Pinball Mapping Exercise

Pinball Mapping Exercise!

I played three pinball games: the Original Hardcore Pinball, Ratatouille pinball, and Power Pinball (from Kiwi Games, creators of Bloons Tower Defense).

(Above) Is the Ratatouille game, while (Right) is the schematic of the playing field.

The ones up above are from the Power Pinball game. 

i) What is "good gameplay" when it comes to pinball game design? 

In my opinion, "good gameplay" ensures that the player maintains as much as control over the game's mechanics as possible. What was most frustrating about the less polished pinball games (such as the horrendous Original Hardcore one) was that many times I felt as though my ball was lost shortly after launching it. In these cases, the ball would quickly be"caught" by the level's many assorted bumpers and paths and then dumped at the bottom, leading to a quick death. These experiences proved very frustrating, for it was the game's wonky physics that were more at work than my actual input.

ii) How do pinball playfield designers create exciting experiences?

Designers can create an exciting Pinball experience by creating a large and open playing field, as was the case with the Power Pinball game (the second set of screenshots I posted). The screen above captures only a portion of the playing field; the designers clearly worked to prevent boxing the player in and restricting their actions. The openness of this level layout made this Pinball experience the most fun.