“Ok, so really, Meeplemart is tabletop game store, why would I care about Pinball!?”
Simply put; because PINBALL IS AWESOME.
Contrary to popular belief, modern pinball is not a game of random button bashing and frantic flipping. It is a game of skill, dexterity, intricate scoring, rule sets and objectives assembled into a thematic audio, visual and tactile experience. It is a small interactive world created under glass.
“Wait a second, did you say rules and objectives?”
Just like board and video games of today, current pinball machines have objectives (called modes), rule sets, serious meta gaming scoring strategies and even (like video games) mini-bosses (called Mini-Wizard modes) boss battles (Wizard modes!) and end games. Fan of co-operative boardgames like Pandemic? Some pinball games (like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) even let you play cooperatively with up to 4 players battling against the machine!
“Don’t you just flip the ball and watch what happens?”
In a word, NO. That’s kind of like saying every video game involves you pushing buttons and watching what happens… In Pinball, while your core control mechanics are 2 flipper buttons, you may also have additional flipper buttons, action buttons and a plunger. All these control mechanics take skill to develop and operate accurately. And boy, does Pinball require skill! However, there are many techniques that can be used even with the regular 2 flippers; Live Catch, Drop Catch, Stall Catch, Dead Flip, Rolling Pass, Post Pass, Bounce Pass, Satching Flipper and Nudging to name a few. Learning to catch a ball, aim, shoot and actually hit a target consistently is VERY hard. But feels… AMAZING! Multiply that by an average of 7-10 main playfield shots, secondary shots, multiple playfields and multiple games and you have an almost infinite supply of challenges.
“What’s the Mode thing all about?”
This is one of the coolest things about Pinball; once you learn how Modes work on one Pinball game, you will usually be able to figure out how they work on every Pinball game thereafter. Modes are objectives within a pinball game that you need to accomplish in order to get to a Mini-Wizard or Wizard mode. Think of an RPG, where you collect weapons, items and party members in order to be able to fight that mini-boss. For example; in the Avengers Infinity Quest Pinball, you collect the different members of the Avengers team by making multiple different shots for each team member. Once you have collected a team member, you can also level them up by continuing to make those shots. Once you feel ready, you can then open Doctor Strange’s portal to fight the minion’s of Thanos. You get to chose which Avengers you will use against which minion(s). When battling the minion, each successful shot (indicated by coloured arrows) deals damage to the minion while hitting the incorrect shots damage you. Once you have reduced the minion’s health bar to nothing, you have defeated the minion and you get an Infinity Stone. Place the Stone on the playfield at a location of your choosing and that shot will give you bonuses for the duration of the game. Collect all the Infinity Stones and you are ready to take on the boss man himself! Thanos!
“Sounds easy”
Oh ya, forgot to mention; NO PATTERN TO MEMORIZE. NO PAUSE. NO SAVES. NO CONTINUES. …and you thought Dark Souls was brutal… Pinball is crazy hard. So hard, that I believe it is the biggest reason most people don’t even know that they have rules. That being said, with time, your skills do develop. Just like learning special moves in Street Fighter, the better you get at the mechanics, the easier the game becomes.
“Ok, sounds pretty cool, how do I try it?”
Well, not only can you buy Tokens to play them at Meeplemart, but starting July 8, EVERY in store purchase made at Meeplemart of $10 or more will get you a FREE Token! But wait, it gets even better; for every multiple of $10 you get another FREE Token! So, spend $50, get 5 FREE Tokens! Games are 1 Token = 1 Play, so this is a great way to not only get the miniatures, boardgames or hobby products you want, but it’s also a great way to try Pinball out and experience the crazy amount of fun they can be!
“Coooool”
Yessssssssss...
Steve(Owner of Meeplemart)