Gottlieb: Bronco
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by David Gersic
Version 1.0 May 1999
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Notes and Disclaimers
This rule compilation and tips sheet is, to the extent possible (in
light of the subject matter being the property of D. Gottlieb and Co.
and/or Mondial Distributing) freeware. It can be modified, updated, or
revised, provided only that credit to the original author(s) remains
intact. It can be published or otherwise distributed, provided only
that such distribution is effectively free.
Bronco, the pinball machine is the property of D. Gottlieb and Co., and
a trademark of the licensor. The author disclaims all interest in any
trademarks or other intellectual property referenced herein.
Playfield Layout
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Described from the flippers, and going around the playfield more or
less clockwise.
Flippers
There are two. Normal configuration, normal placement.
Extra Ball Light
Between the flippers. When lit, the same player shoots again.
Left Inlane
Normal left in lane. Scores 300 and the B rollover. Ball feeds
to the left flipper.
Left Outlane
Normal left outlane. Scores 300 and the A rollover.
Left Slingshot Bumper
Normal slignshot shape, but with no kicker. Scores 10.
Left Ball Kickout
A cup shaped ball trap facing up the playfield. The ball can
stop here, before being kicked back in to play. The kicker
sends the ball over the Left Ball Kickout Rollover and in to
the Left Ball Saucer. Scores 500 points.
Left Ball Kickout Rollover
Scores 100 points and can be lit for Extra Ball. Scores Extra
Ball when lit.
Left Ball Saucer
A standard ball saucer. Scores 3000 points, plus advances the
Bonus one step (1000 points * bonus multiplier) for each of the
lit Left Spots.
Left Spots
Three small playfield lights. Each one corresponds to one of
the three Drop Targets. When the drop target is down, the spot
is lit. The Alternating Relay changes the lit Spots from Left
to Right.
B Rollover
A standard rollover lane. Starts out with "B" lit. When the
ball rolls over a "B", either this one or the Left Inlane, "B"
is collected and the light is turned off. Scores 300 points,
and advances the Bonus one step.
A Rollover
A standard rollover lane. Starts out with "A" lit. When the
ball rolls over an "A", either this one or the Left or Right
Outlanes, "A" is collected and the light is turned off. Scores
300 points, and advances the Bonus one step. Can be lit for
Special by completing the A-B-C rollovers and dropping all
three Drop Targets.
C Rollover
A standard rollover lane. Starts out with "C" lit. When the
ball rolls over a "C", either this one or the Right Inlane, "C"
is collected and the light is turned off. Scores 300 points,
and advances the Bonus one step.
Special Light
A large red playfield lamp insert. Lit by completing the A-B-C
rollovers and dropping all three Drop Targets. Remains lit
until the ball drains. While lit, any ball going through the A
Rollover lane collects one Special.
Left Pop Bumper
A standard pop bumper. Scores 100.
Middle Pop Bumper
A standard pop bumper. Scores 10. Used to fire the Alternating
Relay, and the 00-90 Unit for the Match feature.
Right Pop Bumper
A standard pop bumper. Scores 100.
Drop Targets
Three drop targets with rubber posts behind them. Scores 300
points, advances the Bonus one step, and lights one Spot for
each drop target hit. Completing all three drop targets lights
Extra Ball. Completing all three drop targets and the A-B-C
rollovers lights Special.
Star Rollovers
Three star rollovers, directly below the three drop targets.
Scores 10 points.
Right Spots
Three small playfield lights. Each one corresponds to one of
the three Drop Targets. When the drop target is down, the spot
is lit. The Alternating Relay changes the lit Spots from Left
to Right.
Right Ball Saucer
A standard ball saucer. Scores 3000 points, plus advances the
Bonus one step (1000 points * bonus multiplier) for each of the
lit Right Spots.
Right Ball Kickout Rollover
Scores 100 points and can be lit for Extra Ball. Scores Extra
Ball when lit.
Right Ball Kickout
A cup shaped ball trap facing up the playfield. The ball can
stop here, before being kicked back in to play. The kicker
sends the ball over the Right Ball Kickout Rollover and in to
the Right Ball Saucer. Scores 500 points.
Right Slingshot Bumper
Normal slignshot shape, but with no kicker. Scores 10.
Right Outlane
Normal right outlane. Scores 300 and the A rollover.
Right Inlane
Normal right in lane. Scores 300 and the C rollover. Ball feeds
to the right flipper.
Bonus Lights
In the lower center of the playfield, above the flippers, and
below the Star Rollovers, are ten playfield lamps labled 1000,
2000 ... 10,000. Showing the player's current Bonus score.
There are also "2X" and "4X" lights, showing the Bonus
Multiplier.
Manual Plunger
This is a normal plunger. Its lane leads to the top arch over
the A, B, and C rollover lanes.
