Pinball; Or, The Effects of Solenoids and Rubber on Ball Bearing

Time for another ramble. This one will be on pinball. I have written about pinball before, but only in the context of one specific simulator. This post will be on pinball in general.

Pinball History

The first game that many people call "pinball" was Gottlieb's "Baffle Ball", a very simple game. It consisted of a playfield studded with pins which balls would bounce off of. These pins were arranged so as to create several places where a ball could rest. Successfully getting a ball into one of these would result in points, which were added up by hand The only control one had over the ball's path was the plunger, essentially a spring-loaded pool cue. Another form of limited control could be achieved by nudging the cabinet. A picture of this machine can be found here. This design was modified by Lion Manufacturing Company, and sold as Ballyhoo. Ballyhoo did so well that the company changed its name to Bally. Pinball continued in this modest line until a little game known as "Contact" was produced.

Electricity, Solenoids, and Bumpers

CONTACT featured "kick-out" holes on the playfield which could release balls to be captured by lower, higher-scoring holes. These were powered by solenoids. In 1936 came Bally's BUMPER, which dispensed with the kick-out holes and replaced them with the forerunners of today's bumpers, and added automated scoring. Immediately, the older games were obsolete. And it wouldn't be the first time.

Flippers

In October 1947, what would become a core playfield element was introduced, in Gottlieb's HUMPTY DUMPTY. This was the flipper, a player-controlled device that could propel a ball up the playfield. Humpty featured six flippers: two near the top, two in the middle, and two at the bottom -- all near the edges of the playfield. Again, all older games became obsolete, as operators rushed to install Humpty Dumpty in their locations. Older games were retrofitted with flippers, often in unusual places.