Twilight Zone (pinball)

Midway
Industry	Arcade games, pinball machines
Headquarters	United States
Products	Pinball machines, arcade games
Parent	WMS Industries

Adapted from the English Wikipedia article Twilight Zone (pinball), available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 9 August 2025

Twilight Zone is a widebody pinball game created by Pat Lawlor, inspired by the television series of the same name. Launched in April 1993 by Midway under the Bally brand, it marked the debut of WMS' SuperPin series, followed later that year by titles such as Star Trek: The Next Generation and Indiana Jones: The Pinball Adventure.

Design

After the commercial triumph of The Addams Family, Midway entrusted Lawlor with complete creative freedom for this intricate machine, which required 16 months to complete. Lawlor characterized it as incorporating "flippers that aren’t flippers, pinballs that aren’t pinballs, and a clock that’s not a clock."

Among its notable elements is a functioning gumball dispenser capable of holding and releasing three balls during gameplay, alongside an operational 12-hour analog clock that serves both as a time display and a countdown timer for specific modes.

The Powerball is crafted from white ceramic, making it approximately 20% lighter than standard steel balls and immune to magnetic influence. It can enter play through the plunger, Lock ejection, or the Gumball Machine, modifying scoring dynamics while active. Although colored balls were initially contemplated, ceramic manufacturing constraints limited the option to white for enhanced visibility.

The Powerfield is a triangular-shaped mini-playfield equipped with magnets beneath that propel the ball instead of conventional flippers.

The audio features include theme music from the original TV series alongside an adaptation of Golden Earring's 1982 track "Twilight Zone." Voice work for Rod Serling was provided by Tim Kitzrow.

While initially planned to showcase Williams/Midway's DCS Sound System, delays in DCS development led to the use of a Yamaha YM2151 / Harris CVSD soundboard instead.

Gameplay

Dominating the center of the Twilight Zone playfield is a door modeled after the iconic TV show entrance. Encircling this door are 14 panels symbolizing various awards for players to collect. Some panels initiate timed modes that can overlap (run simultaneously), while others activate shot lights or grant points. The primary objective is to illuminate all 14 panels to trigger "Lost in the Zone," the game's wizard mode, signified by the doorknob lighting. Progress toward acquiring locks for multi-ball is displayed via lights on the door.

Players activate door panels by shooting the Slot Machine when lit, hitting the Player Piano when lit, or conquering challenges in the Powerfield mini-playfield. The Slot Machine awards a random unlit panel, whereas the Player Piano and Powerfield grant the currently flashing panel (which cycles via pop bumpers). The Slot Machine operates under two conditions:

It will not award the flashing panel unless it is the only remaining unlit panel.
"Lite Extra Ball" is granted only if it is either the last panel or one of two remaining panels when it is not flashing.

Shooting an unlit Player Piano rewards Odd Change, which is a random point value ranging from 10 to 10 million points.

Hitting any of the three pop bumpers adds to the Town Square value, collectible by shooting through them into the Dead End lane. When this lane is lit, it doubles points and advances awards. The bumper values increase through Skill Shots or by hitting the Camera target when unlit; this shot is accessed by elevating the upper left flipper to send the ball into a sinkhole located behind it.

The door panels consist of:

