Incline Pinball Games on PC

[Markman]

It seems we have a bit more choice besides replaying Pro Pinball and Balls of Steel games these days cause Pinball Arcade got a Steam release today. It has been released on pretty much any other platfom so its good to see it getting a PC release.
I play it on my phone almost every day.

Those who dont know what Pinball Arcade is, I'll tell ya.
Real life tables in a digital form. They look, act, sound and play just like the ones in the real arcade hall.
Theres bunch of em now and they come out monthy, I think.
My favs include Medieval Madness, Monster Bash and T2.
You can demo any table till you hit a score limit.
http://store.steampowered.com/app/238260/


Next up is Pinball FX 2 released in May I think, some kind of new gen Pinball experience.
Like a 3D Balls of Steel with current gen graphics.
36 tables so far, sold in packs of 4 or 3 and some single tables.
Lots of Marvel and Star Wars tables, some original.
Complex game rules, takes a while to get into, easier to play than "real" pinball, much more forgiving and you can waste half an hour easily on some of tables. If you dont like to get your ass whooped at pinball try this game.
I own 18 tables so far, will wait for a steam sale before I get more tho.
Favs are Avengers Chronicles Pack and Epic Quest table where you play a pinball ARPG, level up, kill monsters, loot etc.
http://store.steampowered.com/app/226980/

Pro Pinball Timeshock is getting a Ultra edition with updated everything. Should be out before the end of this year.
Its on greenlight, to get it on steam help out here http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=93991209
If this goes well we may get all 4 tables updated.


Rollers of the Realm(pinball puzzle RPG) got greenlighted few days ago too, looks cool, should be out soon hopefully.
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=136473033

bonus mention for phones iOS/android, Revenge of the Rob-o-bot. Not free but worth the money.
Cool looking table with simple rules but will kick your ass. Old school feeling.
http://www.colormonkey.se/products/robobot/

Thats it, I think. Feel free to add if I missed a game.

 

[Metro]

I enjoyed Pinball FX 2 but not enough to buy tables. Visually they look terrific but it's still just pinball.

 

[Unkillable Cat]

I haven't looked at digital pinball games since the early 90s, when games like Pinball Dreams, Pinball Fantasies and Epic Pinball were released, along with tons others in the coming years. I think the genre fizzled out around 1997, but that's 5 years of digital pinballing.

Of the ones I played, Pinball Fantasies is probably the best one, but Epic Pinball gets a special mention for its Enigma table.

Good to know that the genre has made a comeback.

 

[Markman]

I enjoyed Pinball FX 2 but not enough to buy tables. Visually they look terrific but it's still just pinball.

FX2 is more made for the new crowd, takes a while to get used to, lack that feeling old tables have and I think it does a good job attracting new fans with all the animations and purty stuff. Shiny.

Pinball Arcade is more of a blast from the past for me, I remember me and buddies went quite often to arcade hall after school, played some pool, had mini tournaments on KoF '97 and played very same pinball tables I get to play now on a phone or a PC.
Nostalgia value is pretty high here and its nice to see those tables so well done in digital form. So its not "just pinball" for me. I love pinball.

Unkillable Cat
They got those on GOG along with old Pro pinball tables. http://af.gog.com/game/pinball_gold_pack?as=1649904300
They work pretty good on my PC, but now they're ugly as shit when blown up on a 24" monitor. Windowed mode would be awesome if I would knew how to do it.

 

[Multi-headed Cow]

Unfortunately I think Pinball FX2 is a hell of a lot better pinball engine than Pinball Arcade. Going by the single table they give you on Pinball Arcade, the graphics are maybe the same or a bit worse than PinMAME (Varies from table to table, but PinMAME has better animation than what I was seeing in Arcade) and the physics seem way too light. I gather that it's supposed to be a brand new top shape table so the flippers should have oomph and all, but the ball did some weird shit.
Then the icing on the disappointment cake for me is the tables for Arcade are sold in-game using Steam wallet, instead of on Steam itself as DLC. This means most likely no glorious Steam sale, and even if there is a glorious Steam sale you'll have to launch the program to see it since it won't be advertised/listed on Steam, and there's no room for gray market pricing.

Was really looking forward to Pinball Arcade, especially Funhouse and Addams Family, but honestly FX2 just seems better. If they do a big sale at some point and I actually see it I'll probably buy the set of Pinball Arcade tables too though. 'cause even though I think FX2 does "General pinball" better, and PinMAME (Which is called something else now I think, haven't fucked with it in years) does real tables as good or a little better, it's still fun and I'd cough up some money for licensed digital versions.

