1980–1981 · Bally & Taito
Skateball
Known for Right saucer, SKATE targets, Top 1-2-3 lanes and Upper left target bank. Beach with palm trees, cloudy blue sky, wooden indoor skating-rink floor and surfboard and lighthouse at left edge.
- Years
- 1980–1981
- Maker
- Bally & Taito
- Type
- Solid state
- Display
- Alphanumeric
- Players
- 4
Known for
- saucer
Right saucer
- Drop target
SKATE targets
- Lane
Top 1-2-3 lanes
- Drop target
Upper left target bank
- Lane
Left in and out lanes
2 games under this title
On the playfield
Hole 1
- Right saucer saucer
Drop targets 3
- SKATE targets
- Upper left target bank
- Center drop targets
Lanes 2
- Top 1-2-3 lanes
- Left in and out lanes
Post or gate 1
- One-way gates gate
Lights 4
- BALL
- Yellow arrows
- Spot X
- 20,000 arrows
On the backglass
Who and what
- man Young blond male skater crouching in centre, grey helmet, blue sunglasses, red sweatshirt, blue padded shorts, white knee pads and white trainers, right fist thrust forward, left hand braced on knee
- woman Blonde, white tank top, yellow shorts, standing hand on hip at lower left, smiling
- man Shirtless tanned muscular blond man in blue jeans standing behind the woman, arm around her
- vehicle White, blue and yellow panel van with roof luggage box, driver visible through windscreen, lower right
Setting
- Beach with palm trees
- Cloudy blue sky
- Wooden indoor skating-rink floor
- Surfboard and lighthouse at left edge
Text on it
- Skateball
- HIGH SCORE TO DATE
- BALL IN PLAY
- 1 TO 4 CAN PLAY
- CREDIT
- GAME OVER
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
How it plays
-
Goals 2
- Super Bonus
- Base bonus
Made by
- Design
- Claude Fernandez
- Art
- Greg Freres
- Art
- Kevin O'Connor
- Art
- Margaret Hudson
Reference
Linked terms
- SKATE targets also called SKATE bank
- Top 1-2-3 lanes also called top lanes
- Upper left target bank also called upper-left arrow bank also called upper drop target
- Spot X also called green X lamp
- Center drop targets also called center three-bank
- Left in and out lanes also called reversed left lanes
Playfield vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Playfield Standard
- yellow
- red
- teal
- black
Fingerprint: Steeply raked central ladder of numbered discs running 9 8 7 6 5 4, pair of giant mirrored painted figures reclining left and right either side of column, VERTICALLY arrow over left figure, tall red-yellow LET US COOL TIME REEL oval on right, dense scatter of tiny white score numerals, mustard yellow crimson red and teal blue palette
The most memorable feature is the pair of giant mirrored painted figures, a reclining man on the left and a reclining woman in a wide-brimmed hat on the right, filling the middle of the playfield either side of a central column of numbered round targets. Second is the steeply raked central ladder of numbered discs running 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4 down to the flippers. Third, a red triangular arrow reading VERTICALLY juts over the left figure while a tall red-and-yellow LET US COOL TIME REEL oval stands on the right. Fourth, the extremely dense scatter of tiny white score numerals printed directly on the playfield around the saucers, and the big yellow-outlined COLLECT and BONUS words flanking the lower apron.
