Multi-ball combos coming to an Apple device near you

If you've been paying attention as of late, you might notice that Apple Arcade has been on something of a roll. Following its massive dump of new titles back in April, the service has seen several high-profile games released or announced, including Monster Hunter Stories+, Tetris Beat, Layton's Mystery Journey+, and Fantasian Part 2. Today brought the announcement of yet another huge get for the subscription service when Zen Studios revealed Apple Arcade will be getting its own exclusive Zen Pinball title.

Zen Pinball Party will release for the service "soon" with 12 tables available on day one and more scheduled to arrive over time. Some of the big-name tables you can expect to see at launch includ?e "Williams' Theater of Magic," "Attack from Mars," "My Little Pony," "How to Train Your Dragon," and "Kung Fu Panda."

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That looks to me to be a fine initial batch of tables. In addition to the standard single-player mode, Apple Arcade's Zen Pinball Party will support a local multiplayer mode called Hotseat, online tournaments, and seasonal events with prizes you can use to "further customize your play experience." All in all, it sounds like another great addition to a service that has been adding some darn good games over the past several weeks. If you're still holding onto that free first month, now may be a good time to use it, especially with the second half of Fantasian launching soon.

Zen Pinball Party can be reserved right now on Apple Arcade to download when it's made available. You may also want to check out Zookeeper World while you're there because it looks amazing.

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Special When Lit, fam

Zen Studios have announced that the latest iteration of their pinball simulator, Pinball FX, will be coming to current-gen platforms later th?is month, September 26 to be precise.

Pinball FX3 will bring the great physics and high quality audio/visuals from its predecessor, but is also adding an all-new multiplayer mode, user-created tournaments and cross-platform play to the mix. The Sorcerer's Lair table will be inc??luded for free with the software downlo??ad.

The Pinball FX3 software is free of charge, allowing you to purchase the particular games that take your interest from a staggering 65+ on offer. Although the majority of your purchases from previous Pinball FX games will carry over to the new platform, a handful will not due to expired licensing issues. The full list of compatible games can be found here.

The Universal Classics Pinball series will launch the same day, with Jaws, E.T. and Back to the Future ready to rock the new engine on day one. Cross-Platform play will allow Steam users to play alongside both PS4 and Xbox One o?wners, though obviously the PS?4 and Xbox owners cannot play each other.

Pinball FX3 launches on PS4, Xbox One and PC September 26. The Universal Classics pack is also coming to Zen Pinball on iOS, Google Play and Mac.

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I don't see Tina, the best character

Joining Family Guy in Zen's "Balls of Glory" Pinball Pack is the vastly superior Bob's Burgers??. The table is set up on the street outside the titular restaurant, with It's Your Funeral Home & Cre??matorium next door and Jimmy Pesto's across the way.

The whole family is here in some slick cel shading; Bob is manning the grill near the mustard-themed plunger, Linda is set up near a fire extinguisher toward the back, Gene is advertising in his burger co??stume out front, Louise is standing around across the street, and Tina... wait, where's Tina? Don't tell me they left out my favorite character! We can hear her near the end of the trailer, so maybe she has a role on the table not shown in the promotional material.

No specific release information is given past that this table is "coming" to Zen's titles, spanning basically all relevant platforms. The Family Guy table was slated for "fall," s?o if this is releasing along with it, we can expect it soon.

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They killed my multiplier, you bastards!

With Marvel, Star Wars, and The Walking Dead under their belts, there's no license too big for Zen Studios to take on at this point. This time around, Zen has teamed up with Comedy Central and put together two new tables themed after none other than South Park.

I wasn't sure what to expe?ct, but shou??ld have known the tables would be phenomenal.

