Bull's Eye

Meet Bull, a rare and intriguing electro-mechanical pinball machine designed by Ted Zale, a legendary figure in the world of pinball best known for his inventive work at Bally. This two-player, archery-themed game carries Bally model number 779, and with a confirmed production run of just 80 units it is a genuinely scarce machine — so scarce, in fact, that the Internet Pinball Database has long sought photographs of a surviving example.

Bull's playfield offers a distinctive layout for its era. Two flippers provide the usual control, while three pop bumpers and three of Zale's signature mushroom bumpers add challenge to navigating the playfield, alongside two slingshots and a kick-out hole. The plunger shot circles the top left of the playfield before feeding one of four midfield rollover lanes, and a free-ball gate on the right outlane gives skilled players a second chance. The game could be set for 3- or 5-ball play, with each player's score display reaching a maximum of 9,999 points and a tilt ending the game for the offending player.

With only 80 units built and few, if any, well-documented survivors, Bull remains one of Bally's more mysterious electro-mechanical games. For collectors and enthusiasts it is an exciting subject of ongoing research, offering a glimpse into Ted Zale's design work and the more obscure corners of Bally's catalog.