Star Wars Pinball VR Review: Making the Bump(er) to Hyper Space

Career mode is a fantastic inclusion that understands different types of people will be playing and wants to make sure they can still enjoy it. Much as I’d love to spend hours playing VR pinball and seeing every scene on each table, time just doesn’t always permit.  Five-minute sessions here and there are just enough to sample a table’s delights without feeling like you’re missing out on too much, and if you have more time to spend, that’s great too. Classic mode awaits.

And there are plenty of delights to sample. Star Wars Pinball VR has a whopping eight tables to play on: three from the original trilogy, a Mandalorian table, Rebels, Masters of the Force, a Classics table, and then a Rogue One table. The prequel trilogy and Disney trilogy are nowhere in sight. Maybe Zen Studios wanted to keep this a fan-focused experience or perhaps they’re planned as DLC, but either way, the variety makes it hard to focus on what’s missing.

Your mileage might vary, but there’s really not a dud table among the bunch. Each sports a unique layout built around several references from the associated Star Wars film or show. The Return of the Jedi table, for example, has Jabba’s palace, the bunkers of Endor, hangers for Rebel and Imperial ships, and that’s just scratching the surface. 

You can play each table from a top-down perspective, as if you’re standing at a normal pinball machine, or in immersion mode, which is, frankly, amazing. Immersion mode gives you three angles to view the table, and they’re all positioned behind and slightly above the main flippers. You might miss out on a few visual elements from the models at higher elevations, but immersion mode is the best way to see just how much care and attention Zen Studios lavished on each table.

Admittedly, it’s a bit more difficult than expected to identify which areas relate to what. Some of the lanes aren’t marked clearly, or if they are, the writing is rather small. The board at the table’s far end is supposed to have a grainy retro look. However, that sometimes works against you when you’re straining to make out what the event requirement is while your ball drops down into the Sarlacc Pit in the process. 

Another issue is the sound bytes, which wear thin quickly on certain tables. Hearing Han say “jackpot” once is cool. Hearing him say it 35 times in a row when the ball is trapped in a bumper field is decidedly less entertaining.

Still, the extra interactive elements more than make up for slight annoyances. Some events have new figures walk onto the table while scenes unfold or ships fly above the playing field. Others are more involved minigames where you control a character, such as The Mandalorian’s bounty hunter, and the pinball field simultaneously. There’s just a staggering amount to do and see on each table.

The table design makes Star Wars Pinball VR an excellent pinball game. The Fan Cave makes it an excellent Star Wars experience. 

Menu hubs in most games are functional, there only to get you where you actually want to go. Not so with the Fan Cave. I often don’t bother with collectibles in games, especially when they exist just to look at in a menu, but the Fan Cave adds some light decorating that makes engaging with your ever-expanding collection worthwhile.  

The Cave has several shelves, including a rotating one in the middle of the room, some pedestals for larger figures, and a handful of poster frames. In a very true-to-life twist, there are far more collectibles you’ll obtain than you have room to display. 

I may or may not have spent an equal amount of time organizing my collection as I did playing pinball, but that aside, it’s a refreshing break from pinball marathons and a surprisingly rewarding one. Waltzing past a Darth Vader statue to gaze at the AT-ST in the backyard, then sauntering by a collection of Rebel and Stormtrooper helmets to get to the pinball table is much more satisfying than it has any right to be.