Centigrade 37

Gottlieb, 1977 — shot-by-shot rules and strategy guide.

Open Centigrade 37 in the Pinball Genie app →

Single-player electro-mechanical wedgehead (design Allen Edwall, art Gordon Morison, ~1,600 built, model 407). Theme: revive a cryonically frozen woman by raising her temperature to 37 °C / 98.6 °F, tracked by a mechanical backbox thermometer that physically climbs as you play. One production version only — no add-a-ball export, no editions; the only variance is operator settings (3/5 balls, Special award, Double Advance persistence).

EM convention: this is a single-ball, single-level game. There are no multiballs, no timed modes, no bonus or playfield multipliers, no end-of-ball bonus, and no software combo system — there is simply less to chase here than on a modern machine. The goals below reflect what actually exists on the machine; nothing has been invented to fill category quotas. The "combos" are the documented repeatable sequences, the "modes" are the standing features, the one "multiplier" is Double Advance, and the "wizard" goal is the game's beat-the-game achievement: the temperature check.

The progression

• A-B-C-D letters. A/B/C are the three top rollover lanes (skill-plunge territory; re-fed by a right-flipper lob up top just left of the leftmost pop). D is a separate upper-left rollover, habitually a right-flipper shot. Letters stay lit all game. Each letter adds a green light to the kickout hole (+1,000 per shot), advances the thermometer, and lights a drop-target spot.
• Kickout hole (upper right) — the shot to master, from the left flipper, all day. Pays 1,000 base + 1,000 per lit letter (up to 5,000), advances the thermometer one step per lit letter, ejects into the bagatelle lanes, and collects the Special when lit.
• Bagatelle / waterfall — two columns of three serial rollovers cascading down the right side. Lit (white flashing) rollover = 5,000 + one thermometer advance; unlit = 500. The game's main point source (perfect run ~20,000); steer with nudges and avoid the bottom-most lane, which feeds the right outlane (nudge-save possible at the open elbow).
• Drop targets (left 4-bank, right flipper) — 500 each (a lit-5,000 reading exists but is disputed/settings-dependent). Clearing the bank lights the two bullseye standups (5,000 each) alternating between Double Advance and the green bank reset — hit green before collecting Double Advance and you start over.
• Double Advance — the game's only multiplier: 2× on every thermometer advance (factory default: rest of game).
• Thermometer → Special — 24 zero-point advance steps to 37 °C; topping it lights a perpetual Special at the kickout hole (factory: replay). This is the replay chase, not the score chase.

Strategy in one line

Letters early, drops once, then shatz right-to-left through the lit 5,000 inlane and shoot the saucer forever, nudging every waterfall descent into lit lanes. Dangers: right outlane under the waterfall, SDTM bullseye bounce-backs, pop exits down the middle, and the gapped inlanes (never roll-cradle the right flipper; don't dead-bounce the left). Tilt ends the game, not the ball.

Note on achievements

No electronically tracked achievements exist on a 1977 EM; the achievements tracked in this app are written to mirror the machine's own documented milestones rather than anything the hardware itself records.

How Centigrade 37 plays

Centigrade 37 is a 1977 Gottlieb built around a backbox thermometer you drive from cold up to thirty-seven degrees. Light the A-B-C-D letters, farm the upper-right kickout hole for its rising value, and push the thermometer all the way to the top to light a perpetual Special.

The loop

1. Soft-plunge for a top lane you have not lit yet -- A, B or C -- then lob the right flipper back up top for the others and for the separate D rollover; each letter holds all game and raises what the kickout hole pays.
2. With the ball settled on the left flipper, fire at the upper-right kickout hole -- a thousand points for each lit letter, up to five -- and let its eject pour the ball into the right-side waterfall.
3. Side-nudge the ball down the white-flashing waterfall rollovers for five thousand apiece, take the right return, then alley-pass across to the left flipper to line the saucer up again.
4. Clear the left drop bank once to light the two bull's-eye standups, and collect Double Advance there so each thermometer step counts twice.
5. Every lit letter, saucer shot and lit waterfall rollover nudges the thermometer higher -- reach thirty-seven degrees and the game lights a Special that never switches off.

