The 90s saw the biggest leap in pinball mechanics and technology that the hobby had ever seen. The Dot Matrix Display and how Bally/Williams leveraged it, made the pins from the previous decade look like a horse and buggy. The purchase of Bally by Williams created a competitive shark tank, forcing designers and engineers to continuously one-up each other.

But as the 90’s marched on, the industry contracted. Designers exited or moved on to other areas, junior designers took their place and built some of the best machines Bally/Williams had produce, but sadly the sales numbers didn’t reflect that.

Ron and Dave chat all about the final years of Bally/Williams including Adam Rhine’s Dot Animation, Congo’s amazing shot layout, J-Pop, Attack From Mars, Dave saying ‘spider’ correctly after listening while editing, George Gomez giving a poetic definition of ‘Flow’, Chicago Gaming Company Remakes, and can the magic of Bally/Williams be replicated?

Episode Summary 

There are many stars inside the pinball industry, but few create such an emotional ripple in the hobby when they pass.  Lyman Sheats gave so much for pinball and always wanted to give more. A perfectionist who was often too hard on himself, Lyman was always looking for ways to improve his games.

This month Ron and Dave talk all about the beginnings of Lyman’s tournament dominance, his Data East codes, his first days at Bally-Williams, coding Attack from Mars, teaming up with George Gomez, Lyman’s drive for perfection, “In Lyman We Trust”, the Masterpiece that is Batman ’66 by KaPow Pinball, and his untimely death which rocked the pinball community.