Black Knight (pinball)

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Black Knight
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Manufacturer	Williams
System	Williams System 7
Designer	Designer: Steve Ritchie Programmer: Larry DeMar Artwork: Tony Ramunni
Release Date	November 1980
Production Run	13,075

Black Knight is a 1980 pinball game designed by Steve Ritchie and released by Williams Electronics.

This game is known for its two-level playfield (a first for a pinball game), and introduced the patented "Magna-Save", in which a player-controlled magnet is used to prevent outlane drains.

[edit] Black Knight 2000

In 1989, Ritchie designed a sequel to Black Knight, called Black Knight 2000. The playfield is different from its predecessor, with the left outlane now protected with a kickback, and the upper playfield now allows for multiple looping shots (similar to 1979's Steve Ritchie classic, Flash). This game is acclaimed for having the best soundtrack ever for a pinball game (composed by Ritchie, Brian Schmidt, and Dan Forden). It was also one of the first games to feature a "Wizard Mode", called "The King's Ransom".

Black Knight 2000
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Manufacturer	Williams
System	Williams System 11B
Designer	Designer: Steve Ritchie Programmer: Ed Boon Artwork: Doug Watson Mechanics: Joe Joos Jr. Music: Brian Schmidt, Dan Forden, Steve Ritchie Sounds: Brian Schmidt, Dan Forden
Release Date	April 1989
Production Run	5,703