Video Pinball, Bumper Bash, and Midnight Magic (Atari 2600) Reviews

Due to issues with loading, I’m posting the reviews from Classic Pinball Video Games separately or in groups like this.

Video Pinball
aka Arcade Pinball (Sears Label)
Platform: Atari 2600
Released April, 1981
Designed by Bob Smith
Developed by Atari
Included in Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration

The two extra gaps are added when you play on the B Difficulty.

I know the original Atari 2600 game that wore the name Video Pinball has fans who love its chaotic “gameplay.” I’m not one of them. I’m someone who really hates the whole “pinball is controlled chaos” stereotype. Pinball is a ball sport and anything but chaos. Video Pinball is all about the chaos. Not that I expected a complex physics simulation, but the “ball” is far too energetic, bouncing at a high speed and ricocheting all over the playfield in a way that turns the game into one of luck.

It took me quite a few games just to get a screenshot that had a relatively juiced playfield.

The only real way a player “plays” Video Pinball is with the nudge. When the ball zooms around the screen, if you wait for the right time, you can use nudging to make the ball bounce up and down though one of the two rollover lanes a few times. In the above picture, I took the rollover from 3 to 9 using just the nudge in one single streak of bounces. Was it satisfying? I guess, and so was the one time I nudged the ball away from the outlane. But I can’t stress enough that it took several games just to find myself in the perfect position to manipulate the ball that way.

It’s not like you can reasonably aim with the flippers. The flippers are just elements that kick a super bouncy ball back into play. Video Pinball is little more than a slightly interactive screensaver, and while I could see how it would have fans because it’s so crazy that it’s practically anarchy, I’ve never personally understood the appeal in it. This not only has fans, but BIG fans. I assume they grew up with it and I do admit there’s a charming sense of outright insanity to it. But it’s one of those games that your contribution to is practically nonexistent. Thankfully, the 2600 has a couple pretty decent video pins coming up. By the way, if you want to really know how bad video pinball is as a genre, get this: I played twenty-eight video pins that are worse than this. F*cking yipes.
Verdict: NO!
Classic Pinball Video Games Ranking: #97 of 125
Percentile: 22%

Bumper Bash
Platform: Atari 2600
Released in 1983
Designed by David Lubar
Developed by Spectravideo
Utilizes Paddle Controls (Not Optional)
NEVER BEEN RE-RELEASED

I’m frustrated that there’s no nudging in this because it could have climbed several spots on the rankings with it.

If there’s one lesson I should have learned a long time ago and still apparently haven’t, it’s “you never know.” I would have bet all the money in my pocket against all the money in yours that it was impossible for any Atari 2600 pinball game to get a YES! And yet, here I am, awarding the first console game YES! of the feature to this insanely ambitious-for-the-era VCS release. You’ve probably never even heard of Bumper Bash. I certainly hadn’t. But I’m guessing hardcore Atari collectors might know the name. You see, Bumper Bash is rated a 9 out of 10 in rarity by Atari Age. “Extremely rare” and, while I have some Atari collecting friends who think that rating is likely wrong or outdated (copies regularly sell for under $100 on eBay), it’s certainly a very rare, very obscure game that didn’t get wide distribution. I’m heartbroken over that, because Bumper Bash MURDERS Atari’s own Video Pinball.

This was the final score of my best game. To plunge the ball, you press both action buttons at the same time. It really did everything it could…… Except nudging. Dammit.

Bumper Bash is trying, and often succeeding, to simulate the SPORT of pinball. Instead of playing with a single joystick, the game uses the paddle controllers, which for the unwashed are really two controllers that plug into a single port. David Lubar did it this way so that the player could hold a paddle in each hand and press one button for each flipper, just like they would at a real table. The problem with that is, as I noted in the captions, there’s no nudge. That’s the only commonplace element missing. Bumper Bash features an Italian bottom, drop targets, scoring multipliers, kickbacks that are activated via the top rollovers, bumpers, and even an animated spinner that’s pretty convincing. The scoring is well balanced too, which I appreciate. The physics? Well, they’re probably as good as you could hope for from 1983 on the Atari 2600, which is a wishy-washy way of saying “not great.”