10 Million – Grants 10 million points; this panel is automatically spotted as a yellow Skill Shot.
Lite Gumball – Activates the Gumball Machine; shooting a right orbit loads and dispenses balls.
Town Square Madness – A timed mode where all targets yield increased points and pop bumpers raise target values while simulating townspeople panic.
Fast Lock – Initiates a hurry-up countdown featuring AM radio clips from Pat Lawlor’s earlier games played in reverse order of release. Shooting Lock scores points and starts three-ball multi-ball accompanied by thematic music from games like The Addams Family and FunHouse.
Super Skill Shot – Illuminates a special skill shot on the left ramp; successful shots return the ball to the plunger for bonus attempts awarding points or special rewards such as "Battle the Power" or "Extra Ball."
Super Slot – A timed mode where Slot Machine shots yield random points between 10-20 million plus random door panels.
Lite Extra Ball – Lights up "Extra Ball," which can be collected by shooting Lock; previously earned extra balls automatically spot this panel.
The Camera – Lights two shots; awards one of eight prizes ranging from point multipliers to bonus collections. These awards cycle through all eight before repeating.
The Spiral – A timed mode where orbit shots stop on Spiral magnets granting incremental points and then award 15 million "Breakthrough" points for subsequent loop shots.
Clock Millions – Timed mode where hitting a clock target scores one million points multiplied by the hour hand’s position. A related "Clock 10 Millions" mode provides fixed 10 million points per hit.
Battle the Power – Lights access to right ramp leading to Powerfield and activates "Battle the Power" mode if not using Powerball.
Greed – A timed mode featuring seven targets each worth five million points; targets reset after all are hit, allowing total score accumulation.
Hitch-Hiker – Rewards two million points per hitchhiker collected during gameplay, with increasing value for additional pickups.
Clock Chaos – A timed backward-running clock mode playing "Pop Goes the Weasel." Hitting clock targets scores points and reverses clock direction and speed until it reaches 12:00; repeated hits trigger character commentary.

Battle the Power

In regular single-ball gameplay, the right ramp can be activated to initiate "Battle the Power" by achieving one of the following:

Acquiring the "Battle the Power" door panel
Collecting a specified number of hitchhiker pickups
Securing every alternate Spiral Award
Obtaining the Red award during a Super Skill Shot

Launching the ball up the ramp directs it onto the Powerfield, a triangular mini-play area featuring switch targets and two medium-strength magnets known as "Magna-Flips," which are operated using the flipper buttons. The goal is to maneuver the ball into the upper hole within a set time frame, earning points for each switch hit. Completing this task doubles the points accumulated in that round and grants the flashing door panel as a reward. When all door panels have been gathered, this action can also trigger "Lost in the Zone." If time runs out or the ball drains, only points earned during that session are counted.

Because magnets have no effect on the Powerball, "Battle the Power" automatically disables upon detecting this ball. If activated while playing with the Powerball, the right ramp will relight once normal single-ball play resumes. When this mode is inactive, a carriage mechanism on the ramp captures balls and releases them near the upper left flipper.

Multiball

Twilight Zone offers four distinct multiball variations:

Standard Multiball (3-ball) – Activated by shooting both ramps to light the lock, then locking three balls. Jackpots are earned by hitting the Player Piano when it is lit and can be reactivated via shots to the Camera. The jackpot value increases by striking flashing 5 million point targets; shooting the Powerball into the Player Piano awards a double jackpot. Players may commence with either two balls locked plus a shot to lock or left ramp shot for full jackpots, or one locked ball plus a left ramp shot for a reduced jackpot. If two balls are lost without scoring jackpots, a timed opportunity is given to restart multiball.
Powerball Mania (3-ball) – Initiated by loading the Powerball into the Gumball Machine, this mode grants bonuses based on 5-million-point targets hit during play. A 12:00 clock counts down while all targets and switches yield fixed point values. The right ramp lights "Battle the Power," allowing simultaneous play of both modes. Successfully completing this mode awards 50 million points and requires shooting the left ramp before it can be repeated.
Fast Lock Multiball (3-ball) – See description under single-ball mode.
Lost in the Zone (6-ball) – This wizard mode becomes available after all door panels are lit. The doorknob illuminates and can be started via shots to Player Piano, Slot Machine, or by winning "Battle the Power." Players have approximately 45 seconds to hit targets while lost balls automatically return to play. Multiple modes operate concurrently, with bonus points awarded from Hitchhiker and left ramp shots. When time expires, flippers and targets deactivate and balls drain. Scores are tallied as balls return, with Powerball entering last. Afterward, gameplay resets with door panels unlit; progress toward relighting resumes. The highest score achieved in this mode is recorded, enabling top performers to enter their initials as "Lost in the Zone" Champion.

