Minimalist Gotltieb EM list

Spork98765

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Jul 3, 2015
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Oh yeah, would love to see these early SS games in TPA. Such great art on these late 70s games. Whats the verdict on Dragon? There is one on craigslist right now

Dragon is exactly what it looks like. The biggest beef with it, from what I have read, is the sound from that era compared to the EM version.

doo-doo-doo-dee-dee-dee

 

BStarfire

New member
Jan 9, 2013
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In doing some searching based on Karl's post above, I discovered this table from 1983 that I never knew existed - certainly never recall having seen it live. Gottlieb's Amazon Hunt - an SS remake of Fast Draw made in 1983. It appears to have the same rules as Fast Draw (with all scoring having an additional zero) and some provision for an extra ball. Note the sounds are the same as those used in ED: City of Gold.

https://youtu.be/bLl7VRNTdi0
 

BStarfire

New member
Jan 9, 2013
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After heavy thinking and some marathon real life pinball sessions this past week, I’ve come to some conclusions about a minimalist set of Gottlieb EM’s to get the “mostest” with the “fewest.”

I don’t know how many EM’s we can expect, let along Gottlieb EM’s, so from the original idea of 5 or 10 best GTB EM’s boiled down to the best or most representative 4 or 5, I’ve come to boil it down to just two – two to represent all the Gottlieb goodness from multiple decades of EM dominance.

It seems that like there may not be resources to justify a two table EM pack and there are only a few of the original/HOF tables left, which is why I tried to narrow it down to two:

Spirit of 76
Atlantis

I love Centigrade 37 but if only picking two, I give the nod to Atlantis for repeated gameplay and the fact that elements of C37’s playfield are in both SO76 and Atlantis, and C37 may not be as challenging over time (i.e. it might be a bit on the easy side and not enough to do once you’ve completed the main goals).

Spirit of 76 seems to incorporate all the elements of Gottlieb playfield and rules design to the most elegant package I can think of. The rules are concise – clear – and challenging. The ability to collect your bonus once maxed out and build it up again sets it apart from many others. It combines all the iconic elements of Gottlieb play from the 60’s and 70’s – roll-over lanes, drop target banks, star roll-overs, kick-out hole, into a near perfect mix. The fact that the drops don’t reset until the next ball works great – in that you have better things to do at that point – collect and clear the double bonus and/or get the extra ball – and the extra ball is a useful extra ball in that your progress is not reset – go for that big double (or 4x bonus). The cycling of the center hole features and the strategy makes it a blast for multi-player as well. Not many games provide the drama of building up a double double bonus to collect with a timely shot – a potential 61,000 point jackpot – clearly a candidate for a Wizard Goal. The theme is classic and somewhat understated. I love the patriotic colors and design, but sometimes think it gets overlooked (even from seasoned players) because the drop targets don’t have bad guys and the center hole isn’t a stagecoach with a stick of dynamite. I know I bypassed it for a long time to play my known favorites, but once I got into it, I was hooked. This is the rare pin credited to both Wayne Nevens and Ed Krynski – the two giants of Gottlieb game design over multiple decades. This game incorporates elements seen in other Gottlieb games but none do it as cleanly and elegantly as this one.

Atlantis – not much need be said about it. The classic playfield from Lawman/Sheriff with improved rules, the Gottlieb iconic bagatelle maze, the asymmetric playfield and flipper set-up, and the challenge that keeps drawing you back in.

I like Ace High and want to see that since they've already somewhat done it. Ace High paired with say SO76, and then Atlantis with another older one (Sorcerer?) or some other combination seems reasonable. If we have the possibility to get more EM’s after that I’d love to think about which ones to consider at that point, but we’re talking about another full season (or two) just to probably realize two tables.

If I could only have two real pinball games in my home, it would be SO76 and Atlantis. A symmetrical multi-player game of near perfect rules, and an asymmetrical wedgehead of near perfect rules.

Let’s hope for Ace High and one of these early in the next season - or (unlikely) both of them together.
 

rehtroboi40

New member
Oct 20, 2012
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I consider myself at least somewhat of an EM fan from my very limited experience with them, but I hate Spirit of 76. Now, my only experience with it is in the great/famous(?) Microsoft Pinball Arcade game of several years ago, but in that game, I found So76 to be incredibly boring, and by far my least favorite of the seven tables.

I know So76 was very high production, but 1975 was a big year for Gottlieb (and pinball in general), and Soccer, Fast Draw, and "300" aren't very far behind it. And in 1976, Royal Flush beats it. And So76 appears to be rated somewhere in the middle for this time period, on IPDB.

I've never played Royal Flush, but it looks more interesting to me. Is there a good reason to prefer So76 to it?

rflushh3.jpg

When I had EBD on my old Mac in the early 90's, the exit menu had two more games coming soon: FunHouse and Royal Flush. They were never released then, but Funhouse was on PHoF Williams, and in TPA. Looks like a great EM for TPA. I also agree with those calling for Slick Chick and Spirit of '76. Anyone or all of these would be great.
 

ZREXMike

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Jul 30, 2015
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Spirit Of 76 is on some HOF disc, could not this be transferred to TPA? It was made by the same developers, right? Sure would be cool.
 

Snorzel

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Apr 25, 2014
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Spirit Of 76 is on some HOF disc, could not this be transferred to TPA? It was made by the same developers, right? Sure would be cool.

Looks like it was a M$ game:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Pinball_Arcade

I bet if they had access to the files/assets or what ever for a "pre-made" Spirit of 76' we would have got it in our 1st EM 2 pack. It would have been a huge seller paired with Fireball I bet. Then again maybe they would save it to pair with a less popular EM. If by the off chance Farsight does have access to this games pins, Knockout and Slick Chick would be great additions too
 

weirdproq

New member
Sep 19, 2013
163
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I'd like to see Gottlieb's Big Hit. I played one in real life and it is pretty fun, especially when compared to Aladdin's Castle next to it. The push targets are neat and unique to the era, and it has one ball with an automatic ball launcher in-between the flippers. Also, it has a unique Baseball theme with scoring similar to Baseball.
 

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