Circus

Making the Skill Shot here is critical and will save you having to take risky shots later. Drop the ball into the top center lane to light the six white rollover disks, three on each side of the upper playfield, to advance bonus [by 1K each]. If you go through either side top lane, only the disks on that side will be turned on for advance bonus. If you miss all three top lanes on the plunge, which is not just possible but common since there’s no gate at the top of the right or left orbit, you’ll need to flip the ball back up top to try again or shoot one of the risky stand-up targets below the disks to light them. Unlit, they’re only worth 100 points.

This game is mostly about bonus, with the other major scoring coming from the two top side bumpers once your bonus is maximized at 19,000. Build bonus by hitting any of ten switches: those six white rollovers when lit, plus the two yellow stand-up targets near the middle of the game and the two return lanes. Since both the yellow stand-up bonus advance targets and the “light lanes” stand-ups are risky shots, I prefer UTAD to advance bonus [and to light the disks if I missed them on the plunge].

Bonus is doubled on balls 3 and 5; you can’t double it on the other balls.

Like some games, this has an extra ball feature that is on a bonus value cycle: it lights only when the bonus is at exactly 15000. Take it if you can, but it’s usually turned off for competition.

Since you’ll be going UTAD, the key feeds will be how the ball comes down each side orbit - - you may need to bump the game when the ball gets to the post below the lowest white disk - - and how the ball comes down through the center gap below the bumper. Most of the time it comes down the center gap, it will have traveled along the angled rubber in that section and won’t drain down the middle, but you still may need to nudge to get the ball to come to a flipper rather than hit one of the lower slingshots or drain out the side.

# **Cleopatra [EM, SS - Gottlieb, 1977]

This game is a combination of bonus, saucers and rollovers. For the best score, focus on shots to the top over the rollovers. Shots through the upper channels usually trip the star rollovers just below the one-way gates; these rollovers are worth 5000 per hit, the best value on the game. You also will get points when the ball then drops through a top lane, including a chance to get another color towards your end of ball bonus. The ball will then often also land in one of the saucers as it drops down the playfield, scoring more points and further helping your bonus cause. Also observe that shots to the top that miss may rattle around in the bumpers and or drop into a side saucer. If you make the shot, great, if you miss but still go through to the top half of the playfield, not too bad either.

Bonus is two step: you only score bonus when you’ve collected both a top lane and a drop target of matching color. Their bonus value differs by color, too, with red worth 5000, white 4000, blue 3000, yellow 2000 and green 1000. It’s possible to double your bonus by collecting both side saucers.

While shooting at the five drop targets in the center of the playfield to enable that half of your bonus is tempting, it’s not your best strategy. Drop target shots risk draining if not precise, and even then, hitting a target at the wrong angle can still lead to draining.

Key feeds are the kickouts from the side saucers. Can you nudge for a repeat saucer collect off of the bumpers and top wedge slings? Can you at least get some bumper action off of the kickout?

# **Close Encounters [EM & SS – Gottlieb, 1978]

Hitting A, B or C increases a roto-target value tenfold: “A” raises the left target of the three visible, B the center target, C the right target. Roto target values are marked; the star roto-target is worth 500 unless multiplied. The lanes also raise the value of the yellow drop targets from 500 to 5K; A the top one, B the center one, C the bottom one. I prefer the B for my skill shot to get some immediate bumper action.

stand-up targets and lanes add bonus. The star roto-target is worth 500 and raises your bonus multiplier, as does completing the drop target 5-bank on the right. Base bonus goes up to 20K. On the EM version, the bonus multiplier goes up to 3X; on the more common solid state version, the multiplier goes to 5X for 100K total.

The top lanes, return lanes and the left stand-up target all spin the roto target. The left target also lights the spinner for 1K.

The left outlane scores the value of the left-most visible roto target, the right outlane the right-most roto target.

Balls heading for the left return lane / outlane area that don’t feed cleanly into the return lane will drain unless you can straighten them out; balls rattling around side to side there almost always drain. Balls coming down the far right lane below the drop targets should feed the right return lane, but when coming very fast may rebound into the outlane.

Basic strategy is shoot the left stand-up target to light the spinner, then spinner all day from the right flipper and drop targets from the left unless one of the visible roto-targets is a star, in which case shoot that.