Data East · 1992 · Dot-matrix era (1991 to 1999)

Star Wars

Name: Star Wars
Brand: Data East

Design: John Borg · Art: Markus Rothkranz

Data East's Star Wars is the original trilogy on a 1992 playfield, and with 10,400 built it was Data East's most successful pinball game. John Borg was working on a Jurassic Park layout when Joe Kaminkow offered him Star Wars, so he swapped a mechanical dinosaur for the Death Star, a rotating silver globe you open and shoot. R2-D2 turns and bobs above the pop bumpers, and you launch with an up/down shifter handle on the front of the cabinet. Markus Rothkranz did the art, Brian Schmidt the music, and Fred Young voiced almost everyone, Darth Vader included. Reviewers liked the music and found the voices hard to make out. A semi-official rules update came out about 20 years later. Don't confuse it with Sega's 1997 Star Wars Trilogy or Stern's later games.

Spec at a glance

Maker: Data East and Sega
Era: Dot-matrix era (1991 to 1999)
Theme: Movie licenses
Year: 1992
Players: 4
Made: Data East, October 1992 to January 1993
Design: John Borg
Art: Markus Rothkranz
System: Data East Version 3 CPU
Display: 128x32 dot-matrix
Production: 10,400 units, Data East's biggest run
Launch: up/down shifter handle instead of a plunger knob
Also listed as: Data East Star Wars, DESW

Bench check

Boards, playfield, toys and the trip home

Boards and batteries: Three AA batteries on the Version 3 CPU are the main threat to this board. In a CPU photo, you want a remote holder mounted below the boards, dated, and clean copper where the old holder was.
Display: It uses Data East's standard 128x32 dot-matrix display. An outgassing display strains the power supply and should be replaced, and the 128x32 glass is a drop-in swap. Ask for a video so you can check for dark or dim rows.
Playfield: There are two flippers, four pop bumpers, two scoops and a 3-bank of drop targets. Check a straight-down photo for worn paint at the flippers, inlanes and the scoop entrances.
Toys and mechs: The Death Star is a rotating silver globe guarded by an up-down target, and R2-D2 above the pop bumpers turns and moves up and down. Ask for a video of a game. The Death Star should spin, the target should rise and drop, and R2-D2 should move.
Cabinet and art: You launch the ball with an up/down shifter handle on the front of the cabinet, with a button on it. Check it's there in the photos, with its button.
Moving it: Star Wars is a standard-body Data East game. The legs and backbox come off for the move, and the keys should stay with it.
Parts and code: Missing animated score fonts in one-player games were fixed by replacing the PIA at 9B with an MC6821. A semi-official rules update came out about 20 years after release. Ask which software it runs.

Should come with it

Shifter launch handle
Translite
Coin door keys and backbox key
Manual

Check the listing photos against these lists, and ask the seller about anything you can’t see. A missing toy, glass or key should come off the price.

What to check

Battery leakage on the CPU, burned connectors and a strained DMD power supply are the usual Data East jobs. On the playfield, check the Death Star, its target and R2-D2 all move.

01Batteries: Ask for a photo of the CPU board. The AA batteries should be on a remote holder, with no corrosion.
02Display: Ask for a video of attract mode. The dot-matrix should show no dead or dim rows.
03Death Star: Ask for a video of the Death Star in a game. It should spin and its target should rise and drop.
04R2-D2: Ask the seller to show R2-D2 moving. He should turn and move up and down.
05Shifter: Look for the shifter handle in the photos. It should be the original handle with its button.
06Connectors: Ask whether the power supply connectors have been replaced. Burned plugs are a warning.
07Playfield wear: Ask for a straight-down playfield photo. Paint should be intact at the flippers and scoops.
08Which Star Wars: Check the listing is the 1992 Data East game. Sega's Star Wars Trilogy and Stern's games are different machines.

Buying your first one? Red flags in a pinball listing covers the photos and videos to ask for, and the battery corrosion guide shows what leaking batteries do to an old CPU board.

