Game Review: Sega Rally Championship

Game: Sega Rally Championship
Console: PC
Developer: Sega
Release Date: 11th October 1994

It's not very often that a game with very little content is able to wow its players into complete satisfaction with its gameplay alone, but Sega Rally Championship achieves this feat easily. Featuring just 3 main stages with a bonus stage for coming 1st at the end of the third, and two main cars, there's really not a lot of variety in terms of content, to explore. The arcade handling of the cars and the layout of the stages featured is simply sublime; fast paced rally action with exciting overtakes and a challenging goal of finishing 1st after just 3 stages.

The first stage, 'Desert' features corners of easy difficulty, the next stage, 'Forest' is a little more unforgiving and features a few difficult corners. The final main stage, 'Mountain' features many twists and turns and a tough uphill hairpin in its middle section. Finally the bonus hidden stage 'Lakeside' is the hardest of them all, featuring a lot of long corners which require expert braking to remain in the lead and win the overall rally, and game.

Graphically the game is very impressive when observed at speed; the grass and rocks rush by and the blurry textures seem almost to be a speed effect. At slower pace however, and at certain times in the game the textures are less impressive, looking dated and low res, and sometimes even popping in and out. The music featured in the game is excellent and really fits the fast paced mood and racing action, and conveys the classic Sega soundtrack feel.

Overall Sega Rally Championship is about the best players could wish for from a 1994 rally game; exciting racing and sounds, a good challenge and some nicely varied tracks are only held back by the lack in quantity, of content. It's a real case of quality over quantity, and this means that it's still enjoyable despite it's lack of depth.

Rating: 84/100
Grade: B

PC Action Puzzle Double Header: Duet and Rflex

Game: Duet
Console: PC
Developer: Kumobius
Release Date: 10th October 2013

Both of the games featured in today's review are action puzzle games with an arcade touch both in their gameplay and their overall difficulty. Duet tasks players with navigating two balls through an ever more complex set of falling blocks. The balls can only rotate on a circular path, clockwise and anticlockwise, so careful planning is required in order to make it through without any mistakes. If either ball touches a block, then the levels resets to the beginning instantly, to be tried again. In the top left corner there's the number of moves remaining in order to complete the level perfectly.

Each level is named after a stage of grieving, and there's a loose story which is narrated as players continue through the levels. Alongside story mode there's an impressive selection of additional modes with an epilogue, daily challenge, endless mode and more. This is important in a game where the difficulty can be overwhelming at times and a break from certain levels is needed. There's always the sense that the level is beatable with a good enough performance from the player, but some of the later levels are devious in how many blocks are thrown at players to dodge.

Graphically the game is similar to many indie games in its simplicity; the two colours against a black and white backdrop give clarity to player actions and leave no excuse for mistakes. The narration in the story modes is presented as text before levels, which could perhaps have been a little more creative. The music fits each set of levels well and provides a welcome bit of entertainment when repeatedly attempting difficult challenges.

Overall Duet is the type of challenging game which allows its players to relax into a trance like state and follow what's onscreen, dodging almost automatically after a while. It can be a frustrating or relaxing experience depending on different factors when playing, but I definitely enjoyed my time with the game, even if some of the later levels took a disproportionate amount of my time playing to complete.

Rating: 76/100
Grade: B

Game: Rflex
Console: PC
Developer: Wesley Le Ferriere
Release Date: 26th August 2015

Rflex is a fast paced block dodging game in which players control a pentagon which is inside a 3x3 grid of 9 dots. The arrow keys or WASD are used to direct the pentagon around the grid and avoid any incoming blocks which appear in patterns and pass through the grid. The player's score is recorded as the amount of time they spent without being hit by a block. The first level's goal is to last 60 seconds without being hit. This is harder than it sounds, as a fair amount of concentration is required to keep track of where the blocks are coming from.

The game features different levels of difficulty which range in speed and block patterns and generally become more and more impossible as they progress. I'm sure with enough practice any mode is completable, but unlike Duet, some of the harder levels in Rflex feel almost impossible without mind reading powers. This said with it's fast paced action and near-instant resets, there's always another try just around the corner, and it's easy to rack up hundreds of go's at the game without thinking too much about it, as the chase for the high score becomes addictive.

Graphically the game is very basic, bringing early arcade games to mind, especially with its imitation CRT screen bend. The grid moves around a little during gameplay which can be disconcerting when concentrating, but it adds a little more challenge. The soundtrack is very energetic and suits gameplay until players are able to relax into that almost trance like state of dodging blocks as they come, where a more relaxed set of tunes might be nice.

Overall Rflex is the type of action arcade game that gets played for 10 minutes at a time every now and then, in the hopes that you've somehow got better at it without practising. I can't see myself sitting down for hours in front of this due to its lack of depth and variety, but it's a fun little distraction nonetheless.

Rating: 67/100
Grade: C

PC Puzzle Double Header: Mini Metro and Hexcells

Game: Mini Metro
Console: PC
Developer: Dinosaur Polo Club
Release Date: 6th November 2015

The London Underground map is a wonderful piece of design which simplifies and easily conveys the information needed by passengers. Mini Metro's art style is heavily influenced by this design and almost instantly playable thanks to a near universal understanding of the tube map concept. In mini metro, stations of different shapes appear on the map, to be connected by player designed train lines. Passengers appear at stations, represented by the shape of station they wish to travel to, and are taken to the most efficient station of that type.

