by DJ Boom
Nothing beats a good monster movie, and nothing beats a good pinball game. What happens when you combine the two? You get Monster Bash. (dramatic music) All the classic monsters from Universal Studios are here. Wolfman, Dracula, Mummy, Frankenstein’s Monster, his Bride, even that guy in the wet suit with zippers shows up. What are they up to? Well it’s the classic story, Drac is trying to get the band back together and he needs your help.(more dramatic music)
At first glance the play field seems pretty standard, but then you plop in that first quarter, hit the ball a few times, next thing you know your going to the bank getting a cash advance. Yep, it’s that good. Now most pinball games have two to three multi balls, and Monster Bash is no exception. Clocking it a three, you get Mosh Pit multi ball, Monster Bash multi ball, and the big one, Monsters of Rock multi ball. Rock is the hardest to get, but it’s worth it! I’m still picking at the blister.
Fast paced and addictive this game is a hoot. One of my favorite features is Phantom Flip. According to Williams web site, “Is the game haunted? Is it possessed? No, it’s Phantom Flip! Hit each of the blue Phantom Flip standup targets to light Phantom Flip. The ball return lanes will light, indicating the Phantom is ready to do its work. Phantom Flip will automatically decide which shot is the best, and try to make it for you automatically! Keep those hands away and watch the spooky action!” An auto shot from a flipper? Pretty cool stuff for 1998 when the game came out.
Style. This game has a lot of it. From the bobbing head of the Bride, to the lights in Frankenstein’s lab, this is one slick looking game. How can you argue with a game that has Dracula saying ‘ Jump back, kiss myself, blah! Or my personal favorite, which has Drac moving around the play field taunting you with “I will mesmerize you with my semi-circular movement!” Even the Mummy gets to take a shot at ya with “Back in my day we didn’t have Jackpots”
With solid game play, a sleek look, nice sound and music this game is hard to find fault with. However, it does have one very annoying habit of getting the ball stuck behind Drac. Then as the machine goes through the paces of finding it, Drac will move around the play field, releasing the ball. Directly down the center. Sigh, oh well, ya can’t win them all.