Reading the lights

• A-B-C-D Letters (letters) — lit: Each lit letter -- A, B and C across the top lanes, D at its own upper-left rollover -- stays lit for the whole game and adds a permanent extra thousand to every future kickout-hole shot, plus one step on the thermometer. · then: Bank a fresh one off a soft plunge at the start of each ball, and lob the right flipper back up top -- aiming to the inside of the leftmost pop bumper -- for the rest. With all four lit the kickout hole pays its full five thousand and moves the thermometer four steps a shot.
• Kickout Hole Saucer (status) — lit: The upper-right kickout hole is the shot the whole game is built on: it pays a thousand base plus a thousand for each lit A-B-C-D letter, up to five thousand and beyond, and it holds the Special once the thermometer tops out. · then: It is a left-flipper shot you can take all day, and its eject feeds straight into the right-side waterfall, so every attempt is really two scoring chances. Front-load your letters first and this single hole is where the bulk of your score comes from.
• Drop Bank & Double Advance (multiplier) — lit: Knock down the left four-bank of drops and the two bull's-eye standups on the lower right light for five thousand each, alternating between Double Advance and a green target that resets the bank. · then: Take the lit bull's-eye from control -- its bounce-back tends to head straight down the middle -- and grab Double Advance before you ever touch the green one, which sends you back to the start. With Double Advance running, each thermometer step is worth two, the fastest way up the scale to thirty-seven.
• Bagatelle Waterfall Lanes (lanes) — lit: The right-side waterfall is two columns of three rollovers cascading down: a lit one, flashing white, is worth five thousand and one thermometer step, while an unlit one pays only five hundred. · flashing: A rollover flashing white is the five-thousand one to chase; the lit column and lit rollover shift as the ball falls, so a side-nudge to switch columns is how you catch them. · then: This waterfall is the game's main point source, fed by every saucer eject and most misses, so nudge the ball into the lit lanes on the way down -- a fully lit run is around twenty thousand and four thermometer steps. Then mind the exit: it feeds the right return, or the right outlane, which is the game's main drain.
• Backbox Thermometer (ladder) — lit: The mechanical thermometer in the backbox is the game's progression track -- twenty-four steps from cold to thirty-seven degrees, driven up one notch per lit waterfall rollover and one per lit letter at the saucer, with Double Advance doubling each notch. · then: That built-up total is what pays out, counting down for points as the game ends, though the individual advances score nothing while you rack them up -- this climb is a chase for the award, not the points. Hit thirty-seven and a Special lights at the kickout hole and never switches off again for the remainder of your game.

Lane change: not verified for this machine yet.

Start scoring

• Ball one — Start every ball by soft-plunging a fresh letter before you touch a flipper. Then keep it simple -- from the left flipper the saucer is always your shot, from the right take the drop bank or lob up top for a letter -- and keep hands on the machine for every waterfall descent. — A-B-C Skill Plunge, Spell A-B-C-D, Beginner's First 30 Seconds
• Building — Front-load all four letters so the kickout hole pays its full five thousand, then settle into the farm: alley-pass right-to-left, shoot the saucer, and nudge its eject down the lit waterfall lanes. Clear the drop bank once and take Double Advance to make the thermometer climb twice as fast. — A-B-C-D Build, Then Farm, Top Saucer All Day, Shatz Loop (Collect + Reposition), Waterfall Management, Light Double Advance
• The big one — The game's summit is the thermometer itself: drive it all twenty-four steps to thirty-seven degrees to light a Special that never goes out at the kickout hole. Those advances score nothing, so it is a chase for the award -- the biggest points, meanwhile, come from a full-value saucer and a completely lit waterfall run. — Complete the Temperature Check, Collect the Special, Waterfall Management

Does Centigrade 37 have an action button?

Nothing to press on this 1977 Gottlieb except the flippers and the plunger. Beyond flipping, your only real inputs are plunge strength into the A/B/C top lanes and how carefully you nudge — the thermometer and the drop targets are all worked with shots, not buttons.

