1981 · Stern Electronics
Freefall
Known for Walker, Center three-bank, Left five-bank and Left dead-end lane. Sunset sky of swirling orange and red clouds, dark shadowed upper background and white star sparkles.
- Year
- 1981
- Maker
- Stern Electronics
- Type
- Solid state
- Display
- Alphanumeric
- Players
- 4
Known for
- mechanism
Walker
- Drop target
Center three-bank
- Drop target
Left five-bank
- chute
Left dead-end lane
- insert grid
Bonus-grid
- Goal
SKY DIVERS
- Multiball
Three-ball feature
On the playfield
- blue
- orange
- yellow
- black
- 2 flippers
- 3 pop bumpers
- 2 slingshots
Toy 1
- Walker mechanism
Ramps 2
- Left dead-end lane chute
- Skydivers chute chute
Hole 1
- Center upkicker kicker
Drop targets 2
- Center three-bank
- Left five-bank
Target 1
- SKY
Lanes 3
- DIVE
- R and S lanes
- Altitude-lane Special
Lights 2
- Bonus-grid insert grid
- Lines Completed inserts
On the backglass
Who and what
- woman Large central angelic woman, dark auburn swept-back hair, head bowed, huge outstretched feathered wings red-orange with black tips, white flowing gown, arms extended
- woman Smaller winged woman at lower right, long hair, white draped garment, large dark-tipped wing raised, head turned back over her shoulder
- other Dark winged figure diving at lower centre-left, pale body with black feathered wings
Setting
- Sunset sky of swirling orange and red clouds
- Dark shadowed upper background
- White star sparkles
Text on it
- STERNN
- Freefall
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 0530
- MATCH
- BALL IN PLAY
- FREE FALL
- GAME OVER
How it plays
-
Multiballs 1
- Three-ball feature 3-ball
-
Goals 3
- SKY DIVERS
- 14x Bonus X
- Locks 1 and 2
Made by
- Design
- Harry Williams
- Art
- Bob Timm
Reference
Linked terms
- Walker also called Ball Walker
- Center three-bank also called Bonus-grid three-bank
- Left five-bank also called Numbered five-bank
- Left dead-end lane also called Left chute
- Skydivers chute also called Sky Divers kicker lane
- Bonus-grid also called Completed Card
- Lines Completed also called Line
- SKY DIVERS also called Skydiver
- Three-ball feature also called multiball
- 14x Bonus X also called Bonus X
Playfield vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Playfield
- blue
- orange
- yellow
- black
Fingerprint: Freefall, black-orange volcano with lava streaks filling center ringed by horseshoe of white-yellow targets, three yellow mushroom pop-bumper caps clustered like bread rolls, dense scatter of small round score discs, line-selector instruction printed yellow in lower corners, volcano-freestyle-bike theme, electro-mechanical styling in orange-black-blue tones
A erupting black-and-orange volcano with lava streaks filling the centre of the playfield, ringed by a horseshoe of round white-and-yellow target discs. Two long yellow-bordered cards (FREEFALL instruction card left, blank blue card right) sit on a powder-blue apron that is printed with the company name in yellow and white. Three fat yellow mushroom-shaped pop-bumper caps cluster across the upper third like a row of bread rolls. A dense scatter of small round score discs (20, 40, 50, 250, 500, SPOT) overlays the lava, and a line-selector instruction is printed in yellow capitals in both lower corners.
Setting
- Erupting volcano with flowing lava
- Grey rock faces and pale-blue waterfall
- Black night sky at the top of the playfield
- Powder-blue lower apron
- Wooden cabinet interior with chrome rail and coin door
Symbols
- Circular drop-target and score discs
- Three yellow pop-bumper caps
- Slingshot kickers
- Two rubber flippers
- Yellow-bordered instruction card
- Round lamp bank
- Score reels in the backbox visible below the front rail
Notable shapes
- Horseshoe ring of round score discs around the central volcano cone
- Three yellow dome pop-bumper caps in a row
- Yellow-bordered rectangular cards at both lower corners
- Two white-and-red rubber flippers forming a shallow v
- Chrome front rail with visible coin door and score reels below the playfield
- Worn and scratched chrome, scuffed playfield varnish and aged cabinet edges
Art motifs
- Lava streaks in orange and yellow
- Hand-painted airbrushed rock and water
- Yellow-on-black printed service instructions
- Symmetrical blue apron with angular white chevrons
Themes
- Volcano
- Motocross motorcycle stunt
- Extreme sport
- Lava
- Waterfall
Title on it
- Freefall
Text on it
- FREEFALL
- DEPRESSING BOTH FLIPPER BUTTONS CHANGES LINE SELECTOR
- COLLECT BONUS
- RESET SCORE
- FOR AMUSEMENT ONLY
- STERN ELECTRONICS, INC.