In normal mode, the game ends when too many passengers are waiting at a station for too long and it becomes overcrowded. In endless mode, the goal is efficiency and players strive to find the best way to connect the stations which appear. In extreme mode, the game ends when overcrowding occurs at a station, but any tracks placed are permanent, meaning that careful planning in needed in case new stations appear in difficult locations.

There are several cities to choose from within the game's main mode, each with their own set of problems such as overcrowding, rivers or islands, making it harder to connect the stations in an efficient way. After a week has passed in-game, players are awarded upgrades such as more trains, carriages, tunnels, and lines with which to build. There's a maximum number of lines which can be used, but it's possible to wipe the slate clean and redesign the train system in all but extreme mode.

Oddly shaped stations provide somewhat of a challenge, as while circles and triangles appear fairly often, pentagons and stars will be unique stations on the map, requiring connection to as many lines as possible to avoid complex journeys from outer stations. There are stats and video progressions available in the game, which can be interesting to follow, and contribute to the element of strategy within the game as players attempt to constantly improve on their previous efforts.

Graphically the game is very pleasing, taking big cues from the London Underground map and eloquently modifying the necessary features to make an easy to understand game. The soundtrack is gentle and fits well with the gameplay to convey a buzzing transport network viewed from an overhead perspective.

Overall Mini Metro is the type of puzzle game which may only appeal to a particular set of gamers given its lack of action and story, but as a transport based puzzle game, it gives a surprising amount of options and playability which I find myself coming back to again and again. It's not the type of game that I'll play for hours on end or every day of the week, but for an hour here and there, it's a wonderfully relaxing and visually pleasing experience.

Rating: 84/100
Grade: B

Game: Hexcells
Console: PC
Developer: Matthew Brown
Release Date: 19th February 2014

Hexcells is a puzzle game which shares similarities with the Microsoft classic Minesweeper. As a fan of Minesweeper it was fairly interesting to see the concept work with cells sharing 6 borders rather than 8 and a clean, minimalist design. As players progress through the game's 6 "worlds" new elements are added to keep the puzzling fresh, adding elements of sudoku and mathematics. Players are given gems for completing a level, the number of which is based on how many mistakes were made. A certain number of gems is needed to unlock each world, though nothing really changes from world to world, save for the slight complexity twists.

Hexcells is a very short game, with just 36 puzzles and can easily be completed in one sitting. I found myself getting a little bored of the concept by the end of the game, and it's definitely not something that you'll want to play for hours on end. While it's a clever adaptation of Minesweeper, little has been done to up the excitement or overall replayability. The greatest thrill came from solving a puzzle in a logical way without making any mistakes, but was about as thrilling as it sounds.

Graphically Hexcells is clear and neat, using just three colours. It's a predictable look for such a puzzle game but it works well and makes things easy to see. Musically too there's a minimalist soundtrack which is linked to button presses and events within the game. My biggest frustration with the title overall was the fact that the right and left click buttons are easy to confuse once deeply focused on the game, as the right click marks unlit spots, and the left marks lit ones. This resulted in a few avoidable mistakes, but ones which were perhaps my fault and not the game's.

Overall Hexcells is a competent but short and somewhat middle-of-the road puzzle game. It's since received two sequels which expand further on the formula, but might have been better released as a complete set of 108 puzzles instead of 36 per title for 3 fairly short games. I enjoyed my time playing but will likely never touch it again now that all 6 worlds are complete.

Rating: 66/100
Grade: C

Game Review: Undertale (Light Spoilers)

Game: Undertale
Console: PC
Developer: Toby Fox
Release Date: 15th September 2015

Undertale is a rare type of game which captures the imagination of the gaming community, reminiscent of Earthbound and similarly self aware RPGs, mixing in elements of other genres and presenting a story with two main endings depending on the player's actions throughout the game. It was voted as the Best Game Ever in a recent Gamefaqs poll, which admittedly doesn't say too much other than the fact that there are a lot of people obsessed with the game right now and it may have a place in gaming history as a huge indie hit.

Though I've covered games such as Off and Yume Nikki on here before, with similar art styles and to a degree a similar nature, from the outset Undertale appears to give players a choice in battle situations. Like many RPG's there's Fight and Item options, but there are also Act and Mercy options. These are used to calm or befriend monsters into a state where they no longer wish to fight, so that they can be spared from battle and players can move on.

There are both random encounter style fights in the game, and mandatory boss fights. Players can fight or attempt to spare all of the characters they encounter, but it's best to choose one option or the other, as the neutral ending stops before the final developments of either polar route. It's necessary to have at least one Neutral ending to get the true endings, but savvy players can use their first run as a Pacifist run and then reload their save from the Neutral final battle.

In terms of story, the game is set underground where monsters have been banished by humans. There's a border which can only be opened with 7 human souls, 6 of which have already been acquired by the monsters. Players face tough decisions as they make their way through the game, possibly denying monsters their freedom or having to die for them to gain it. There are some great plot twists and turns, and the true ending to the game is very satisfying to achieve.

Combat takes place in a fairly basic screen, with the player's soul represented by a heart. When enemies attack, they produce various white shapes which drop into the battle area and must be avoided, almost like a bullet hell game. As the game progresses there are different types of attacks, blue ones require players to be still to avoid damage, and orange ones require players to be moving. There are some difficult battles featured in the game, especially in the Genocide run and this can lead to looking the end of the game up on YouTube (congrats if you actually managed it yourself).

