Zen Studio's Pinball FX 2 has centered itself as being a platform of it's own for virtual pinball adaptations of various big brands. The latest tables released for the Xbox Live Arcade game are those in Marvel Pinball: Vengeance and Virtue.
This is the second pack of Marvel-themed tables to be released for Pinball FX 2, with the first having the bigger names like Spider Man and the Hulk, amongst others, be featured. This time around, we have dedicated tables for Ghost Rider, Moon Knight, Thor, and X-Men. Each table is effectively their own game, with various sounds, special effects, missions and objectives to complete in order to achieve the highest score possible. They all come with their own achievements and support online leader boards as well as multiplayer.
The beginning of every table usually has a little big of an introduction of the table as a whole, with the occasional sound clips of characters shouting catchphrases and the like. All the tables are very mostly visually appealing, while all maintaining variety within their separate universes. They all feature characters and villains from the stories and are fully voiced (in some cases, too much so) to go with the animations and detail put into each table. There are four main missions per table which can be chosen by using the triggers when prompted. They range from easy to incessantly difficult – a swift reminder that pinball games aren't all a walk in the park.
The Ghost Rider table features lots of fire and wouldn't be complete without characters like Lucifer. It's fun, fast, and requires a lot of skill in order to get some of the missions down. It may just be the most difficult of the bunch, but it's not frustratingly hard once you learn the basics. Worth nothing: there's a pinball-shooting shotgun in the corner of the table, just waiting to be utilized – that alone is worth giving it a try. This iteration of Ghost Rider is definitely much preferred to the Nicholas Cage version, and it's more entertaining, too.
The Moon Knight table surprised me, as I hadn't known much about who Moon Knight was until playing the table. Regardless, this table has a big more of a unique introduction compared to the others, with the Moon Knight flying a spaceship around before beginning as usual. This table was definitely my favorite of the four, not just because it was an introduction to a previously unknown Marvel character, but it overall feels the most complete and fun to play. The sci-fi feel of the table definitely stands out amongst the rest, and it is one of the more easy tables to understand how to work.
Thor's table, given the most recent Marvel film release, will probably be the most familiar to those who don't keep up with Marvel's comic characters. Villains like Loki and the Destroyer make an appearance and you're tasked with fighting them while maintaining Thor's health. This table features lots of spelling for various power ups, like Mjolnir and Uru, in order to access Asgard to complete various missions. This table is fun, but I can't help but feel like the developers overdid it just a bit when it comes to how often Thor opens his mouth. We get it, Thor, you're from Asgard. You're the son of Odin. Stop reminding us every 15 seconds.
The table that is the least impressive of the bunch is definitely the X-Men table. While the integration of characters from the universe is nicely done, the actual mechanics of the table itself feel a bit unbalanced and not as well thought out as the other tables. The missions aren't as creative and the overall objectives aren't as clear. That doesn't necessarily make this a bad table, but it's definitely not on the same level as the rest of them.
Overall, Marvel Pinball: Vengeance and Virtue is a source of great entertainment that is easy to pick up. Whether you're a dedicated Marvel fanatic or just someone who likes pinball, you shouldn't have too much trouble enjoying the game. For 800 Microsoft Points, or roughly $2.50 per table, it's not only cheap, but lots of fun.
This is the second pack of Marvel-themed tables to be released for Pinball FX 2, with the first having the bigger names like Spider Man and the Hulk, amongst others, be featured. This time around, we have dedicated tables for Ghost Rider, Moon Knight, Thor, and X-Men. Each table is effectively their own game, with various sounds, special effects, missions and objectives to complete in order to achieve the highest score possible. They all come with their own achievements and support online leader boards as well as multiplayer.
The beginning of every table usually has a little big of an introduction of the table as a whole, with the occasional sound clips of characters shouting catchphrases and the like. All the tables are very mostly visually appealing, while all maintaining variety within their separate universes. They all feature characters and villains from the stories and are fully voiced (in some cases, too much so) to go with the animations and detail put into each table. There are four main missions per table which can be chosen by using the triggers when prompted. They range from easy to incessantly difficult – a swift reminder that pinball games aren't all a walk in the park.
The Ghost Rider table features lots of fire and wouldn't be complete without characters like Lucifer. It's fun, fast, and requires a lot of skill in order to get some of the missions down. It may just be the most difficult of the bunch, but it's not frustratingly hard once you learn the basics. Worth nothing: there's a pinball-shooting shotgun in the corner of the table, just waiting to be utilized – that alone is worth giving it a try. This iteration of Ghost Rider is definitely much preferred to the Nicholas Cage version, and it's more entertaining, too.
The Moon Knight table surprised me, as I hadn't known much about who Moon Knight was until playing the table. Regardless, this table has a big more of a unique introduction compared to the others, with the Moon Knight flying a spaceship around before beginning as usual. This table was definitely my favorite of the four, not just because it was an introduction to a previously unknown Marvel character, but it overall feels the most complete and fun to play. The sci-fi feel of the table definitely stands out amongst the rest, and it is one of the more easy tables to understand how to work.
Thor's table, given the most recent Marvel film release, will probably be the most familiar to those who don't keep up with Marvel's comic characters. Villains like Loki and the Destroyer make an appearance and you're tasked with fighting them while maintaining Thor's health. This table features lots of spelling for various power ups, like Mjolnir and Uru, in order to access Asgard to complete various missions. This table is fun, but I can't help but feel like the developers overdid it just a bit when it comes to how often Thor opens his mouth. We get it, Thor, you're from Asgard. You're the son of Odin. Stop reminding us every 15 seconds.
The table that is the least impressive of the bunch is definitely the X-Men table. While the integration of characters from the universe is nicely done, the actual mechanics of the table itself feel a bit unbalanced and not as well thought out as the other tables. The missions aren't as creative and the overall objectives aren't as clear. That doesn't necessarily make this a bad table, but it's definitely not on the same level as the rest of them.
Overall, Marvel Pinball: Vengeance and Virtue is a source of great entertainment that is easy to pick up. Whether you're a dedicated Marvel fanatic or just someone who likes pinball, you shouldn't have too much trouble enjoying the game. For 800 Microsoft Points, or roughly $2.50 per table, it's not only cheap, but lots of fun.
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