Medieval Madness
Encyclopedia
Medieval Madness is a Williams
pinball machine released in June 1997. Designed by Brian Eddy
and programmed by Lyman Sheats, Medieval Madness (often abbreviated MM in the pinball collecting community) had a production run of 4,016 units. It was an immediate critical and popular success, earning well on location and achieving widespread popularity among collectors. Demand for the machine soon outstripped supply significantly, and as of 2005 Medieval Madness machines often sell for prices well in excess of $8,000 http://www.pinpedia.com/machine/1007/prices, sometimes much higher if in pristine condition (when purchased new in 1997, the machine cost approximately $3,000).
Much of the game's dialog was written by Scott Adsit
and Kevin Dorff, at the time, members of the Second City
Mainstage in Chicago.
with a solenoid-controlled portcullis
and motorized drawbridge
. One of the game's primary objectives is to "destroy" six castles by hitting the castle's entryway with the pinball. A specific number of hits will lower the drawbridge, exposing the portcullis; additional hits will cause the portcullis to rise, and shooting the ball into the castle entrance generates an explosion effect on the dot matrix display, a lightshow, and a sizable award of points. Medieval Madness also features two Troll
s, animated targets that are normally concealed below the playfield, but can pop up during certain gameplay modes. Other objectives can be scored by shooting the left and right ramps, the left and right orbits, and the catapult
ramp in the lower left corner of the playfield. The game's ramps introduced a patented feature that would prevent a failed ramp shot from draining straight down the middle between the flippers. http://www.pinballnews.com/shows/expo2004/fireside.html
Missions:
In order to get to the Wizard Mode "Battle for the Kingdom" one has to achieve the following goals:
All these goals have to be repeated several times to get the corresponding insert in front of the castle to light up.
Multiballs:
.
Tina Fey
and Andrea Farrell provided the voices of the various princesses, while Greg Freres provided the voices of the jousting announcer and one the trolls, and Vince Pontarelli provided the voices of Francois Du Grimm and the other troll. The rest of the male voices, including the various knights and the Wizard were provided by Scott Adsit
and Kevin Dorff
.
Williams (gaming company)
WMS Industries, Inc. is an American electronic gaming and amusement company based in Waukegan, Illinois. The company's main operating subsidiaries are WMS Gaming and Orion Gaming. WMS traces its roots as far back as 1943, the Williams Manufacturing Company, founded by Harry E. Williams...
pinball machine released in June 1997. Designed by Brian Eddy
Brian Eddy
Brian R. Eddy is a programmer and designer working for Midway Games, who designed several of the most popular and influential pinball machines of the 1990s, including Attack From Mars and Medieval Madness...
and programmed by Lyman Sheats, Medieval Madness (often abbreviated MM in the pinball collecting community) had a production run of 4,016 units. It was an immediate critical and popular success, earning well on location and achieving widespread popularity among collectors. Demand for the machine soon outstripped supply significantly, and as of 2005 Medieval Madness machines often sell for prices well in excess of $8,000 http://www.pinpedia.com/machine/1007/prices, sometimes much higher if in pristine condition (when purchased new in 1997, the machine cost approximately $3,000).
Much of the game's dialog was written by Scott Adsit
Scott Adsit
Scott Adsit is an American actor, writer and improvisational comedian. He is currently co-starring as Pete Hornberger in the hit NBC comedy 30 Rock and worked in the Adult Swim stop-motion animation programs Moral Orel and Mary Shelley's Frankenhole.-1990s:After attending Columbia College Chicago,...
and Kevin Dorff, at the time, members of the Second City
Second City
Second City or The Second City may refer to:* The second largest city in a country. See: List of largest cities and second largest cities by country...
Mainstage in Chicago.
Gameplay
The centerpiece of the playfield is an animated castleCastle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
with a solenoid-controlled portcullis
Portcullis
A portcullis is a latticed grille made of wood, metal, fibreglass or a combination of the three. Portcullises fortified the entrances to many medieval castles, acting as a last line of defence during time of attack or siege...
and motorized drawbridge
Drawbridge
A drawbridge is a type of movable bridge typically associated with the entrance of a castle surrounded by a moat. The term is often used to describe all different types of movable bridges, like bascule bridges and lift bridges.-Castle drawbridges:...
