Incredible Technologies, Inc (IT), located in the Chicago suburb of Arlington Heights, Illinois, specializes in the design and development of entertainment hardware and software for the entertainment industry. The company employs over 120 designers, programmers, artists, animators, sound engineers, service technicians, sales and service reps and production personnel. IT is currently the largest US designer and manufacturer of coin-operated video games. Loyalty, versatility and hard work are the hallmarks of IT employees. The company's current strategy is to diversify into the entertainment arena with the development of low-cost, high performance computer hardware and software that offers innovative technology and exceptional return on investment.
Elaine Hodgson and Richard Ditton began Incredible Technologies in 1985. Both were experienced designers and programmers within the video game industry. Early projects found the company developing the operating systems and programming of Data East's first pinball games, and a number of consumer games on the Apple II, Commodore 64 and Commodore Amiga for various publishers. Within six months, the company had doubled in size, and IT's design and development skills were in continual demand.
The next few years found IT designers diversifying into numerous areas, including hardware and software for the original networked BattleTech system, highly acclaimed Amiga games for CinemaWare, more programming for Data East's pinball line, and operating systems and animating graphics for Brunswick's BowlerVision locations. In 1988, IT developed and manufactured an inexpensive hardware platform and unique game play for IT's first coin-op game, Capcom Bowling. Due to compelling game play and exceptional return on investment, this now-classic bowling video was a huge success, and sold consistently for many years.
With the success of Capcom Bowling, Incredible Technologies expanded its coin-op development, adopting the brand name Strata for these internally generated products. The focus of most of these games, including the original Golden Tee Golf, Strata Bowling, HotShots Tennis, Arlington Horse Racing, and Rim Rockin' Basketball, were directed to an older audience typically found in "street" locations such as bars, taverns and restaurants. Other Strata games were positioned for the then active arcade market, including Time Killers, BloodStorm and NFL Hard Yardage.
Incredible Technologies has produced and manufactured over 30 coin-op games in the last 22 years. Eventually the Strata label was dropped and new games like Golden Tee Golf, Silver Strike Bowler's Club and Target Toss Pro BAGS appear under the Incredible Technologies name. Golden Tee Golf, IT's flagship coin-op product, is now in it's fifth generation, and multiple versions of different IT properties have been released for video game consoles, PC's, Plug-N-Play devices and cell phones.
In keeping with the tradition of strong and innovative support to street locations and the vending industry, IT developed and perfected ITNet, a revolutionary system that connects video games and other coin-op devices to sophisticated servers, where tournament statistics, audits, player data and other information can be tracked and transferred between the games and IT. This connectivity provides tens of thousands of locations across the world with a plethora of exciting opportunities for current and future projects.
