Having played tons of air hockey in people's homes and at arcades, I truly believe that there's two things that separate the "meh" tables from the great ones. First and foremost, the best tables to play on are commercial-grade and support the use of pro-style mallets and pucks. Second, but maybe just as important, the most fun air hockey tables create an immersive experience with overhead scoreboards and awesome lighting that gets you in the zone.
So let's check out some of these immersive air hockey tables. I really think you'll love them...
Quick Summary Table
Don't have time to read the entire article? This table provides a quick summary of all the tables we've covered.
Table Name | Key Features | Where to Buy |
|---|---|---|
Triumph Fire & Ice   | Kids Table with light up pucks, mallets, electronic scoring and LED lights. | |
Triumph Lumen X   | Larger table with light up pucks, mallets, LED lights. | |
Atomic 90"   | Beautifully designed large home table with overhead scoring. | |
American Heritage Brookdale   | Similar to the Beachcomber, beautiful design, overhead scoring, but no extra features. | |
Valley Dynamo Fire Storm   | Professional-grade table with every single feature you could want: white & black overhead lighting, LED lights, overhead scoring, even a table shield. | |
Tournament Pro Elite | Professional-grade table with overhead black and white lighting, overhead scoring, and rounded goals for extra comfort. | |
EA Sports 84"   | Interactive large home table with lighting, sound, and some cool storage functions. |
How We Selected These Tables
We selected tables for this list if they had one or more of the following attributes:
✓ Overhead scoring
✓ Overhead lighting
✓ Black lights
✓ Neon
LED lighting
Not all of the tables are 100% professional-grade, but all of them will deliver a memorable play experience and would make an awesome long term fixture in any game room.
Before we get into the tables, here's a bit about each of these features and why they're important:
Overhead Electronic Scoring
Perhaps the most basic of all the features is overhead electronic scoring.
Just imagine for a second that you're playing in a really intense match. The score is 5-5 and you need two points to seal the victory. Out of nowhere, you get the next goal and the score is 6-5. The "clink" sound from the puck sliding into the goal totally got you in the zone and you're ready for seal the deal by taking puck possession on the next shot.
But wait, you need to slide the manual scorekeeper to tally up your next point taking you out of the zone and causing you to choke on your defensive strategy. Now it's 6-6!
We think you get the point here. Manual scoring is a total buzzkill and should be a back-up option at best.
Overhead electronic scoring means that you'll have uninterrupted game-play. Neither you or your opponent will be taken out of the flow after a goal, and you only need to tilt your head slightly upward to check the score.
Overhead Lighting
If you're playing in a game room with windows, your gameplay is at the mercy of the sun. As it starts to set, the lighting on the air hockey table can become a bit uneven or worse yet, create a glare. Having overhead lighting above your air hockey table ensures that the playing surface will be fairly lit for both opponents. You don't have to worry about perfectly positioning any other lights or be concerned about getting your best games in during daylight hours.
Black Lighting
Black lighting isn't sanctioned for competitive air hockey, but it's an awesome feature to have. Some of the overhead lighting fixtures on this list have the option of providing a black light instead of the standard white lights. Many pucks and mallets will actually glow in the dark under the black light for an "intergalactic" air hockey experience!
LED Lighting
LED lighting is typically just for show, but that doesn't make it any less cool. These are the fancy lights you can see on the body of the table and sometimes on the inside rails. If you want to make your game room look epic, then this is something you can consider.
Our Top 7 Tables With These Features
It's important to note that these tables aren't in any particular order. You'll find several different price ranges and quality of tables. All of the tables are big enough for decent quality air hockey in your home game room, but it's the commercial-grade tables on this list that provide the best overall experience.
Triumph Fire & Ice (For Kids)
Features
Overhead Scoring: No
Electronic Scoring: Yes
Overhead Lighting: No
Black Lighting: Sort of
LED Lights: Yes
Bonus Features: Illuminated Pucks and Mallets
Sizing & Specifications
Sizing: 54 x 27 x 31 (inches)
Commercial Grade: No
Key Details
Before we get into any of the larger and profession-grade tables, we wanted to add a table that's strictly for kids. The Fire n Ice table by Escalade Sports is a lower commitment table and although it doesn't have any overhead lighting, scoring, or official black lighting, it is capable of playing in a darker room.
This is because the pucks and mallets light up and glow in the dark. There'a also additional LED trace lights on the 4-corners of the table. To keep with the theme, each of the mallets has a respective light up color: blue and red, making it way more immersive for kids than a standard mini table.
Where To Buy
Triumph Lumen X
Features
Overhead Scoring: No
Electronic Scoring: Yes
Overhead Lighting: No
Black Lighting: Sort of
LED Lights: Yes
Bonus Features: In game music, illuminated pucks and mallets.
Sizing & Specifications
Sizing: 72 x 40 x 31
Commercial Grade: No
Key Details
The Triumph Lumen-X by Escalade Sports is a home air hockey table that's around medium to large sized. It's about the smallest air hockey table we would recommend. Any smaller and the game play for adults simply wouldn't be that enjoyable.