Find one on eBay

We haven’t been through this game’s listings yet. Search eBay and run every listing through the checklist above. Ask for a video of a full game, a photo of the CPU board and photos of the playfield in good light, and ask what’s been replaced. Pass on any seller who won’t answer.

Search “Data East Star Wars pinball” on eBay ↗eBay search

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Maker

Era

Theme

Read

Star Wars

Design: John Borg · Art: Markus Rothkranz

Spec at a glance

Maker

Data East and Sega

Era

Dot-matrix era (1991 to 1999)

Theme

Movie licenses

Year

1992

Players

Made

Data East, October 1992 to January 1993

Design

John Borg

Art

Markus Rothkranz

System

Data East Version 3 CPU

Display

128x32 dot-matrix

Production

10,400 units, Data East's biggest run

Launch

up/down shifter handle instead of a plunger knob

Also listed as

Data East Star Wars, DESW

Boards, playfield, toys and the trip home

Boards and batteries

Three AA batteries on the Version 3 CPU are the main threat to this board. In a CPU photo, you want a remote holder mounted below the boards, dated, and clean copper where the old holder was.

Display

It uses Data East's standard 128x32 dot-matrix display. An outgassing display strains the power supply and should be replaced, and the 128x32 glass is a drop-in swap. Ask for a video so you can check for dark or dim rows.

Playfield

There are two flippers, four pop bumpers, two scoops and a 3-bank of drop targets. Check a straight-down photo for worn paint at the flippers, inlanes and the scoop entrances.

Toys and mechs

The Death Star is a rotating silver globe guarded by an up-down target, and R2-D2 above the pop bumpers turns and moves up and down. Ask for a video of a game. The Death Star should spin, the target should rise and drop, and R2-D2 should move.

Cabinet and art

You launch the ball with an up/down shifter handle on the front of the cabinet, with a button on it. Check it's there in the photos, with its button.

Moving it

Star Wars is a standard-body Data East game. The legs and backbox come off for the move, and the keys should stay with it.

Parts and code

Missing animated score fonts in one-player games were fixed by replacing the PIA at 9B with an MC6821. A semi-official rules update came out about 20 years after release. Ask which software it runs.

Should come with it

Shifter launch handle

Translite

Coin door keys and backbox key

Manual

Check the listing photos against these lists, and ask the seller about anything you can’t see. A missing toy, glass or key should come off the price.

What to check

Battery leakage on the CPU, burned connectors and a strained DMD power supply are the usual Data East jobs. On the playfield, check the Death Star, its target and R2-D2 all move.

01Batteries: Ask for a photo of the CPU board. The AA batteries should be on a remote holder, with no corrosion.

02Display: Ask for a video of attract mode. The dot-matrix should show no dead or dim rows.

03Death Star: Ask for a video of the Death Star in a game. It should spin and its target should rise and drop.

04R2-D2: Ask the seller to show R2-D2 moving. He should turn and move up and down.

05Shifter: Look for the shifter handle in the photos. It should be the original handle with its button.

06Connectors: Ask whether the power supply connectors have been replaced. Burned plugs are a warning.

07Playfield wear: Ask for a straight-down playfield photo. Paint should be intact at the flippers and scoops.

08Which Star Wars: Check the listing is the 1992 Data East game. Sega's Star Wars Trilogy and Stern's games are different machines.

Buying your first one? Red flags in a pinball listing covers the photos and videos to ask for, and the battery corrosion guide shows what leaking batteries do to an old CPU board.

Find one on eBay

Star Wars

Spec at a glance

Boards, playfield, toys and the trip home

What to check

Find one on eBay

Compare with

Jurassic Park

The Simpsons

Star Trek: Next Generation

Baywatch

Keep exploring

Star Wars

Spec at a glance

Boards, playfield, toys and the trip home

What to check

Find one on eBay

Compare with

Jurassic Park

The Simpsons

Star Trek: Next Generation

Baywatch

Keep exploring