Comet

Williams, 1985 — shot-by-shot rules and strategy guide.

Comet is a carnival-themed early solid-state machine with a short rule set and one famous shot. Barry Oursler designed it, Python Anghelo did the art, and it holds a small place in history as the first solid-state game with a million point shot. Everything feeds toward that: two target banks, a centre ramp, a corkscrew, an eject hole and a jump ramp with three rings on the end. No modes, no multiball, no wizard sequence — just a few features you learn to chain.

The layout

Duck targets — four targets above the left outlane. Clearing them lights the Corkscrew in the upper left.
Rabbit targets — four above the right outlane. Clearing them lights the Funhouse eject hole.
Comet ramp — down the middle, and lit only when both banks are complete.
Cycle Jump — a ramp in the upper right that throws the ball into one of three rings.
Dummy drop target — knocking it down exposes a bull's-eye for a short window.
1-9-8-6 lanes — four rollovers across the top, with lane change on the right flipper button.
Left return lane — the only return lane on the machine, and the only way to light the Cycle Jump rings.

The banks drive everything

Ducks light the Corkscrew, Rabbits light the Funhouse, and both together light the Comet ramp. That third one is where the scoring is. A lit Comet ride pays 30,000 and then climbs: 50,000 on the second ride, 100,000 plus an extra ball on the third, and 100,000 plus a special on the fourth. The catch is that each advance has a time limit — miss it and the value drops back to 30,000, or the lights go out entirely once you have already banked the first 100,000. After four rides the whole thing resets and both banks have to be cleared again.

Repeat completions keep paying. A second clearing of both banks arms an extra ball on the Cycle Jump: the lower ring lights for five seconds, then the centre for ten, then the upper for fifteen, and missing all three simply restarts the sequence until you take it. A third clearing lights more extra balls and specials, collected on the Corkscrew — worth 20,000 regardless, so never a wasted shot.

Multipliers, and there are two of them

The playfield multiplier comes from completing the four 1-9-8-6 lanes, which also scores 50,000. It runs for twenty seconds, and the value depends on which ball you are on. In a five-ball game it goes 2x, 3x, 2x, 2x and then 5x on the last ball; in a three-ball game, 2x, 3x, then 5x. Because the lane change sits on the right flipper button, you can shuffle the lit lanes at any time, even with the ball nowhere near the top — get in the habit of tapping it constantly.

The bonus multiplier comes from the dummy. Drop the target, then hit the bull's-eye behind it before the target resets: first time 2x, then 3x, 4x and 5x, after which each hit is worth a flat 20,000. Treat this as a two-shot combination rather than two separate visits, because the window is short. It is worth doing early, because the multiplier applies to the Duck and Rabbit bonuses you have been building all ball — Ducks collected on the Corkscrew, Rabbits in the Funhouse.

The million

The Cycle Jump rings pay by height: 10,000, 20,000 and 30,000 unlit, or 20,000, 50,000 and 200,000 once the left return lane has lit them. On your last ball, with the 5x playfield multiplier running and the Jump lit, the upper ring is worth a full 1,000,000 — and the game will not let you forget it, announcing the million and lighting up the whole backglass.

The order matters. Light the rings first with a left return lane, because the multiplier lasts only twenty seconds and you do not want to spend it hunting a return lane. Then complete 1-9-8-6, then take the upper ring. The Jump also resets whenever the ball reaches the eject hole beside the lower right pop bumper, so you may need another return lane before your next attempt.

Small print worth knowing

Both outlanes score 10,000 and carry Special lights, and the left one advances your Duck bonus by three while the right advances Rabbits by three. Draining is not entirely a loss here.
The left outlane rubber can be nudged to send the ball back into play, which makes the left side less lethal than it looks.
A launched ball that never reaches the top and then drains without scoring anything is served again — but one switch closure and it counts as played.
Ducks and Rabbits are 2,000 for the first hit on each target and 1,000 after, so there is no value in grinding them beyond completing the bank.

Comet also plays very differently from one machine to another, and the reason is usually physical rather than software. Five adjustable posts around the return lane and outlanes decide how forgiving it is, and the pitch — nominally about six degrees front to back, level side to side — decides whether the ramps are comfortably reachable. Most timed features sit in the fifteen to twenty second range, though operators can change them. Glance at the outlane posts before your first ball; they tell you how much risk each ramp attempt is worth.

