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Review: Pinball FX2 “The Walking Dead” DLC table

It’s no secret that I really enjoy playing virtual pinball on any platform I can get my hands on. One of my other loves is The Walking Dead. I can’t get enough of the Walking Dead and its graphic novels, television show, Telltale-made video game and… ok, not Activision’s Walking Dead: Survival Instinct.

I still pretend that last game didn’t happen.

When Zen Studios announced they were teaming up with Telltale Games and producing a Walking Dead-themed table, I was both excited and apprehensive. I was excited because previous video game-themed tables like “Plants vs Zombies” and “Ms. Splosionman” were done well. I was apprehensive because, as of yet, Zen Studios has yet to really delve into a more mature/gritty themed table. It could either go really well or it could get slightly corny and not translate well into a great table.

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Maybe it’s the geek in me, but the first time I play any table I like to just watch the fly-by. It’s a nice panoramic tour of the table showing layout, ramps, orbits, and other set pieces. The flyby on this one seemed much, shall I say darker. It wasn’t filled with fancy flashing lights, colorful backdrops and cute sound effects. The layout is pulled right from Telltale’s Season One of The Walking Dead.

Familiar set pieces such as Clementine’s backyard, the dairy farm, the train, the bell tower and a street from Savannah.  All those are elements that tie in directly from the original game, but done so in a way that fits a pinball table. I’ve said it before, but before a table can be a great table, it has to be fun just to smack the ball around without concern for missions, objectives, or other mandatory things. This table falls into that category just fine. A nice array of ramps and orbits makes chaining combos relatively easy even for the more novice players.

Much like the world of The Walking Dead things aren’t always as they appear. Those benign things can suddenly morph into vexing problems with little to know time to think through them before you have to rush and make a decision.  With there being 5 episodes of the original game, there are also 5 main missions on the table each titled with the name of the episode: “A New Day”, “Starved for Help”, “Long Road Ahead”, “Around Every Corner” and “No Time Left”.  At the start of each mission you have to decide what choice you make using the left trigger or the right trigger.

At this point, I’m not sure if those decisions play a larger role if you can complete all five in one play through I’m guessing they do, but I haven’t been able to pull it off yet. The frenetic decision is only compounded when the actual mission starts as they are (at least the ones I have tried) all timed. You have a finite amount of time accomplish the task or the mission fails. You can always restart it, but hitting the main mission sinkhole but I can see the short amount of time causing some frustration for most players.

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One thing Zen Studios has gotten better and better with is their animations outside the inner workings of the table. It really picked up with the recently released “Deadpool” table, but they took it to a whole new level here. The animations on this table are crazy. Lee shields Clementine from a walker attack, kicks a soccer ball around with her, goes on a sniper mission to thin the walker ranks and gets in a fist fight keeping a walker off him. While the animations are well done, sometimes they draw your attention away from the actual pinball game being played. It’s impossible to watch both at the same time which is slightly disappointing.

On top of the animations another area where this table really shines is the audio. Working with Telltale Games allowed Zen Studios to use audio directly from the game in a way that seems seamless. Most agree the voice acting in The Walking Dead was top-notch, pulling that dialog into the actual table makes all those pieces I already mentioned gel and come together. Helping to tie all of it together even further is the music and sound effects, again right from the game. Kicking a soccer ball around with Clem has a nice easy going atmosphere. However, frantically searching for food and supplies during a rushed 30 second mode has a certain pressure packed and tense musical score. It’s the little things that Zen does well that bring everything together and that’s no exception here.

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The world of the Walking Dead is not for the faint of heart; it’s cold, dark and doesn’t offer much hope. It chews people up and spits out walkers. This table is no exception, my initial apprehensions were unfounded. In their place I found a fun but challenging table. Zen Studios could have played it safe and made an easy table to appease the masses who will no doubt flock to it because of The Walking Dead‘s banner. Make no mistake about it, this table is a challenge for most players those truly epic high scores will be elusive. It will force you to learn the table and be fast on your flippers. For those willing to put the effort into it they will find a rich vibrant table that does not coddle them.

My worry is some players will become frustrated by the difficulty and the timed nature of most missions and not play it as often as others. I’d recommend this table to those true virtual pinball fans, but would caution the more casual players to go in with realistic expectations. Just remember, when being chased by a walker, you only have to be faster than the slowest person of your group. If you can beat one friend’s score, that’s all that really matters right?

The Walking Dead” table is available now for $2.99 USD on almost every gaming platform.

 

Review

–CONTENT–

  • Perfect adaptation from the original game
  • Captures the tone of The Walking Dead
  • Voice acting and audio right from the original game

The bad

  • Everything seems to be a timed challenge
  • At times too much going on all over the place

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About the author

Andy Gray

From the frozen land of Minnesota, I was the weird kid that begged my parents for an Intellivision instead of an Atari. My love for gaming has only grown since. When I’m not gaming I enjoy ice hockey and training dogs. I’m still trying to get my Elkhound to add to my Gamerscore though, one day this will happen.