ball game. Not that I was a pro at it or anything. This was a place you'd go to for 30 minutes or so and play some skee ball and get out of the heat or rain. Very nice spotlight!!!!

[gafreak]

I also don't like how both arcades in the park have been taken over with Skill Cranes with expensive prizes. I like Skill Cranes but the ones with DS and PSP systems or iPods are almost impossible to win (I have never seen anyone win).

 

 

the trick to winning an i pad in the skill crane is to lean it against the drop box and drag it up the side and flip it into the box, its the only way to win this. I have seen it done and the sups in the park no this and will move the boxes back across the machine if they are to close to the drop box, i have seen several one each one was one this way.

[The Master]

It's also pretty easy to cheat at skee ball, just run up the ramp at put the balls into the high point holes. I seen this happen pretty often and may be another factor why you don't see skee ball as much, too easy to cheat at.

[29yrswithaGApass]

I remember in 1981 the Skee-ball Barn was a busy place because it had one of the world's first "Video Jukebox". MTV premiered that summer and music videos were the hottest things. Guests to the Skee-ball Barn could select a song for $1 and the music video would play on a bank of three suspended monitors. At the same time HBO had half hour specials featuring music videos which was also called "Video Jukebox."

[Yoshi]

It's also pretty easy to cheat at skee ball, just run up the ramp at put the balls into the high point holes. I seen this happen pretty often and may be another factor why you don't see skee ball as much, too easy to cheat at.

 

The newer Skee Ball machines like the ones at Chuck E Cheese actually have a sensor on them that if it detects the weight of a person on the alley it voids the game. If Skee Ball were to make a return, they could use those type of machines even though I prefer the older machines.

[29yrswithaGApass]

I always liked playing the air-gun version of Skeeball. I recall these games in the Boardwalk area (when it was the Games Square) but not in the SkeeBall Barn.

 

[Yoshi]

I haven't seen that game in a long time, probably close to 10 years if not longer. That was a lot of fun like Skeeball.

[The Master]

The newer Skee Ball machines like the ones at Chuck E Cheese actually have a sensor on them that if it detects the weight of a person on the alley it voids the game. If Skee Ball were to make a return, they could use those type of machines even though I prefer the older machines.

 

 

Now Nelson the bully from the Simpsons can't play Skee Ball.

[29yrswithaGApass]

Below is an interesting picture of the integration of the "new" Skeeball machines. It's strange that they alternated the new and the old instead of just putting all the new ones in a section.

 

[multiham]

Awesome picture. One of my absolute favorite places to work in the park! Was the manager here in either 1984 or 1985. I was pretty decent at skeeball. Could consistently hit the 40 ring by knowing where on the side rail to bank the ball off of. Could never nail the 50 consistently. We used to play a lot before the park opened, or after it closed at night. The Video Jukebox in the Skeeball barn and in the arcade by the games square used to make tons of money. I still think about the video jukebox whenever I hear the song Let's Go Crazy by Prince. Think it must have been summer 0f 84 and people would constantly pick this song. Used to be great on Sunday nights when we had to dump the arcade machines. Used to have a red bag that was associated with each game in the arcade. After the park closed on Sunday, we had to walk around and put the corresponding bag in front of each machine. Than we had to open each machine and dump the tokens into the bag. Used to crank up the volume on the video jukebox and play the songs I liked!

 

[29yrswithaGApass]

Who else remembers all of plush animal prizes? Those always looked so impressive covering all the walls and really made you want to play to win something.

 

[29yrswithaGApass]

Saw this on Yahoo. Get practicing!

 

How to become a skeeball master

 

By Mike Smith | Unplugged – Fri, Mar 9, 2012 6:24 PM EST

 

 

Enticing kids and adults for more than a century, skeeball's mixture of accuracy, power, and luck is an addictive combination -- but often a humiliating one as well. Get your angle just slightly wrong, and clunk, down goes the ball, while your score stays put (as does that giant, pink, fluffy dinosaur you were hoping to take home as a reward).

 

Nobody wants to see that, but few actually bother learning ways to maximize scores and take home the best prizes. So read on for a few essential tips to becoming a skeeball wizard.

