Software:Pro Pinball: The Web

From HandWiki
Short description: 1996 video game
Pro Pinball: The Web
Developer(s)Cunning Developments
Publisher(s)
SeriesPro Pinball
Platform(s)PlayStation, MS-DOS, Windows 9x, Sega Saturn, Macintosh (Mac OS 9 or earlier)
ReleasePlayStation
  • EU: July 1996
  • NA: 30 September 1996
PC
Sega Saturn
Genre(s)Action
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Pro Pinball: The Web (Pro Pinball in North America) is a pinball simulation video game developed by Cunning Developments for PlayStation, MS-DOS, Windows 95 and Sega Saturn. It is the first game in the Pro Pinball series.

Background

Pro Pinball: The Web uses graphics pre-rendered from an intricate 3D model.[4] Consequently, the game had superior graphical capabilities to other popular pinball games of the time, while playing at full speed on MS-DOS. The Web supports screen resolutions up to 1024x768 with 32,768 colours, and features Red Book CD-DA audio tracks.[5] The developer had initially tried to obtain the license for Star Trek: The Next Generation, but were unable to do so. The preliminary demo was reworked for this game, mirroring the layout. Elements from Rollergames and Black Knight 2000 were also incorporated.[6]

Gameplay

Pro Pinball: The Web was the first of the Pro Pinball series of realistic computer pinball simulations.

Pro Pinball: The Web is a pinball simulation in which players operate a virtual pinball table. Players can score extra points by making combos, i.e. performing a move twice in a row.[7] Hitting targets at the far end of the table activates the game's missions, in which the player must hit lighted ramps or bumpers to score bonus points. Completing a mission results in a huge point bonus.[7]

Reception

Reception
Review scores
PublicationScore
AllGameStarStarStarStarHalf star (SAT)[12]
StarStarStar (PS1)[13]
EGM5.125/10 (PS1)[8]
GameSpot5/10 (PS1)[9]
7.4/10 (PC)[10]
Next GenerationStarStarStar (PS1)[11]
Sega Saturn Magazine70% (SAT)[3]

The PlayStation and Saturn versions received mixed reviews. While critics praised the realistic pinball graphics and physics[8][9][11][3] and the wide variety of scoring opportunities,[8][9] they criticized the voice samples[8][11] and the absence of a directly overhead view.[8][9] Some also concluded that with only one table, the game would get old very quickly,[8][9][3] though Next Generation remarked, "While many developers have tried to wow gamers with multiple tables, Empire went the other way - giving the player one table, but doing it right."[11] Jeff Gerstmann of GameSpot concluded that it "is a convincing simulation of pinball, but it falls short when compared to other video pinball games."[9] Rob Allsetter of Sega Saturn Magazine assessed that "All in all, this is a decent enough interpretation of the game itself, let down only by the exclusion of different table to variate the action a little",[3] and Dan Hsu of Electronic Gaming Monthly said, "It's a great board, but it'll get old real quick."[8]

Reviewing the PC version, Tim Soete highly praised the game's realism and summarized that "its high-resolution graphics and true table physics combine to make it one of the most immersive pinball titles out there."[10]

The Web was named the 64th best computer game ever by PC Gamer UK in 1997. The editors wrote, "Nothing else has quite come close [...] to Pro Pinball's utterly convincing physics and slick presentation."[14]

References

  1. ↑ "Online Gaming Review". 1997-02-27. http://www.ogr.com/news/news1096.html. 
  2. ↑ "Pro Pinball". 1997-06-06. http://www.sega-saturn.com/saturn/software/propinball.htm. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Allsetter, Rob (August 1996). "Review: Pro Pinball The Web". Sega Saturn Magazine (Emap International Limited) (10): 86–87. 
  4. ↑ "Compatibility - Pro Pinball: The Web - CodeWeavers". www.codeweavers.com. http://www.codeweavers.com/compatibility/browse/name?app_id=3327. Retrieved 2010-11-29. 
  5. ↑ "Pro Pinball - The Web - Technical Specifications". http://www.empire.co.uk/propinball/theweb/techspec.htm. Retrieved 2010-11-29. 
  6. ↑ Crable, Noah (January 23, 2025). "Another Cunning Development: A Retrospective on the Pro Pinball Series" (in en). https://www.kineticist.com/post/pro-pinball-retrospective. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Pro Pinball: Weaving a New Kind of Pinball". Electronic Gaming Monthly (Ziff Davis) (88): 232. November 1996. 
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 "Review Crew: Pro Pinball". Electronic Gaming Monthly (Ziff Davis) (88): 80. November 1996. 
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 Gerstmann, Jeff (December 1, 1996). "Pro Pinball: The Web Review". https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/pro-pinball-review/1900-2548973/. Retrieved 15 November 2017. 
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Soete, Tim (September 26, 1996). "Pro Pinball: The Web Review". https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/pro-pinball-the-web-review/1900-2545910/. Retrieved 15 November 2017. 
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 "Pro Pinball". Next Generation (Imagine Media) (26): 122, 124. February 1997. 
  12. ↑ Ottoson, Joe. "Pro Pinball (Sega Saturn) Review". http://www.allgame.com/game.php?id=7758&tab=review. 
  13. ↑ Brett Alan Weiss. "Pro Pinball (PlayStation) Review". http://www.allgame.com/game.php?id=2241&tab=review. 
  14. ↑ Flynn, James; Owen, Steve; Pierce, Matthew; Davis, Jonathan; Longhurst, Richard (July 1997). "The PC Gamer Top 100". PC Gamer UK (45): 51–83. 

Template:Pro Pinball series



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