Electronic Arts, Incorporated…currently often identified with EA Sports…was the developer and publisher of the game that was truly an innovation for its time: The Pinball Construction Set. It was actually a pioneer in the genre of construction and editor games, being closely followed by the Adventure Construction Set, the Music Construction Set and the Racing Deconstruction Set…some of the more popular titles in the genre. It is a game where players can build and edit their own pinball tables. It was released in the middle eighties and was ported to a multitude of formats.
This unique and challenging game was programmed by Bill Budge.
This interesting game provides a very cool challenge for the pinball fan. The user has to use some serious planning and strategy in order to start building a table from the ground up. The table can be as complicated or as basic as the gamer would want. All pinball wizards have their favorite tables with features that are attractive to them, and they also have innovations or obstacles that they find annoying on other tables. With the Pinball Construction Set, the user can capitalize on the features he enjoys and cull out the bad. He can add hoops, multiple sets of paddles or flippers, bumpers, flags, funky ramps, targets, transport holes, rails…a seemingly countless
number of classical pinball features. With so many options from which to choose, the number of tables a single user can build are endless. This adds depth and very obvious replay value.
Aside from the physical features of the table, the user has other options available to him to make his table more fun and interesting. He can control the strength of the gravity and therefore the speed of the ball. He can adjust the amount of kick the rails, bumpers and flippers have when they are struck, which helps to control the bounce of the ball on the table. The user can change the size of the flippers to make them more useful or challenging as he sees fit. The color pattern and graphic lay out of the table is up to the user, and finally, the user can also change the scoring system.
Once the table is designed, the user can play on it, and then go back and edit it to change things he does not like. He can give the game a trial run and keep changing and editing in order to create the perfect table. This is a great bonus and it makes the game even more fun. The quest to create and play the perfect table makes the Pinball Construction Set a great download.
