Aztec

The Aztec is a solid-state electronic pinball machine designed by Gordon Horlick and manufactured by Williams Electronics in November 1976. It's a historically significant machine: rather than a typical production release, Aztec was an electronic prototype of an earlier EM game of the same name, and only 10 units were ever built (an internal document once contemplated a run of 50 prototypes). Its MPU, sometimes called "System 2," was used in only one other Williams title, 'Argosy,' before the company moved to its standard "System 3" hardware for regular production.

Gameplay on Aztec features a layout with two flippers, three pop bumpers, two slingshots, six standup targets, and a spinning target, along with an upper-right kickback lane. Players navigate the ball through this layout to rack up points, with the historical/Mesoamerican theme carried through in the machine's artwork.

Because of its extreme rarity — only 10 confirmed units exist — Aztec is a significant piece for collectors and historians studying the transition from electro-mechanical to solid-state pinball at Williams in the mid-1970s.