Also known as MET
1979 · Stern Electronics & Taito
Meteor
Known for METEOR letters, Number 2 bank, Numbered banks and Kirk Post. Black starfield with coloured streak trails, magenta and pink swirling nebula cloud upper right and pale blue-grey cratered moon surface lower right.
- Year
- 1979
- Maker
- Stern Electronics & Taito
- Type
- Solid state
- Display
- Alphanumeric
- Players
- 4
Known for
- Target
METEOR letters
- Target
Number 2 bank
- Target
Numbered banks
- post
Kirk Post
- Award
WOW
2 games under this title
-
Standard 1979 - Standard 1979
On the playfield
Bumper 1
- Star bumper
Targets 3
- METEOR letters
- Number 2 bank
- Numbered banks
Lane 1
- Top rollovers rollovers
Post or gate 1
- Kirk Post post
On the backglass
Who and what
- other One large ragged-edged grey and teal asteroid with orange and yellow glowing molten patches inside its cracked surface, centre of glass
- vehicle Four large blue-and-orange striped rockets with orange exhaust flames, rising diagonally from the lower right lunar surface; two carry small round porthole windows
- other Dozens of orange, yellow and white meteor streaks with flame tails falling diagonally from upper left to lower right across the asteroid
- other One small pale blue-grey rock fragment tumbling in the magenta nebula at upper right
Setting
- Black starfield with coloured streak trails
- Magenta and pink swirling nebula cloud upper right
- Pale blue-grey cratered moon surface lower right
Text on it
- METEOR
- BY Stern
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 3 690
- 5 80
- HIGH SCORE TO DATE
- BALL IN PLAY
- MATCH
- HIDDEN GRAIN
- GAME OVER
How it plays
-
Awards 2
- Number Bonus
- WOW
Made by
- Design
- Steve Kirk
- Art
- Leslie Kaip
- Art
- Jorge Obregon
- Software
- Alan McNeil
Reference
Linked terms
- METEOR letters also called METEOR drop targets also called METEOR
- Numbered banks also called Numbered drop-target banks also called 1-2-3 targets
- Top rollovers also called Lit inlanes and top rollovers
- Kirk Post also called Center post
- Number Bonus also called Bonus
Playfield vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Playfield Standard
- black
- blue
- orange
- red
Fingerprint: Meteor, colossal blue comet with ragged white-orange flame tail splitting playfield into halves, symmetric pair of enormous red-white-blue rockets with nose cones launched from either side, rainbow-striped circular target bank numbered 1-2-3 at exact centre, white-red striped ball-shaped meteor target upper left with yellow light beam, black starfield with red-orange-white stars, hand-painted 1960s sci-fi
The single most memorable element is a colossal blue comet with a ragged white-and-orange flame tail that splits the whole playfield into left and right halves. Second, a symmetric pair of enormous red-white-and-blue rockets with nose cones, launched from either side of the comet's tail. Third, a rainbow-striped red/white/blue circular bank of round targets numbered 1 2 3 in the exact centre. Fourth, a literal meteor target: a white-and-red striped striped ball-shaped dome on the upper left with a beam of yellow light streaking off to the upper left. Fifth, chrome hardware — a big silver arch over the top, two yellow plastic lamp caps and a metal ball guide running down the right side.
Setting
- Outer space starfield
- Black sky with red and white speckled stars
- Ringed planet top right
- Yellow sunburst explosion top right
- Blue comet with white and gold flame tail down the centre
Symbols
- Stars of many sizes, four-pointed and five-pointed
- Swirling concentric orange spiral target above the left flipper
- Yellow four-pointed star flare at lower left
- Red and yellow star bursts
- Concentric ring target around the lower-centre arrow
- Striped ball-and-ring planet motif
- Arrow pointing up at the ball-shooter aperture
Notable shapes
- Huge blue comet with a split, forked white-and-gold flame tail splitting the field
- Big silver metal arch spanning the top
- Concentric orange spiral disc above the left flipper
- Concentric ring target with an upward arrow at the lower centre
- Oval target windows at the lower left and lower right corners
- Circular ring set around the striped ball target on the upper left
Art motifs
- Flame tongues in orange, yellow and white
- Airbrushed glow haloes
- Speckled star dust
- Chevron and racing stripe bands on the lower playfield
- Circular spotlight rings
Themes
- Outer space
- Meteor
- Rockets
- Planets
- Comet
- Sci-fi
- Tournament
Title on it
- Meteor
Text on it
- SPOT THE METEOR TARGET
- SPOT METER TARGET
- WOW
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 2000
- 3000
- 4000
- 5000
- 6000
- 7000
- 1000
- COLLECT ALL ROCKETS
- SHOOT AGAIN
- METER
- SCORE 9 TO SHOW SPECIAL WHEN LIT
- FOR AMUSEMENT ONLY
- METEOR
- STERM
- ELECTRONICS, INC.
- CHICAGO, ILL. U.S.A.
