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Get More Han For Your Buck With Star Wars Pinball VR’s Latest Update
Zen Studios’ Star Wars Pinball VR launched last month for multiple virtual reality (VR) headsets, offering sci-fi fans an entirely customisable cave as well as a pinball machine with some awesome tables on it. If those eight tables we’re enough the studio has just released a new one dedicated to the galaxy’s favourite smugglers, Han Solo and Chewbacca.
Coming from Pinball FX3’s – Star Wars Pinball: Heroes Within pack, this free table offers new gameplay opportunities and unlockables for the fan cave. Set during the Classic Trilogy era, the Han Solo table doesn’t feature any lightsabers or magical trickery, just blasters and proper physics.
The iconic Millennium Falcon sits at the top of the table and plays a part in the challenges, tasking you with placing the ball in secret compartments or fixing the hyperdrive. There’s even a chance to destroy the Death Star. Like the other tables there a VR-enhanced mini-games to find, allowing you to pilot the ship through an asteroid belt, avoiding incoming fire from Tie Fighters.
Getting that far means some big scores which in turn allows you to update you cave with lifesize statues of Han and Chewie – who doesn’t want that next to their AT-AT and Jabba the Hut models?
When reviewing the Oculus Quest version, VRFocus said: Star Wars Pinball VR is an excellent addition to the franchise, another superb showcase of pinball in VR. There’s so much content to discover you’ll be playing for hour after hour trying to finesse those shots to unlock new secrets. Sure, it really helps if you’re a Star Wars fan as all the cave customization options will be lost on anyone else.
Zen Studios’ Star Wars Pinball VR supports Oculus Quest, PlayStation VR, Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and Valve Index. VRFocus will continue its coverage of the videogame, reporting back with further updates.
The VR Job Hub: HTC Vive, Zen Studios, Wooorld & Vertigo Games
Every weekend VRFocus gathers together vacancies from across the virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR) industry, in locations around the globe to help make finding that ideal job easier. Below is a selection of roles that are currently accepting applications across a number of disciplines, all within departments and companies that focus on immersive entertainment.
| Location | Company | Role | Link |
| Budapest, Hungary | Zen Studios | Data Analyst | Click Here to Apply |
| Budapest, Hungary | Zen Studios | Network Programmer | Click Here to Apply |
| Budapest, Hungary | Zen Studios | Game Programmer | Click Here to Apply |
| Budapest, Hungary | Zen Studios | 3D Character Animator | Click Here to Apply |
| Remote | Wooorld | Unity Engineer – VR/AR | Click Here to Apply |
| Remote | Wooorld | Full Stack Engineer | Click Here to Apply |
| Rotterdam, The Netherlands | Vertigo Games | Analytics Engineer | Click Here to Apply |
| Rotterdam, The Netherlands | Vertigo Games | Senior Full Stack Developer | Click Here to Apply |
| Rotterdam, The Netherlands | Vertigo Games | UI Engineer | Click Here to Apply |
| Rotterdam, The Netherlands | Vertigo Games | QA Lead | Click Here to Apply |
| Rotterdam, The Netherlands | Vertigo Games | QA Specialist | Click Here to Apply |
| Rotterdam, The Netherlands | Vertigo Games | Technical Level Designer | Click Here to Apply |
| London, UK | HTC Vive (Vive Arts) | Sales Assistant & Art Liaison | Click Here to Apply |
| London, UK | HTC Vive (Vive Arts) | Executive Assistant of Director (French Speaking) | Click Here to Apply |
| London, UK | HTC Vive (Vive Arts) | Curator, Vive Arts | Click Here to Apply |
Don’t forget, if there wasn’t anything that took your fancy this week there’s always last week’s listings on The VR Job Hub to check as well.
If you are an employer looking for someone to fill an immersive technology related role – regardless of the industry – don’t forget you can send us the lowdown on the position and we’ll be sure to feature it in that following week’s feature. Details should be sent to Peter Graham (pgraham@vrfocus.com).
