Larry DeMar is a legendary Williams pinball designer and programmer who was a foundational figure in the company's golden era, particularly known for classic games like High Speed, Black Knight, Twilight Zone, and Addams Family. He collaborated extensively with Pat Lawlor and other key Williams designers, and is credited with co-developing Williams OS and pioneering story-driven game design philosophy. DeMar transitioned from hands-on design work to an evaluative/mentorship role within Williams, and continues to be recognized as an industry icon, co-presenting at major events like Pinball Expo 2025.
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Larry DeMar holds 38 U.S. patents in amusements, bowling systems and casino games
DeMar's technical innovations in automatic replay percentage, switch testing, and self-healing are now standard in virtually every new pinball machine sold
By 1986, Larry DeMar moved into pinball full-time at Williams/Bally as director of pinball engineering and director of slot machine design
Larry DeMar is a recent Amusement Industry Hall of Famer
Legendary arcade and pinball designer with 38 U.S. patents, recently inducted into Amusement Industry Hall of Fame
Co-designer of Robotron: 1984, recent Amusement Industry Hall of Famer
Legendary pinball software designer; saved John Papadiuk on World Cup Soccer; now makes software for slot machines with Duncan Brown
Williams designer; panelist on 'Good old days at Williams' seminar
Pinball designer at Williams; offered Sheets an interview at McDonald's over Kennedy Expressway
Legendary pinball programmer at Williams; lead subject of interview; credited with revolutionary work on Black Knight, High Speed, Twilight Zone, Addams Family, Funhouse, and many others; called 'godfather of modern code'
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Larry DeMar co-designed Robotron: 1984
Some homebrew games shown are production-ready and could be manufactured from prototype state
Mad Max was created by a young man and his uncle through high school years
Larry DeMar 'saved' World Cup Soccer's game design through his software/design contributions
Jackbot (Larry DeMar) transformed Pinbot from an uninteresting game into 'an absolute blast to play' primarily through software.
Larry DeMar was the single most valuable employee Williams had during the System 11 era and arguably did more to advance pinball than anyone else.
Larry DeMar programmed Black Knight, High Speed, Funhouse, Addams Family, Twilight Zone, and World Cup Soccer—demonstrating transformative impact on pinball alongside his video game work on Defender
Larry DeMar invented the extra ball feature in pinball code
Larry DeMar has never done an interview outside of Tilt Forums and the Bally/Pinball 2000 documentary
Dave Thiel's sampled-note music technique at Gottlieb (Rock game) directly inspired Williams' approach to High Speed music
High Speed multiball theme was composed by Steve Ritchie on guitar and was the only note sampled for the game's music system
Barry Osler could draw a complete new playfield every week and had a pile of unrealized designs
Gottlieb beat Williams to alphanumeric displays in pinball by releasing games before High Speed
Pinball was illegal in Chicago during DeMar's childhood, so he and friends played pinball machines in basements and pitch-and-bat games publicly
Eight Ball by Bally (1978) had a bug where filling a second rack of balls cleared the bonus, causing DeMar to complain that night, which inspired him to contact Williams
DeMar was hired at Williams in January 1980 after Ken Fedesna invited him to the AMOA show in fall 1979
Williams' early solid-state games (Knight Rider, Grand Prix) included sound chimes and a score motor mimicking electromechanical games because designers feared players would reject electronic sounds
Larry DeMar significantly contributed to World Cup Soccer's rules design, transforming core concept to include World Cup final against Germany
Larry DeMar significantly shaped World Cup Soccer's ruleset, transforming it from a simple goal-scoring game into the current World Cup final structure
Larry DeMar was one of the first-generation breakthrough programmers in the solid state era
Larry DeMar programmed the code for Banzai Run
Williams programmer/designer colleague who was at the company when Eddy arrived in 1989
Pinball industry figure described by Ken as his 'unicorn person'; spotted at recent expo with Pat Lawler
Williams programmer; designer of Apple (Advanced Pinball Programming Language Environment) system used for assembling WPC pinball code
Williams programmer; collaborated with Barry on Defender and Space Shuttle playfield design; later moved into video game development
Brilliant pinball programmer at Williams who worked with Ritchie. Co-designed Black Knight and other games. Described as intense, committed, and stubborn; had 'fireworks' with Ritchie but great success together.
