Lol Nino, you actually paid to play games. sure you wernt flicking the switch off and on really quickly to get max creddits for free like the rest of us 
In the old days, we used to use 20c that had a black texta "X" on it. That way the money went back into the till. That was for locations that Dad had HIS games. He never operated SYS80 games, so I had to go into the city to play them. This was around 1981-83 ish. It might have been "Flashbacks" at the time. There was a stairwell wont to a basement level, and on the left was a MacDonalds and on the right was the arcade. Pinball was slowly be removed for the video games. I remember the 1942 games were against the wall as new arrivals. I never went near the videos. In the end, there were not many pinballs there, but I remember the SYS80s and the last time I went there, there was a new Big Guns and Fire. Some of my personal collection reflects those visits - Black Hole, Spirit and Haunted House. Then Fire and Big Guns.
As a younger child, we used to go to church on Sundays and then head across to a location Dad owned called "Delfino's" in Edwards St Reservoir. We used to get $1 each, and that bought a Mars Bar and a Polly Waffle. Then we could play pinballs until lunch time. I spent most of my youth there, as it was just up the road, and it was owned and operated by Dad. This was the location that got all the NEW games - Imagine NIB KISS, Paragon, Space Invaders, Star Trek, Mata Hari, Eight Ball etc etc - all new - were located here first. The KISS had it's first callout after 2 days. The cashbox was so full, it had blocked the coin acceptor. Great memories.
"Delfino's" was that also known as "top Room"?
" It might have been "Flashbacks" at the time "last time I went there, there was a new Big Guns and Fire" I know and played those exact machines also.
when the SYS80s were there they had them all lined up at the top of the stairs / back platform towards the Swanston St. side.
they also had that "Moon patrol" with the sphere around the monitor if you remember?
and an 'Orbitor 1' at one stage.
anyway the answer to the the question where did you play pinball as a kid? is
Keon Park Bowls, I played many classics over the years there like Fire Power 1 & 2, space invaders, Pharaoh, Black Knight, Playboy, Strikes & Spares, Cave Man, Six Million Dollar Man, Future Spa, Paragon, Lost World, Black Pyramid And Flash.
Top Room, I played Eight Ball Deluxe limited edition (I played many more titles there but can't remember most of them)
Flash Back, 10/4, and Invaders (they all became Time Zone) Rocky, Black Hole, Orbit, Haunted House, Orbit1, Raven, Strange Science, PinBot, Fire, Black Knight 2000, Swords or fury, Big Guns and Police Force.
In early 1990 I moved to Queensland and found it nearly impossible to find any pinball machines on site.
"Delfino's" was an Italian Cafe that Dad part owned at the time, and this was the "hang out" for all the locals. "Top Room" was down the road. It was an upstairs billiard room with some arcade machines. Dad sited Bingos at both locations.
