Request Star Trek original series DATA EAST

[Kaibun]

It's a shame how Data East often picked up great licenses like Robocop, Star Trek and Back to the Future; and made mediocre tables out of 'em.

If they were handed to Williams/Bally, the outcome would've been a lot better.

 

[rehtroboi40]

It's a shame how Data East often picked up great licenses like Robocop, Star Trek and Back to the Future; and made mediocre tables out of 'em.

If they were handed to Williams/Bally, the outcome would've been a lot better.

Data East's main attraction factor back then was the awesome audio system they used at the time. But that being said, you were 100% right about RoboCop. Star Trek and BTTF could've been better, but were enjoyable at the time.

Once John Borg was hired, the quality of their tables improved, especially Star Wars, Lethal Weapon, Jurassic Park, and GnR. That was their peak.

It always felt like Gottlieb, Alvin G., and Data East were just going through the motions. This may have to do with the shorter development times they had, whereas WMS machines went through a typical year-long+ development process. Also WMS had made massive cash-flow with most of their pre-1994 pinball machines selling in the high-four-figures or low-five figures, plus Mortal Kombat and NBA Jam sales helped too. Sales at Gottlieb and Data East jumped a little bit with the success of TAF, with Data East getting the longer straw of that benefit. (Take this post as strictly-opinion, BTW).

 

[Kaibun]

Yeah, Borg pretty much saved Data East; all of his tables there were amazing, and he's going some of Stern's best now. He didn't do this one, but Rocky & Bullwinkle is one of my favorite DE games.