Alert

The Alert pinball machine, manufactured by Arco Sales Co. of Philadelphia and first advertised in December 1942, is a rare example of early electro-mechanical (EM) pinball design converted for the wartime market. It is a conversion of Exhibit's 1941 game 'Stars,' reflecting how manufacturers repurposed existing hardware amid WWII material shortages. As a flipperless single-player game, Alert predates the invention of the flipper (1947), so scoring relied entirely on the ball's path through the playfield rather than player-controlled flippers.

A key aspect of Alert's gameplay lies in its 14 passive bumpers, scattered throughout the playfield, an early example of the bumper as a core scoring feature in pinball design. The machine's electro-mechanical components -- relays, solenoids, and switches -- were still relatively new technology at the time, and specific details about its rules are scarce.

Alert's theme and artwork are tied to the World War II era, featuring military-inspired graphics befitting its 'Military - Warfare - World War II' theme, a common motif for games of this period. As one of the earliest documented pinball conversions from the war years, Alert remains an intriguing artifact for historians and collectors interested in the game's formative era.