The enemies and NPCs featured in the game have an amazing amount of thought behind their design, great dialogue, inventive ways of being spared by players and contribute to a large emotional investment in the characters of the game on the player's part. As you learn of the motivations of each monster and they reveal some of their hopes and dreams it's almost impossible not to feel part of a larger game world, filled with interesting and sometimes very cute monsters.

Besides battles the game features many puzzle sections which are usually fairly basic, but nonetheless fun. The plot is advanced as puzzles are cleared and most of the new areas in the game are accessed via beating one form of puzzle or another. Some puzzles and fights are auto cleared in different runs of the game, and this can detract from expectations a little, but there's usually reasoning behind a one hit KO, or a pre-cleared puzzle.

There are four areas in the game in total, each with their own inhabitants, ambience and relevance to the story. The map is surprisingly large and it takes a good while to make it from the end of the game back to the beginning (which is semi-necessary at one point). Overall the game takes around 5 hours to complete each route, with a little more added on for difficult battles and exploration.

The locations featured in the game add a lot to the mood also; there's a definite whiff of Earthbound about many of the places, and when the humour of the game is added into the equation it's almost like playing Mother 4. There's a few Easter Eggs and hidden things to do besides the main storyline, but there's nothing huge that'll ruin the game if it isn't found. That said, in many ways it's possible to play Undertale 'wrong'; as mentioned before there are two main endings, and a third which is a foreshortened ending.

While killing different story-relevant NPCs can change the ending of the game slightly, any player who hasn't read up on Undertale strategy before beginning the game may well decide to play the game like any normal RPG, triggering the start of a genocide run, or ruining their chances at a good ending by ignoring a character's need for a cup of water in a tense moment. It's annoying to have to go back and start again in these situations, and while there are save files online, it's the sort of game which forces players to play in a certain way to see the best content.

Graphically Undertale has a fairly consistent art style (the above screenshot is one of the only examples of a deviation) which is charming and reminiscent of games of the past in all their 8 and 16 bit glory. The battles are clean and easy to process visually, which is a big help for those not used to bullet hell sections in their RPGs. Musically the game is outstanding with one of the best soundtracks to an indie game I've ever heard, and probably one of the better soundtracks in games in general, though there are a lot of great contenders.

Overall Undertale is an experience which requires a little prior knowledge of the game, but not too much to get the best out of. The emotional investment into the characters and the story is huge and there are some really charming and impactful moments featured in the game as a whole, on any of it's routes and endings. The mix of RPG, Bullet Hell and Puzzle genres as well as the storyline, ambience and music is perfect for creating a real sense of a cohesive and interesting world, worth saving.

Rating: 93/100
Grade: A

Game Review: Turbo Dismount

Game: Turbo Dismount
Console: PC
Developer: Secret Exit
Release Date: 10th January 2014

Turbo Dismount is trial and error style high score based vehicular crashing sandbox game with a variety of levels built in, and many more available from the Steam workshop. There's also a choice of cars, crash test dummies and obstacles to cause the maximum amount of carnage. Gameplay is simple; pick a level, set up your vehicle, rider and obstacles, then set your speed gauge and watch the mayhem unfold. Or not. It's all about planning and retrying until something huge happens.

Most of the inbuilt levels are designed well and present players with many opportunities for different crashes in a variety of the game's vehicles. Other levels are based around a singular gimmick like a big jump, or a loop the loop, but still present opportunities for playing around with the game's obstacles. There's only a couple of the inbuilt levels, and maybe 2 or 3 of the vehicles which present very little opportunity for fun. With the Steam Workshop levels, this isn't so much of an issue, but there's no such luck for vehicles; players are stuck with what they're given.

That's not to say there isn't a good variety and selection of vehicles, but there's definitely tiers of usage. The fastest ones often present the most opportunity for chaos, followed by those which can easily be fallen off, followed by the rest of the selection, with the slowest options trailing behind even them. I found myself picking many of the same vehicles for most of the levels of the game; only some of the workshop levels were creative enough to reward abstract vehicle choice.

The obstacles provide for some creative thinking, as players are able to launch themselves at walls, straight upwards, or into 10 bowling pins if desired. The combination of so many variables, including the character poses and preset/manual steering means that there's a huge amount of possibilities for playing any level, especially when the dismount speed and timing are taken into consideration.

Audiovisually the game gives off a distinct style, with orange and brown hues dominating much of the look of the game, and funky music giving a real 70s vibe to the experience. While there's not a lot of detail on other cars or crashable objects, there really doesn't need to be; in many workshop levels where there's lots of stuff onscreen, the game tends to drop in frame rate, so it's not hard to work out why many of the preset levels are fairly simple.

Overally Turbo Dismount is a fun sandbox game for crashing vehicles with; if you like getting on global leaderboards, then it's probably not the game for you - my best was around 5000th place on a level. This means that its really up to the player's interest level and attention span as to how much enjoyment they can get from the game; without any real completion goals, playing around until you get bored is the name of the game.

Rating: 73/100
Grade: C

Game Review: Zoombinis

Game: Zoombinis
Console: PC
Developer: TERC
Release Date: October 28th 2015

It's not often I review a game that was released less than a month ago, but this is a special case; The Logical Journey of the Zoombinis was released in 1996, and first played by me in 2000 or so. It's an educational video game which challenges players to solve various logic puzzles in order to guide small blue creatures (called Zoombinis) through from Zoombini Isle where they are oppressed, to Zoombiniville, which is a paradise.