- 3 BALLS PER GAME
- 1 PLAY - QUARTER
- 5 PLAYS - DOLLAR COIN
- 50,000
- 70,000
- 1 REPLAY
- 2 REPLAYS
- OR WHEN SHOTS SCORE 3 SPECIAL, AWARD 1 REPLAY
- SELECTED FOR TOURNAMENT PLAY
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Vehicle | Large red, white and blue rocket on the left lower slope, pointed nose cone upward and slightly right, fins at the base, painted with a striped band and round porthole detail |
| Vehicle | Matching red, white and blue rocket on the right lower slope, mirrored, angled up and to the left |
| Vehicle | Small white and red rocket at the top centre pointing upward, below the silver arch, surrounded by yellow starbursts |
| Other | White-and-red radially striped ball-shaped dome on the upper left (meteor target), with a fan of yellow beam lines streaking up-left from it |
| Other | A ringed planet with concentric pink and cream rings at the upper right, next to a spiky yellow-and-orange explosion |
A photographed pinball playfield seen from above behind glass, with the chrome front rail and coin door of the cabinet visible at the bottom. The field is painted as a black outer-space starfield speckled with red, orange and white stars, dominated by a huge blue comet/meteor with a jagged white-and-gold tail sweeping up the centre. Two tall red, white and blue rockets with pointed nose cones stand on the left and right lower slopes, angled inward, and a third smaller rocket points up at the top centre beneath a silver metal arch. A ringed planet and a yellow-white sunburst explosion sit on the upper right, with two yellow-rimmed lamp housings at the top. In the middle is a five-column drop-target bank of round red and cream lamps with the numerals 1 2 3 below them and score values 1000 to 7000 running up each side. Two orange flame-wreathed posts and a bright pink-red 'SHOOT AGAIN' lamp sit above the flippers. Lower playfield: two white-and-yellow striped flipper bats, an orange concentric-circle target, a blue-and-orange apron with 'FOR AMUSEMENT ONLY', two black METEOR instruction cards, and a chrome apron with the manufacturer name. Art style is hand-painted airbrushed 1960s sci-fi illustration, no human figures.
Backglass vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Backglass Standard
- black
- orange
- blue
- magenta
Fingerprint: METEOR italic orange-yellow gradient title speed-lines, cratered grey-teal asteroid split open glowing orange-yellow molten-patches, white meteors streaking diagonal downward impact-illusion, four blue-orange striped rockets orange-flame upper-right lunar surface, red player-numbers 1-4 left-edge rectangular numeric-windows, orange starburst labels HIGH SCORE TO DATE BALL IN PLAY, space-action composition dark palette
The huge italic METEOR title in orange-to-yellow gradient with speed lines, paired with a cratered grey-and-teal asteroid split open to show glowing orange molten patches. Four blue-and-orange striped rockets with fiery exhaust thrust diagonally up from a pale cratered lunar surface in the lower right. A column of four red player numbers 1-4 down the left edge, each sitting above a rectangular numeric window. Orange starburst inserts reading HIGH SCORE TO DATE and BALL IN PLAY sit on the lower middle. A small vertical stack of lettering on the lower right reads HIDDEN GRAIN.
Setting
- Black starfield with coloured streak trails
- Magenta and pink swirling nebula cloud upper right
- Pale blue-grey cratered moon surface lower right
Symbols
- Digital seven-segment score windows
- Red player numbers 1-4
- Orange starburst insert shapes
- Comet and flame trails
- Rocket nose cones
- Orange streaks suggesting impact
Lettering
- Very large italic block capitals, orange-to-yellow vertical gradient, black horizontal speed stripes inside the left of the m, red shadow; supporting labels in small orange condensed capitals on starburst shapes
Themes
- Meteor
- Asteroid
- Space
- Rockets
- Moon surface
- Meteor shower
Title on it
- Meteor
Text on it
- METEOR
- BY Stern
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 3 690
- 5 80
- HIGH SCORE TO DATE
- BALL IN PLAY
- MATCH
- HIDDEN GRAIN
- GAME OVER
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Other | One large ragged-edged grey and teal asteroid with orange and yellow glowing molten patches inside its cracked surface, centre of glass |
| Vehicle | Four large blue-and-orange striped rockets with orange exhaust flames, rising diagonally from the lower right lunar surface; two carry small round porthole windows |
| Other | Dozens of orange, yellow and white meteor streaks with flame tails falling diagonally from upper left to lower right across the asteroid |
| Other | One small pale blue-grey rock fragment tumbling in the magenta nebula at upper right |
A rectangular, black-framed backglass lit by internal lamps. Across the top runs a huge blocky italic logo reading METEOR in orange-to-yellow gradient letters with black horizontal speed lines cut into the left of the M and a red drop shadow. The centre of the glass is dominated by a ragged-edged grey and teal asteroid/rock mass, split open to reveal glowing orange and yellow lava-like patches, being struck by numerous orange, yellow and white meteors streaking diagonally down from the upper left. Upper right is a swirling magenta-and-pink cloud bank with a small pale-blue asteroid fragment. The lower right quadrant shows a pale blue-grey cratered lunar surface with four large blue-and-orange striped rockets rising diagonally, each with orange exhaust flames. Left edge carries four red player numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, each above a rectangular window; the top window glows with orange digital numerals 3 690, the other three read as unlit seven-segment digit faces. Centre-lower are two insert labels: HIGH SCORE TO DATE on a red starburst and BALL IN PLAY on a yellow starburst. A lit window reads 5 80 in orange digits, and MATCH sits just below it. GAME OVER appears in orange block letters at lower right.