The ball is very bouncy and the speed doesn’t make sense. The flippers are too small and some of the angles the balls take off them feel completely detached from reality. I especially couldn’t directly shoot the ball high enough to get up to the rollovers, which are what activates your kickbacks. Since the outlanes are pretty hungry, a kickback is very valuable on this table. But, there’s moments that made me sit up in my chair. As you can see in the above clip, you can reliably, predictably perform inlane passes in this game, a first for video pinball. Eventually, I was also able to shoot the three lower drop targets somewhat reliably. Not so much the three upper ones. The easiest target to shoot is the spinner, but putting the spinner in the center, where it can sometimes funnel the ball straight down the drain, was probably not the best design choice. As the first pinball sim on a console that feels like a true simulation of the sport, Bumper Bash is a remarkable achievement. But I’m not cutting it a break because it was a good effort. For all its problems, I did have fun, and that’s all I care about. I’d have had a lot more fun if it used two joysticks that allowed for nudging.
Verdict: YES!
Classic Pinball Video Games Ranking: #43 of 125
Percentile: 64%

Midnight Magic
Platform: Atari 2600
Released in 1986*
Designed by Glenn Axworthy
Developed by Atari
NEVER BEEN RE-RELEASED (?)

*Despite the copyright being 1984 on the title screen, Midnight Magic was not released until 1986.

Hold on. That doesn’t look like Black Knight. Dang it. Yeah, well, it wasn’t originally going to be part of the “Midnight Magic” franchise and instead was penciled in to be named “Pinball Wizard” before the name was changed to capitalize on the immense popularity of the Midnight Magic.

What the actual hell? Not only is Midnight Magic not part of Atari 50, but as far as I could tell, it has never been included in any Atari collection. That’s a travesty, because this is SO much better than Video Pinball and has a case that it’s more fun than Bumper Bash and the best pinball game on the 2600. While I think it’s a little cringy that the 2600 version of Midnight Magic is trading on a much better video pinball game’s name value and reputation, this VCS game is solid in its own right. It offers a four flipper layout, five simple drop targets, two stand-up targets, and the most satisfying-to-shoot spinner yet. That sucker SPINS, with some direct hits lasting quite a while before it stops, and with a convincing animation to boot. But that’s not a whole lot going for a table by this point. Hell, the most notable thing was Midnight Magic is the first table in this collection to allow you to thread the needle, a term the Vices apparently coined (though my father insists he’d heard it before).

At first, I thought Midnight Magic was a little too simple with its layout, and maybe too easy. You get extra balls just for knocking down all five drop targets and then hitting either of the two rollovers in the corners. That’s too generous when a single EB based on a scoring benchmark would have made more sense. It’s also the final game chronologically to use a ball that’s most suitable for Breakout with its speed and bounciness. But, I’ll be damned if I wasn’t so hooked on this f*cking thing that I couldn’t put it down. Hitting the top five targets is quite satisfying. It also feels like the game was fine tuned enough to have the difficulty be something that felt authentically pinball. The #1 thing that killed me? Lethal slingshots, which sent the ball directly between the flippers and down the poop chute. Zen Studios nods with approval.

If this had a nudge, I might have gone a little higher on it. Midnight Magic is proof that you can have a VERY fun video pin with very little actual targets to work with just by optimizing the addictive potential of those targets with some kind of visual reward. In the case of this game, it feels great when the colors change after clearing all the targets. Originally I gave the edge to Bumper Bash as the best 2600 video pinball game, but I’ll probably never play that game again. I might actually fire up Midnight Madness just for fun when I know I have ten minutes to kill. Huh. Three Atari 2600 pinball games. I was certain they would go three for three on NO! votes. Instead, two got a YES! and I’m eating crow. Delicious, nutritious crow. Breakfast of champions.
Verdict: YES!
Classic Pinball Video Games Ranking: #37 of 125
Percentile: 70%

