Coming soon to Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC, the third instalment of Zen Studios’ pinball platform will focus on community run tournaments and multiplayer match-ups. Today the studio announced which console and PC platforms can play together, as well as which Pinball FX 2 tables players can import into Pinball FX 3.
When Zen Studios talks cross-platform multiplayer, they’re talking asynchronous multiplayer. Players post their scores on tables for others to challenge via the “matchup” feature. If they beat the score, they gain league points and work their way up the ladder. Players can also create and participate in timed tournaments, aiming to get the best score possible on a given table before the event is up.
Looking at the cross-platform matchups, PlayStation 4 players will be able to compete against Steam players, while Xbox One players can compete against players on Steam and the Windows 10 platform. So PS4 talks to Steam, Xbox One talks to Steam and Windows, Steam talks to PS4 and Xbox One, but PlayStation 4 doesn’t talk to Xbox One and Windows 10. Hopefully one day all of these platforms can get along.
The multiplayer focus doesn’t mean single-player is going to suffer. Since Zen Studios wants players to feel confident about competing, they have beefed up tutorials and introduced new challenge modes to help folks get a feel for their tables.
Like its predecessor, Pinball FX 3 is a free-to-play platform that comes with a single table (Sorceror’s Lair), with additional tables available as paid downloadable content. Here’s the big list of which tables players can import from Pinball FX 2.
Tables not making the leap to the third generation include the South Park table two-pack, Plants Vs. Zombies (aww), Ms. Splosion Man, Street Fighter and Ninja Gaiden.
New tables are in the works as well. Earlier this month Zen announced a trio of Universal Studios tables based on E.T., Back to the Future and Jaws. They will be streaming the world premiere of E.T. table gameplay today at 1PM Eastern on Twitch. Here’s a taste.
I’ve loved video game pinball since the Epic Pinball days, and Pinball FX has been one of the best representations of it for a decade now. I’ve played a little of the third game on Steam, and it’s still so good. Looking forward to rolling into the next generation when the game officially launches later this year.
Comments
5 responses to “Pinball FX 3 Is All About Cross-Platform Competition”
I’m still peeved that Pinball FX 2 VR doesn’t have local high score tables, and they don’t seem to care at all about adding it in.
I don’t have anyone on my Oculus friends list, and those big lists of random names up the back are meaningless to me. Whereas the list of triple letter labelled scores on my actual pinball machine, of all the friends and family who have played and scored a spot… that does have meaning. Why can’t my virtual pinball machines be the same?
Ms splosion man is my favourite table…. and owned by Zen to boot! Boooooooo
Sounds very promising.
Oh I love that I will be able to import the tables I purchased
On the one hand super excited for Universal pack, but super bummed South Park tables aren’t importable. The main South Park table is my favourite one.