The "Jacks Open" pinball machine, manufactured by Gottlieb in 1977, is a classic electro-mechanical game designed by Ed Krynski with artwork by Gordon Morison. This game features a card-themed playfield where players aim to complete various poker hands by hitting corresponding drop targets. The machine is notable for its nine drop targets and a unique mechanism that allows for resetting the targets as players achieve specific goals like hitting a Royal Flush.
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Jacks Open
Quickie Version:
up top until you have collected three of the four top lanes, then drop targets all day.
Go-to Flipper:
Balanced
Risk Index:
Very High
Skillshot(s):
Get one of the four suit lanes at the top. Uncollected lanes are the ones lit and are worth 5000; already-collected lanes are unlit and worth 500. Given a choice on the plunge, take one of the center ones since it’s easier to get one of the side ones during game play.
Full Rules:
This is another game where the drop target value increases as you do other things, in this case, complete more lanes at the top. Drops are worth 1000 + 1000 per completed suit lane. Thus, like on Card Whiz, you want to defer hitting the drops until you’ve raised their value. In this case, though, completing all four suits doesn’t raise the value but lowers it! You get 5000 points for finishing the four suits and the lanes reset and relight. The ideal situation for shooting drops is to have three of the four suits completed. One you have at least two suits, go ahead and start shooting drop targets. Which ones to shoot, though, are actually the opposite of what the game’s playfield suggests! You do get 5000 points for completing the next “hand,” e.g. the two jacks, then the three queens, then the kings-queens full house, then the royal flush, but you want to “milk” the target bank for a while before you complete it. Be careful once you’ve shot some drops, though: it exposes bare rubber behind them. Shots into bare rubber, especially behind the center three drops, are more likely to drain than shots to the targets. On this game, you need to think “flow” and “dead bounce” a lot. When the ball rolls down a return lane, it will be going too slow to transfer across, but may also be too fast to cradle. You’ll need to be able to shoot on the fly. And since the ball will drain if you hold up the flipper to get it to roll up the wire guide, cradling isn’t as easy as on modern games. Dead bouncing is the best way to get to a cradle. You’ll have plenty of opportunity to do dead bounces off shots to the drops but be careful: a too-fast dead bounce will also roll up and out the gap above the flippers. The suit lanes also light corresponding lanes at the bottom; more lights, more points. When the ball is headed out one of the side lanes, you can often still save it with a well-timed nudge as it gets to the post below the outer edge of the bottom of the lane. Don’t nudge too soon!
via Bob's Guide
Quickie Version:
Two choices. Choice 1 is to complete the drop target card hands indicated as efficiently as possible to get to Royal Flush, then keep completing those five cards. Choice 2 is UTAD, hoping to complete all four top lanes and then get the ball into them again when they are lit for “Wow” (50K).
Lucky Hand
Go-to Flipper:
Balanced
Risk Index:
Very High
Skillshot(s):
Get one of the four suit lanes at the top. Uncollected lanes are the ones lit and are worth 5000; already-collected lanes are unlit and worth 500. Given a choice on the plunge, take one of the center ones since it’s easier to get the side ones during game play.
Full Rules:
This is the add a ball version of Jacks Open with different scoring. Finishing the top 4 lanes lights them for “Wow” which scores 50,000 points. The side and return lanes are worth 1110 instead of 1000; I believe this is the only pinball machine ever made with such identical 3-reel scoring for any feature. The drop target value increases as you complete more lanes at the top. Drops are worth 1000 + 1000 per completed suit lane. Here’s where Lucky Hand’s scoring causes a strategy change from the Jacks Open replay version. With “Wows” worth 50K, you don’t want to “milk” the drop targets. You want to finish each hand as quickly as possible to get to Royal Flush. You get 5000 points for completing the next “hand,” e.g. the two jacks, then the three queens, then the kings-queens full house, then the royal flush. Once you complete the Royal Flush, though, it lights the targets to score a 50K Wow. That’s your big points on this game, repeating Wows. Lucky Hand encourages you to think “flow” and “dead bounce” a lot. When the ball rolls down a return lane, it will often be going too slow to transfer across to the other flipper, yet too fast to cradle. You’ll need to be ready to shoot on the fly. If the ball is inbound towards a flipper at an angle and you hold up the flipper to get it to roll up the wire guide, it may roll right on up and out the drain at the outer end of the wire guide. That makes cradling not as easy as on modern games. Dead bouncing is the best way to get to a cradle. You’ll have plenty of opportunity to do dead bounces off shots to the drop targets but be careful: a too-fast dead bounce will also roll up and out the gap above the flippers. The top four suit lanes also light corresponding lanes at the bottom; more lights, more points. When the ball is headed out one of the side lanes, you can often still save it with a well-timed nudge as it gets to the post below the outer edge of the bottom of the lane. Don’t nudge too soon!
via Bob's Guide
