Feel the thunder roll — Stern Electronics’ 1981 Lightning is a Norse-god fantasy with a split-level playfield, twin ramps, and a striking in-playfield digital display that counts down your bonus time while alternately showing the bonus you’ve earned. Designed by Joe Joos Jr., this confirmed run of 2,350 boasts speech, a horseshoe lane, and a clever timed-ball feature that kicks in once you reach a certain score — an ambitious, feature-rich machine for the dawn of the 1980s, with no pop bumpers and up to four-times all playfield values once multiball is achieved.
The strategy is a layered climb. Complete the drop targets to build your end-of-ball bonus and progress the rollover lanes, and once all four lanes are done, drive the horseshoe to increase your bonus multiplier — bonus and multiplier both carry the entire game, a powerful incentive to build early. Multiball lives at the upper-playfield saucers: lock balls there and release them by completing all nine standup targets, with the lit drop banks spotting standups in their 1-2-3 order. Completing those nine standups not only starts multiball but also lights the horseshoe to crank the playfield multiplier up to four-times for the rest of the ball — and yes, lock stealing is in play, so guard your stash. The extra ball comes from completing the drop banks in order, from the upper playfield down to the lower.
Lightning is a genuinely ambitious early-’80s machine, packing multi-level play, a multiplier, and timed features into one crackling package. Build that game-long bonus, complete the standups, and ride the four-times multiplier into a storm of points. The Norse gods reward boldness.