. One of the game's primary objectives is to "destroy" six castles by hitting the castle's entryway with the pinball. A specific number of hits will lower the drawbridge, exposing the portcullis; additional hits will cause the portcullis to rise, and shooting the ball into the castle entrance generates an explosion effect on the dot matrix display, a lightshow, and a sizable award of points. Medieval Madness also features two Troll
Troll
A troll is a supernatural being in Norse mythology and Scandinavian folklore. In origin, the term troll was a generally negative synonym for a jötunn , a being in Norse mythology...
s, animated targets that are normally concealed below the playfield, but can pop up during certain gameplay modes. Other objectives can be scored by shooting the left and right ramps, the left and right orbits, and the catapult
Catapult
A catapult is a device used to throw or hurl a projectile a great distance without the aid of explosive devices—particularly various types of ancient and medieval siege engines. Although the catapult has been used since ancient times, it has proven to be one of the most effective mechanisms during...
ramp in the lower left corner of the playfield. The game's ramps introduced a patented feature that would prevent a failed ramp shot from draining straight down the middle between the flippers. http://www.pinballnews.com/shows/expo2004/fireside.html
Missions:
In order to get to the Wizard Mode "Battle for the Kingdom" one has to achieve the following goals:
- Joust Champion: Shooting the loop(s) advances Joust and finally lights Joust Madness.
- Patron of Peasants: Shooting the left ramp advances the Peasants and finally lights Peasant Madness.
- Catapult Ace: Shoot the catapult to shoot various items at the castle (Catapult Madness).
- Defender of Damsels: Shoot up the right ramp to advance the Damsel. The final shot up the tower lights Damsel Madness.
- Master of Trolls: Light the Trolls by hitting the targets in front of the castle. Collect the Trolls in "Merlin's Magic" and finish them off by three shots at the head each to light Troll Madness.
- Castle Crusher: Destroy the castle.
All these goals have to be repeated several times to get the corresponding insert in front of the castle to light up.
Multiballs:
- Castle Multiball: Light the Lock at the broad side (hole to the left of the castle gate) and lock three balls (same hole).
- Multiball Madness: Each of the sub-missions (except for "Castle Crusher") can light an insert in front of "Merlin's Magic". Collecting at least one can start the Multiball by shooting into "Merlin's Magic":
- Single Madness: 2 Balls.
- Two to Four Madnesses: 3 Balls.
- Five Madnesses: 4 Balls.
- Barnyard Madness: Shoot all catapult items at the castle.
Music and Voices
The music and sounds for this game were composed by Dan FordenDan Forden
Daniel "Dan" Warner "Toasty" Forden is an American sound programmer and music composer, and was the lead programmer on several high-profile arcade and pinball games...
.
Tina Fey
Tina Fey
Elizabeth Stamatina "Tina" Fey is an American actress, comedian, writer and producer, known for her work on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live , the NBC comedy series 30 Rock, and films such as Mean Girls and Baby Mama .Fey first broke into comedy as a featured player in the...
and Andrea Farrell provided the voices of the various princesses, while Greg Freres provided the voices of the jousting announcer and one the trolls, and Vince Pontarelli provided the voices of Francois Du Grimm and the other troll. The rest of the male voices, including the various knights and the Wizard were provided by Scott Adsit
Scott Adsit
Scott Adsit is an American actor, writer and improvisational comedian. He is currently co-starring as Pete Hornberger in the hit NBC comedy 30 Rock and worked in the Adult Swim stop-motion animation programs Moral Orel and Mary Shelley's Frankenhole.-1990s:After attending Columbia College Chicago,...
and Kevin Dorff
Kevin Dorff
Kevin Dorff is an American actor and comedian known for his work as a writer and sketch performer on Late Night with Conan O'Brien and The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien. Dorff co-starred as "Mike the Federal Agent" on the first season of the Adult Swim series Delocated with his former Late Night...
.