Middle Earth
Middle Earth
Atari's Middle Earth, manufactured in 1978, dates from the brief period that Atari was involved in making pinball machines. This is a 4-player, wide-body, solid state machine. Here is Atari's description from the advertising flyer:

" Middle Earth is a brilliantly conceived and challenging new game concept. The unique "double field" layout incorporates two separates pairs of flippers; one pair to play the upper section, one to play the lower. . . Flippers are offset allowing for challenging ball passing and super skill shot possibilities. . ."

The artwork, on both the backglass and the playfield combines science fiction imagery with a prehistoric look. There are dinosaurs, futuristic animals, giant apes, helmeted heroes, and scantily clad women.

From the collection of Philip Rubin.

backglass closeup

Other views of the machine include:

Flyer, front (JPEG - 110K), (GIF - 254K)
Playfield (JPEG - 59K), (GIF - 215K)
Backglass detail (GIF - 86K)


To Pinball or MECA or to the Edge of Chaos