1974 · Gottlieb
Magnotron / Duotron
Known for Bonus Booster, Center saucer, Center A lane and Red targets. A black band across the upper third carrying the two score windows and below the band, a solid magenta and red field packed with drawn circuitry.
- Year
- 1974
- Maker
- Gottlieb
- Type
- Electro-mechanical
- Display
- Score reels
Known for
- Captive ball
Bonus Booster
- saucer
Center saucer
- Lane
Center A lane
- Target
Red targets
2 games under this title
-
Duotron 1974 · 2 players -
Magnotron 1974 · 4 players
On the playfield
Hole 1
- Center saucer saucer
Captive ball 1
- Bonus Booster
Targets 2
- Red targets
- Lower side standup targets
Lanes 3
- Center A lane
- Upper side kicker lanes
- Return lanes
Post or gate 1
- Right outlane gate gate
On the backglass
Who and what
- robot Centred red-orange head with two large round yellow-rimmed goggle eyes, a small grille mouth and pink tubing arching over it, sitting directly above the title
- alien Red-hooded figure with white goggle eyes and a dark cape, left of the logo, leaning in and reaching a hand towards the centre
- alien Second red-hooded, goggle-eyed caped figure mirrored on the right of the logo, also leaning inwards
- other A figure or machine in yellow-green and white striped costume at the top left corner, partly cut off by the frame
- creature A long pink/magenta arm- or tentacle-like form sweeping across the top right corner
- robot A small boxy machine with a grille and dials on the right side, mid-height
Setting
- A black band across the upper third carrying the two score windows
- Below the band, a solid magenta and red field packed with drawn circuitry
Text on it
- 1
- 2
- DUOTRON
- Outlaws
- 2 PLAYER
- 0 0 3 5 0
- 0 0 0 0 0
- PLAYERS
- 1 OR 2
- can play at this SAME TIME
- IT'S MORE FUN TO COMPETE
- BALL IN PLAY
- RETURNS 3 BALLS
- BONUS
- PLAYER
How it plays
-
Goals 1
Other
- Double Bonus
Made by
- Design
- Ed Krynski
- Art
- Gordon Morison
Reference
Linked terms
- Bonus Booster also called Center Magnotron also called Full Bonus Booster also called center semicircle
- Center A lane also called Center top A rollover
- Red targets also called Red Special targets
- Upper side kicker lanes also called Upper side chutes
- Right outlane gate also called Ball save gate
Backglass vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Backglass Duotron
- pink
- red
- cyan
- yellow
Fingerprint: Red-orange robot head with yellow-rimmed googly eyes sits above title, two red-hooded goggle-eyed caped figures lean symmetrically from logo sides, blocky yellow "DUOTRON" text with orange shading, dense cyan-magenta-lime circuitry fill surrounding composition, blank lime-green rectangle lower-left, comic airbrushed style, glowing neon machinery aesthetic, two mechanical score reel windows upper section
A red-orange robot or insect head with huge round yellow-rimmed goggle eyes sits directly above the title. Two red-hooded goggle-eyed figures in dark capes lean in symmetrically from either side of the logo, one reaching a hand towards the centre. A large blank lime-green rounded rectangle occupies the lower left, oddly empty against the otherwise cluttered art. The title is a chunky block word in yellow with orange shading and a black outline. Everything is crammed with cyan, magenta and lime circuitry.
Setting
- A black band across the upper third carrying the two score windows
- Below the band, a solid magenta and red field packed with drawn circuitry
Symbols
- Two score reel windows
- Numbered player markers 1 and 2
- Goggle-eyed heads
- Pipes, coils and cable bundles
- Circuit boards
- Gear and dial faces
- A yellow square button on the right
Lettering
- Blocky condensed sans-serif capitals in yellow with orange shading and a black outline for the title; black brush script for outlaws; small black sans-serif caps on white and coloured instruction panels
Themes
- Robotics
- Outlaws
- Two player
- Electronics
- Futuristic machinery
Title on it
- Duotron
Text on it
- 1
- 2
- DUOTRON
- Outlaws
- 2 PLAYER
- 0 0 3 5 0
- 0 0 0 0 0
- PLAYERS
- 1 OR 2
- can play at this SAME TIME
- IT'S MORE FUN TO COMPETE
- BALL IN PLAY
- RETURNS 3 BALLS
- BONUS
- PLAYER
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Robot | Centred red-orange head with two large round yellow-rimmed goggle eyes, a small grille mouth and pink tubing arching over it, sitting directly above the title |
| Alien | Red-hooded figure with white goggle eyes and a dark cape, left of the logo, leaning in and reaching a hand towards the centre |
| Alien | Second red-hooded, goggle-eyed caped figure mirrored on the right of the logo, also leaning inwards |
| Other | A figure or machine in yellow-green and white striped costume at the top left corner, partly cut off by the frame |
| Creature | A long pink/magenta arm- or tentacle-like form sweeping across the top right corner |
| Robot | A small boxy machine with a grille and dials on the right side, mid-height |
Square, brightly coloured backglass of a two-player game. A wide black band across the upper third holds two mechanical score windows: the left reads 0 0 3 5 0 and the right reads 0 0 0 0 0, each in white windows with black digits. Above the left window sits a yellow circle with a red 1; above the right, a yellow square with a red 2. Centred between them is a red-orange robotic or insect-like head with two bulging round yellow-rimmed goggle eyes and a small grille mouth, ringed by pink and orange tubing. Under it, black script reads Outlaws with 2 PLAYER, above the blocky yellow-and-orange title DUOTRON. Two red-hooded, goggle-eyed figures in dark capes lean in from left and right of the logo. The lower half is a dense collage of machinery: pipes, coils, wires, gears, buttons and circuit boards in cyan, magenta, lime and orange, including a cyan panel reading PLAYERS 1 OR 2 can play at this SAME TIME, a large blank lime-green rounded rectangle on the left, a yellow BALL IN PLAY box, and a RETURNS 3 BALLS notice at right. Airbrushed, heavily outlined comic style.