There are 12 puzzles in all, 9 of which players will encounter in any given run. From Zoombini Isle, players set off with a party of 16 Zoombinis, and play 3 logic games, any one of which can result in the loss of Zoombinis from their party. After the 3 games, there's a campsite where Zoombinis can be stored. A party of 16 is required to continue from here, either north or south, with 2 different sets of 3 challenges, which lead to another campsite. The final leg of the journey involves 3 more logic puzzles, after which any remaining Zoombinis enter Zoombiniville.

At Zoombini Isle, players either choose the features of, or randomly generate 16 unique Zoombinis. The importance of them being unique within the party is that many of the logic puzzles rely on sorting them by their different features; there are 5 features to set, with 4 options for each feature. When the game begins there are 400 Zoombinis on Zoombini Isle and 0 in Zoombiniville, the goal of the game is to guide the entire population to Zoombiniville. Any Zoombinis who don't make it through a puzzle go back to the last campsite and are stored there for addition to later parties that are short of members.

The logic puzzles themselves are what made the game memorable, and even 15 years after initially playing the game, I was well aware of most, if not all of them before even playing. The ones that stick out the most are Pizza Party where players attempt to appease 3 hungry pizza trolls in a Mastermind-esque game based on toppings and who likes what, Mirror Machine where players must create an exact likeness of each of their party through a mirror with various filters which change features inbetween, and Bubblewonder Abyss which is a mazelike puzzle with traps, requiring players to send their Zoombinis in the correct order to ensure they all get through.

While the game is fun and very interesting for an educational game, there are a few issues with this updated version that can be frustrating. On a few of the games, it can become almost impossible to select your Zoombinis, making it necessary to leave some behind even if there's still attempts left at the logic puzzle, and at times the sounds of the Zoombinis can become overwhelming as they all begin to make noise at once.

Graphically the team have done a great job updating the original game into a high definition and modern version; the colours, backdrops and overall clarity have been greatly improved. Soundwise many of the original tracks and clips from the game have been used. While this is great for the nostalgia factor and reliving memories of the game, it's noticeable that these are old midi and wav files from how they cut off fairly suddenly, and other clues.

Overall Zoombinis was a lot of fun to come back to; not all of the puzzles are as enjoyable as I remember, but there's a general level of quality. I'd definitely recommend picking this up on Steam if you remember playing the original game, there's some great sound effects and narration that'll take you right back to being young. If you've never played Zoombinis though, there's not much point in starting unless you've got kids that you want to train to be logical geniuses. For one of my favourite PC games as a kid, this really hit the nostalgia spot.

Rating: 63/100
Grade: C

Simple Series Quality Test: Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 vs Rollercoaster World

Game: Rollercoaster Tycoon 3
Console: PC
Developer: Frontier Developments
Release Date: 26th October 2004

As one of my enduring favourites in the 'tycoon' series of games, Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 has many fun features and enjoyable aspects, whereas games which attempt to imitate its success without even putting in half as much effort do not. In this double header review I'll first take a look at RCT3 and what makes it fun, and then assess whether or not Rollercoaster World, published by Midas Interactive quite lives up to the same standard.

In Rollercoaster Tycoon 3, players attempt to either build a successful theme park within a specific scenario with cash, theme and time limitations, or  play in sandbox mode where money is no object, and players can go about building anything they like. There are many preset buildings and park features that can be selected and placed, such as gift stands, thrill rides, scenery, preset rollercoasters and even smaller items such as bins, plants and themed items. In addition to this, rollercoasters and park transit rides can be custom designed by players, to pretty much any specification they'd like.

The game screen may seem a little cluttered with options on first glance, but there's a lot of options which need to be accessible when designing parks. At the top of the screen, information is displayed about the time of day, general mood of guests, the current financial situation and speed of the game. The options at the side allow players to check the park's finances, staff, rides and other stats, as well as build new coasters, rides, attractions or park features. Each of these menus has various submenus for themeing and different kinds of options.

The bubble in the bottom left appears when players are placing paths or building a new rollercoaster, and allows various options to be changed. Guests will generally only walk in areas where paths are laid, allowing players to direct them through the park in a sense. In the bottom right bubble, options for the selected ride are available such as opening or closing it, pricing information, the colour of its cars and track, stats and break down information. There's a lot of detail featured in the game, but it serves to allow players to make better decisions in scenario modes.

The scenarios featured in the game are interesting, and worth a try if that's your sort of thing. Personally I prefer to play in sandbox mode and create whatever I can think up, both in terms of parks and rollercoasters. Players are given a huge area to build their park in, and although there are height limits, they're pretty extreme and you're not likely to hit them unless you're trying to. There's several types of coasters to choose from, and almost anything is possible with the creation tool.

The business simulation aspects of Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 are also enjoyable; better parks attract more guests, and advertising campaign or getting awards also contribute to the number of people passing through. Players are able to click on any guest they wish to see their thoughts about the park and rides they've been on. The hiring and firing of staff for the park is another aspect of gameplay (especially in scenario mode); entertainers or park officials who are in a bad mood may have a negative influence on guest moods also.

One of the best and most charming aspects of Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 is the ability to ride the rollercoasters you've created in a first person view. There's some fun to be had in attempting to copy a real world coaster and then seeing how well it matches up. The build mode is well balanced; it's not so freeform that building a functional rollercoaster is difficult, but it's not so rigid that every creation seems to be similar either.

