Play Meter

Issue: 1984 November 15 - Vol 10 Num 21

expanding boom. However, there
were some who embellished on
the Gottlieb invention to broaden
its appeal and audience. One
method which developed was the
addition of an automatic pay-out
mechanism, turning novelty enter-
tainment and amusement into a
more gambling-directed venture.
Although he did dabble a bit in
this area of game design, Gottlieb
quickly turned away from this
format and remained staunchly
committed to innocent fun. And as
the industry began to feel the
repercussions of this guilt-by-
association and public opinion
denounced the entire coin-op
industry, Gottlieb tried as best he
could to weather the storm.
Fortunately, for the business at
least a war intervened and turned
attention back to more important
issues. Factories of this Chicago-
based industry were changed into
war munitions and material plants,
and thoughts of the future were put
on hold.
However, after the battles
and designs were 'no longer
enough to sustain interest and
many former major powers in the
industry, already devastated by
years of inactivity in producing
their livelihood, could no longer
rebound. Only a few remained to
continue the cause and keep any
flickering dreams alive.
D. Gottlieb & Co. was one of
those companies, and in 194 7 this
manufacturer once again took the
lead when it introduced flippers
on a game called Humpty Dumpty.
Pinball was suddenly, and forever,
transformed into a more challeng-
ing, skillful, and interactive form of
entertainment and players soon
noticed the change and flocked to
see and try the new innovation.
Alvin Gottlieb
A respected company
ended and life tried to return to
normalcy, Gottlieb was ready to
begin anew. But the world had
changed and so too had society's
taste for amusement games.
Something different was needed
to lead to the future. The old ideas
With Alvin Gottlieb joining his
father, adding yet another gener-
ation to this founding enterprise,
the company began to gain a
reputation for dependable,
reliable, and solid equipment that
attached both the skilled and
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PlAY METER. November 15, 1984
11
Mylstar's M.AC.H. 3 was one of the best lasers on the market.
As laser revenues fell, however, some distributors
did not want to accept orders of the game.
Q*bert was one of the highlights of 1983.
12
novice player. And, as the years
passed, D. Gottlieb & Co. grew in
stature and respect to the extent
that when I first ventured into the
world of coin-op back in 1974,
there was a type of mystique
attached to the Gottlieb presence
in the field.
The company was like still
water running deep, serving up a
nuance or advance on an almost
regular basis in terms of playtield
components and features, as well
as individualized graphics that
tended to set Gottlieb apart trom
the crowd. Admired tor the kind of
operation it ran, the company was
viewed with a measure of envy,
reverence, and mystery.
In hindsight it really wasn't any
great secret only the belief in
basic principles which seemed to
permeate the equipment pro-
duced. Each machine seemed to
incorporate some essential ele-
ment which tended to make it
better, or at worst appealing to the
audience of the time.
Somehow, as a player, you
could expect certain things from a
Gottlieb machine which weren't
necessarily the same type of tactile
and sensory feedback found on
other games from competing
companies. Gottlieb machines
offered a different playing expe-
rience that just couldn't be dupli-
cated, while distributors and
operators knew they could rely on
this manufacturer's products tor
steady income.
It was the best of both worlds,
but there were other develop-
ments afoot which would swiftly
erode this magnificent base of
operations Gottlieb had created.
The first sign that the times were
changing came about when
video games proved to be a viable
replacement tor older novelty and
arcade attractions such as gun,
digger, and other mechanical
machines which were no longer
what a new television generation
wanted.
The most telling blow, however,
was the advent of solid-state elec-
tronics into the world of pinball
with its flippers, drop targets, spin-
ners, and other staples. After
watching its competition get a
PLAY METER, November 15, 1984

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