a REAL MAN's widebody 'HERCULES'

[ktm450]

Found this pic the other day of an Atari Hurcules
7 feet tall, 8 feet long and over 3 feet wide!!!
I would love to see one of these in the flesh, aparently the ball is as big as a cue ball, only 500 made.
Has anyone played one?? I've heard gameplay is a little ordinary

[Retropin]

Holy crap - my back is hurting just thinking of getting that off my van!

[The pinballist formally known as Dean Morgan]

I have played this several times in the early 80s at Flashback in Bourke St, Melbourne.  Beside the novalty of it being huge I remember it as being slow to play.  I also saw one about two years ago at the Crown Casino in Melbourne.

[Strangeways]

I played one years ago at Grundy's in Surfer's Paradise. I can't remember what it was like other than is was one HUGE pinball... and UGLY !

[illawarra_steelers]

Can remember playing this is Sydney  

Was real slow and the flippers were weak...Alan Tate has 2 and one will be displayed when he sets all his games up.

The 'original Hercules' was produced in 1948 - off IPDB: This was an oversized game with 36 bumpers and no flippers. Backglass showed bulb scoring up to ten million points and also had a "One Billion" light. A center playfield bumper scored one billion when lit, suggesting that a final backglass score could exceed one billion points. The wooden legs are extremely long, and even adult players had to stand on boxes to play

'The Time of Your Life' was a James Cagney movie of 1948 based on William Saroyan's 1939 play. This pinball machine was made as part of a cancer fundraising project by the industry. It was set up in theater lobbies where the movie was playing

[ktm450]

Can remember playing this is Sydney  

Was real slow and the flippers were weak...Alan Tate has 2 and one will be displayed when he sets all his games up.

The 'original Hercules' was produced in 1948 - off IPDB: This was an oversized game with 36 bumpers and no flippers. Backglass showed bulb scoring up to ten million points and also had a "One Billion" light. A center playfield bumper scored one billion when lit, suggesting that a final backglass score could exceed one billion points. The wooden legs are extremely long, and even adult players had to stand on boxes to play

'The Time of Your Life' was a James Cagney movie of 1948 based on William Saroyan's 1939 play. This pinball machine was made as part of a cancer fundraising project by the industry. It was set up in theater lobbies where the movie was playing

Interesting stuff Tony, Pisser that even adults had to stand on boxes to play

[Wotto]

Tony - your knowledge and access to paraphanalea ( spelt right? ) just blows me away mate.

We had a Hercules at Engadine Leisure Centre for a short preriod of time - it was big and useless and as others have said  SLOOOOOOOW - just a novelty. My ( bad/fading ) memory tells me the balls were green ( like that other stuff that made my memory bad  ) and they were hockey balls??

[illawarra_steelers]

Wotto,

The one I remember playing had a cue ball - OMG this game just sucked in everyway!

[pinball god]

Majorly slow and yes it had what I thought was a cue ball. What I remember of it I would describe game play like those pinballs you can buy for $20 bucks or so. That's how unimaginative it was. A bit like the bearded lady, novelty wears off real fast unless its your NANNA or course!!!

[The pinballist formally known as Dean Morgan]

So if one was available would you buy it for the collectibility?  Or let it go because its so slow and boring.

[illawarra_steelers]

So if one was available would you buy it for the collectibility?  Or let it go because its so slow and boring.

IMO - would let it slide, would rather 2 real nice games in it's place

[Skybeaux]

I remember playing one at Orbit pinball in Bankstown.
We all seem to have the same memories of it....slow and boring

[Greg]

Funny enough
they line up at Expo to play Hercules

what is funny is when you get a Airball and the ball bounces over into the out lane