We’ll see you next week on VRFocus at the usual time of 3PM (UK) for another selection of jobs from around the world.
Review: Star Wars Pinball VR
Zen Studios proved back in 2016 how well arcade classic pinball works in virtual reality (VR) thanks to Pinball FX2 VR, providing addictively simple yet thoroughly engrossing gameplay. Now the studio is back, returning with a bigger, bolder and even more engaging experience than before, just so long as you’re a massive Star Wars fan that is.
Star Wars Pinball VR is the very essence of a love letter to the sci-fi franchise, taking you through several of the films as well as adding its own extras. This isn’t so much a nod to Star Wars, it’s more a massive mosh pit for you to jump around in and customize to your liking – once you’ve put in some serious time at the tables to unlock everything of course.
You’ll find yourself in a fairly barebones Fan Cave, with lots of empty shelving, plinths, and poster frames to be filled. To do so you’re provided with eight tables, each with its own unique design and characters depending on what part of the franchise they’re based on. So you’ve got tables such as Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope which come from the original Star Wars Pinball videogame but there are new inclusions like The Mandalorian. Unlike Pinball FX2 VR which had separate tables, in Star Wars Pinball VR all eight are housed in one unit, keeping the cave nice and tidy but also meaning you can quickly and easily switch between the tables.
Which is great once you found a couple of favourites (which you will). They’re all extremely intricate, fascinating to look at, almost overwhelming to begin with. Apart from the main central flippers, all the tables have varying degrees of additional flippers so there’s a sizable learning curve when you start a fresh one. Being pinball, the mechanics are very easy to pick up and play yet don’t let that fool you. The tables are incredibly complex with multiple stages to unlock as well as new animations. Read the table description if you want to see all that they have to offer. And that’s not even counting the VR additions.
Even with the older PC pinball tables, Zen Studios has given them a reworking. So you can view each one from the standard overhead view or actually jump inside for a close-up look. Called ‘Immersion Mode’ it looks great if you want to admire the table but not so much for actually playing it. You’re almost too close to the action making it tricky to track the ball, plus the ball looks really fake like it’s floating around the table. It’s the one feature in Star Wars Pinball VR which ruins the illusion of playing pinball in VR, so stay clear.
However, there are in-table moments that do work very well. There’s a sequence that can be unlocked during The Mandalorian whereby you control Mando for a brief time, blasting the ball away with your wrist-mounted flamethrower. There aren’t too many of these moments but they do add a pleasing side touch to the whole experience.
For the most part, you’re going to be aiming for table high scores as some massive scores are required to unlock some of the rarer unlockables like the Darth Vader statue or Baby Yoda. Thankfully, Star Wars Pinball VR features a couple of different ways you can engage with the tables to keep the gameplay interesting. Classic Mode is exactly as you’d expect, no-frills just you, a couple of buttons to mash, and some expert timing. Dig a little deeper and you also have an Arcade Mode and a Career Mode which are sort of intertwined yet hold the key to the monstrous scores.
Naturally, every Fan Cave has to have a huge TV. This is where you can play through the Career Mode with five chapters split down into ten missions each. They’ll each have their own particular challenges such as hit a particular score within a time limit or last for a set time with only one life. Do so and you’ll be awarded points on Force Powers and Force Talents. Upgrading them will increase their special bonus, nicely upping the ante when playing in Arcade Mode. They don’t alter the pinball mechanics in any way but having those means you can swap the Powers/Talents around and change your strategy if you take those pinball high scores seriously.
Away from the intensity of the tables you can always relax, put some music on the R2-D2 Jukebox, and admire your cave. Star Wars Pinball VR is for the most part a very comfortable experience as you’re at a table watching a ball(s) ping around. Smooth locomotion is the default movement around the cave so if you’re not comfortable with that snap turning and teleportation can be activated, they’re just not easy to find. The options menu is hidden within the TV system so it’s not instantly accessible wherever you are in the room.
