Laser War
Laser War is the first pinball machine that was produced by Data East Pinball. It was the first pinball machine to feature digital stereo sound, and is loosely based on Lazer Tag.
Data East had been trying to get a pinball division for 2 years before this machine to sell them through their existing distribution network. The game was first revealed in November 1986, and completed and tested before its release in May 1987.
Design
This is notable as the "first pinball specifically designed for digital stereo", which included a subwoofer. There are separate ROMs for voice and music, and includes advanced speech. The digital speakers are in a chrome enclosure as part of the backbox, and are slightly angled to face the player. While he assisted with some previous machines, this is the first machine that David Thiel completed all of the sound and music for. The machine uses a Motorola 6809 processor, and the sound was stored in a 64K ROM.The backglass shows a laser war in progress, for which a photo shoot was staged.
Topper
The machine was designed with a topper, but only the first 500 or so machines were issued with one. This is based on the Lyte sound visualizer manufactured by Clyde Industries which displays kaleidoscopic patterns from audio input. This is housed in a trapezoidal case, and uses the unamplified sound from the sound board for its input.Layout
There is a kickback in the left outlane. There are three groups of three stand-up targets: red on the left side, blue on the right side, and yellow towards the middle. There is a corresponding lock/kickout for each colour, with the red and yellow including a spinner that the ball hits before reaching them. The table has a single ramp, with a wireform return to the right flipper; where this ramp turns a laser-gun turret is located which lights up at various points during a game. The top left of the machine has W-A-R rollovers just above three pop-bumpers.Gameplay
The table is controlled with two flippers, and has a manual plunger. By hitting all three targets in a colour group the player lights a lock, and after locking two balls, the two ball multiball starts. This can be turned into a three ball multiball by locking these balls again, which enables a jackpot to be collected by hitting the ramp.In a multiplayer game the game has a "point spread" feature showing difference to other players scores.