# Keith Elwin

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**Keith Elwin** is an American [pinball](/source/Pinball) player and game designer, best known for designing *[Jurassic Park](/source/Jurassic_Park_(pinball)#Stern_Pinball_release)* and *[Godzilla](/source/Godzilla_(pinball))* for [Stern Pinball](/source/Stern_Pinball).

Born in [Carlsbad](/source/Carlsbad,_California), California, Elwin began attending pinball tournaments in 1993. He has been ranked No. 1 in the world by the International Flipper Pinball Association, which credits him with 11 victories and 19 top-4 finishes in major pinball championships—both records.[1][2][3][4]

Elwin operated and repaired pinball machines in San Diego and Los Angeles.[5]

In 2015, Elwin designed and built a homebrew pinball machine based on *[Archer](/source/Archer_(2009_TV_series))*,[6] with a playable [whitewood](/source/Glossary_of_pinball_terms#W) shown in 2016 at the [Museum of Pinball](/source/Museum_of_Pinball).[7] In 2017, Stern Pinball hired him as a game designer,[8] the first of which, *Iron Maiden* used a layout heavily based on that of *Archer*.[9] His designs are consistently ranked among the top pinball games of all time, based on the Pinside Top 100.[citation needed]

Elwin was the lead designer on these Stern Pinball games:

- *Iron Maiden: Legacy of the Beast* (2018)[10]
- *[Jurassic Park](/source/Jurassic_Park_(pinball))* (2019)
- *Avengers: Infinity Quest* (2020)[5]
- *[Godzilla](/source/Godzilla_(pinball))* (2021)[11]
- *James Bond 007 60th Anniversary* (2022)
- *Jaws* (2024)[8]
- *King Kong: Myth of Terror Island* (2025)[12]

## Awards and honors

- 2006: Named “World’s Greatest Pinball Player” by the International Flipper Players Association.[13]
- U.K. Pinball Hall of Fame: Inducted 2023[14]

## See also

- [Professional and Amateur Pinball Association](/source/Professional_and_Amateur_Pinball_Association)

## References

1. ["Major Championship Records"](https://www.ifpapinball.com/majors/). *IFPA*

1. Sharpe, Josh (August 8, 2019). ["Keith Elwin wins 11th Major Championship! - Keith Elwin wins 11th Major Championship!"](https://www.ifpapinball.com/keith-elwin-wins-11th-major-championship/). *IFPA*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20260201014943/https://www.ifpapinball.com/keith-elwin-wins-11th-major-championship/) February 1, 2026 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 24, 2025.

1. Frye, Andy. ["Competitive Pinball Is A Thing. Just Ask The World's Best Players"](https://www.forbes.com/sites/andyfrye/2018/10/17/competitive-pinball-is-now-a-thing-just-ask-the-worlds-best-players/). [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20251021025338/https://www.forbes.com/sites/andyfrye/2018/10/17/competitive-pinball-is-now-a-thing-just-ask-the-worlds-best-players/) 2025-10-21 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2025-12-24.

1. ["CARLSBAD: No. 1-ranked pinball player enjoys his time in 'the zone'"](https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2012/06/24/carlsbad-no-1-ranked-pinball-player-enjoys-his-time-in-the-zone/). *San Diego Union-Tribune*. June 24, 2012.

1. Elwin, Keith (September 28, 2020). ["Stern Pinball’s Keith Elwin Creates The Avengers Infinity Quest Pinball Machine!"](https://ausretrogamer.com/stern-pinballs-keith-elwin-creates-the-avengers-infinity-quest-pinball-machine/)

1. ["Archer Pinball Machine (Elwin, 2015) - Image gallery | Pinside Game Archive"](https://pinside.com/pinball/machine/archer/gallery). *pinside.com*

1. ["Arcade Expo 2016"](https://www.pinballnews.com/shows/arcadeexpo2016/index.html). *Pinball News*. January 2016. Retrieved 2026-05-18.

1. Berkowitz, Joe (2024-07-06). ["Pinball is cool again—and these stunning machines are why"](https://www.fastcompany.com/91142280/pinball-is-cool-again-and-these-stunning-machines-are-why). *Fast Company*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20251112083301/https://www.fastcompany.com/91142280/pinball-is-cool-again-and-these-stunning-machines-are-why) 2025-11-12 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2026-02-24.

1. ["IRON MAIDEN REVEALED"](https://www.pinballnews.com/site/2018/03/27/iron-maiden-revealed/). *Pinball News*. 2018-03-27. Retrieved 2026-05-18.

1. Frye, Andy. ["Competitive Pinball Is A Thing. Just Ask The World's Best Players"](https://www.forbes.com/sites/andyfrye/2018/10/17/competitive-pinball-is-now-a-thing-just-ask-the-worlds-best-players/). *Forbes*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20251021025338/https://www.forbes.com/sites/andyfrye/2018/10/17/competitive-pinball-is-now-a-thing-just-ask-the-worlds-best-players/) 2025-10-21 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2026-02-24.

1. Harding, Matt (2021-09-14). ["Stern Pinball Unleashes New Godzilla Machine"](https://www.replaymag.com/stern-pinball-unleashes-new-godzilla-machine/). *RePlay Magazine*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20250911150120/https://www.replaymag.com/stern-pinball-unleashes-new-godzilla-machine/) 2025-09-11 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2026-02-24.

1. Strampe, Louryn (April 15, 2025). ["Stern Pinball's Brand-New King Kong Game Is Totally Bananas"](https://www.wired.com/story/stern-pinball-king-kong-myth-of-terror-island/). *Wired*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20250727004649/https://www.wired.com/story/stern-pinball-king-kong-myth-of-terror-island/) July 27, 2025 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 24, 2025.

1. ["Award winning play"](https://www.pinballnews.com/news/champion.html). *Pinball News*. March 29, 2007. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20250712131225/https://pinballnews.com/news/champion.html) July 12, 2025 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 24, 2025.

1. Harding, Matt (April 11, 2023). ["Keith Elwin in U.K. Pinball Hall of Fame"](https://www.replaymag.com/keith-elwin-in-u-k-pinball-hall-of-fame/). *RePlay Magazine*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20250911153124/https://www.replaymag.com/keith-elwin-in-u-k-pinball-hall-of-fame/) September 11, 2025 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 24, 2025.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Keith Elwin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keith_Elwin) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keith_Elwin?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.