(ps if you want a harder table for pinball fx2, try boba fett and tesla. bought all the fx2 tables except for the brand new star wars pack so far)

 

[Ninja Destroyer]

Everything from 21st Century Entertainment and Epic Pinball series. That's all I need.

 

[Haba]

How is Worms Pinball btw?

 

[DragoFireheart]

This is one of those things I'd rather do in real life.

 

[dnf]

sometimes i play the default pimball game of WinXP

 

[Markman]

Unfortunately I think Pinball FX2 is a hell of a lot better pinball engine than Pinball Arcade. Going by the single table they give you on Pinball Arcade, the graphics are maybe the same or a bit worse than PinMAME (Varies from table to table, but PinMAME has better animation than what I was seeing in Arcade) and the physics seem way too light. I gather that it's supposed to be a brand new top shape table so the flippers should have oomph and all, but the ball did some weird shit.
Then the icing on the disappointment cake for me is the tables for Arcade are sold in-game using Steam wallet, instead of on Steam itself as DLC. This means most likely no glorious Steam sale, and even if there is a glorious Steam sale you'll have to launch the program to see it since it won't be advertised/listed on Steam, and there's no room for gray market pricing.

Was really looking forward to Pinball Arcade, especially Funhouse and Addams Family, but honestly FX2 just seems better. If they do a big sale at some point and I actually see it I'll probably buy the set of Pinball Arcade tables too though. 'cause even though I think FX2 does "General pinball" better, and PinMAME (Which is called something else now I think, haven't fucked with it in years) does real tables as good or a little better, it's still fun and I'd cough up some money for licensed digital versions.

(ps if you want a harder table for pinball fx2, try boba fett and tesla. bought all the fx2 tables except for the brand new star wars pack so far)

I made a thread on Steam forums few days ago about wierd design layout and rules on Fx2 tables. All in all it comes around designing the table that gives more playtime but lacks in the excitement and urgency 'normal' tables have. Im not trying to put it down but thats how I feel about it. Thats why I call it new gen pinball, made easier for larger audience.

I also get some kind of micro lag on the PC when playing Pinball arcade, wierd concidering its butter smooth on the phone. And that steam wallet bullshit is a clusterfuck, they should have made larger table packs and be done with it.

 

[HanoverF]

Well the pinball arcade games are recreations of actual pinball tables and as such are meant to be challenging quarter munchers, while Pinball FX are entertaining diversions that's already gotten all the pocket change out of you when you bought it. The ball physics are off in both (well I don't really know if FX has ball physics), the tables look ok (some look very low res for some reason) and sound great in Pinball Arcade, but the menus and camera are p bad. Neither holds up to the real thing, but that's not always an option.

 

[markec]

I remember having a blast with Creep Pinball years ago. Dont know how playable it is on modern machines.

 

[Markman]

Well the pinball arcade games are recreations of actual pinball tables and as such are meant to be challenging quarter munchers, while Pinball FX are entertaining diversions that's already gotten all the pocket change out of you when you bought it. The ball physics are off in both (well I don't really know if FX has ball physics), the tables look ok (some look very low res for some reason) and sound great in Pinball Arcade, but the menus and camera are p bad. Neither holds up to the real thing, but that's not always an option.

Pro Pinball games are also PC games but they still offer best of the both worlds, IMO. I am very much looking forward playing HD Timeshock with the new physics engine.

Some tables on FX2 piss me off a bit cause of that cheezy design, like in mentioned Tesla table, where you have to hit the ball up the ramp with the upper left flipper then push the ball with magnets to hit 6 targets to start a mission. Hardest thing to do in the whole game and they do it not for enjoyment but to suck more playtime. Same thing on El Dorado, hit the totem 9 times. 9 times! To start a timed mission. Wasting my fucking time. Newer tables I got dont have this retarded design and I like the Chronicles tables, pretty original and I love the all the animation mumbo jumbo. Didnt get to play much the new star wars tables, they seem pretty cool too although missions are not on the easy side.

Haba
Its pretty good for a 15 year old table, if you can live with a bit floaty ball movement, it has lots of missions, multiballs etc. Takes a while to get into, but after an hour you'll get into it.

markec
I think I have it on CD somewhere, need to dig it out but I tried the last Ultra pinball(Thrillride) few days ago and it didnt look so pretty.Washed out and grainy. But I think it should work on Win7, it was a windows game afterall. I'll try to find it.

 

[Great Deceiver]

I was greatly looking forward to Pinball Arcade, but I have to echo the sentiment that the ball physics seem a bit off.

