Pinball FX3: Jurassic World Pinball (Xbox One) Review

Although the pack is titled Jurassic World Pinball, probably to capitalise on the release of Jurassic World 2 coming later this year, two of the three packs on offer actually take their inspiration from the original Jurassic Park film.

The first table, titled Jurassic Park Pinball, features scenes from the iconic original film. The table itself is the easiest of the pack to navigate around. It is the best-rounded table of the three, as it features plenty of laneways and ramps to score plenty of points, and make good use of Pinball FX3's special abilities and wizard powers. One ramp leads to the bumpers that are connected to re-enacting the kitchen sequence from the movie with the Raptors, while the other ramp leads to a T-Rex on a conveyor belt. Hitting the ball up this ramp, which requires opening the grand gates to the titular park, initiates the famous T-Rex sequence where it flips over the autonomous Ford Explorer, and rips off the car's tyre. It does have an easy skill-shot to pull off, as it relies on putting a certain power behind the ball's initial release to land in the moving nest. Due to the openness of the lane's and ramps, this table does allow for high scores to be achievable, yet it does contain some dead spots that can be frustrating for those 'One-Ball' challenges, and a specific closed warehouse door can lead to many untimely ball drops.

The second table is titled Jurassic Park Pinball Mayhem, and this is inspired by the first film, but features a random assortment of missions that revolve around trying to evacuate the tourists from Isla Nublar. Featuring a titanic battle on the table with a T-Rex and a Stegosaurus, these two dinosaurs are the cause of every mission on this table. Whether it's helping to put out the fires, or blocking oncoming rocks down in the sunken area, this table is full of many wonders. Unlike the first table, this one is more circular and wider, thus it can be more difficult to keep the ball alive, as well as aiming it in the far lanes. As far as getting points are concerned, this does require a bit of patience at the start, as building point multipliers does not take off as quickly as the first table. However, of the three, this one has the easiest multi-balls to activate, and it can be a huge point-getter because of it.

The third, and final, table is Jurassic World Pinball and it is based off the respective film starring Chris Pratt. Whether it's training the Raptors, or escaping the clutches of the Indominus Rex, this also features many secrets that are better hidden. Of the pack, however, this is the most difficult to really get going on, as the lanes and ramps don't link well together, and require more precision aiming to make the most of point boosters. While it does require a bit of practice at first, it will soon become second nature navigating the ball through the table, seamlessly transitioning between lanes. Like the previous table, this too is more of a circular effort, with a water-covered section in the back that can be traversed via a ramp, which then leads to an upper part of the table with the bumpers. This interesting setup can also be difficult to grasp, but with practice can be mastered like a pro.

The biggest downside to this pack is the lack of the official licensed music from the films. The iconic track by John Williams is nowhere to be seen (or heard!) in this pack, and the tables are instead accompanied by generic tracks that try to fill the dinosaur "wonderment" of the original soundtrack. Unfortunately, it doesn't quite lend itself as well and, as such, the pack does lack the polish to sit alongside the Star Wars tables from Zen Pinball 2. However, the tables do feature lines pulled from the two movies, so there is that for those who care to listen to them. Although, as all pinball games go, these lines can be so repetitive, especially hearing "I don't wanna wait anymore" for the hundredth time after beginning the Jurassic World Pinball table.