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''Ice Cold Beer'' is a mechanical arcade game released by
''Zeke's Peak''
on Steam in the Fall of 2019, including an authentic recreation of ''Ice Cold Beer'' and ''Zeke's Peak'' and featuring dozens of new levels and gameplay mechanics.
Flyer for the original ''Ice Cold Beer''Flyer for ''Zeke's Peak''Flyer for the ICE remake of ''Ice Cold Beer''DIY Bartop Remake of the Game by Clem "mayermakes" Mayer on the element14presents Youtube channel
Arcade video games 1983 video games Taito arcade games
''Ice Cold Beer'' is a mechanical arcade game released by Taito
is a Japanese company that specializes in video games, toys, arcade cabinets and game centers, based in Shinjuku, Tokyo. The company was founded by Michael Kogan in 1953 as the importing vodka, vending machines and jukeboxes into Japan. It ...
in 1983. The game is in a similar cabinet to an arcade video game, but where the screen would normally be there is a vertical wooden playfield dotted with holes. Two joysticks on the control panel control the height of the two ends of a metal bar that moves up and down the playfield, with a ball bearing
A ball bearing is a type of rolling-element bearing that uses balls to maintain the separation between the bearing races.
The purpose of a ball bearing is to reduce rotational friction and support radial and axial loads. It achieves this ...
rolling back and forth on the bar. The playfield is an amber color, and the holes in the playfield are suggestive of bubbles rising in a mug of beer.
The objective of the game is to use the two joysticks to tip the bar back and forth and maneuver the ball up to a specific lit hole on the playfield, while avoiding unlit holes. When the player deposits the ball in the lit hole, the ball and the bar return to the bottom of the playfield, and the next target hole is lit. The game begins with the bottom-most hole lit, and subsequent lit holes become more and more difficult to reach while avoiding unlit holes. There are also versions with a ticket dispenser.
Taito also released a "family friendly" version of the game in 1984 entitled ''Zeke's Peak'', where the artwork of bubbles rising in a mug of beer was replaced by a mountain-climbing theme. The main character is Zeke, the protagonist from Taito's earlier arcade game ''Zoo Keeper
A zookeeper, sometimes referred as animal keeper, is a person who manages zoo animals that are kept in captivity for conservation or to be displayed to the public.Hurwitz, Jane. Choosing a Career in Animal Care (World of Work). New York: Rosen Gr ...
''.
Ice Cold Beer was designed by Keith Egging, who was VP of product development for Taito America. Cabinet art was done by Larry Blazek.
In 2003, Innovative Concepts in Entertainment
Innovative Concepts in Entertainment, abbreviated as ICE, is an American electronic game and redemption game manufacturing company based in Clarence, New York, United States. The company was founded in 1982 and has since become the leader of the ...
(ICE) released a remake of the game with new artwork and a ticket dispenser.
As of 2021, the world record is held by Matthew Ackerman with a score of 2,160,000 points.
Legacy
''Rising-ICB'' for iOS (2015) is a video game clone of ''Ice Cold Beer'', while ''TumbleSeed
''TumbleSeed'' is an indie action video game, created by developer Benedict Fritz and designer Greg Wohlwend, in which the player balances a rolling seed on an ascending, horizontally slanted vine past procedurally generated obstacles to reach ...
'' (2017) is based on the ''Ice Cold Beer'' mechanics.
56k Games has partnered with Taito to releas''Zeke's Peak''
on Steam in the Fall of 2019, including an authentic recreation of ''Ice Cold Beer'' and ''Zeke's Peak'' and featuring dozens of new levels and gameplay mechanics.
References
{{ReflistExternal links
Flyer for the original ''Ice Cold Beer''
Arcade video games 1983 video games Taito arcade games