Manufactured by Jersey Jack Pinball in April 2013, The Wizard of Oz Emerald City Limited Edition was one of the few pinball machines that caught my eye out of the bunch at the Strong Museum.
Something something yellow brick road?
It was very modern looking, which it is seeing how the manufacture date is only 2013, and seemed to have a lot of elements to it which made it look very complicated; and as a person who likes complicated games, I had to give this a go.
I honestly had no idea what I was getting myself into
Playing the machine
Although I have very little experience with pinball machines, it seemed like WOZ (Wizard of Oz) was on the responsive side and it was very fun to play. But there were still a lot of things I had to keep track of while learning the machine from square one and I quickly had no idea what was happening after about 30 seconds into the first ball.
There seemed to be several skill shots that all had different objectives/effects but I couldn’t seem to figure out any of them nor did it look like that I was able to achieve any of them either. After some searching on the internet, I found the rules flowchart that outlined all the elements in WOZ and I was at a loss of words.
I don’t even know if this is normal for an average pinball machine.
Overall, playing WOZ was enjoyable and I would definitely like to go back and play it again and slowly learn the game till the point where I can comfortably teach someone else how to play WOZ as well.
Black Knight 2000 is a pinball game manufactured on April 4th, 1989 by Williams Electronics Games. A few noteworthy elements on the machine are three flippers, three pop bumpers, two ramps, a split-level playfield, a horseshoe lane, a Magna-save, and a drawbridge with some additional mechanics (from The Internet Pinball Database).
A full-machine shot, taken by me at the Strong National Museum of Play (cited at the bottom of this post)
Why Black Knight 2000?
I decided to analyze this particular game because of its many gameplay features, flashy (yet consistent and indicative) coloration in the lights and on the field, and its modern/bold theme. The theme and energy drew me to it, and the game’s fast pace combined with the many intriguing features on the playfield kept me plugging in tokens.
Black Knight 2000’s flashy color scheme draws players in and adds character to the machine, as well as guide them toward the many routes they can take to earn points
I would definitely play this game again to see what more I could learn from it in terms of its scoring system and how exactly the elements impact the experience.
Playfield Flow
Black Knight 2000 is a fast-paced machine and contains many features between the backglass and the front of the field. Every time I played it, I found new features and ways to score more points. One of the most difficult challenges of this game reveals itself when the player overcomes the initial obstacle of getting used to the speed and features. Not only can the player have multiple balls on the field, but the physics of specific elements in the design of the machine (such as the horseshoe lane) can only be hit with a high velocity and angle (and the ball gets going pretty fast, especially if multiple U-TURNs are hit).
There is also another field above the main level. The ball enters this field on the upper level, which contains opportunities for points, a few bumpers, and one flipper on the right side. Gravity pulls the ball to the lower level, which contains a “lightning wheel” that shows the different routes players can take to earn points, hit the horseshoe (U-TURN), or spawn multiple balls. The machine itself is very responsive to the user. It was difficult to get a good picture of the upper level since the backglass reflects in it.
Scoring
The above plaque detailing the machines’s rules outlines how players can earn points. Points are accumulated and displayed on the marquee in the backglass. I was able to get a couple consecutive U-TURNs and a few extra balls (up to two at any time, though the game supports three). When an element lights up, the player can use it. For example, there is a magnet (a Magna-save in particular) near the rightmost lane in the front of the machine. When that lights up, the player can activate the magnet to save the ball from traveling down that lane and ending.
Additional Images
The backglass and informational marquee for the game
External References/Citations
Williams ‘Black Knight 2000’. (n.d.). Retrieved from The Internet Pinball Database. (Accession No. 311)
Deadpool Pinball Manufactured in August 2018 by Stern Pinball
At the strong museum they have a few different sections each with a different theme or purpose. A few of these sections consisted of old machines showing the history of pinball, others were focused on specific companies, and another consisted of just weird machines. The one that caught my eye was the Stern Pinball section. The machines in this section ranged from sci-fi to superhero and beyond. The machine in this section that caught my eye was Deadpool Pinball. I chose this machine because of the enjoyment I have for the movies, comics, and the characters.
