Nintendo Wii - Pinball Hall of Fame
Physics are very good, although when multiball occurs it can feel a little floaty near the lower flippers. The ball also seems to float a bit when coming back down the launch ramp. Other than that, the ball reacts exactly like you would expect it to. There is a nice mix of tables, and all of them are interesting. I would say that I like this collection far better than the Gottlieb collection. I've played the Pinbot table before, and in fact it was one of my personal favorites as a kid. The tables have been recreated faithfully to original styles.
The graphics have a style to them that I can only describe as being like a comic book. I don't believe it's an intentional style, just a limitation of the rendering the Wii can handle. It gives the table a sort of Crayola appearance as opposed to looking life-like.
Another graphics issue is due to the low resolution of the Wii. Some of the graphics contain detailed images that just get terribly aliased and blurry during the motion of the game. As a result, it is difficult to appreciate some of the graphics, since they look blurry while playing. It really makes me wish this would have been released for the 360/PS3.
Sound effects in the game are almost perfect. It is great actually being able to hear the unique sounds of each table, unlike in real life where arcades have background music cranked up and the noise of other machines drowns out the game you’re playing. With this collection you can turn down the ambient noise and actually enjoy the sounds each table has to offer. The only knock against the sound I have is one particular sound effect (extra ball) has a loud scratch at the beginning of it. I don't know if it is intentional, but it is annoying. Controls are disappointing but work fine. You are only given a single control scheme, and it uses the Wii Remote and Nunchuck.
The game gives you goals for each table to try and accomplish. When you complete the goals you earn credits which can be used to unlock free play mode on the tables. From the start, 4 tables are already available for free play, and you have to unlock the other 6, or else pay 1 credit for each play. The thing is, every time you clear all the standard goals of a table, you get to unlock a table of your choosing for free. As a result, it's very easy to unlock tables without having to use credits. Once you've completed all of the standard goals, "Wizard" goals become available for you to take on. The goals are all based on the things you normally need to do in the game which makes each of the games more interesting, and helps you learn the nuances of each table. You can earn credits by completing goals, and there are also some unlock able items for each table: An alternate ball, mirror mode, and “Tilt”.
In addition to all that, the game has the original flyer art for each of the games, and a slideshow of all the tables. As well as 2 additional modes besides the standard arcade: Challenge mode, and Tournament mode. The challenge mode requires you to beat a certain point score on each table and only gives you 3 tries per table. The Tournament mode is intended for multiplayer, and challenges players to try and beat each others score.
On a scale of 1-10, I'd give it an 8.5. If it was in HD on the 360 or PS3 I would give it a 9, but the low resolution graphics really do hurt this title on the Wii, particularly the heavy aliasing. I would say that for $30 it's definitely worth it if you're a pinball fan.Read full review
