Minimum System Requirements: 233MHz G3, Mac OS 8.6 with 64MB RAM or Mac OS X v10.1.4 with 128MB of RAM
Network Feature: No
3D Support: No
Mac OS X Compatible: Yes
Price: $19.95
ESRB: E for Everyone
Availability: Out now
The last pinball game I played was from Sierra and had a dinosaur theme where each board had a different theme and objective. That was a lot of fun, and getting to the next level was a big incentive even though the voice overs got a bit repetitive. Unfortunately, Jinni Zeala Pinball doesn't elicit the same fond feelings. There's only one pinball machine, one soundtrack, and confusing mini-games.
I started Jinni Zeala and had to then find the instructions on the CD because I couldn't figure out the keyboard commands in the game. Usually, changing the commands in the options menu will tell you what key does what. Jinni Zeala just said default, so that was of no help at all. Being forced to read the Read-Me is rather irritating.
I don't know what most fans expect from Pinball games, but for $20, I thought there'd be more than one board at the very least. Still, the game description said that the targets are "arranged in the open, making them easy to aim for," so I figured it would be perfect for a novice such as myself. However, reading about the bonus stages in the Read Me just left me more confused. Here's one of the descriptions as an example.
FELUCCA BONUS STAGE
Complete Ocean lanes.
Shoot the ball into Felucca kick-out hole.
Repeat 1 and 2 to collect three Felucca items.
Shoot the ball into the Felucca kick-out hole to get the Wonder Telescope.
During FELUCCA BONUS STAGE
Every switch raises Felucca bonus.
Felucca kick-out hole collects Felucca bonus for 40 seconds.
I scratched my head, but started a game thinking I'd figure it out along the way. However, even after several games, I still have yet to determine how some of the bonus games work even though I managed to get 100,000 points in one game. If the instructions (either in the Read Me or the game) were a bit more clear, maybe I'd figure out how to complete the Ocean lanes. On the other hand, maybe Pinball fans find searching for bonus games part of the fun.
In my opinion, these "easy to aim for" targets are somewhat not as easy as the game description wants to make you believe since some require bouncing the balls off bumpers and others are hidden and are hard to see. Once again, maybe Pinball fans find searching for targets fun. I found it rather irritating.
The graphics are clean with a lot of blinking lights and pretty good detail. I would have liked more of an Arabian feel as it has more of a Harem feel instead. I don't know if this was intentional or not, but I think the half-naked ladies in lingerie really aren't good examples of traditional Arab clothing.
Finally, there's one musical soundtrack which got repetitive so I ended up turning it off. It also didn't really add to the Arabian theme around which the board is supposed to be designed. The sound effects also don't add to the theme and could have been a lot better. I ended up turning them off too.
In summary, I don't think Jinni Zeala Pinball is a good value for the money, but there aren't many companies making pinball games so I guess you take what you can get. Fortunately, there's a demo available at LittleWing's site, so you can take a look if you're interested.
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I started Jinni Zeala and had to then find the instructions on the CD because I couldn't figure out the keyboard commands in the game. Usually, changing the commands in the options menu will tell you what key does what. Jinni Zeala just said default, so that was of no help at all. Being forced to read the Read-Me is rather irritating.
In my opinion, these "easy to aim for" targets are somewhat not as easy as the game description wants to make you believe since some require bouncing the balls off bumpers and others are hidden and are hard to see. Once again, maybe Pinball fans find searching for targets fun. I found it rather irritating.