ZPP review

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  • surf1der
    Pinball Wizard
    • Jan 2012
    • 827

    ZPP review

    3 of the new tables are the easiest tables that Zen has ever created (My Little Pony, Trolls, and How to Train Your Dragon). HTTYD requires only 7 (6 if you get a nice deflection on the bumpers) shots to complete all the modes to unlock the wizard mode. 2 consecutive orbit shots, 3 alternating captured ball shots, 1 shot to the bumpers, and 1 shot to the center spot targets. I think I started the wizard mode in a little over 2 minutes. Kung Fu Panda was more difficult until I plugged in a controller and had a viable nudge option to redirect outlane drains. I already inferred from the cartoon themes that these would be easy tables but they offer no challenge to pin veterans and they will quickly be bored with the lack of modes and challenges. I’m guessing this was a conscious decision to cater to young kids and novices with an Apple Arcade sub.

    Positives:
    1) Controller support. I’ve been waiting for this for 10 years and unfortunately it is only available on ZPP. I wish one of the devs could be bothered to spend a day or two to implement this in the ZP app. Some minor dings in regards to controller support is it defaults to xbox button names even when you have a ps5 dualsense controller paired to the app. Also, no remapping options. I like to use the L1 and R1 buttons rather than triggers for flipper activation. The triggers cause more finger fatigue and aching after prolonged games. Also I prefer the d pad for nudging rather the the left stick.
    2) Improved aspect ratio. The game fully uses all of my 11” ipad pro gen 2’s screen real estate. ZP has black bars.
    3) Decent variety of tables. I’m finally playing the fantastic Williams pinball machines. I refuse to touch your FtP monstrosity Williams pinball app (or pay 2 to 3 times the price for partially functional tables compared to every other platform).
    4) Tournament mode. It seems pretty limited but it’s better than nothing. Not sure what the rewards are. It would be nice to organize tournaments with friends within the app instead of doing it on message boards which usually flounder without a dedicated tournament organizer.

    Negatives:
    1) Low res assets. I did a side-by-side comparison of the tables in the ZP, WP, and ZPP apps. The ZPP app definitely uses a lower resolution and looks blurry in comparison. I’m not sure if this was a mistake or a calculated decision to keep the file size down but an option to download high res assets is sorely needed.
    2) No landscape option. I like to play Williams tables in portrait but have always preferred landscape when playing Zen tables. They always seemed to be designed with tv aspect ratios in mind.
    3) Swipe to nudge is just awful. I used tap to nudge on the ZP app which is a bit finicky and sometimes fails to register a nudge. But the swipe to nudge is just awful. Most of my swipes (probably greater than 75%) fail to register any nudge. A tap to nudge option like ZP and WP would be nice if I don’t have a controller nearby.
    4) Buggy. I’ve had a few complete audio dropouts when starting a table which requires a forced app close to regain audio. Also when starting a new game I’ve been stuck on the launcher camera angle not being able to swipe down to launch the ball. Backing out to the table menu and restarting the table usually resolves this.
    5) No friends high score list/filter. No local high score list. I even tested the status report on the Kung Fu Panda table and no local top 10 high scores.
    6) Physics are different compared to the ZP app on some of the tables. I compared adventureland across the ZPP and ZP apps. The ball feels more floaty/slower on the ZPP app. Maybe the table incline was lowered to make it easier? Not sure I like this change though some might prefer it.

    Overall if you’re a novice to video pinball and have an Apple Arcade sub, this is a nice intro to digital pinball. For ZP vets the new tables don’t offer any challenge and the lower resolution tables and easier physics might turn you away from the zen originals. For me, I’ll only be using this app to play Williams tables to avoid the FTP shenanigans of the WP app.
  • Cloda
    Pinball Wizard
    • Nov 2010
    • 1182

    #2
    Nice feedback Surfrider! I concur with just about everything you say except that I think you need at least a few more shots to get to wizard mode one How to Train your Dragon i.e. spelling the girls name in the sinkhole unless that is not one of the modes for the wizard - sorry, didn't pay too much attention as to what I did to play through the wizard mode. I'm also very frustrated with the controller support. I connected my Xbox controller to my IPad without any issues. Unfortunately, the flippers are assigned to the triggers and not the buttons. On Pinball FX3 on PC that is not a problem, because the triggers are registered as analogue. In Zen Pinball Party though, the triggers are registered as digital, and even worse, is that they only start working/activating if you pull the trigger in half-way. That is bad... you now have lag between pulling the trigger and the flipper actually flipping and that is not good in pinball. I suggested to the Zen team to either make that the whole trigger register and/or that the flippers get reassigned to the shoulder buttons.

