Note: Areas I am unsure of are tagged with question marks. Search them out and send input! I am mostly weak on random awards and the scoring end of things... 


Credits
Written by Lee Van Doren
http://www.erols.com/dmodemd/ 

Special thanks to the FSPA (Free State Pinball Association) and especially our N. Baltimore League, where this machine is made available to us by Weiner Distributing. 

Thanks to Orin Day of Sega for answering questions and technical assistance. 

Additional Input from RGP folks: 

Martijn van Aken 

Recent Changes
0.5 10/12/96 Rought Draft - Completely from memory. 
1.0 10/26/96 More input received. 



Summary
Twister is based on the blockbuster movie of the same name. The pinball machine is very much a typical Sega Pinball with that Sega "feel". The rules differ in that it doesn't have a progressive mode based rule set but instead has different modes that can be started independently at different times. These modes are well balanced scoring-wise so that the strategy can change at different times in the game 

There are many similiarities with the older Williams game, Whirlwind with the spinning disk on the playfield and fan on top of the backbox. Overall, in my opinion I give the machine a B+. 


Background
Rent the movie... 


Playfield
Here's the various playfield parts, starting from the plunger lane and working clockwise. 


Plunger
Dual plunger, automatic and manual. Note as with all Sega games, flipping both flippers will release the ball automatically. 
Right Outlane
Can be lit for Blown Away. Simply some extra points to make you feel better about losing your ball. Slings alternate lit outlane. 
Right Inlane
Scores South compass direction when not lit. Flippers alternate lit inlane with the other (except in Weathervane mode). Also lights left orbit for Wind. 
Flippers
The usual two, in the usual places. Center post too. Typical Sega type flippers. 
Slingshots
Standard, just like the flippers. Seem to be stronger than usual Sega games. This can be bad in that it often launches the ball off the playfield (and sometimes to the outlane!). 
Left Inlane
Scores West(?) compass direction when not lit. Flippers alternate lit inlane with the other (except in Weathervane mode). Also lights right orbit for Wind. 
Left Outlane
Can be lit for Blown Away (see right outlane). 
Southwest and Northwest Targets
Scores respective compass directions when not lit. 
Left Orbit
Can be lit for Wind (See Cow Multibull below). Can also be lit for Debris (See Twister Targets below). Lights itself for Wind if not lit. 
Twister Targets
Completing Twister targets (that spell Twister) IN ORDER awards next Twister mode (see below). 
Cannister Target/Hole
Drop target hides a hole (see Cannister Multiball below). 
Rollovers
Three rollovers. Complete rollovers to advance Bonus X. Bonus X maxes out at 8x? Completing after that scores Extra Ball Lit once per game. After that, 20M? 
Pop Bumpers
Score 250K a hit except when lit for Super Pops, score 1M a pop. Completing a certain number scores a certain value. This may progress somehow. It may also light Super Pops. 
Orbit Magnet
A magnet at the top of the orbit grabs balls when an orbit shot at a lit Wind occurs. This captures the ball and scores the Wind value. Also active for all balls shot here when Super Pops are active. 
Ramp
Only one ramp, advances towards Chase Multiball (see below), scores Extra Ball, used during Chase Hurry-Up, and Twister Multiball for jackpots. Ball is fed to playfield just above left flipper. Also lights Wind on right orbit. 
Ramp Targets
Targets on each side of ramp score North and Northeast compass directions respectively when not lit. 
Right Orbit
Can be lit for Wind (See Cow Multibull below). Can also be lit for Debris (See Twister Targets below). Lights itself for Wind if not lit. 
East and Southeast Targets
Scores respective compass directions when not lit. 
Spinning Disk
The main toy. A spinning disk with a magnet on it. The magnet is active during skill shot and at start of Cannister Multiball. Also on during Cannister Multiball where it captures a ball and lets it go. The disk spins most of the time throughout the game, diverting your ball slightly. 

General Rules
Holding right flipper and pressing start puts the game in Wizard mode. We have no idea how the rules differ here yet. Holding left flipper and pressing start, starts "League Play". See below for differences in rules. 

Buy In is NOT enabled in default settings. No Buy-In high score list. 

Software Changes: None known at this time... 

In general, there are many things to do in this game. See the different modes below and try them out! There doesn't appear to be any long term goal besides scoring points and not draining. 


Skill Shot
Shoot ball with plunger towards magnet on spinning disk. If ball is captured before a switch is hit, score skill shot. Skill shot awards are generally scored in the following order: 


30M 
Free Game or Extra Ball Lit or Weathervane 
Super Pops 
Super Lock 
Max Bonus Multiplier? 
Hold Bonus? 
The free game and extra ball lit vary based on current score, machine settings, and past game award history. This order can vary from player to player unless the game is set to League play in which case each player will receive the same skill shot awards in order. 


Awarded Modes
There are a set of modes which can be "awarded" to a player. This can happen via completing the compass targets or through the skill shot. Modes are not repeated until they are all completed. 


Weathervane
All other game activity stops for this mode EXCEPT scoring locks for Cannister Multiball and starting and playing said mode. After Multiball ends, Weathervane resumes. 

All compass targets are flashing. You get 10M for starting and 5M+10M for each target scored. Once all targets are complete or 30? seconds pass, mode ends. No extra award for completing targets. 

