Bally

Star Trek

Pinside Rating

This game received 86 approved Pinsider ratings and currently rates 6.924 _/10

6.924

Top 100 ranking

This game ranks #264 in the Pinside Pinball Top 100.

Score breakdown

Score breakdown in the 4 main categories:

Game Design: 6.708

Artwork: 7.727

Sounds/Music: 4.588

Other Aspects: 7.078

Pinside staff rating

None of the Pinside.com staff have rated this game. Sorry, no rating from us.

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Found 46 ratings (with comment) on this game

There are 46 ratings (that include a comment) on this game.
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8.083/10

7 years ago

JOE

Dooskie

Pinside member

Old Town, ME

8y 95,900 1,187 8 10

Easy rules to figure out, but hitting the shots to get the machine wound up isn't always easy. There are a lot of great shots to hit....the drop targets on the left, the left orbit, completing 'BALLY' and getting the ball to snuggle through the right lane to collect your bonus points. They are never routine, and can be brutal if you miss them.

The first time I purchased this machine back in the early 90's, I made a weekend trip out of it. Sold it because I was young and moving around a lot. Picked it up again this past spring when I saw it on CL, and drove 6 hours each way to get it. I was lucky and got one that's in mint condition.

The game has good flow, is fun to play, and has enough variety to keep me playing.

Dooskie currently owns this game.

7.552/10

7 years ago

SJD

muzikman

Pinside member

10y 58,400 142 88

A fairly simple pin, but challenging and definitely one that is fun to play. I have mine set up on the steep side, so it plays fairly fast and I really like the feel of the shots. The collect bonus lane is a tight shot and appropriately can be worth lots of points and adds some good strategy. Blasting the drop targets on the left and then caroming up to the top is satisfying too. Completing BALLY is also a decent challenge. Blasting it all the way up to via the orbit is also not easy and the target to the right of that lane often results in straight back down the middle. So it rewards good shooting and is a worthy challenge.

The sounds are not anything great, but they are decent and better than some machines from this era. I like the bright colors and the original Star Trek cast on the backglass is a pleasant reminder of an awesome show I grew up on.

muzikman edited previous rating on February 06, 2017.

6.817/10

7 years ago

JWO

JeremyON

Pinside+ Frequent

7y 49,150 62 39

This was my first pin purchase. I can't be too hard on it because it was the first licensed Star Trek pin with the original cast portrayed. That alone makes it collectible. Everyone will agree that the gameplay is just passable. It is however, very reliable. It doesn't have multiball, ramps, or fancy sound, but it does have a good set of drop targets, a fine orbit shot, some good goals, and some decent speed for an early SS pin. The sound can easily be enhanced using some microswitches and cheap programmable sound boards that you can get for about 8 bucks. I've added the Star Trek theme music when you start the game, Vena's Dance plays when the ball is in play, and the end credit theme plays when the ball drains. This has really made the game come to life. I plan on adding more sound effects including explosions when the pop bumpers are hit and quotes from the cast when other targets are hit. It's easy to enhance these early games whether EM or SS by making some customs mods that you can be proud of. It's much harder to do that with later, more advanced games. I highly recommend to a beginning collector to purchase one of these early SS games (from 1977 - 1982) and tinker with it. You'll need the experience that you learn for maintaining more complex games that you'll want to add to your collection later on. I've had Star Trek for 20 years, and I'll probably keep it. I still play it along side my other more exciting games. Sometimes you just want a relaxing game, not an adrenaline rush. This game gives you that in spades. Just boldly go...

JeremyON edited previous rating on July 22, 2016.

6.329/10

8 years ago

CY

Cyrus

Pinside member

8y 68,300 280 17

I remember this table when it came out in 1978 because it was one of the new games that had a digital scoring display and of course the Star Trek movie had come out by then, renewing interest in the series. A friend picked one up recently and I had the opportunity to play it again after more than 30 years.

The game theme-wise is OK. You do quickly notice that the on the back glass the artist gave Nichelle Nichols a set of boobs the size of beach balls. I don’t think that was really necessary but Stern’s “Whoa Nelly” has shown us that over the years not much has changed when it comes to portraying women on pinball machines.

The play is pretty standard for an EM of that era but I thought it could have used a few more bells and whistles to make it more interesting. There is nothing too difficult here though the drop downs and lanes on the middle left hand side are at a weird angle and I was getting frustrated that I could not hit these targets with my regular precision.

