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1981 · Bally

Medusa

Known for Upper playfield, Upper flippers, Upper left saucer and Top drop targets. Carved stone temple interior, purple-black ornate pillars, dark red radiating glow and stone rubble at base.

Year
1981
Maker
Bally
Type
Solid state
Display
Alphanumeric
Players
4

Known for

  • upper playfield

    Upper playfield

  • extra flippers

    Upper flippers

  • saucer

    Upper left saucer

  • Drop target

    Top drop targets

  • post

    Shield of the Gods

  • Goal

    Olympus Bonus

  • Goal

    Colossus Bonus

  • Mode

    Extended Play

On the playfield

  • red
  • cream
  • gold
  • black
Medusa playfield
Spotted in this photo
  • 2 flippers
  • 4 pop bumpers
  • 2 slingshots

Full vision analysis

Extra level 1

  • Upper playfield upper playfield

Hole 1

  • Upper left saucer saucer

Drop targets 2

  • Top drop targets
  • Lower right drop targets

Targets 3

  • Green standup targets
  • Red standup target
  • 1-2-3 targets

Lane 1

  • Star rollovers rollovers

Flippers 2

  • Upper flippers extra flippers
  • Transparent flippers

Post or gate 1

  • Shield of the Gods post

Lights 1

  • Ready, Aim, Fire

Display 1

  • Extra ball number

On the backglass

  • red
  • yellow
  • purple
  • black
Medusa backglass

Full vision analysis

Who and what

  • woman Giant disembodied head, red and pink skin, orange slit eyes, heavy black lashes, arched brows, open mouth with fangs and a long blue forked tongue dripping downward; fills the centre
  • woman Screaming figure in flowing gold gown, snakes for hair, arms flung wide, at upper right
  • man Golden-armoured warrior with crested corinthian helmet at left, thrusting a scimitar forward, other hand splayed open toward viewer
  • monster Dark purple-skinned bearded figure in a horned headdress at right, one arm raised with hand open
  • other Pale blue-grey moon or skull sphere resting on rubble at bottom centre
  • other Two red four-pronged flames on a stone plinth at bottom centre

Setting

  • Carved stone temple interior
  • Purple-black ornate pillars
  • Dark red radiating glow
  • Stone rubble at base

Text on it

  • Bally
  • Medusa
  • BALLY REPLAY
  • CREDIT
  • GAME OVER
  • Kevin O'Connor

How it plays

  1. Modes 1

    • Extended Play
  2. Goals 2

    • Olympus Bonus
    • Colossus Bonus

Made by

Design
Wally Welch
Art
Kevin O'Connor

The cast

  • Medusa

Reference

Linked terms
  • Upper flippers also called Zipper flippers
  • Upper left saucer also called Upper saucer
  • Top drop targets also called Seven-target bank also called Upper target bank
  • Star rollovers also called Moving star rollover
  • 1-2-3 targets also called Left 1-2-3
  • Lower right drop targets also called Right four-bank
  • Shield of the Gods also called Shield
  • Olympus Bonus also called Olympus
  • Colossus Bonus also called Colossus
Playfield vision analysis

Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.

Medusa playfield

Playfield

  • red
  • cream
  • gold
  • black

Fingerprint: Grey rocket blasting straight up from mustard-yellow launch gantry at top, three large round bumpers with caps reading 1000 1000 1090, two pink twin-boom jet fighters with starburst exhaust facing inward from lower corners around five-disc ORBIT of yellow circles, row of four red hexagonal drop targets at upper right, vivid flat cartoon art

Distinctive

A huge green Medusa head with snakes for hair forms the centrepiece of the lower playfield, with a crowd of smaller myth heads stacked above and around it. Four fat red pop-bumper caps in a tight 2x2 square dominate the middle of the field. A golden-armoured archer beside a rearing winged horse is painted across the arch at the top. The cream apron keeps its original 1980 copyright block with the cursive Bally script logo and the rarity text RIFT FOR EACH SCORE OF 600,000 POINTS.

