Flipgrip

There is nothing like anticipating the arrival of a cool gadget. We originally ordered Far East Pinball’s Digital Pinball Cabinet for the Nintendo Switch back in April, but due to the current world health crisis, we knew that shipping it from Japan to Australia was going to impact its arrival. Well, we are quite chuffed to finally have this cool contraption in our hands!

As huge fans of pinball video games, we always felt that the experience could be better. Don’t get us wrong, playing pinball games on your fave console are darn awesome these days, even if you are playing them using a controller. But, to get the most immersive experience playing pinball video games, you need to have the screen vertically oriented, which the Switch does quite admirably. If you have the FlipGrip, you’ll understand how awesome it is to play these games in their proper TATE orientation.

Bumping Action!

Far East Pinball’s Digital Pinball Cabinet takes the experience of playing pinball video games that one huge step forward. The Digital Pinball Cabinet for the Nintendo Switch allows you to play pinball using proper arcade flipper buttons and best of all, allows nudging, shaking and slap saving via its built-in motion sensors, just like a real pinball machine – but be careful not to tilt! The device is really easy to use, you just slide the Switch into the cradle, plug in the connector cable into the Nintendo Switch’s Type-C port, slide on the (grey) lockdown bar and you are ready to flip! The cabinet also has cut-outs along the side to access the Switch’s headphone jack, vents, volume and power buttons.

The Digital Pinball Cabinet comes with 7 arcade quality buttons, three buttons on the right of the cabinet, two button on the left and two buttons on the front. The cabinet allows for two distinct button mapping configurations, but we encourage players to use the default mappings. It also provides the means to change the motion/nudging settings to be high/low sensitivity or turned off. Oh yeah, the only buttons that are not mapped are the plus (+), minus (-) and the screenshot button – a very minor niggle that actually doesn’t affect the use of this awesome piece of kit.

The overall built quality of the unit is good, but it could be better. There is a DIY look and feel to it with some rough edges on the 3D printed case and lock down bar, but we are being quite picky now and in all honesty, you get over this quickly one you playing games on it. Speaking of games, we played Pinball FX3, Star Wars Pinball, The Pinball Arcade, and Stern Pinball Arcadewithout a hitch. Playing these games using the Digital Pinball Cabinet has given us a renewed love for playing pinball video games.

If you are into playing pinball video games on your Switch, then we very very highly recommend you consider Far East Pinball’s Digital Pinball Cabinet – it’s flippin awesome!

NOTE: If you are interested in buying the Digital Pinball Cabinet for the Nintendo Switch, you will need a Japanese address, as Far East Pinball only ships within Japan. We used a mail-forwarding service to purchase our cabinet. The total cost for the cabinet and then mail-forward shipping was AU$180.45.

Oh wow, this is the best way to play @sternpinballinc’s @ArcadeStern on the Nintendo Switch! 😍#SternPinball #Pinball #NintendoSwitch pic.twitter.com/le2hDigFjc

— ausretrogamer (@ausretrogamer) July 2, 2020

What do you get when you mash together the world’s biggest pop culture franchise with one of the best video pinball developers on the planet? You guessed it, you get Zen Studios‘ Star Wars Pinball!

Zen Studios has somehow crammed 19 Star Wars themed pinball tables on this Switch release, which are damn brilliant and will satisfy any discerning Jedi pinball master – we were going to say wizard, but we reckon that has been done to death. The superlatives don’t just end there, there are additional features and modes that are exclusive on the Nintendo Switch, like HD Rumble, Vertical Play (grab your Flip Grip!), Cantina Jukebox, Galactic Struggle and Career Mode to name just a few.

As the title suggest, this is a pinball game at heart, meaning it is easy to get into and instantly enjoyable to flip the silver-ball. This is thanks to Zen Studios honing their skill in creating wonderful pinball experiences on consoles. The added bonus here is that the whole package is wrapped up in all things Star Wars. If you scratch the surface of this title and start looking deeper, there is a lot of content that will keep you playing for a long long time (in a galaxy nearby).

As mentioned, the unique gameplay modes on the Switch allow players to participate in community-wide Galactic struggles, allowing for contribution points to the light or dark side, depending on how you feel. Likewise, the new career mode allows players to join the ranks of the Jedi or Sith as they achieve up to 50 career ranks, and simply playing any table unlocks special Force Power bonuses that can be applied toward bigger scores. Playing any table unlocks special Force Power bonuses that can be applied towards bigger scores, and a Force Training mode to help pinball Padawans maximize their flipping potential.

The 19 Star Wars pinball tables are centred around the movies and TV show franchises, with iconic characters, memorable locations, and general Star Wars goodness:

Movies Adaptations: Episodes IV, V, VI, VII and VIII, plus Rogue One: A Star Wars™ Story and Solo: A Star Wars™ Story
TV Adaptations: Star Wars™: The Clone Wars™, Star Wars Rebels™
Characters: Han Solo, Darth Vader, Lando Calrissian in The Calrissian Chronicles table, Boba Fett, Droids
Locations: Ahch-To Island, Mimban (Battle of Mimban)
Themes: Jedi vs. Sith (Masters of the Force), X-wings vs. TIE fighters (Starfighter Assault), being the bad guy (Might of the First Order)

No matter which side you choose, Light or Dark, Jedi or Sith, you will Feel the Force in Zen Studios’ Star Wars Pinball on the Nintendo Switch. We highly recommend you give this awesome game a flip!