Play Meter

,
by dick welu
EA
OlF
.1
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• •
Sea Wolf comes chugging down the assembly line at the Midway plant.
Everybody loves the Sea Wolf.
Or at least that was the premise
upon which this study was under-
taken . Everybody does seem to love
the Sea Wolf, foremost among its
many admirers, of course, the
legions of operators who have
assiduously measured the success
of this rather mundane appearing
machine by the volume of quarter
dollar pieces amassed in the interior
repository. Or as Maria put it so
succinctly, " . . . the 01' DO, RE,
Mi. " 1
Did I say "mundane appearing"?
Let me clarify that seeming slight.
Actually, though I have tried to
remain completely objective in my
evaluation of the Sea Wolf, I used
the term "mundane" only in-so-far
as the machine is neither exception-
al in design or intent. Submarine
games have long been a staple item
of commerce in the game business
so forcing customers to stoop
ingloriously in the manner of the
Hunchback of Notre Dame with
their posteriors ungracefully ex-
posed to a passing pinch or kick can
hardly be considered a great selling
point.
Ergo, 2 since there appears to be
no outstanding feature of the
aforementioned game, Sea Wolf,
not withstanding the unpredictable
tastes of the masses, the sum total
50
of the external parts of the Sea
Wolf 3 must combine in such a way
as to compose the " almost perfect
game." And whereas the industry is
perpetually scrambling to find Nir-
vana with its creations, a thorough,
item by item, disassembly of the
SW may provide invaluable insight
to both the manufacturer, distribu-
for, and operator in the selection of
games .
Paradoxically, the most technical
and sophisticated apparatus of the
SW, the micro-processor unit, can
be overlooked . The truth be known,
the customer has little knowledge
and less concern for what makes a
machine operate . An eager hamster
pedaling furiously on a treadmill
could provide the game's motivation
and still satisfy the player. It is not
"how" but "what" that holds his
interest, or as Professor Corey has
so aptly stated, " You can lead a
horse to water, but you can't write
without lead in your pencil. " 4
What then has made the SW a
classic? Let us consider:
The Shape. The basic shape of
the SW is a rectangular box , a
shape held in common with contain-
ers of shoes, oranges, and saltine
crackers. Perhaps it is this similarity
with the common packages of life
that creates a trusting approach
within the prospective customer.
The rectangular box poses no threat
(unless it is a coffin) ; rather it is an
old friend. Obviously the Midway
people counted on this easy re-
sponse . Besides a round machine
would have been difficult to keep
from rolling about an arcade room ,
and a square machine, which has a
bad connotation , would have had to
measure 7 ft . x 7 ft ., wasting yards
of space. No, the selection of the
rectangular box bordered on near
genius .
The Periscope.
What's a
submarine game without a peri-
scope, right? Believe it or don't, an
industry rumor 5 has it that Midway,
attempting to be innovative, tossed
around the idea of manufacturing a
sub game sans periscope .
Fortunately wiser heads prevail-
ed. But then , in a coup 6 of sorts, a
Midway engineer inserted ball bear-
ings at the pivot points of the
periscope turning surface - an ex-
pensive addition but a crucial
contribution to the game's success.
For we live in a ball-bearing oriented
society today. Where thousands of
new products have gone to metal
bushings and fibre-glass bearings,
the inclusion of ball-bearings in a
machine tells the customer one
thing - it' s got class. When a kid
grabs a hold of the SW periscope
handles and hears those ball bear-
ings swiveling around he knows he's
grabbed class.
Also the placement of the torpedo
firing button on the periscope
handle should be mentioned . It is
located on the inside of the handle
grip, directly under the right hand
thumb - a wise choice for position .
A small particular, I realize , but if
Midway had placed that button - it
could have been the same sized
button - on the outer end of the
handle, the player would have been
required to shoot with his little
pinkie, an irritating possibility .
Attention to detail paid off. Though
some left-handers have groused
about discrimination , they've never
been right .
The Step . Little credit has gone
to the sliding step at the base of the
SW which is a shame because that
step has carried its load in contribu-
ting to the game's popularity.
What is the first thing you notice
upon entering a crowded room?
Besides the girls with the nice
bazooms? The tall people, right?
They stand out like cranes in a
pigeon flock . So too the SW in a
game room . Due to the step at the
bottom (for players 4'3" or under).
the SW looms above 90 percent of
the other games available . Dumb
luck? Hard to believe; my hat is off
to the designer of that humble 6"
step .