South Park Pinball (Android, iOS, Mac, PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4 [reviewed], PlayStation Vita [reviewed], Xbox 360, Xbox One)
Developer: Zen Studios
Publisher: Zen Studios
Released: October 14, 2014 (PSN) / October 15, 2014 (Mac, PC, Xbox 360) / October 16, 2014 (Amazon, Google Play, iOS, Xbox One)
MSRP: $4.99 (PC, PSN, Xbox 360, Xbox One) / $3.99 (Android, iOS) / $2.99 (Mac)

The main table of the two is, of course, themed after South Park in general. Immediately, the table's appearance impressed me. Sticking with the show's construction paper cutout appearance, the table looks as if it was almost entirely made out of paper and cardboard. Paper lays out lane outlines, and cardboard is used as the environments infrastructure. It looks very convincing, and presented through so much color. Seriously, so much color. I love it.

Zen's love for the source material is apparent as always, and they clearly tried to pack in every classic South Park reference they possibly could. ManBearPig, Kenny dying, Sarcastaball, and dozens more. I'm sure I didn't catch all of them, either. It wouldn't be South Park without toilet humor, and, to drive this home, the table's skills??hot tasks the player with shooting the ball into a toilet. Additionally, Randy will grow extra balls for you for completing certain tasks. Come on, those are funny.

The Butters Show is the other table in the pack, and probably my favorite of the two. Who doesn't love Butters? I'm happy to report the actual theme song from the Butters Show episode plays in the background the whole time. Professor Chaos, Marjorine, and the rest of Butters' alter-egos of course make their appearance. Lexus even has a prominent place on the table. Really, The Butters Show reminded me just how f?unny of a character?? Butters is.

Butters' table continues the overall aesthetic, but differs quite a bit in terms of layout from the South Park table. It's far more spaced apart, and as a result is nowhere near as difficult. I had a hard time keeping the ball in play on South Park because everything was clustered towards the center -- Butters was a nice break.

On both tables, sound clips of?? all the characters are used quite heavily. They sound good, there's no denying that. However, hearing Butters yell "Loo Loo Loo" (among other clips) over and over wore pretty thin af??ter awhile. Maybe it was just me, but the voices seemed really loud in these tables. Of course, the sound effects volume can be adjusted if it's a problem for you.

Every new addition to Zen Studios' catalog of pinball tables is always incredible. South Park Pinball is no different, and is a perfect jumping on point if you haven't been checking out Zen's tables. They're fun, full of character, and South Park Pinball easily has my favorite table design so far.

I'm pulling for a Coon and Friends tabl??e in the future.

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Around every flipper

Zen Studios has been quite busy the past few years expanding its line of pinball tables; most of which have been in the form of licensed Marvel and Star Wars tables. There have been videogame-themed tables in the past -- such as Ms. Splosion Man and Plants vs. Zombies -- but it's been quite awhile?? since Zen has stepped outside of?? those colossal franchises.

It was slightly surprising when Telltale Games and Skybound Entertainment announced a partnership with Zen to create a table based on The Walking Dead: Season One, but welcome all the same. After spending some time with the table, it's everything I co??uld have hoped for.

The Walking Dead Pinball (Google Play, iOS, Mac, PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4 [reviewed], PlayStation Vita [reviewed], Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One)
Developer: Zen Studios
Publisher: Zen Studios
Released: August 26, 2014 (PSN) / August 27, 2014 (PC, Xbox 360) / August 28, 2014 (Amazon, Google Play, iOS, Wii U, Xbox One)
MSRP: $2.99 (Mac, PC, PSN, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One) / $1.99 (Android, iOS)

At this point, there's? a few things one can expect from a Zen Studios table: phenomenal table design, art, and elements that separate it from any other table. To keep this?? short, that's all here. The table looks incredible and uses the same models with the same comic book cel-shading found in the game. Voice acting sounds particularly great here as Zen was uncharacteristically able to use the original voice clips. The soundtrack also sounds stellar, with a collection of atmospheric tracks playing throughout that sound like they were pulled straight from the game.

