1981 · Williams
Solar Fire
Known for Upper five-bank, Horseshoe lane, Eject holes and SOLAR target. Black starfield with scattered white star specks, red and black nebula clouds on left and right edges, giant central orange and yellow explosion, large multi-coloured five-pointed star lower right, magenta and purple striped inner border and chrome wire scroll ornaments in the four corners.
- Year
- 1981
- Maker
- Williams
- Type
- Solid state
- Display
- Alphanumeric
- Players
- 4
Known for
- Target
Upper five-bank
- Lane
Horseshoe lane
- Hole
Eject holes
- Ramp
SOLAR target
- Captive ball
Solar Gun
- Magnet
Magna Saves
- Award
Drain Shield
- Goal
FIRE
On the playfield
Extra levels 2
- Upper playfield upper playfield
- Lower playfield lower playfield
Ramp 1
- SOLAR target
Holes 2
- Alien Eject saucer
- Eject holes
Captive ball 1
- Solar Gun
Magnet 1
- Magna Saves
Targets 4
- Upper five-bank
- Upper left drop targets
- Blue drop target banks
- Far right standup target
Lane 1
- Horseshoe lane
Post or gate 1
- Center post post
On the backglass
Who and what
- vehicle Four grey ribbed disc-shaped saucer craft with segmented panel lines and orange-red slit lights, arranged in a descending diagonal arc from upper centre to lower left
- creature Green-and-orange lizard-like alien with a spined back and open snarling jaws, shown in profile facing right, lower left cluster
- creature Second smaller green-and-orange reptilian alien with open jaws and a raised spined crest, lower left, partly behind the first
- other Four slim green-and-gold dart or rocket shapes with swept fins crossing the lower right over the star
Setting
- Black starfield with scattered white star specks
- Red and black nebula clouds on left and right edges
- Giant central orange and yellow explosion
- Large multi-coloured five-pointed star lower right
- Magenta and purple striped inner border
- Chrome wire scroll ornaments in the four corners
Text on it
- SOLAR FIRE
- Highest Score
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- MATCH
- SHOOT AGAIN
- TILT
How it plays
-
Multiballs 2
- Two-ball Multiball 2-ball
- Three-ball Multiball 3-ball
-
Goals 1
- FIRE
-
Awards 1
- Drain Shield
Made by
- Design
- Barry Oursler
- Art
- Constantino Mitchell
- Art
- Jeanine Mitchell
- Software & Sound
- Ed Suchocki
Reference
Linked terms
- Upper five-bank also called Timed upper five-bank also called Upper playfield 4-bank
- Upper left drop targets also called upper three-bank
- Blue drop target banks also called lower three-banks
- Horseshoe lane also called horseshoe loop
- Alien Eject also called upper playfield lock
- Eject holes also called Three lock eject holes
- SOLAR target also called SOLAR lane
- FIRE also called Double Scoring
- Two-ball Multiball also called Two-Ball
- Three-ball Multiball also called Three-Ball
Playfield vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Playfield
- orange
- brown
- teal
- yellow
Fingerprint: Solar Fire, five-round bonus letter display spelling solar over fire flanked by bonus on red chevron, huge pale-blue chunky bubble-letter title beneath tangles of clear plastics, bright orange numerals 1000 and 15000 lit on angled drop-target panels, four portrait heads at corners including woman and yellow man in red cap
The most memorable element is the five-round BONUS letter display in the centre, where chunky circular windows spell S O L A R over F I R E, flanked by the word 'BONUS' on a red chevron. Close behind is the huge pale-blue chunky bubble-letter title stretched across mid-playfield under a tangle of clear plastics and metal ramps. Third: bright orange numerals 1000 and 15000 lit on angled drop-target panels at mid-left and mid-right. Also striking are the four portrait heads at the corners - a dark-haired woman top right, a yellow man in a red cap bottom right, and two flat pink/yellow high-collared alien faces flanking the apron.
