The Pinball of the Dead

Sega resurrects fantasy pinball on the Game Boy Advance with The Pinball of the Dead, in which you must defeat hordes of the undead using flippers, bumpers, and a cold steel ball.

For decades pinball has survived as an arcade staple despite technological advancements. The appeal of competing against the laws of physics is hard to deny. And while videogame pinball may never replace its real life counterpart, games like The Pinball of the Dead let pinball-heads play wild tables that you would never see in your local arcade.

Developed by Sega and published by THQ, The Pinball of the Dead offers three distinct tables. The first board, Wandering, is a fairly open board with a large clock that counts down as you destroy zombies. The second board, Movement, takes place in a top-secret laboratory with large loop lanes and hideous biological experiments. The final board, Cemetery features a worm-like creature that spits out zombies and a huge zombie, Ricky, who will tear through the floor of the board.

Destroying zombies is a big part of achieving monstrous (get it?) scores in The Pinball of the Dead. When a wave is defeated, certain holes will become lit. When you land in a lit hole you will be rewarded with extra balls, field multipliers and score bonuses. Some holes will also take you to special boss areas.

Two game modes -- Normal and Challenge -- offer variety, but the lack of multiplayer support is a bit of an oversight. Normal Mode lets you choose a single board and Challenge Mode lets you play through all three boards in sequence. You must defeat six huge bosses on each board before reaching a final boss.

The Pinball of the Dead is a good pinball title for Game Boy Advance owners. The campy horror presentation is brought to life by good graphics and sound. There are a few minor hang-ups that keep the physics from feeling realistic, but that should not discourage pinball fans from enjoying The Pinball of the Dead.

Last updated on August 14, 2015