Name: テレコンカラー太陽 Challenge Ball (Telecon color sun Challenge Ball)
Year: 1979
Company: 太陽電子 (Taiyo Denshi — Electron)
Telecon was the earliest arrangeball I've seen that has a a TV screen inside of it. Also from 1979, TV Sparrow Ball is another title that has a screen embedded. Where that game keeps track of your mahjong game on the screen, the article on Telecon below says it has Space Invaders and Breakout-style minigames. How are they controlled? You press the button near the pachinko handle to fire a missile in the UFO game. Press a button to stop the roulette wheel in the worm roulette game. Were they hoping to also include a Breakout-style game?
Tweakbod found this article in the Japanese-language San Fransisco newspaper Hokubei Mainichi, and provided the transcription and machine translation.
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| full page 2 of Hokubei Mainichi 1979-07-21 |
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| article excerpted from Hokubei Mainichi 1979-07-21 |
Machine translation:
Invader Pachinko Arrives: The Allure of Winning Prizes
(Nagoya) Striking Back at the Invaders—! The pachinko industry, left gasping for air as the Invader craze siphoned away its customers, has found a new source of buzz with the debut of the “Telecon Machine”—a device that could be described as Invader Pachinko.
Developed by a pachinko machine manufacturer in Nagoya, the machine’s key innovation lies in embedding a small television screen directly into the center of the pachinko cabinet, allowing players to enjoy both pachinko and an Invader-style game simultaneously. Following its debut in Kanda, Tokyo, this past July, the machine is now set to appear in locations across the country. Unlike Invader games—which typically involve spending money without any tangible return—this machine offers the chance to win prizes. Consequently, pachinko parlor operators are already enthusiastic about using the “Telecon Machine” as their trump card for a pachinko industry resurgence. “This is the leading contender for the 'Post-Invader' era,” remarked (Owner of M Pachinko Parlor in Kanda, Tokyo) “With this, we can bring our customers back.”
Pachinko, once the undisputed king of mass entertainment, has recently seen its crown usurped by the Invader boom. As operators face a wave of business closures and industry exits—with some lamenting, “At this rate, it’s a matter of survival” (as noted by D Pachinko in Nagoya City)—the industry has been racking its brains to devise countermeasures against the Invaders. It is against this backdrop—carrying the industry's hopes for revitalization—that the Telecon Machine has made its debut.
Playing the Telecon Machine is simple: insert a metal token (priced at 50–70 yen each) to start the game. Following the same mechanics as traditional pachinko, players launch 16 steel balls into a designated catch-tray (replacing the traditional tulip pockets); successfully doing so allows them to manipulate the numbers displayed on the TV screen mounted in the center of the cabinet. If the numbers align vertically, the TV screen instantly transforms into a UFO-shooting game; if they align horizontally, it switches to a block-breaker style game. As players fire missiles to target the erratically moving UFOs, the machine emits electronic sound effects—such as “pyun-pyun” and “gwaaan”—creating an atmosphere that perfectly captures the spirit of the original Invader game. In short, the Telecon Machine offers the pure fun of the Invader experience, combined with the unique pachinko thrill of winning prizes.
The price of a single Telecon Machine unit is approximately 300,000 yen—about three times the cost of a standard electric pachinko machine—yet in terms of capital investment, it remains cheaper than the 500,000 yen required for an Invader. Consequently, the industry is making bullish projections: “With the Invader craze finally showing signs of winding down, this is bound to be the next big hit as a wholesome form of adult entertainment” (T Electronics, the developer of the Telecon Machine); and, “Just like with pachinko, entry is restricted to those aged 18 and over, so there is no need to worry about issues regarding juvenile delinquency” (Nagoya City Amusement Association). But the question remains: will they truly be able to shoot down Invader exactly as they’ve calculated?
[Photo Caption]
A pachinko machine featuring a small built-in television screen in the center, allowing players to enjoy Invader games as well.
Japanese transcript:
インベーダーパチンコ登場景品とれる魅力
（名古屋）インベーダに反撃――。インベーダーブームでお客を奪われて青息吐息のパチンコ業界に、インベーダー・パチンコともいえる『テレコン・マシン』が登場、話題を呼んでいる。
名古屋のパチンコ機械メーカーが開発したもので、パチンコ台の中央に小型テレビを組み込み、パチンコとインベーダーゲームが同時に楽しめるのがミソ。七月に東京・神田にデビューするのを皮切りに、全国各地でお目見えする。お金を使いっぱなしのインベーダーと違い景品も取れるとあって、早くもパチンコ業者は『ポスト・インベーダーの本命だ。これで、お客を呼び戻すことができる』（東京・神田のMパチンコ店主）と、テレコン・マシンをパチンコ再浮上の切り札にしようと意気込んでいる。
大衆娯楽の王座を占めていたパチンコも、最近のインベーダーブームにお株を奪われて転廃業する業者が相次ぎ『このままでは死活問題だ』（名古屋市内のDパチンコ店）と、インベーダー対策に頭を痛めている。こうした業界再生の願いを背負って登場したのがテレコン・マシンだ。
テレコン・マシンの遊び方は、メタル（一枚五十–七十円）を投入してゲーム開始。パチンコと同じ要領で、チューリップの代わりに設けた玉受け台に十六個の玉をはじき入れて、台の中央に取り付けたテレビ画面の数字を操作する。数字が縦に並ぶとテレビ画面はUFOゲームに早替わりし横に数字が並んだ場合はブロック崩しゲームになる。ギザギザに動き回るUFOをねらってミサイルを発射すると『ピュン』ピュン』『グワーン』という電子音も出て、インベーダーゲームのふん囲気は十分。インベーダーの楽しさに加え、景品を取る魅力もある。
テレコン・マシンの価格は、一台約三十万円で電動式パチンコ台の約三倍だが、インベーダーの五十万円に比べると設備費は安い。このため、業界では『そろそろ先が見えてきたインベーダーに代わって、大人の健全娯楽としてヒットするのは間違いない」（テレコン・マシンを開発したT電子）『パチンコと同じく十八歳未満は入場できないので、青少年の非行問題の心配もない」（名古屋市遊技場組合）と、強気のソロバンをはじいているが、果たして思惑通りインベーダーを撃ち落とせるか……。
[photo caption]
台の中央に小型テレビを組み込みインベーダーゲームも楽しめるパンチコ台
Here is a 2-page add from Play Graph 1980-01, which seems to include different game ideas.
