Comment by bsimpson
1 day ago
YT recently recommended his explanation of how pre-computer pinball machines worked to me - a series of 3, hour-long videos. Gave me something to look forward to on my commute. I shared it with everyone I know, and now I'm sharing it with you:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ue-1JoJQaEg
Fascinating (and insanely impressive) to see how a bunch of switches and stepper motors implement complex logic.
Not from the same Youtuber but that video reminded me of another great one about how mechanical bowling alley machines work: https://youtu.be/Iod6uwUGM2E
I've been a huge fan of these videos. They explain electro-mechanical pinball machines incredibly well plus they're beautifully photographed. A remarkable amount of effort, thought and care went into creating them.
I find myself randomly recommending his videos to friends in the middle of conversations. Content like this is why I love YouTube.
Early arcade video games (pre Space Invaders) also didn't use universal microprocessors but relied only on circuit boards without software.
TTL logic, timers, oscillators, triggers, and more.
The circuit is the game.