Understandable considering Zen Studios is keeping a nice HUD-free environment yet it does make the process a little finicky for those players who do instantly head to the option settings. Another unusual addition is the hands. You’d think that in VR hands aren’t unusual but in the room, they’re completely inanimate, there’s nothing to pick up or physically interact with. They seem to be used more as a way to ground you in the space, automatically locking to the side of the table when playing.
Another minor gripe is the retro screens at the far end of each table, they need to be a bit easier to read. You can get so engrossed watching the ball(s) it’s easy to forget to look at the little yellow and black screen to make certain stage selections.
Even with those grumbles, Star Wars Pinball VR is an excellent addition to the franchise, another superb showcase of pinball in VR. There’s so much content to discover you’ll be playing for hour after hour trying to finesse those shots to unlock new secrets. Sure, it really helps if you’re a Star Wars fan as all the cave customization options will be lost on anyone else. VR headsets already have a decent selection of Star Wars titles with Star Wars Pinball VR being one of the best.
Preview: Star Wars Pinball VR – This is the Pinball Game You’re Looking for
Zen Studios is known as the purveyor of awesome pinball videogames with most dedicated to famous IP’s such as The Walking Dead as well as its own original creations. It was very surprising back in 2016 when the developer launched Pinball FX2 VR showcasing how well this style of videogame ports into virtual reality (VR). April will see the studio return to VR with one of the biggest franchises around, Star Wars Pinball VR, not only offering a selection of exciting tables to beat but a fully customisable fan cave to geek out in.
For this early hands-on look at Star Wars Pinball VR VRFocus tested the Oculus Quest version with access to two of the eight tables the final release will feature, The Mandalorian and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. As you may already realise the rest are then based on the original trilogy plus a couple of extras. Unlike Pinball FX2 VR which had several tables set out in a very swanky apartment, for Star Wars Pinball VR there’s one solitary table from which you can select all the rest.
Before doing so and diving right in it’s nice to have a wander around this cave of Star Wars wonder, a proper homage that you could very well imagine exists somewhere in the world. However, to begin with, it’s fairly sparse, there are posters on the walls but they’re all the same, you’ve got some bare shelving and a rotating shelve plus some empty plinths on the floor. There are a couple of statues, an AT-AT and Jabba the Hut as well as a kitchen and jukebox to give it that proper den feel. All the blank spaces are there for a reason though, collectables.
Through playing each table you’ll be able to unlock various iconic vehicles like the Tie Fighter or Slave 1, Strom Trooper helmets, new posters, new music and more. All so you can customise your virtual Star Wars space just so.
That means heading to the pinball table to start racking up the points as some of those unlockables cost a billion points! If you’ve played any of Zen Studios’ pinball titles you’ll know each is richly detailed and full of Easter eggs. What makes the experience in VR even better is the ability to peer closer and inspect all the various mechanisms. In Star Wars Pinball VR, you can even play from inside the table, with three positions available (left, central and right). While it can be quite novel playing right behind the central flippers, it didn’t quite gel, the more traditional top-down viewpoint was far better.
Even with just two tables on offer, there’s a massive amount going on although it doesn’t look like it from the first inspection. That’s because each table had story chapters to unlock, hitting particular bumpers or launching a ball up a particular ramp would then unlock the next section, with new objects appearing on the table or even in the environment. A good example of this was on The Mandalorian table. Get the right sequence and you’re suddenly in his shoes, using his wrist-mounted flamethrower to knock the ball around the table until the fuel runs out.
You don’t just have to step right up to the table either, there’s a big flat-screen TV which offers missions. These can range from hitting a certain score to unlocking features like multiball. Completing them earns you tokens which can be spent on activating and upgrading Force Powers and Talents. Tables can be played in Classic Mode or Arcade Mode and it’s the latter where those special abilities can be used to give you a chance of hitting those really impressive combos.
