Top 5 Bally EM's
llabrevlis
http://groups.google.ca/group/rec.games.pinball/browse_thread/thread/d59e277c0b306324?hl=en#
got me to thinking, what are peoples favorite Bally EM's??
My 5, in no particular order:
Wizard
Old Chicago
4 Miliion BC
Fireball
Capt Fantastic
Not exactly a risky list, but they are the ones I've sought out ;-)
doc ellis
> The thread about the Gameroom magazine article snubbing Bally EM's,
>
>
> got me to thinking, what are peoples favorite Bally EM's??
>
> My 5, in no particular order:
>
> Wizard
> Old Chicago
> 4 Miliion BC
> Fireball
> Capt Fantastic
>
> Not exactly a risky list, but they are the ones I've sought out ;-)
My Pins are like My Children, I don't have any Favories,I Love them
all.
doc ellis
c...@provide.net
> The thread about the Gameroom magazine article snubbing Bally EM's,
>
>
> got me to thinking, what are peoples favorite Bally EM's??
>
> My 5, in no particular order:
>
> Wizard
> Old Chicago
> 4 Miliion BC
> Fireball
> Capt Fantastic
>
> Not exactly a risky list, but they are the ones I've sought out ;-)
If i was going to write an article snubbing
any kind of EMs, it sure as poop would NOT
be bally Ems! Ballys are way cool, and frankly,
fairly "rare" compared to Gottlieb and williams.
I guess this is why i don't subscribe to that
mag called Gameroom.
Bally only made like 3 woodrails during the 1950s.
Unlike Wms and Gtb. And bally really didn't start
cranking out pinballs during the 1960s until about
1967 (though there are bally title during the 1960s
prior to that, they didn't really start "clicking" until 1967).
The 1950s woodrails are Balls a Poppin, Circus,
Carnival. These were GREAT games (though
all multiplayers). Ballapopping rocks with good
multiball. Carnival has the infamous "pussy snatcher"
feature. Very cool game.
If there was any EMs i would "rag" on, it would
be 1970s Williams EMs. To me they are soul-less
junk. Bad pointy weird colored artwork, crappy rules,
inspirationless games. Yes there's a couple exceptions,
but Williams really flondered in the EM 1970s compared
to Bally and Gottlieb. OXO is Ok if you can stand
looking at the damn thing. Space Mission i don't
personally like but it's Ok i guess. Swinger? Maybe.
Not much else comes to mind.
>pinball
coming back to it!
/Paul
John P. Dayhuff
Mata Hari
Nip It
Wizard
Capt. Fantastic, just for the artwork...Game play sucks.
--
John P. Dayhuff
Battle Creek, MI.
Ph. 269-979-3836
I've broken my pinball bank........
">pinball" <play.p...@inven.nl> wrote in message
news:a9ed09de-bfac-4a63...@a12g2000pro.googlegroups.com...
kenny_ii
> The thread about the Gameroom magazine article snubbing Bally EM's,
>
>
> got me to thinking, what are peoples favorite Bally EM's??
>
> My 5, in no particular order:
>
> Wizard
> Old Chicago
> 4 Miliion BC
> Fireball
> Capt Fantastic
>
> Not exactly a risky list, but they are the ones I've sought out ;-)
My thoughts on the Bally EM's:
Cosmos
Wizard
Fireball
Capersville
4 Million BC
K2
David Gersic
> got me to thinking, what are peoples favorite Bally EM's??
Fireball, 4MBC, and Old Chicago. Not sure yet about Wizard, mine's almost
done so I'll finally be able to play one that works right, then we'll see.
Never have liked Capt Fantastic, though.
--
| David Gersic http://www.zaccaria-pinball.com |
| The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax. Einstein.
| Email address is a spam trap. Visit the web site for contact info. |
Kory
Really good game play, some interesting trick shots you can develop.
Western Theme, multiball, 3" flippers, ball save, gate action - it
really incorporates everything that makes a good Bally game especially
for an early 70s EM. I know it doesn't get mentioned a lot, but they
don't come up for sale that often, and when they do, they move quick.
