Attack
About This Machine
The Playmatic Attack, manufactured in Barcelona, Spain in October 1980, is a four-player solid-state (SS) pinball machine from one of Europe's most prolific pinball manufacturers. Playmatic had already been building solid-state machines for several years by this point — the company's first microprocessor-controlled title, Space Gambler, arrived back in 1977 — so Attack represents a more mature, refined example of Playmatic's SS output rather than an early pioneer of the technology.
Attack's playfield is built around an outer-space fantasy theme, with two flippers, two pop bumpers, eight star rollovers, three drop targets, two kick-out holes, a captive ball, and a spinning target providing a busy, varied shot layout. A right dual-inlane and an outlane ball-return gate add extra routing options, while a mid-point post on the left outlane lets players nudge a draining ball back toward an opening in the inlane wireform.
The game's most distinctive feature is its speech system, recorded entirely in Spanish on an 8-track cartridge. Phrases play at random during gameplay, with specific lines — including a "don't shake me" warning — triggered by events like tilting or the ball entering the upper playfield's kick-out hole, and the attract mode can even be set to play a phrase periodically to draw in players. This blend of full Spanish-language speech and a lively space-fantasy theme makes Attack a memorable example of Playmatic's late-1970s-into-1980s output.
Images (7)
Technical Details
- Theme:
- Outer Space - Fantasy
- Notable Features:
- Flippers (2), Pop bumpers (2), Star rollovers (8), Drop targets (3), Kick-out holes (2), Captive ball (1), Spinning target (1), Right dual inlanes, Right outlane ball return gate. The left outlane has a post at mid-point to allow player to nudge the draining ball to an opening in the inlane wireform. The drop targets look like the round stationary targets used in many other games. Has speech recorded entirely in Spanish on an 8-track cartridge. Different speech phrases would play at random, and other specific phrases such as "Don't shake me" (if tilted) were played at a corresponding moment. Some phrases were spoken just before starting a new ball and every time the ball entered the upper playfield kick-out hole. Also, the attract mode could be set to play a phrase every 10 minutes (time interval estimated).