Zen Studios adds The Force Awakens to its line of Star Wars pinball video games

Most Saturdays I have an hour to kill while waiting for my daughter at the dance studio during her ballet lessons and often find myself spending the time playing the Star Wars themed digital pinball tables from Zen Studios that I've downloaded on my iPad.  There are a variety of games available representing the movies and televisions shows from the Star Wars saga plus a few digital pinball tables dedicated specifically to some of the more colorful characters from the sci-fi franchise.  In addition to imitating the play of traditional pinball machines these video games also add buzz and whistles like digital special effects and video to enhance their entertainment value.  Plus you don't have to keep stuffing them with quarters while you play which is nice.  I also have a few of these Star Wars pinball apps from Zen Studios on my iPhone which are nice to play around with when I have some down time during the day.

In addition to enjoying digital pinball on tables based off the characters and events in the first six Star Wars movies, soon players will be able to add The Force Awakens experience to their game play. On January 12, 2016 Zen Studios is releasing a Star Wars Pinball: The Force Awakens Pack which will have two new pinball tables featuring art, models, and sounds directly from the film and will be available on Playstation 3, Playstation 4, Playstation Vita, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Mac, Windows 10, Steam, plus iOS, Android, and Amazon mobile devices.  The two new additions to Zen Studios video game pinball will be titled Star Wars Pinball: The Force Awakens Table and Star Wars Pinball: Might of the First Order which will allow players to choose whether they want to support the Light Side or the Dark Side of the Force.



With Star Wars Pinball: The Force Awakens Table players will team up with the Resistance and fight against the First Order alongside such heroes as Rey, Finn, and Poe Dameron. It features all-new table-transforming environment mechanics that allow players to visit locations from the film and twelve action-packed story modes that incorporate some of the most thrilling moments from the motion picture into the game play.

Star Wars Pinball: Might of the First Order puts players in command of the First Order, tasked with extending its power across the galaxy.  This digital pinball table features an innovative two-level playfield where you must use a special ball-lock system tied to Kylo Ren to crush the Resistance, as well as the ability to control your own Star Destroyer with the help of a special magnetic upside-down ramp!

While it is nice to see Zen Studios adding The Force Awakens to their pinball table themes, as a player who already enjoys these video games I'm even more excited that they are also adding new mechanics and elements that will provide different game play experiences. Star Wars Pinball: The Force Awakens Pack will be available as a digital download for console, PC, and mobile device beginning the week of January 12, 2016.  Visit starwarspinball.com for more information.

New Star Wars Video Game Pinball Tables Launched in Time for May the Fourth

Zen Studios has launched four new Star Wars video game pinball tables just in time for Star Wars Day (May the Fourth).  The four new tables themes are Han Solo, Episode IV - A New Hope, Star Wars Pinball: Droids, and Masters of the Force.  The tables can be purchased individually or combined as a pack called "Heroes Within" that provides all 4 games bundled together for the price of 3.  Star Wars Pinball can be played on Play Station 4, Play Station 3 and PS Vita, Xbox 360, Steam, IOS, Google Play, Kindle tablets and Fire TV, and the Mac App Store.

The new HAN SOLO table looks to be my favorite of the new pinball tables.  The Star Wars' Cantina  Band sets the stage for this game providing the theme music for what looks to be a fun game with highlights that include a wookiee rage multi-ball sequence and shooting down tie-fighter pinballs.  Zen Studios has done a nice job of incorporating 3D visual effects and video game style action while maintaining a traditional pinball theme to their Star Wars tables.

The Episode IV: A New Hope table does a nice job of bringing the feel of the real life Star Wars pinball table to a video game.  It expands on the original pinball machine with 3D images that provide mini skits of scenes from the movie.  The game also features a fun bonus sequence games where your pinball is trapped in the Death Star garbage disposal and you need to hunt down the monster that lurks within or make the Death Star trench run in an X-wing fighter.  Special effects that include the Death Star laser shooting at you and Ben Kenobi swiping at pinballs with his lightsaber make this game superb!

