Ball Save

A timed grace period at the beginning of each ball — or after certain events — during which a drained ball is automatically returned to the plunger lane for another try. Ball save is the modern, software-controlled descendant of the mechanical Kickback: invisible, automatic, and temporary. It protects players against the frustration of a drain on the first shot and ensures that every ball gets a fair chance to reach the Flippers. The feature became standard on WPC-era machines in the early 1990s and is now virtually universal on new titles.