I have a ’72 Fireball which is a great playing EM; Star Trek really does not come close to the game play. This was also a mass produced game successful probably more for the popularity of the series, than the design of the play field.

It’s not a bad table; it’s just not a great one. I would be more inclined to pick one up if I were a die-hard Star Trek or SciFi fan. It would probably make a good starter-pin.

5.489/10

8 years ago

HFX

h_flex

Pinside member

Louisville, KY

9y 28,300 31 9 6

Although the gameplay is decent for a game of that era, the theming is way off the mark. Sorry for being a su[er-nerd but "Jump to Hyperspace" is a Star Wars phrase. Otherwise, it's not too hard to get a boatload of credits with the drop target specials.

6.988/10

8 years ago

GIC

goingincirclez

GIC Pinball

9y 116K 2,836 27

So this is a weird one. By all rights, objectively, this game should not be that great. I mean the pf is open without a ton of stuff to shoot for. There seems to be some redundancy for what IS there. And the game itself has not a damn thing to do with Star Trek - fer cryin out loud, you're supposed to spell B-A-L-L-Y, so they could have made it anything!

And yet, what IS there seems to work, and is charming enough. I liked trying to thread the pops with a left flipper shot, and nudging the ball into the lock. The shot back to the plunger was never quite assured, so that kept things interesting. Still, this is like a perfect crossover game from EM-to-SS... it has EM rules and play, with early SS enhancements. Keep that in mind! That said, the one I played had decent speed and that deceptively-simple "argh this should be EASY!" hook that kept drawing me back, even in a room with a new WOZ LE a few feet away...

...It probably helps that I'm a sucker for early SS sounds and there's plenty of that bleeping charm to hear. And I love the cabinet color palette - the Blue-Yellow-Vermillion is a straight ripoff from the Chessie System Railroad I so dearly love. I know there's some unfortunate artistic licensing on the characters but the backglass is gorgeous. So if art is your thing, that's probably a saving grace.

So yeah... objectively, there's lots better games out there and probably even from this era. But sometimes simple is good, and part of a game's charm. The original Star Trek series was kind of clunky but charming, so in that sense this pin is a fair branding.

(Played at Zanzabar, Louisville KY, June 2015)

6.608/10

8 years ago

RAS

Raff

Pinside member

North Adelaide

9y 66,550 1,496 19 7

for its age its a good machine

Raff currently owns this game.

8.051/10

9 years ago

DAN

BeaverBrewing

Pinside member

Beaver Falls, PA

11y 80,150 289 7 282

Surprised to find it ranked this low...I think it plays really well for a game of this age. Rules make you build bonus as well as go for points. I like it.

8.655/10

9 years ago

FUK

stainedundies

Inactive member

Austin, TX

9y 23,150 260 1 25

i'm biased towards this game because it is my favorite of all time. the game is a perfect time piece. awesome sounds, simple gameplay, bumpers in the middle of the playfield. There aren't many shots but they are all very potent. plus its star trek baby!!

4.356/10

9 years ago

ALX

achtungboyy

Pinside member

El Paso, TX

11y 75,150 252 98 131

I like early solid state games and love Star Trek but this game is so boring. Not because of the time, it is just a snoozer. I enjoy playing games like Xenon from the same time, Star Trek just missed the mark

6.019/10

9 years ago

ZIT

Zitt

Pinball-Mods.com

Austin, TX

11y 112K 7,873 15 10

For the Era; the machine holds it own weight.
The problem is people compare this against more modern DMD type games. I think it does pretty well given it's a 1979 machine.

Zitt currently owns this game.

4.842/10

10 years ago

RCA

alexanr1

Pinside member

12y 74,550 1,338 85

This is a very in exciting game. Not sure how some of these yahoo' scan rate this game higher than, let's say, a 1994 DMD game with ramps, ball lifts, mini playfields and actual games rules where you have to complete something to get points. Hopjohns below says one thing but then I have seen him rate this machine higher than nice DMD machines. LOL! Read your own comment dude and then recheck you machine ratings.

7.575/10

10 years ago

MTA

AtlanticPinball

Inactive member

Weymouth, MA

11y 25,900 73 19 19

Without question, this was not Bally's best game. That being said, when set up right, and with a nicely waxed playfield, it will still be fun to play.

