Play Meter

UPDATE EDITION
Vol. 5, No. 24
December 31, 1979
Gremlin games attract attention
at distributors meet
By Vicki Darlington
'
Gremlin unveiled its new products
to a crowd of about 300 people at the
coni~any ' s first international dis-
tributor's meeting held in Chicago's
Essex Inn the day before the AMOA
show opened .
Two of the games , Dual and
Mini - Video, were of particular note
since both featured multiple game
capacity .
Dual , currently available in an
upright piece , cocktail table or
slim -line stand -around , is the " first
game available to the operator where
the player can select either of two
distinctly · independent
games ,"
Gremlin President Frank Fogleman
noted . " The benefits , obviously , are
that if a player tires of one game , he
can begin playing an alternate game ,
and also . if one game should
malfunction , the other game prob-
ably would be operational."
"Another benefit is that operators
now are able to place two games in a
location for one fee . In some parts of
the United States, games are limited
in any one location to one , two or
three pieces . In Holland , for exam-
ple, only one amusement machine is
allowed per cafe . Now operators can
offer two games per location in one
cabinet ," the executive reported. The
game was tested for about six months
in Japan , he continued , with a good
deal of success .
Dual effectively allows many
operators the opportunity to get out
of the cabinet business , which , in our
estimation is a step in the right
direction . The implications of the
idea are intriguing , as well - if two
games can fit in one cabinet , why not
more?
Mini - Video is a small (22 x 21 x 20
inches) game which weighs only 75
pounds and affords an operator the
luxury of changing games at will. Six
Gremlin games - Hustle , F-Charge ,
Blasto , Head On , Head On 2, and
Deep Scan - may be installed by
sliding out the drawer , which con -
tains all the control panels , sound
system and electronics .
Its compact size offers myriad
possibilities. Smaller cabinets mean a
smaller financial investment for the
operator and greater flexibility in
locations . The Mini- Video , perhaps,
can fit in sites that formerly were out
of the question because of space
limitations.
The game originally was designed
for U .S . Navy ships and featured
reduced fire hazard and durability ,
Fogleman said . The idea of com -
mercia! , versus military , application
came later.
The "games " invasion of Japan
was detailed by David Rosen ,
chairman of the board of Gremlin 's
parent company , Sega. Although the
country formerly was oriented to-
(Continued on page seven)
Antique pinball machines at a new "hands-on " museum in Lansing,
Michigan , were played by Charlotte Mackey , far right , Impression 5
museum publicity director. Watching are , left to right. Steue Pierce , Great
Lakes Music, Lansing ; Walt Maner, MOM executive secretary , Lansing;
and Tim Arnold , Pinball Pete 's Arcade , Lansing.