Legendary Bally pinball designer; collaborated with Kaminkow on Space Shuttle during summer 1984
Software designer for Black Knight; also worked on Defender, Robotron, and Funhouse; contributed sound effects sourced from arcade games
Senior Stern software engineer; historical collaborator with Steve Ritchie
Programmer and sound contributor for High Speed; designed the software and contributed to the iconic soundtrack
Co-founder of Spooky Pinball with Joe Kaminkow. Industry figure involved in pinball and slot machine game design.
Legendary pinball software architect who designed the System 11 operating system and is credited by the hosts as instrumental in Williams' dominance during this era.
Legendary pinball code designer at Williams/Bally, recently interviewed on LoserKid Podcast, known as 'Godfather of modern pinball code'
Legendary pinball designer identified by Josh Sharpe as GOAT for transitioning classic to modern rules; designer of World Cup Soccer and other influential games
Co-designer with Pat Lawlor on Banzai Run, significant Williams pinball designer
Williams designer whom Sharpe hoped would stay under new ownership
Brilliant programmer at Williams Electronics who infused unique technology into The Addams Family; collaborated with Sharpe on multiple projects
Legendary WPC-era pinball programmer who mentored Cameron Silver and remains a close friend
Pinball designer, co-designer of Addams Family (1992) with Pat Lawlor
Programmer/code designer for Banzai Run
Williams pinball programmer during the era when Jason Werdrick was field testing games
Co-designer of World Cup Soccer 94 with John Papaduke; also handled software/programming
Pioneer pinball programmer at Williams; contractor initially; mentored Grupp on software architecture and auto-percentaging systems; later founded company where Grupp worked on slot machines
Presenter of Ken Fedesna's induction; legendary Bally/Williams pinball designer who joined in 1978, worked until 1999 on the pinball division, and is now with Team Play. Known for designing major titles and mentoring talent.
Friend of Pat Lawlor credited with introducing him to pinball industry in 1988
Legendary arcade game designer; expressed skepticism to Doc Mack about viability of Galloping Ghost Arcade model pre-opening
Legendary pinball/arcade game designer; told Doc Mack opening a free-play arcade was 'insane' and 'failed business'—this skepticism ironically motivated Galloping Ghost's success.
Legendary Williams designer mentioned by Papaduke as influential figure teaching pinball philosophy and design passion
Stern Media representative conducting interview at factory tour
Williams programmer; first key industry contact Sheets made at 1991 Pinball Expo; Sheets later sent resume to DeMar who didn't hire him due to perceived academic unsuitability
Legendary Williams pinball designer and mentor to Papaduke; significantly shaped World Cup Soccer's ruleset and design direction
Williams pinball legend; involved in High Speed sound/software; discovered Pat Lawler and helped him join Williams; co-designed early Lawler games but not Whirlwind
Williams pinball executive; mentioned Keith P. Johnson job opening on IRC in late 1997
Pinball designer at Williams who collaborated with Ritchie on Black Knight (first two-level game) and High Speed
Legendary Williams pinball programmer who collaborated with Ritchie on Black Knight, High Speed, and Black Knight 2000.
Williams product development leader; pressured Gomez and Lawlor to bring the Pinball 2000 prototype into the office for evaluation.
Legendary pinball designer; collaborated with Ted Estes at Williams; also involved in founding Spooky Cool Labs
Former Williams Head of Pinball Engineering; in talks with Gary Stern about designing a game (talks came to naught)
Legendary pinball designer who presented tributes to Kordek at his 100th birthday celebration and created birthday video
Williams pinball designer; collaborated with Pat Lawlor on Wreck'n Ball/Banzai Run; presented historical perspective at 'Then & Now' panel
Legendary pinball designer; inducted Ken Fedesna into Hall of Fame at Expo
Legendary pinball designer with patent law expertise; attended Nucore seminar at Pinball Expo; provided critical advice that all patent holders must sign agreements, not just one licensee
Williams software designer; met Pat Lawlor in 1986; helped launch Lawlor's pinball design career through Banzai Run prototype
Historical Stern/Williams software engineer; MIT computer science and engineering degree; example of high-credential talent choosing pinball over higher-paying industry options.
Legendary Bally pinball designer; member of Star Wars Episode I design team
Legendary Bally/Williams designer from 1980s era; previously interviewed on Loser Kid; referenced for design quality standards
Original Funhouse designer; referenced in context of Pinball Expo appearance and interview
Williams programmer who brought sophisticated programming to pinball (Addams Family); pioneered programmer-as-co-designer role
Williams Electronics engineer; met Pat Lawlor at Brunswick Systems; facilitated Lawlor's early pinball design work including Banzai Run
Legendary Williams pinball programmer; contractor at Williams when Bill started; worked with Bill on Demolition Man, Dirty Harry; hired Bill later at Larry's own slot machine company; known for complex auto-percentage and compensation code
Legendary pinball designer; panelist on 40-year retrospective at 2024 Expo alongside Pat Lawlor and Roger Sharp.
