Bank-A-Ball

Bank-A-Ball is a one-of-a-kind prototype, not a production machine. Hand-built in 2008 by Herb Silvers and his technician, it's a wood-rail rendition of the metal-railed, wedge-head original — Gottlieb's 1965 'Bank-A-Ball.' Licensed by Gottlieb LLC to be Retro Pinball's second title following 2010's 'King of Diamonds,' the game never advanced beyond this single hand-built unit and was never put into production.

Entirely electro-mechanical, the billiards-themed prototype features two flippers, three pop bumpers, two slingshots, six standup targets, and a mechanical backbox animation in which metal billiard balls drop into view. Its centerpiece is a rotating four-target assembly, similar in operation to the type used on Williams' 1967 'Beat Time': hitting the first target turns on the pop bumpers and rotates to the next target; hitting that one turns the pop bumpers back off and rotates again; a third hit drops a mystery ball in the backbox animation and advances the balls; and the final target, the 8-Ball, scores a Special if it's the last one left to hit. The maximum displayed score is a modest 1,999 points.

Because only this single prototype exists, Bank-A-Ball is an exceptionally rare curiosity for collectors — a glimpse at a game that came close to production but never made it to market.