The Pinball Arcade

 Xbox 360
User Score
6.8

Mixed or average reviews- based on 14 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 14
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 14
  3. Negative: 3 out of 14

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  1. aspentitan
    May 4, 2012
    6
    At least for me the Williams collection reigns as the most realistic pinball on a console yet. Interestingly, 3 of the 4 tables in this collection are already within the Gottlieb or Williams collection available on Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360 and in my opinion they are recreated more realistically on those versions. The difference I noted between the two versions are that the Gottlieb/WilliamsAt least for me the Williams collection reigns as the most realistic pinball on a console yet. Interestingly, 3 of the 4 tables in this collection are already within the Gottlieb or Williams collection available on Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360 and in my opinion they are recreated more realistically on those versions. The difference I noted between the two versions are that the Gottlieb/Williams versions seem more accurate with respect to ball weight and feedback, which i prefer as it replicates real tables and gives one that sense of immersion. This version seems more fast and frantic, the ball travel and corresponding flipper speed seems "turned up" to give a faster adrenaline rush approach to the tables. They seem to have lost the feedback from feeling the balls bounce off the bumpers back and forth. People have been mentioning physics are great but I beg to differ. I went back and tried the Williams collection and it seems spot on throughout the tables. In this version the imperfection of the physics is revealed near the lower flippers, it is uncommon but we do see balls not know what to do at times and stutter then relaunch themselves in a direction to resume play. This happens very fast but if you really pay attention you notice it. As well and more troublesome is how the physics does not understand ball movement in a mania around the flippers and frequently balls pass through your flippers as if they were invisible quite often. This has been noted in professional reviews and i agree completely. Further, even if you fail to move your flippers to lose a ball, the ball rather than bounce on your flippers will just carry through your flippers and end your ball. This is very unrealistic. Another glaring hole in this game is lack of a plunger skill shot view when all tables contain skill shots. Can you spell loss of immersion? Another beef I have and as well with the other collections is they have table goals and as you unlock the goals they put the message that you did so right overtop your flippers while you play. This breaks concentration and its very annoying when you have a epic game going and have this happen to distract you. That said, these games are well worth the money and i still recommend them for 800 pts. If you have no pinball at all on your console I highly recommend the William collection, you can get 12 great games rather than 4 for the same price done better. If you already have them as I do then you have some duplicates here but this version is slightly different enough in terms of play speed that it is welcome in my collection anyway and you will acquire a previously unreleased table.… Expand
  2. LemonJoose
    Apr 7, 2012
    7
    If you are a pinball fan, this is a must buy just for the faithfulness with which these tables have been recreated. However, Pinball Arcade is missing many great features that Zen has put into Pinball FX2, such as the online multiplayer score race mode. Pinball Arcade needs more camera view options as well, and it would be nice to be able to see your friends ranking/position on theIf you are a pinball fan, this is a must buy just for the faithfulness with which these tables have been recreated. However, Pinball Arcade is missing many great features that Zen has put into Pinball FX2, such as the online multiplayer score race mode. Pinball Arcade needs more camera view options as well, and it would be nice to be able to see your friends ranking/position on the global leaderboard in addition to their actual high scores. Also, there is no cumulative score or average ranking leaderboard across all of the tables; while this is not essential, I find it to be a fun feature of Pinball FX2. Also the ball physics in Pinball Arcade do not seem quite right. The ball seems too fast and bouncy.

    There are also a few bugs that should be fixed. For example, on Arabian Nights I had the table lose track of a ball, and even the "Call the Attendant" option in the menu did not fix the issue. I had to quit the game and then restart from the Pinball Arcade game menu. On another occasion, the game all of a sudden decided not to respond to any of my controller inputs, and I had to exit the game back back to the Xbox 360 dashboard and then restart Pinball Arcade from there. Occasionally on Ripley's Believe It or Not, the LED scoreboard display starts off blank, and only corrects itself after you hit a target or ramp that refreshes the display.

    Overall Pinball Arcade lacks the fine level of quality and polish that Pinball FX2 has. However, it is still worth a buy if you are a pinball fan. Hopefully the developer will fix the bugs and add some of the features I mentioned. Zen does an amazing job of supporting Pinball FX2, so the bar is set high if Pinball Arcade wants to earn that level of fan respect and loyalty.

    If you are just getting into pinball and do not have any nostalgia for or interest in simulations of actual pinball tables from the 70's, 80's and 90's, I would recommend Pinball FX2 over Pinball Arcade. If you are an old school or hardcore pinball fan, then you should buy both games.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

38
#38 Best Xbox 360 Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
82

Generally favorable reviews - based on 12 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 12
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 12
  3. Negative: 0 out of 12
  1. X-ONE Magazine UK
    Jun 5, 2012
    80
    A definitive digital proxy. [Issue#85, p.105]
  2. GamingXP
    May 17, 2012
    78
    Pinball Arcade is a real pinball simulation. If you like the gameplay of oldschool pinball tables, then Pinball Arcade is perfect for you. If you want a funny action pinball game, then this game may not satisfy you.
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  3. XGN
    Apr 27, 2012
    80
    FarSight Studios made a great decission filling The Pinball Arcade with real life pinball machines. They've all been thoroughly tested through the years and are, even in this digital format, some of the greatest pinball machines ever.
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