Setting

  • Painted greek temple architecture with columns and stone arches
  • Arched top section with a gold sky and classical figures
  • Lower maroon field with painted flame and cloud swirls

Symbols

  • Red diamond playing-card suit in a white diamond panel at centre
  • Gold horseshoe motifs
  • Eight-pointed star bursts
  • Snakes
  • Flames
  • Grey stone column and arch drawings

Notable shapes

  • Cream oval leaf-shaped one-shot plastics
  • Red diamond card-suit panel in a white square
  • Arched top playfield with a printed stone arch
  • Triangular maroon-and-gold apron chevron

Art motifs

  • Greek temple columns and stonework
  • Curved gold banners carrying character names
  • Painted flame and cloud swirls
  • Medallion portraits

Themes

  • Greek mythology
  • Gorgons
  • Winged horses
  • Knights
  • Archery

Title on it

  • Medusa

Text on it

  • Bally
  • MEDUSA
  • PINBALL DIVISION
  • MCMLXXX
  • ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
  • For Amusement Only
  • 5 BALLS PER GAME
  • EXTRA FLIPPER BUTTON ACTIVATES SHIELD POST
  • INSTRUCTIONS
  • RIFT FOR EACH SCORE OF 600,000 POINTS
  • RIFT FOR EACH SCORE OF 8,000,000 POINTS
  • RANDOM DROP TARGETS ADVANCE TO TOP
  • EJECTION PLAY
  • BONUS MULTIPLIER
  • SHIELD POST
  • TIME UNITS
  • AWARD EXTRA BALL
  • BONUS
  • GORGON
  • PEGASUS
  • CENTAUR
  • CYCLOPS
  • EXTRA BALL
  • JACKPOT
  • ARCHER
  • 1 PLAY 1 QUARTER
  • 5 PLAY 1 QUARTER
  • 2 & 4 DOLLAR PLAYS
Drop targets
A group of drop targets in the lower centre marked random drop targets advance to top
Slingshots
Two triangular slings with plain rubber bands flanking the lower drop-target area
Upper playfield
Arched top section with painted archery scene, a lit arch display, and green/teal round lamps in a row
Apron and lower playfield
Cream apron with maroon and gold v-shaped stripes, cursive bally script logo, medusa label, copyright block, a yellow extra flipper button callout with a white arrow, and an instructions card; metal lockdown bar and the cabinet coin door visible below
Who and what
Kind Description
Man Golden-armoured archer at the top arch, drawing a bow, bare muscular arms, winged helmet, facing left
Animal Rearing winged horse with gold wings at the upper right of the arch
Woman Pale reclining classical female figures with flowing robes around the arch scene
Creature Large green snake-haired gorgon head in the centre of the lower field, staring forward
Monster A horned monster face looming at the very top centre above the arch
Other Small painted head medallions and masks scattered across the maroon field
Full description

A solid-state playfield shot from above, dark and heavily shadowed, with a cream-and-maroon Greek-mythology scheme. At the top is a painted scene of a golden-armoured archer figure drawing a bow beside a rearing winged horse and other pale classical figures, under an arch of lettering that reads as a knight/archer title with smaller names either side of it. Below that sit four large red translucent pop-bumper caps arranged in a square, then a grey rectangular instruction panel in the centre of the field printed with EJECTION PLAY, BONUS MULTIPLIER and SHIELD POST above three dark windows labelled TIME UNITS, AWARD EXTRA BALL and BONUS. The lower half is dominated by a maroon field with a green snake-haired Gorgon head in the middle, flanked by two cream leaf-shaped one-shot plastics, with gold text such as GORGON, PEGASUS, CENTAUR, CYCLOPS and SHIELD POST repeated in curved banners. The cream apron below carries the cursive Bally logo, a MEDUSA label, PINBALL DIVISION copyright text and 5 BALLS PER GAME, plus a yellow callout reading EXTRA FLIPPER BUTTON ACTIVATES SHIELD POST.

