There was a prototype version which had drop targets instead of these stationary ones.
The idea was scrapped because the drops were unreliable. These targets get hit very often.
In a standard game mode, activating all 6 targets are needed to light 2 lock holes. The third is activated by doing it again. When all 3 balls are locked, the backglass numberic scores begin a countdown.
This game is also the first one to animate the score displays to do something other than keep numbers.
Lighting 3 targets in a bank also activates the left outlane kicker which shoots the ball back into play instead of it being lost.
There is a more difficult setting that was often used by operators where the targets have to be activated for every lock hole.
The sound effects in this game are a variation of similar ones used in Williams games in the late 70s to the mid 80s.
The same palatte of sounds were used in many Williams video games such as Robotron 2084, and Defender.
When your playing Firepower, your put in the setting of a giant space battle by the sounds of futuristic weapons and the growing intensity of the background sounds and voice.
Steve Richie, the creator of this game and other greats came up with the idea of changing the FIRE bonus lane lights by using the right flipper button. This added to the excitement of the game where the player can now control directly, how those lanes are scored. It started a trend that became a standard still used today.
Overall, Firepower sent a lot of new trends and ideas into the world of pinball.