Even from this brief look at Star Wars Pinball VR, it’s easy to tell Zen Studios is packing a great deal of content that’ll give players hours and hours of entertainment. Naturally, Star Wars fans are going to get the most out of this but even those who aren’t particularly fussed with the franchise will find an enjoyable pinball experience. With a month to go until the official release, this is one Spring VR release VRFocus is looking forward to playing at great length.
Hands-On: Star Wars Pinball VR Is Highly-Concentrated Nostalgia And It Totally Works
After spending some time with Star Wars Pinball VR, the best way to describe it as a form of highly-concentrated nostalgia that absolutely works. This is a pinball collection from a galaxy far, far away you won’t want to miss when it releases this April on all major VR platforms.
Star Wars Pinball VR Preview
Zen Studios gave me early access to a Quest build of Star Wars Pinball VR, which I played on a Quest 2, and overall came away impressed and hungry for more. I’d drop quarters into my headset if it’d let me.
For those unaware, Zen has been making pinball video games for years and even brought over Pinball FX2 to VR headsets. Standing over a virtual table while pressing trigger buttons on motion controllers isn’t quite the same thing as actually using a real pinball machine, but it’s a pretty close approximation.
The real value benefit with VR pinball though, in my experience, is all of the other stuff it introduces. Not only are the tables creative and fun, but you’ve got characters flying around above the table and amazing collectables to show off and display in big, nerdy rooms. Star Wars Pinball VR is just teeming with nostalgia.
Star Wars Pinball VR will have eight different tables spanning several iconic entries in the franchise of films and TV shows. This includes two brand-new never-before-released tables: The Mandalorian and Star Wars Classic Collectibles. These new tables will be joined by tables based on each film in the original trilogy of movies, a Rogue One table, Star Wars Rebels table, and Masters of the Force table.
In the footage above I checked out The Mandalorian table and after a few tries was able to do okay, getting over 10,000,000 points on my fourth try. It’s pretty tough, but really fun and well laid out. As with any pinball machine, half the fun is just figuring out what exactly you’re supposed to do to trigger the different events and scenes.
Arguably the best part of the whole package though is the room everything is found in. It’s bit like a Star Wars ‘fan cave’ in a way where you can display all of your unlocked posters, collectible figures, ship models, and so on. There’s even an old timey-style jukebox where you can play various songs you’ve unlocked while playing different tables.
All in all, it seems like a really solid package for Star Wars fans and pinball aficionados alike. There’s plenty of depth to the tables that I tried and there’s a lot to unlock to keep you busy for hours.
Star Wars Pinball VR is coming to the Quest platform, PSVR, and PC VR headsets on Steam this April 29. For more on Star Wars Pinball VR make sure and watch the gameplay embedded above of the new table based on The Mandalorian and check back in April for more coverage.
‘Star Wars Pinball VR’ Preview – Possibly VR’s Best Pinball Game to Date
Zen Studios, one of the most prolific virtual pinball creators, has teamed up with Disney and Lucasfilm Games to release a Star Wars-themed VR game filled to the brim with pinball machines. Much like the studio’s previous VR pinball game, Pinball FX2 VR(2016), Star Wars Pinball VR feels like it’s essentially the closest thing to owning your own fleet of pinball machines, albeit with more bells and whistles that simply can’t exist outside of the digital world.
In modern machines, oftentimes the object of the table isn’t just to launch the ball and hope for the best score; there’s usually a number of objectives along the way that need to be fulfilled in a precise pattern, like spelling out a name for access to some super complex mechanism that gives out massive bonuses. I rarely had enough quarters for that level of mastery though when I started playing pinball as a kid in the ’90s, so all I could hope for was the longest, luckiest run I could afford. Otherwise I’d just watch my mom play, who is a true pinball wizard in my eyes.
