HHaase's ratings

How do you honestly rate such a revered game, with such a well executed theme?

To me, this is one of the best Williams pins ever done, and you could tell Steve Ritchie held nothing back. This widebody is just packed full of so much stuff it's hard to list it all. The design of nearly every shot is polished and intuitive, with big enjoyable ramps that allow for plenty of combo shots and variety to your gameplay. But you never feel lost in the rules, and while there are easter eggs to find the progression is still accessible to newcomers. Though this is a difficult game, after all we ARE talking about Steve Ritchie. Maybe not the uber-fast brutality of his earlier games but still a Steve game for sure. Almost plays like a beefed up widebody Rollergames in some regards.

Theming is spot-on. The artwork and toys match along with the rules set, which are well blended into the sound callouts as well. Voiceover work is all from the original STTNG cast either directly pulled from the series with a few that were recorded for the game. Music can get a bit repetitive though, and the translight just isn't as good as the rest of the art package.

About my only legitimate complaint is that this game is absurdly heavy, well beyond most other titles, mainly due to all the stuff packed onto the widebody playfield. Bring a good cart, some friends, and some straps. Loading and unloading are a chore, but well worth it once things get powered up.

Oh man, Rollergames. Another game in the trend of "how did a theme this bad, get a machine this good?". People have overlooked this one for YEARS because it was based on a failed TV show that was a scripted roller derby league on par with some of those lesser wrestling leagues. The original show really is that bad. But the pinball is ooooooooh so good!

If you play this on a well tuned machine, it's an incredibly fast game, I've rarely played anything faster. Only a couple playfield features interrupt the flow, and oh what flow it has. Three different orbit shots, some swoopy return ramps, the main "Wall of Death" ramp. Nearly everything throws the ball right back to you at a high speed. Thankfully most of your standup and drop target shots aren't going to direct the ball toward a lane. But be warned, ball times can be SHORT on this game, it's a drain monster of the highest degree. It's bad enough that even Steve Ritchie himself put in a center post. This game has a level of brutality that just needs to be experienced.

Then we've got "The Pit", one of the coolest sequences in pinball. It's a VUK kickout hole that delivers straight to a flipper with a magnet in front of the flipper, it gives you a guaranteed shot on the Wall of Death ramp, which is otherwise a very hard shot. After a few games with some friends, you'll be yelling 'Don't Flip' at each other for a while. It's really one of the defining features of the game and oh so cool.

There is one even more entertaining feature than The Pit, which is the ball lock. Every once in a while it'll taunt you by sending the locked balls around a loop ramp just to remind you they're there as team-mates ready to back you up. I don't recall anything similar on another game and I just love this feature.

Rules are pretty simple, fairly standard fare for system 11. The main goal is to get multiball and hit the Wall of Death ramp for jackpots. Alternatively you collect orbit shots working toward extra balls. Maybe finish some target banks to re-light features. That's about all there is to the game rules and it's basically perfect for the title.

Sounds are the peak of 80's game synth music, with the official Rollergames theme song that will stay in your head until the neurons go quiet. It's tacky and terrible and just PERFECT for the game. The rest of the sounds are damn good and really work well with the theme of attending a sporting event. "DON'T FLIP! ..... FLIP!"

And the lightshow. I think there was a clearance sale on flashers that year because there's a hell of a lot of them. This game should be bold and bright, one of the most over the top blinky and flashy out there, and that's intentional. If you go with LED's, for the love of god do NOT go for the brighter LED's, and get the dimmest flashers. Rollergames is almost too bright even with incandescents.

If you can't tell, I really really enjoy this game. It may not be the gold standard of collectability and price, but if you like a brash, loud, flashy and absurdly enjoyable game from the peak of the alphanumeric era.... Rollergames needs to be on your list.

HIPPOS!

This game is tough to rate for me, though the theme isn't part of it. A good game is a good game, even if the movie was a turd. It comes oh so close to being a great game.... but doesn't get there for me.