Backglass vision analysis

Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.

Medusa backglass

Backglass

  • red
  • yellow
  • purple
  • black

Fingerprint: Giant red-skinned Medusa head center with slit orange eyes blue forked tongue, screaming gold-dressed woman snake hair upper right, golden-armored warrior Corinthian helmet left, yellow omega M monogram, purple-black carved pillars, Greek meander border, airbrushed fantasy mythology

Distinctive

The centrepiece is a gigantic floating female head, red-skinned with orange slit-pupil eyes and a blue forked tongue hanging from her fanged mouth. Immediately above and right of it a woman in a gold dress with a head full of writhing snakes screams with both arms spread. The title is spelled with a yellow omega-shaped M standing in for the first letter, so it reads Medusa but the M is a Greek symbol. Two red four-flamed torches burn at the bottom centre flanking a pale moon-like sphere.

Setting

  • Carved stone temple interior
  • Purple-black ornate pillars
  • Dark red radiating glow
  • Stone rubble at base

Symbols

  • Yellow omega m monogram
  • Greek meander border
  • Carved spiral volutes
  • Scimitar
  • Laurel branches
  • Corinthian helmet
  • Horned headdress
  • Snake hair
  • Fanged mouth
  • Blue forked tongue

Lettering

  • Large yellow lowercase serif letters with red and black outline for the title, a red flowing cursive script word above it, white-outlined lit insert lettering on the replay arrow and game over panel

Themes

  • Greek mythology
  • Snakes
  • Skull
  • Treasure
  • Demons
  • Warrior
  • Score windows

Title on it

  • Medusa

Text on it

  • Bally
  • Medusa
  • BALLY REPLAY
  • CREDIT
  • GAME OVER
  • Kevin O'Connor
Who and what
Kind Description
Woman Giant disembodied head, red and pink skin, orange slit eyes, heavy black lashes, arched brows, open mouth with fangs and a long blue forked tongue dripping downward; fills the centre
Woman Screaming figure in flowing gold gown, snakes for hair, arms flung wide, at upper right
Man Golden-armoured warrior with crested corinthian helmet at left, thrusting a scimitar forward, other hand splayed open toward viewer
Monster Dark purple-skinned bearded figure in a horned headdress at right, one arm raised with hand open
Other Pale blue-grey moon or skull sphere resting on rubble at bottom centre
Other Two red four-pronged flames on a stone plinth at bottom centre
Other Twin golden-armoured warrior faces glimpsed in the dark upper-left corner carving
Full description

A vertically framed airbrushed-fantasy backglass on a dark red and black ground, bordered by carved-looking purple-black stone pillars with Greek meander and spiral carving. Top left carries a fat yellow omega-shaped M monogram followed by large yellow lowercase letters edged in red and black reading edusa, with a red cursive word above it. Across the top a stone ribbon of carved pseudo-Greek lettering runs behind the logo. The centre is dominated by a colossal disembodied woman's face in red and pink tones: orange-red slit eyes with heavy lashes, arched brows, and open fanged lips from which a long blue forked tongue or stream of saliva drips. Four smaller figures surround her: at left a golden-armoured warrior with a crested Corinthian helmet and a scimitar thrust forward, hand splayed wide; above right a screaming woman in a flowing gold gown with snakes for hair, both arms flung out; at right a dark purple-skinned bearded figure in a horned headdress raising a hand; at the bottom centre a pale blue-grey moon or skull-like sphere resting on rubble. Two red four-pronged flames burn at the bottom centre, gold laurel branches rise either side of the moon, and stone plinths flank the lower corners. Rectangular windows are cut into the art: two upper score windows, a black-bordered instruction window at upper left, an arrow-shaped insert at upper right reading REPLAY, and three lower windows.