Coin Slot Magazine - #051 - 1979 - May [International Arcade Museum]
243 S. 3rd St.
Catawissa, PA 17820
By John Fetterman
PLAYFIELD TARGETS
(This is the second part of a series covering
pinball playfield targets.
The rollover button was at one time a legiti
Last month's part one
mate candidate for use as a flipper target. Williams
covered two categories of targets; those which
in particular has enjoyed success with patterns of
buttons arranged on the playfield, most noteably
in the shape of a bowling pin set-up. But recent
pinballs, with their flippers of immense power, are
less successful in their use of rollover buttons. A
ball launched from a powerful flipper will just
glaze over the rollover button and fail to register
the target. Who has played a Bally 8 Ball and not
missed out on thousands of points because of an
unregistered, glazed over target?
change the ball's direction and those which phys
ically retain the ball Area-sensitive targets and
targets which move are this month's study ob
jects.)
The area-sensitive targets are theoretically pass
ive targets; the ball's being in the target's area
should be sufficient to register the target. The
target should neither take nor give energy to the
An ideal target for these requirements is a
ball.
photo-electric cell, since it need not be mechan
The rollover or star button is used sometimes
in place of a wire form in the regular rollover,
discussed last month. Used here, there is no dif
ference between the button, star, or wire form
for the ball.
However, the button or star gives
the designer an additional chance to light the roll
ically coupled to the ball for activation. However,
the photo-electric cell was tested in the 60's by
Bally and found wanting; there is insufficient vis-
ual feedback to the player.
A basic truth about
good pinball targets is that they must explain them
over.
selves well, and the pe cell is a visual mute.
They are also employed in one-sided roll
overs, where a wire form would quickly be ruined
The rollover button is a small target with often
important scoring significance. It is a flat-topped
button which depresses into the playfield when
from the ball's striking the rollover sideways. Wire
activated by the ball; normally it extends 1/8"
The rollunder is a U-shaped wire form, support
ed from above the playfield by its upright arms,
coupled to a switch beneath the playfield by a
spring. A moving ball pushes the horizontal por
tion of the wire form sideways, which moves the
above the playfield surface.
forms are not omni-directional targets.
The button extends
through the playfield and is attached below to a
switch blade. A ball's crossing the button should
show no deflection in its path; in practice,though,
it can seem as though the button is mighty big.
spring and tugs on the switch blade.
Visually,
Williams' 1973 Gulfstream is particularly difficult
there is something a bit cumbersome about this
to drain a ball between the flippers on, particu
target and its necessary hardware; it also requires
larly due to the rollover button centered just above
a special placement to preclude the possibility of
a ball's striking it from the side and bending it
the flippers.
out of shape. There are some instances in which
this target is preferable to the rollover button for
A more passive variation of the rollover button
was introduced by Gottlieb in 1970 on Baseball,
called the star rollover.
modern high-powered games.
This target was used ear
TARGETS WHICH MOVE
These are, of course, the targets whose move
lier in the unique European Rally/Fliptronic mo
dels. It has since been adopted by Bally and Stern.
With this target, the button becomes a ten-splined
ments are not subtle, since all targets move to some
extent.
Two of these targets move but are at
best only indirectly controlled by the ball, and
.com
m
:
u
m
thus, by the player. The roto-target was mentioned
the playfield. The center of the o star
is the highest
e
s
u off to
fr legs - slope
m
d the
portion above the playfield;
last month as a variation of the flat target. This
e
e
d
ad models have
surface level. Williams
target does not change its scoring position; only
nloa and w some
arc Stern
.
w
o
turned away
passive
its value, and the value's visual readout move. The
D from / a /w
w button with their up-
:
dated design of
target does not move when struck, but only when
http the rollover button. They have
some other playfield target is struck. Both the
chosen to seat the button more rigidly in its play-
star, extending through a matching cut-out set in
field seat; as a trade-off, they can light this target
scoring and feel for the ball could be duplicated
by a bank of several flat targets; the fact that the
better than the classical button or the star rollover.
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