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This game has received 26 approved Pinsider ratings. 24 more approved ratings are needed to get a rating and for it to be eligible for the Pinside Pinball Top 100 ranking.

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Found 18 ratings (with comment) on this game

There are 18 ratings (that include a comment) on this game.
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7.074/10

11 months ago

RRK

Cloud7

Pinside+ Frequent

Caledonia, WI

8y 89,050 641 22 40

I got to put a good amount of time on Hot Shots and found myself really having alot of fun. The unique ramps really are really implemented well. The ball accelerator is a really neat touch to the game. I think the game falls in line work Comet, Cyclone, and Hurricane being that it's carnival themed. The sounds and callouts definitely give you the sense of being at a carnival.

7.784/10

2 years ago

ALE

Pyromedic

Pinside member

Clayton, GA

12y 71,300 661 8 22

Way underrated 80s classic. Personally love the cheesy backglass, simple buit FAST playing game for the era. Super fun, sounds and call outs good for era. drop Target heaven

Pyromedic has this game on the wishlist.

9.639/10

3 years ago

JSL

creamyjeremy

Jeremy's Downtown Arcade

Nampa, ID

3y 37,150 36 14 11

Come for the 80s girls and stay for the crazy speed.
The 16 drop target "gallery" is a nice main feature. The ramps are nice with as ball accelerator. Simple 2 ball mutli-ball.

It seems simple, but it's a great game with great gameplay for its era.

creamyjeremy currently owns this game.

7.279/10

3 years ago

NIK

Nickadee912

Pinside member

Brunswick, GA

6y 21,650 9 6 10

It’s just an unexpectedly very fun game. For those of us who weren’t immediately repulsed by the hilariously
“Rapey” trans light photograph of the carney staring directly at a teen girl’s nipples lol.... we enjoyed the fun and insanely detached feel the rest of the game has from it.

8.021/10

3 years ago

EJH

ehex9

Pinside member

Saint Albans Town, VT

3y 46,650 5 7 179

Great theme and play. Really fun and addicting. Spinning ramp is a cool feature. Drop target heaven.

ehex9 has owned this game in the past.

9.032/10

4 years ago

???

WTB1000

Inactive member

Louisville, KY

5y 15,000 1 2 7

Great 80's Solid State Game! Music and Lure features make you want to play it. Photo Backglass was inventive, but probably could have been better. Cabinet art could have been better as it doesn't really do the playfield justice.

WTB1000 has owned this game in the past.

9.167/10

5 years ago

PUF

Puffdanny

Pinside member

7y 101K 2,854 19

For some reason I really like this game and it's the game I play the most in my collection when I'm alone.it has some really cool shots with the accelerater and the pump shot and the music during the hurry up bonus gets my adrenaline running. Really glad I took a chance on this one it's probably my favorite Gottlieb.This.has become my.favorite.game in my collection.

Puffdanny edited previous rating on January 27, 2019.

9.775/10

6 years ago

PAT

Figgins

Pinside member

Ottawa, ON

6y 29,650 7 21 42

This game is an absolute classic. Super fun , rules are great... insane bang for your buck

Figgins currently owns this game.

9.060/10

6 years ago

???

Rockybjr12

Inactive member

Unknown

11y 14,500 7 26

Very under rated!

8.152/10

6 years ago

FBA

Deerlakes6

Pinside member

Springdale, PA

7y 65,700 155 8 30

Some really neat features that make this game fun to play .. Some really fun shots..Ball accelerator..Drop Targets and great theme..Overall pretty fun and I kinda like the sounds and voice call outs

Deerlakes6 edited previous rating on June 05, 2017.
Deerlakes6 has owned this game in the past.

6.801/10

7 years ago

CAG

codered9394

Pinside member

Augusta, GA

9y 64,050 1,150 8 13

Finally found one after looking for one of these for a while. This pin keeps the casual player in mind with the need to hit the 16 drop targets located near the top of the playfield. You can complete all features by just hitting these drop targets. For major scoring options you can hit the freeze targets or shoot the ramps to freeze the feature bonus to allow more time to collect bonus.
This pin has some cool features that work well. One is a ball accelerator that launched the ball to the main ramp. The ball returns to the flipper but if your not ready it may just get by you. Also the games offer ball saves for both out lanes.
If the ball follows it's normal path then drains the left will kick the ball back into play and the right will return your ball to the shooter lane. Pin also offers a drop target that pops up between the flippers to help keep ball in play. Wish that is was a 3 ball multiball game but it is not, 2 ball is all you get. Decent call outs but gets very repetitive after a while.
Game is very fast and the ball gets out of hand a lot. Average cabinet art and a horrible back glass. Excellent playfield art that pulls the theme off. Wish they would have spent a little more time on back glass.
Game is very fun and is worth every penny that they are going for right now. Keeps me coming back for one more game just to see how many time I can get all the drop targets down.

codered9394 currently owns this game.