There are a couple great ramps in this game, and you can't deny how stinking cool it is to have multiball start by spewing balls out of a volcano! A few fun turnarounds and side-lanes, there's not much to dislike about the layout on this game. My main complaint is that there's too many kickout holes that interrupt the flow, particularly with the long and slow DMD seqeuences before kicking back out. If there had been a turnaround or another ramp where the mystery hole is, it would have been a phenomenal layout. Instead it's just merely 'very good'. Oh, and the 'Trudeau Gap" between the flippers is of course wider than standard, though not as pronounced as on other titles. I also think the lower playfield could have been a bit more interesting. It's more interactive than what Trudeau did with Genesis and Creech where the window was merely a visual toy..... but it's also less visually appealing. Overall this is one of Trudeau's better machines, and a great game, but it definitely lives in the shadow of other WPC-95 titles.

The play definitely has a mix of good things going on and I do love that each flipper has multiple things to shoot for right next to each other. For instance, the right flipper lines up to the Amy lanes, map ramp, and grey gorilla turnaround are all right next to each other. You need to be precise to get the right one, but if you miss you'll often hit another. Left flipper gets you the map kickout hole, mystery hole, volcano ramp, or hippo side lane. Top flipper gets you the mine kickout, perimeter defense targets, or the hidden lock under the volcano. Precision shooting is key to progressing, but you're not punished harshly for missing either.

There's two video modes in this game. The river-rapids dodging the hippos is decent, but not seen often. The 'choose your mine-shaft' sequence is annoying in how often you're going to see it and how slow and tedious it is. This game is a great example of why you shouldn't force a video mode into a game, because Congo would have been better without them.

Playfield artwork and presentation is top notch. It captures the Congo jungle atmosphere well and somewhat reminds me of the aesthetic of Indiana Jones. The back 20% can be a bit tough to follow due to all the ramps and mechanisms and toys back there, a bit more lighting would help, but it does give a bit of a deep lost jungle feel to it. Cabinet artwork is also quite good, I love the look and it fits the overall theme well. The backglass? Well, they had a lot of faces to put on there, and it's a bit of a mess. It wouldn't be awful if this was a Gottlieb/Premier game, but for a Williams game of this era? It's awful.

Sound can get a bit repetitive, but it does match the theme and game well. I can't really fault it and the music is quite good. The quality of the music in particular is top-notch. Compared to other WPC-95 games though it lags, but it's well above what all the competition was doing at the time.

Overall, I like this game, I really do. I just don't love it. It's a game I'm glad to own but not a game that will have a permanent home in the collection.

One of the least appreciated Lawlor games, but still an extremely good machine, hampered (in some opinions) by an odd theme of road construction. Personally, I love the theme and this game.

As part of the "Super-Pin" generation at Williams, it's flat-out loaded with stuff. Almost to the point of absurdity. Two talking heads, lots of ramps, it's a wide-body that's overflowing with stuff. For all the hardware, you rarely get to use the 'flying rocks' second plunger. Rules are decent, trying to work across the country from East to West, but does get a bit repetitive as it's always the same sequence and start point.

The thing is, though, I think this is better than a large number of games of the era in many ways. But for some reason the community never really took to it, which at least in 2018 leaves this as a bargain compared to other WPC era games. Maybe it's just overshadowed by other Lawlor games, particularly TZ and TAF, and the comparatively simple linear rules aren't in vogue these days. Or maybe people just really don't like the Country/Western theme and music. Either way, this is a hidden gem that got lost in the shuffle, in the days of excess before Williams started their cost cutting extravaganza.

Let's address the elephant in the room first. This is a Stern game with the SB-100 sound board, and the earliest variant at that. The sound as originally installed in this game is among the worst in all of pinball. Not much more than a series of high pitched beeps, counting off similar to EM chimes based on the points scored. You will tire of it. Quickly. It can be improved by modifying it to the later SB-100 tones, which is almost mandatory, but that only helps a bit. Truth is, take away the sound issues and the game improves dramatically.... but I weight the sound heavily in how I feel about games. So this probably drags the score down more than is deserved. But there's no softening the blow, the sound on this game is absolutely terrible.