For this preview, I was allowed access to two machines—one based on The Mandalorian (2019) TV series and another based on the film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016). If those two tables are representative of the quality of the rest of the game, which includes a total of eight at launch, then it’s possible Star Wars Pinball VR will be the best VR pinball game to date.
Physics-based Gameplay, Bells & Whistles Galore
If you’re looking for pure 1:1 pinball gameplay, Star Wars Pinball VR is about 90 percent of what you’d expect from a digital counterpart. Motion controller haptics are nowhere near as good as feeling the real thing, such as the actuation of flippers or the ball smacking against a bumper. The game also ‘helps’ a bit by keeping your ball on the table longer, but more on that below.
What it lacks in that level of physical realism though, it makes up for in the pure fantasy of owning an impossibly complex fleet of really well-crafted pinball machines.
On the outside, the tables seem fairly normal, however the more you pursue the game’s set of rigid goals, the clearer it becomes that each table actually holds hours of gameplay under the glass—way more than I’d expect from a standard physical machine. The Rogue One table alone offers a 10-chapter mission that each features its own creative mechanism to battle against.
There isn’t a ‘handy’ tutorial telling you what to do either, only the backboard’s delightfully retro orange LED sign giving you brief instructions. One of the most immersive bits is that you start out with ‘normal’ pinball tasks, but then you’re slowly baited along into increasingly fantastical mini-games and mechanisms. You can even shrink down to the size of a pinball to see the action from a different perspective, although that’s really only just for fun.
Ultimately though, one of the key things that makes or breaks a virtual pinball machine is whether the silver ball actually reacts correctly to flippers, bumpers, plungers—everything on the table that’s supposed to move the ball in one direction or another. Excluding the fact that draining the ball feels a bit more difficult, which helps the player stay on the board longer, physics always felt on point.
You can choose to play each table in either classic mode in arcade mode; arcade mode is vanilla gameplay while classic mode injects fantasy elements into the mix, such as slow-mo ball speed and other equally impossible things to help you reach a higher score. In classic mode you can unloack these talents as you play, usually by fulfilling certain objectives. There are so many objectives here too, which completionist (unlike myself) will have a ball with.
Some of the least exciting parts of the game for me is the achievement-based collection stuff. Every time you reach some goal, some Nerd Crew collectible nonsense is tossed at you to put up in your suburban mancave. Given the infinite expanse of places I’d rather be during a multi-year pandemic, the basement of a house is one of the very last I’d like to be in.
I also didn’t really care for the pop-up Star Wars dudes, Baby Yoda included, simply because I’m an old, crotchety pinball player who has zero issue with telling a kid to not touch my machine while I’m playing. It certainly adds some panache to the whole thing though, and models seem fairly well made. Voice acting is less convincing, but that’s not any different for many licensed pinball machines.
Star Wars Pinball VR is headed to Oculus Quest, SteamVR headsets and PSVR on April 29th. We’ll be diving in for the whole experience between now and then to give you a closer look at what makes the game tick. It’s safe to say I’m really looking forward to it.
The post ‘Star Wars Pinball VR’ Preview – Possibly VR’s Best Pinball Game to Date appeared first on Road to VR.
‘Star Wars Pinball’ Coming to All Major VR Headsets Next Month, Trailer Here
Star Wars Pinball (2013) has been available on console, mobile, and PC for a while now. Developers Zen Studios recently announced the game is being adapted to VR for all major headsets, and it’s landing next month.
Star Wars Pinball VR not only includes eight pinball tables, but also mini-games and plenty of familiar faces. You’ll also be able to “build the ultimate fan cave,” the studio says in an Oculus blogpost.
The Mandalorian table (full list below) is also said to include story-based missions where you take on bounties, pursue targets, find the Child, and fight Imperial troopers and Moff Gideon.
Star Wars Pinball VR is launching on Oculus Quest, PSVR, and SteamVR headsets on April 29th.
