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Hyperball


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Hyperball / IPD No. 3169 / December 30, 1981 / 2 Players
 
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Average Fun Rating: [ 7 stars - Click for comments ]    6.9/10  (26 ratings/20 comments)        [ Add Your Rating! ]
Manufacturer: Williams Electronics, Incorporated (1967-1985) [Trade Name: Williams]
Date Of Manufacture: December 30, 1981
Model Number: 509
MPU: Williams System 7
Type: Solid State Electronic (SS) [?]
Production: 5,000 units   (confirmed)
Serial Number Database:View at The Internet Pinball Serial Number Database (IPSND.net)  (External site)
Theme: Outer Space - Fantasy
Specialty: Not A Pinball [?]
Flipperless [?]
Notable Features: Hypercannon fires up to 250 3/4" balls per minute at targets located around the outer edge of the playfield. No flippers. An alpha-numeric display in the lower playfield.
Design by: Steve Ritchie
Art by: Seamus McLaughlin
Sound by: Tim Murphy
Software by: Ed Suchocki
Notes: The alternate art found on the front of the cabinet has been attributed to the idea of stencils going to two different cabinet makers.

According to Williams production records, the initial sales forecast for Hyperball was 50,000 units. However, it was not long before that number had to be scaled back drastically, because the game was not selling as predicted. By this time, more cabinets (and backboxes) had already been made than what would be required for the final production run quantity. The backbox for this game was unique and required a short backglass. The excess backboxes would later be used for the production runs of Defender, Time Fantasy, and Firepower II.

This 1981 arcade game has an alpha-numeric display in the lower playfield. These displays did not appear in production pinball machines until Wico's 1984 'Af-Tor' followed by Premier's 1985 'Chicago Cubs "Triple Play"'. The first Williams pin game to use alpha-numeric displays is Williams' 1986 'High Speed'.

Programmer Ed Suchocki shares the following information about Hyperball:

Steve Ritchie created the original logo for Hyperball. The backglass was re-designed several times and was originally to be screened upon Plexiglas. This was the first Williams games to have an alpha-numeric display. We used the drivers of Player 3 and 4 displays to drive the alpha-numeric. This is why it was a two-player machine. The system was modified to add more lamps to the display matrix. The original matrix could drive 64 lamps while the Hyperball lamp matrix was able to drive 96 lamps.



No Production Floor Records available for Hyperball.
From Steve Kordek Lists #3 and #11:
Production Start Date: Dec-30-1981
Production End Date: May-28-1982
Total quantity produced: 5,000

Product History Record for Hyperball:
Quantity produced for USA/Canada: 3514*
Quantity produced for export: 956*
Total quantity produced: 4470*
Price to Distributor: $2150.00
*These quantities may be sales estimates.

Audited Sales History Accounting Record:
Quantity sold: 4,444

Photos in: Arcade TreasuresExternal Link, page 133
The Pinball Compendium 1970-1981External Link, page 208
Rule Sheets: Hyperball: What was it? Version 3.23  
ROMs: 16 KB ZIP Game ROM L-2 [Williams Electronics, Inc.]
  7 KB ZIP Game ROM L-3
  61 KB ZIP Game ROM L-4 [Williams Electronics, Inc.]
  49 KB ZIP Game ROM L-5 [Williams Electronics, Inc.]
Documentation: 3 MB PDF Instruction Manual and Drawing Set [Williams Electronics, Inc.]
  6 MB PDF Parts Supplement [Williams Electronics, Inc.]
Files: 692 KB PDF Control Board Assembly Drawing (unofficial user contribution) [Michael Tsigoudis]
  2 MB PDF Control Board Logic Diagram (unofficial user contribution) [Michael Tsigoudis]
  465 KB PDF Original Playfield Sketch [Steve Ritchie]
  6 KB HTM Switch Matrix
Images:
(click to zoom)
Image # 5995: Hyperball Backbox
Backbox

1000x867
[Mark Gibson]
Image # 5996: Hyperball Backglass
Backglass

1000x617
[Mark Gibson]
Image # 5997: Hyperball Playfield
Playfield

988x1500
[Mark Gibson]
Image # 7068: Hyperball Flyer, Front
Flyer, Front

810x1081
 
Image # 7069: Hyperball Flyer, Page 2
Flyer, Page 2

810x1081
 
Image # 7070: Hyperball Flyer, Page 3
Flyer, Page 3

810x1081
 
Image # 7071: Hyperball Flyer, Back
Flyer, Back

810x1081
 
Image # 11229: Hyperball Tactics, Page 1
Tactics, Page 1

801x612
 
Image # 11230: Hyperball Tactics, Page 2
Tactics, Page 2

801x612
 
Image # 11231: Hyperball Tactics, Page 3
Tactics, Page 3

801x612
 
Image # 11232: Hyperball Tactics, Page 4
Tactics, Page 4

801x612
 
Image # 11233: Hyperball Tactics, Page 5
Tactics, Page 5

801x612
 
Image # 11234: Hyperball Tactics, Page 6
Tactics, Page 6

801x612
 
Image # 11235: Hyperball Flyer
Flyer

592x784
 
Image # 14450: Hyperball Playfield
Playfield

1024x1292
[Philippe Thibault]
Image # 17128: Hyperball Game Active
Game Active

600x800
[Brian Baniewicz]
Image # 17129: Hyperball Game Over
Game Over

600x800
[Brian Baniewicz]
Image # 17130: Hyperball Lockdown Bar
Lockdown Bar

800x600
[Brian Baniewicz]
Image # 19104: Hyperball Initials of Designer and Programmer
Initials of Designer and Programmer