FINAL RANKINGS

1. Pro Pinball: Timeshock (1998 – PlayStation)
2. Akira Psycho Ball (2002 – PlayStation 2)
3. Worms Pinball (1999 – PlayStation)
4. True Pinball (1996 – PlayStation/Sega Saturn)
5. Digital Pinball: Necronomicon (1996 – Sega Saturn)
6. Slam Tilt (1996 – Amiga)
7. Psycho Pinball (1994 – Sega Genesis)
8. Kyuutenkai: Fantastic Pinball (1995 – PlayStation/Sega Saturn)
9. Devil’s Crush (1990 – TurboGrafx-16)
10. Solar War (Unreleased Circa 1980 – Arcade)
11. Metroid Prime Pinball (2005 – Nintendo DS)
12. David’s Midnight Magic (1981 – Apple II)
13. Battle Pinball (1995 – Super Famicom)
14. Pro Pinball: Big Race USA (2000 – PlayStation)
15. Full Tilt! Pinball (1995 – Windows)
16. Video Pinball (1979 – Arcade)
17. Kirby’s Pinball Land (1993 – Game Boy)
18. Digital Pinball: Last Gladiators Ver. 9.7 (1997 – Sega Saturn)
19. Alien Crush (1990 – TurboGrafx-16)
20. Pinball Illusions (1995 – Amiga CD32)
21. Pinball Fantasies (1993 – Amiga CD32)
22. Super Pinball Action (1991 – Arcade)
23. Fireball (1988 – MSX2)
24. Pinball Dreams (1992 – Amiga)
25. Sonic Pinball (2003 – Game Boy Advance)
26. Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire (2003 – Game Boy Advance)
27. Pro Pinball: The Web (1996 – PlayStation)
28. Pinball aka Play It! Pinball (2000 – PlayStation 2)
29. Epic Pinball (1993 – MS DOS)
30. Speed Ball (1987 – Arcade)
31. Pinball Action (1985 – Arcade)
32. Revenge of the ‘Gator (1989 – Game Boy)
33. Pro Pinball: Fantastic Journey (2000 – PlayStation)
34. Dragon’s Revenge (1993 – Sega Genesis)
35. Little Mermaid II: Pinball Frenzy (2000 – Game Boy Color)
36. Alien Crush Returns (2008 – WiiWare)
37. Midnight Magic (1986 – Atari 2600)
38. Getaway: High Speed II (1995 – Game Boy)
39. Slamball (1984 – Commodore 64)
40. Mechanicus (1991 – Commodore 64)
41. Pinball Dreams (1995 – Game Gear)
42. Pinbo (1984 – Arcade)
43. Bumper Bash (1983 – Atari 2600)
44. Royal Flush (1994 – MS DOS)
45. Queen of Hearts (1983 – Apple II)
    YES! **TERMINATOR LINE** NO!
46. Time Scanner (1987 – Arcade)
47. Power Rangers Zeo: Full Tilt Battle Pinball (1996 – PlayStation)
48. Golden Logres (1999 – PlayStation)
49. Pokémon Pinball (1999 – Game Boy Color)
50. Muppet Pinball Mayhem (2002 – Game Boy Advance)
51. Pinball (1983 – Intellivision)
52. Patriotic Pinball (2003 – PlayStation)
53. Pinball aka Hudson Pinball (2005 – PlayStation Portable)
54. Pinball Hazard (1996 – Amiga)
55. Super Pinball: Behind the Mask (1994 – SNES)
56. Time Cruise (1991 – TurboGrafx-16)
57. 3-D Ultra Pinball: Thrill Ride (2000 – Game Boy Color)
58. Rollerball (1984 – MSX)
59. Ottifanten Pinball (2005 – Game Boy Advance)
60. Dragon’s Fury (1991 – Sega Genesis)
61. Thomas the Tank Engine Pinball (1995 – Amiga)
