Playing pinball reminds me of the time I had just learned to ride a bike. We lived half a mile or so from Weber State University and I’d ride my bike across a busy 4 lane road, cruise down a hill, chase the ducks near the fountain and ride across the grass until I arrived at the Union Building where all the games were located.
I’d dash inside and hit the quarter machine before running over to the row of pinball machines. The machine I remember best was one called Space Invaders. It was special because it’s the first machine I remember that allowed the player to control 4 flippers instead of 2. It seemed that fewer balls were lost down the side of the table. I don’t know if that was true but the wide space made it feel that way. It was a fantastic pinball table with great sound and many surprises. It was so wide that I could barely spread my arms wide enough to make the flippers work.
I’d love to own a real pinball machine or two. But until I can afford to spend $4000 or more I’ll have to settle for pinball on my PC. Over the past 15 years I’ve purchased most every software pinball game I could find. But the two I like best are made by Empire: Big Race USA and Fantastic Journey. Both are nearly 10 years old but still look beautiful by today’s standards. You can probably find them in the bargain bin and if you love pinball they are well worth searching out.
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| Big Race USA | Fantastic Journey |
Nordquist Blog 
Have you tried Timeshock? I’ve always considered it the superior title in the Pro series. And we can’t forget The Web, which I think is a better value than FJ.
It is pretty impressive… 10 years later, and still no other pinball game can touch them.
Visual Pinball certainly has its appeal. Nothing quite like playing Funhouse just how I remember it.
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I remember Timeshock being the toughest of the Empire trio of tables. I didn’t get into it as much as Fantastic Journey or Big Race but it was a fun, challenging table. I’d forgotten about Fun House. That was a great game.
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