1988 · Data East
Torpedo Alley
Known for Torpedo grid, Orbit lock, Ramp lock and Laser kick. Submarine or ship control room, wraparound bridge window onto a green sea with warships and orange-pink sunset sky.
- Year
- 1988
- Maker
- Data East
- Type
- Solid state
- Display
- Alphanumeric
- Players
- 4
Known for
- insert grid
Torpedo grid
- saucer
Orbit lock
- Ramp
Ramp lock
- Kickback
Laser kick
- Hurry-up
Destroy Fleet
- Multiball
Torpedo Alley Multiball
On the playfield
Ramp 1
- Ramp lock
Hole 1
- Orbit lock saucer
Drop target 1
- Upper right drop targets
Targets 4
- Green bank
- Blue bank
- Yellow bank
- Pop bumper standup
Kickback 1
- Laser kick
Lane 1
- SUB top lanes
Lights 3
- Torpedo grid insert grid
- 100K per hit insert
- Depth charge bombs
On the backglass
Who and what
- woman Far left, white trousers, blue cropped jacket with white trim, red-and-white visored helmet, long auburn ponytail, facing right with hands raised to the helmet
- woman Second from left, orange-red cropped jacket with white belt and cuffs, white trousers, dark helmet, standing and pointing right with an outstretched arm
- woman Centre, blue jacket with orange panels, white trousers, long brown hair, leaning on the console with both hands on a glowing green screen
- woman Right, purple cropped jacket, white trousers, long brown hair, seated at the console holding a pen or stylus over an orange-lit keypad
Setting
- Submarine or ship control room
- Wraparound bridge window onto a green sea with warships
- Orange-pink sunset sky
Text on it
- DATA EAST
- TORPEDO
- ALLEY
- 1π DIGITAL PROJECT
How it plays
-
Modes 1
Hurry-ups
- Destroy Fleet
-
Multiballs 1
- Torpedo Alley Multiball
-
Goals 1
Other
- 2x Playfield
-
Awards 1
- Hold Bonus
Made by
- Design
- Claude Fernandez
- Art
- Kevin O'Connor
- Art
- Margaret Hudson
- Software
- Lonnie D. Ropp
- Software
- Richard Ditton
- Sound & Music
- David Thiel
- Sound
- Kyle Johnson
Reference
Linked terms
- Torpedo grid also called Torpedoes
- SUB top lanes also called Top lanes
- Orbit lock also called Top left saucer
- Ramp lock also called Right ramp
- Destroy Fleet also called Fleet
- Torpedo Alley Multiball also called 2-Ball also called 3-Ball
Playfield vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Playfield
- blue
- red
- cream
- yellow
Fingerprint: Torpedo Alley electro-mechanical, cream crab claw surrounding dark circular hole above five red rocket spinner lanes, red-yellow starburst reading play the game, silver torpedo with fins diagonally across field, undersea theme with ship and harbour details
The most memorable element is a huge cream-coloured crab claw curving around a dark circular hole in the middle of the playfield, directly above the fan of five red rocket spinner lanes. Below that, a bright red-yellow starburst surrounds the spinner fan and reads PLAY THE GAME in a small red circle at the bottom centre. A large silver-and-yellow torpedo with fins lies diagonally across mid-field, and the lower apron carries the TORPEDO logo with a compass rose for the letter O and a yellow AN ORIGINAL STEINER DESIGN banner. A QR code is printed on the lower-right instruction card next to the words FOR AMUSEMENT ONLY. The whole lower third is a red, cream and yellow starburst burst against deep blue water, a strong colour break from the pale blue-grey upper field.
Setting
- Underwater harbour scene with pale blue-green water
- Grey rocky sea cliffs down both side lanes
- School of small silver fish printed left of centre
- Wooden harbour pilings and posts
- Sea sky with clouds and a distant horizon line at the top
- Red-white striped lighthouse-style posts
Symbols
- Playing-card-suit-free star bursts
- Red life-ring ring
- Yellow and red roundel playfield medallion
- Red and white striped posts
- Orange and red teardrop-shaped inserts
- Round pop-bumper caps with flame decals
- Blue circular medallion insert with a wheel emblem
- Green circular insert with a letter emblem
- Qr code
- Compass rose forming the letter o in the logo
- Five-pointed yellow star
- Burst of yellow flame decals around the top bumpers
Notable shapes
- Dark circular hole in the playfield surrounded by the crab claw
- Five-lane rocket spinner fan
- Large starburst burst in the lower playfield
- Angled triangular slingshots
- Wire ramp arcs crossing the upper field
- Red-white striped cylindrical posts flanking the flippers
Art motifs
- Starburst explosion behind the spinner fan
- Cartoon black-outlined sea creatures
- Chrome-look wire ball guides and ramps
- Red rubber flippers on cream plastic flipper bats
- Value ladders on the spinner lanes
Themes
- Undersea
- Naval warfare
- Submarine
- Torpedo
- Harbour
- Sea creatures
- Diver
Title on it
- Torpedo alley
Text on it
- TORPEDO
- DATA EAST
- CHICAGO, IL, U.S.A.