Rules
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There are only a two main goals, completing the A, B, and C rollovers
and completing the three drop targets. There are three secondary
goals, collecting the Extra Ball, maximizing the Bonus count, and
collecting the Special.
A-B-C Rollovers
Roll the ball over the rollover switches marked with "A", "B", and "C"
lamps. Lit letters have not been collected yet. When complete, the end
of ball Bonus is doubled (2X for most balls, but 4X for the last
ball). Completing the A-B-C Rollovers is one of two requirements for
lighting Special on the A Rollover lane.
Drop Targets and Extra Ball
Knocking down all three drop targets lights the Extra Ball feature,
but only "sometimes". There are two Extra Ball lights on the
playfield, at the Left Ball Kickout Rollover, and one at the Right
Ball Kickout Rollover. Only one can be lit at a time, and the
Alternating Relay is used to toggle between them. An additional
wrinkle is imposed though, the Extra Ball is only lit for certain
Bonus Lights. As the bonus advances, if the three drop targets are all
down, the Extra Ball light will come on and go off, and will cycle
from side to side, so the game instruction card describes it as being
lit "occaisionally". In addition to this, collecting the lit Extra
Ball from the side rollovers is not an easy shot. This limits the
number of Extra Balls collected by players. Dropping all three drop
targets is the second requirement for lighting the Special.
Extra Ball vs. Bonus
Bonus Extra Ball Lit
1000 No
2000 No
3000 Left
4000 Right (3 ball only)
5000 Right
6000 Left (3 ball only)
7000 Left
8000 No
9000 Right
10000 No
11000 No
12000 Right (3 ball only)
13000 No
14000 Left (3 ball only)
15000 No
Special
Once all three drop targets are down, and the A-B-C Rollovers are
complete, Special lights at the A Rollover. It remains lit, and can be
collected multiple times, until the end of the current ball in play.
There are no direct shots at the rollover lane, though, so it is hard
to collect and rare to collect more than once.
End of Ball Bonus
Assuming that the player does not Tilt the game, when the ball drains,
the current Bonus ammount shown by the playfield Bonus Lights will be
added to the current player's score. If the A-B-C Rollover sequence
has been completed, the Bonus will be multiplied by 2. If the game is
on the last ball (ball 3 or 5, depending on Operator setting), the
Bonus will be multiplied by 2. The maximum Bonus is 15,000 (10,000 and
5,000 lights lit), and the maximum multiplier is 4X (2X for being on
last ball, 2X for completing A-B-C), for a grand total of 60,000
points. On a game that rolls over at 100,000, a 60,000 point bonus is
obviously significant.
Altnernating Relay
The Middle Pop Bumper is used to fire the Alternating Relay. Depending
on Operator settings the game can use this to make things slightly
harder on the player. The Alternating Relay moves the Extra Ball, when
lit, from side to side, and moves the lit Spots from Left to Right.
Strategy
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Get the Drop Targets to light the Extra Ball. Get the Extra Ball. Then
get the bonus multiplier via the A-B-C Rollovers. Then hit the Left
and Right saucers (whichever one has the Spots currently lit) to run
the Bonus up. Note that the Extra Ball is NOT lit when the Bonus is up
to 15,000, so you must collecte the Extra Ball before maximizing the
Bonus. Try to get the playfield Special if possible, but since there
is no way to shoot for it directly, ignore it.
Operator Adjustments
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Being an electromechanical game, Bronco has several adjustment plugs
that the operator can use to tune the game play to the location. The
options are:
Gameplay
3 balls per game or 5 balls per game. When set for 3 balls per game,
the Spot lights are lit on both sides simultaneously and do not
alternate, and there are more chances to light Extra Ball.
Extra Ball : Conservative or Liberal. When set for Liberal, the Extra
Ball lights are both lit simultaneously and do not alternate from side
to side.
Special
Special options are Replay or Extra Ball.
Earnings
There is a small stepper unit that counts down from 90 to 00, stepping
one time each time the Middle Pop Bumper is hit. This is used to
compare against the last two digits of the players' scores at the end
of the game. End of game Match can be enabled or disabled. Match
awards "Special". It is possible to set the game for Match and Special
= Extra Ball, but in this case the game awards nothing if the player
matches.
Tilt Penalty = Ball in Play.
Pricing - how many coins and how many credits per coin(s).
Settings
Here are the settings I use on mine:
* Specials @ 78,000 and 90,000
* Special = Replay (credit)
* Match enabled
* 5 Balls per game
* Extra Ball = Conservative
* Tilt Penalty = Ball in play
* Pricing = 1 quarter / 1 play, 2 quarter / 3 plays.
I also set the game up for optional free play by adding an SPST switch
to the Credit Unit to jumper the switch that lets the game know that
there are credits on the game to be permanently closed. By flipping
the switch, the game reverts to normal use of the Credit Unit.
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