    Here are some of my thoughts on the new tables -

    - How to train your Dragon - Is a proper Zen table that will require multiple hours for a top score. Not too much replayability for an experienced player but a great table for beginners.
    - My Little Pony - Is very straight forward and there is not a lot to do. Most of the modes also all encourage you to hit the sinkhole as much of possible, so there is not much variation. This one is definitely aimed at younger kids, only one problem... it is actually not all that easy until you figure a few things out regarding the out-lanes. It also has one very unfair and un-kiddie-friendly feature and that is the ball being ejected from the sinkhole often shoots straight down the middle. I'll probably never play the table again after playing through the wizard mode a few times in my first game... but I'm sure kiddies will enjoy it even though they won't get very far ;-)
    - Trolls - Is also pretty straight forward with only three modes before you get to wizard mode. There are quite a few other modes and multiballs on the table and there is nice variety between the different modes. I would have liked it if a couple of these other modes were to count towards wizard mode rather than just the three. But yes... in the end still a kiddies table but fun nonetheless. Also no longevity in it though as it took me about 10 minutes to play through all the modes on the table.
    - Kung-Fu Panda - Only table that is still a challenge, and that is because I can't nudge on the outlanes, which is essential as the ball keeps on going out the left. The kickback mechanism is tricky. You need to light up all the lane lights, and then it takes four tight shots to activate one side. If that is not enough, kickbacks aren't "deactivated" during multiball so it is easy to lose... and there are a lot of multiballs. Is it worth the effort it is the question?

    As for replayability... not much there for me to keep Apple Arcade going. I can play all the tables on other better platforms, except for the four new ones. They are all just too easy. I played How to train your Dragon for over an hour yesterday on my third game and ended the game because I got bored. Both Trolls and My Little Pony I played through to the wizard mode in my first session on each.
    XBox One Gamertag - PinStratsDan

    Pinball FX3 Tips & Strategy Guide YouTube Channel - PinStratsDan

    Discord server - PinStratsDan

    Twitter - PinStratsDan

    Facebook - PinStratsDan

    Cloda's somewhat vain and sort of self-indulgent thread

    Comment

    • surf1der
      Pinball Wizard
      • Jan 2012
      • 827

      #3
      @cloda The three modes needed to complete before the wizard mode only needs 6 or 7 shots. You don’t need to spell the girls name. One mode is 2 consecutive orbit shots to light the ball on fire. Another mode is 2 alternating captured ball shots to start the mode and you need 1 more captured ball shot to complete the mode. And the fish mode needs at least 1 bumper hit and then a shot to the center targets. To actually get the wizard mode started you need to hit the left and right ramps to lock the balls for multiball and then hit the center sinkhole to actually start it. But a veteran can start the wizard mode in probably 2-3 minutes if they are hitting their shots. The most difficult part of the table is hitting the two consecutive orbit shots because the timer is a bit tight but not too bad.

      For Kung Fu Panda I had to use a controller to get to the wizard mode. That was the only way i could reliably get nudges to redirect the ball away from the outlanes. Going for the gong kickbacks is a bit sketchy because the ball can easily drain down the center.
      Last edited by surf1der; 09-06-2021, 01:22 AM.

