Race against the clock — Bally’s Beat the Clock is a solid-state four-player with a genuinely novel scoring twist that sets it apart from nearly everything else on the floor, designed by George Christian with art by Tony Ramunni and software by Rehman Merchant. With an alphanumeric display and a scarce confirmed run of just 500, it’s an intriguing, rule-bending Bally.
The strategy is defined by its clever time-based structure. Rather than a set number of balls, the game ends when you drain with zero time remaining — so managing the clock is everything. The upper-right S-T-O-P targets or the left drain switch will stop the clock, buying you precious time to keep playing and scoring. The bonus strategy is a tidy sequence: add bonus with the left drops, which holds forever; multiply that bonus behind the right drops, though draining resets it to one-times; then collect the bonus in the upper left. With three flippers, ten standups, a six-bank of drops, and a single drop target, there’s a busy field to work while you race the clock.
Beat the Clock is a fascinating, scarce Bally that builds its whole identity around that time-based, clock-stopping mechanic — a genuinely different kind of pinball game where survival means managing the timer rather than the ball count. With only 500 built, it’s a real find for the collector who prizes rarity and inventive design, and that STOP-the-clock strategy gives a thoughtful player a fresh puzzle to master. Add bonus with the left drops, stop the clock with the STOP targets, and race to keep playing. Some machines rewrite the rules, and this Bally does exactly that. Beat the clock and drop a coin.