Just out of curiosity, does anyone know which pin was the first to use the "collect bonus when the ball drains" bonus sytem? I'm thinking Gottlieb "Snow Queen" in 1970...but is that correct? Or does anyone know of a game that had it earlier? I see Williams "A-Go-Go" in 1966 has a bunch of bonus inserts on the pf, but it also has a roulette wheel, so maybe it just collects through that, not when the ball drains....I haven't played one.

Reading the instruction card for Gigi on IPDB, it looks like it awards you points/replays at the end of the game, not at the end of each ball.

Is Nippy a one-ball game? It doesn't have flippers, so one ball sure wouldn't be much fun, I'd think. But either way, yeah, it looks like it does have an end-of-ball bonus. Thanks @frenchmarky...didn't know about that one.

Thanks for giving it that much thought...guess there's not a simple answer to the question.

I agree - doesn't feel much like a bonus if you have no control over it or haven't earned it.

I realize this might be too subjective to add much to the conversation, but I think I might define "earning" an end-of-ball bonus as an emotional feeling that I get when I've scored points as my ball ends. For the most obvious example, in any of the bonus ladder systems, while I'm playing my ball, I can hear and see the bonus increasing as I make my shots (on purpose or by accident), and I feel excitement about the large bonus I've accumulated, and some anxiety about not wanting to lose it (tilt). There's some risk/reward involved with a good end-of-ball bonus system, I think. I haven't played machines that have a variable gobble-hole value, but I would think those would give me that same feeling, and I would certainly include those under the end-of-ball bonus definition.

Fixed gobble-hole machines - I do get to play a "Silver" & "Slick Chick" often - don't give me that same sense of accomplishment when I drain. In fact, in fixed value gobble-hole games, I am usually trying to avoid those gobble holes, though "Slick Chick's" gobble-hole will give me a special when lit. If I were paying for games, that would be more exciting.

SeaWolf's "Flip-a-Card" is an interesting example, since it randomizes your reward when you drain. Pinball's always a combination of luck and skill, so I don't have any problem feeling good about getting a randomly generated number of points - I'll take luck and feel good about it. And on his "Jumping Jack", I would feel like I'm earning those "bonus" points by knocking down the drops, whether accidentally or on purpose.

It's interesting to try to pin definitions like this down.