Pinball Wizard
Last night I found myself at the Levy (the most awesomest bar ever) and whist awaiting my dinner (a hotdog with ruffle chips and mayonnaise) I thought I'd give the pinball machine a go. I always kind of liked pinball, but was never bery good at it. Well let me tell you, brothers, Guitar Hero has changed me. It has improved my hand-eye coordination better than I ever thought possible. I was so good at pinball. Twice during my run, I had four balls launched at once. While I was pleased that I'm so good at it, I was also most discouraged by the game itself. The thing is...it's boring!
My game never ended. I had to sabatoge my own game so I could eat my now cold hotdog. What's the deal? Why did anyone ever think pinball was a good idea? Nostaligcally I'm all about them, but then again, I'm all about anything that reminds me of being a kid, bad or good (remember The Polka Dot Door? God, the Polkaroo was creepy). I'll admit, I've never seen Pinball Wizard, and perhaps there are some answers there. I looked for a pinball fansite for most of the morning, to no avail. Seems no one really likes them all that much. I did learn about how it works. I found the Tilt Mechanism most intriguing. More intriguing than the game itself perhaps.
My theory is that there's no competition there, and moreover, there's no story to follow. It's sort of like pong on one player. Frankly, I think it's time to let pinball machines die. They're cool to look at, so sure, hang on to the vinatge ones, but please, pinball machine makers, stop. Did you really think that changing the "plunger", which was obviously the best part of the game, into a button would update it to the gaming needs of the modern kid? Trust me, slapping Frodo's face on the backbox isn't fooling anyone.
Let it go in peace. Let it die.
(And oh my god, computer pinball games? Are you freaking kidding??!)
I'll give it to you on computer pinball games, but truly great pinball games are a work of art. You have to play the old ones though. All the great pinball makers are no longer in business. Any comments on this, Dad?
You're not my friend anymore.
And for your information, it's almost dead. There is now only one pinball manufacturer left in the entire world today, and they're kind of lame.
- Stephen
I was actually considering designing and building a pinball table, and i would use a CAD program to both design and test the table itself, and to program the functions (the software for this already exists)
Wait, Stephen, be my friend! I should have put more emphasis on the fact that I hate the new ones...the old ones...while I still maintain are kind of boring, are a really neat piece of history and nostalgia...I love them in theory, but in actual gameplay, they just fall a llittle short, personally. (and for your information, I totally researched this, and knew there was only one manufactorer left...) I'm not knocking pinball (especially asthetically), I'm just saying I miss a game becoming more challenging as you play, or inviting a level of competition. Pinball, for me, was repetitive. Sorry if I offended pinball enthusiasts.
Many words hurt more than swords... Eliza