VOLUME 7,
Publisher and Editor:
Ralph . Lally II
Editorial Director:
Da vid Pi r on
Managing Editor :
Ray E. Till y
Admini strative Assistant :
Valerie Cognevich
Art Director :
Kat y
hwark
Circulation Manager:
R ne ' . Pi rson
Techni al Writers:
Randy Fromm
Frank
nin ky
Corre spond ent :
Rog r . harp e
Patri k M atth ew s
Mik
haw
Ch arl e
. Ro
Mary lair Bl ak man
Mik Bu cki
Marion utler
Rag r P ar on
Classified Adverti sing :
Valerie Co gn vi h
Typographer:
haron M Call
Adv erti si ng Manager:
D av id Pi r on
European Represe ntative:
E ma y L li
Illu strator :
Bob Giuffria
IIIII
The Twi ce Monthl y Publication for the Coin Operated Entertainment Industry
BPA circulation audit applied for
FEATURES
9
27
51
Looking Back
In thi s thre -part retrospective, Play Met r h o ld s up a
mirror to the indu str y- and to itse lf. ..
Re viewing the Coin-Op ew of 1981 : In the opinion
of the editors, ten major topics had th most impa ct in
th e industry thi s year. Analysis by D avid Pi erson and
Ray Till y begin s on pag 10.
1981 Guide to Pl ay M ter : page 27 beg in s the
co mpr hensive index to news and feature articles
that hav appear din th se pag s over th e past yea r.
A read y future referen ce for the readers, incl ud ed are
all te chni ca l and game play rev iews.
Critic' Corn r Sp cia /: Th e pinball criti c rat es
himself, for a ch ange, and w e see how Ro ge r Sharpe 's
ratings have stacked up against reader / operators '
choi ces of top pingame s o er th yea rs: page 51 .
36
The Saturation Point
Michael M ndelso hn ana lyzes some factor in th e
video boom and di sc usses wh et her th e boom might
turn to bu t. Worth y notes for the entir indu st ry to
ponder.
38
PLAY METER , D ecember 15. 1981 .
olum 7, o. 23. opyright 1981 by
kybird Publi hin g ompan . Play
M t e r (I
0162- 1343) i publi hcd
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METE R, P.O . Box 24 170 .
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Pr omo ti ons,
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W atford Road , o rthwood Midd
England, orthwood 29244 .
PLAY METER , December 15 , 1981
UM BER 23 / DECEMBER 15, 1981
Hitting a Different Market: A Quality Nightspot Adds
Coin-op Games
Capitalizing on electron ic games' popularity is not
always a simple matter of buying th e equipment and
ttin g it up for th public. This Id ea Ban k feature
d e tail s how one Tal do, Ohi o operation found a
marketin g gap and incorpora ted coin-op with
mark ed success.
DEPARTMENTS
4
Up Front
7
Mailbox
14
Equipment Poll
35
Business Myth of the Month
40
News
45
Music Programming
47
Frank's Cranks
49
Viewpoint on Video
51
Critic's Corner
54
New Products
56
Classified Advertising
64
News Briefs
3