With interactive movie-tie-ins becoming less and less common, Zen Studios has come to fill in the niche with their virtual pinball machines. They’ve varied from Avengers: Age of Ultron, Ant-Man, and even Guardians of the Galaxy, but never gone beyond Marvel relations, eschewing other popular flicks to focus on TV Show and game properties. (South Park and Portal for example) Now Zen Studios has gone out of their typical comfort zone, with a pinball adaptation of the winter blockbuster, Star Wars The Force Awakens. So how does it fare? Let’s look at the highs and lows.
Gameplay:
With similar qualities to previous Zen Pinball tables, there isn’t much new here, but it’s still a good case of more of the same. (for the most part) The controls are responsive and go well with the overall feel, and the in level interactions really seal the deal. Unfortunately, this is only really present in the villain stage, as the hero one seems sort of bland in comparison. Comparing the two is the difference between attention to detail, and a lack of it.
Design:
As explained before, Zen Pinball’s tables tend to be more entertaining when there’s more stage interactions. Whether it’s an enemy hero ship catching the ball or a villain/hero saying a classic quip, it adds more character to what would be expected. This just goes to show how much it can carry a stage, as well as the overall design. It’s also good to see a proper mix between a complex stage and a simple one. Unfortunately, the hero one fails at this and the villain stage succeeds.
Sound & Visuals/ Presentation:
While I won’t criticize Zen for having sub-par sound effects and visuals in their original conventions, the trademark Star Wars noises and theme certainly bring the levels to new heights. Barely saving the ball amid an epic score makes you feel amazing, especially for a hardcore fan, and the effect still works even if you aren’t one. This isn’t particularly Zen’s foray, but it’s good to see that they put in the extra effort for the score.
Conclusion:
Overall, Zen Pinball's new level pack is slightly more than a mixed bag. While the hero stage is a bland bummer, the villain stage more than makes up for it. In many ways, the good is some of Zen Studio’s best, while the bad is some of their most uninteresting work yet, especially for a should-be acclaimed licensed tie-in.
Zen Pinball- Star Wars: The Force Awakens gets an 7/10. (Average)
We’d like to thank Zen Studios for sending us a code for this one!
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