It’s perhaps easy to get swept away with all the hype and play of all the newer games and their cutting edge designs and new innovations.
Along with all that rich gameplay experience and fancy rules, comes an even bigger price tag though.

Silver Slugger is often times referred to as a game that “sucks”
When you ask someone why it sucks, they’ll just smile and say “because it sucks”

Gottliebs Silver Slugger never pretends to be something that it’s not and makes no apologies for what it is.
While other manufacturers were implementing a dot matrix display and ramp after ramp, Gottlieb decided to keep the playfield flat and stick to old school displays.
This move didn’t get them many fans or the earnings that they were hoping for.
Maybe it was a financial strategy or bridge to DMD, but the six “street level” games they produced are truly the end of an era.

Silver Slugger is surely a unique playing experience, but the reasons that make it addicting only ads to its charm.
For starters you have an all yellow cabinet.
The backglass animation work with the lighting is nothing short of superb, simulating a ball being hit or flashing lights to light up the player on base in game, while also strobing the words “Silver Slugger”

Hitting home runs never gets old and two of the three spinners featured in the game are the shots to knock these satisfying dingers at any given time. You load the bases by hitting the lit drop target, the vari target when lit, or the top lanes when you spell out “walk”
In multiball, hitting the vari target at any given time awards a “Grand slam” with firework sounds and a nice little light snow.
You can also hit grand slams of course, while in single ball play with loaded bases.
A right orbit with spinner is for building the jackpot and collecting it. It’s not uncommon to get several in a game.
The lower targets are for bonus x, times your runs scored.
Which brings me to what makes this game so fun. The separate scoring display for runs batted in is just plain awesome.
This is the feature that makes you coming back for more, especially with friends in multiplayer when you get creative (say 2 vs 2 baseball points only, combined scores, best of five, etc) the possibilities are endless.
The scoring in this game is also very well balanced. While multiball is a random award collected only at the saucers, it’s well balanced as well.

If you like or love baseball, and addicting gameplay matched with very fun and satisfying shots, Silver Slugger is due a first or second look.

Getting those baseball points and hitting homeruns just doesn’t get old!

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It has that same element found in Hoops, Monday Night Football, and Shaq, and that’s the separate scoring, which keeps it addicting and interesting especially in multiplayer, and all three of those games I don’t tire of.

My one knock on the game is it’s just about impossible to play at night or in a dimly lit room, because every time you hit the spinners, the relay shuts off the GI lights.

I suppose you could open the relay…but eh, I’ll deal with it.

Shaq is an absolute gem. I read nothing but negative comments about that game for years, but owned one nonetheless, shopped it out and it was a total blast.
The super jackpot at the moving basketball hoop off the jump ramp? The separate scoring for basketball points? The mini upper playfield with drop targets and spinning disk? The vari target, the spinner way in the back? The game is LOADED and a ton of fun to play and has balanced scoring too.
It’s one I wish I could get back reasonably. My only knock on Shaq, is the announcer is legit nuts, it’s a shame that Shaq didn’t do the voice work himself. Other than that, truly a great fun game! Enjoy it!

Well a week later, and the game is still great!