Name: The World Series
Year: 1972, 1976
Manufacturer: 三共 (Sankyo)
Year: 1972, 1976
Manufacturer: 三共 (Sankyo)
The World Series was released at least twice. I do not know if there are any physical differences between versions. If a game is re-released and there are new features, I want to make a separate entry for it. (examples: Mini Drive, Crazy 15) Currently I do not know of any differences between the versions, except for the artwork. If I can find more information that highlights differences, I will create separate entries.
The earliest mention I can find of The World Series is in 1972. I have not seen any earlier mention than 1972. The World Series does not appear in the 1972 machine directory. The game 日本シリーズ (Nihon シリーズ / Nihon Series / Japan Series) by Sankyo does appear in the 1972 machine directory, but the image is very small. I can't determine if it is related.
The World Series appears in the 1973 machine directory.
The playfield is dominated by a baseball diamond which uses balls to simulate players running around the bases. This echoes the very beginning of pinball in Japan! Some of the very first Japanese-made pinball / smartball games had this diamond. These games were all copies of games made by USA companies, but are still very important as they mark the start of pinball in Japan. Compare these with World Series.
This game that appears to have a similar playfield:
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~1967 Home Run - ホームランゲーム by 日本展望娯楽社 (Japan Outlook Entertainment Company) |
It appears the Home Run has two buttons at the front, and on The World Series the buttons are now on the side, like a proper pinball machine. The actual playfield layout appears to be nearly identical.
Back to The World Series...
The 1976 re-release is referred to as ニューワールドシリーズ (New World Series) in Sankyo's advertisements. It did not get a lot of press. During that year, Sankyo were promoting their new games Advantage and American Football. I think they wanted to focus on those games, and The World Series did not get a large promotional push. The 1976 version is ¥30. The earlier versions are probably ¥20 or ¥10, but I am unable to confirm. I have not seen detailed photos of the earlier version.
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| 1972 advertisement for The World Series - ワールドシリーズ by 三共 (Sankyo) |
This next version appears to have the same cabinet design as the original, just a different backglass. The colours on the playfield look the same.
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| from a Sankyo advertisement, date unknown. I presume it is around 1975. |
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| The 1976 version, referred to as ニューワールドシリーズ (New World Series) in advertisements. |
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| the entry in the 1976 Machine Directory still has the original backglass. |
The World Series is listed as being shown by Sankyo in the 14th Amusement Machine Show in 1976:
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| 1976-10-15 Game Machine magazine |
This is a small picture of Sankyo's booth at the Amusement Machine Show. On the left is their American Football ( アメリカンフットボール) table, and then two copies of Advantage (アドバンテージ).
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| 1976-11-01 Game Machine magazine |
The World Series is not listed as part of the Sankyo booth in the 1977 Amusement Machine Show (15th annual show). There are no advertisements that have pictures of the game in the Game Machine archive.
A few Sankyo advertisements include a mention of The World Series, like this one:
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| Game Machine 1976-11-15 |
And here is a photo of an arcade that has The World Series next to Homerun King II
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| Game Machine 1977-02-15 |
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