Mixed feelings. Like the table a lot more than Tristan. Physics are - once again - spot on and really the best out there. But as someone who actually likes zoomed-in moving cameras (purists are yawning now, I know), this moving camera is the worst on ANY pinball game out there, since it's also moving sideways (WHY?) and always slower then the ball... I absolutely cannot follow the decision why they made it that way. Also, today it should be standard to be able to play in landscape mode. Otherwise holding the device and playing always makes my hand hurt after a while. Landscape is so much more relaxed. So, since the moving camera is horrible and I can't play in landscape, I would give 3 1/2 stars for a cute table with perfect physics. Still a lot of fun to play...until the new PA tables arrive
Eww, side-moving camera in pinball? Ewweewww. I speak from experience - one of the biggest letdowns ever: Pinball Fantasies on the SNES. Display scrolls about an "inch" left/right and makes the game pretty much unplayable. Still gonna buy this after the Steam sale is over.
Does this game have a full table view? I hate moving cameras for pinball !! I am playing tons of the pinball arcade now, but could always use more great pinball
This game does have game center Just click scores in options It will show your scores At the bottom of the screen select global and GC opens
I'm wondering how this looks and performs on an iPod Touch 4G. Are the ball and the table art pretty well-visible? How is the framerate?
Game Impressions It is my belief that Pinball Crystal Caliburn II is the best simulation of Pinball available on the app store to date. LittleWing simply gets Pinball. It's a sport of finesse and of nuance, but the underlying math has to be spot on. The physics system needs to provide not only the perfect deflection to every angle of incidence, but it also has to supply solidity and weight to the ball itself. The flippers need just the right kick and return. The bumpers need to feel convincingly elastic, with a kick that's not binary, but instead has a very intricate curve of force. This team of developers knows this and they don't stop iterating until each of those elements is dead solid perfect. Perfect in every way, this game is. Tricking the human eye into believing it's staring at a perfectly round hunk of steel is not an easy feat. With just the right reflection, they've perfectly grounded the ball to the playing surface. The drop rate, the weight, the imperfect roll, the burst and accompanying release of energy. You don't stumble upon these subtle facets of the game from watching a YouTube video; I guarantee this team has collectively played thousands of hours of Pinball. What they learned by putting in the time and effort to play Pinball in real life is every single trick and trap and bounce and drain possible under that glass. Then they challenged themselves to perfectly model every single blasted one of them under the glass of an iPad and they make it seem effortless. Their previous title, Pinball Tristan, was a masterpiece and it had more replay value than all the competing tables combined. I'm here to tell you, they have done it again. Pinball Crystal Caliburn II is the best looking, best playing, and best simulated Pinball you can get on the iOS platform. It truly is masterful and the team at LittleWing deserves recognition for their accomplishment.
Best looking is simply wrong. Such a simple table is hard to mess up. And games like the boring Gameprom pinballs, the arcady Zen Pinball tables and all Pinball Arcade tables just look stunning. I guess, LittleWing is a beloved dev team for old school pinball table fans. And this love leads to reviews that feel more like a poem
I love how they still appear to be using the exact same sound effects as they did with the original Crystal Caliburn back in the 90's.
A porsche simply is faster than a Jeep. An iPad 2 simply is faster than an iPad 1. So, saying, this is the best looking iOS Pinball game falls into that category for me. If you prefer that table above all others out there, ok. But saying, this is the most beautiful just is a slap in the face of all the great graphic artists who did tremendous jobs with many other tables out there. Again, I love the physics, they are unmatched (not personal opinion, they are). But people tend to go overboard with praising Tristan and this one. There are other aspects as well. For me, for example, a good table needs to stay interesting for a while (had my "Last Battle" on this table within my first 10 games) and it needs to be entertaining. Would this table have been a real one, it wouldn't appear in the list of the best pinball machines since it's a mediocre table design without any highlights or memorable objects, missions and so on. Physics are outstanding, but not everything. My opinion, or course
First of all, I play video games, I don't play graphics. Some of the games you mentioned are just dreadful. What I value graphically in a pinball sim are those things that make the experience more realistic. I cited an example in my comments, the reflection/shadow of the ball. That is paramount for me, because it gives the ball a physicality. Your attempt in the same retort to characterize me as somehow insulting artists on competing products is "simply wrong" to use your phrasing; disingenuous and mean-spirited in my own "poetic" phrasing. Second, you are misinterpreting my statement. In the sentence you question, I am referring to the aggregate of those three elements of the game. In other words, "Nowhere else can you find the combination of these three things, therefore it is the best." If a game looks great and plays awful, I don't play it, but ymmv. Third, the point you make about nostalgia coloring my opinion is not factual. I've never played their earlier Mac releases or an actual table IRL like the old skool Tristan table, for instance. For nostalgia, my vote would go to the Funhouse table in a competing product. Which, btw, does not model the ball as well graphically, nor does it have the proper physics or physicality. Lastly, if you place so little importance on proper physics in a pinball sim that you only plan to play this game 10 times, then there is no way we are going to agree on the strengths of this game and that is a fact. your personal robot, I would be happy to discuss this pinball game or any other with you via PM, if you like, instead of in this thread. I would encourage everyone else to ignore this exchange and play the game to decide for yourself whether it's a good game or, depending on your personal beliefs, a good painting. *winks*
...or a quite good game with brilliant physics, a horrible camera and no option to play in landscape mode
With absolutely no malice whatsoever, I'll ask if you have played the game in full table view. i.e. - shutting off the camera motion entirely. Personally, I never play pinball games with a moving camera, so I have no idea what their camera is like. Not only does it solve the camera problem, but you don't need landscape mode either, when played that way. Seems like win/win.
Since I want to see something and don't have an iPad, yes, I play will scrolling on. Pinball Arcade did an excellent job with the camera, for example. So I guess, it's not the fault of the dev to ignore the standards, it's just my amateur way of playing the game standing in the way... hmm But then, why do they have the scrolling option as default? Or why is there a scrolling option at all? Again, wouldn't be a problem on an iPad, of course. But on a phone, this table zoomed out, then not only my hands get cramped, my eyes too. Played it and get reminded of it during the multiballs. That's enough.