This game felt really good to play, it was responsive and very quick. There were tons of different ways to score points and complete objectives so there was never a time where it felt like you were pushing the ball around for no gain.
Before this trip I had only played pinball a handful of times in arcades. So I was very bad at controlling the ball starting out. I started out getting a pretty bad score after dying extremely quickly of only a few million. The next game I got a lot better and scored over 50 million points. That play through I even got a few key things such as multiball and certain places I could lose got blocked off. As time went on I got better at landing the ball in a few of the key places and even starting to accomplish some of the major goals of the machine.
Some of the goals I was able to achieve consisted of completing all of the Deadpool Targets, Boom, and Battles. The battles were very interesting because I hadn’t really seen anything similar in the machines I have played in the past. Once you triggered a battle, you could deal damage by hitting certain targets to deal damage, or to collect weapons or other heroes. The only villain I managed to defeat was Juggernaut.
Overall the game felt fun and action packed. Unlike many machines it was a partial mix between the game field and a small video game with the battles. This combination was something that really stood out to me. With the placement of the different goals it was a challenge while not being impossible for new player to get used to. The point system was highly inflated with the scores starting out in the millions, which while making it seem like you are doing really well because of the high scores, almost start to feel meaningless.
When I go back and have more time I definitely plan to play this machine a few more times to see if I can out do my poor score of 54 million. Especially considering the hi-scores on this one machine went easily into the billions.
Over the last few weeks, I’ve learned so much about the history of pinball, as well as its rise and fall over the years. However, the part that interested me the most was when we visited the Strong Museum and talked about the historical pinball machines on display. I wanted to learn more about them, in particular, I wanted to learn about the Hercules, Hyperball, and Baby Pacman machines.
The moment I saw the Hercules Pinball machine, it immediately drew my attention. It was said to be the world’s largest pinball machine, which at first glance, pulled me in. After looking at the machine, I noticed the size of the pinball being used, as well as the massive flippers, which pushed me to learn more. I wanted to know how it was made and some of the history behind its development, so I dove deeper. I discovered that Hercules was a pinball machine developed by the company Atari, originally known for its video games. Released in 1979, Hercules was the biggest pinball machine ever to be produced. It stood 3 feet wide, 7 feet tall, and 8 feet deep, which was massive for a pinball machine at the time, even today!
Due to its massive size, Hercules required custom parts to make the game playable. The project manager at the time, Steve Taylor, used his engineering prowess to develop parts for the game. For example, he used washing machine solenoids to power the flippers, slingshots, and thumper bumpers. He even used a cue ball instead of a regular pinball to go with the giant play field.
The games colorful graphics were intended to coincide with places such as amusement parks and circuses. However, only around 500 machines were put on the market because they were too big to fit in the most popular pinball locations. Even as the world’s biggest pinball machine, Hercules did have some notable drawbacks. Unlike a normal fast-paced game of pinball, Hercules, with its large parts, led to a slower paced game, often only played for a short amount of time. Pinball design was a relatively common issue when it came to Atari’s pinball machines. For example, Generation 1 pinball machines included circuit boards under the playfield, making them prone to damage from falling debris. Despite these flaws, Hercules will always be a marvel in the pinball world.
There were many unique pinball machines at the Strong Museum, but none of them really captured my attention as much as the Baby Pacman machine. This machine not only included a pinball playfield, with traditional pinball features, but a video game, adding duel game modes to the mix. Since I didn’t have the chance to play on my first visit, I decided I wanted to learn more about how the game modes interacted with one another, so I did some research on the game.
Baby Pacman was designed and released by the company Bally-Midway in October of 1982. The game itself consists of a video mode and a pinball mode. The video mode consists of a game identical to the original Pacman, where players move through a maze with the objective of eating dots and avoiding ghosts. However, the game starts without energizers, containing tunnels at the bottom of the screen that allow players to swap modes and earn them.