Another great feature of the game is the ability to plan events such as fireworks displays, at a certain time of the day in any part of your park. Coupled with the themed rides, objects and scenery, this makes for a good way to personalise your park. Each time I've played the game, I've been able to explore different ideas, layouts and ride possibilities, which is hugely important to replayability.

Graphically the game looks very nice, with a mix between cartoon styles up close and a more realistic look when zoomed out. The menus are clearly laid out and although sometimes it can take a bit of digging to find the required options, this is only due to the large amount of variables. The day/night cycle is a nice touch, especially for players wanting to emulate "Fright Nights" with a horror theme. Musically the game features an upbeat accompaniment to park building and overseeing events while allowing players to experience the atmosphere when zoomed in. These combine to provide a general feeling of excitement.

Overall Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 has all the content, options and design tools to give players a huge amount of control over how their theme park turns out. Whether playing to the limitations of scenario mode in an attempt to run a successful park or just building the park of your dreams, the game has all of the tools needed to shape a unique and personal experience. There's not much more you could ask for from a theme park building simulation game.

Rating: 78/100
Grade: B

Game: Rollercoaster World
Console: Sony Playstation 2
Developer: Bimboosoft
Release Date: 21st May 2004

And so to Rollercoaster World; surely even a simplified version of RCT3 would be the best game I've played in the Simple Series so far. Well, just like Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 there are 2 main modes; Challenge Mode and Management Mode. They're somewhat different to Scenario and Sandbox mode, however. Challenge Mode has players designing different types of rollercoasters to meet certain speed, thrill and safety ratings, in a sort of grid based view, while Management mode is a little more like RCT3, though not a lot.

There are 5 challenges in total in Challenge Mode, each with its own type of rollercoaster to construct. Players must stay within certain height and turn angle restrictions while building in a strange quadruple view; showing the coaster from above, beside, onboard and another view which I couldn't quite get my head around. Once the track reaches the station players may test their creation, and if the car gets back to the station they're then scored against the target ratings to see if the level has been passed.

Needless to say, this mode is pretty shallow with only 5 challenges, as well as being restrictive in terms of what can be built, and not a lot of fun. After quite a few tries, I wasn't able to get past the second challenge and so decided to give "Management Mode" a go. After a fairly long and boring tutorial (there's one for Challenge mode, but it's shorter), players are allowed to place attractions and custom rollercoasters in a style vaguely resembling RCT3, but there's no real depth to anything as the burger stands, restrooms, arcades and other attractions cannot be interacted with by guests.

Even guests themselves can't be viewed from the overhead mode and require players to change to "Free Walk" view to be seen. It's not worth the effort though as in this mode, despite being able to walk around the park as you please, everything is a low resolution 2D picture. Attractions, scenery, facilities and guests alike are blurred, immobile and generally unimpressive. There's some element of being able to earn money for guests entering your park in Management Mode, but it's really not worth it when you can't see, hear or get feedback from them.

The only thing the game does seem to have going for it is the ability to ride the rollercoasters you've created, just like in RCT3. It's just a shame that the camera is far shakier and the action far less exciting. Graphically, nearly everything else is a low resolution 2D image and even the few things that aren't could have been rendered on the original Playstation. The music featured in the game is annoying and repetitive.

Overall Rollercoaster World can hardly even be called a Rollercoaster Tycoon clone, due to the gap in quality. Neither Challenge Mode nor Management Mode has any hint of excitement, and the "Quickride" Modes where players can see the sort of coasters they can make almost seems to be taunting me with the type of creations it claims are possible. Yet again a Simple Series game fails miserably at something which should have been easy to emulate.

Rating: 30/100
Grade: E

Pinball Games Roundup

Recently I've noticed rather a lot of pinball games in my collection, so what better way to review them than with a cross-console comparison roundup? There's a good spread of eras, starting with the NES and if you're really into your pinball games, I've already covered Pokemon Pinball and Sonic Spinball in a review.

Game: Pinball
Console: Nintendo Entertainment System
Developer: Nintendo
Release Date: 18th October 1985

By no means the first pinball game (the Atari 2600, Intellivision and probably several other consoles had one), Pinball on the NES is the first to my knowledge that could be defined as genuinely enjoyable. While it's still pretty basic and visually unimpressive, the core gameplay and table features are in place to make an interesting pinball table. There's a choice of 2 game modes, A and B, the difference being that A has floatier and less challenging ball physics than B which seems to be for more experienced players.

Although there's only one table to play it, it's full of features including a slot machine style bonus display, a multiplier button, targets, cards to turn into a royal flush, and chicks which can be used to gain extra ball savers for the sides of the table. The control is decent in both modes, although I personally prefer Mode A as it usually leads to a longer game.

Graphically the game is very simple, but it's possible to see all that's happening and each feature of the table is clearly laid out. The music of the menu screen is pretty average, and the sound effects in-game are standard NES fare. Overall this is at the very least playable, and could possibly provide an hour or two of fun for players, though there's not a huge amount to do as there's only one table on which to play.

Rating: 34/100
Grade: E

Game: Psycho Pinball

Console: Sega Mega Drive

Developer: Codemasters

Release Date: 1994

Psycho Pinball ups the stakes for the 16 bit era by providing 4 different pinball tables, sub games, mini games and speed/difficulty options to suit every player. The table themes are wild west, underwater, halloween and amusement park. While the first three are played as single table games, the amusement park table can provides access to any of the other three through tents which transport the player's ball to its destination table. This can be a fun feature to chain together many turns, as long as the player has the skill to actually get to another table.