If you get a chance to play one, you'll see what I mean.
Kory
<feeling the Bally love today>
EM's forever
used DC pop bumpers. My favorites are sort of oddball, but these are
the ones I play year after year and never tire of:
Alladins Castle
Hokus Pokus
Bow & Arrow
Night Rider
Capt Fantastic
Anyone that has not checked out under rated Alladins Castle, give it a
try! I will never let that game go, and have had one since new in
1976. That proves I will never tire of that title.
O/T, but what the hell. Great WMS games of that same era:
Dealers Choice (just do not look at the ugly art)
OXO
Space Mission
Grand Prix
Gulfstream
Spanish Eyes
Dr. Dave
BOW & ARROW
MATA HARI
EVEL KNIEVEL
4 MILLION BC
FIREBALL
DR
On Jan 3, 6:41 am, llabrevlis <llabrev...@shaw.ca> wrote:
> The thread about the Gameroom magazine article snubbing Bally EM's,
>
> http://groups.google.ca/group/rec.games.pinball/browse_thread/thread/...
american...@hotmail.com
I play Carnival at PHoF all the time and I never thought about the
"feature" as you described it. Now I always will. LMFAO!
As for Williams, Gold Rush is a great player and so is OXO. IMHO of
course!
llabrevlis
> Evel Knievel
> Mata Hari
> Nip It
> Wizard
> Capt. Fantastic, just for the artwork...Game play sucks.
>
> --
> John P. Dayhuff
> Battle Creek, MI.
> Ph. 269-979-3836
>
> I've broken my pinball bank........
>
>
> news:a9ed09de-bfac-4a63...@a12g2000pro.googlegroups.com...
>
>
>
> > My favourite is Dogies...so much fun getting those dogies home...keep
> > coming back to it!
>
>
> - Show quoted text -
I agree on the Capt Fantastic, it's more about the artwork and overall
look of the game that attracts me than the actual gameplay.
Dale
Hogey
> Evel Knievel
> Mata Hari
> Nip It
> Wizard
> Capt. Fantastic, just for the artwork...Game play sucks.
>
> --
> John P. Dayhuff
> Battle Creek, MI.
> Ph. 269-979-3836
>
> I've broken my pinball bank........
>
>
> news:a9ed09de-bfac-4a63...@a12g2000pro.googlegroups.com...
>
>
>
> > My favourite is Dogies...so much fun getting those dogies home...keep
> > coming back to it!
>
>
> - Show quoted text -
John...no love for CF?? I love mine. I think the gameplay is great
(probably clouded by the fact that I'm a huge EJ fan...now that I
picked up a beautiful Wizard, my EM world is about complete...
Wizard
Capt. Fantastic
Night Rider
Mata Hari
nephi...@comcast.net
Yeah Alladin's Castle was a good one, great artwork imo . Always
thought Flicker was a innoventive design but was just average to
play .
Just specifically played Gottliebs when i was a kid , nothings changed
to date: they're still the best from that era.
ldnayman
best list
1. Fireball. All time classic game one of the best EMs ever
2. Night Rider - fun game to play with the dual drop banks
3. Alladins Castle - nice art and the game doesn't suck
That's about it. I just really don't like the Bally EMs much.
1. - did they EVER make a decent one-player?
2.- oddball rulesets. Bally games generally have rules that seemed
like they were picked out of a hat and seem to have nothing to do with
each other. Never anything intersting, and usually bizarre.
Max out the bonus to light special! WTF?!
And I love how they have Extra Ball Lites that just pop up every 3
bonus steps or something, and then just dissapear. What was one of
Harry Williams big rules of pinball? Never take a way a scoring
feature without giving the player a chance to cash it in. Bally games
violate this rule in spades.
I'm not a fan. Even "classics" like Captain Fantastic aren't very
good. Bally really hits their stride in the early SS era with games
like Bobby Orr, Kiss, 8-Ball, etc. Hardly a dog among them (but I
guess Lost World might be one).
ldnayman
Kevin Steele
>
> If i was going to write an article snubbing
> any kind of EMs, it sure as poop would NOT
> be bally Ems! Ballys are way cool, and frankly,
> fairly "rare" compared to Gottlieb and williams.
