I'm in the mood to purchase a quality pinball game for my iPhone (no iPad yet). I'm not particularly looking to spend top dollar but don't expect a great pinball game for $.99. I'm a total noob as far as pinball games go, so I don't really know what I'm looking for. I think the AC/DC pinball game got my attention and got me thinking about pinball but I don't know if that's any good, aside from having AC/DC blaring as the soundtrack. Also, it seems that many iOS pinball games have low initial prices but then charge for all the tables separately. This kind of annoys me but isn't a deal-killer for me. Lastly, I don't know if I want arcade style or realistic, but I'm a noob so feel free to give me all the basic advice you are willing to give (i.e., what in your opinion makes a pinball game good on iOS?). Thanks.
Rob-o-bot is a Pinball sim. Only one table. No IAP for extra tables although if they made more I'd consider purchasing them. It's the only pinball game I have on iOS and it's on sale for $.99 at the moment. I'm not sure about other pinball games.
For arcade style Frogger pinball is pretty good. It's made by the people who did Metroid pinball for gameboy. I think there's a free lite version you can check out.
I can vouch for all of these. If you don't have any nostalgia for either real-world pinball or old computer game pinball Zen is probably the best bet. Collections Pinball Arcade Recreations of real world tables. Starter table Tales of Arabian Nights is great. Zen Pinball Fantasy tables including various Marvel comics licenses. The free starter table Sorcerer's Lair is excellent. Age of Pinballs Tables are a little simple (and at the same time odd) compared to the above but still fun. Very nice graphics engine scratches on upper glass etc. 90s Computer Games Redone in 3D Pinball Dreams HD I haven't played this much since Pinball Arcade came out but used to be my main iOS pin. Very charming old school game. Good music. Tristan Pioneer game from early 90s. Sparse table actually a plus on small iPhone screen. Stand-Alone Tables Crystal Caliburn II Wonderful game one of the all time greats. Revenge of the Rob-O-Bot Just released recently terrific game.
I love pinball games on OS. My fave is Pinball Arcade as it's pretty close to the real thing. I have a few others but as soon as I got the above they became redundant.
Excellent recommendations, Crystal Caliburn is my favorite one. I would also vastly recommend the Last Gladiators tables, they're on the pricier side if you buy them all but their physics are spot on and theyre a blast to play.
Another good arcade style pinball is Small Ball Grand Canyon. Its very simple but the physics make it kind of addictive to play.
You should choose between Zen Pinball and Pinball Arcade. These are the popular ones. I have both of them on my iDevice but the IAPs are pricey for me :/
You should check out a game called peggle. It's a fun little pinball type game that has a nice little twist to it.
Worth much more. The single most amazing pinball table for iOS. It's THAT good. Really. I haven't been playing anything else, for days.
I agree with Athos as well. There are TONS of tables in the store, some good, others not so much, but his suggestions are as good a start as any. Zen pinball probably epitomizes arcade style, or fantasy style games. I personally think that Last Gladiators is probably the best sim (even though the flippers are impossibly long sometimes. But the feel is closest to what I remember from the days of actual tables. That said, all have their good points and bad, and like any genre, you have to try a number to figure what you like. My current favorites are many of the zen tables, pinball dreams, war pinball (gameprom) collection, and the new Robot is pretty good (I think the flippers are a little "soft" for my taste). Have fun exploring. It's been a passion of mine since I joined TA!
I have some new favorite pinballs thanks to this thread. Zen Pinball and Last Gladiator are both very good.
Would love to see an update to the Gladiator tables. Gameplay is OUTSTANDING, presentation not so much anymore. Sadly.
It looks pretty good on my ipad 2 in portrait mode. Actually both of those games are better on the ipad. Zen pinball still lags on my ipad touch and the graphics are almost too small to see.
Yes, an important aspect of the pinball tables that is not always brought up is what device you are using. I only use my iPad for pinball, I find all the screens too small for me on iPhone, but many people don't mind.
Pin tiki ball is awesome. Sure it isn't a tradition sort of pinball game, but I find traditional pinball games boring on iPad, though I love physical pinball machines.. Pin tiki ball is like a modernised pinball for touch devices. It has several types of balls, like if you hit a banana tree, a banana falls out which you can hit for more points, same with watermelons and coconuts, you smash them with the flipper while your main ball is still in play, you also can get a second lava ball to play 2 balls at once for extra challenge, so many things can happen.. Like if you hit a certain spot while the sundial is on diamond mode, a diamond falls out onto the table and you have to hit it with a flipper or even more points if you hit it with the ball.. The graphics are amazing, I still haven't discovered even instance in the game and I love it!