Pachinko, for those unfamiliar, is a Japanese gaming device somewhat akin to a vertical pinball machine. The machines are typically found in “pachinko parlors" featuring large numbers of the devices.
As Wikipedia describes the game,
Players can buy metal balls by inserting either cash, a pre-paid card, or their member’s card directly into the machine they want to use. For 1000 yen, 250 balls can be bought (4 yen per ball). These balls are then shot into the machine from a ball tray with the purpose of attempting to win more balls. The pachinko machine has a digital slot machine on a large screen in the center of its layout, and the objective here is to get 3 numbers or symbols in a row for a jackpot.
Originally, pachinko machines had a spring-loaded lever for shooting the balls individually, but modern machines use a round “throttle" that merely controls how quickly an electrically fired plunger shoots the balls onto the playfield. The balls then drop through an array of pins. While most balls simply fall through to the bottom of the pachinko layout, occasionally some will fall into the center gate and start up the digital slot machine in the center screen.
On-Core has just released an iPhone adaptation of this classic combination of pinball and slots. Pachinko [App Store] for the iPhone and iPod touch emulates the original, levered mechanical machines of the 70s. The on-screen launch lever is touch controlled and determines the force with which the ball is fired into the pegged play area. The game features settings for the starting number of balls, jackpots, and number of balls required to win the game.
Pachinko is an interesting game to play (in a parlor or on the iPhone) and likely a new experience to most of our readers. Having spent hours and hours on an actual, upright pachinko machine I was given as a kid, I can say that On-Core’s release provides a faithful rendition of the physical game on the iPhone screen.
See the developer’s gameplay video for a look at the game in action.
App Store Link: Pachinko, $0.99
GEEZ.......... all those people that bought it at 9.99 just think..........
I bought Rolando at $9.99 and it was well worth it. Absolutely awesome game! I'm glad to see the price drop actually. Hopefully that much more people will now be compelled to check out this sweet title.
I have no problem having spent $10 for Rolando, it was a quality app that I had a great time beating. Twice.
Makes me wonder though if any app can be successful above five bucks. I guess the Apple premium game section experiment should be interesting (though I feel $20 is too excessive for just about any iphone game considering the controls).
I bought it for US$ 9.99 and it was well worth the money. Rolando is the best game you can buy in the AppStore for US$ 5. Don't waste more time, buy it now!
Agree with others. I bought the game at $10 and don't regret it at all. Finally we have a company that puts a fully polished game out the door. I enjoyed going through it the first time, and then going back and making all the achievements. I understand that this type of game is not some people's cup of tea, but I am surprised by the negative 1 star ratings it gets. Even if you didn't enjoy the gameplay, you have to concede that it has some very high production values.
I hope it gets back up near the top ten again, cause I would love to see Rolando 2!
I bought it at $5.99, but the price wasn't really the reason why I bought it. I did after having tried the light version that convinced me that the game was awesome. I would have bought it at $10, had they released a light version. Awesome game, definitely one of the best in the app store.
Rolando is a great game, and I used a giftcard to buy it at $10, so I don't really regret it.
Still, it seems there are very few "premium" iphone games that started at $10 and have not dropped their prices within a few months of release. Certainly gives me some incentive to exercise some patience and just wait to buy. If buyers in general become aware of this trend, it will probably hurt the developers/publishers, as a certain percentage of potential buyers will start assuming that the price will drop in a few months, so they won't pony up at first, hurting sales for that app.
In Contrast, fieldrunners has maintained it's launch price of $5 for almost 5 months now. It would appear that $5 is a sustainable price point for a "premium" game.
I know I said I wouldn't trash the site, but really...Are you going to do a big post everytime Rolando goes down a dollar? What about all that support for the independent developers community? Don't you think a rare Saturday post should review one of their games instead of yet another big wet kiss for ngmoco?
I was surprised and a little disappointed to see Neil reduce it at all.
@Marc
Super Monkey Ball is still priced at $7.99 and has yet to drop from the top 50 paid games section in the US store, so, yes, there can be successful games on this platform at above $5. That said, Monkey Ball has the advantage of brand recognition, as do the other "big" apps that have done well at above $5 (Crash Nitro Kart, Sim City, etc. are all priced at above $5).