- CHICAGO, ILL. U.S.A.
- SPOT
- 20
- 40
- 50
- 250
- 500
- 1500
- HIGHER SCORES
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Other | A small painted motocross rider figure on a bicycle near the right side of the playfield, on the rock face |
| Vehicle | Painted motorcycle/bicycle silhouette in the artwork near the left-centre slope |
| Other | No human or monster figures; the playfield is entirely landscape plus mechanical furniture |
Playfield of a volcano/freestyle-bike-themed electro-mechanical game, shot from directly above inside its wooden cabinet, with the coin door and score reels visible below the front rail. The artwork is dominated by a black-orange erupting volcano with streaks of lava, a pale-blue waterfall and grey rock faces, crossed by a bright blue two-piece apron at the bottom. A yellow-bordered instruction card headed FREEFALL sits at lower left, and a matching blank yellow-bordered card sits at lower right; between them the blue apron reads STERN ELECTRONICS, INC. / CHICAGO, ILL. U.S.A. in white and yellow, with FOR AMUSEMENT ONLY above. Across the top half sit the mechanical playfield furniture: three yellow domed pop-bumper caps, a bank of round illuminated lamps, slingshots either side, two red-tipped white rubber flipper bats at the bottom, and a ring of circular drop-target and score markers in the middle marked 20, 40, 50, 250, 500 and SPOT. Yellow text on black at both lower corners reads DEPRESSING BOTH FLIPPER BUTTONS CHANGES LINE SELECTOR.
Backglass vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Backglass
- orange
- red
- gold
- black
Fingerprint: Freefall in curved gold-orange script with cream ribbon underline, angelic female figure with vast outstretched feathered wings head bowed in white gown, winged woman at lower right, dark winged figure diving centre-left, burning orange and yellow sunset sky with swirling clouds, white star sparkles.
An enormous pair of outstretched, black-tipped red-and-gold feathered wings spread across the whole centre of the glass, belonging to a bowed-head female figure whose white robe trails into the sunset clouds. Overlapping this, a huge sculpted 'Freefall' script logo with a ribbon-like underline sweeps across the top third. Four numbered player rows run vertically down the left side, and a glowing blue dot-matrix word sits in the top-left corner above an orange 0530 readout.
Setting
- Sunset sky of swirling orange and red clouds
- Dark shadowed upper background
- White star sparkles
Symbols
- Feathers
- White star sparkles
- Numbered player rows
Lettering
- Curved gold-orange script logo with red inline shading and cream-white ribbon swash; blue dot-matrix capitals top left; small yellow sans-serif captions bottom
Themes
- Flying
- Angels and wings
- Free fall
- Sunset sky
Title on it
- Freefall
Text on it
- STERNN
- Freefall
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 0530
- MATCH
- BALL IN PLAY
- FREE FALL
- GAME OVER
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Woman | Large central angelic woman, dark auburn swept-back hair, head bowed, huge outstretched feathered wings red-orange with black tips, white flowing gown, arms extended |
| Woman | Smaller winged woman at lower right, long hair, white draped garment, large dark-tipped wing raised, head turned back over her shoulder |
| Other | Dark winged figure diving at lower centre-left, pale body with black feathered wings |
A wide rectangular backglass behind a maroon-red plastic surround, packed with airbrushed fantasy artwork in hot oranges, reds and golds. Across the top a huge curved script logo reads 'Freefall', gold-to-orange letters with red inline shading and a thick cream-white ribbon sweep curling beneath it, studded with white starbursts. At upper left a blue dot-matrix word reads 'STERNN' above an orange seven-segment window showing 0530. Down the left edge sit four numbered player rows (1, 2, 3, 4) in orange numerals beside grey rectangular display windows. The centre is dominated by a large angelic female figure with vast outstretched feathered wings, dark auburn hair, head bowed, wearing a flowing white garment, floating above clouds. Below her a smaller winged woman in a white drape flies at lower right, head turned back. A second dark winged figure dives at lower centre-left, near a white feathered bird shape. The background is a burning orange, red and yellow sunset sky of swirling cloud, with white star sparkles scattered throughout.