Sue Kiesewetter

Enquirer contributor

FAIRFIELD – Brad Baker grew up playing arcade games and had every video game console on the market.

He never thought his childhood passion would morph into a business.

But Friday the 40-year-old founder of VPcabs will pitch his virtual pinball machine to a panel of investors on ABC’s Shark Tank.

His goal: to partner with one of the sharks to tap into their business acumen – and cash – in an effort to expand his business and product line.

“My brother, Jesse, and I grew up huge arcade fans. We’d go over to Malibu Grand Prix with $5 of quarters. It was our favorite thing to do,’’ said Baker, a 1994 Cincinnati Christian Schools graduate.

“Pinball was my favorite game but I never expected it to turn into a business.”

It all started about three years ago when Jesse – owner of Arcade Legacy and Arcade Legacy Bar Addition – called to ask Baker if he could build him a virtual pinball machine.

With woodworking experience, and an electronics background, Baker – who owns Home Theater Plus – bought an old pinball cabinet off Craigslist.

He added a high end Windows-based gaming computer to the cabinet along with high definition displays.

Free pinball games were downloaded and he added the licensed, Zen Studios’ FX2, 60-game package with Marvel and Star Wars-themed games. The machine has wi-fi capabilities so that games can constantly be added.

“With this, you’re not stuck with one game or title like you would with a traditional pinball machine,’’ Baker said. “You can turn this on, play, enjoy it and not get bored because you can play a variety of games.”

After building the first machine with 200-plus games including digital renderings of classic pinball tables from the 1960s to the present, his operation soon outgrew his Fairfield Township garage.

Two years ago he incorporated the company and has since moved to a 6,000 square-foot facility on Homewood Way in Fairfield, which now employs seven.

There, automation allows staff to custom-build the cabinet; there is also a print area for graphics. His products, unlike traditional pinball machines, require little maintenance.

Instead of building one machine every three to four weeks by hand, several machines can be produced every day.

With Wi-Fi capabilities, all kinds of virtual games were downloaded and he adds the FX2 60-game package.

“We went from finding old pinball cabinets to making them ourselves,” Baker explained.

He offers four different machines ranging in price from $3,495 to $7,995.

His next step: make a machine that accepts coins for a commercial application.

VPCabs was featured at San Diego’s Comi-Con International in the Microsoft Xbox Lounge and at the 2014 E3Convention in Los Angeles. That year VPcabs was listed as the #1 spot in the Game Informer 2014 Holiday Buyers Guide.

After seeing his creation, Microsoft is displaying his virtual pinball machine at its gaming headquarters.

Information: virtualpinball.com