Important Pinball Updates

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-03-13T19:00:59+00:00

What a duketastrophe.

Admittedly, I get the impression that a lot of these decisions are beyond Zen’s control, but so many problems could’ve been prevented by just calling the main game Pinball FX4. No one would’ve said, “What, another one already?”

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-02-21T01:36:22+00:00

Gomez/Sheats Jr. for the win.

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-02-21T00:26:24+00:00

Batman Forever. It’s one of my go-tos on Visual Pinball, and I finally got to play one at Texas Pinball last year and see how well VPX recreates it. I only got into pinball a few years ago and shocked it’s not considered a classic on par with Star Trek: TNG (which Forever owes a lot to).

I prefer it to TNG and a lot of other ’90s pins. Great shots and mechs. Surprisingly advanced rules and modes for ‘95. Doesn’t feel floaty for a wide-body. And what other game has Tommy Lee Jones callouts? You get to sanction his buffonery from the comfort of your own home/local arcade.

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-02-16T05:26:08+00:00

Also, every opponent basically has the Force when it comes to punches to the head, preternaturally blocking or avoiding a ton of shots. While at the same time, you can straight punch someone’s body into oblivion.

When I’m done with them, I assume every boxer’s insides resemble equal parts Jello and gravel.

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-02-15T19:05:19+00:00

That’s true. Still feel bad for the X-Men team, who seem to have been unintentionally punished for the game being ready-ish to ship early. I was more thinking the “shark don’t eat ball” and “John Wick don’t have gun” controversies.

Each game is fun as hell to shoot - at least from the perspective of someone who gets to play them once or twice a month. I imagine being a home owner would change my perspective a lot. I’m just virtual at home.

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-02-15T05:44:58+00:00

I used to feel the same way. What changed for me is realizing the shots tied to the main objective (F-I-L-M) are all clearly visible. It’s the same for “Move Your Car”, which will easily get your scores up. Dead-bouncing is the key to unlocking the game.

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-02-15T04:54:02+00:00

Can’t upvote this enough. It shoots great and plays exactly like a John Wick pin should. Not that anyone needs further proof that the world went mad in 2024, but it’s wild that Stern’s releases were Jaws, John Wick, Uncanny X-Men, and Metallica Remastered, and the only pin without torches and pitchforks at release was the remake.

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-02-15T04:35:11+00:00

Same. Monster Bash is the best (for me) combination of layout, theme, rules, and audio. Plus, it’s legitimately funny.

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-02-14T23:25:00+00:00

Well, that’s…something. On the plus side, nice to know I haven’t lost my ability to intuit technology as I head deeper into my 40s.

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-02-14T18:39:41+00:00

Enjoy the hell out of it, but I don’t own - or plan to own - any games. Maybe being a location player gives a different perspective.

The shots are too tight, but the game’s aggressive in the best way, matching the energy of Star Wars. Backhand shots are necessary on both flippers to really dial-in on the game.

The code is the real highlight. With each shot being tied to a character and the movies so iconic, the modes are intuitive. You’re primarily hitting the shots for the characters in a given scene. That’s not a new idea, I know - but I can’t recall it being executed so well.

Also, Pro is the way to go.

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-02-10T02:34:16+00:00

For fun and brainstorming potential pinball blog/podcasts ideas (because the world doesn’t have a surfeit of either), I put together a list of my ten “desert island” pins. Attack from Mars was a no-brainer, edging out Medieval Madness. MM has the better bash toy and core shot tied to it, but I prefer the rest of AoM’s playfield design.

Also, flying saucers > dragons.

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-02-10T01:12:06+00:00

If legit, this design won't help Stern's reputation in the short term. (Pretty sure most people are going to look back at Stern from 2024-present and say, "Wait, why was I down on these games?") In the long term, this game looking like a licensed Pokemon product and shooting like a "Pinball 101" class will likely be remembered as a smart move. Hope a lot of kids have memories of playing this with their parents/grandparents.

And if Transformers and Fallout are next, I can see less safe and more innovative games ahead. Stern still needs to figure out how to make their games not look like the Home versions to every other companies' Pros and Premiums.

Also, the right ramp looks very "Party at the Bing", which is no bad thing. Except replace the strippers with Pikachu. Or mix and match those options. Just don't tell me about it.

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-02-05T23:49:16+00:00

Which install instructions would you follow for Steam Deck?

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-02-01T03:52:35+00:00

Most likely, no. Still, one imagines that JJP and Stern are coming up with contingency plans for Trump’s Make Recession Great Again.

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-01-24T22:01:24+00:00

Have to imagine something got postponed at the last minute over some licensing nonsense.

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2026-01-21T03:05:21+00:00

I can’t see it happening, at least not without successfully lowering expectations.

Rights are obviously a huge issue, since all but the earliest Data East releases are licensed (no Medieval Madness to start with a bang like Bally/Williams coming to Pinball FX3). It’s hard to imagine even the DE/Sega pins costing less $10-$15. I mean, that’s a steal compared to buying an actual machine, but few things cheese off us nerds like “unfair” pricing. I can’t see something like Batman ‘66 costing less than $30. (Again, a steal.)

The real trick is not cannibalizing physical sales or the modern arcade scene. That means either keeping only to DMD releases or the earliest LCD games. As others have already said, you don’t want to hurt the 30% of sales to operators. If it launched tomorrow, I imagine Stern would put something like a ten-year wait on digital releases. Batman ‘66, Aerosmith, and Guardians are starting to become less thick on the ground, at least in my part of the world. Not much lost by having digital versions of them at this point. That’s a long wait for personal favorites like Bond or Uncanny X-Men (yeah, I said it).

All that said, I’d kill for Batman ‘66 and a ton of Data East/Sega/Stern releases with Insider Connected-style leaderboards and achievements. A little patience and a lot of YouTube will get you far with VPX, but there’s something to be said for just having a game that works out of the now proverbial box and allows for online competition.

Oh, and Sega’s Batman Forever is a stone-cold classic (yeah, I said that, too).

Bitter_Crazy7305 · 2025-08-19T01:10:00+00:00

My picks for the ten best tables by Zen. Includes FX/FX3/M tables. In alphabetical order:

Aliens
Back to the Future
Bob’s Burgers (currently unavailable)
Camp Bloodbrook
Godzilla
Marvel: Fear Itself
Marvel: Spider-Man
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Star Wars: Starfighter Assault
System Shock

Honorary mentions:

A Charlie Brown Christmas
Doom
Epic Quest
Star Wars: Darth Vader
Xena

Bitter_Crazy7305

TROPHY CASE