Pinball Factory (Mobile)

GameSpot editors' review

• CNET editors' rating: 3.5 stars Very good
  Detailed editors' rating
  Overall score: 7.0 (3.5 stars)

• Reviewed by:
  Michael Mearls
• Reviewed on: 06/10/2004
• Originally published on GameSpot: Pinball Factory (Mobile) Review

Pinball Factory is an intriguing look at one possible path for wireless gaming development. While the ability to create your own tables offers a glimpse into the future--one ripe with potential--its dull gameplay holds it back. Still, given the possibilities wrapped within its design, one cannot help but wonder where this game may lead development.

On its surface, Pinball Factory presents you with two different pinball games, one with a Wild West theme and the other with a fantasy motif. The Wild West board requires you to break several bottles scattered on the board, which unleashes Bad Bart for a final showdown. If you hit both of Bart's guns, the board resets. The castle board requires you to knock away the bricks of a tower that hold a princess captive. You can earn extra points by hitting bumpers at the top of the screen to spell out the maiden's cry for help.

Both of these games offer a typical pinball challenge, but they suffer from similar gameplay issues. The Wild West board offers little interaction. The ball can bounce around the board for long stretches without coming into contact with your flippers. Two alleys beside the flippers allow the ball to slip by you without any hope of stopping it. On this board, playing the game consists of putting the ball into play, occasionally hitting it, and watching helplessly as it slips down one of the alleys and out of play. The option to tilt the board does help things, but overall the Wild West board lacks interaction.

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