Goals in Comet

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

Plunge Into The Lanes skillshot · Easy

Shoot the ball up into the area above the rollover lanes and let it come back down through one of them. From there it drops into the bumpers and comes out either side of the Comet ramp. Too hard and it runs out through the Corkscrew straight at your flippers.

Reward: A lit lane and a controlled entry
Light 1-9-8-6 multiplier · Medium

Completing the four top lanes scores 50,000 and switches on the playfield multiplier for twenty seconds. Which multiplier you get depends on which ball you are on, and the last ball is the big one — this is the single most important habit to build on this machine.

Reward: 50,000 and a 20-second playfield multiplier
The Duck Bank progression · Easy

Four targets above the left outlane. Clearing the bank lights the Corkscrew, and the left outlane pushes your Duck bonus up by three every time you drain there. The first hit on each duck is worth 2,000 and every hit after that is worth 1,000.

Reward: Lights the Corkscrew
The Rabbit Bank progression · Easy

The mirror image on the right. Four targets above the right outlane, and clearing them lights the Funhouse eject hole to collect your Rabbit bonus. The right outlane advances that bonus by three on a drain.

Reward: Lights the Funhouse
Ride The Comet progression · Medium

Complete both the Duck and Rabbit banks and the centre ramp lights up. Unlit it is 10,000; lit it pays 30,000 and then climbs — 50,000 on the second ride, 100,000 and an extra ball on the third, 100,000 and a special on the fourth.

Reward: Up to 100,000 a ride, plus an extra ball and a special
Dunk The Dummy multiplier · Medium

Knock the dummy drop target over and the bull's-eye behind it is exposed for a short window. Hit the bull's-eye before the target resets and your bonus multiplier steps up — 2x, then 3x, 4x and 5x. After that each hit is simply worth 20,000.

Reward: Bonus multiplier up to 5x, then 20,000 a hit
The Cycle Jump strategy · Medium

Three rings sit at the end of the jump ramp and they pay by height: 10,000 for the lower, 20,000 for the centre, 30,000 for the upper — or 20,000, 50,000 and 200,000 with the rings lit. The left return lane is the only thing that lights them.

Reward: Up to 200,000 for the upper ring
The Million Point Shot wizard · Hard

The reason this machine exists. On your last ball, complete 1-9-8-6 for the 5x playfield multiplier, have the Cycle Jump lit, and land the upper ring before the multiplier expires. The game announces it, the backglass goes wild, and you have a million points.

Reward: 1,000,000
The Cycle Jump Extra Ball strategy · Hard

Complete both target banks a second time and the Cycle Jump starts a timed ladder for an extra ball: the lower ring lights for five seconds, then the centre for ten, then the upper for fifteen. Miss all three and the sequence simply starts again.

Reward: Extra ball
The Corkscrew Special strategy · Hard

A third completion of both banks lights more extra balls and specials around the playfield, and the Corkscrew becomes the place to cash them. It is worth 20,000 a ride regardless, so it is never a wasted shot.

Reward: Special or extra ball at the Corkscrew
Make The Outlanes Pay strategy · Medium

Draining is not free of value here. Each outlane is worth 10,000, the left one pushes your Duck bonus up by three and the right one does the same for Rabbits, and both carry Special lights. The left outlane will occasionally give the ball back off its rubber if you nudge well.

Reward: 10,000, three bonus advances, and a chance at a Special
Collect Your Bonuses strategy · Medium

The two bonus counters are collected in two different places, and forgetting to cash them is the most common way to leave points behind. Ducks are collected on the Corkscrew, Rabbits in the Funhouse, and the bull's-eye multiplier applies to all of it.

Reward: Bonus x up to 5
The Ball That Never Started secret · Easy

A merciful little rule. If a launched ball fails to reach the top of the playfield, comes back down and drains without scoring a single point, the machine serves it again. It only applies to that specific case — a ball that scored anything at all is gone.

Reward: The ball back
How The Machine Is Set Up secret · Easy

Comet plays very differently from one machine to the next, and the difference is mostly physical. Five adjustable posts around the return lane and outlanes decide how liberal the game is, and pitch decides whether the ramps are reachable at all.

Reward: Knowing what you are up against

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