Eight Ball

Rules

Eight Ball (Bally 1977) – Rules and tips

Eight Ball is a billiards-themed pinball machine released by Bally in 1977, and the first of Bally's three pool-themed games. Production topped 20,000 units, making it one of the best-selling games of its era. It was Bally's first step into the solid-state era, and it was the first to use a memory feature that remembers the targets a player has already made and carries progress over from ball to ball. The game is also known for featuring Henry Winkler (the Fonz) on the backglass.

Game overview

The goal is to sink pool balls, i.e. make their corresponding targets. Odd-numbered players (1st and 3rd) play solids, even-numbered players (2nd and 4th) play stripes. One ”rack” is 8 balls, not 15 – it's Eight Ball, after all, not straight pool. Eight Ball is a bonus game: the point isn't to score points right away but to build up your end-of-ball bonus. Once you complete a full rack, the locked-in base bonus carries over from ball to ball and you can start building more bonus on top with the next rack.

Bonus is 3,000 points per ball made, times the bonus multiplier. A full 8-ball rack gives a 24,000 base bonus. Ball locations: balls 1–4 from the top lanes, balls 5 and 6 from the left and right standup targets, and ball 7 from the single return lane on the right.

The 8-pad and three priority shots

The game has three shots in order of priority.

First is the big 8-ball pad target at upper right, in front of the candy cane. It lights the kickback at lower left and the spinner. In tournament settings the kickback is usually NOT lit at the start of the game, so lighting it as quickly as possible is especially important. On some Eight Ball machines you can backhand the pad from the right flipper in addition to the usual forehand shot from the left flipper. You can also often hit the pad with a counterclockwise candy cane shot from the left flipper: the ball hits the upper right bumper on its way out of the candy cane and bounces back into the 8-pad. Important: when the kickback saves a ball, it turns off BOTH the kickback AND the spinner. You have to hit the 8-ball pad again to relight them, and this takes priority over everything else.

The second priority, once the kickback and spinner are lit, is the spinner on the left – both for points and to get back up top to collect more pool ball numbers.

The third priority is the star rollover at the top end of the candy cane, to the right of the #4 top lane and behind the 8-ball target. This advances the bonus multiplier. The first two hits only raise the value of candy cane shots; the third, fourth and fifth raise the multiplier to 2X, 3X and 5X. After that comes an extra ball, after which the value stays at 5,000 points for good. You can also advance the multiplier by sending the ball through a lit 2 or 3 top lane. One of these lights when you complete all four top lanes, and which one is lit alternates with switch hits.

Skill shot

On the first ball the skill shot is the 4 lane, hoping the rebound either hits the 8-ball pad or goes clockwise around the candy cane. After that, the skill shot is whichever number you still need – unless you have all four top lane numbers, in which case aim for whichever of the 2 or 3 lanes is lit to advance the multiplier.

Finishing the rack

Collecting ball 7 isn't a matter of skill – you just have to hope the ball drops into the right return lane at some point instead of the outlane. You can't reliably shatz it, and any bank shot over there is a big drain risk. Let it happen on its own. That's why finishing racks should be your lowest priority.

If you've collected the 7-ball and only need the 5- or 6-ball to complete the rack, consider shooting the 5 or 6 standup target (balls 13 and 14 if you're player 2 or 4). Otherwise avoid them, because the rebounds off them are risky. Once you have balls 1–7, hit the 8-pad to finish the rack. You can't collect the 8-ball until 1–7 are done. Making the eight ball lights the right outlane for special and qualifies super bonus on the next ball.

Ball control and risks

The unusual layout, with a kickback and outlane only on the left, plus a wider and flatter left slingshot than usual, makes ball control on this game unique. Be ready to make lots of small nudges to keep the ball out of the outlane and get it to settle on the left flipper.

On most Eight Ball machines you can backhand the spinner from the left flipper. Test it before adopting it as a strategy: shots that don't make it all the way up to the four top lanes can fall back through the spinner and drain down the middle. The backhand is only worth it if it's consistently successful or if weak shots safely return to the flipper.

Your main shots all feed into the bumpers, and that's where drains come from – often either slamming into the left outlane or helped along by the slingshot. Watch out for a slow rebound off the 8-ball pad that trickles down the middle, as well as balls coming from the bumpers to the left into the spinner lane, which can dribble down the middle.