Centuri's The Pit

zookeeper

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I picked up a game today (thanks to a lead by Gorf69). It is a Capcom Final Fight that has been put in a 1981 Centuri Cabinet. I checked out the inside of the machine and found information that leads me to believe that it was originally a game called: The Pit. Anyone heard of this one before or seen one around the Midwest?
 
I have seen it before and it pretty much sucks. I know a guy who had a couple of them (maybe still does) and he was trying to let the extra go for $100. It was in beautiful condition with a practically new Go7 but no one wanted it.
 
Yes, enjoy Final Fight. To tell you the truth I have had more fun playing Final Fight over the years than I have had playing most of the real classics.
 
Nice look cab with art like time pilot... Too bad its such a horrible game. I bought one playing blind at the LA auctions for $50. Looked too nice to pass up.. Fixed it, hated it, took it cax and sold it to another collector.. I even asked him if he was sure he wanted it before he bought it..
 
I picked up a game today (thanks to a lead by Gorf69). It is a Capcom Final Fight that has been put in a 1981 Centuri Cabinet. I checked out the inside of the machine and found information that leads me to believe that it was originally a game called: The Pit. Anyone heard of this one before or seen one around the Midwest?

Gary Southward had a minty fresh one in his bro's garage (Wyoming MN - just north of Forest Lake) last fall . $150.
Probably still has it.
 
I picked up a game today (thanks to a lead by Gorf69). It is a Capcom Final Fight that has been put in a 1981 Centuri Cabinet. I checked out the inside of the machine and found information that leads me to believe that it was originally a game called: The Pit. Anyone heard of this one before or seen one around the Midwest?

My neighborhood arcade, back in the day, had one of these. I was better than most at it, and came to the conclusion that it simply sucked: low production values, bad sound, and chunky character-based graphics/movement. Anyone who bought one of these new took a financial beating.
 
It would be a fun game if not for the fact it has only ONE F'n level! What the heck were the programmers thinking? Couldn't they have added at least a few different maps?
 
I wouldn't mind having a machine (anybody got one for sale on the East coast?). It's a decent game, but the difficulty tops out by the 9th round, making it impossible to get further in the game.

There's 3 different versions of this game - the original (by AW Zilec Electronics), the licensed version by Centuri (which is exactly the same), and a version by Taito (that is slightly different). A Centuri flyer has a screenshot of a 4th version that has "Centuri" on the tank, instead of "Zonker". Not sure if this version was ever archived. There's also a handheld version called Zackman and a home version for the C-64.

Btw, why is the KLOV entry titled "Pit" and not "The Pit"? It also has the release date as 1981 but the onscreen copyright date is 1982.



It would be a fun game if not for the fact it has only ONE F'n level! What the heck were the programmers thinking? Couldn't they have added at least a few different maps?

Most games back then had one screen. Limits of technology.
 
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Finishing up putting one together in a gutted Centuri cab I have. I was having trouble getting the monitor picture to sync up. Thought it was the monitor at first, and when that checked out, I suspected it was either a problem with the game pcb or my monitor wires (which I wired using the pinout on crazykong - http://crazykong.com/pins/Thepit.pin.txt). Someone figured it out - the sync isn't on #5 but #E. He checked the crazykong pinout against the one in the original manual, and they are identical. As I started wiring up the control panel and coin door, I realized ALL of those pins are reversed as well!
 
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Just came across this article on Keith Smith's site:

http://allincolorforaquarter.blogspot.com/2014/01/the-ultimate-so-far-history-of-allied.html

The designer, Andy Walker, planned on having more levels in the game, as well as an ending:

As with most games, there were a few features that didn't make it into the final version. The game was originally to feature additional levels, culminating with a fight against the "Grand Dragon". Despite the fact that the Grand Dragon never made it into the game, it may have influenced a much more popular digging game.


[Andy Walker]…when we were at the preview show, we all knew it was a work in progress. We described it as such to some Japanese people who were extremely interested. I think they were from Namco or Atari. We described how you would find the Dragon and blow it up. Not 'you kill it' but specifically 'you blow it up'. The Japanese gave us an old-fashioned look then made expanding gestures, then "boom". The point being that when we said "blow it up" they thought "inflate."
<"The Making of The Pit", Retro Gamer #85>
 
Andy Walker said:
…when we were at the preview show, we all knew it was a work in progress. We described it as such to some Japanese people who were extremely interested. I think they were from Namco or Atari. We described how you would find the Dragon and blow it up. Not 'you kill it' but specifically 'you blow it up'. The Japanese gave us an old-fashioned look then made expanding gestures, then "boom". The point being that when we said "blow it up" they thought "inflate."

Ergo "Chainsaws and Toasters."
 
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