If you are a fan of R2D2 & C3PO you'll enjoy the new DROIDS table which also has an interesting jawa theme going on:

The final game has more of a Clone Wars/Prequel Movie vibe to it compared to original Star Wars movie feel of the three others, but if you are into those aspects of the franchise and like Yoda & Darth Vader check out MASTERS OF THE FORCE:

I've downloaded Zen Studios Star Wars pinball games to my iPad & iPhone and find them "impressive, most impressive"  (to quote Darth Vader).  The one gripe I have about Zen Studios and their pinball games, ,and you should be aware of it if you juggle apps between an iPad & iPhone like I do, is that the tables aren't compatible between the two apps.  So if you have an iPad you can't use the pinball tables you buy on it for your iPhone, similarly if you download a table onto your iPhone you can't use it on your iPad.  So if you want all your tables playable on both your iPad and iPhone you need to buy them separately for each device.  That is really annoying and I find Zen Studios is being just a little greedy dipping into consumers pockets with that move.

For more information visit:  starwarspinball.com

New STAR WARS Pinball Tables coming from Zen Studios

I've appreciated playing a good game of pinball on a "real machine" since my college days where I diverted a lot of quarters from my laundry money to the Star Wars pinball machine in my college dorm's student lounge.  Unfortunately, it can be cost or space prohibitive to own one in your own home, and you don't see pin ball machines featured at restaurants, movie theaters and other public establishments to play when you are out and about as much as you used to.  In fact there are only 2 manufacturers left of traditional pinball machines, long time manufacturer STERN (whose current table models include Avengers, Star Trek, Transformers, and the Ford Mustang themes) and a new start up company called Jersey Jack Pinball that has the licenses to create Wizard of OZ and Hobbit branded ones.  If you can't play the real thing you may want to check out the video game versions.

One of the leaders in producing digital pinball games is ZEN STUDIOS.  Zen Studios has the license for Marvel Comics and has made some great themed boards for Captain America, the Fantastic Four, Iron Man, Thor, Spiderman & Wolverine).  They also have the license for STAR WARS which I wrote about in an earlier post.  I've downloaded their Star Wars pinball tables on my iPhone and iPad (one complaint is that you can't download compatible tables for each ios format and have to buy the same table twice if you want to be able to play it on both devices) and have found them a fun way to pass some time.  They've had two releases of games so far with each generation of the game being enhanced with new features to make it more fun to play than the previous ones.  The first round of games featured one of my favorite Star Wars characters (Boba Fett),  my least favorite part of Star Wars (The Clones Wars) and the best Star Wars movie (Empire Strikes Back) themed pinball boards.  The second round featured some really impressive boards that included Darth Vader, Xwings versus Tie Fighters, and Return of the Jedi.  Now a third and final round of games is scheduled to come out for Spring 2014 that look to be the most impressive yet.

The new round of pin ball tables by Zen Studios will be titled "STAR WARS PINBALL: HEROES WITHIN" will feature FOUR brand new games with Han Solo, Droids: The Adventures of R2D2 & C3PO, Masters of the Force and Episode IV: A New Hope themes.  From the teasers I've seen they are going to feature more 3D character interactions than past games and a new in-table mini game feature that look really impressive.  The STAR WARS PINBALL: HEROES WITHIN games will be available for Playstation 4, Playstation 3, PS Vita, Xbox 360, Steam, IOS, Google Play, Amazon, and the Mac App Store.  The actual release date and information on some of the pinball tables has yet to be announced yet so keep an eye out for game teasers and the date when they will go on sale.

Some images and video of the HAN SOLO game have been made public and it looks to be a blast to play. The game leads off with the famous movie line by the character, "Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side", so you know you're in for some classic Star Wars fun.  Include the games theme music as the Cantina Band from the original Star Wars movie and scenes of Chewbacca jumping across the table interacting with your game and this pinball action looks to be a wild ride!

The Episode IV game looks to be geared towards die-hard Star Wars fans too with lots of 3D elements taken from the movie and a great mini-game featuring the trash compactor scene from the Death Star. Check out these screen captures:

This screen capture from Droids also has a classic Star Wars vibe to it:

* Screen captures courtesy of Zen Studios and LucasArts for game promotional purposes.

If you enjoy pinball and appreciate the classic Star Wars movies and characters you'll absolutely want to check out these new Zen Studios games coming out soon. Check out this video trailer from AOL for the new Episode IV: A New Hope pinball game and for more information, visit:  www.starwarspinball.com