The Princess Bride is a story that has captured the hearts of generations. From the acclaimed novel from William Goldman, to the universally well-regarded film adaptation from Rob Reiner, the story has one thing every good fairy tale does: staying power.
I remember vividly when I first saw the movie. I was with classmates at a winter camp, and the counsellors and teachers had decided to screen the movie. However, being stuck in a particularly icy-cold Ontario winter, the path to the screening room had been snowed out. However, the ice on the lake was at least a foot deep and solid as a rock, so we ventured out with flashlights into the dark night and made our way to the screening room to watch the film for the first time.
Much like Fred Savage’s character in the film, the boys in the audience groaned when the film was announced. By the end, we were all won over, and the halls of my Elementary School were filled with the echoes of “Inconceivable!” and “My name is Inigo Montaya. You killed my father. Prepare to die!” for weeks on end.
All of this is a rather long-winded way of saying: The Princess Bride is a movie that means a decent bit to me. So when I saw that Zen Studios had elected to adapt the film into a pinball table within Pinball FX, my curiosity was piqued. How exactly does one adapt a romantic swashbuckling comedic fairytale into a pinball machine? The answer is with a bit of ingenuity, some impressive sight gags and a few hiccups along the road.
Pinball FX – The Princess Bride Pinball table resembles a Williams Arcade Table from the 1980s, but it is actually a Zen Studios original. It balances a realistic charm with Pinball FX’s more “fantasy” stylings (characters moving on the table, smoke effects, etc.), striking a strong balance between the old and the new right out of the (castle) gate.
The virtual table itself is also stuffed to the brim with references to the film, and choice clips and sound effects from the movie are played with decent regularity, without grating. But where the table shines the most is in how in incorporates iconic moments from the film into its various missions and pieces. From outwitting Wallace Shawn’s Vizzini by mixing poison into chalices, to helping Westly and Buttercup make their way through the Fire Swamp, iconic moments from the movie are everywhere.
The Princess Bride Pinball table itself is also fun to play on, with a tricky skillshot to pull off, multiple set pieces to experience and a fun, realistic flow. Unlike some of Pinball FX’s more hyper-stylized tables (such as Goat Simulator which released concurrently), Princess Bride’s experience is designed to be realistic, grounded and plausible, with, like all good fairytales, a bit of magic on top. The table itself, however, feels a bit cramped, with the set pieces sometimes obscuring the ball in play.
At the price, The Princess Bride Pinball offers an overall good value. Pinball FX is a free-to-play game, and given the amount of replayability here, it’s more than worth the price and certainly cheaper than multiple plays on a real machine.
All in all, I had a great time with the Pinball FX – The Princess Bride Pinball table pack. I feel Pinball FX has succeeded at bringing the world of Rob Reiner’s classic movie to the Pinball FX series in subtle and not-so-subtle ways, and the table itself is a blast to play on.
If you love The Princess Bride and love pinball, then the thought of you not loving this table is, say it with me, INCONCEIVABLE!
Embrace the Mayhem! Pinball FX Adds Goat Simulator and The Princess Bride Pinball Tables – https://www.thexboxhub.com/embrace-the-mayhem-pinball-fx-adds-goat-simulator-and-the-princess-bride-pinball-tables/
Buy Pinball FX – The Princess Bride Pinball from the Xbox Store – https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/pinball-fx-the-princess-bride-pinball/9pjgjxx9v6fg
