I recently acquired The X-Files pinball game and found it to be a fun game. This Stern game from 1997 was when the X-Files was at the height of its popularity. The television series aired from September 1993 to May 2002, on Fox. The program spanned nine seasons with 202 episodes. A short tenth season consisting of six episodes ran from January to February 2016 and returned for an eleventh season of ten episodes, which ran from January to March 2018. Two feature films have been released: The 1998 film The X-Files, which took place in Antarctica and had scenes with tents full of bees. The stand-alone film The X-Files: I Want to Believe, filmed in Vancouver, was released in 2008, six years after the original television run had ended.

The X-Files pinball game was released just before the 1998 film came out and it does feature bees depicted on some of the playing surfaces, which was a major part of the first film. As the games starts either Mulder says: “I’m agent Mulder, I’m from the FBI” or Scully says, “We’re from the FBI.” This must be the only pinball game ever produced where the FBI is promoted in any way. You have to laugh since the FBI is getting a bad rap these days. Let’s face it no one wants a visit from the FBI. At least we could trust them during the X-File days.

However, the whole television—and the game—is based on paranoia and conspiracy. In several places on the game it tells you to: “Trust No One”; “Deny Everything” and “The Truth is Out There.”

The game has explosive bumper action, some of the best I have ever seen. A filing cabinet pops up and down to shoot a ball into and there is plenty of ramps and multiball action. It has all the crazy and chilling characters from the television show plus a curved backglass which may be unique.

Anyway it is a great game to play, but relatively scarce out there in the pinball arcades out there. It is not seen for sale much in the used market either. I suppose those who have this game do not want to sell it.