>
> I guess this is why i don't subscribe to that
> mag called Gameroom.
Too bad you didn't actually read the article, Clay. The title, btw,
was "Bruce Moyer's Top 40 Electromechanical Pins" -- seems pretty
specific to his tastes, no?
As I mentioned in the other thread, to those who actually read the
article, please let me know personally if you agree/disagree, and what
your choices would be. I'd love to see your thoughts, as Bruce Moyer
shared his faves and I'm sure yours are different.
c...@provide.net
> I do like Old Chicago too! That's a good game.
do you like the pop bumpers so close to the flippers?
it seems to work on old chicago. but usually i don't
like that so much. (it pisses me off on Jumping Jack,
but that's another story!) but OC seems to be OK with that
feature. i like how you can rape the center drop hole to get
the bonus. and of course the artwork is very very nice!
Gott Lieb?
1. Old Chicago (brutal, brutal game)
2. Bow and Arrow (don't like the art, but like the gameplay)
3. Dixieland (brutal outlanes, if the correct gates are not open)
4. Sky Rocket (the strobing bonus lights are great!)
5. Aladdin's Castle (I can spank this one more times than not)
There are several "common" Bally titles I have yet to play such as
Fireball, 4 mil BC, Nip It, and Wizard. However, I don't see Fireball,
Nip It, or Wizard doing anything for me.
Jim
llabrevlis
> My 5 in order.
>
> 1. Old Chicago (brutal, brutal game)
> 2. Bow and Arrow (don't like the art, but like the gameplay)
> 3. Dixieland (brutal outlanes, if the correct gates are not open)
> 4. Sky Rocket (the strobing bonus lights are great!)
> 5. Aladdin's Castle (I can spank this one more times than not)
>
> There are several "common" Bally titles I have yet to play such as
> Fireball, 4 mil BC, Nip It, and Wizard. However, I don't see Fireball,
> Nip It, or Wizard doing anything for me.
>
> Jim
>
>
>
> llabrevlis wrote:
> > The thread about the Gameroom magazine article snubbing Bally EM's,
>
>
> > got me to thinking, what are peoples favorite Bally EM's??
>
> > My 5, in no particular order:
>
> > Wizard
> > Old Chicago
> > 4 Miliion BC
> > Fireball
> > Capt Fantastic
>
>
> - Show quoted text -
Really surprised how little love Wizard is getting here, it's one of
my top ten EM's by any maker!! Great game to play in a group, can be
very rewarding but also very punishing!!
Dale
AL
Wizard *
Capt. Fantastic*
Monte Carlo*
4 MBC**
Fireball**
Nip-it**
Old Chicago***
Twin Win***
* Own it, keepin' it.
** Gotta have it but need to lose some furniture first
*** Would like to own one but need to add on or move into a hangar
AL
rsho...@hotmail.com
Cosmos
Wizard
Fireball
4 Million BC
these are a few of my favorite pins and when I play I dont feel so
bad....
roger in columbus
Kory
> My 5 in order.
>
> 1. Old Chicago (brutal, brutal game)
> 2. Bow and Arrow (don't like the art, but like the gameplay)
> 3. Dixieland (brutal outlanes, if the correct gates are not open)
> 4. Sky Rocket (the strobing bonus lights are great!)
> 5. Aladdin's Castle (I can spank this one more times than not)
>
> There are several "common" Bally titles I have yet to play such as
> Fireball, 4 mil BC, Nip It, and Wizard. However, I don't see Fireball,
> Nip It, or Wizard doing anything for me.
>
> Jim
>
>
>
> llabrevlis wrote:
> > The thread about the Gameroom magazine article snubbing Bally EM's,
>
>
> > got me to thinking, what are peoples favorite Bally EM's??
>
> > My 5, in no particular order:
>
> > Wizard
> > Old Chicago
> > 4 Miliion BC
> > Fireball
> > Capt Fantastic
>
>
> - Show quoted text -
Skyrocket - another great title, fairly easy game play, but the
strobing lights make it uniquie and it is hard to come by.