62. David’s Midnight Magic (Atari 8-Bit)
63. Pinball Jam (1992 – Atari Lynx)
64. Pinball Prelude (1996 – Amiga CD32)
65. Super Pinball II: The Amazing Odyssey (SNES)
66. Pinball aka Vs. Pinball (1984 – Arcade)
67. Pinball aka Black Box Pinball (1984 – NES)
68. Sonic Spinball (1993 – Sega Genesis)
69. Sonic Spinball (1994 – Sega Master System)
70. Lucy Shot (1990 – Sharp X68000)
71. Rollerball (1988 – NES)
72. Hyper 3-D Pinball aka Tilt! (1997 – PlayStation/Sega Saturn)
73. Neo Golden Logres (2000 – Sega Dreamcast)
74. Elemental Pinball (2002 – PlayStation)
75. Extreme Pinball (1996 – PlayStation)
76. Pin•Bot (1990 – NES)
77. Super Robot Pinball (2001 – Game Boy Color)
78. Battle Pinball (1994 – 3DO)
79. Austin Powers Pinball (2002 – PlayStation)
80. High Speed (1991 – NES)
81. Pinball Quest (1989 – NES)
82. Obsession (1995 – Amiga)
83. Jaki Crush (1992 – SNES)
84. Family Pinball aka Rock ‘n Ball (1989 – NES)
85. Flipnic: Ultimate Pinball (2003 – PlayStation 2)
86. Microsoft Pinball Arcade (2001 – Game Boy Color)
87. Hollywood Pinball (1999 – Game Boy Color)
88. Pinball Fun (2003 – PlayStation 2)
89. The Pinball of the Dead (2002 – Game Boy Advance)
    TRULY PUTRID STUFF STARTS HERE
90. Grand Cross (1994 – Arcade)
91. Crüe Ball (1992 – Sega Genesis)
92. ParanoiaScape (1996 – PlayStation)
93. Pinball Graffiti (1996 – Sega Saturn)
94. Mario Pinball Land aka Super Mario Ball (2004 – Game Boy Advance)
95. Virtual Pinball (1993 – Sega Genesis)
96. Pinball (1991 – CD-i)
97. Video Pinball (1981 – Atari 2600)
98. Pinball Pinball (1990 – Sharp X68000)
99. Raster Blaster (1981 – Apple II/Atari 8-Bit)
100. Thunderball! (1979 – Odyssey 2)
101. Night Mission (1982 – Apple II)
102. Powershot Pinball (2006 – PlayStation 2)
103. Power Pinball (1989 – Amstrad CPC)
104. Super Pinball (1988 – NES)
105. The Pinball (1999 – PlayStation)
106. Dragon Beat: Legend of Pinball (1997 – PlayStation)
107. Ruiner Pinball (1995 – Atari Jaguar)
108. PaTaank (1994 – 3DO)
109. Pac-Man Pinball Advance (2005 – Game Boy Advance))
110. KISS Pinball (2001 – PlayStation)
     ACTUAL WORST GAME I’VE EVER PLAYED IN MY LIFE CONTENDERS START HERE
111. Pinball Mania (1995 – Amiga)
112. Dino Land (1991 – Sega Genesis)
113. Galactic Pinball (1995 – Virtual Boy)
114. Moon Ball Magic (1988 – Famicom Disk System)
115. Casino Games (1989 – Sega Master System)
116. Sega Flipper (1983 – Sega SG-1000)
117. Pinball Tycoon (2003 – Game Boy Advance)
118. Pinball Advance (2002 – Game Boy Advance)
119. Hero Shūgō!! Pinball Party (1990 – Game Boy)
120. Spinball (1983 – Vectrex)
121. Wizard Pinball (1994 – Sega Game Gear)
122. Time Scanner (1989 – Amiga)
123. Advanced Pinball Simulator (1989 – Commodore 64)
124. Real Pinball (1994 – 3DO)
125. Panic Road (1986 – Arcade)