Bowler Roller

Retro Coin Op Synopsis

One more roll and I’ll get it in there. Okay, just one last time, and this time I mean it. This time, I swear that this is my final roll. Um, when I said “final” just then, what I meant by that was “second to final.” Okay, somebody do an intervention—I’m in trouble.

Beware a Bowler Roller addiction—try the game once and you might be as good as hooked. The guy behind the booth will entice you. Just roll the life-size ball down a ramp, over a hump, and into a valley. Easy, right? But oh, that valley…that elusive valley where no balls wanted to stay.

It took a very careful push to beat this game. Use too much force and the ball would come rolling right back over the hump, right to where the player pushed off from in the first pace. If the push was too gentle, that sneaky ball wouldn’t make it over the hump at all. This was a 70’s powerhouse for Bob’s Space Racer’s—an ideal redemption game because it was simple and because it seemed so darn “winnable.” But remember the laws of physics: “a body in motion will remain in motion…especially if that body happens to be a bowling ball.”

Bowler Roller continues to be a fixture in arcades and carnivals today, and Bob's Space Racers has even introduced a Kiddie Roller, a smaller scale of the original game, all the better to ensnare those unsuspecting arcade youngsters.

Arcade Machine Release History

1970s - Bowler Roller

Arcade Game Sub Categories

redemption
carnival

Machine Manufacturer

Bob's Space Racers

Other Arcade Game Links