Setting
- Collage of futuristic machinery, girders and cables on a star-speckled dark blue sky
- Abstract painted landscape with cloud bands near the aprons
- Star field at the upper left
Symbols
- Gold three-pointed crown
- Flames
- Playing-card suits
- Joker card imagery
- Letters s o l a r f i r e in round windows
- Star field
- Red chevron badge
- Orange illuminated numerals
- Circular coin-like medallions
Notable shapes
- Large teal trapezoidal bonus panel in the centre holding the two rows of round letter windows
- V-shaped stack of red chevrons reading bonus
- Arched upper-playfield opening with a row of circular medallions
- Long diagonal metal ramp that splits the playfield visually into upper and lower halves
- Cut-out windows in the lower apron card edges
Art motifs
- Concentric pale-blue bubble-letter title
- Gold pinstriped flanges and rails
- Airbrushed gradient skies
- Chevron and starburst shapes
- Diagonal stripe bands
Themes
- Science fiction
- Space opera
- Fantasy warrior woman
- Alien characters
- Joker card bonus
- Electro-mechanical era
Title on it
- Solar fire
Text on it
- SOLAR FIRE
- BONUS
- S O L A R
- F I R E
- 1 BONUS 'X' FOR EACH LETTER IN J-O-L-A-R
- 20 SECOND DOUBLE OF BONUS WHEN LETTER IN F-I-R-E
- Williams
- DRAIN SHIELD WILL LIT
- Red Button Activates MAGNA-SAVE When Lit
- LITES MYSTERY
- SHOOT AGAIN
- 1000
- 15000
- 1500
- INSTRUCTIONS
- FOR AMUSEMENT ONLY
- 1 TO 4 PLAYERS
- 1,000,000 SCORES 1 CREDIT
- 3,000,000 SCORES 1 CREDIT
- 1 PLAY ...... 25c
- 5 BALLS PER GAME
- MAXIMUM CREDIT
- CREDIT
- PRESS FLASHING ARROWS FOR FLASHING
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Woman | Top right of playfield, large painted portrait, long dark hair, gold beaded headband across the forehead, green bodice with red and gold trim, bare arm raised and outstretched, wide stance, confident smile |
| Man | Bottom right, yellow-skinned grinning man with dark stubble, red flat cap, dark jacket, crouching/kneeling pose looking up at the player |
| Alien | Lower left apron, flat pink-magenta face with yellow hair and a very high yellow collar, shown in profile facing right |
| Alien | Lower right apron, second flat pink-magenta face with yellow hair and high yellow collar, mirrored to face left |
| Woman | Bottom left of playfield, small painted head of a woman in a red cap and blue clothing, near the 'magna-save' panel |
| Woman | Bottom right of playfield, second small painted head with red hair/hat and blue clothing beside the matching magna-save panel |
| Other | Upper right, a white-haired figure in pale clothing leaning over a console or machine, seen from behind |
A photographed electro-mechanical playfield seen through a closed glass cover, with the wooden cabinet edge, chrome lockdown bar, apron, coin door and legs all visible. The artwork is a dense fantasy-fiction collage in orange, brown, yellow and teal: a woman with dark hair, gold headband and a green-and-red costume stands top right in a wide stance; a grinning yellow-skinned man in a red cap kneels bottom right; pink and yellow high-collared alien heads fill both lower corners; a white-haired figure leans over machinery upper right. A huge pale-blue, purple-shadowed title in bubble letters runs across the middle. Below it a pale turquoise panel carries the word BONUS on a red chevron, five circular letter windows S O L A R above F I R E, and 'J-O-L-A-R' on each side. The lower left has a cream card with scoring values and 'FOR AMUSEMENT ONLY'; the lower right has a matching cream INSTRUCTIONS card. Orange drop-target lamps read 1000 and 15000. The apron shows a gold crown-and-flames crest under a red-orange flame wordmark.
Backglass vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Backglass
- black
- orange
- blue
- green
Fingerprint: Enormous orange-yellow fireball explosion against black starfield with four grey ribbed saucer craft in diagonal arc, multi-coloured five-pointed star crossed by green-gold dart shapes, two snarling green-orange lizard creatures at lower left, SOLAR FIRE title in white-blue block letters with bright green outline, 1980s airbrushed sci-fi aesthetic
A colossal orange-and-yellow fireball explosion bursting out of the centre of a black starfield, with four grey ribbed saucer-like craft drifting in a diagonal arc to its left. Overlapping it at lower right is a huge multi-coloured five-pointed star in blue, magenta and yellow, crossed by slim green-and-gold dart shapes. Two green-and-orange open-jawed lizard creatures snarl in profile at the bottom left. The title is enormous white-and-blue block letters with a lurid green outline, sitting on the black starfield under a red script wordmark.
Setting
- Black starfield with scattered white star specks
- Red and black nebula clouds on left and right edges
- Giant central orange and yellow explosion
- Large multi-coloured five-pointed star lower right
- Magenta and purple striped inner border
- Chrome wire scroll ornaments in the four corners
Symbols
- Large multi-coloured five-pointed star
- Semicircular chrome wire scrolls in the corners
- Digit windows 1 2 3 4
- Seven-segment score readouts
- Starburst sparkles
Lettering
- Very large white-to-blue gradient slab block capitals with a bright green keyline and dark drop shadow, plus a red cursive script wordmark above with a circular emblem
Themes
- Science fiction
- Space battle
- Explosion
- Aliens
- Flying saucers
Title on it
- Solar fire
Text on it
- SOLAR FIRE
- Highest Score
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- MATCH
- SHOOT AGAIN
- TILT
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Vehicle | Four grey ribbed disc-shaped saucer craft with segmented panel lines and orange-red slit lights, arranged in a descending diagonal arc from upper centre to lower left |
| Creature | Green-and-orange lizard-like alien with a spined back and open snarling jaws, shown in profile facing right, lower left cluster |
| Creature | Second smaller green-and-orange reptilian alien with open jaws and a raised spined crest, lower left, partly behind the first |
| Other | Four slim green-and-gold dart or rocket shapes with swept fins crossing the lower right over the star |
Translucent backlit glass panel with a black outer cabinet frame, chrome pinball-wire scrolls in all four corners and a magenta and purple striped inner border. Top third: a huge block-capital title in white-and-blue gradient letters with a bright green outline and dark drop shadow, above it a red script wordmark with a round emblem. The centre is dominated by a huge roiling orange-and-yellow explosion with jagged flame tongues, against a black starfield speckled with white stars and bordered left and right by red-and-black nebula clouds. Four grey ribbed disc-shaped craft with orange-red slit lights hover in a diagonal arc across the upper left and centre. Lower right: a large five-pointed star painted in blue, magenta, red and yellow panels, with slim green-and-gold dart shapes crossing over it. Lower left: two snarling green-and-orange lizard-like alien creatures in profile, mouths open, facing right, one with a spined back. Five rectangular seven-segment score windows with black numeral player tags 1 to 5 run across the left, right and lower centre. Along the bottom strip, magenta lettering reads MATCH, SHOOT AGAIN and TILT. Art style is bold 1980s airbrushed science-fiction illustration.