1024x1365
[John Yates]
Image # 19105: Hyperball Illuminated Playfield
Illuminated Playfield

960x1280
[John Yates]
Image # 19106: Hyperball Playfield - Detail
Playfield - Detail

1024x768
[John Yates]
Image # 19107: Hyperball Cabinet - Left
Cabinet - Left

1024x768
[John Yates]
Image # 19108: Hyperball Cabinet - Right
Cabinet - Right

1024x768
[John Yates]
Image # 19109: Hyperball Cabinet - Front
Cabinet - Front

1024x768
[John Yates]
Image # 19110: Hyperball Inside Front Door
Inside Front Door

1024x768
[John Yates]
Image # 19111: Hyperball Inside Backbox
Inside Backbox

1024x768
[John Yates]
Image # 19112: Hyperball Backglass - Reverse
Backglass - Reverse

1024x768
[John Yates]
Image # 19113: Hyperball Cabinet - Front View
Cabinet - Front View

1024x1365
[John Yates]
Image # 29141: Hyperball Alternate Front Cabinet Art 
(One of the artwork differences is that the orange crescent is on the right side of the yellow ball. Serial number 559187.)
Alternate Front Cabinet Art*

640x480
[Jay Stafford]
Image # 29178: Hyperball Instructions 
(Serial number 559187.)
Instructions*

480x640
[Jay Stafford]
Image # 29179: Hyperball Score Card 
(Serial number 559187.)
Score Card*

480x640
[Jay Stafford]
Image # 29180: Hyperball Z-Bomb Button 
(Serial number 559187.)
Z-Bomb Button*

640x480
[Jay Stafford]
Image # 29181: Hyperball Underneath Lockdown Bar 
(The connector on the right attaches to the lockdown bar. Serial number 559187.)
Underneath Lockdown Bar*

1024x768
[Jay Stafford]
Image # 29182: Hyperball Inside Front Door 
(Serial number 559187.)
Inside Front Door*

554x478
[Jay Stafford]
Image # 38723: Hyperball Backglass
Backglass

982x724
[Ben Barchik]
Image # 38724: Hyperball Illuminated Playfield
Illuminated Playfield

1024x1365
[Ben Barchik]
Image # 38725: Hyperball Illuminated Playfield
Illuminated Playfield

1024x1365
[Ben Barchik]
Image # 40094: Hyperball Prototype Backglass
Prototype Backglass

449x436
 
Image # 45699: Hyperball Alternate Front Cabinet Art 
(One of the artwork differences is that the orange crescent is on the right side of the yellow ball. Serial number 566455.)
Alternate Front Cabinet Art*

1126x900
[Jay Stafford]
Image # 45700: Hyperball Alternate Front Cabinet Art - Full View 
(One of the artwork differences is that the orange crescent is on the right side of the yellow ball. Serial number 566455.)
Alternate Front Cabinet Art - Full View*

1032x1592
[Jay Stafford]
Image # 47519: Hyperball Prototype Backglass
Prototype Backglass

1200x898
[Mario Van Cleave]
Image # 54198: Hyperball Promotional Poster 
(Measures 17 inches by 23 inches.)
Promotional Poster*

596x857
[Harold Balde]
Image # 54199: Hyperball Promotional Poster 
(Measures 15 1/2 inches by 31 inches.)
Promotional Poster*

477x912
[Harold Balde]
Image # 64271: Hyperball Backbox Insert
Backbox Insert

1200x1036
[Sylvain Gregoire]
Image # 64272: Hyperball Under Playfield
Under Playfield

955x1575
[Sylvain Gregoire]
Image # 64273: Hyperball Inside Cabinet - Drain Board 
(The woodgrained drain board is likely not original to this game. Other games used plain particle board like the reclined section that is hinged to this drain board.)
Inside Cabinet - Drain Board*

1200x1600
[Sylvain Gregoire]
Image # 64274: Hyperball Inside Cabinet - Rear
Inside Cabinet - Rear

1200x900
[Sylvain Gregoire]
Image # 64275: Hyperball Corkscrew Elevator
Corkscrew Elevator

760x1463
[Sylvain Gregoire]
Image # 73064: Hyperball Test Game Report - Front
Test Game Report - Front

1200x1600
[Federico Croci]
Image # 73065: Hyperball Test Game Report - Back
Test Game Report - Back

1200x1531
[Federico Croci]
Image # 81342: Hyperball Playfield - Apron Removed
Playfield - Apron Removed

1200x742
[Larry Le Feuvre]
Image # 81343: Hyperball Hypercannon 
(This mechanism was rebuilt. The coil is original.)
Hypercannon*

1200x692
[Larry Le Feuvre]
Image # 81344: Hyperball Ball Lift Mechanism 
(The metal on this mechanism has been newly polished.)
Ball Lift Mechanism*

1200x900
[Larry Le Feuvre]
 

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