In 1965, a single submarine simulator game called Periscope did more than just entertain; it fundamentally altered the economics of the arcade industry by becoming the first coin-operated game to charge a quarter per play. Before this moment, most arcade machines cost a nickel or a dime, and the industry was stagnating in the United States. Periscope, released by Nakamura Manufacturing Company and later distributed by Sega, used lights and plastic waves to simulate sinking ships from a submarine, requiring players to look through a periscope to direct and fire torpedoes represented by colored lights and electronic sound effects. This innovation did not just generate revenue; it established the quarter-play price point that would become the standard for over two decades. The game's success sparked a novelty renaissance, leading to a flood of audio-visual games that used advanced special effects to provide a simulation experience, creating a healthy environment for the video game revolution that would follow just a few years later. The impact was so profound that by 1969, Sega's version of the game had become a major success worldwide, proving that arcade games could be profitable enough to sustain a global industry.
Pinball's Devilish Reputation
For decades, pinball machines were not seen as games of skill but as tools of the devil, a label that led to bans in major cities like New York and Chicago throughout the 1940s and 1950s. The controversy stemmed from the fact that early pinball machines lacked user-controlled flipper mechanisms, making the outcome entirely dependent on chance after the ball was launched. Elders feared the games were corrupting the youth, and the generation gap in America turned pinball into a symbol of moral decay. The turning point came in 1947 with the invention of the electric flipper, which gave players control over the ball's fate and allowed manufacturers to reclassify the game as one of skill. This shift was so significant that in 1976, a journalist named Roger Sharpe had to demonstrate the ability to call a shot to a specific lane to the New York City council to overturn the ban that had been in place since 1942. The ban in Chicago was not lifted until 1977, marking the end of an era where pinball was legally treated as a gambling device. By the early 1970s, pinball machines had found their place in select arcades, amusement parks, and bars, with manufacturers carefully distancing their games from gambling by adding labels like For Amusement Only and eliminating redemption features.The Golden Age of Electro-Mechanics
Between the late 1960s and early 1970s, the arcade industry experienced a technological renaissance driven by electro-mechanical games that bridged the gap between mechanical engineering and electronic circuitry. These games, such as Sega's Gun Fight and Indy 500, used rear image projection, rotating discs, and mirrors to create pseudo-3D perspectives that were far more advanced than anything seen before. In 1969, Sega released Missile, which may have been the first arcade game to use a joystick with a fire button, establishing the control scheme that would become the standard for all future arcade games. The same year, Kasco introduced Indy 500 in Japan, which sold over 2,000 cabinets, while its North American version, Speedway, sold over 10,000 cabinets, becoming the biggest arcade hit in years. These games were not just entertainment; they were prototypes for the video games that would soon take over. Atari founder Nolan Bushnell, while still a college student, worked at an arcade where he became familiar with EM games like Speedway, watching customers play and helping to maintain the machinery. This hands-on experience gave him the understanding of how the game business operates, which he would later use to revolutionize the industry with Pong. The electro-mechanical era was a critical foundation for the golden age of arcade video games that began in the late 1970s.