Moon Shot

The Moon Shot, designed by Al Schlappa, Jerry Koci, and John Gore for Chicago Coin Machine Manufacturing Company in 1969, is a solid example of late-1960s electro-mechanical (EM) pinball design. Its Outer Space theme captured players at a time when the real-life space program was capturing the national imagination, and a 2-player version of the same game was released as Chicago Coin's 'Astronaut' with different backglass artwork.

Key to Moon Shot's gameplay is its unique outlane system: hitting targets in the upper and lower playfield activates gates, styled to look like metallic flippers, that convert the outlanes into inlanes and return the ball to the flippers. This ingenious feature demands precise aiming and timing from players. The machine also features five pop bumpers and two flippers, standard for EM machines of the period but always exciting in action.

The Moon Shot's design leans into its space theme with playfield and backglass artwork evoking stars, planets, and spacecraft. As a four-player EM machine from the late 1960s, it offers a glimpse into electromechanical gameplay and design in the years before solid-state technology began to reshape the industry.