Deadly Weapon

Deadly Weapon, manufactured by Premier Technology under the Gottlieb trade name in September 1990, is a four-player solid state game running on the Gottlieb System 3 platform. It was one of Gottlieb's 'street level' games - an experiment in designing simpler, single-level (no ramps), slightly smaller and cheaper machines aimed at street locations. The experiment was short-lived: the street-level games did not sell well, and only six models were made, including Silver Slugger, Vegas, Title Fight, Car Hop, and Hoops alongside Deadly Weapon. Just 803 units of Deadly Weapon were produced.

Designed by John Trudeau and Jon Norris, with art by David Moore, Constantino Mitchell, and Jeanine Mitchell, the game packs a surprising array of targets into its single-level playfield: three flippers, four pop bumpers, a slingshot, five standup targets, two kick-out holes, two spinning targets, a 3-bank of drop targets, a kicking target, and a star rollover. Two 20-digit alpha-numeric blue Futaba displays keep players informed of their progress, and the game can be set for 3 or 5 ball play.

As one of only six street-level Gottlieb titles and with a small confirmed production run, Deadly Weapon is an interesting footnote in the company's history - a snapshot of an experiment in affordable pinball design at the start of the 1990s.