Controlling the main game is simple, as the left direction button and C are used for the left and right flippers respectively. When a sub game is initiated, it's usually controlled with the A, B and C buttons, and can range from a shell game, where players must guess what cup an object is under, to a game of skill where players must catch ghosts. The final type of control is used for the minigames which are much more elaborate than the subgames, and require regular platforming controls. All aspects of the game control fairly well and at no point does it feel unintuitive. 

Graphically the game is colourful and in somewhat of a cartoon style; the design gives a good overall atmosphere to the game and links each of its tables together well. The music of the game is very enjoyable and adds a lot of character; each table has its own theme which reflects its theme. My only complaint of this game would be that aside from the minigames, all players can try to do is get a high score; there's no bonus goals, objectives or unlocks to keep one's interest.

Overall this is an enjoyable, if slightly shallow pinball game, with a small but interesting range of tables and minigames. The amount of options offered is a nice bonus, with everything from Slow to Psycho speed. While there wasn't much like it around at the time of its release, I'm sure there are better pinball games to come in this review.

Rating: 61/100
Grade: D

Game: 3D Ultra Pinball 2: Creep Night
Console: PC
Developer: Sierra
Release Date: 23rd September 1996

Creep Night was the first Pinball game I played as a child, as a demo of the game had been included on some educational software I had. The game has a horror theme and features goblins, ghouls, skeletons and more over its three tables; Castle, Tower and Dungeon. All 3 play fairly similarly as the object of each is to complete 5 tasks, assigned to the player once the ball is accurately hit into a series of gates. While this may sound complex, it's not particularly hard to do.

One of the main draws of this game is the amount of extra bonuses and areas there are on each table; the castle alone features 3 sets of flippers as well as a singular one on the left hand side. There's also plenty of targets, doors and other things to hit, in addition to the 5 tasks required which range from protecting your ball from a wraith to squashing zombies, to chasing a goblins on an atv. The amount of imagination that seems to have gone into designing this is impressive.

Graphics are probably the game's weakest area overall as most textures and effects look fairly dated. It's still easy to see what needs to be hit, but an HD remake of the game wouldn't go amiss. The musical accompaniment to Creep Night is stellar and forms a lot of the game's uniqueness. The mischievous feel to the theme of the castle level hints at the coming chaos brought about by all manner of monsters and ghosts.

Overall Creep Night hasn't aged particularly well as a game; it's three tables seem pretty similar to each other and the graphics could easily be improved. At times the ball feels as if it magnetically gravitates towards certain items which may help or hinder the player. Despite this, the gameplay, music and design of the tables are still enjoyable and hold at least an hour or two of fun for players who are new to the game. If you're into 90s PC games, then this is definitely a game to check out, otherwise it's an interesting curiosity.

Rating: 64/100
Grade: C

Game: True Pinball
Console: Sony Playstation
Developer: Digital Illusions
Release Date: September 1996

True Pinball features 4 different tables which can be played in 3D or from a top down view, and feature police, baywatch, extreme sports and viking themes respectively. Each table is fairly small and most feature a lot of ramps and ball runs, with a few minigames here and there. Overall they're not as exciting as the tables of Creep Night or Psycho Pinball.

Controlwise, the game is a little strange; the right d-pad button is used to control the left flipper, and the square button is used for the right flipper. While this isn't too hard to get used to, it'd be nice if players could redefine the controls as desired. Each turn seems to be significantly shorter than most pinball games also, with some only lasting around 20 seconds, despite players best efforts to keep the pinball in play. When playing in top down mode, the ball seems to move far faster than it does in 3D mode which, when added to the scrolling effect makes gameplay even harder.

Graphically the game looks nice, especially for an original Playstation game. There are bright colours and nicely detailed graphics on each table. The music which accompanies gameplay is different for each theme and most, if not all music is enjoyable and fits well with its table. Besides getting a high score on each table, there's not a lot more to do in the game, nor anything to unlock which means there's not a great deal of replay value either.

Overall True Pinball may have featured impressive graphics and gameplay for its time on the original Playstation, but to me it feels devoid of many features and its tables feel far too restrictive for fun gameplay. Of course if you're into pinball games then it's worth a go, but if you're searching for the most fun pinball game out there, it's safe to give this a miss.

Rating: 54/100

Grade: D

Game: 3D Ultra Pinball 3: The Lost Continent
Console: PC
Developer: Sierra
Release Date: 1997

The sequel to Creep Night Pinball, The Lost Continent boasted 15 tables worth of pinball excitement as well as a fully fledged story adventure to accompany gameplay. In terms of control and play style, the game is similar to its predecessor and generally features target areas which the pinball needs to be hit into, and minigames which require the player to do a little more than in Creep Night, often using the same controls as the main pinball sections to navigate paths, shoot dinosaurs and more.

Unfortunately it's not all good news; there are three sections to the game and the first table of each section is a large and fairly difficult one. Assuming players are able to progress, the next four tables are far smaller and feature easier goals, acting more as mini-tables and objectives than a fully different table. The best way to experience the game (or so I found) was to play in Practice mode, and work through each table that way, otherwise it was too easy to run out of lives attempting to beat the first level.

Graphically the game is a little more impressive than Creep Night, but retains some of the 90s PC game feel in its visuals. The music isn't quite up to the standard of the catchy tunes of Creep Night either, but there's some solid tracks, and the voice acting that's included isn't terrible. Although it's not easy to play through the game as intended, even playing the levels in the correct order in practice mode allows the player to view how nicely the story ties everything together into more of a pinball/adventure game.