Kory
Kory
You are right on the extra ball light. On the Round up I have the
extra ball light is dependent on where the 00-90 stepper is (I think
from memory) as you hit different scoring items and the stepper goes
around the light goes on and off, you have to catch the ball on the
flipper and aim for the mushroom that awards the extra ball when you
see it light up. It does lend some degree of challange to scoring the
ball.
I'm sure Brian Saunders can Chime in on the 1 player games. I've only
played a few so far and they were the low number ones and well we know
why some of them were discontinued.
Kory
hook
i used to have a twin win. novel, but not much fun in my book. other
than trying to keep hitting the hole to collect a bonus, there isnt
much to do except trying to keep the ball in play. tough to hit the
upper " ball arch" targets with any precision, and no real reason for
doing so.
also, what was the object, points or laps? one really had nothing to
do with the other. if you beat someone on points, but he had more
laps, who won? if you want to see a twin win in action, search
mhookert on you tube, i put mine up there. i figured it was pretty
rare, and others might never see one. i traded my game to a friend,
who needed cash and sold it to another friend, so its in good hands.
ps- my friend, a newbie, just by accident has a wizard and monte carlo
too.
Kory
What was interesting to me and I haven't had a chance to e-mail Bruce
yet and inquire - is how come no Bally game made his list. When
looking on IPDB Bruce has given a review of almost every EM at some
point on their and he has played all of the ones he writes about, so
one would have expected that from 63 to 74 at least one Bally EM would
have struck his fancy.
KOry
Below me
Sky Divers
4 Million B.C.
Fireball
Wizard
american...@hotmail.com
Bally one players that are seriously worth playing to judge for
yourself:
Hootenanny
Bazaar
On-Beam
Op-Pop-pop
Bon Voyage (great backglass too)
El Toro
Hi-Lo Ace
4 Queens (my personal favorite)
I purposely did not mention Sky Kings and Odds & Evens since they were
available as multi-player games.
american...@hotmail.com
>
> - Show quoted text -
Sorry for leaving Delta Queen off the list.
Kevin Steele
It does seem to be a notable omission, and I've already asked Bruce
about a follow-up on his selection process. I know it wasn't an
intentional "snubbing," and Clay just took the opportunity to bash on
GameRoom, which is the only thing I found disappointing, considering
he hadn't even read the article.
Ranking anything is always going to spark a discussion, and that's
good...I'm hoping some readers will write in with their Top 10 lists.
It's always interesting to see what others feel are the best games.
Kevin
David Gersic
> On Jan 3, 6:33 pm, ldnayman <ldnay...@aol.com> wrote:
>> I do like Old Chicago too! That's a good game.
>
> do you like the pop bumpers so close to the flippers?
> it seems to work on old chicago. but usually i don't
> like that so much.
Normally, I'm not a fan of that setup, but as you say it does work on
Old Chicago. Fun game. I need to get one of those someday.
--
| David Gersic http://www.zaccaria-pinball.com |
| Why can't you be a non-conformist like everyone else? |
Cliffy
> On Sat, 3 Jan 2009 16:52:11 -0800 (PST), c...@provide.net <c...@provide.net> wrote:
>> On Jan 3, 6:33 pm, ldnayman <ldnay...@aol.com> wrote:
>>> I do like Old Chicago too! That's a good game.
>> do you like the pop bumpers so close to the flippers?
>> it seems to work on old chicago. but usually i don't
>> like that so much.
>
> Normally, I'm not a fan of that setup, but as you say it does work on
> Old Chicago. Fun game. I need to get one of those someday.
>
>
While Jumping Jack/Jack in the Box are a bit off topic I must say the
pops down by the flippers actually make the play exciting. I remember
playing Old Chicago and tensing up as the ball got near the bumpers but
with JJ it's no fear at all. I'd say it's less than 20% of the time the
pops will shoot the ball down the outlane. Most times the ball will
"walk" up and back around towards a flipper and sometimes it will
squeeze between the pop and the outlane divider shooting again right at
a flipper. You gotta be on your toes but it's much less a sure drain
with JJ/JITB. Of course it helps to have nice, bouncy, Wico Wonder
Rubber installed. Thinner and harder rubber would probably make it a lot
more frustrating.