While in the traditional pinball mode, players use the flippers to bounce the ball towards gameplay goals. For this game in particular, these goals include earning energizers, new fruit bonuses, and increasing tunnel speed. The interesting part about this mode is what happens when a player fails to keep the ball in play. Once the ball is lost, the game resumes in video mode, with the bottom tunnels closed. Players no longer have access to the pinball mode until they die again and the tunnels reopen. As a game design major, it’s amazing to see two pieces of technology combined together, especially at the time this game was made. Only selling around 7,000 units, Baby Pacman wasn’t one of the most popular pinball games of its time. Regardless, I still think of it as one of the coolest pinball machines I’ve learned about while in this class.
The last pinball machine that sparked my interest was Hyperball. Hyperball is just as unique as the previous machines I mentioned, not because it’s huge or has two game modes, but because it has an empty playfield! Almost all pinball machines have something on the playfield, so it shocked me that Hyperball broke away from such a traditional trend. After learning such an intriguing fact from the tour, I was fascinated by the machine’s design. I wondered why it was made this way, so I decided to do some more digging on the machine and its unique qualities.
In 1981, Hyperball was released by the company Williams Electronics. The designer, Steve Ritchie, was famously known for his hand in other pinball games such as Terminator 2, Star Trek the Next Generation, and Superman. Despite designing pinball games, Ritchie’s desire for video game development was displayed throughout the Hyperball machine, especially when it comes to its space theme. Resembling Space Invaders, the object of the game was to destroy targets and avoid losing energy centres as lighting bolts make their way towards you. Each completed wave increases the aggression of the lighting bolts, making the game harder to play.
From this information alone, it’s clear that Hyperball has unique gameplay, resembling a video game. But, Hyperball has unique qualities as well. Other than the empty playing field, Hyperball has hand grips that control a turret where the ball drain would be. This turret can shoot up to 250 balls per minute, making the game feel nothing like a pinball machine. The machine also has targets on top of the playing field and holes with letters that can be used to complete level goals. When the lightning bolts get too intense, a button between the hand grips can be pressed, 3 times a game, to destroy them. Overall, this pinball machine interests me because it takes pinball in a completely different direction. Even though it didn’t sell as many units as predicted, only 5,000, I still admire the work that went into making such a unique game.
Although it’s only been a few weeks, I feel as though I’ve learned a lot about pinball. I gained a higher appreciation for the struggles and unique ideas that went into making these games. When I go back to the Strong Museum, I’ll be sure to see what other history I can learn from Pinball Playfields.
The complete cabinet, in all its semi-legal glory Baby Pac-Man Manufactured in October 1982 by the Bally-Midway Company.
When I came to the Strong’s pinball exhibit, I was excited to try out quite a few of the novel and historic games in their collection. I thought I may play USA Football a two player football-esque experience with a friend or perhaps I’d try the monolith Hercules the largest, but otherwise mediocre, pinball machine ever made. The game that caught my eye was none other than the quasi-legal Baby Pac-Man.
Back in the early 80’s, Midway had struck gold. They had a deal with one of the biggest Japanese arcade companies, Namco and their meteoric success Pac-Man. While the profits were high, Midway was patiently awaiting for Namco to make a sequel to jump in on the mass craze. To get around this, Midway used the Pac-Man license on games that were not designed or approved by Namco. The first of these was Ms. Pac-Man, a retooling of a prior unauthorized Pac-Man hack called Crazy Otto. Midway was still splitting the revenue with Namco, but Namco was enraged with Midway for stepping outside the bounds of their license agreement. Subsequently, Midway continued to make unauthorized Pac-Man games until eventually Namco decided enough was enough and terminated their partnership. Baby Pac-Man is one of the last and the rarest of these Midway cash-ins, only trumped by Jr. Pac-Man in chronology.
