Williams

Earthshaker

Pinside Rating

This game received 302 approved Pinsider ratings and currently rates 7.841 _/10

7.841

Top 100 ranking

This game ranks #112 in the Pinside Pinball Top 100.

Score breakdown

Score breakdown in the 4 main categories:

Game Design: 7.976

Artwork: 7.85

Sounds/Music: 7.145

Other Aspects: 8.022

Pinside staff rating

This is how we, the very knowledgeable (wink wink) Pinside.com staff & moderators rate this game. 8 of us have rated this game.

7.37

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Found 154 ratings (with comment) on this game

There are 154 ratings (that include a comment) on this game.
Currently showing results page 5 of 7.

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7.364/10

11 years ago

BEC

BigB

Inactive member

Dike, IA

11y 66,900 1,498 5 56

Great pin to play even when you don't know what to shoot for. Love the shaker motor!!

8.503/10

11 years ago

BDS

pinball_erie

Inactive member

Erie, PA

12y 67,900 1,297 7 9

Only real knock on this pin, to me, is the lighting. Way too dark in the upper left. Awesome game to play, great call outs "bitchin", and an amazing backglass.

pinball_erie currently owns this game.

9.620/10

11 years ago

ALA

aladinice

Pinside member

Menton

12y 47,650 2 71 71

very funny pinball ! nice pinball and tremendous sound ! I love it !

aladinice currently owns this game.

7.478/10

11 years ago

ZUL

Earthshaker is a game I played a bunch in college. Ahhh, I can feel the memories come flooding back again.

The Pros:
The art package with the mirrored BG is most righteous. The PF and the Shaker motor add a great deal to the atmosphere of the game. The shaker motor makes you jump back if you are not ready for it. It is one of the few pinball novelties that never gets old. Zone targets and Jackpot values show the way to the first Wiz mode in Whirlwind. An incredibly creative PF with lots to shoot for. The falling building is very cool when you get to see it. The game says "Ooooh, Bitchin'!"

The Cons:
The game play comes down to the center ramp shot, again and again and again and again... Is this DE Star Wars? Calling mystery programmer! Please balance this game and make it the great game it should be.

The Takeaway:
A fun game, but due to the noted scoring exploit, not a tournament game (Calling Mystery Programmer!).

8.240/10

11 years ago

ZEN

Pinside member

Waverly, NE

12y 73,550 1,159 12 23

Awesome PL design, great sound, great shots. Quality built, innovative, and TONS of replay value here, for its day an instant classic. Wish you could make more shots with the right flipper sometimes, but a small issue. Its sunny-drive time!!!!

ZEN edited previous rating on June 22, 2015.
ZEN has owned this game in the past.

8.760/10

11 years ago

MWS

Methos

Pinside member

Lodi, WI

12y 103K 7,273 21 10 1

Probably my favorite PL game. The backglass art I never cared for until I saw it in person. Much better - the sounds/music are dated a bit but done very well. The game play is what makes me love this pin. Simple rule set -but still all about the shots. And the shaker motor just adds to the fun. The shelter bonus shot is not easy to make. Great game.

8.434/10

11 years ago

MRM

diskoboy

Pinside member

Brentwood, TN

12y 27,400 520 1 9

My second favorite Lawlor table. I would've scored it higher, but the main toy that would've made this game practically flawless was taken out before production began. I honesly believe the sinking building would've added more charm to the game along with the shaker motor, given it's theme. Still it's a very fun title. The music is okay, but gets a bit repetitive after a while. The playfield layout is probably the best feature of this game - very fast, with a large variety of shots, tight spaces, loops and ramps galore.

diskoboy has this game on the wishlist.

5.527/10

11 years ago

???

bjeffs

Inactive member

North Rocks

11y 7,400 14 1 6

this game did not appeal to me :(, i heard such good things about it as well

bjeffs edited previous rating on September 07, 2012.

6.791/10

11 years ago

BDS

PinB

Pinside member

12y 157K 1,602 345

A very awesome & unique pin for its time from the master, Pat Lawlor. It's the first game with a shaker motor, and most deservedly so given the title & theme. The fault line diverter is a nice creative touch as are the creative ball locks. Pretty satisfying shot layout overall. The rules are decent, although a major exploit is to shoot the middle ramp repeatedly. The signature Pat Lawlor upper flipper ramp shot is a blast to make as always. The sounds & callouts are fun & fitting. The artwork kicks ass, especially the cool, detailed mirrored backglass.

PinB edited previous rating on April 24, 2016.

6.985/10

11 years ago

AL

Deadlander

Pinside member

Deland, FL

11y 66,050 455 32 14

Bought this on my quest to own all of Lawlor's games. Mine is a beater and I haven't dialed it in just yet. However I'm not overwhelmed by this one compared to (TAF,TZ and Family Guy). Since this is an older machine perhaps this is not a fair comparison. I find the sounds a bit grading but the shaker motor is cool. Perhaps after some more time on it I will grow to appreciate it.

Deadlander has owned this game in the past.

7.802/10

11 years ago

GAB

flipperdoktor

11y 44,400 48 2 7

Earthshaker, a wonderfull Game
Nice to see, nice to hear, fun to Play.
A Pearl in my Gameroom...

flipperdoktor has owned this game in the past.

