Pinball FX: Williams Pinball - Star Trek: The Next Generation Review (Mr. Data)
I can only just recommend this. Pinball should be fun, but for the most part this pin is just frustrating, which is a real shame. It's for this reason that I am tempted to change my review to one of not being able to recommend this, but do read on and judge for yourself.
Star Trek is my favourite IP of all time, and I'm most fond of TNG. This pin is certainly quite difficult, which isn't so much of an issue, but it's the small things that make this table more frustrating than it needs to be.
FIrst of all, the ball-save duration ("return to duty") is so incredibly short that it might as well not even be a feature. I feel as though adding a few extra seconds would alleviate most of the frustration, which leads into my second point; the ball stays alive for such a short amount of time. Seriously though, if you mistime your shots by the slightest amount, the ball almost seems sentient in the way it seeks to drain itself. Furthermore, if you hit any one of the two slingshots there's about a 70% chance that the ball will bounce a few times and then immediately get launched into the side lanes to drain. This can happen straight from the ball-launch at times, and the ball-save does its best to avoid helping you here, often disappearing when the ball is being bounced back & forth whilst you have no control over what happens.
Another review mentioned that the ball "stays alive for no more than 15 seconds", which is quite true, since at times I've drained all 3 balls in what feels like less than a minute of game time. If the bump mechanic actually worked properly (as it does in Pinball Arcade), you might find yourself able to keep the ball in play for longer, but no such luck. It's quite fortunate that the pin is rather high-scoring, since it would otherwise be much more demoralising.
Side note: I know that the experience is supposed to be a simulation, but to me the physics seem a little off; the ball feels way too light, almost like it's made of polished aluminium rather than solid steel. I would have loved an alternate physics option for this pin, but unfortunately you just get the one simulation option.
So, overall the pin can be incredibly frustrating at times, which is rather unfortunate considering most of this frustration could be alleviated with some minor tweaks. However, it's my love for the IP that drives my desire to continue playing and just improve my playing ability to overcome the aforementioned frustrations. I bought this one at full price, and I can only justify this because of my love for Star Trek. So, if you're not so passionate of a fan, perhaps wait for a sale and you'll be better off.
DLC Final Score 5.5/10