Pinball games are a family of games in which a ball is propelled into a specially designed table where it bounces off various obstacles, scoring points either en route or when it comes to rest. Historically the board was studded with nails called 'pins' and had hollows or pockets which scored points if the ball came to rest in them. Today, pinball is most commonly an arcade game in which the ball is fired into a specially designed cabinet known as a pinball machine, hitting various lights, bumpers, ramps, and other targets depending on its design. The game's object is generally to score as many points as possible by hitting these targets and making various shots with flippers before the ball is lost. Most pinball machines use one ball per turn, and the game ends when the ball(s) from the last turn are lost. The biggest pinball machine manufacturers historically include Bally Manufacturing, Gottlieb, Williams Electronics and Stern Pinball.
Stern is the name of two different but related arcade gaming companies. Stern Electronics, Inc. manufactured arcade video games and pinball machines from 1977 until 1985, and was best known for Berzerk. Stern Pinball, Inc., founded in 1986 as Data East Pinball, is a manufacturer of pinball machines in North America.
A glossary of terms, commonly used in discussing pinball machines.
Patrick M. Lawlor is a video game and pinball machine designer.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is a 1991 pinball machine designed by Joe Kaminkow and Ed Cebula. It is based on the comic book characters of the same name, and was preceded by a related TV series and feature film. The game uses the action figures made by Playmates Toys as decoration for the table. A second Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles pinball machine was released by Stern Pinball in June 2020.
Checkpoint is a 1991 pinball machine released by Data East. It featured the first dot matrix display (DMD) ever incorporated into a pinball game. For Checkpoint, Data East used a "half-height" DMD. By way of comparison, Williams later produced machines with standard DMDs that were twice the height. Checkpoint also features video mode minigames on its display.
There have been four pinball adaptations of the film Jurassic Park franchise: a physical table released by Data East the same year the film came out, Sega's 1997 The Lost World which is based on the second movie of the series, a virtual table developed by Zen Studios on the franchise's 25th anniversary and a new physical table released by Stern Pinball a year after. All four tables behave differently.
Last Action Hero is a pinball machine designed by Joe Kaminkow and produced by Data East Pinball. It is based on the motion picture of the same name.
Red & Ted's Road Show is a 1994 widebody pinball game designed by Pat Lawlor and released by Williams. It is part of WMS' SuperPin line of widebody games.
FunHouse is a pinball machine designed by Pat Lawlor and released in November 1990 by Williams Electronics. Starring a talking ventriloquist dummy named Rudy, the game is themed after the concept of an amusement park funhouse. FunHouse is one of the last Williams games to use an alphanumeric display; the company switched to dot matrix the following year.
Black Knight 2000 is a 1989 pinball game designed by Steve Ritchie and released by Williams Electronics. The game is the sequel to the 1980 pinball machine Black Knight. It was advertised with the slogan "He rides again." and features a black knight theme. 30 years later, Ritchie would design a third game in the series for Stern Pinball, titled Black Knight: Sword of Rage.
Whirlwind is a pinball machine produced by Williams in 1990 and was one of the last Williams System 11b games. It was designed by Pat Lawlor, who created a previous natural disaster-themed pinball for Williams, Earthshaker!.
The Party Zone is a crossover solid-state pinball machine released in 1991 by Midway designed by Dennis Nordman and programmed by Jim Strompolis. It is in a single playfield format and collaborates characters from previous pinball machines. It is the second pinball machine released after the Bally-Midway division was sold, yet still operated under the "Bally" name.
Dr. Dude and His Excellent Ray is a pinball machine designed by Dennis Nordman and released in 1990 by Midway. The theme of the game revolves around gaining coolness.
Flight 2000 is a 1980 Stern widebody pinball machine. It was the first table by this company with speech. The theme of the game revolves around futuristic space flight.
Cyclone is a pinball machine released by Williams Electronics in 1988. It features an amusement park theme, Coney Island, and was advertised with the slogan "It'll blow you away!". Ronald Reagan and Nancy Reagan both appear in the backglass shown riding the rollercoaster.
Eight Ball Deluxe is a pinball machine designed by George Christian and released by Bally in 1981. The game features a cue sports theme and was so popular that it was produced again in 1984.
Ghostbusters is a pinball machine designed by John Trudeau and released by Stern Pinball in June 2016. It is based on the Ghostbusters films of the same name. Ernie Hudson provided custom speech and guides the player into becoming the latest member of the Ghostbusters team.
Deadpool is a pinball machine designed by George Gomez and released by Stern Pinball in August 2018 based on the comic books of the same name. Nolan North provided voicework as the voice of Deadpool. Brian Huskey provided the voice of Lil' Deadpool and Jennifer Lafleur provided the voice of Dazzler.
The Hobbit is a pinball machine designed by Joe Balcer and released by Jersey Jack Pinball in March 2016. It is based on The Hobbit films of the same name which is based on J. R. R. Tolkien’s 1937 novel The Hobbit.