The Walking Dead Pinball is unquestionably a pinball table, but outside of where the ball is actually in play there are no walls giving the indication of playing a virtual pinball table. Instead, the field of play is set on a landscape of all the most memorable set pieces from each of the five episodes contained in The Walking Dead: Season One. Around the table, you will see scale representations of Clementine's house, St. John's barn, the Motel camp, a block of buildings from Savannah?, and the train. On the ta?ble is the bell tower, boat, Everett's Pharmacy, and Lee interacting with Clementine. This is by far the most packed table to date.

Visually the table packs in every detail from Season One, but the missions do as well. Obviously the main missions are split between each of the five episodes, but how these play out is slightly different than the norm. While what is done to complete each mission is always the same, after selecting one to play the player has to immediately make a split-second decision pulled straight from the episode. Every time that same mission is selected, a different choice is presented. I don't think this adds up to anything in the end, but it's a rea??lly cool way to present the same mechanic on a pinball table.

Of course, no Walking Dead tie-in would be complete without zombies. Zen Studios sure doesn't let you forget ??they're there, either. Numerous zombies stumble around all the background sets, block the mission hole, ??are prominent all over the table art, and appear for some of the missions.

Speaking of the missions, they're as fun as they are interesting. Worth mentioning here are the sniper and defend-against-a-horde missions (which isn't to say I don't like the other missions). The sniper mission is similar to stuff that has been done in some of the Star Wars tables (a shooting gallery mini-game off-table), and the horde is similar to a mission in the Plants vs. Zombies table (hit the zombies that appear before they get too close). They?? were fun then, and still are within the context of this new table.

Everything we loved about The Walking Dead is presented again through a pinball table, and, with pinball and Walking Dead being two of my favorite things, it's a dream come true for me that something like this even exists. But even if you only like one or the other, The Walking Dead Pinball is still definitely worth your time and money, as it's an incredible addition to an already p??henomenal lineup of pinball tables that delivers with every new entry.

Here's hoping we have future tables based on 400 Days and/or Season Two to look forward to.

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Guardians of the table

Hot off the heels of the stellar Deadpool table back in June, Zen Studios is going strong with its line of Marvel pinball tables. Guardians of the Galaxy finally got the film treatment, and now it has the pinball treatment. The movie is ?super rad, so you're probably wondering if the table is as well. It's probably a surprise to no one that Zen Studios de??livered a fantastic table yet again.

It may have something to do with the excitement over the film, but I think the Guardians of the Galaxy table may easily be my favorite yet.

Guardians of the Galaxy Pinball (Google Play, iOS, PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4 [reviewed], PlayStation Vita, Xbox 360, Xbox One)
Developer: Zen Studios
Publisher: Zen Studios
Released: July 29, 2014 (PSN) / July 30, 2014 (PC, Xbox 360) / July 31, 2014 (Android, iOS) / TBA (Xbox One)
MSRP: $2.99 (PC, PSN, Xbox 360) / $1.99 (Android, iOS)

Zen Studios is always the master of what I like to refer to as cinematic pinball, and with the Guardians table the studio has gone entirely in that direction. The table flows in line with the plot of the film (which will not be spoiled here), starting at the point where the Guardians first all come?? together and have to escape the area they're in.

This is emulated by a multiball of every character's ball wherein the player has one minute to hit as many marked ramps as possible. Once the characters "escape," the player has one shot to retrieve Starlord's missing tape deck by hitt??ing the marked ramp, and if that's made a title splash fills the screen. At this point, the player hasn't launched a single ball yet and could already have a solid score to st??art with. It's only slightly different from the norm, but it really adds something overall in experiencing the table.

The table design is top notch as ever; there's interesting contrast in the ??color palette, ramps crisscross over each other, and the table's art looks really nice. Zen was somehow able to incorporate all the interesting aspects of the film onto the table, and its respect for the source material truly shows.

Starlord has an appreciation for '70s rock-and-roll and pop songs, and the soundtrack on the table is trying to pay homage to that. This was done incredibly well in the film, but Zen understandably did not license o??ut any of thos?e tracks.