7.388/10

7 years ago

KID

blowback1976

Pinside member

10y 99,050 1,338 7 40 1

Easily a fun and enjoyable game. It's nice and bright, and I like the white throughout the entire package. It has a cheesy back glass that screams 80's. The circus theme is wonderful, and the game plays fast. It's quite the challenge to knock down all 16 drops in order, as the pop in the middle makes it very difficult. The many diverters for the back ramp makes keeps you on your toes when it comes to where the ball will come out next. Playfield would really pop with LED's. Would like to own one some day.

blowback1976 has this game on the wishlist.

5.976/10

8 years ago

JMS

ickus305

Inactive member

Wheeling, WV

9y 24,900 27 6 9

A surprisingly addicting game to play. The music gets stuck in your head long after you are done playing it, but hitting 16 drop targets is a great challenge and trying to do it multiple times and in a time period makes it strangely addicting to play just one more game.

ickus305 has owned this game in the past.

7.071/10

8 years ago

ZZZ

sevenrites

Pinballer

9y 129K 2,200 97

Great game for target shooting, especially because you're on a countdown / timer basically if you're going for maximum points. Not a bad game from Gottlieb, the single pop bumper in between the 2 banks of 8 targets is very well placed. The ball accelerator gets the ball ripping so fast you miss it sometimes. Hitting the jackpot shot is tough.

sevenrites edited previous rating on December 17, 2016.

7.559/10

8 years ago

ZUL

Caucasian2Step

Evil McBooty

12y 163K 1,455 51 1011

Hot Shots is a game that is best described as "overlooked".

The Pros:
A surprisingly robust layout with 16 drop targets and a layout that with few exceptions has great flow, sharpshooting and nudging qualities that will keep a player interested. The theme of carnival games is always a great one for pinball and the vibrant colors on the PF in particular will keep kids young and old entertained. Hitting the correct color combination of drops WITHOUT hitting the wrong ones at the top of the PF will award 10 credits! This game is worth playing for that feature alone. Shades of Diamond lady...

The Cons:
The art pax for the BG and cab are not inspiring in the least. What was it with all of those photo translites? The saucer works as a lock, but staggers the otherwise fast gameplay. Random double your score from the drops? Rrrhrrr... Me no likey.

The Takeaway:
A better game than most will give it credit for. Considering this game was made in 1989, it is easy to see why it was overlooked. Even games like Bone Busters and Lights, Camera, Action had more to do than this table does. However, if this game is properly tuned, adjusted and nastified... I think you will find a fun game that will keep all but the most discriminating players away.

Update:
Multiball is fun and the hotwheels pinball accelerator is a hoot! Make sure to turn that spinner off before working on it. I get the idea that it is hungry for fingers. Lots of good shots and interesting geometry on this game will keep things fun. The rules aren't that complex, but this is a Premier game from the late 80's. It is what it is. The photo translite is hilarious. Very telling about that it is like at the boardwalk. The artwork on the playfield is the closest thing that any company has ever created to a Python art package.

Caucasian2Step edited previous rating on October 06, 2022.

8.232/10

9 years ago

???

trainmanmason

Pinside member

10y 18,650 18 11

To sum this game up in a word....Fun. Not too complicated. Carnival themed shooting gallery game of drop targets galore (16 total). You should be able to get one rally ball per game when dropping a quarter. I played an LED version and when you completed knocking down all drop targets 3 times, the light show and music was awesome! Back glass is nostalgic for circa 80's.

"Beat it kid, you bother me," heckling from the vendor makes it fun. All-in-all a fun, replayable game!

7.477/10

9 years ago

JMS

swampfire

Pinside+ Addict

12y 168K 13,602 48

I went to a friend's house tonight for league, and enjoyed Hot Shots more than any other game. It's partly because I'm a drop target junkie, but it's also a fast-playing pin with a lot of flow. The accelerator on the right orbit is surprising the first few times you experience it - the ball is at the left flipper in no time. Instead of magnets, there are spinning wheels like the ones that used to make your Hot Wheels fly. The backglass art is classic Premier - awesomely cheesy. The theme is one I've always loved, a shooting gallery. The concept is similar to "Ready, Aim, Fire" which is a better game, but is probably much harder to find.

7.239/10

11 years ago

JLM

jlm33

Pinside member

Villejuif

11y 152K 5,892 7 169

Nice simple game, children should like it. I simply do not like this backglass and nothing really innovative for a 1989 pin.

jlm33 edited previous rating on October 27, 2012.

1

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