--
Cliffy - CARGPB2
Home of the world's finest pinball protectors
http://www.passionforpinball.com
c...@provide.net
I would say on Jumpin Jack you *must* have good
fresh white rubber around those pops. It seems
to be more critical than say Old Chicago. I think
the rubber rings are closer to the pop on JJ. From
memory that's what i remember. If the rubber is
dead it really drains big on JJ. Old chicago it doesn't
seem to be as much of an issue.
But of those 2 games i really do like the Gottlieb
better. Mostly because of the 10 drops in a row
though, and not because of the "suicide pops"
(if you can call them that).
Since i'm not a big multi-player fan i compromised
and went with King Pin instead of Jumpin Jack.
The "suicide pops" are less suicidal on that game.
But as you said cliffy, they aren't as exciting either.
Boy i sure would like to trade my King pin for a
Pin Up though...
pin...@yahoo.com
> The thread about the Gameroom magazine article snubbing Bally EM's,
>
> http://groups.google.ca/group/rec.games.pinball/browse_thread/thread/...
>
> got me to thinking, what are peoples favorite Bally EM's??
>
> My 5, in no particular order:
>
> Wizard
> Old Chicago
> 4 Miliion BC
> Fireball
> Capt Fantastic
>
> Not exactly a risky list, but they are the ones I've sought out ;-)
I love this thread since Bally's are my personal favorites.
My favorites
1)Rocket 3
2)Odds & Evens
3)Fireball
4)Balls A Poppin
5)Space Time
I like about 5 more the same. Any Bally works for me. How can you not
love Star Jet.
By the way King Of Diamonds will be out in the next few months. I need
to test 2 of the sample games first.
I plan to add a few Bally titles down the road. Cannot include a Retro
Pinball without Bally.
Herb
Fabulous Fantasies
Kevin Steele
> By the way King Of Diamonds will be out in the next few months. I need
> to test 2 of the sample games first.
> I plan to add a few Bally titles down the road. Cannot include a Retro
> Pinball without Bally.
>
> Herb
> Fabulous Fantasies
Thats great! I know it's been a long, hard road getting The King of
Diamonds done. Congrats.
Don O Team EM!
Old Chicago
Delta Queen
Hang Glider
Night Rider
Bow and Arrow
Tough to limit any top 5 pins to just 5... geez!!!!!
bsau...@consolidated.net
OK, I got time to type now...had to go after another game in Ohio
first....
Here's my faves in order:
Big Valley
4 Million BC
Fireball
Old Chicago
Evel Knievel EM ( I know, it's danged hard to find in the EM version)
There could be any number of them that would fill in my next 5 spots
since I like them all about the same. Notables are Mata Hari EM, Nip
It, Night Rider, Freedom, Bow and Arrow, Wizard, Capt F, Aladdin's
Castle, Cosmos, Hang Glider, Kick-Off, and Rocket III.
Here's my Top 5 Ballys That Piss Me Off because they're so difficult
to beat on a steady (if ever) basis:
Hay-Ride/Harvest--absolutely brutal game and it looks easy. Ask the
guys from the 2007 Heartland Show who played it in the tournament if
it's easy.
Joust--this game simply annoyed the hell out of me in high school.
I couldn't beat it then and still can't.
Sky Divers--just plain damned hard, the slings aim the ball for the
exits every time.
Dixieland--same here, and THREE outlanes are killer.
Expressway--my experience is you can come close if you play real
well, but you never get to win. I hated this game in high school.
Or for that matter I could name just about anything they made
between 1963 and 1966. Wasn't anything very easy back then, they were
real dime-eaters.
Cliffy
> Dixieland--same here, and THREE outlanes are killer.
sniff-sniff ;^( I wouldn't know... yet. Still?
ldnayman
Of those I only played Hi-Lo Ace and Bon Voyage.