      Comment

      • Cloda
        Pinball Wizard
        • Nov 2010
        • 1182

        #4
        Originally posted by surf1der
        @cloda The three modes needed to complete before the wizard mode only needs 6 or 7 shots. You don’t need to spell the girls name. One mode is 2 consecutive orbit shots to light the ball on fire. Another mode is 2 alternating captured ball shots to start the mode and you need 1 more captured ball shot to complete the mode. And the fish mode needs at least 1 bumper hit and then a shot to the center targets. To actually get the wizard mode started you need to hit the left and right ramps to lock the balls for multiball and then hit the center sinkhole to actually start it. But a veteran can start the wizard mode in probably 2-3 minutes if they are hitting their shots. The most difficult part of the table is hitting the two consecutive orbit shots because the timer is a bit tight but not too bad.

        For Kung Fu Panda I had to use a controller to get to the wizard mode. That was the only way i could reliably get nudges to redirect the ball away from the outlanes. Going for the gong kickbacks is a bit sketchy because the ball can easily drain down the center.
        Thanks for explaining... I just hit lit shots and flashing things until the wizard mode started ;-) . I'll wait for the controller fix before trying Kung-fu Panda again. I'm not so desperate to play it that I'm willing to deal with the input lag.
        XBox One Gamertag - PinStratsDan

        Pinball FX3 Tips & Strategy Guide YouTube Channel - PinStratsDan

        Discord server - PinStratsDan

        Twitter - PinStratsDan

        Facebook - PinStratsDan

        Cloda's somewhat vain and sort of self-indulgent thread

        Comment

        • surf1der
          Pinball Wizard
          • Jan 2012
          • 827

          #5
          Thanks for the tip. Note to others, you need to have the controller paired to your Apple device to see the game controller setting. Use the Add App option and select Zen Pinball Party to make custom controller rebindings specific for this app otherwise the rebindings will apply to all apps.

          Comment

          • surf1der
            Pinball Wizard
            • Jan 2012
            • 827

            #6
            Wondering if the tournament leaderboards are already hacked. I was first on the My Little Pony tournament at 500 M (univac). The new leader has 100 billion. Seems a little suspicious.

            Comment

            • surf1der
              Pinball Wizard
              • Jan 2012
              • 827

              #7
              Looking at the high scores of other tables I can say that Som3athewolf has definitely hacked the leaderboards. Seems like ZPP leaderboards are as easy to hack as the ZP leaderboards.

              Comment

              • surf1der
                Pinball Wizard
                • Jan 2012
                • 827

                #8
                Originally posted by Linne_Zen
                We try to sweep and delete these regularly, but we need 1000% proof that the scores are fake. This can take some time to get to the bottom of sometimes, but we try to keep track of these. Thank you very much for the report!
                Well Som3athewolf is still on top of the leaderboard with 1 day left on the first Grand Tournament. And you sweep the leaderboards regularly for fake scores so he or she must be legit. Therefore, congratulations to Som3athewolf for a score of 100 billion... and me with my paltry 500 million in second place, thought I was halfway decent. It seems I need to step up my game.
                Last edited by surf1der; 09-27-2021, 05:54 PM.

                Comment

                • surf1der
                  Pinball Wizard
                  • Jan 2012
                  • 827

                  #9
                  Looks like you finally got ride of the cheater. Does that mean I got first place in the monthly tournament? Who knows. The app seemed bugged when the tournament was over. Couldn’t tell what place I got or what the rewards were.
                  Last edited by Linne_Zen; 10-07-2021, 04:31 PM.

                  Comment

                  • hunter328
                    Pinball Wizard
                    • Apr 2012
                    • 364

                    #10
                    Linne_Zen, will the new table come to your other games?
                    sigpic

                    Comment

                    • alanmark
                      Pinball Fan
                      • Nov 2021
                      • 1

                      #11
                      Originally posted by surf1der
                      3 of the new tables are the easiest tables that Zen has ever created (My Little Pony, Trolls, and How to Train Your Dragon). HTTYD requires only 7 (6 if you get a nice deflection on the bumpers) shots to complete all the modes to unlock the wizard mode. 2 consecutive orbit shots, 3 alternating captured ball shots, 1 shot to the bumpers, and 1 shot to the center spot targets. I think I started the wizard mode in a little over 2 minutes. Kung Fu Panda was more difficult until I plugged in a controller and had a viable nudge option to redirect outlane drains. I already inferred from the cartoon themes that these would be easy tables but they offer no challenge to pin veterans and they will quickly be bored with the lack of modes and challenges. I’m guessing this was a conscious decision to cater to young kids and novices with an Apple Arcade sub.