- AN ORIGINAL STEINER DESIGN
- PINBALL CAPITAL OF THE WORLD
- WELCOME ABOARD
- FOR AMUSEMENT ONLY
- Hold Flipper Button for 3 Seconds and see Backglass for
- 3 BALLS PER GAME
- FREE GAME
- GET 5 EXTRA BALLS WHEN YOU SHOOT HERE
- JAM
- TIME
- BONUS
- SHOOT AGAIN
- SHOOT RIGHT RAMP FOR 10X
- SHOOT LEFT RAMP FOR SPECIAL
- SUPER VALUE
- PLAYFIELD
- GREAT SCORE JACKPOT
- GREAT SCORE BONUS JACKPOT
- LITES TIME SHOT
- PLAY THE GAME
- HOLD EITHER SLIPPER FOR INSTANT INFO
- RIGHT FLIPPER FANS SLIDE TOP LANES
- 40 XL
- 20
- 10
- SHOOT BOTH RAMPS
- SUPER
- FIRE
- Support RequestGame Info
- http://DataEast. TorpedoAlley
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Creature | A large pale cream crab or lobster claw curving around a dark circular hole in the centre of the playfield, printed in flat comic style with black outlines |
| Creature | An orange-red spiny lobster or crab body printed just left of centre, mid-playfield, next to a yellow diver-like figure |
| Vehicle | A large grey and yellow torpedo with fins lying diagonally across mid-playfield, with a warhead nose |
| Vehicle | A small yellow submarine or boat shape at the lower right of the mid-field near a red life-ring |
| Other | A wooden ship with a mast and rigging printed in the upper-right area near the wire ramp |
A 1990s electro-mechanical pinball playfield shot from above inside a cabinet, silver side rails and lockdown bar visible, cabinet apron below showing the word TORPEDO in red outline letters on purple. Playfield art is undersea/naval-war theme: pale blue and sea-green water, grey rocky cliffs down both sides, a school of small silver fish, wooden pilings, buoys and harbour lights. Down the centre runs a tall torpedo with fins; mid-field a large cream-coloured crab or lobster claw arcs around a dark round window/hole. The lower playfield is dominated by a red, yellow and cream starburst with five red rocket-shaped spinner lanes radiating upward, each marked with point values 40 XL, 20, 40 XL, 10. Two large slingshots flank a central red roundel reading PLAY THE GAME, with red rubber flippers below. Two red-and-white striped posts and a wire ramp cross the upper field, with three round pop-bumper caps at the very top ringed in yellow flame decals. Lettering is dense: orange-and-red insert legends across the top, a white WELCOME ABOARD instruction card at lower left, a white FOR AMUSEMENT ONLY card with a QR code at lower right, and a red TORPEDO logo with a compass-rose O and a DATA EAST logo on the apron band.
Backglass vision analysis
Written by a machine from the photos, so details may be off.
Backglass
- grey
- blue
- orange
- white
Fingerprint: Huge chrome serif title with first O as riveted porthole containing grinning yellow torpedo mascot with goggles, last O pierced by sword-shaped blade carrying ALLEY badge, four young women in white trousers and visored flight helmets posing around radar console one visibly pointing right, glowing green radar scope with white blip, six-digit orange dot-matrix readouts, naval control room setting
A huge chrome serif TORPEDO ALLEY logo whose first O is a riveted porthole containing a grinning yellow torpedo character with goggles, and whose last O is pierced by a sword-shaped blade carrying the ALLEY badge. Four young women in white trousers and visored flight helmets pose around a radar console, one visibly pointing to the right. A green radar scope with a white blip sits on the console face beside six-digit orange dot-matrix readouts.
Setting
- Submarine or ship control room
- Wraparound bridge window onto a green sea with warships
- Orange-pink sunset sky
Symbols
- Grinning torpedo character inside a porthole letter o
- Sword or rocket blade through the final o
- Radar scope with a blip
- Warships and white splashes on water
- White swept-wing spacecraft on the speaker panel
- Two round mesh-grille speakers
Lettering
- Large chrome-outlined serif capitals with white-to-pink gradient fill and black drop shadow for the main title; yellow block capitals inside a pale sword badge for the subtitle; stacked yellow sans-serif capitals for the maker mark; cyan capitals for the sub-line; dot-matrix segment lettering on the console displays
Themes
- Naval
- Submarine
- Radar
- Torpedo
- Arcade sci-fi
Title on it
- Torpedo alley
Text on it
- DATA EAST
- TORPEDO
- ALLEY
- 1π DIGITAL PROJECT
| Kind | Description |
|---|---|
| Woman | Far left, white trousers, blue cropped jacket with white trim, red-and-white visored helmet, long auburn ponytail, facing right with hands raised to the helmet |
| Woman | Second from left, orange-red cropped jacket with white belt and cuffs, white trousers, dark helmet, standing and pointing right with an outstretched arm |
| Woman | Centre, blue jacket with orange panels, white trousers, long brown hair, leaning on the console with both hands on a glowing green screen |
| Woman | Right, purple cropped jacket, white trousers, long brown hair, seated at the console holding a pen or stylus over an orange-lit keypad |
Painted 1980s arcade-style backglass of a naval control room. Across the top a huge chrome-and-white serif logo reads TORPEDO, the O containing a grinning yellow torpedo mascot with fins, goggles and a moustache inside an oval riveted porthole; a gold-outlined sword-blade passes through the final O and carries a pale grey lozenge badge reading ALLEY in yellow block capitals. At upper left a yellow abstract logo mark with the stacked words DATA EAST, and beneath it in cyan capitals 1π DIGITAL PROJECT. Below the banner four young women in white trousers and cropped tops work a large grey console: two at left in orange-red and blue flight-deck uniforms with white visored helmets, one leaning and pointing right, one with long auburn hair touching her helmet; a third in blue and orange leans forward with both hands on a glowing green radar screen; a fourth in purple sits at the right console holding a stylus over an orange-lit keypad. Behind them a wraparound window shows a green sea with white splashes, warships, a low sun and an orange-pink sky. The console carries six-digit orange dot-matrix displays and a green circular radar target. Three lines of small yellow print sit at lower right.