Play Meter

PLAY METER: As a regular traveller to all the
major exhibitions around the world, how do you
view world markets for coin machines at present?
GREEN: The market certainly shows a most
healthy growth in terms of popularity, income, and
reliability. The advent of solid state technology has
not only produced more reliable equipment but has
led manufac1mrers' research and development
departments to incorporate many features never
before attainable in all types of coin-operated
amusements and phonographs.
One kind of machine which has probably played a
dominant role in this growth has been the video
game . With the working week in many countries
now contracting steadily, it allows for more and
more leisure time ; and when this is added to the
fact that money dropped into machines represents
the finest value in entertainment, then you have a
bright situation, one which indicates the coin
machine business must continue to grow.
PLA Y METER: Would you consider the video
game the greatest milestone in the industry's
recent history?
GREEN: It introduced a whole new era in
amusements and entertainment. It became an
additional machine that could be operated in sites to
expand the previous range of pieces.
At one time the market was looking a little stale,
with few new ideas. Then in 1972-73, video games
provided a major breakthrough which rejuvenated
the entire industry. In those early days it looked as
though the video game would provide a serious
challenge to the position of pinball as the world's
leading amusement device. But, for a time, the
game was a dismal failure, mainly because most of
the U.S . manufacturers just copied Nolan Bush-
nell's original game, and world markets became
flooded with what was essentially the same game.
When it became obvious to everyone what was
happening-in the fall of 1973-and that video
games were not what they were made out to be,
many factories pulled out. Some even went into
liquidation. In my opinion, Nolan Bushnell then
took a great step forward by designing new games
while keeping with his original concept. He was
right and the world has seen the result, the
phenomenal growth of Atari and other companies
which at the time made the decision to pursue the
development of novel and innovative video games.
The video game has now become a standard
operating machine which the trade buys in the same
way as it does the traditional coin -operated games.
Nintendo Wild Gunman, and Kasco Stagecoach.
These big arcade games have not only adopted solid
state technology into their field, but also have
helped considerably in increasing the price of play
in amusement arcades.
PLAY METER: Do you think that the average
player is now prepared to spend more on games?
GREEN: Yes, because of the play appeal and skill
features incorporated into these new games. The
novice player, through continuous play, is led to
become a skilled player, which results in more in
the cash box.
Space Wars by Cinematronics was, I think, a
forerunner of the concept of attuning the degree of
difficulty in a game to the individual's abilities,
introducing at the same time the vector monitor.
PLA Y METER: How do you think the industry
worldwide has coped with the servicing aspect of
solid state equipment?
GREEN: In the early days they did not cope well at
all. Operators were leaning very heavily on
distributors and factories to solve their servicing
problems. However, the competitive nature of the
operators in the industry is such that they soon
realized that downtime was costing them a great
deal of money, and that if they were to remain
successful, they would have to learn to repair logic
boards in -house as quickly as possible. The
distributors and manufacturers played their part
and helped operators by conducting seminars and
also opening their logic departments to servicemen.
PLAY METER: How do you view the growth of pin
tables and jukeboxes in conjunction with this new
technology?
GREEN: It must be apparent to everyone how the
phonograph has progressed. The strides that have
taken place in the market have been tremendous.
But a phonograph is still a phonograph, and
therefore the advances are probably not apparent
to the player of the box. He still puts his money in
and listens to music.
With pinball, however, the advances are much
more obvious. The new technology has enabled
manufacturers to create even more exciting games
through faster play and more reliable equipment.
Now, of course, the wide-body pinballs are quickly
becoming very popular with players.
Within the last four or five years many European
manufacturers have appeared on the scene, but I
still feel that the best pinball machines come from
the U.S.
PLAY METER: Do you see any future at all for the
~lectro - mechanical
game?
GREEN: They are on a downward trend. But it is
PLAY METER: Why?
GREEN: They have had more years of experience
not just the video game that will replace them.
There are other games incorporating solid state
technology which are important milestones in
themselves, such as the Namco Shoot Away,
in game features and this breeds reliability, which
is, after all, of paramount importance to the
operator. While European pinballs are cheaper,
with a few exceptions I feel European manu-
"At one time the market was looking a little stale
... then video games provided a major breakthrough"
10
PLAY METER , August, 1979