And while both are great LOOKING games if I recall they both have the
same oddball rulesets I'm complaining about - things like maxing bonus
for special (that is so freaking lame) and the dissapearing/reapearing
EB when Lit.
I also recall Bon Voyage as stupifyingly easy.
ldnayman
THis might send you into some kind of a seizure but I generally like
these games...including...wait for it...
Satin Doll!
Pops down low create a kind of excitement and "didn't see that coming"
which you don't get often in EM games. I also like games like
Crescendo or Spanish Eyes where the pop down low gives you a chance to
dig the ball out of the outlanes and back into play.
pinballtom
My Bally EM favs are as follows:
(partly based on overall looks of the game and gameplay features and
playability)
Star Jet (a rare but fun Multi Balll game)
Magic Circle (great looking artwork on the BG)
Loop the Loop (I like the Playfield layout and colors and design)
Trail Drive (cool BG animation and simple spell it out features)
SeeSaw (game has about every feature Bally used)
SkyRocket (like the fireworks effect on the PF)
Expressway (very hard to beat)
FireBall (a classic)
Monte Carlo (the game that got me hooked on pinball in High School)
And Mata Hari EM (only played the em version a few times, but love the
ss version)
Most Bally EMs are pretty cruel and unforgiving,
especially with the big gaps near the outlanes.
Most of there games just seem weird to me. Definitely unusual.
There are a few Ballys I love, but many i am not real fond of,
whereas there are not many GTBs i do not like, and I love WMS EMS from
the 60s.
I kinda compare the big three in pinball to the big 3 in autos.
GTB was the Cadillac/Chevy of the EM era.
WMS was the Ford
BLY was the Dodge/Chrylser
And CCoin was the AMC
cheers tom
Jeremy Bibbee
>
> - Show quoted text -
Well, I don't have 5 as I have played so few Bally's and owned even
fewer, but one that I did like, mostly because of the spinner, was
Boomerang. Wish I'd have kept it but Brian needed it more than I did
at the time, even the spare complete cabinet.
I have a Hokus Pokus that I enjoy playing (currently under resto).
Heck, they are all fun, they are pinball machines!
500VDC
enjoyed are:
Aladdin's Castle
Rocket III
Odds & Evens
Op Pop Pop
Matt
Muskegon, MI
Grojohn
> The thread about the Gameroom magazine article snubbing Bally EM's,
>
> http://groups.google.ca/group/rec.games.pinball/browse_thread/thread/...
>
> got me to thinking, what are peoples favorite Bally EM's??
>
> My 5, in no particular order:
>
> Wizard
> Old Chicago
> 4 Miliion BC
> Fireball
> Capt Fantastic
>
> Not exactly a risky list, but they are the ones I've sought out ;-)
Ballys 1963 "Jet Spin", awsum multiball drainer game!
Grojohn
BigChris
> The thread about the Gameroom magazine article snubbing Bally EM's,
>
> http://groups.google.ca/group/rec.games.pinball/browse_thread/thread/...
>
> got me to thinking, what are peoples favorite Bally EM's??
>
> My 5, in no particular order:
>
> Wizard
> Old Chicago
> 4 Miliion BC
> Fireball
> Capt Fantastic
>
> Not exactly a risky list, but they are the ones I've sought out ;-)
From the ones I have played, I would have to go with...
OC
4MBC
B&A
AC
MH
EK
For those wondering about the gameplay of the Old Chicago with the
pops so close to the flips, here is a link to Mark Salas' and my OC
after it was shopped (not hi tapped or modded in any way). Space/time
permitting this one will be at the Ohio pinball show where I hope it
makes even more fans :-)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9il3ukhMIA&feature=channel_page
Scott (Seymour-Shabow) and I must have played a 'best of 300" on this
during his Expo stay with me. Fun, but I think I lost :-(
Chris
Don O Team EM!
not...FWIW:
bally top 5:
1. Old Chicago
2. Delta Queen
3. Hang Glider
4. Monte Carlo
5. Bow and Arrow
Don O in MD