Zen Pinball 2 Coming to Nintendo Wii U eShop

[BarbieBobomb]

ZP2 was suppose to be available in todays eShop update for Europe, but Zen now says it wont make it until January.

Yep--still working with Nintendo to get everything set up. Looking like sometime this month. I'll keep you posted.

[Everly]

The Wii U brought me to Zen Pinball

I am a Wii U owner and read about the release of Zen Pinball 2 on the E-Shop, hopefully this month. I didn't know much about Zen Pinball so I started looking around, found this forum, downloaded Zen Pinball HD for my Razer Maxx and love it. I'm not going to buy any tables to play on my phone because I would much rather play on the GamePad.

Based on the blog that Barbie linked to in the first post, it looks like we will be able to "try before you buy" all of the tables, which I love because even though I may like the theme of a table, I may not like the mechanics of it. I'm just basing the pricing I am expecting off of the other platforms, but I am hoping the $1.99 per table is something we are looking at on the Wii U. If table packs or a launch sales provides even better value then I will probably add even more.

Can any comment on the price structure at this point?

Although I am very excited, I can't help but express that I am a little disappointed in the delay. Not that it is huge, but all of the Wii U owners have been let down by release dates being moved for a variety of reasons. Pikmin 3 moved to 2Q 2013, Rayman Legends Demo wasn't available at launch, Nintendo TVii not available at launch and then when it was released in December it was still missing key elements of functionality.

My concern over this is that I can't really get a feel of what is causing the consistent delays. Being a new console there are always a learning curve for developers, but even the manufacturer seems to be having issues making release dates. Is that the issue we are hitting, or is Nintendo proving to be difficult to work with as a third party developer? My hope is that we are looking at the first issue because that will resolve in time. If 3rd party companies find it difficult to work with Nintendo, then it will obviously mean less entertainment for the Wii U owners.

I'm not really looking for a reply to that because you never want to throw a company you are working with under the bus. However, if someone on the inside could provide a percentage of confidence that Zen Pinball2 would actually be in the E-shop in January 2013 and perhaps when in the month we could expect it (1st half, 2nd half) that would be fantastic. Either way I really hope to add Zen to my program of time wasting

So glad I got the Black Deluxe so I have the extra memory for downloadable games.

[shogun00]

Can any comment on the price structure at this point?

Considering that this game is pretty much a port of the PS3 version. I assume it will follow the same pricing as well, which is $2.50-$3.00 a table and $10 for table packs (4 tables).

My concern over this is that I can't really get a feel of what is causing the consistent delays. Being a new console there are always a learning curve for developers, but even the manufacturer seems to be having issues making release dates. Is that the issue we are hitting, or is Nintendo proving to be difficult to work with as a third party developer? My hope is that we are looking at the first issue because that will resolve in time. If 3rd party companies find it difficult to work with Nintendo, then it will obviously mean less entertainment for the Wii U owners.

My best bet is that it's Nintendo themselves. Zen has also had difficultly getting content approved in a timely matter for the 3DS. It's been like what? 6 months since the Zen Pinball 3D and Marvel Pinball 3D released out on it and we're still waiting for the first round of DLC to release.

[Everly]

Considering that this game is pretty much a port of the PS3 version. I assume it will follow the same pricing as well, which is $2.50-$3.00 a table and $10 for table packs (4 tables).

Ok, that isn't as nice as I was hoping but still isn't bad. I suppose if they are $3 each and a set of 4 costs $10 that is a bit of a savings. Guess we will just have to wait and see, which brings us to the next issue.

My best bet is that it's Nintendo themselves. Zen has also had difficultly getting content approved in a timely matter for the 3DS. It's been like what? 6 months since the Zen Pinball 3D and Marvel Pinball 3D released out on it and we're still waiting for the first round of DLC to release.

That is really disappointing. I know that is just a guess as we are all on the outside looking in, but the story that has been spun for the past several years is that developers were shying away from the Wii because of its lack of processing power. Now one has to wonder if there is more to the story. Hopefully everyone can get on the same page and start taking my money.

[BarbieBobomb]

My best bet is that it's Nintendo themselves. Zen has also had difficultly getting content approved in a timely matter for the 3DS. It's been like what? 6 months since the Zen Pinball 3D and Marvel Pinball 3D released out on it and we're still waiting for the first round of DLC to release.

Not necessarily. Zen Pinball 2 is the first game of its kind on any Nintendo system (free platform download with paid DLC) so we're working with Nintendo to make sure there are no issues at launch. It's a first for them, so we're doing what we can to make sure everything goes smoothly, even if it means delaying a bit.

[Everly]

Not necessarily. Zen Pinball 2 is the first game of its kind on any Nintendo system (free platform download with paid DLC) so we're working with Nintendo to make sure there are no issues at launch. It's a first for them, so we're doing what we can to make sure everything goes smoothly, even if it means delaying a bit.

Well, that makes me feel somewhat better. I'm all for getting it right the first time, even if it takes longer. I know with the TVii feature it was delayed and then when it was released it was sub-par, which makes people wonder what the delay was for if they didn't get it right.

Another software company received the licensing to a board game that I love and it has been absolutely pitiful. After a failed launch we are now 8 months later and the product is still in beta and in my opinion pretty much unplayable on most machines.

