Pinball Hall of Fame: The Williams Collection (Wii, 2008)

Physics are very good, although when multiball occurs it can feel a little floaty near the lower flippers. The ball also seems to float a bit when coming back down the launch ramp. Other than that, the ball reacts exactly like you would expect it to. There is a nice mix of tables, and all of them are interesting. I would say that I like this collection far better than the Gottlieb collection. I've played the Pinbot table before, and in fact it was one of my personal favorites as a kid. The tables have been recreated faithfully to original styles.

The graphics have a style to them that I can only describe as being like a comic book. I don't believe it's an intentional style, just a limitation of the rendering the Wii can handle. It gives the table a sort of Crayola appearance as opposed to looking life-like.

Another graphics issue is due to the low resolution of the Wii. Some of the graphics contain detailed images that just get terribly aliased and blurry during the motion of the game. As a result, it is difficult to appreciate some of the graphics, since they look blurry while playing. It really makes me wish this would have been released for the 360/PS3.

Sound effects in the game are almost perfect. It is great actually being able to hear the unique sounds of each table, unlike in real life where arcades have background music cranked up and the noise of other machines drowns out the game you’re playing. With this collection you can turn down the ambient noise and actually enjoy the sounds each table has to offer. The only knock against the sound I have is one particular sound effect (extra ball) has a loud scratch at the beginning of it. I don't know if it is intentional, but it is annoying. Controls are disappointing but work fine. You are only given a single control scheme, and it uses the Wii Remote and Nunchuck.

The game gives you goals for each table to try and accomplish. When you complete the goals you earn credits which can be used to unlock free play mode on the tables. From the start, 4 tables are already available for free play, and you have to unlock the other 6, or else pay 1 credit for each play. The thing is, every time you clear all the standard goals of a table, you get to unlock a table of your choosing for free. As a result, it's very easy to unlock tables without having to use credits. Once you've completed all of the standard goals, "Wizard" goals become available for you to take on. The goals are all based on the things you normally need to do in the game which makes each of the games more interesting, and helps you learn the nuances of each table. You can earn credits by completing goals, and there are also some unlock able items for each table: An alternate ball, mirror mode, and “Tilt”.

In addition to all that, the game has the original flyer art for each of the games, and a slideshow of all the tables. As well as 2 additional modes besides the standard arcade: Challenge mode, and Tournament mode. The challenge mode requires you to beat a certain point score on each table and only gives you 3 tries per table. The Tournament mode is intended for multiplayer, and challenges players to try and beat each others score.

On a scale of 1-10, I'd give it an 8.5. If it was in HD on the 360 or PS3 I would give it a 9, but the low resolution graphics really do hurt this title on the Wii, particularly the heavy aliasing. I would say that for $30 it's definitely worth it if you're a pinball fan.

I've played every one of the featured games on a real table, and they are all simulated perfectly. This is the most realistic simulation of any game I have ever seen. The game features many of my favorite machines, Black Knight, Spaceshuttle, Pinbot, and taxi. The only game which is included that I don't like is the oldest one, Jive Time. This game also plays just like the real table, I just don't like the real table.

The ability to use the Wii controllers to shake the machine is wonderful. Other systems have to rely on pressing left, center, or right buttons to shake. Shaking on the Wii feels realistic and comes completely natural.

I'm looking forward to the Gottleib Collection, also from the Pinball Hall of Fame. The next time I'm in Vegas, I am gonna' visit the Hall of Fame. These folks are obviously as crazy about pinball as I am.

William's Pinball Hall of Fame is a double winner.

First, it is a collection of some of the best pinball tables ever created. My wife's personal favorite is Taxi, and my two personal favorite games are Black Knight and Funhouse. To have these 3 games on a very inexpensive Wii game gives us the ability to play our favorite pinball machines without the challenge, expense, space, and hassle of owning the actual machines. (Although someday we will!)

Not only are these 3 personal favorites, but they, along with Whirlwind, Firepower, Pinbot, and Gorgar are consistently the "Top 100" lists such as http://www.arkadia.nl/pinball/​diverse/index031_top100.htm.

Second, and most importantly, the playing experience and physics are nearly perfect. I've played nearly every pinball simulation and collection released on the computer. From Pinball Contruction Kit on the Apple II's and the Atari 2600's Video Pinball in the early 80's up through Visual Pinball and Future Pinball today. And, hands down, The Williams Collection is the best I've ever played.

The graphics and modeling of the actual games themselves are spot on. They are done with care and are not haphazard approximations. They look like the real thing. They are not HD resolution, but the only time this distracts is the pixelization on the front bar when the view rotates to the plunger.

The physics feel like a real game. No slips through the flippers, no unrealistic sling force. No balls getting stuck in bizarre places due to collision detection problems. (If you get stuck for "real", you can call an attendant. No "bend over, lift up table, and bounce a few times" option is in the menu though!)

The camera angle options are impressive. There are multiple views, from tight and low, to a full topdown view. There are separate cameras for single and multiball. At first I thought I needed to "pick" them, but it turns out, that the default is my favorite. As long as the ball is in the lower 2/3rds of the playfield, the view remains below, but if the ball is _safely_ up in the top 1/3rd, the camera pans up for a zoom. Safely is a key point here. Because you're never left getting motion sick from excessive movement. And, you're never wondering how to time a shot because you couldn't see the flippers. The effect is pretty close to real life. When the ball is up top, you tend to lean up and take a closer look.

I honestly find myself forgetting I'm playing a video game and not a real machine. Because you use the Wiimote and the Nunchuk, I am able to separate my hands into comfortable positions. The rumble effect during gameplay adds to the realism. Much like Wii Bowling, where I score exactly the same as I do in real life, I find my skill level on the Williams Collection games to be the same as on real life machines. The additional features such as "collecting" free play on games by achieving in game goals, running tournaments, and walking around the arcade are all niceties which round out the experience. Thankfully, none of the games is "locked out". The coolest feature I've found are the tutorials for how to score the game. They beat the pants of off the classic cards included with real games.

All told, Williams Collection has set the bar. It is the closest to real pinball I've ever played, and just happens to have my 2 favorite games of all time within the collection. A "must have" for this pinball fan.

I love this game. It was well worth the discounted price from Ebay.
It has several really cool machines and some boring ones, but I just don't play those. It has levels, challenges, and unlocking new games. I figured I would love it for nostalgia reasons, but my 15 year old daughter is also addicted to the game.
You can sit down and just play a few games or you can enter tournaments. The time frame or playing can be a few minutes- a couple o games before work for example or o course sit there for hours!

If your'e a pinball fan then this is the game to get. Very realistic action and graphics. You could play one ball for five or ten minutes or just a couple seconds just like real pinball. I love that you can actually "bump" the machine to try to bounce the ball in or out of a lane. You can't find this game in stores for some reason, only available on the internet but well worth it. Lots of fun!