• December 1974 -
Play Meter is founded by publisher, editor, and arcade operator Ralph C. Lally II. • 1976 -
Play Meter publishes its first Annual State of the Industry Report. • July 1979 -
Play Meter publishes its first Equipment Poll and adds a
redemption section to the magazine. • 1989 -
Play Meter inaugurates its first award for Operator of the Year. • 1990 -
Play Meter introduces its "Video Game Outlook" column to cover legislation related to video games and video lotteries. The column would continue to run until 1994. • 1991 -
Play Meter circulation peaks at 6500 subscriptions. This figure represents a steady increase from 5400 in 1979. By 1995 the figure would again dip to 6000, and by 2014 the magazine would see 3000 subscriptions. • 1994 -
Play Meter publishes its first Family Fun Edition (currently headed by Joseph Camarota III) devoted to the
FEC market. • April 1999 -
Play Meter introduces its "Consultant's Corner" column written by Jerry Merola. • 29 Aug 2005 - In connection with
Hurricane Katrina, a
New Orleans levee breaks 4 blocks from
Play Meter's 3-story [New Orleans] headquarters in Lakeview. Although all employees were evacuated in anticipation of the hurricane, much of the magazine's back catalog including 31 years of archives are lost to massive flooding. The magazine temporarily relocates its headquarters to
St. Louis. • 2008 -
Play Meter is awarded a plaque by the International Flipper Pinball Association (IFPA) • June 2018 -
Play Meter ceases publication. ==Special issues==