Video Pinball

Video Pinball, released by Atari in 1978, is not a physical pinball machine at all -- it is a video game that simulates a pinball playfield, complete with pinball-style rules and scoring, displayed entirely on-screen. Its upright cabinet includes flipper buttons and a spring-mounted ball shooter on the control panel, which was designed to be nudged slightly by the player to simulate real pinball "gunching." The game supports 3 or 5 ball play for up to four players.

Because everything happens on-screen rather than on a physical playfield, Video Pinball has no roll-overs, bumpers, or other mechanical components in the traditional sense -- its entire "playfield" is digital. This game should not be confused with Atari's separate 1978 title 'Atari Pinball' (an actual physical pinball machine) or with Maibesa, S.A.'s unrelated game also called 'Video Pinball.'

As an early example of a video game built specifically to emulate pinball rather than a traditional EM or solid-state pinball machine, it occupies an unusual niche in Atari's history, offering a curious bridge between arcade video games and pinball during the late 1970s.