Pinball Games #3

Revenge of the 'Gator (1989)
By: HAL Laboratory  Genre: Pinball Players: 1-2 Difficulty: Medium
Featured Version: Nintendo Game Boy First Day Score: 278,570
Also Available For: Nothing
Download For: Nintendo 3DS

I'm not sure why I never got 'into' the whole handheld console scene but as a result there are millions of cracking games I missed out on, and continue to miss out on until I eventually look at them here. One I remember getting lots of positive press in its day was Revenge of the 'Gator which, despite the strange name, is actually a pinball game! This is well skillish since... Well, I was going to say since I like digital pinball games thanks to the Crush series, but they are about the only examples I played extensively in their day. This effort arrived a year after said series debuted with Alien Crush so it's possible it was 'inspired' by the Compile classic, but it's immediately apparent that it's at least a decent one, perhaps even a corking one. It even has a two-player link-up option but alas, I don't have any friends with Game Boys. I don't have any friends with any handhelds, in fact, so I will have to focus on the one-player mode, although I suspect there are few who have ever played it any other way.

HAL have sensibly not tried to give it a silly backstory - you press start and are straight into the action, and you just keep playing until you no longer have balls (eeek!). There is no objective greater, as far as I can tell, than simply getting the best score possible. I suppose the same objective has motivated real pinball players for decades now though, so that sounds just fine to me. There is just one main table which is four screens high, with each having its own features like the usual bumpers, gates, flippers, etc, as well as an abundance of 'gators, both big and small, and various other destructible creatures/objects. The screen flicks back and forth between sections rather than scrolling but it works well enough. There are also three single-screen bonus tables which are one of the most effective ways to earn big points, but there are numerous other ways too, such as using the slot machine to increase the bonus multiplier. Beware though - this can also wipe out big bonuses!

There isn't really a whole lot more to it than that. Get some blockers as often as possible, hit targets to open gates to higher sections of the table, get to the bonus tables as often as you can, and rack up those points. You can get an extra ball by smacking up the 'gator in the top section of the table but that's about all the help you'll get. It's great fun to play though, as I had been expecting. The physics of the ball is critical in these games and, while it's not quite as good as Devil's Crush here, it seems fine to me. It comes off the flippers and bumpers about how I'd expect. As a result, games can often last a good while, and the excellent, crisp graphics and pleasant, catchy music make them a pleasure while they do so. I try not to go into games with high expectations but I thought this one would be good... and it is, very good! If I'd stuck with my GB all those years ago, I bet this would've been one of my fave carts. Simple, addictive, and fun - what more could a GB owner ask for?

RKS Score: 8/10

Gameplay Video: here's a video of the whole game being played by one of the talented fellows at World of Longplays (check out their great channel here). Oh, and don't watch if you want to avoid spoilers!