One question that I did have with regard to the Wii U version. Is there a multiplayer online feature which would allow me to play with a friend online in the "Hotseat" style or do you just see their high score and try to beat it?

[BarbieBobomb]

One question that I did have with regard to the Wii U version. Is there a multiplayer online feature which would allow me to play with a friend online in the "Hotseat" style or do you just see their high score and try to beat it?

I believe there is online multiplayer but I'm not sure if it will be splitscreen or not.

[LumaFan")]

\My best bet is that it's Nintendo themselves. Zen has also had difficultly getting content approved in a timely matter for the 3DS. It's been like what? 6 months since the Zen Pinball 3D and Marvel Pinball 3D released out on it and we're still waiting for the first round of DLC to release.

Well I think the Wii U will have the process go a lot more faster. 3DS was new to all of that DLC stuff. Wii U isn't like the Wii or 3DS set up anymore it's probably closer to the App Store and ahead of XBLA and PSN in terms of updating and patching.

I heard that the updating or patching a game has no costs or fees unlike on XBLA and PSN.

[LumaFan")]

I believe there is online multiplayer but I'm not sure if it will be splitscreen or not.

I was watching the trailer and it said split screen was available. I'm guessing ths will work for local and online.

Its technically not split screen anymore. You are actually laying on the Gamepad and the other person on the TV.

[Everly]

Its technically not split screen anymore. You are actually laying on the Gamepad and the other person on the TV.

Why would that been needed for online? I could see local multi-player using the TV and the Gamepad, but to be honest I thing the Hotseat of taking turns after each lost ball seems to make the most sense. I think it would be cool to be playing with a friend and on his turn getting to watch the table as he/she plays, maybe with the ability to text in game.

But for now I would just be happy to see a release date that is true.

[LumaFan")]

Why would that been needed for online? I could see local multi-player using the TV and the Gamepad, but to be honest I thing the Hotseat of taking turns after each lost ball seems to make the most sense. I think it would be cool to be playing with a friend and on his turn getting to watch the table as he/she plays, maybe with the ability to text in game.

But for now I would just be happy to see a release date that is true.

I would want it to see the players screen and see what they are doing. ZP2 is launching for Wii U sometime this month.

[Everly]

I would want it to see the players screen and see what they are doing.

I was mostly talking about online multi-player where the other person is not in the room. Or are you saying that I would play on the GamePad and my online friend would be playing and his table would be showing up on my TV? Whoa, that would be interesting, but I doubt I could keep an eye on both at the same time.

[hunter328]

Nope--we kept PS3 & Vita together, so I'm keeping the Wii U and 3DS as one forum.

So will the Wii U game be just the 8 tables available for 3DS and share leaderboards? That's why it's cool having the PS3 and Vita forum one and the same. If not and Wii U is getting the full Zen 2 then issues and tables that won't be relevant to half of the group. Questions about updates, tournaments, new tables that one platform may never even see would be confusing as well.
So if they're the same great, it works well over in the Sony forum. If they're different I'd have to say I'm for splitting them up. Because we do it that way for the Sony machines would be irrelevant in that case and, IMO, poor logic since A doesn't equal B in this case (Shout out to Proffesor Higgins, VCU Logic and Reasoning 101, without whom this post would not have been possible.)

[Everly]

Tables I'm looking forward to

I've looked and some of the reviews and table layouts and even though I am a big Marvel fan, I think I am going to focus on these: (I'm basing the availability of the tables on what is listed in the blog that Barbie posted at the head of this thread)

The Zen Classic Pack with Telsa, Shaman, Eldorado, and V12. Then for individual tables that interest me I like Epic Quest and Excalibur.

I'm a big Spiderman fan so I will probably find myself looking at it during a dead period waiting for the release of the next game I'm interested in.

I know that Sorcerer's Lair and Paranormal are highly rated by the community, but I have very strong anti-occult beliefs so I'm not really comfortable with those.

If anyone has a serious recommendation of one that they really love please post or message me so I don't let one slip passed.

[Tech101]

I've looked and some of the reviews and table layouts and even though I am a big Marvel fan, I think I am going to focus on these: (I'm basing the availability of the tables on what is listed in the blog that Barbie posted at the head of this thread)

The Zen Classic Pack with Telsa, Shaman, Eldorado, and V12. Then for individual tables that interest me I like Epic Quest and Excalibur.

I'm a big Spiderman fan so I will probably find myself looking at it during a dead period waiting for the release of the next game I'm interested in.

I know that Sorcerer's Lair and Paranormal are highly rated by the community, but I have very strong anti-occult beliefs so I'm not really comfortable with those.

If anyone has a serious recommendation of one that they really love please post or message me so I don't let one slip passed.

I would strongly consider most marvel tables as I seem to find those the most fun. However don't forget you will be able to sample all the tables so it shouldn't be too much of an issue. I've yet to truly find a table that wasn't good made be Zen. Also if you have an android of iPhone you can download Zen from the shop and try sorcerers lair for free. It's a free table offered on both systems. I like it even though we share the same beliefs. Paranormal really isn't that bad either. It's more weird then anything! As far as I could see there is no ghosts or stuff like that. Just weird science if you will. If anything I had more of a problem with Ghost Rider for my beliefs!!