Pinball revolutionized, once again!
It seems as though whenever I speak of creativity and originality,another game comes along and knocks it out the park. This time it's ATLUS with "Rollers of the Realm"-a Pinball game,fused with RPG elements. Now,we have seen pinball games with storytelling elements before (curtesy of Zen Studios),but these guys go ALL the way there,making the gamesPinball revolutionized, once again!
It seems as though whenever I speak of creativity and originality,another game comes along and knocks it out the park. This time it's ATLUS with "Rollers of the Realm"-a Pinball game,fused with RPG elements. Now,we have seen pinball games with storytelling elements before (curtesy of Zen Studios),but these guys go ALL the way there,making the games story and characters just as prominent as the pinball.
Released in November 2014, Rollers of the Realm takes the concept of "themed",Story-esque, pinball and stretches it out across the entire game. Introducing you to a Fantasy Medieval world where a group of rebels are fighting to free their world from dark forces,using pinball. Each one of the games protagonists are represented by a pinball,and each ball has uniques abilities.
Each one of the games 10 playable characters are swappable,but be warned,some may not be able to proceed due to certain limitations,(for example,in one area the Knights armor makes him too "heavy" to be used) forcing you to choose a lighter character. A certain degree of strategy is required as in any competitive pinball game. During your gameplay you will have to complete a series of goals in order to advance,as well as accumulate gold which is scattered throughout the stage.Treasure,such as gold (the in-game currency) is collected by making contact with it using the ball. If a specific character or group needs to be defeated,you simply hit them using the character you selected,so you must choose carefully!. Multiplayer bonuses can be unlocked and stacked up if you are good.
Aside from the the character selections and the goal oriented nature of the game,"Rollers" is, at it roots, still a pinball game,and as such,it plays like one.Ball physics are smooth and believable,flipper mechanics are responsive and move how they should. One thing I personally appreciated about the games unique approach to the genre, among many things was the use of more flippers than normal. I've seen 4 flippers on one table before, but never 6 or seven! So points for innovation! The medieval theme gives the game a very classic artistic type of setting. I loved the art style used,in paticular the specific detail put into the characters faces. If I didn't know any better,I'd say they must have been based on contest winners. Music,storytelling and the voice acting all have that "epic" feeling to it.
Good: story, use of characters, ball physics
Bad: there is never anything bad about pinball
Overall: any fan of pinball,or unique RPG concepts will enjoy this gem,its user friendly,you can just pick up and play it anywhere,and gets quite addictive.… Expand