Beat the Clock

Beat the Clock, designed by George Christian with artwork by Tony Ramunni and software by Rehman Merchant, was released by Bally Midway in November 1985. A four-player solid-state game running on Bally's 6803-based MPU, it is a genuinely scarce title, with a confirmed production run of just 500 units.

The playfield offers a solid mid-1980s feature set: three flippers, three pop bumpers, ten standup targets, three star rollovers, two kick-out holes, a six-bank of drop targets plus a single drop target, and a left crossover return lane. The layout rewards target shooting across its drop banks and standups while the third flipper opens up additional shots.

A curiosity for collectors: a set of playfield plastics believed to be prototypes has surfaced, described as a much darker, nearly black blue compared to the production set, and including a kick-out hole cover not seen in the manufacturer's flyers, manual, or on known production playfields. Between its low production numbers and such oddities, Beat the Clock is an interesting catch for collectors of Bally's 6803 era.