However, gameplay is decent, if simple. It essentially plays like a slightly juiced up EM game. Simple and accessible, but it also has the typical early Stern drop target banks. Meaning they're in odd locations that aren't clean to hit. The left kick lane is kinda neat, but really nothing that stands out to me on this playfield either positive or negative. Very neutral kind of feel but can get a bit quick. The spinner shot would be pretty satisfying if there was some kind of better sound or other reaction to it. It's a nice shot but noting really gives it any flair. Like I said, plays ok but nothing to rave about, but nothing to really complain about either. Decent for the transition era just coming out of EM design theory. Some decent strategy to involve too, and being able to collect the bonus mid-ball is actually kinda cool. Over time it continues to grow on me from a play standpoint.

Playfield artwork is, well, theme-less. Some pretty colors in nice patterns that represent nothing..... except a giant arrow pointing at the spinner shot. I mean, it looks pleasant enough but reminds me of the kind of bland artwork you'd hang in an office elevator, or on a generic 1980's arcade cab. Like the gameplay, it's there, it won't upset you, but 10 minutes later you'll probably not even remember what it looks like other than remembering it had a generic but pleasing look.

Cabinet is about on-par with the playfield. It's there. Nothing really stands out either positive or negative, but it does meld well with the overall theme. Pretty much average for the era of stenciled 2-3 color cabinet artwork, and it is game specific.

Then we get to the backglass. I believe this was the first chrome nude backglass designs from old Stern. The nude pegasus/centaur woman artwork is just odd. Otherwise all I can really say is that the color pallet is consistent across the machine. Ironic to think that in just a couple years Stern would bring us Viper, which is my all-time favorite backglass. With Lectronamo they got off to a poor start.

So for a quick summary.... Everything on this game is very generic, there's no overall 'theme' to anything. The best way to describe things is to simply say it's a pinball machine that does play decently for its era, but you'll probably forget it all in about 20 minutes. You won't hate it, you won't love it, it happened, and then it ended. Except your ears are bleeding and you have an image of chrome horse-boobs burned into your retinas.

Man, how do you rate Genesis, without discussing the backbox? So hard to separate that from the game but you really have to. Just don't look at the translight while you play it, and give yourself a couple games, it grows on you quickly if you like fast games.

This game, if you tune it right, really can be fast and brutal. The quality of Gottlieb pop bumpers and flippers is obvious on this title, and the react targets just juice it up even further. A little nudging talent is needed due to the outlanes being so hungry. It's not really that different from the fan layout of late Williams games, just with less 'WOW!' factor to the ramp shots and of course no DMD or speech. To me the gameplay on Genesis is simple to understand, but very fun, one of the best playing games from Premier. Multiball takes a bit to achieve, but works well how it's integrated into the gameplay. Just a very solid playing game for sure, one that I just keep going back to for the fun factor.

When it comes to sound, It's got that 80's funky electronic music going, and it fits the game perfectly. The sound blends well with the theme, music ramping up as the game progresses. I'm big on sound, and feel it can make or break a game. This game really nailed it. Even without speech. I honestly don't even miss the fact it doesn't have speech, and I doubt it would really improve on things.

Artwork? Welllll.... lets start with the good......
Playfield art is funky, a bit weird, but I like the sci-fi look and colors. About my only complaint is the awful color to the factory ramps. Throw some aftermarket clear ramps and rubbers on it, and it makes a huge improvement. Otherwise you just can't look away from those big blobs of lavender.... yuck. The robot reveal is neat, and is a fun animation, with the lighting building up anticipation waiting for that big reveal. A stellar looking playfield with just a little work.

