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A common item of feedback when people talk about Zen Pinball HD on Pinball Arcade Fans forum is "I wish there was a way to make some mechanical elements more hardcore".
To clarify, what this means is:
1) Set slingshot strength to 100%
2) Set pop-bumper strength to 100%
3) Reduce the friction physics on the flipper bats so the ball doesn't come to a screaming halt on the flipper instead of doing a shuttle pass.
4) Make the Ball Save timer a little less generous
5) Change the "weight" of the ball so it behaves differently on ramps.
Having played Pinball Arcade quite a bit, coming to Zen was a bit of a learning curve for me having played lots or IRL pinball, and being used to the physics in Pinball Arcade.
Don't get me wrong: I get what Zen is trying to do with the product. The way I understand the product, the goal of Zen is to bring pinball to the masses, and make it fun for the average punter so they don't have balls gobbled up in short order.
What needs to be understood is that because of the resurgance of digital pinball, punters are moving between the two franchises and encountering a different play style. That's not to say that each franchise should play the same by default. Not at all.
For those who want a more "real world" feel to the gameplay, and don't mind if their play time is shortened as a result, wouldn't it be fantastic to have a "Zen" mode and "Hardcore" mode, with the features implemented above? Similar to different difficulty levels in other game titles.
From a technical implementation standpoint, would a profiled physics model (I would assume this would be how a Hardcore mode would be implemented) be something that Zen could implement? Or would *want* to implement?
To clarify, what this means is:
1) Set slingshot strength to 100%
2) Set pop-bumper strength to 100%
3) Reduce the friction physics on the flipper bats so the ball doesn't come to a screaming halt on the flipper instead of doing a shuttle pass.
4) Make the Ball Save timer a little less generous
5) Change the "weight" of the ball so it behaves differently on ramps.
Having played Pinball Arcade quite a bit, coming to Zen was a bit of a learning curve for me having played lots or IRL pinball, and being used to the physics in Pinball Arcade.
Don't get me wrong: I get what Zen is trying to do with the product. The way I understand the product, the goal of Zen is to bring pinball to the masses, and make it fun for the average punter so they don't have balls gobbled up in short order.
What needs to be understood is that because of the resurgance of digital pinball, punters are moving between the two franchises and encountering a different play style. That's not to say that each franchise should play the same by default. Not at all.
For those who want a more "real world" feel to the gameplay, and don't mind if their play time is shortened as a result, wouldn't it be fantastic to have a "Zen" mode and "Hardcore" mode, with the features implemented above? Similar to different difficulty levels in other game titles.
From a technical implementation standpoint, would a profiled physics model (I would assume this would be how a Hardcore mode would be implemented) be something that Zen could implement? Or would *want* to implement?
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