Cue

The Stern Electronics 'Cue' from 1982 is a solid-state pinball machine built around a billiards theme, conceived by veteran designer Harry Williams — one of the last games he worked on before his death — with Brian Poklacki handling design and mechanics. Only a handful of prototype units were built; six are confirmed to exist today, and the game never went into full production.

The standout feature of Cue is a large electromagnet fixed beneath the center playfield. It stays energized at all times except when the ball rolls over a surface switch, at which point it briefly disables, sending the ball flying off in an unpredictable direction. A single digital score display serves all four players, and the layout includes 15 passive bumpers, one pop bumper, and a spinning target. The game's only outlane is guarded by the pop bumper, while reversed flippers catch balls that stray into the side lanes — the left flipper returning the ball to the top of the playfield, and the right flipper sending it through the spinning target to the upper playfield.

As an unreleased prototype, Cue holds a unique place in Stern's catalog and in pinball history more broadly, both for its unusual sport theme and as one of Harry Williams' final design contributions to the industry.