Translight? It's just so cheesy. Some people like it, but I don't. Very few Premier translights of the era are any good. It looks cheap, and fades very easily. Cabinet artwork had even less effort put into it, and the cabinet is just soooooo bland and dull.

Overall, I love the way this one plays and sounds, one of my favorite playing games. Playfield looks fantastic with a few upgrades. But oh man, that backglass..... it's really a shame that people define the game by that terrible picture.

This is a tough game to rate.

I flat out love the theme and artwork on this title. Surprising that so many Zaccaria games, made in Italy, had such openly patriotic USA themes. Very much melds circus daredevil riders with Evel Knievel, and it works well. The molded inner backglasses are always very cool, and honest to god Neon! And Zac's of course had animated backbox features during that era, the flipping motorcycle is probably one of the better ones. Easy to spot who's doing something special at their show when that thing starts turning and beeping.

The playfield may be symmetrical, but it's got some unique and interesting things going on that offset the side-to-side repetitive nature. The drop target/drop ramps are the most obvious of course. The LARGE clear upper playfield, with a great view of the lower, works to great effect here. The reactive flippers in the outlanes are something I really would love to see again in modern games. The rules are fairly simple, but the play is fun, and about on par with everybody else of the era.

Zaccaria also gives Gottlieb a run for their money in build quality. I can't find many places where I think they cheapened out at all. Very robust build on the cabinet. A playfield that's far more durable than anything else from the early 80's. Well made boards. About the only thing that wasn't top-notch was how they assembled the displays.

Of course there's always some negative, and in this case it's the sound. I'm sure it's an acquired taste, but I don't know if I'll be able to acquire it. Very odd sounds throughout. The speech recordings are just terrible voice acting and very low quality resolution too. It gets repetitive pretty quick. It's one of those games you realize how much sound can make or break a game. Maybe I'll track down the original Italian voice ROM's and see if that helps.

Very unique game, one I'm glad to have, but not perfect either. Makes me wonder if a modern sound set could dramatically improve this game.

I tell you, this game comes so close to being a real winner, but comes up just shy for me. It's a System-3 Gottlieb, which means it's packed FULL of stuff. I'm a sucker for wire-form ramps, and there are some great examples in this game. You can tell they really weren't holding anything back when doing this game design.

Gameplay is actually pretty fun. Some great ramps to work with, and given the number of ramps in it, it's nice to see they all work well with each other, and it never gets confusing. The rocking glove, though, after a while it really started to annoy me. It just spends too much time blocking the critical three center ramps, and does a great job delivering STDM returns. It's too prominent and has too much of a negative effect on overall flow. I think if it swung further, and spent some time NOT constantly in your way, it would really improve the flow of this game. I mean, why have a glove doing so many catches in a home-run-derby mode? Would have been really nice if it could 'hide' sometimes. Modes are good for its era, nothing really stands-out, but can get a bit repetitive after a while.

Overall artwork is good, actually, both cabinet and playfield. Everybody has a different style but it sure comes across as a baseball stadium to me. Translight is 'ok', but doesn't detract from the game either. Leagues better than just about anything in the System-80 era for sure.

DMD animations are mediocre, you can tell that Gottlieb just didn't put the emphasis there which Williams had. Not really a game-breaker for me, but for those who feel DMD animations are important.... you'll come back underwhelmed. Very bland. Particularly the end-of-game and end-of-ball sequences.

But the sound, this really is what worked against me most on this machine. The call-outs from the stadium announcer are decently done but over-used and don't have much variety. The 'music', though, is the real stinker. Gottlieb did some fantastic synth work a decade before this title came out, so I don't understand why it's so bad here.

So I guess that's a great way to summarize this game to me. They put a LOT of work into the playfield, but seemed to run out of initiative after the white-wood was done. And that's the sad part, was how close it comes. A bit more polish to the rules, animations, and sounds could have really resulted in an outstanding title. But it comes up just a bit short for me.

