Introduction: Not many people would think of the Wii as a good place for a pinball game. But being a pinball-head meant a key Wii launch game for me was Gottlieb Pinball Classics. Whilst researching this review, I confirmed my suspicion that there was only moderate coverage in both print and online media. I guess the little known pinball game was simply eclipsed by the likes of Zelda and Red Steel. However, to overlook this title is to miss out on what turns out to be a great little pinball simulation. Also, with the upcoming release of a similar collection of Williams tables, and its falling price, there's never been a better time to pick the game up.

GamePlay: The game offers a good variety of machines, ranging from the 70's to 90's. As someone who played mainly in the mid to late 90's I would have liked more of the modern machines. Anyway, here's a break down of the different tables on offer:

Eldorado - Simple bonus multiplier table,

Genie - Multiple flippers and bonus tracks,

Big Shot - Pool themed game,

Strikes n' Spares - Bowling alley novelty table,

Ace High - Novelty card themed table,

Love Meter - Measure your love ability for extra credits,

Xolten - Predict your future for extra credits,

Goin Nuts - Timer based multiball play,

Central Park - Nudge and target based play,

Black Hole - Sunken sub-table offers secondary play field,

Victory - Sequential race targets drive the game play,

Tee'd Off - Multiple modes add variety to the sequential ramp/lane golf course play.

Of these the most involved table is Tee'd Off which offers for sort of mode driven game that pinball players have come to expect of modern machines. Other tables still benefit from their real-life counterparts so that they are surprisingly addictive. All the tables play excellently, with a great overall feel of playing pinball. Something that is helped by the motion sensing nudges from the Nun-chuck of Wii-mote, as we shall discuss later.

The overarching game is intelligently structured. This means that you have to play the older machines in order to win credits for the newer tables. This meant that I ended up spending many happy hours on Eldorado and Genie, tables that I could easily have overlooked. As you progress through each table you can attempt to achieve a particular target. In addition to the normal extra credit awards, such as achieving a high score or getting lucky with a match, these target achievements award their own credits. They also put other tables into free play mode, which means you don't have to diminish your store of credits to play the table.

Control: A lot of this has probably been noted for Gottlieb Classics on other platforms. However, the intelligent use of the Wii's motion controls really adds a degree of physicality. The Wii-mote nudges the table right, and the nun-chuck nudges it left. This works surprisingly well and really does work just like those last minute reaction shoves of a physical cabinets. The only aspect lacking is the ability to give an upwards shove, and hence the inability to attempt a death save, popping the ball back up from behind the flippers.

Graphics: A successful video pinball simulation needs realistic physics, well developed table design and authentic touch and feel. Video pinball has long been hampered by poor table design, although often sporting very impressive environmental ball physics. The success of the finished product depends largely on the ingenuity of the games design rather than on advanced graphics. Pinball Dreams on the Amiga achieved these things without the heavy weight processing available today.

The good news is that Gottlieb Classics achieves well in all these categories. The physics are solid and realistic, modelling ball speed and spin accurately. This enables you to treat the tables with the sort of touch and control that is needed for their physical counterparts. You soon find yourself using classic pinball techniques such as flipper swapping, defensive nudges and ball trapping are all achievable and necessary to advance through the game.

The table design, which often suffers from a lack of attention in video pinball simulations, obviously benefits from the time spent on the original machines. Although I hadn't physically played any of the tables on offer, they all seemed well implemented. There was a real sense of a depth of play that reveals more of the game as you attune to its pace and shots.

Sound & Music: Sonically, the designers obviously had access to the samples and voice work of the original tables. Gottlieb Pinball Classics is spot on in this respect. These range from the clanks and pings resulting from the mechanics of the tables to the little audio hits that accompany the bumpers or game modes. The various tunes and ditties that will remind you of your favourite old table are also reproduced here, and help to give the game a really authentic feel.

Final Comments: This all adds up to a confident pinball game that provides a great rendition of some classic Gottlieb games. It finally delivers commercially on the territory previously reserved for the community driven Visual Pinball, namely the re-creation of real world tables. It will be interesting to see how this compares to the new Xbox live pinball game Pinball FX, with its invented tables. With this and the upcoming Williams collection from Crave, and (one would hope) other constructors such as Bally waiting in the wings, things are certainly looking up for video pinball.

Pro: Real world tables.
Con: Limited to Gottlieb machines.
Final Score: 8.0

Reviewed by: Douglas Andrews