This game has a decent concept - a Sonic themed and goal oriented pinball game where the player has some control over the movement and direction of the ball. The latter half of this concept is the only thing really distinctive about this game - I don’t think I’ve seen any other pinball games use this mechanic although there probably are some out there: it’s not a particularly creative idea to cook up after all.
The game is fine on paper. The levels are big and it can be enjoyable to explore them and find the emeralds necessary to take on the boss. Other than that it’s a pretty standard pinball experience.
The biggest problem and why I’m giving this game a low rating instead of a middling one is the physics of the ball - or Sonic I guess. It’s insanely slow and sluggish and floaty and just doesn’t feel right for pinball. The levels in mainline Sonic games that contain paddles and bumpers actually do a better job at replicating a real pinball machine than this does. Getting the physics of the ball wrong is honestly unacceptable for a pinball game. You can have the most standard and simple virtual pinball machine in the world and the game will at least be decent if feels good to play. Spinball ends up having some interesting and creative pinball machines but ones that all feel terrible to play. Really no reason to play this one. Not even particularly interesting as a curiosity. Would only recommend playing it for 10-15 mins to get a feel for the game if you’re interested in it from a historical standpoint, which I can understand with it being the first Sonic spinoff game and one of the most popular pinball games out there.
The game is fine on paper. The levels are big and it can be enjoyable to explore them and find the emeralds necessary to take on the boss. Other than that it’s a pretty standard pinball experience.
The biggest problem and why I’m giving this game a low rating instead of a middling one is the physics of the ball - or Sonic I guess. It’s insanely slow and sluggish and floaty and just doesn’t feel right for pinball. The levels in mainline Sonic games that contain paddles and bumpers actually do a better job at replicating a real pinball machine than this does. Getting the physics of the ball wrong is honestly unacceptable for a pinball game. You can have the most standard and simple virtual pinball machine in the world and the game will at least be decent if feels good to play. Spinball ends up having some interesting and creative pinball machines but ones that all feel terrible to play. Really no reason to play this one. Not even particularly interesting as a curiosity. Would only recommend playing it for 10-15 mins to get a feel for the game if you’re interested in it from a historical standpoint, which I can understand with it being the first Sonic spinoff game and one of the most popular pinball games out there.