Goals in Centigrade 37

Every goal below is tracked step-by-step, with shot paths drawn on the playfield map, inside the app.

• A-B-C Skill Plunge skillshot · Easy

  The EM skill shot: a soft, controlled plunge that drops into an unlit A, B, or C top lane instead of ripping through the arch.

  Reward: One A-B-C letter — a permanent +1,000 on every future saucer shot, one thermometer advance, and a lit drop-target spot

• Spell A-B-C-D mode · Medium

  The game's core standing feature: light all four letters to max out the kickout hole at 5,000 per shot and light the drop-target spots.

  Reward: +1,000 saucer value per letter (5,000 max), one thermometer advance per letter, letters stay lit all game

• Clear the Drop Bank mode · Medium

  Knock down the left 4-bank of drop targets to light the two bullseye standups and start the Double Advance alternation.

  Reward: Bullseye standups lit for 5,000 each, alternating Double Advance / bank reset

• Top Saucer All Day combo · Medium

  The tournament farm: control on the left flipper, shoot the upper-right kickout hole, ride the eject through the waterfall, recover, repeat forever.

  Reward: 1,000–5,000 per saucer shot plus 500–5,000 per bagatelle rollover on every eject

• A-B-C-D Build, Then Farm combo · Medium

  The max-value setup: front-load all four letters from the right flipper, then switch permanently to farming the full-value 5,000 saucer.

  Reward: Every future saucer shot pays the full 5,000 and advances the thermometer 4 steps

• Shatz Loop (Collect + Reposition) combo · Hard

  The game's one true 'combo': the alley pass from right flipper to left collects the lit 5,000 inlane AND positions the ball for the saucer — up to ~10K per full cycle.

  Reward: ~10,000 per cycle with everything lit (5,000 inlane + up to 5,000 saucer + waterfall)

• Drops Once, Back to the Saucer combo · Medium

  The right-flipper priority sequence: finish the drop bank one time for the 5K bullseyes and Double Advance, then shatz left and resume the saucer farm.

  Reward: Bullseyes lit at 5,000 each + Double Advance available, then back to the money shot

• Waterfall Management combo · Medium

  Turn every saucer eject and miss into points: nudge the ball down the lit 5,000 bagatelle lanes and save it at the outlane elbow.

  Reward: Up to ~20,000 + 4 thermometer advances on a perfect lit run; ~10K average

• Light Double Advance multiplier · Hard

  The game's only multiplier: clear the drops, then hit the lit alternating bullseye — dodging the green reset target — to double every thermometer advance.

  Reward: Double Advance: every thermometer step counts twice (factory default: rest of game; operator-settable to ball)

• Complete the Temperature Check wizard · Hard

  The de-facto wizard goal: drive the backbox thermometer all 24 steps to 37°C, lighting the perpetual Special at the kickout hole.

  Reward: Special lit at the kickout hole for the entire rest of the game; the backglass bulb pulsates

• Collect the Special wizard · Hard

  Cash in the temperature check: with the thermometer topped out and Special pulsing, shoot the kickout hole to collect.

  Reward: Special — a replay (credit) at factory setting; points in tournament setups

• Beginner's First 30 Seconds strategy · Easy

  The simple call for a fresh ball: soft plunge a letter, then left flipper = saucer, right flipper = drops or up top — hands on for every waterfall descent.

  Reward: A letter banked, the money shot found, and the ball alive past the danger zones

• The Tournament Line strategy · Medium

  What competition players actually do: letters early, drops once, then shatz-and-saucer every game all the way through — ignore the thermometer for score.

  Reward: Feast-or-famine ceiling: the 100,000 light and beyond ride the lit bagatelle + full-value saucer

• Survive the Open Elbow strategy · Medium

  Drain control on Centigrade 37: the right outlane under the waterfall, the SDTM bullseye bounce, and the gapped inlanes are what end games.

  Reward: Longer balls — and on an EM, a saved ball is a saved game (tilt ends everything)