I knew the moment I saw it that I had to play it, I may never get another chance, Bally-Midway only manufactured about 7000 of these machines, many of which have gone out of commission . More importantly than that, the game’s strange integration of pinball and video game drew me in.
The Maze of Baby Pac-Man. While the maze and Baby Pac-Man don’t look to out of place, the off-brand ghosts caught my eye.
Baby Pac Man works in a bizarre fashion. You start by playing your standard Pac-Man shenanigans, collecting pellets while avoiding the ghosts. However you may notice that the power pellets from the original game are omitted in this maze. That’s because Baby Pac-Man will not give them to you, you must earn them. The two hallways / passages / “escapes” at the bottom of the screen allow you to go to the pinball portion of the game.
The Pinball portion of Baby Pac-Man
This is the glorious playfield. At first this may seem a bit overwhelming, I was sure overwhelmed at first. What the hell is an Energizer? Why do I need to qualify the maze? Why do they keep using the word spots? Thankfully the arcade portion has a few instructions for us before sending us into the fray of pinball.
Oh boy did I not know what this meant when it first flashed on the screen.
I came to learn that Midway terminology for the elements of a Pac-Man game and popular terminology for elements of a Pac-Man game are not one in the same. Energizers, as it turns out, are what Power Pellets are actually called. “Spots” as used on the instructions on the board, means “Lights up”. The center arrows light up if you complete the tasks in purple text. And when you lose the ball the game will put you back into the arcade mode, this time with doors over the escape tunnels, either completing the maze or dying to a ghost to open them again.
A close up on some of the instructionsMore instructions, in case you weren’t bombarded with enough of them.
I was able to get a hang of the pinball elements pretty well given my limited time playing, I managed to spell PAC MAN a few times, earning an “energizer” in my arcade portion and having a bit of invincibility against the ghosts. I spelled out fruits as well, but I’m not sure what that did in the arcade portion of the game, if anything. For a game with button flippers, it felt fairly responsive and I was able to have good control of the ball.
The Pac-Man portion of the game gave me a harder time than the pinball portion, and as someone who has spent non-insignificant time trying to learn the AI patterns of the original, I can tell Midway did some wack things to the ghosts for this version. The mazes of this version was also a bit different, but nothing unexpected or terribly unconventional.
I doubt I’d go out of my way to play the game again, but I’m glad I finally got to experience a bit of odd pinball and gaming history. It’s certainly an amalgamation, but an peculiarly beautiful one.
Terminator 2 Judgement Day Manufactured in July 1991 by Williams Electronics Games
Today we visited the Strong Museum for the first time in class. We learned more about the history of pinball and I got the chance to play some of the pinball machines there, focusing on one in particular:
I chose to play Terminator 2 Judgement Day because growing up, it was one of my favorite movies. I liked the way the play field itself incorporated characters from the movie, as well as plot that involved them. For example, the T-1000 trying to kill John Connor during the movie was on the field and getting your ball to an escape route was a way to score more points. I also really liked the ball launcher, which was unique in that it used a gun trigger instead of a plunger.
The game itself was pretty responsive. When I pulled the trigger, the ball was immediately launched and put in play. Once in play, the ball was always bouncing off a bumper or moving towards an objective, so I never felt like the gameplay was slow. Although I only played the game for a short period of time, since I had to leave early, I did feel as though I started to get the hang of it. I didn’t really understand the scoring tips and rules very much, since this was one of the first times I’ve played pinball since I was little. However, after a few playthroughs, I accumulated more points by completing some of the game goals. For example, I got a direct hit on the T-1000 and I used the escape route to collect the lit value by hitting the top eject.
Overall, I had a lot of fun playing this game. It gave me insight into how complicated pinball machines were, even back in the day. Although I wasn’t very good, I was still addicted to it, wanting to play the game over and over. If I were to go back, I would definitely play it again so that I could learn more of the game goals and get a higher score.
