When it comes to arcades, pinball was my first love. To this day, I look back fondly on hanging out in pool halls and pinball arcades, watching people play tables and picking up tips on how the target layouts worked, while the jukebox blasted hits of the era.

The history of Pinball video games hasn’t been very satisfying. Sure, there have been some entertaining results, but few have caught the feel of playing the real thing. Zen Studios’ 2007 Xbox 360 release Pinball FX was the first time I played an original table that got it right. They followed it up with the equally good Zen Pinball (PS3) in 2009. Now they’ve improved the formula once again with Pinball FX 2, and as a side effect gave me the urge to hear Heart’s “Barracuda” — fortunately, it supports custom soundtracks!

Much has been done to improve upon the prior version, starting with the game’s framework. It’s now a free download platform for Pinball FX tables. If you already have the first game, importing those tables is simple and doing so gives them all the graphical and physics enhancements of the new ones. If you don’t have the original tables, they can be purchased in a pack or individually. Trial versions are also available if you’d like to sample any of them before dropping the money for one. Four new tables can be purchased in a bundle (but not individually), for a total of 13.

There are a few multiplayer modes to choose from. Local Hotseat is the classic style where each player takes a turn. Split-screen Race (available on new tables only) has two players racing for a high score at the same time, with your choice of a target score or a time limit. Online games can have the same rules as in the split-screen race, with the host able to adjust target score, time limit and ball loss penalties.

Another thing you’ll notice is the addition of a Superscore and Wizard Score. The Superscore is derived from your high scores across all tables. You or one of your friends with the highest Superscore is crowned Pinball King and serves as a constant target for competitive players. Your Wizard Score is a social score, tying your Superscore with those of your friends. Selecting a table lets you see who has the high scores, compare achievements — even which friends don’t yet own it, with their sad avatar on display.

A variety of customization options can be changed to suit your comfort zone. The ball’s glowing trail and other arcade effects can be turned off in the settings. You can also make a number of adjustments to each table in an Operator’s Menu, letting you make the even smallest changes to any number of features — but keep in mind, the leaderboards are only compatible with factory settings.

The real fun of pinball comes from discovering the secrets of each table, learning how to advance score multipliers, and opening up special challenges. This is the one place where Pinball FX 2 misses the mark. New players can often get the mistaken idea that the main point is just in keeping the ball alive. Being able to see the rule sheets can open someone’s eyes to exactly what the goals are. These rules could have been easily located on each table’s main menu. Instead, they’re buried in the “Help & Options” section of that table’s pause screen. This is an unfortunate oversight, as introducing a new player to the way a table works can go a long way in creating a new pinball fan. Besides, how else would anyone know that on the Biolab table you can eventually “render the cookie jar vulnerable by rebooting the system…and escape with all the cookies in the laboratory”?

This one’s a no-brainer for Pinball fans. With so many options and tables to choose from, Pinball FX 2 is packed with replay value. “One more game” can easily lead to an hour of play, especially if you’re gunning for a new high score not too far from your own. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a few high scores to go take back!

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Things We Liked: Notifications when approaching records and friend’s scores. Wide range of leaderboard options. The option to play around in the table settings.

Things We Disliked: Table rules aren’t thorough or easy to locate. High scores from previous version don’t carry over.

Target Audience: Anyone interested in playing pinball on a console.

(Pinball FX 2 – Developers: Zen Studios. Publisher: Microsoft Games Studio. Available for Xbox 360 via Xbox Live Arcade. A copy of the game was provided by the publisher for review purposes. Unfamiliar with CFD!’s review system? Read our newly revised explanation here.)