The original song used in the table is basically a really boring guitar riff played over and o??ver until the player enters a mission and a different track play??s. I had to turn down the music volume after awhile because I just couldn't deal with it.

The table is good enough that the music shouldn't deter you from playing, how??ever. Everything flows really well, and?? does so quite quickly. I've never claimed to be any good at pinball despite how much I enjoy it, but I found this table to be pretty challenging.

It's fairly easy to get a respectable score quickly, but I wasn't lasting very long soon after that. I haven't come close to completing all the mi?ssions in one go (or obtained a score to be proud of yet), but I'm well on my way.

If you loved the film, are excited for the film, simply can't get enough of pinball, or want a place to start in Zen Studios' pinball catalog, I can't recommend the Guardians of the Galaxy table enough.

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Marvel and pinball, together again

Heh. There's a mini Deadpool pinball table in this? Deadpool pinball table. That's fun.

Quick-time events, even if the??y're supposed to be a jok??e? Less fun. But I like that Zen Studios is giving Deadpool a table all his own -- it's coming next week to all of the usual platforms:

• Pinball FX2 for Xbox 360 and Steam: June 25
• Zen Pinball 2 for PS3, PS4, and PS Vita: June 24 in North America, June 25 in Europe.
• Zen Pinball 2 for Mac: June 25
• Zen Pinball / Marvel Pinball for Android, iOS, and Amazon: June 26

Expect the fourth wall to be broken. Again? and again.

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"Epic Quest" is next for Zen Studios, and it sounds effing awesome. It's an add-on table coming to Pinball FX 2 (Xbox 360) and Zen Pinball (PlayStation 3, Android, a?nd iOS) this February complete with persistent?? loot and experience points.

This is one of the few tables outside of those based on Marvel properties that genuinely intere?sts me. Zen Studios VP of marketing and PR Mel Kirk sums it up: "With a wink and a nudge towards classic RPG tropes, Epic Quest blends frantic pinball action, obsessive character building, and liberally applied tongue-in-cheek humor."

If for whatever reason you can't watch the trailer, Zen has provided?? u??s with more than enough screenshots.

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Oh, right -- Nick Chester doesn't work here any longer. Since Dale's been pressured into taking on Rock Band DLC news, I suppose I can tackle the odd Zen Pinball story. Speaking of which, Zen Pinball is now up on the App Store and Android Marketplace. (Yo?u'll need a m?obile device with NVIDIA Tegra for the latter.)

Zen Studios is using the same strategy as before, so in order to get you early and sell add-on tables at a later date, a free table (Sorcerer’s Lair) is being offered to start you off. Now, how about that 3DS version?

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Zen Studios has revealed that the uncanny X-Men will be the focus for the second table in their upcoming four-pack for Zen Pinball and Pinball FX 2, Marvel Pinball: Vengeance and Virtue. Based around the long-standing feud between Charles Xavier's student heroes and the Brotherhood of Mutants led by Magneto, the table features missions based on events in the comic's history, including the Dark Phoenix Saga. And, of course, there will be the Juggernaut.

I could take or leave Ghost Rider, the first table announced for the pack. The property has just never held much interest for me. But I'm going to be all over the X-Men one like Logan on Jean when Scott leaves town. Any guesses on the other two? I'm thinking there may be some Punisher in our future.

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Zen Studios is feeling generous. If you buy Marvel Pinball on the PlayStation Network, you'll get Zen Pinball absolutely free.

Marvel Pinball, which includes four tables -- Iron Man, Spider-Man, Blade, and Wolverine -- will run you $9.99. You'll get an additional eight tables with Zen Pinball with ??this deal, which makes this what the kids would have called a "totally badical" offer back in 1989.

The latest Marvel Pinball table, Captain America, is out next week for both PlaySta?tion 3 and Xbo??x 360.

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