An additional buy-in button on the cabinet allows players to use credits for extra balls instead of starting new games.

Note: In standard multiball, three balls are generally released sequentially from Lock or auto plunger depending on how many balls are locked. Certain ROM versions equipped with an extra Spiral orbit magnet permit locking all three balls simultaneously for simultaneous release.

Home ROM

Ted Estes handled bug corrections and minor enhancements within the ROM, ensuring that the core gameplay mechanics remained unchanged. Additionally, he crafted a distinct home ROM tailored for free play mode, which introduced three unique functionalities:

A practice session titled Lost in the Zone, which operates without recording champion initials
Multiball initiation enhanced by an extra magnet, holding a ball on each of three magnets at launch
The ability to pause gameplay for up to 15 minutes while a ball is held on a flipper

Heritage

Located on the machine’s plastic upper right corner is a route that nods to Pat Lawlor’s earlier titles: beginning with Tokyo (Banzai Run), progressing to Los Angeles (Earthshaker), then Kansas (Whirlwind), followed by Chicago (FunHouse), moving into TV Land (The Addams Family), and culminating with The Twilight Zone. Approximately seven months later, Steve Ritchie embedded a concealed list of his own creations in Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Connections to the TV series

The pinball machine incorporates a multitude of references from the television series, evident both on the playfield and through DMD animations:

The iconic door from the opening credits is centrally positioned on the playfield, segmented to indicate each game mode
The blonde artist’s mannequin featured in the credits is situated on the left slingshot
A working zodiac clock is integrated into the playfield, displaying real time and serving as a timer for modes
Henry Bemis, from "Time Enough at Last", is illustrated near the “slot machine” cellar hole
The hitchhiker character from "The Hitch-Hiker" appears both on the playfield and within animations; a Door Panel award bears his name
A slot machine referencing "The Fever" and "The Prime Mover" activates random modes via the cellar hole mechanism
The camera from "A Most Unusual Camera" signals upcoming awards at a cellar hole located behind the upper left flipper
Tiny spacemen from "The Invaders" are featured in Clock Chaos sequences, extra ball prompts, and match animations
The radio from "Static" is incorporated into sound effects and countdown visuals
A player piano from "A Piano in the House" marks a cellar hole that initiates modes
Talky Tina from "Living Doll" appears during Extra Ball animations
Robby the Robot, known from "Uncle Simon" and "The Brain Center at Whipple's," is depicted both on the playfield and DMD

Sound effects include Serling’s voiceovers with famous lines such as "You unlock this door with the key of imagination" and "Dance with the devil, at your own risk, in the Twilight Zone."

Additional references are found in the backbox artwork:

Masks inspired by "The Masks"
A street sign for Maple Street, alluding to "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street"
Hoboken Zephyrs baseball cap and jersey representing "The Mighty Casey"
Bomber jacket linked to "King Nine Will Not Return"
A 1964 US quarter referencing "A Penny for Your Thoughts"
Flag of the 7th Cavalry from "The 7th Is Made Up of Phantoms"
Life preserver labeled "Queen of Glasgow," evoking "Judgment Night"
Santa Claus stocking cap atop a mannequin head referencing "The Night of the Meek"

It is important to note that two principal game elements—the Gumball Machine and "The Power"—are original features created specifically for this game and do not appear in the television series.

Digital adaptations

After a successful Kickstarter campaign, the third-party license for Twilight Zone was launched in The Pinball Arcade on various platforms starting February 5, 2013. Roger Sharpe, who secured the license for the physical machine, also played a role in developing this digital edition. The game was subsequently removed when the Williams license expired on June 30, 2018.

To bring classic pinball tables back to players, Twilight Zone was reintroduced within Pinball FX on April 13, 2023.

External links