This game is sort of a combination of a pinball machine and a video game. The object is to maneuver a ball into the lit hole in the playfield while avoiding the other holes. To accomplish this, the player uses two joysticks to raise and lower the left and right sides of a bar that extends across the playfield. A small, metal ball rests on the bar, and as the bar is tilted the ball rolls towards the lower side.

I really like this game. There is something very simplistic and natural about trying to control the ball against the force of gravity, and it is quite rewarding to hear the "clunk" of the ball as it falls into the appropriate hole. But the thing that I like most about this game is that it is unique. Where video games can be recreated or emulated on a PC, Zeke's Peak requires you to have the original machine to play the game.

When the machine arrived it was in good condition but not working. The machine did receive some cosmetic damage during shipping - thank you, Forward Air - but was all in tact. A little glue and some touch-up paint fixed most of the damage, but the side-art was scratched and is unrepairable. By no means was the side-art perfect before - this game had been in an arcade and had received it's fair share of abuse, but it was disappointing to know that more damage had occurred that could have been avoided if the machine had been better protected during shipping. (Lesson learned: make sure machines are covered in cardboard and then stretch-wrapped well prior to shipping.)

The first (and easiest) thing to check when repairing a dead machine is the power supply. The power supply's fuses looked good, but it wasn't putting out any volts. A quick look at the back-side of the power supply board revealed one cold solder joint on one of the rectifier diodes. A quick touch with the soldering iron and the electronics worked perfectly. I then cleaned, adjusted and lubricated the motors, guide-bars and pulley mechanisms and the machine played great. After a good cosmetic cleaning inside and out the game was ready to take it's place in my arcade.