                      Positives:
                      1) Controller support. I’ve been waiting for this for 10 years and unfortunately it is only available on ZPP. I wish one of the devs could be bothered to spend a day or two to implement this in the ZP app. Some minor dings in regards to controller support is it defaults to xbox button names even when you have a ps5 dualsense controller paired to the app. Also, no remapping options. I like to use the L1 and R1 buttons rather than triggers for flipper activation. The triggers cause more finger fatigue and aching after prolonged games. Also I prefer the d pad for nudging rather the the left stick.
                      2) Improved aspect ratio. The game fully uses all of my 11” ipad pro gen 2’s screen real estate. ZP has black bars.
                      3) Decent variety of tables. I’m finally playing the fantastic Williams pinball machines. I refuse to touch your FtP monstrosity Williams pinball app (or pay 2 to 3 times the price for partially functional tables compared to every other platform).
                      4) Tournament mode. It seems pretty limited but it’s better than nothing. Not sure what the rewards are. It would be nice to organize tournaments with friends within the app instead of doing it on message boards which usually flounder without a dedicated tournament organizer. io games

                      Negatives:
                      1) Low res assets. I did a side-by-side comparison of the tables in the ZP, WP, and ZPP apps. The ZPP app definitely uses a lower resolution and looks blurry in comparison. I’m not sure if this was a mistake or a calculated decision to keep the file size down but an option to download high res assets is sorely needed.
                      2) No landscape option. I like to play Williams tables in portrait but have always preferred landscape when playing Zen tables. They always seemed to be designed with tv aspect ratios in mind.
                      3) Swipe to nudge is just awful. I used tap to nudge on the ZP app which is a bit finicky and sometimes fails to register a nudge. But the swipe to nudge is just awful. Most of my swipes (probably greater than 75%) fail to register any nudge. A tap to nudge option like ZP and WP would be nice if I don’t have a controller nearby.
                      4) Buggy. I’ve had a few complete audio dropouts when starting a table which requires a forced app close to regain audio. Also when starting a new game I’ve been stuck on the launcher camera angle not being able to swipe down to launch the ball. Backing out to the table menu and restarting the table usually resolves this.
                      5) No friends high score list/filter. No local high score list. I even tested the status report on the Kung Fu Panda table and no local top 10 high scores.
                      6) Physics are different compared to the ZP app on some of the tables. I compared adventureland across the ZPP and ZP apps. The ball feels more floaty/slower on the ZPP app. Maybe the table incline was lowered to make it easier? Not sure I like this change though some might prefer it.

                      Overall if you’re a novice to video pinball and have an Apple Arcade sub, this is a nice intro to digital pinball. For ZP vets the new tables don’t offer any challenge and the lower resolution tables and easier physics might turn you away from the zen originals. For me, I’ll only be using this app to play Williams tables to avoid the FTP shenanigans of the WP app.
                      Thanks for the tip. Note to others, you need to have the controller paired to your Apple device to see the game controller setting

                      Comment

                      • rozysharma22
                        Pinball Fan
                        • Nov 2021
                        • 1

                        #12
                        App Review is part of app development that enables us to verify that your app uses our Products and APIs in an approved manner. If your app will be used by
                        An App Review submission guide that serves as a walk-through process. Use this guide when you are ready to submit your app for app review.

                        Comment

                        • hanamark
                          Pinball Fan
                          • Nov 2021
                          • 1

                          #13
                          Originally posted by surf1der
                          3 of the new tables are the easiest tables that Zen has ever created (My Little Pony, Trolls, and How to Train Your Dragon). HTTYD requires only 7 (6 if you get a nice deflection on the bumpers) shots to complete all the modes to unlock the wizard mode. 2 consecutive orbit shots, 3 alternating captured ball shots, 1 shot to the bumpers, and 1 shot to the center spot targets. I think I started the wizard mode in a little over 2 minutes. Kung Fu Panda was more difficult until I plugged in a controller and had a viable nudge option to redirect outlane drains. I already inferred from the cartoon themes that these would be easy tables but they offer no challenge to pin veterans and they will quickly be bored with the lack of modes and challenges. I’m guessing this was a conscious decision to cater to young kids and novices with an Apple Arcade sub.