 

Pick your machine -- and stick with it

 

Not all skeeball machines are created equal. Between the shape of the ramp, the geometry of the backboard, and the precise characteristics of the rolling surfaces, each skeeball machine plays slightly differently -- and those variations can throw you off your game. If you're getting settled into a serious practice session, stock up with plenty of tokens and don't step away from your chosen spot.

[Related: 6 New Story Books for Kids]

 

Mastering the throw

 

So here's what it's all about. Opinions vary on the perfect skeeball technique. Some stick with a simple, straight, bowling-style roll of the ball. Others prefer to slide the ball, rather like a curling player slides a stone. Some daring souls favor an off-the-side shot, relying upon the lane's "sweet spot" to routinely rebound the ball into the top scoring slots. Try them all, and you'll soon settle on the style that suits you best.

 

Once you've figured out which technique works best for you, stick with it. Rather like golf, skeeball game high-scores aren't won with single, brilliant shots -- they're won with consistent, predictable, repeatable ones. Focus on developing a throw that you can reproduce exactly, every time. Just like your golf swing.

 

The low down

Strange as it may sound, many skeeball aficionados prefer to kneel down to play. Maybe the lower stance helps them line up their shot, or perhaps being closer to the action helps them judge their throwing power a little more accurately. Whatever the reason, it's a tried and true technique for expert skeeball players -- and it might work for you, too. If you're struggling to settle into a comfortable throw, give it a try.

 

The nifty fifty

Once you've got your basic throw down pat -- consistent, straight, and controlled -- it's time to think strategy. Fortunately, there isn't a ton of it in skeeball.

 

As a beginning-intermediate player, you want to aim for the 50-point hole. Forget the hundreds; as far as you're concerned, apart from a hail-mary, last-ditch effort to win a close game, they don't exist. The 50 is the highest-scoring hole that's reasonably easy to hit, and even if you miss it, chances are you'll still land in the 40 or 30 zone.

 

 

The final step

 

Here's the conundrum that every improving skeeball player will eventually face. Once you can consistently hit the 50 and can regularly rack up 300-400 points per game, where do you go? The obvious answer -- the only answer, really -- is up to those hundred-point holes in the top left and right corners of the backstop.

 

Do that, though, and the risk/reward interplay changes dramatically. Chances are, if you miss the 50, you'll likely fall short and hit the 40 or 30 hole. Not great, but not disastrous. Flub a shot on the much harder hundred-point rings, however, and you'll be lucky to score anything at all.

 

Is it worth it? No matter how good you are, you're going to have to put some in serious practice time to have any hope of hitting those little holes consistently. Only consider switching from the 50-point ring if you're making 60-70% of your shots, and that's a success rate that could well be beyond all but the most talented of skeeball players. The rest of us may eventually have to face the possibility that 450 points per game -- and one giant, pink, fluffy dinosaur -- is the best we can do.

[29yrswithaGApass]

I always liked playing the air-gun version of Skeeball. I recall these games in the Boardwalk area (when it was the Games Square) but not in the SkeeBall Barn.

 

I found a photo of the air ball game at Great Adventure!

 

[gasmspiritblue]

Nice photo! I have a loops coin from the arcade from 79!

 

 

It's blurry but the coin says: "I was thrown for a loop on the Lightnin Loops", SFGA, 1979

 

 

 

This one says " First twin- interlocking- loop- coaster in america" Lightnin loops

Edited October 25, 2012 by gasmspiritblue

[29yrswithaGApass]

For anyone who wouldn't mind some Skeeball-like fun in their own home, check out this tabletop version available on Amazon. The game is pretty realistic and well built. Fun fun fun!

 

[Yoshi]

I used to have something similar to that when I was a kid.

 

A couple of years ago I bought this from Target after Christmas when it was marked down to $25:

[29yrswithaGApass]

Really cool photo of the Skeeball Barn in its prime!

 

[laurenalexis]

I see on the GAH page for this that the timeline ends at 2019. Was this demolished?

[29yrswithaGApass]

No.  The timelines are being revised now and will shortly say 2021!

[harry2004]

I been thinking about that western saloon retheme that they were gonna do to this arcade, I would love to see six flags great adventure revisiting that facade idea but as a entire new building if they going to expand frontier adventures into the northern star arena space

Edited August 16, 2023 by harry2004