When I first downloaded the Pinball Arcade application, I was very impressed. The tables were at pocket money prices. Once you have bought the main application, which comes with four good tables, for just £6.99, following releases come as packs of two for just £2.99. You could spend that amount in under half an hour playing the real tables. Apart from the excellent price these tables play and sound as good as the real thing. New table packs are released every six to eight weeks.
Each table has a set of instructions on the main screen. These instructions are just an introduction to the table. Recently though I found out that there are further extensive instructions for each table that may have alluded some players as they are not in an obvious place. These instructions tell you everything you need to know about racking up that high score and how to start all the features. These instructions are accompanied by helpful animated arrows showing you exactly what to do.
These instructions can be found only when you have actually started a game.
1. Chose the table you want to play by pushing the start button.
2. Press the table menu button and scroll down to the Standard Goals or Wizard Goals and select this option
3. Now press the View Instructions button. Here you will find an extensive set of instructions.
These instructions will vastly improve your enjoyment of the tables even more than when you played them in the amusement arcade. Back then you may have had crazy flipper fingers and never tilted at all, but in a sense you were playing deaf, dumb and blind, without the full knowledge of the instructions.
I have also found that Pinball Arcade's support team are very helpful. If you email them they get back to you to resolve any problems within 24 hours. Email them at support@pinballarcade.
One other thing I have noticed is that when a table is released on Pinball Arcade the real tables start appearing on ebay. You now don't need to take up all that space in your home to play your favourite tables from the past.
Not forgetting that these tables are only simulations, there is nothing quite like playing the real thing. About 15 years ago you could still find many pinball tables operating in pubs and amusement arcades. Not any more though. They have disappeared at an alarming rate. There is hope though. A pinball enthusiast has set up the 'Pinball Parlour', a working museum of pinball tables on the Kent coast in Ramsgate. Now you can experience the pleasure of playing real pinball tables from the sixties onwards with the smell of the sea and fish and chips in the air. www.pinballparlour.co.uk.
If you used to play them in the past or have never played a real pinball machine........ What are you waiting for?
STOP PRESS (Champion Pub and Pin Bot)
The latest update for Mac seems to have added the ability to start games and toggle between scrolling and non scrolling mode, during game play. The space key now acts like an enter key which saves you having to use the mouse to start every new game or click through settings.