Overall the enjoyment of this game comes from both the pinball aspects and completing minigames which allow the player to progress. Although pinball purists (they must exist somewhere) won't be impressed by the smaller, shorter tables, I think that they add a far more exciting adventurous feel to the game than if it had just been 3 tables, as Creep Night was. If you're looking for something more than just a pinball game, this is recommended.

Rating: 70/100
Grade: C

Game: Pro Pinball: Timeshock
Console: PC
Developer: Empire Interactive
Release Date: 30th September 1997

Pro Pinball: Timeshock features one fast paced table with a time travel theme, in addition to several minigames and modes. The object of the game is to get the high score as usual, however exploring various continents, visiting different time periods and completing dot matrix minigames are also secondary aims which contribute towards getting the high score, and players completion of these is displayed after each ball is lost.

Table features include several ramps, a crystal in the centre, a multi-ball storage and distribution system on the left, and the dot matrix style screen which displays minigames. These range from controlling a minecart and collecting "awards" to climbing up Mount Rushmore; some games are controlled via the flipper keys and others progress according to the events happening on the pinball table itself.

Graphically the game looks very sharp and crisp in its detail and seems to be well ahead of its time, compared to home consoles. There's a different musical theme for each time period as well as some bonus themes, all of which are fast paced and enjoyable. Although the overall difficulty may seem a little high at first, it's easy to build up a lot of bonus points and rewards from minigames and objectives.

Overall while Timeshock only features one table, compared to Creep Night's 3, or The Lost Continent's 15, the table featured is of high quality and was designed to excite players. This doesn't quite make up for the lack of variety once you're used to the table itself, but with great music and graphics, coupled with the fast paced action of the game, there's still a lot of enjoyment for those who enjoy pinball.

Rating: 66/100
Grade: C

Game: Pro Pinball: Big Race USA

Console: PC

Developer: Empire Interactive

Release Date: 31st December 1998

Big Race USA unsurprisingly plays very similarly to Timeshock, as they're both in the same series. The table has as many if not more features and the graphics has received quite an upgrade also. There are more settings including difficulty, table angle, flipper strength and appearance of wear and tear which are nice to see, even if games are usually played on the default settings.

Despite matching Timeshock for features, I found the action to be less interesting and mainly centred on one or two parts of the table. This table was also harder to pick up than some others, requiring a quick read of the rules before starting to gain an understanding of what could be done in its two modes; In The City, and On The Road. Despite the ability to move between cities whilst playing, after the first two or three it began to feel rather samey. 

Graphically the game is slightly better than Timeshock, which is impressive; the level of detail and reflections in the pinball itself give some extra polish to the visuals. Musically I found that the game struggled, playing tunes and voice clips twice as fast as they should have been, resulting in a strange low quality sound most of the time, though this could have just been my computer.

Overall Big Race USA isn't a bad pinball table/game, but it does suffer from monotony at times. The graphics are the biggest draw, though gameplay is also fun for a while. Of the four games included in the Valuesoft Pinball 4-pack (the 4 PC games in this review), I'd say that I enjoyed it the least.

Rating: 60/100
Grade: D

Game: Pinball Power
Console: Sony Playstation
Developer: Littlewing
Release Date: 1st September 2000

While the PC pinball games in this review seem to have had decently sized budgets, Pinball Power is the first budget game of the roundup. With just 2 tables, a Knights of the Round Table theme, and RPG elements it's an interesting idea that doesn't ever really take off. In each table there are objectives to complete, most of which are as simple as hitting a certain part of the table. Once an objective is complete, the table enters multi ball mode for a brief period, allowing players to score more points.

The controls for the game are pretty sound; the left button on the d-pad controls the left flipper, and the circle button controls the right flipper. The ball feels as if it moves too slowly to replicate proper physics, and there are often awkward pauses when the table holds onto the ball for longer than you'd expect. High scores are easy to achieve, and there's no real challenge to the game as a whole.

Graphically the game doesn't look too bad, but I'm not a huge fan of the decision to block half the screen with an information banner, as the play area is significantly smaller because of this. The music that accompanies gameplay is fairly generic and doesn't fit particularly well with the Camelot style that the game purports to have, though in truth neither does the first table.

Overall the game doesn't play particularly well or fast; the only real enjoyment comes from multiball mode. Everything else about it is decidedly average and to be expected of a budget game. There's very little to do on each table and it ends up being about as exciting as pinball on the NES, only with much better options available from the same time period.

Rating: 30/100
Grade: E

Game: Kiss Pinball

Console: Sony Playstation

Developer: Take 2 Interactive

Release Date: 25th April 2001

2 and a bit years after the release of Big Race USA came Kiss Pinball, a Playstation pinball game based on the band "Kiss". Featuring 2 tables and extremely fast paced gameplay, the game uses a top down 2D style rather than the 3D style of most modern pinball games. Especially considering the large time gap between this and the PC games/True Pinball, you'd have expected Take 2 (who were about to release GTA III in the same year). 

There are four game modes offered on each table; Novice, Regular, Arcade and Tournament and these change the number of balls players are allowed, how long the ball saver is on for, and random effects on the table. Unfortunately due to the speed of the game the only real useful mode is Novice, which allows the ball saver to be on for quite a long time, otherwise games last all of 2 minutes, with each pinball quickly heading out of play. This isn't just a skill issue either, the game is incredibly difficult to play at the speed given.