Williams employee; made comment on IRC about job openings that led to Keith's recruitment to Williams in late 1997
Legendary Williams programmer; mentored Papaduke; significantly contributed to World Cup Soccer's rule design beyond original whitewood concept
Williams programmer; key contact Sheets met at Pinball Expo 1991
Legendary programmer; moved to WMS Gaming slot division by 1997; recruited Keith Johnson during IRC conversation
Discovered the secret Pinball 2000 project at Lawler's home and demanded it be brought to Williams; known for inventive strategies
Software designer at Williams; co-conceived Space Shuttle playfield; primary coder for the game; part of team that pitched game to leadership
Williams programmer and executive; mentored Lawlor; arranged Wrecking Ball prototype construction; connected Lawlor to Williams
Programmer who created Defender at Williams, then left to form VidKids with Eugene Jarvis; represents designer exodus to video games
Legendary first-generation solid-state pinball programmer at Williams; interviewed Sullivan; described as 'grandfather of modern solid state pinball code'
Legendary pinball programmer credited with Black Knight, High Speed, Funhouse, Addams Family, Twilight Zone, World Cup Soccer; fundamentally transformed pinball programming
Legendary Bally/Williams programmer; credited as 'the first truly great pinball programmer' and 'original GOAT'; programmed Funhouse; also known for programming Addams Family (which popularized game modes).
Designer credited with Addams Family; received primary recognition for modes innovation despite Lights Camera Action predating it by two years
Co-designer of High Speed (1986); early influence on System 11 era; worked at Williams
Legendary pinball designer and programmer at Williams; also known for designing video games Defender and Robotron; met Greg at arcade in 1994.
Programmer who transformed Pinbot into Jackbot; cited as primary example of software making uninteresting playfield fun
Software/design credit on World Cup Soccer; legendary pinball programmer credited with 'saving' that game; George Gomez equivalent figure at Bally Williams era
Legendary pinball designer; co-presenting with Pat Lawler at 2025 Expo seminar
Foundational pinball designer (High Speed, Black Knight); credited with setting groundwork for modern story-driven game design philosophy
Acquaintance of Pat Lawler; attended auctions with Pat to purchase vintage pinball machines in his early career
Williams executive who evaluated Lyman early in career; Roger Sharp states 'didn't think he was ready yet,' leading to Lyman's initial placement at Data East
Co-designer of Wrecking Ball/Banzai Run prototype with Pat; programmer and legendary Williams designer; co-designer of Stargate, Robotron, High Speed
Williams software engineer; met Greg at Chicago arcade; worked on Black Knight, Twilight Zone, Addams Family, Fun House
Williams pinball designer and executive; Duncan's boss; approved Williams backglass poster idea
Williams developer; met Sheets at Pinball Expo; conducted phone interview with him; expressed concerns about culture shock
Williams designer; had prototype whiteboard cabinet in his office that may have hosted DCS Twilight Zone version
Williams programmer criticized by Python as 'manipulator and copycat' unworthy of creator status; credited with video integration concept but Python questions true innovation
Williams designer; collaborated with Joe Kaminkow on Space Shuttle concept; helped convince Joe about game's potential; dinner companion at Grover's Oyster House
Star Wars project lead; sectioned off restricted development area; managed NDA compliance for Lucasfilm materials; maintained locked cabinet with Lucas documents
Williams lead programmer, initially contract engineer, eventually became Director of Engineering for pinball division, hired Ted Estes
Creator of Williams' APPLE OS and Demolition Man; wrote foundational software architecture; very disciplined programmer
Williams pinball designer; co-seminar speaker with Pat Lawlor at Expo 2025
Co-judge; legendary Williams designer; created Addams Family, Twilight Zone; co-developed Williams OS; described as teaching methodology of being 'oily wheel'
Pinball designer whom Rolando cites as an idol; associated with classic pinball games
Williams designer who collaborated with Richie on High Speed
Pinball designer conducting seminar with Pat Lawlor at Expo 41
Classic pinball designer; co-speaking with Pat Lawlor on Williams history at Pinball Expo
Co-presenting with Pat Lawlor on design history seminar at Expo 2025
Designer on Space Shuttle with Kaminkow; key figure in Williams pinball innovation
Williams designer; fan of Broadway music; part of collaborative team with Granner