While it's not a commercial-grade table, it is perfect for any family's home game room. The illuminated pucks and LED lighting allow for darker play without the need for overhead lighting. A rather clever design if you ask us. To make things even more immersive and fun, the table comes with sound effects that you can toggle on and off.
We have seen some issues with this table regarding broken or missing pieces, but the company seems to be pretty good about replacing things that they're at fault for.
Where To Buy
Harvil Beachcomber 7-Foot Table
Features
Overhead Scoring: Yes
Overhead Lighting: No
Black Lighting: No
LED Lights: No
Sizing & Specifications
Sizing: 84 x 48 x 31
Commercial Grade: No
Key Details
If you were only interested in overhead scoring and don't wan't to shell out for a commercial table, then the Beachcomber is a solid choice. It's a bit bigger than the Lumen-X, one of the other non-commercial tables, but smaller than some of the full-sized ones you'll see later on this list.
It's also one of the few tables on the market that has a wood grain finish. For design-minded folks, it's non-game room aesthetic could make it the fixture you were looking for.
As far as play is concerned, expect it to be slightly down-graded from arcade level play, but still high-paced and exciting. Perfect for families and great times with friends, but not quite for competitive air hockey.
Where To Buy
American Heritage 390074 Monarch Series
Features
Overhead Scoring: Yes
Overhead Lighting: No
Black Lighting: No
LED Lights: No
Sizing & Specifications
Sizing: 84 x 48 x 32
Commercial Grade: No
Key Details
Although this isn't quite a commercial table (it's not sanctioned in the official air hockey rules), it is a really high quality table. Tournament sanctioned tables are typically 99" in length, so this isn't too far off. This thing is far from a mini kid's table, though. It's sturdy with solid air flow and something you'll treasure for years to come.
We still can't recommend it over a Dynamo-Valley or Gold Standard Games table, but we would consider this a very viable alternative.
Where To Buy
Valley Dynamo Fire Storm
Features
Overhead Scoring: Yes
Overhead Lighting: Yes
Black Lighting: Yes
LED Lights: Yes
Bonus Features: Interactive sound and table shield.
Sizing & Specifications
Sizing: 99.5 x 56 x 71 (includes overhead scoring)
Commercial Grade: Yes
Videos
This video features the coin operated version of this table in action.
Key Details
This model literally checks all the boxes for a dream air hockey table. Not only does it have all the bells and whistles in terms of lighting and scoring, but it's also tournament sized and professional-grade.
This means you can play with the top-rated (and properly weighted) pucks. Heavy pucks rarely go flying off he table, even when struck by professionals. Most home tables come with lighter pucks and lighter mallets because their air flow systems and/or surfaces aren't powerful or designed well enough for the pucks to slide well.
The Fire Storm is not one of these tables. These are the kinds of tables that the pros practice and play on.
Note: If you can't afford the Fire Storm and want to see some alternatives, check out our post on the best air hockey tables where we discuss professional grade alternatives.
Where To Buy
Gold Standard Games Tournament Pro Elite
Features
Overhead Scoring: Yes
Overhead Lighting: Yes
Black Lighting: Yes
LED Lights: No
Bonus Features: Comfortable rounded goal ends
Sizing & Specifications
Sizing: 99.5 x 51.25 x 31 (source)
Commercial Grade: Yes
Videos
Gold Standard Games Mark Robbins breaking down the table.
Key Details
With the Tournament Pro Elite, you're getting all of the features we've talked about besides for any fancy decorative LED lighting. The overhead fixture does real-time scoring, and has a white light plus black light.
You're also getting a tournament-sized table that the pros play on. Imagine, playing on a table that the USAA has sanctioned right in your own home.
Just like the Fire Storm, you'll be playing the realest version of air hockey you can get.
For extra comfort during long nights of air hockey, this table has a rounded goal design. Because the lower part of your body will often be in contact with this part of the table, it really helps to have something that's a softer and not as jagged as the rest of the table. This is a must if you're going to be playing for extended periods.
Where To Buy
EA Sports 84" Air Hockey Table
Features
Overhead Scoring: Yes (note quite overhead)
Overhead Lighting: Yes (sort of)
Black Lighting: No
LED Lights: Yes (sort of)
Extra Features: Cup holders and side-mounted storage and sound effects.
Sizing & Specifications
Sizing: 84 x 48 x 32
Commercial Grade: No
Key Details
This table is pretty big with lots of cool lighting and interactive features. All of the projection lights, sounds, and scorekeeping come from the arch in the center. Granted, it's not fully overhead nor is it that powerful in terms of how lights go and it's not one of the tables that has black light capabilities. But we did think this table had some cool functionalities that would definitely fit some people's taste and game rooms.
Where To Buy
Any Questions?
If you haven't noticed by now, if you want to get the best surfaces and blowers with overhead scoring, overhead lighting, and extra LED's, the Firestorm is going to be the way to go. The next level down would be the Tournament Pro Plus (which has everything besides decorative LEDs) followed by the rest tables on this list.
So which one of these air hockey tables do you think you'll go for? Are you just looking for a casual table for your family's game room or do you want to play on the same tables as the pros?
Let us know in the comment section along with any other questions you may have.