Internet Pinball Machine Database: Bally 'Embryon'

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Embryon

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Embryon / IPD No. 783 / June, 1981 / 4 Players

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Average Fun Rating:

7.9/10 (43 ratings/34 comments) [ Add Your Rating! ]

Manufacturer:

Bally Manufacturing Corporation (1931-1983) [Trade Name: Bally]

Project Date:

September 19, 1980

Date Of Manufacture:

June, 1981

Model Number:

1222

MPU:

Bally MPU AS-2518-35

Type:

Solid State Electronic (SS)

Production:

2,250 units (confirmed)

Serial Number Database:

View at The Internet Pinball Serial Number Database (IPSND.net) (External site)

Theme:

Fantasy - Science Fiction

Specialty:

Widebody

Notable Features:

Flippers (4, includes one shorter "timed Flipsave" flipper in right outlane), Pop bumpers (4), Slingshots (2), Kick-out hole (1), 3-bank drop targets (2), Solitary drop target (1), Rollunder spinner (1). Four messenger balls, each of two are protected by a drop target, and two more are propelled by a fifth ball common to both of their chambers. Multiball (2-ball). Has Speech.

Number of pinballs installed: 2

Design by:

Claude Fernandez

Art by:

Tony Ramunni

Notes:

Unlike other Bally electronic pinball games, their documentation for this game shows the model number only as 1222, not 1222-E.

Embryon was the first Bally game to feature artwork by Tony Ramunni and the last widebody pinball from Bally Manufacturing Company before it was bought by Williams. It was also the only game from this company to use their trademarked "Flipsave" ball saving feature - a small vertical flipper located in the right outlane used by players to flip draining balls back into the return lane.

Pictured in this listing is original concept art from Tony Rammuni. Collector Bill Kurtz stated in an online auction:

This artwork was done as an example to show Bally executives what the finished playfield artwork would look like. The areas where the plastic light shields belong are blank, but all of the artwork that would be screened onto the wooden playfield is here. This artwork was the first time that Rammuni signed his full name on the backglass artwork; his earlier work for Williams was signed simply as "Ramunni." Apparently, Ramunni used the back of this tagboard to practice his signature for the backglass, since he painted his name several times. Ramunni has also painted an "Elektra Crystal" on the back of the tagboard -- the next pinball game that he created artwork for was ELEKTRA. And there are also some handwritten notes on the back of the tagboard about various colors and halftones.

Marketing Slogans:

"The Next Revolution in the Science of Supersized Pinball."
"Journey to an Unexplored Reality."

Photos in:

Pinball Art External Link

, page 11
Pinball Snapshots External Link

, pages 5, 74-78
The Complete Pinball Book External Link

, page 247
The Pinball Compendium 1970-1981 External Link

, page 196
Mike Pacak's Pinball Flyer Reference Book A-F
Pinball (Ciuffo)

, page 193

Owners List URL:

http://www.pinballowners.com/owners/783 (External site)

ROMs:

52 KB

ZIP

Home ROM V1

52 KB

ZIP

Home ROM V8

7 KB

ZIP

Home ROM v92

16 KB

ZIP

ROMs

[Bally Mfg. Corp.]

Documentation:

70 MB

PDF

English Manual (in color with paginated schematics)

[Bally Mfg. Corp.]

3 MB

PDF

English Manual (includes schematics, OCR searchable)

[Bally Mfg. Corp.]

Files:

4 MB

ZIP

Schematics Only (paginated, from Manual PDF)

[Bally Mfg. Corp.]

Images:
(click to zoom)

Backglass 304x274 [Russ Jensen]	Backglass 460x432 [Russ Jensen]	Flyer, Front 840x1116	Flyer, Back 829x1091	Cabinet - Front View 1024x1365 [Stefan Ulrich]
Playfield 1024x1365 [Stefan Ulrich]	Promotional Photo 593x722	Press Release, Page 1 620x790	Press Release, Page 2 620x790	Backglass 800x727 [Donald Hopkins]
Illuminated Playfield 600x800 [Donald Hopkins]	Playfield - Detail 600x800 [Donald Hopkins]	Playfield - Detail 800x600 [Donald Hopkins]	Cabinet - Right 600x450 [Donald Hopkins]	Cabinet - Front 600x556 [Donald Hopkins]
Inside Front Door 800x659 [Donald Hopkins]	Under Playfield 656x800 [Donald Hopkins]	Inside Cabinet 600x800 [Donald Hopkins]	Backbox Insert - Front 600x517 [Donald Hopkins]	Backbox Insert - Reverse 600x469 [Donald Hopkins]
Illuminated Backglass 900x1200 [Donald Hopkins]	Illuminated Front View 521x600 [Donald Hopkins]	Pop Bumpers 1024x760	Upper Rollovers 1024x760	Drop Target Area 1024x760
Playfield 1024x768 [David Houwers]	Playfield 1024x768 [David Houwers]	Playfield 1024x768 [David Houwers]	Playfield 800x600 [David Houwers]	Lower Playfield 1024x768 [David Houwers]
Promo Key Fob 1200x1228 [Aaron Katz]	Original Backglass Artwork* 445x368	Backglass 1200x1098 [Jean-Pierre Renault]	Illuminated Backglass 1200x1105 [Jean-Pierre Renault]	Cabinet - Front View 967x1600 [Jean-Pierre Renault]
Illuminated Front View 988x1600 [Jean-Pierre Renault]	Cabinet - Full View 1200x1355 [Jean-Pierre Renault]	Stripped Playfield - Detail 1200x896	Stripped Playfield - Detail 1200x896	Stripped Playfield - Detail 1200x896
Stripped Playfield - Detail 1200x896	Stripped Playfield - Detail 1200x896	Original Backglass Artwork* 448x370 [Bill Kurtz]	Original Backglass Artwork - Detail* 592x400 [Bill Kurtz]	Original Backglass Artwork - Detail* 592x400 [Bill Kurtz]
Original Playfield Concept Artwork* 441x400 [Bill Kurtz]	Original Playfield Concept Artwork - Detail* 592x400 [Bill Kurtz]	Original Playfield Concept Artwork - Detail* 592x400 [Bill Kurtz]	Original Playfield Concept Artwork - Reverse 552x400 [Bill Kurtz]	Original Playfield Concept Artwork - Reverse - Detail* 592x370 [Bill Kurtz]
Original Playfield Concept Artwork - Reverse - Detail* 592x400 [Bill Kurtz]	Original Playfield Concept Artwork - Reverse - Detail* 592x400 [Bill Kurtz]	Playfield - Detail 1200x1030 [Jean-Pierre Renault]	Messenger Ball 701x1600 [Jean-Pierre Renault]	Playfield - Detail 1200x1185 [Jean-Pierre Renault]

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