My advanced pinball design is called Pinball Alley. The goal for my advanced design was to introduce a more advanced scoring system than my previous designs, as well as some new features. Inspiration for this concept came from my love for bowling. I wanted to introduce the theme of bowling into one of my machines and I decided that I could use bowling’s scoring system to my advantage. I also thought it would be a cool idea to allow more than one player to compete against each other for a higher score, using the scoring system I put in place. Lastly, I was aiming for a higher skill level and using bowling’s scoring helps with that. All of these ideas led me to the advanced pinball design below.
After doing some research into layouts for bowling designs, I eventually came up with the above advanced design. While focusing on the bowling theme, I decided to use the idea of bowling pins as a main focus for my playfield. Drop targets would represent the pins themselves and a ball return pit would aid in the return of the ball after shots. I made sure to keep the playfield pretty open so players can aim their shots. I also have bumpers to help guide the ball during play.
For the top of the playfield, I focused on player scoring methods. At the center is the drop target pins, where players can compete to get a higher pin count as they play a ten frame game of bowling. Each player has two balls (marbles) to use per frame and as long as the ball stays in play, they can keep raising their pin count. They can get 1-9 pins, a strike, or a spare using those balls. I’ve placed a ball return pit behind the pins that aids in the idea of a bowling lane (with bumpers to guide into the pit). I also added special bonus holes for an extra way to score 10 points.
Besides the drop target pins, I’ve added another new feature to my advanced design. On the left side of the playfield is a ball return tunnel. The ball return tunnel will give the player an extra ball if the ball travels through it. This is meant to give players an incentive to travel around the playfield and not focus entirely on the pins. The bonus holes provide a similar incentive. After witnessing its use, I really wanted to try the extra ball mechanic, which was one major reason I decided to use it for my advanced design.
After giving my presentation, there wasn’t too much feedback in terms of my design, many classmates seemed to be interested in the idea. However, there are a few things I might change for my design as I build it. Based on the size of the playboard, I might need to remove some of the center bumpers so players can properly aim the ball around the playfield. Another change may come in the form of scoring. Although I want to focus on a more advanced scoring system, keeping the scoring simple to understand is also important. Therefore, I might set specific values for a spare and strike. I might also set rules to the extra ball and bonus hole mechanic so that players can’t constantly rack up extra balls/points instead of actually playing the main bowling game. Regardless, I believe that this design is much more advanced than my previous designs and I can’t wait to get started!
Bowling Background Reference: http://wallsdesk.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Bowling-HD-Wallpaper.jpg
