It’s all well and good digitally recreating some of the finest real-life pinball tables ever produced by the legendary Williams company, but Zen Studios sometimes have to work on their own Pinball FX creations too. As luck would have it, one of their newest offerings, the Pinball FX – Honor and Legacy Pack, provides a double dose of Zen Originals to try and keep those flipping fingers busy.
Can the Pinball FX – Honor and Legacy Pack deliver an honourable set of tables capable of cementing a long-lasting legacy?
First and foremost, let’s unpack what you’ll get from the Honor and Legacy Pack after spending just under a tenner on it. There are two tables within: A Samurai’s Vengeance transports you to feudal Japan to seek out vengeance, while Verne’s Mysterious Island drops you onto a remote island for a jolly old adventure. Two very different concepts with a host of different ways to potentially hook you in, but both actually manage to do so ridiculously well.
A Samurai’s Vengeance immediately grabs your attention using a sword-wielding 3D samurai model, a flourishing cherry blossom, a torii gate, an Oni Mask, and other design choices suited to Japanese culture. It looks splendid and creates a lovely backdrop, which works despite the nature of the concept.
The actual layout is great as well, featuring a wide-ish body and almost every potential target easily accessible for anyone to hit. Incorporating not one, but two additional little playfields is a bold move that pays off. Having one and two flippers in each respective area poses different challenges too. What’s rather cool is the spinner on this table, because it’s a sword that rotates with every hit from the ball.
On top of that, A Samurai’s Vengeance also comes with a light narrative infused into the modes, which focuses on the efforts to avenge your fallen master by taking down members of the Hyakki clan. Specific actions prior to this raise a multitude of stats for the samurai too, so you’re always progressing and training for the fights. You’ll have to defeat them via the mini-playfield bearing the second pair of flippers, however certain requirements might need to be met in order to inflict damage upon them.
As for Verne’s Mysterious Island, it’s based on the 19th century novel by Jules Verne, The Mysterious Island. Four of the main characters have been integrated into the table from the off as you decide which one to play as. Depending on who is chosen, various point scoring avenues are given a boost; for example Cyrus Smith comes with a crafting bonus and a multiplier for another aspect. Given the survival theme, it’s good to see objectives centred on crafting, gathering, and fishing.
This is definitely the tougher of the two tables though. And that’s down to the layout because lanes and ramps are at tricky angles, with lots of edges to hit by accident. Thankfully there’s a third flipper on the upper right, which helps massively in reaching such places. Anyone who’s read The Mysterious Island will be happy to see Jupiter, the orangutan, involved in the skill shot too.
Ultimately, the more invested you become and attempts you have, the more neat features you’ll no doubt bear witness too. Things like the moving stand-up pirate targets you have to knock down and the mini volcanic playfield you can access. Don’t let the initial difficulty put you off and you’ll have a blast as there are all sorts of ways to rack up those high scores.
In the sound department, both tables thrive. Verne’s Mysterious Island captures the tropical vibe brilliantly with its background music. The voiceovers are spot on. The extremely posh and suave talking adventurer encouraging you is a particular highlight. Likewise, the assertive samurai adds to the overall theme of A Samurai’s Vengeance, while the BGM is befitting of the setting and creates a rather chilled atmosphere before the conflicts occur.
The biggest compliment I can give the Pinball FX – Honor and Legacy Pack is that it’ll entice you back to savour both tables time and time again. It’s difficult to criticise much about either A Samurai’s Vengeance or Verne’s Mysterious Island, with the themes, modes and overall depth of gameplay deserving heaps of praise. If anything, the fast action of feudal Japan is slightly more enjoyable than dealing with the survival elements of the islands, but they’re great regardless.
The Pinball FX – Honor and Legacy Pack showcases Zen Studios’ innovative ideas with two instant hits that you absolutely must buy.