Completing the five targets which make up the word BALLY scores you bonus points. Completing the drop targets multiplies the bonus and then awards credits. The lane in the upper left corner scores up to 10,000 points and then awards an extra ball.

I've had my Star Trek since 2009, and I still love playing it. I have three-inch leg levelers in the back, cranked all the way up, and have waxed the playfield and keep it clean. The ball flies all over the PF.

I find it fun, and I think it's a nice looking game. Like I said, not Bally's best entry, but not bad either.

AtlanticPinball has owned this game in the past.

3.809/10

10 years ago

GM

BallyWizard

Inactive member

London

10y 34,150 2 24 98

No! Not a good game!
When this game first came out, we all gathered round it like it was some kind of monolith from a different planet. Wow! A Star Trek pinball machine. No one of us really said what they thought.
We were too taken in by the fact that someone out there had gone to the trouble to make one.
The first game was disappointing, the second game was more so. It was a down hill journey from there on in. This game is flawed and sadly what could have been a truly masterful stroke of PR turned into a joke of a game, with bad design from Mr. Gaydon, poor artwork, bad colours and a back glass which just didn't seem right. For crying out loud Uhura was one of my first female fantasies, Mr. O'Connor must have been in a foul mood when he painted her much uglier sister on that glass. This game still looks bland today. I loved Star Trek, but can't stand this game.

3.530/10

11 years ago

ZUL

Caucasian2Step

Evil McBooty

12y 163K 1,455 51 1011

How can a game that plays this bad be in the top 10 for modern pinball production numbers?

The Pros:
Um... It's Star Trek TAS and a touch of the first movie. Spock is throwing the Vulcan Shaka on the right sling.

The Cons:
The gameplay is awful. I mean... It's horrific. Bore and Snore. When you get down to it, there is really nothing to shoot for. This deck is proof positive that Gary Gayton was a sub-standard designer. I love KO'C's artwork and he even made Uhura walleyed. What?!?!? She's the sexiest woman to hit the TV screen in the 60's and she looks like a pug on this BG.

The Takeaway:
A crummy pinball design that redeemed only by the license. Most often found in a trekkie's collection or in the pinhead's/operator's corner being rightfully cannibalized for parts.

4.760/10

11 years ago

JJ

Hoopjohn

Inactive member

Eagle River, WI

12y 52,400 495 4 32

Other than an iconic backglass, this pin offers very little. Another of the highly over rated early SS games (Kiss, Playboy & Ted Nugent are others).
The game has no flow whatsoever, no music, no callouts, and little connection to the theme.

If you own DMD games or any pin with music/callouts/ramps, playing an early SS pin will be akin to torture.

Perhaps it was a top game in 1979. I don't see the attraction today.

Hoopjohn edited previous rating on June 09, 2013.
Hoopjohn has owned this game in the past.

3.219/10

12 years ago

BUK

pinballslave

Pinside member

Litvinov

12y 138K 6,383 133 149

This is the game that got me started on pinball and the game I probably have played more than any other game... so I know what I'm talking about when I say that it's truely a very bad and boring game!

pinballslave has owned this game in the past.

7.081/10

12 years ago

JWM

sanantoniopinhea

Pinside member

Austin, TX

12y 42,900 21 4 61

As an original episode Star Trek fanatic, I'd buy one in decent condition but it's not much different than my Supersonic. Same/similiar music but a different playfield layout. However, the higher price is only due to the theme.

sanantoniopinhea edited previous rating on October 22, 2011.

8.096/10

13 years ago

GSL

glilly-BOA

Pinside member

Port Orange, FL

13y 44,900 465 10 60

I'm a little biased since I'm a huge Trek fan! I finally have one of these in my collection :)

It's waiting a restoration, but I'm in no hurry! I love the game.

glilly-BOA currently owns this game.

6.675/10

14 years ago

K

Letter_K

Inactive member

Stockton, CA

14y 36,900 523 5 63

Even for a game with very early electronic sound, the bad, short midi riffs of Star Trek TV show themes are only noticable if you're a die-hard like myself. The game has some fun shots, but none of them are really ST themed, except for maybe the beaming roll overs, and that's a little silly. Still, the backglass is super cool and it is Star Trek...

Letter_K currently owns this game.

6.564/10

15 years ago

???

Dikkie_4_You

Pinside member

Schelle

15y 32,250 6 6

Nice backglass and good gameplay

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