Note inlane compass directions do NOT rotate with flippers! Get that Huxley shot down! You actually need that here! 


Super Pops
Pops score 1M a hit for rest of ball (or after X hits?). Stacking Super Pops awards does nothing. When Super Pops is lit, upper orbit magnet always grabs the ball. 


Extra Ball Lit
Shoot ramp for extra ball. These DO stack. 

Super Lock
A three ball multiball. Hurry-up value starts at 42M and counts down to 10M. Shoot left orbit to lock value. Shoot lock hole to award value until back down to one ball. 


Twister Targets
Complete Twister targets IN ORDER to score following background modes in order. These modes are not active during a multiball mode or Weathervane. 


Debris
Shoot left orbit to score 10M, 20M, 30M, 40M, 50M, and 60M respectively at which point mode ends. 


Chase Hurry Up
10M for starting plus a count up from 20M to 50M. Each shot to ramp scores value. Ramp and pops temporarily stop count up. 


Damage
Identical to Debris except at right orbit. 


Double Scoring
Everything scores double for rest of ball! 


Cannister Multiball
[Factoid: This was originally called Dorothy II multiball in the prototypes yet was renamed due to potential licensing risks with MGM's Wizard of Oz.] 

Shoot lock drop target to reveal hole. Shoot hole to lock ball. First multiball requires 3 locks (5 on extra hard settings), next 4, and subsequent multiballs require 5 balls. When drop target drops for the start multiball shot, it only remains down for a certain period of time. The time is shorter for subsequent multiballs. 

The number of balls is generally the number of locks EXCEPT when playing multi-player in which case you get a ball for each lock at minimum PLUS any previous players balls that have been locked in the Cannister. 

The balls are ejected from the cannister or auto plunged to make up any balls short in the cannister. They are deposited onto the spinning disk and magnet. Once they are collected, the magnet releases and the balls go flying! You get 25M for starting. 

Shoot the ramp for jackpot which starts at 10M * balls in play and builds by 5M per cannister lock shot, and 202,220 per switch. Once it is scored, you have 8-16 seconds to shoot ramp again (depending on difficulty settings) to score double jackpot, then again for triple jackpot. After any three jackpots are scored then you must shoot the lock for super jackpot for the sumof the three jackpots you just scored. Repeat until only one ball remains. Super Jackpot timer is 7, 9, 11, 13, or 15 seconds depending on difficulty settings. 

Note: If ball is going to be auto plunged, manually plunge ball hard so it doesn't collect on magnet and gives you time to try and shoot it up the ramp while the other balls are kept out of your way. 


Chase Multiball
Shoot ramp 5 times (plus number of previous Chase Multiballs played) to start Chase Multiball. Shooting ramp twice in succession scores an extra ramp, thrice in succession, two extra, etc. 

Chase multiball is a 5 ball multiball. Your objective is to advance through the different tornado levels F1 through F5. You must score (40 + F Level scored * 20) switches to light ramp for jackpot and add-a-ball. jackpot scores 1M * switches scored to light it. Each switch scores 1M while jackpot is lit. Once F5 is scored, mode restarts at beginning but with 140 switches to light jackpot. 


Cow Multibull ("We've got Cows!!")
Shoot orbits when lit for Wind to advance towards Cow Multibull. Each Wind shot scores ?. Initially 9 shots are required to start Cow Multibull. Subsequent starts each require 1? more? If the lit orbit is scored twice in succession, an extra advance is scored. This only happens if the orbit magnet misses (or is broken), or the ball rolls up and down the lane without getting captured. 

Cow Multibull is a 5 ball multibull. Each orbit is lit for a 20M jackpot which advances 250K for each switch. It completes when one ball is left. Next cow multibull jackpot value resets to 20M. "Mooo!" 

Combos
Successive ramps and orbits gain an extra ramp or orbit. 


Bonus
1M/Ramp + 1M/Twister Target (lit or unlit) + 3M/Orbit + 3M/Lock. Cap on each of 99M. Only shots made that ball count. 

This bonus is then multiplied by the current bonus multiplier which is not held. It can be up to 8X. Once bonus multiplier is maxed, next scored may light Extra Ball, otherwise 20M is awarded. 


Extra Balls
There are many ways to collect extra balls in this game: 

Possible from Skill Shot 
Possible from Completing Compass Targets 
Maxing Bonus X 

League Play Mode
Hold left flipper while pressing start button. Only known difference observed for sure is that skill shot and compass awards are consistent from player to player. 


Strategy
The big modes are Cow Multibull, Chase Multiball, and Cannister Multiball generally in that order. So get your orbit shots down!! Shoot orbits when lit. Shoot ramp or lock hole when respective orbit is not lit. Start those modes and score as much as you can! That's about it. Go for the other modes when they present themselves. AVOID Weathervane! Since everything else stops, the risk of the mode is not worth it in general. If your skill shot is lit for Weathervane, intentionally miss it. If you get it by accident you might as well play it, it is points, but it is more danger than it is worth, I feel. 

A good score is over 1B. A wizard score is 3B+... 

Any questions or additions, please email me!! Thanks! 

Lee Van Doren 
