PINBALL IS SMALLER THAN YOUR AVERAGE BALL GAME, INVOLVING THE MANIPULATION OF MARBLE-sized steel balls inside a glass cabinet. Pinball grew in popularity after World War II, incorporating increasingly complex obstacles, mesmerising lights, and, later, graphics, and it's still an arcade hit today. In fact, the International Pinball Flipper Association has around 65 000 ranked players in competitive pinball.
The main elements of the game are the flippers and the ball, which is under three centimetres in diameter. The game begins when you release the ball into the sealed cabinet. You need to press the buttons that control the flippers on either side of the cabinet to keep the ball in the play zone for as long as possible. At the centre of the machine are a series of bumpers and ramps. To achieve a higher score, the aim is to fling the ball towards these mechanisms for bonus points. Usually, you're provided with three balls per play. When all these balls have fallen into the drain at the bottom of the board, the game is over, and your final score is displayed.
Whether it is played competitively, stumbled upon in the corner of a cafe or enjoyed periodically at amusement arcades, pinball still captures people's attention almost a century after it first hooked them in the 1930s.
1 DISPLAY PANEL
This displays the score of the player after the ball comes into contact with the machine's target areas.
2 BALL LAUNCHER
This story is from the April 2024 edition of Tech Magazine ZA.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the April 2024 edition of Tech Magazine ZA.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
DIVING INTO A STORY
Navigate two worlds as a young girl named Izzy who dreams of being a writer.
FITBIT SENSE TEARDOWN
Learn about the health-tracking technology in this smart watch.
SOUND EFFECTS
The smallest model in Sennheiser’s soundbar range to date offers massive sound in spite of its mini size.
VIBRANT UPGRADE
Changes have been made to the original Steam Deck in all the right places.
THE BEST ACTION CAMERA YET
GoPro has refined the best action camera on the market, making it better for beginners and pros alike.
DOWNL TO THE WIRE: THE SHIP FIXING OUR INTERNET
Africa's connection to the World Wide Web depends on cords of hair-thin fibres that rope along the ocean floor. Sometimes they break. Jess Auerbach Jahajeeah joined the crew of the Léon Thévenin, one of only a select few ships that are able to fix them
ALL THE rAGE
E-sports and gaming once again took centre stage in Johannesburg.
META NARRATIVE
How might gaming level up from Zuckerberg's photorealistic VRChat?
INSIDE A PINBALL MACHINE
Plunge into the engineering of a popular arcade classic.
MOBILE GAMES
What's the point of a game that plays itself?