Backglass Magnotron
- pink
- red
- yellow
- black
Fingerprint: "MAGNOTRON" in tall yellow block letters below cream circular rotor badge with circuit-maze pattern and red triangle, entire backglass dense hardware collage with two white mechanical reel windows, red-yellow player number badges (1-4), pale blue "PLAYERS" panel, flat pink-magenta ground with red-brown border and heavy black comic-ink outlines, electronics-themed cutaway diagram aesthetic, machine-internals theme
The most memorable feature is the title MAGNOTRON in tall yellow block letters, set below a big cream circular rotor-like badge with a printed-circuit maze pattern and a red triangle, and captioned A GAME OF SKILL. A second strong memory is that there is no scene or character at all - the entire backglass is a dense cutaway collage of machine hardware, including two prominent white mechanical reel windows with black digit drums. A third is the numbering scheme: a red 1 on a yellow disc at top left, a yellow 2 on a red square at top right, and matching 3 and 4 markers repeated lower down, alongside a pale blue PLAYERS panel. The overall palette of flat pink, red, yellow and black with comic-ink outlines, plus chipped paint along the bottom, gives it a very busy, hardware-diagram look.
Setting
- Flat pink ground filled with a cutaway collage of electrical and mechanical machine parts
- Cream-white cabinet side rails visible at left and right
- Scuffed blue painted panel along the bottom edge
Symbols
- Red triangle inside the circular badge
- Circuit-trace maze pattern
- Printed numerals 1, 2, 3, 4 as player markers
- Rows of round yellow components resembling valves or lamps
- Coiled wire spools
- Yellow disc and red square number badges
Lettering
- Tall condensed yellow sans-serif block capitals with black outline and white inline for the title, small plain yellow capitals for the subtitle, a small cursive script word above the title, and rounded black display lettering on the pale blue information panel
Themes
- Electronics
- Cutaway diagram
- Machine internals
- Arcade machinery
- Hardware collage
Title on it
- Magnotron
Text on it
- 1
- 2
- MAGNOTRON
- A GAME OF SKILL
- PLAYERS
- 3
- can play at the SAME
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Other | Large cream-white circular rotor or badge disc at top centre, printed with a black maze-like circuit trace pattern and a red triangle motif, riveted around its rim |
| Other | Two long white mechanical score-reel windows with black digit drums, one upper left and one upper right |
| Other | Two further reel windows in the lower half, one left showing a row of zeros and one right showing zeros and a digit |
| Other | Blue loudspeaker cone with concentric rings at lower left |
| Other | Red-brown transformer or coil blocks and yellow terminal strips throughout |
| Other | Tangled red, blue, white and yellow wiring harnesses looping across the whole surface |
| Other | Rows of small yellow round components and silver rivets forming a horizontal band below the title |
A printed backglass packed edge to edge with a collage of exposed pinball-machine innards rather than a scene: circuit boards, terminal strips, spools of wire, coils, a loudspeaker cone, transformers, metal brackets and two long white mechanical score-reel windows with black digit drums. The whole composition sits on a flat pink/magenta ground, with a broad red-brown border strip and heavy black outlines in a flat comic-ink style. At the top centre is a large cream-white circular badge or rotor disc with a maze-like printed circuit pattern and a red triangle motif, and directly beneath it the main title MAGNOTRON in tall condensed yellow block capitals with a black outline and white inline detail, with a small script word above and the words A GAME OF SKILL in small yellow capitals on a white ribbon below. A yellow disc carrying a red 1 sits at the top left and a red square carrying a yellow 2 at the top right. A pale blue rectangular panel lower centre reads PLAYERS over the numerals 1 2 3 with a line of small text below about players playing at the same time. Four window units show rows of reel digits. The glass is photographed in place, with cream-painted cabinet rails at left and right and scuffed blue paint along the bottom edge.