Their free table, Tales of the Arabian Nights, is probably my favourite Pinball machine of all time, and I've played quite a bit of the real thing. The PC version's ball physics feel too floaty. I need to play more of it, and I was definitely looking forward to play Gorgar and Medieval Madness a lot, but first impressions weren't really positive. Also the interface is pretty clunky (reeks of primitive tablet design) and the table purchase model is bad. Season 1 is a whole lot better than 2. Also, the sound is really great, they did an awesome job with the sound samples for all tables that I tested.

Regarding Pinball FX, those tables are quite a different beast from actual real pin machines. The mission design, the playfield structure, everything is geared with playtime in mind - it's more "grind" oriented, if that makes sense, and much easier at the same time. The gap between flippers is laughable and it's very rare to actually lose a ball. Surprisingly, though, the ball physics feel better than in Pinball Arcade, even though the FX tables themselves could never exist in reality, and too many of them have unnecessary busywork and too many bright lights. Out of the FX tables, I only have a few - the Star Wars ones, which are alright, a couple Marvel ones (Moon Knight is probably my fav table) and a couple of Legacy ones.

I think a problem on both of them is that the table price is a little high - not really extraordinary if you count them individually, but there should be a bundle type deal available for much cheaper, I feel.

 

[Luzur]

me and a bud used to have a beer contest with Space Cadet, the one who got the biggest score within a set time limit bought the beer for the rest of the night.

and i used to play Pinball Fantasies alot.

 

[Metro]

Pinball FX 2 Humble Basic Key

• Core Pack
• Paranormal Table
• Epic Quest Table
• Zen Classics Pack
• Earth Defense Pack

Pinball FX 2 Humble Bonus Key

• Star Wars Pack
• Marvel Pinball Avengers Chronicles pack
• Marvel Pinball Original Pack

 

[FeelTheRads]

I used to play Microsoft Pinball Arcade.

 

[Markman]

How come noone updated this thread cause of the Humble Bundle weekly sale of Fx2 pinball tables? You guys suck.
www.humblebundle.com/weekly 5 days to go.
I think only the latest star wars pack isnt included and a 2 or 3 single tables. go go get em

 

[HanoverF]

Anyone need the Avengers Chronicles Pack, Pinball FX2 Star Wars Pack, and Pinball FX2 Marvel Pinball Original Pack? Free to a good home, shitposting newfags need not apply

 

[Markman]

New way of gifting games is fucking stupid. Fuck you humble bundle

 

[Great Deceiver]

Anyone need the Avengers Chronicles Pack, Pinball FX2 Star Wars Pack, and Pinball FX2 Marvel Pinball Original Pack? Free to a good home, shitposting newfags need not apply

I have the Star Wars pack (that along with Vengeance and Virtue are the only packs I own), but if you're feeling generous I would definitely love having those other 2, and I'm really broke right now. My Steam profile is http://steamcommunity.com/id/greatdeceiver/ (yes, I do play a lot of Dota).

Cheers!

 

[Markman]

http://store.steampowered.com/app/262470/
Rollers of the Realm, the pinball RPG has been released this week. Played for an hour, seems cool. Gonna play more later.
Different balls(characters) have different abilities and stats and you can buy items to boost those stats while playing through the "story" mode.
I like it.

Also South Park Pinball deserves a mention. Released like a month ago.
http://store.steampowered.com/app/322960/

 

[Astral Rag]

 

[Great Deceiver]

Back to playing Pinball FX 2 this week, bought Epic Quest for 50 cents or some chump change and it's a pretty fun table - but it does exacerbate some of the problems in FX2 design in general, namely the grindy nature of tables. I also bought Dr. Strange for the same amount and it's a weird table, feels very small and cramped.

Most of the table packs are heavily discounted but I think they should do a mondo pack to avoid some of the confusion that goes on when buying shit for this game. I also think they should set the bundles so the tables you already own are discounted (as it is now, you pay for the duplicates, which is shit). I'd like to own a complete set of tables but can't be arsed to click through endless lists to find the ones that are missing.

 

[RuySan]

Been playing the new Pinball FX3 lately, and they had to put XP and some sort of grind, which seems mandatory nowadays for every game to have. Still, the tournament features are pretty great (and challenge modes), and i wished Pinball Arcade could implement something like that, although that's never going to happen.

Did anyone played the Universal Classics tables already? Most of the comments on Steam are negative because the lack of licenced music and voice overs, but there's not much comments about the quality of the tables.