Also, once again...that "premium price" section is just a RUMOR. And a rumor, btw, that most likely won't come to be. Developers could price any way they wish right now, and have been able to do so since the beginning. They've priced at $9.99 and less for very good reasons, among them meeting consumer expectation, the less costly development for this platform as a whole compared to others, and the bigger cut on sales they get. A separate "premium game" section predicated on price most probably will not happen. That said, I can see a "premium" section focused on how "big name" the developer is, so devs like EA, Sega, Gameloft, etc. get their own dedicated section of the store to separate and differentiate their offerings from the indy offerings. But it won't likely be based on price. The market has been set for some time now.
Added notes:
- Free Level update to Rolando soon
- Sequel is being worked on
this is great!
how many new levels?
will the sequal add on to rolando or a whole new app?
I think people will be more pleased to see the sequal add onto the update and not as a new app...they wouldnt want to pay
- I don't know how many new levels
- The sequel will certainly be a whole new app
Stoked for the sequel!
Although I think Rolando had some pretty heavy advertising I don't think that it paid off near as much as the lite version has, so hopefully they will release the sequel alongside a lite version.
Suggestions for the sequel:
slightly faster rolling
collectable powerups/special abilities
or more special ability rolandos
maybe a turbo invincibility powerup
ability to destroy enemies directly or indirectly
variable gravity based bonus worlds (ala Mario Galaxy)
more mini bosses/main dudes
I'm sure the devs have many great new ideas than I could come up with, I am excited.
The new level update is great news! I was convinced that ngmoco wasn't going to update the game. . . sort of like how crash bandicoot nitro racing hasn't been updated. But if they update rolando that puts them in the same developer class at the fieldrunners folks, who have provided several updates that really has made the game fantastic over a longer period of time. Added value!
I have no idea why so many people love this game. I listened to all the praise it got (mainly on this site, actually) and bought it. I wish I knew that this site was sponsored by NGMOCO before the purchase or I wouldn't have bothered listening to the rampant praise it gets on here.
I already feel that I payed $5.99 for a $50 game. I'm not sure about some of peoples complaints having any validity. When you people bought GTA way back when, did you get preturbed when they released GTA II? I'm sure you wrote to the company and demanded that all things Rockstar Games released from the time of your purchase that were GTA related must be an "add on".
I am glad Ngmoco=) will be updating Rolando with new levels, I admire their perserverance despite the "give me, give me" Apple culture. I hope to see a price increase with the inclusion of this update. I also anxiously await the stellar release of Rolando 2!
@Ryan, did Blake and Arn twist your arm and force you to buy? If so file charges.
You have the option to make informed decisions, if you have the ability is a whole other issue. Touch Arcade, from day one, issued a "disclaimer" that they would be sponsored by Ngmoco and continued to do so throughout their unbiased and fair reporting of Rolando. Maybe you could go get your information from one of the 100 blogsites that trump games as awesome to their readers because they recieved a promo code.
@Ryan
'Cause, sure, all of us on this site who use the forums and enjoyed the games just HAVE to be in ngmoco's pocket, rite? >_>
If you didn't like the game, that's fine. You are entitled to your opinion. But don't go accusing others of being bought off simply because they disagree with your opinion.
Hard to take anything TA says about Rolando seriously when you guys went so far as to completely redecorate when it was launched. Since you're apparently in ngmoco's pocket, maybe a disclaimer is in order whenever you feel compelled to put more Rolando-related non-events on the front page.
ps. yes, I paid $10 for Rolando on launch day. No, I don't think it lived up to even a *fraction* of the hype ngmoco paid you guys to make out of it. Just my opinion.
@mavis and all
Ok, this is going to be the final word on it. Rest of the comments will be deleted onward.
If you think this site is "in the pocket" of any gaming company, then you need to simply stop visiting. If you can't trust us, then stop visiting, stop commenting, stop listening to our recommendations. It's that simple.
The site accepts advertisers. There are probably 10 advertisers at the moment or in the wings. There is no editorial favoritism based on advertising. To say there is is personally insulting and we've been nothing but open about our advertising partners, even going so far as posting it in the Rolando review.
As for ngmoco. We love the fact they are an exclusive-iPhone-focused gaming company that is producing high quality games for the platform. We will continue to report on what Ngmoco is doing in close detail, because they are exactly what TouchArcade is supposed to cover.
That is all,
Arnold Kim
TouchArcade.com editor