This article needs additional citations for verification .(September 2014) |
A glossary of terms, commonly used in discussing pinball machines.
action button
add-a-ball
apron
auto-plunger
autosave
backbox
backglass
ball
ball lock
ball saver
ball search
banana flippers
bash target
bonus (end-of-ball bonus)
bumper
buy-in
cabinet
call-out
captive ball
combo
conversion kit
dead bumper
DMD
drain
drop target
electro-mechanical (EM)
extra ball
flipper
flipper button
GI
gobble hole
habitrail
house ball
hurry-up mode
inlane
jackpot
kickback
kickout hole
lane
lock
lockdown bar
magic post
magna-save
match
mode
multiball (multi-ball)
orbit
outlane
passive bumper
peg
playfield
plunger
pop bumper
popper
ramp
replay
rollover
scoop/saucer
score motor
shooter lane
skill shot
slam tilt
slingshot
solenoid
special
spinner
standup target (stand-up target, spot target)
staging
stopper
subway
target
tilt
topper
toy
translight
up post
up-kicker
vari-target
Vitrigraph
VUK
wedge head
widebody
wizard mode (wizard bonus)
woodrail
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.
Pin-Bot is a pinball machine released by Williams in October 1986. It was designed by Python Anghelo and Barry Oursler.
The Addams Family is a pinball machine released in March 1992. It was designed by Pat Lawlor and Larry DeMar and released by Midway. It was based on the 1991 film of the same name, and features custom speech by the stars of the film, Anjelica Huston and Raul Julia. It is the best-selling solid state pinball machine of all time with 20,270 units sold.
Star Trek: The Next Generation is a widebody pinball game, designed by Steve Ritchie and released in November 1993 by Williams Electronics. It was part of WMS' SuperPin series, and was based on the TV series. It is the only pinball machine that features three separate highscore-lists. Apart from the regular highscore-list and the buy-in-list, it also features a reminiscence to The Machine: Bride of Pin*Bot billionaires club. It is also the third pinball game overall based on the Star Trek franchise, following the 1979 pinball game by Bally, and the 1991 game by Data East, and preceding the 2013 pinball game by Stern.
Twilight Zone is a widebody pinball machine, designed by Pat Lawlor and based on the TV series of the same name. It was first released in 1993 by Midway. This game is part of WMS' SuperPin line of widebody games alongside Star Trek: The Next Generation and Indiana Jones: The Pinball Adventure.
Cirqus Voltaire is a 1997 pinball game, designed by John Popadiuk and released by Williams Electronics Games. The theme involves the player performing many different marvels in order to join the circus. Some of the game's distinctive features include a neon light running along the right-hand ramp, a pop bumper that rises up from the middle of the playfield at certain times, and a magnet at the top of the left ramp that can catch balls and divert them into the locks. The most notable feature is the Ringmaster, a head that rises at certain times and taunts the player.
Attack from Mars is a 1995 pinball game designed by Brian Eddy, and released by Midway.
The Getaway: High Speed II is a 1992 pinball game by Steve Ritchie. It is a sequel to 1986's High Speed.
Indiana Jones: The Pinball Adventure is a 1993 widebody pinball game designed by Mark Ritchie and released by Williams. It was based on the Indiana Jones movies. It was also part of WMS' SuperPin series of widebody games.
Demolition Man is a Williams pinball machine released in February 1994. It is based on the motion picture of the same name. It is part of WMS' SuperPin line of widebody games.
Doctor Who is a pinball machine designed by Bill Pfutzenreuter (Pfutz) and Barry Oursler, and released by Midway in September 1992. It is based on the television series Doctor Who. As stated in the Gameplay section, the rulesheet is rather different from other pinball machines released at the time, which didn't help popularity as casual players did not understand the complex rule changes that occur during the game.
Theatre of Magic is a pinball machine designed by John Popadiuk, produced by Midway. The player assumes the role of a novice magician who must develop their skills by exploring the titular theatre and performing an assortment of stage illusions.
Creature from the Black Lagoon is a pinball machine designed by John Trudeau and released by Midway. It is loosely based on the movie of the same name. The game's theme is 1950s drive-in theater. The pinball game was licensed from Universal Studios by Bally so that all backglass and cabinet artwork and creature depictions would resemble those of the original movie.
Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is a 1995 pinball machine released by Sega Pinball. It is based in the film of the same name.
Jack-Bot is a 1995 pinball game which was designed by Barry Oursler and Larry DeMar, and released by US-based electronic gaming company Williams. It is the third game in the Pin-Bot series, following Pin-Bot (1986) and The Machine: Bride of Pin-Bot (1991).
Who Dunnit is a Midway pinball machine with a 1940s style and a murder mystery theme. The playfield features up to five different murder mysteries in which the player must find clues and evidence by making indicated shots. The machine accepts up to four players, and features four-ball play.
The Who's Tommy Pinball Wizard is a pinball machine based on the rock musical The Who's Tommy, based upon the band's 1969 rock opera album of the same name, which was also adapted into a 1975 motion picture. The machine features twenty-one songs from the musical sung by original Broadway cast members. The game was designed by Joe Kaminkow, Ed Cebula, Lonnie D. Ropp, and Lyman F. Sheats Jr. The machine was built using Solid-state electronics type components. The backbox of the machine has a dot matrix display with animations by Kurt Andersen and Markus Rothkranz. 4,700 machines were manufactured by Data East in January 1994.
Pin Bot is a pinball video game developed by Rare and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System. It was released in North America in April 1990. It is a conversion of the pinball machine by the same name. The NES version of the game accurately reproduces some of the game-play and aesthetics of the pinball machine, while introducing new features and added challenges.
Comet is a pinball machine released by Williams in June 1985. It was designed by Barry Oursler, who was inspired by the Comet roller coaster at Riverview Park in Chicago, and was the first in an amusement park themed pinball trilogy followed by Cyclone in 1988 and Hurricane in 1991.
Hurricane is a pinball machine released by Williams Electronics in August 1991. It was designed by Barry Oursler as the third game in Oursler's amusement park themed pinball trilogy. The first being Comet, released in 1985, and the second being Cyclone, released in 1988.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)