Over-the-top fun: Pinball Evolution

Pinball Evolution is 4pockets.com's newest pinball game, their last being 4Pinball, released way back in 2002. I remember playing 4Pinball on my Pocket LOOX back in those days, and it was the best game I played during the short amount of time I had that device.

Pinball Evolution, like its predecessor, is based loosely on a slew of pinball games released on the desktop PC back in the mid-90s. Probably the greatest of these were released by Epic Megagames, and they were noted for having the following features: fast, smooth gameplay, pinball tables that were larger than the actual screen (they scrolled vertically), and over-the-top level design, graphics, and audio. While they were a bit over-engineered, they were fun partly because they did things you could never actually do on a real pinball machine.

PE offers much the same as 4Pinball, along with some predictable updates: a new engine, better graphics, even faster gameplay, and better special effects. If you liked the original game, then the odds are pretty good that you'll like this one too, assuming you have a newer device capable of delivering the goods. The game comes with only three tables. But believe me, they're immense.  Almost too big, in fact: each one is actually two tables stacked end-on-end, complete with two sets of flippers. This allows the game to capitalize on the vertical scrolling effect, but it borders on being too much of a good thing (I realize we're dealing with a small amount of screen space here and that real pinball tables are fairly large). Good tables are hard to design, and virtually everyone has a different opinion on what they should look like. Some people think there's too much open space on the tables. I don't necessarily agree; I think tables should be kept as simple as possible. However, I would prefer these tables to be a bit smaller and perhaps modeled more like actual pinball tables. It would be interesting if 4Pockets were to hire a pinball table designer and see how they'd handle the challenge of developing a playable table within the constraints of the small Pocket PC screen.

Lest I harp too much on the point, PE is a good successor to 4Pinball; the latter was the best pinball game available on the Pocket PC, and its newer incarnation keeps that tradition alive. It's fast and a lot of fun, and while you can't use any of the 4Pinball expansion packs on the new version, I'm sure 4Pockets will come out with additional tables soon.

Subscribe to Smartphone & Pocket PC magazine

This Newsletter is published by Thaddeus Computing, Inc., 110 North Court Street, Fairfield, IA 52556.

Allen Gall's The Week in Games  Copyright © 2008 by Thaddeus Computing Inc.