Farfalla Retro (Zaccaria Table Review)

FARFALLA RETRO

KICKBACK – Matt: The original Farfalla is one of my favorites in Zaccaria Pinball. Knocking down all of the sets of targets is addicting. This Farfalla kept none of that appeal, and it only has two flippers. I like rollover targets as a feature, but the flowers here are so boring in three nice lines, and trying to shoot up the center is far more valuable than not doing so. The changing lane values from 10 to 1000 makes this table feel like a luck box for high scores as the only lanes away from the bumpers are the three drains (which are hungry). Why not take the backwards flippers from the original and create two “butterflies” with the flippers? Then you can trap the ball using back-to-back flippers. Then add some targets and change the scoring.

Awww. Doesn’t it look sweet? So tranquil. So serene. Oh, it’s totally not. Farfalla Retro is a brutal, punishing table that also is one of the better tables in the Zaccaria Retro pack. Two open outlanes are guarded by slingshots angled right at the outlanes. If the ball catches the sling too low, the slings don’t activate and the ball could roll right down the drain. If it triggers the sling, it could be launched right into the opposite outlane. This is a table of pure, unadulterated hatred. It’s also one of the few tables in the retro pack to offer burst scoring. It’s not entirely done like a modern table. Those flowers you see are each roll-over targets that score between 10 and 500 points and it’s possible to score big, record setting points with just a few slap shots. Okay, so defense in the modern sense is basically impossible. But in terms of satisfying shooting? Farfalla Retro stands out among its peers. Oscar and Angela would have gone higher if not for the value of the rollovers and spot targets changing with every bang off every sling and bumper. They thought it was too much randomness in an already chaotic pin. Sasha the Kid apparently agrees. “I would have thought of going MASTERPIECE on it if not for that. I probably still wouldn’t have gone that far, but I would have thought about it.”
Set: Zaccaria – 40 Retro Tables
Model: Zaccaria EM
Table Type: Woodrail
Cathy: GOOD (3 out of 5)
Sasha The Kid: GREAT– (4 out of 5)
Angela: GOOD
Oscar: GOOD
Jordi: GOOD
Dave: GOOD
Matt: BAD (2 out of 5)
Dash: THE PITS (1 out of 5)
Scoring Average: 2.75 – GOOD
Final Average: 2.83 – GOOD
Sasha the Kid ranks #10 in 3 Ball Arcade – Post Update Highest Score
Sasha the Kid ranks #11 in 5 Ball Arcade – Post Update Highest Score

Devil Riders Retro (Zaccaria Retro Review)

DEVIL RIDERS RETRO

Sasha on Devil Riders: I think that a rating of THE PITS should be reserved for a table that’s either unplayable due to poor mechanical design or one where no amount of skill can overcome luck. Everyone might not like Devil Riders’ scoring system, but you can rebound on it, and you can defend against the gobble holes with the nudge. Both those facts are true whether you’re playing with Zaccaria’s arcade or simulation engines. I don’t happen to like Devil Riders and I’m guessing I won’t like gobble holes going forward, but THIS as one of the worst tables ever? Please. Readers should refer to Clown Retro for what a worst table ever contender should play like. This is just an ordinary 1950s bad table.

Fun fact: This was Sasha the Kid’s first table with gobble holes. These days, Visual Pinball’s EM selection is her jam, but when she first played this on her AtGames Legend, she was not a happy camper. Now in the old days, gobble holes could be tied to specials and extra balls. As a reminder, for whatever reason, Magic Pixel put out a collection of old-timey pins without old-timey scoresheets. As a result, there’s essentially seven tiny drains that score if lit. Lighting the gobble holes only requires a single bounce off the corresponding bumper. We think Sasha’s wrong about the amount of skill that can go into games of Devil Riders. Yes, you can grab rebounds and aim. You mostly won’t be able to since the rails leading to the flippers are bouncy as all hell. But assuming you do grab a rebound, all that does is get you above the bumpers. The gobble holes and the bumpers block anything to actually shoot at. It’s not the scoresheet that’s wrong. It’s the layout. The Kid got this one wrong. It IS Plinko, but Plinko that walks like a shooter’s table. Sasha’s counter argument is that the shots to get above the bumpers are tight enough that they’re “ghost targets” and satisfying in their own right. Agree to disagree.
Set: Zaccaria – 40 Retro Tables
Model: Zaccaria EM
Table Type: Woodrail
Cathy: THE PITS (1 out of 5)
Sasha The Kid: BAD (2 out of 5)
Angela: THE PITS
Oscar: THE PITS
Jordi: THE PITS
Dave: THE PITS
Matt: THE PITS+
Dash: BAD
Scoring Average: 1.25
Final Average: 1.16
💩Certified a Turd💩 by The Pinball Chick Team
Cathy ranks #1 in Time Loop Mode – Undisputed World Champion

Combat Retro (Zaccaria Pinball Table Review)

COMBAT RETRO

Matt on Combat Retro: The flipper gap is still just a bit too wide, even with a helpful center post, making play for the targets and saucer too dangerous. Escaping to the safety of the bumper area makes building a good score a bit of a luck box. It might make more sense to be sinking ships like in battleship, so what about some drop targets in the lower playfield, and the saucer can increase the value of each hit?

Well, at least Combat Retro has one thing going for it: it joins tables such as Theatre of Magic and Zen Studios’ Knight Rider table in that a friendly debate in the Vice Household on its merits and flaws turned into a shouting match. This is one of the other retro tables we already have a review up for, though it’s called “Battle Retro” on AtGames. Our thoughts haven’t really changed all that much. As noted above, this table triggered a fairly heated argument between Angela and Oscar, specifically related to the spot targets. First off, don’t listen to the table art itself. The spot targets say, quote with uppercase/lowercase, “10 points OR 100 points when all red lamp lit.” Well, it’s just a lie. They don’t all have to be lit. You get 100 points for converting any shot on a spot target when the lamp is lit, period, and the rule sheet provided in the game’s menu gets it correct. It’s actually hilarious that they updated the artwork but left the incorrect word bubble on the playfield. As for the argument, Angela says that two bumps of the top bumper gives you the same amount as a spot target, which takes two shots: one to light it, and one to hit it, which also turns off the light. There’s no bonus for lighting all four. Oscar insists he’s not overrating this and that the spot targets work because you can aim at them and don’t have to rely on chaos to score points. Sasha The Kid chimed in that it was still chaos due to the slingshots guarding the flippers, which are VERY bouncy and very dangerous due to a wide flipper gap with a fairly unreliable post. Oscar again said that you can use nudging to prevent the slings from firing. Cathy and Jordi thought there were too many satisfying angles to go BAD while Dave, Angela, Matt and Sasha think Combat Retro’s gap is too big and too bouncy for its own good. Once upon a time, this was the second best table in the Retro Pack by scoring average. Times have changed, but at least Combat Retro remains interesting enough to trigger a shouting match.
Set: Zaccaria – 40 Retro Tables
Table Type: Woodrail
Model: Zaccaria EM
Reworking of World Champ (1957 Gottlieb)
Cathy: GOOD (3 out of 5)
Sasha The Kid: BAD (2 out of 5)
Angela: BAD+
Oscar: GREAT (4 out of 5)
Jordi: GOOD+
Dave: GOOD
Matt: BAD+
Dash: BAD
Scoring Average: 2.75
Final Average: 2.66 – OKAY
A Pinball Chick Team 🥶Polarizing Table🥶
Cathy ranks #3 in Time Loop Mode
Jordi ranks #6 in Time Loop Mode