Superliner

Superliner, released by Stern Electronics in 1981, captured the essence of America's love affair with long-haul trucking during the peak of the CB radio craze and trucker culture. The machine's theme resonated strongly with the popularity of trucking in entertainment, following successful films like 'Smokey and the Bandit' and 'Convoy' in the late 1970s.

The game's playfield design featured truck-themed artwork and incorporated elements common to early solid-state era machines, including drop targets, rollovers, and multiple flippers. The backglass likely depicted a dramatic scene of a chrome-laden semi-truck, which was typical of the artistic style of early 1980s pinball machines. As a solid-state machine, it utilized electronic sounds and digital scoring, moving beyond the mechanical chimes of earlier eras.

While not considered one of Stern's breakthrough titles, Superliner represented an important transition period in pinball history when manufacturers were fully embracing solid-state technology while still maintaining the classic pinball feel. The game emerged during a challenging time for the pinball industry, as video games were beginning to dominate the arcade landscape, making it a relatively low-production machine by historical standards.

The theme choice reflected the broader cultural fascination with trucking and highway culture of the early 1980s, making it a notable piece of Americana from that period. Today, Superliner serves as an interesting example of how pinball manufacturers incorporated popular culture themes into their machines to attract players during the solid-state era.