Zen Studios is well known for its Pinball FX franchise games; over the years the studio has created a number of Star Wars table DLC for its most recent iteration, Pinball FX3 (2017). The studio is also no stranger to VR, as it’s also released Pinball FX2 VR for SteamVR headsets, PSVR, and Oculus Quest.
Pinball Tables
- The Mandalorian
- Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
- Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
- Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
- Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
- Star Wars Rebels
- Masters of the Force
- Classic Collectibles
The post ‘Star Wars Pinball’ Coming to All Major VR Headsets Next Month, Trailer Here appeared first on Road to VR.
Use the Force in Star Wars Pinball VR This April
Love Star Wars and pinball? Well, you’re in luck because Zen Studios has announced its next virtual reality (VR) videogame, Star Wars Pinball VR, and it’s set to hit all major headsets in April.
The original Star Wars Pinball launched back in 2013, with tables based on several of the films from the iconic franchise. Star Wars Pinball VR brings those tables into VR for the first time whilst adding new content to keep the title up to date with the expanding sci-fi universe.
There will be eight tables in total, two of them completely new. First up is The Mandalorian table based on the hit Disney+ TV show. The design focuses on the first season, where you can pick up bounties, rescue the child and meet characters like IG-11 and Moff Gideon. The other new table is called ‘Classic Collectibles’. As missions are completed you’ll collect classic Star Wars action figures which come alive in the process.
Ensuring a full VR fan service, all the mini-games have been upgraded to offer Total Immersion mode. When a mini-game starts you’ll be shrunk down onto the table so sequences like the speeder bike chase are as immersive as possible.
As for the other six tables these are:
- Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
- Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
- Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
- Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
- Star Wars Rebels
- Star Wars: Masters of the Force.
It’s not just exciting interactive tables Star Wars Pinball VR offers. Being a VR title all the tables are housed in a Star Wars fan cave which can be customised with helmets, blasters, lightsabers, and other items collected by playing the tables. Zen Studios has also teased more content for future updates, saying: “the game is built to be expanded upon so the blast doors are certainly open for more content!”
Zen Studios’ Star Wars Pinball VR is set to launch on 29th April 2021 supporting Oculus Quest, PlayStation VR, Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and Valve Index. Check out the trailer below and for any further updates keep reading VRFocus.
Use the Force in Star Wars Pinball VR This April
Love Star Wars and pinball? Well, you’re in luck because Zen Studios has announced its next virtual reality (VR) videogame, Star Wars Pinball VR, and it’s set to hit all major headsets in April.
The original Star Wars Pinball launched back in 2013, with tables based on several of the films from the iconic franchise. Star Wars Pinball VR brings those tables into VR for the first time whilst adding new content to keep the title up to date with the expanding sci-fi universe.
There will be eight tables in total, two of them completely new. First up is The Mandalorian table based on the hit Disney+ TV show. The design focuses on the first season, where you can pick up bounties, rescue the child and meet characters like IG-11 and Moff Gideon. The other new table is called ‘Classic Collectibles’. As missions are completed you’ll collect classic Star Wars action figures which come alive in the process.
Ensuring a full VR fan service, all the mini-games have been upgraded to offer Total Immersion mode. When a mini-game starts you’ll be shrunk down onto the table so sequences like the speeder bike chase are as immersive as possible.
As for the other six tables these are:
- Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
- Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
- Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
- Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
- Star Wars Rebels
- Star Wars: Masters of the Force.
It’s not just exciting interactive tables Star Wars Pinball VR offers. Being a VR title all the tables are housed in a Star Wars fan cave which can be customised with helmets, blasters, lightsabers, and other items collected by playing the tables. Zen Studios has also teased more content for future updates, saying: “the game is built to be expanded upon so the blast doors are certainly open for more content!”
Zen Studios’ Star Wars Pinball VR is set to launch on 29th April 2021 supporting Oculus Quest, PlayStation VR, Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and Valve Index. Check out the trailer below and for any further updates keep reading VRFocus.