Popeye is considered to be a dog of a machine

If you are coming into the hobby, I would recommended a working pin  as a first pin and maybe a project as a second or third. Projects can create unforseen hassles and may actually turn you off pinball.

for a first game, you want to be able to turn it on and play it.

as for what tyepe of game, it is personal preference. Try to get out and play some to get an idea of what you like. Some people love the feel and skill of an EM whilst others find them slow and uninteresting. Similarly some people find the speed of a lotof DMD games to be frustrating.  

Play some games and narrow down an era and then research ipdb to see the types of games made at that time.