Ahh, Whitewater. Sure, it's got it's faults, particularly that whistle in the upkick. But it's just so stinking FUN. The left waterfall ramp is my favorite in all of pinball, particularly if it's fast enough to 'click' on the glass twice.

A bit stop and go in some parts, very flowy in others, which I know sets a some people off. For me it's accessible, enjoyable, and light hearted fun. By standards of today the rules may not have the uber-depth of a modern Stern, but this was a game designed for location play, not collectors and tournaments.

This was my 'holy grail' machine, the one above all others that I had to have. And it HURT to sell when I had to. Someday I will own another.

Ah, yes, one of the great early 'Thrashers' by Steve Ritchie. If you've heard somebody call this game slow, ask them to stop being lazy. Tell them to clean their playfield, fix the main 6 standups, plus service their flippers. When this game is maintained properly it's frenetic and fast, though a bit choppy. But don't take that as a critique, take that as a complement. It works here.

Not the deepest rules-set of the era, it's all about completing a small selection of target banks. But when running at speed, with the associated short ball times, the rules depth feels about right for the game. Multi-ball feels like a real achievement when you get it, it's not spoon-fed to you like some games. Being the first SS multi-ball, they also made a show of it when the balls are kicked your way. Everybody in the lineup will know you've got 3 on the way.

Artwork, well, it's sharp but confusing. The big 'death star' floating out there looks like it belongs but could have probably been done a bit less 'chaotic'. The rest of the playfield looks fantastic. Particularly when in a good condition game with new bulbs. A bit cheesy at times, with subtle nods to Star Wars, but pulled off much better than Stellar Wars was.

Sound is probably one of the best of this generation sound board set from Williams. It fits the theme nicely, never feels overdone, and blends well into the gameplay too. Speech may have that early tinny sound, but again, it fits well with the overall package, perfectly matched in feel to the rest of the title.

In fact, that's one area Firepower does shine once you learn to appreciate it ... it's a whole package game. Gameplay, sounds, playfield art, cabinet art, backglass art, they all mesh well together and look like it was a team effort in design. It doesn't have the disjointed feel of some earlier games where art and play were separately designed.

For a Steve Ritchie game, this is a very unique title. It's a single ball, low speed, long-shot, widebody. The influence of his earlier work with Superman for Atari is obvious here. It's not his usual thrasher, this is more of an accuracy game, with a lot of drop targets to hit for activating pop bumper scoring and other features. Some of which are nearly full-length playfield shots. Particularly the 'R' target. About the only thing in the play that actually annoys me is the need complete all the inlanes, of which there are 4, to get the 'Stellar Wars' bonus. Though there are ways around this via other rules. Despite being so different from his other titles, it still shows his polish in the gameplay, and you can see the intent on trying to speed it up with 5 pop bumpers in there. Had this game come a few years later with the improved flippers, and more polish to the art and sound, I think it would have shown a lot better.

Playfield and backglass art is an era typical rip-off of other themes, in this case with obvious Cylons and Vipers from Battlestar Galactica. Unfortunately it's not up to the standard of other games in the era, being just before the great work in Gorgar and Black Knight. Though the cabinet art is a notch higher up the scale I'd say. Very trippy overall color feel to it.

Unfortunately, the sound is what I find the most repetitive for this game. Most of the gameplay, for target hits and such, is just fine. Same sound board and core sound selection as Flash. It's the radar pulse sound that gets to me eventually. Particularly when close to completing the bonus. Rather than building excitement, it just makes me anxious with the rapid 'ping ping ping'.

A bit simple compared to the more modern uber-ramp designs, but still a great playing machine. A very fast and brutal play style, particularly with multiball. Magna-Save is still a very cool feature, as is the bonus-ball in a multiplayer game.

The playfield and backglass artwork are among the best of any machine, from any era.

The only place that really feels dated is the sound, and the only thing I wish it had has a "knocker" for when you get a free game.... I just don't like the bell.