The two tables are fairly varied but don't feature nearly as much to do as the Timeshock or Big Race USA tables, leaving players to hit the same few targets over and over again. Graphically, the game isn't up to scratch, looking as if it could have easily been on the Super Nintendo. The music isn't bad, though it isn't licensed kiss tunes, but rather generic rock n roll. 

Overall Kiss Pinball is pretty poor; without the Kiss theme you'd be left with a tepid pinball game that's hard to control and doesn't even feature that much to do. Unless you're a mega Kiss fan, I can't see a reason to even play, let alone own this. There's far better pinball games out there, and I'd rather play anything else. 

Rating: 31/100

Grade: E

Game: Play it! Pinball

Console: Sony Playstation 2

Developer: Play it

Release Date: 10th November 2003

Featuring 11 unlockable tables, challenge and freeplay modes, and an american theme, Pinball by Play It seems to offer a little more than your average budget game. Table themes vary from Baseball to Cowboys to Space Exploration, all with a nice amount of features and unique twists, though remaining fairly straightforward in comparison to Creep Night and Timeshock. The gameplay is solid although the ball can seem to travel slowly a lot of the time. 

Challenge mode sets players a target on a set table, which when surpassed will unlock another table and target in its place. The first 8 tables or so are fairly easy and hold a decent level of challenge on the whole, but after this things get rather difficult due to new features which make scoring harder. In all the time I've owned this game, I don't think I've managed to get past a certain point because of this.

Graphically the game is bright and cartoonish, but lacking detail in places. It's never too difficult to see where the ball is on the table, but some targets and features can be hard to spot. The music chosen to go behind the game seems to have been inspired by the american theme, with 50s and 60s style swing and blues music accompanying the action. This helps the game achieve a retro feel and portray the age of pinball popularity a little better.

Overall while it still feels a little budget in places, Play It Pinball provides a good level of challenge, progression and variety to pinball gaming. The controls and tables are good, though the ball speed and graphics could be improved a little. If you're looking for a cheap, varied game then this is probably your best bet. 

Rating: 74/100

Grade: B

Game: Pinball Fun
Console: Sony Playstation 2
Developer: HuneX
Release Date: 25th June 2004

With some of the frankly mediocre titles already featured in this roundup, you may wonder what sort of things a Simple Series game could do to be even worse. For those that don't know, the Simple Series is a set of around 150 Playstation games which were developed on the cheap and released by D3 Publisher in Japan. Some of these were then localised and brought to Europe by Midas Interactive or barely localised and brought to Europe by 505 Gamestreet. This game falls into the latter category.

There are 3 pinball tables to choose from; Attack the Dragon (an RPG theme), Love Songs/Idols (a dating sim theme), and Operation Thunder Storm (a generic action theme). Each of these tables is as desolate as the next, featuring at most 8 things to hit, and no real direction as to what players should be doing. Taking the Dragon Attack table as an example, players must hit a target 6 or more times to bring out a dragon which must then be hit a few times, in multiball mode. Once this has happened, it disappears and the process begins again.

Graphically the game is incredibly poor and could probably have been handled easily by the original Playstation. Textures are low resolution and detail, and there's very little in the way of effects. The music featured is a very short loop for each table, and really isn't anything special. The control isn't that bad, but as there's nothing much to aim at, it may as well not be.

Overall this is the least complete pinball game I've played, despite featuring 3 tables. Pinball for the NES at least had interesting features and things to do; there's a complete lack of that in this game. I've come to expect the worst of the worst from 505 Gamestreet published Simple Series games, but this really is a poorly translated, horribly designed, badly programmed piece of trash.

Rating: 5/100
Grade: F

Game: Gottlieb Pinball Classics
Console: Sony Playstation 2/Sony Playstation Portable
Developer: Farsight Studios
Release Date: 26th July 2006

Owning a game on two platforms is often interesting as there are differences between the two versions that can make them better or worse than their counterparts. In the case of Gottlieb Pinball classics however, there's very little difference between the two versions, so for the majority of this review, I'll be talking about the PS2 and PSP versions as the same thing. Both games give players a choice of 10 tables, based on real tables manufactured between 1932 and 1993.

Because the tables are based on real world models, gameplay on most, if not all of them are enjoyable due to the different features and themes on display. The game uses the shoulder buttons to control the flippers, with the analog sticks being used to control the plunger and tilt functions. The pinball feels slightly too light at times, which is disappointing from a game calling itself "The Most Accurate Simulation of all Time" on the cover.

Graphically the game is impressive both on the PS2 and PSP, although the home console version has the upper hand when comparing them directly. All of the tables are bright and interesting and feature good themeing and variety. Musically the game is bearable, save for the pseudo "Pinball Wizard" theme on the menu, which made me wish they'd just licensed the song if they had wanted it so badly, instead of teasing at the chords of it.

Overall Gottlieb Pinball classics acts as a museum for classic pinball tables, which can be played in a selection of different modes. While I feel that this sort of pinball suits handheld games consoles better than home consoles, the slight improvement in graphics and frame rate on the PS2 version mean that both are fairly matched.

Rating: 71/100
Grade: C

In conclusion there's a wide range of pinball games on offer, across a large range of consoles. The best games seem to have a variety of feature packed tables, or at least consistently good themeing, and great gameplay. Surprisingly a budget title came out on top, as Play It! Pinball received the highest score, but it was able to set itself apart from other budget pinball titles in this roundup by offering the best gameplay.