“Distance from start” is a concept I learned from Dwight Sullivan’s excellent pinball blog. It’s something most pinball players are probably aware of at a subconscious level without having thought about in any great depth.

So what is “distance from start”? It’s not a simple metric that can be measured in units such as inches or seconds. Rather it’s an abstract concept that refers to how much play is likely to elapse between pressing start at the beginning of the game and achieving the feature. Thus a skill shot straight off the plunger is very close to start, a complex feature that will probably take several balls to enable is a long way from start.

The best table designs incorporate a variety of shots, features and rewards at various distances from start. Thus when you come to a table for the first time there’s at least one thing worth shooting for. As the game progresses - and as you get to know the table - then more shots and features become realistically achievable. This sort of design allows newcomers to get into the table quickly but also rewards practice and helps keep the game fresh for as long as possible.

This is definitely something I plan to try and do in my table designs, thanks to Dwight for tip.

Photo Credit: robinvanmourik (Creative Commons)

One of the nice things about software pinball simulations on the PC is the ability with the right software to design your own table. This is something I’m really keen on and am currently learning the Future Pinball system. Partly for my own benefit I thought I’d make the occasional post about table design elements I particularly like - or dislike.

The first is definitely a “dislike”. It’s what I call “kamikaze shots” - if there’s a more generally accepted term, please let me know!

So what is a kamikaze shot? It’s a shot that’s very important if not essential to getting a good score, extra ball or special. However it’s positioned so that if you do make the shot there’s a very good chance of immediately losing the ball. A common example is a target bang in the centre of the playfield arranged in such a way that a ball hitting it will most probably drop straight down the central out hole. Other examples include specials that can only be obtained by losing the ball down an outlane and ramps that feed the ball straight into peril.

I’m not talking about difficult shots that penalise you for failure, I’m talking about shots that penalise you for success!

To me these all fall into the category of “unfair”. Making the player choose between giving up a goal or almost certainly losing the ball isn’t my idea of good pinball design.