                          Positives:
                          1) Controller support. I’ve been waiting for this for 10 years and unfortunately it is only available on ZPP. I wish one of the devs could be bothered to spend a day or two to implement this in the ZP app. Some minor dings in regards to controller support is it defaults to xbox button names even when you have a ps5 dualsense controller paired to the app. Also, no remapping options. I like to use the L1 and R1 buttons rather than triggers for flipper activation. The triggers cause more finger fatigue and aching after prolonged games. Also I prefer the d pad for nudging rather the the left stick.
                          2) Improved aspect ratio. The game fully uses all of my 11” ipad pro gen 2’s screen real estate. ZP has black bars.
                          3) Decent variety of tables. I’m finally playing the fantastic Williams pinball machines. I refuse to touch your FtP monstrosity Williams pinball app (or pay 2 to 3 times the price for partially functional tables compared to every other platform).
                          4) Tournament mode. It seems pretty limited but it’s better than nothing. Not sure what the rewards are. It would be nice to organize tournaments with friends within the app instead of doing it on message boards which usually flounder without a dedicated tournament organizer. snow rider 3d

                          Negatives:
                          1) Low res assets. I did a side-by-side comparison of the tables in the ZP, WP, and ZPP apps. The ZPP app definitely uses a lower resolution and looks blurry in comparison. I’m not sure if this was a mistake or a calculated decision to keep the file size down but an option to download high res assets is sorely needed.
                          2) No landscape option. I like to play Williams tables in portrait but have always preferred landscape when playing Zen tables. They always seemed to be designed with tv aspect ratios in mind.
                          3) Swipe to nudge is just awful. I used tap to nudge on the ZP app which is a bit finicky and sometimes fails to register a nudge. But the swipe to nudge is just awful. Most of my swipes (probably greater than 75%) fail to register any nudge. A tap to nudge option like ZP and WP would be nice if I don’t have a controller nearby.
                          4) Buggy. I’ve had a few complete audio dropouts when starting a table which requires a forced app close to regain audio. Also when starting a new game I’ve been stuck on the launcher camera angle not being able to swipe down to launch the ball. Backing out to the table menu and restarting the table usually resolves this.
                          5) No friends high score list/filter. No local high score list. I even tested the status report on the Kung Fu Panda table and no local top 10 high scores.
                          6) Physics are different compared to the ZP app on some of the tables. I compared adventureland across the ZPP and ZP apps. The ball feels more floaty/slower on the ZPP app. Maybe the table incline was lowered to make it easier? Not sure I like this change though some might prefer it.

                          Overall if you’re a novice to video pinball and have an Apple Arcade sub, this is a nice intro to digital pinball. For ZP vets the new tables don’t offer any challenge and the lower resolution tables and easier physics might turn you away from the zen originals. For me, I’ll only be using this app to play Williams tables to avoid the FTP shenanigans of the WP app.
                          Thanks for explaining... I just hit lit shots and flashing things until the wizard mode started ;-) . I'll wait for the controller fix before trying Kung-fu Panda again. I'm not so desperate to play it that I'm willing to deal with the input lag.

                          Comment

                          • Keenan
                            Pinball Fan
                            • Apr 2022
                            • 2

                            #14
                            ZPP is a very powerful application and it hardly ever crashes. I am using the software for over a year now. I would like to state that the software is not only very helpful, but also very easy to use. The new version has some interesting features to improve the process of creating and inserting texts as well as the possibility to import personal texts. The application is also packed with useful features for every freelancer. The best feature of ZPP is that it allows you to work from home and to be independent from other writers or copywriters. This means you can work at any time, in the evenings and in your holidays. Every time I asked the support for help, I got an answer within the next hour. I do not regret buying this software and each cent was worth it!

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