Setting
- Deep black void filling the lower and side areas, broken up by painted red and teal wave shapes
- Saturated yellow field in the upper playfield around the bumpers
Symbols
- Stars, five-pointed, in yellow, white and red
- Five-pointed starbursts with radiating lines
- Downward and rightward pointing red arrows
- Crescent moon shape near the upper centre
- Circular target discs with numerals
- Round saucer bases with concentric rings
Notable shapes
- Long central vertical column of numbered circular targets
- Two large rectangular illustrated panels with heavy yellow scrollwork frames
- Tall vertical oval insert on the right
- Red triangular arrow on the left
- Arched top lane running the width of the upper playfield
Art motifs
- Concentric swirl patterns
- Scalloped cloud-like borders
- Repeating dot-and-burst medallions
- Mirrored left-right composition
Themes
- Airbrushed illustration
- Numbered target ladder
- Marquee word panels
Text on it
- SPECIAL
- ENQUIRY
- VERTICALLY
- LET US
- COOL
- TIME
- REEL
- COLLECT
- BONUS
- SHOOT AGAIN
- SUPER
- SHOOT
- 20
- 30
- 6-D
- 9
- 8
- 7
- 6
- 5
- 4
- 100000
- 1900 6500
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Man | Painted adult male, short dark hair, dark shirt and pale grey trousers, shown full length reclining diagonally across the left-centre panel with one arm raised, on a blue and teal wavy ground |
| Woman | Painted adult female, wide-brimmed hat, dark hair, dark top, reclining diagonally across the right-centre panel in a pose mirroring the man opposite, on a blue and teal wavy ground |
| Other | Smaller painted female figure in a red costume near the top right, seated or posed among green-yellow posts behind the upper bumpers |
Full-length view of an electro-mechanical playfield, photographed from above under a slightly hazy plastic cover, with the cabinet apron and two instruction cards visible along the bottom edge. The layout is strongly symmetrical about a vertical centre line. A yellow-and-black numbered drop-target or rollover sequence runs down the middle, discs reading 20, 30, 6-D and then 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4 stacked in a vertical column, with a red ENQUIRY banner across the 5 and a SPECIAL banner with an arrow beside the 6. Flanking that column are two large mirrored painted panels: a man in a dark shirt and pale trousers reclining diagonally on the left and a similarly posed woman in a wide-brimmed hat on the right, both set against broad sweeping blue and teal wave shapes. A red right-pointing triangle reading VERTICALLY sits over the left panel, and a tall red-and-yellow oval insert on the right reads LET US COOL TIME REEL. Two white flippers sit low and wide, separated by a SHOOT AGAIN round window. COLLECT is printed in large yellow-outlined capitals on the lower left and BONUS in matching capitals on the lower right. The upper playfield is crowded with round saucer-based bumpers, star-shaped plastics, green-yellow posts and a dense scatter of small score numerals. Dominant colours are mustard yellow, crimson red, teal blue and black.
Backglass vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Backglass Standard
- red
- blue
- orange
- yellow
Fingerprint: Skateball in red-yellow neon-tube script on red plaque over orange basketball, crouching blond skater in grey helmet punching forward, blonde in white tank top and yellow shorts standing with shirtless tanned man, white blue yellow panel van at lower right, upright blue surfboard with yellow stripe, striped lighthouse.
The crouching blond skater in a helmet and sunglasses punching his fist forward, knees bent, dominating the centre circle. The neon-tube Skateball logo lettered as glowing red tubes with yellow fill on a red plaque, over a giant basketball. A white, blue and yellow panel van with a roof rack box parked at the lower right. Four orange seven-segment score windows framed in polished brass, each paired with a large coloured player number panel. An upright blue surfboard with a yellow stripe and a tiny red-and-white striped lighthouse on the left.
Setting
- Beach with palm trees
- Cloudy blue sky
- Wooden indoor skating-rink floor
- Surfboard and lighthouse at left edge
Symbols
- Basketball
- Surfboard
- Striped lighthouse
- Palm trees
- Gold coins
- Panel van
Lettering
- Tall thin red neon-tube script with yellow inner glow for the title; plain white sans-serif capitals for score labels; blue cursive script logo top left
Themes
- Skateboarding
- Roller skating
- Beach
- Surfing
- Sports
- 1980s nostalgia
Title on it
- Skateball
Text on it
- Skateball
- HIGH SCORE TO DATE
- BALL IN PLAY
- 1 TO 4 CAN PLAY
- CREDIT
- GAME OVER
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Man | Young blond male skater crouching in centre, grey helmet, blue sunglasses, red sweatshirt, blue padded shorts, white knee pads and white trainers, right fist thrust forward, left hand braced on knee |
| Woman | Blonde, white tank top, yellow shorts, standing hand on hip at lower left, smiling |
| Man | Shirtless tanned muscular blond man in blue jeans standing behind the woman, arm around her |
| Vehicle | White, blue and yellow panel van with roof luggage box, driver visible through windscreen, lower right |
A backglass/translite in a light wooden frame, edged with a dark blue border and rainbow holographic film over red and blue areas. Top centre: the word Skateball in tall thin red-and-yellow neon-tube script on a red rectangular plaque, set over a large orange-and-red basketball. Upper left: a blue-and-white cursive script logo. Upper right: HIGH SCORE TO DATE in white capitals on a cloud, beside maroon palm fronds. A crouching blond male skater dominates the centre - red sweatshirt, blue padded shorts, white knee pads and white trainers, one fist thrust forward, wearing blue sunglasses and a grey helmet. Lower left: a blonde woman in a white tank top and yellow shorts standing with a shirtless tanned man in blue jeans. Left edge: an upright blue surfboard with a yellow stripe, and a small red-and-white striped lighthouse. Lower right: a white, blue and yellow van with a roof box and a driver. Rectangular LED score displays with orange seven-segment digits sit in brass-toned frames, numbered 1 to 4 in red, blue and gold panels. Bottom left reads 1 TO 4 CAN PLAY; bottom right GAME OVER in red. Shiny red, blue and gold gradients throughout, comic-book airbrushed style.