8.180/10

11 years ago

JJZ

toyotaboy

RandOM Pinball

Allyn, WA

12y 184K 11,937 3 14

Like I said in my "story", haven't played this in 22 years. I now remember why I loved this title so much. The playfield layout is just amazing, the ball is bouncing all over the place, it really keeps you on your toes. The sound effects are great, and really make you feel tense. The strobing lighting makes for a great playfield light show. Getting to hear all the female voices is almost a goal in itself "gimme shelter!!".

toyotaboy has owned this game in the past.

2 Pinsiders starred this!

8.698/10

11 years ago

RND

RawleyD

Pinside member

Roanoke, VA

14y 67,650 3,243 36

The game is alright. not my favorite Lawler by far. But..
the shaker works well with the game.
Artwork is fantastic fun, Backglass is one of my favorites.
Multiball can be tough as well. Set up fast it can be challenging.
Great music to boot.

RawleyD has owned this game in the past.

7.646/10

11 years ago

WES

wesperron

Pinside member

Boston, MA

13y 53,900 1,360 9 56

A real classic pin. Has all the shots and is fun to play. One of the better non-DMD machines.

7.249/10

11 years ago

ROB

RCA1

Pinside+ Addict

St Joseph, MI

11y 128K 8,681 28 11

Cool machine. My first encounter with a shaker motor (many years ago). Scared the crap out of me the first time. Still love it.

RCA1 has owned this game in the past.

7.869/10

11 years ago

JJS

GoneFishinLvMsg

Pinside+ Frequent

Edenton, NC

13y 102K 3,005 8 50 1

Lots of fun when you just want a quick game without having to think too hard. One of the great System 11's. The shaker motor is a trip.

GoneFishinLvMsg currently owns this game.

8.771/10

12 years ago

WLC

BMore-Pinball

Pinside member

12y 122K 4,985 33

one of my favorites, right up there with whirlwind!

6.405/10

12 years ago

TPK

Kneissl

Pinside member

12y 126K 3,866 7 121

Beautiful game, good sounds.. and fun, at least enough to drop a pocket full of change. Gameplay has weak last-ability. Whirlwind, is as good in the looks and sound category, but lightyears better in gameplay. It's a very good system 11, but not even runner up to getting on the podium.

Kneissl edited previous rating on May 16, 2016.
Kneissl has owned this game in the past.

6.027/10

12 years ago

B R

BLACK_ROSE

Pinside member

Lexington, NC

14y 116K 8,818 3 60

I've Owned ES 2-Times now ,, The ramp's are placed ok, Pop-bumper's are after the skill shot , a typical P.lawlor design.. The Shaker is cool, I just Felt that ES is Really easy and Repetitive.. I Get Bored soo easy w/ certain Title's. But i Buy them anyway.. Gotta love the Hobby !! B_R

BLACK_ROSE has owned this game in the past.

8.812/10

12 years ago

JPD

devlman

Pinside+ Pro!

Wilmette, IL

12y 45,150 553 8

Great pin, just got one and am loving it. Should be higher on the list, I think. If you like Whirlwind definitely try this one. Good amount of toys for 1989--sinking building, cellar door, captive ball.

devlman has owned this game in the past.

8.072/10

12 years ago

SS

Shapeshifter

Pinside member

13y 150K 10,468 8 144

Beautiful mirrored backglass. One of the best. Love the shaker and playing in a darkened room is a delight as the light show is superb. Quite addictive in trying to get a top score. Only reservation is that it might not have the staying power of pins with DMD's.

Shapeshifter has owned this game in the past.

6.327/10

12 years ago

DJG

nasco62

Pinside member

Sydney

12y 67,800 801 14 54

Great game very uderrated would have this in my collection

8.180/10

12 years ago

DAD

trimoto

Pinside member

Troy, IL

12y 50,550 600 14 9

played this about 2 weeks ago and out of 60 pins i couldnt stop playing this one really liked the feel a great system 11

9.380/10

12 years ago

EJ

nerd

Inactive member

12y 15,150 146 1 6

Bitchin'! This game is a lot of fun and considering it's age I think it's one of the best of it's generation. The ramps, returns and gimmicks all work well. ThE two states the split apart during the earthquake is right on theme. I look at a lot of the newer games and then I look at ES and say ES has a lot going on! It's not incredibly difficult, but is challenging enough to make it fun. The earthquake feature is a blast and doesn't get old for me, when the machine is rumbling during multi-ball it just doesn't get any better than that. The game can be fast, hectic and fun. What more can you ask? I think it definitely earns it's place in the top half of the top 100 games.

nerd currently owns this game.

9.394/10

12 years ago

???

derfinot

Inactive member

Henderson, NV

12y 10,500 101 8

I consider this the best non DMD game there is. I played this game so much as a kid and I always wanted to own one some day. Still holds up very well even today. Always want to get in just one more game. Love the shaker motor and the artwork. Great design and layout. Lots of fun

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There are 154 ratings (that include a comment) on this game. Currently showing results page 5 of 7.

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