Total rating
This machine received 272 approved ratings by our visitors, averaging 8.232 on a scale of 10.
This currently ranks it #16 in the Pinside Ranking.
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There are 25 comments on this pinball machine
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Ratings histogram
This is a histogram of all 272 approved ratings on this machine.
Rating subscores
What are the scores of the four individual rating categories, which form the machine's total rating?
8.01 Game Design
The playfield layout, game rules, gimmicks and overall gameplay
8.69 Artwork
Playfield artwork, Backglass, Cabinet artwork and Dot Matrix animations
7.98 Sound & Music
The game sounds, music, the sound quality and variation
8.25 General aspects
Game lighting, lastability/replayability, theming and general fun rating
Our rating
This is how we, the very knowledgeable Pinside.com staff (wink wink), rate this machine.
Ranking history
The Pinball Top 100 is re-calculated on a weekly basis. This means that we have a new top 100 every week! Here you can see this machine's movements throught the top 100 (the lower the ranking, the better).
Rating history
The Pinball Top 100 is re-calculated on a weekly basis. This means that this machine has a new rating every week! Here you can see this machine's rating over the last couple of months.
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SeanyT rated this machine on August 24, 2010 with a score of 9.528 and said:
“CFTBL is an interesting game. I actually bought this game not liking it. I played it and thought it was evil. Almost very ball went straight down the drain. My brother loved it and said that I had to buy it no arguments. I figured that the very reason I didn't like it might make it a good long term game. One that takes time to master. That was SO the case. This game takes a lot of perseverance to penetrate. I have four pins in my collection and CFTBL is rarely played more than once by newcomers. How this game would work in an arcade is beyond me. However on free play in a private collection it is amazing. I can lose hours playing this game. This is not a quick "while the kettle boils" sort of pin. You have to be quite tactical. Theme is personal choice and therefore I won't comment other than to say I like it. Gameplay is where it matters and longevity really matters when you own a machine. One for a collection but maybe not for the casual gamer. A keeper and in my top ten no question.”
jcg9998 rated this machine on August 19, 2010 with a score of 7.031 and said:
“I love the look of this machine, that is the reason why I purchased it originally.....however the gameplay leaves something to be desired. I was mildly surprised that it is ranked as high as it is. The Creature is definitely in my top 5 all time favorites for appearance (It can be anywhere from 1-5, it's hard to pick my top five in order!) I love the 50's theme and artwork on this game. I find it easy to play but it feels like I'm doing the same thing over and over....just a never ending game of shooting the ball up ramps. The creators should have done something better than the Hologram of the creature, while the intentions were good the result is rather poor and what I feel to be one of the weaker parts of the game. I do not like the music and sound effects at all with the exception of the when the Creature shows up. If you are looking for a machine to look good in your home, I strongly recommend this pinball, but if you are looking for gameplay in this price range there are better choices.”
brettj49 rated this machine on August 17, 2010 with a score of 9.913 and said:
“best music to play pinball too”
drbond rated this machine on August 03, 2010 with a score of 9.331 and said:
“John Trudeau's best game. Instead of basing the pin around the movie plot, Dr. Flash decided to theme the game around a 1950's drive-in premiering the Creature movie. Gill-man reaches through the movie screen & makes off with your girl. Easy to understand rules for novices. Show-stopping 3D Creature hologram, incredible ramps, good flow, solid art, light show, licensed 50's music, & an intense multiball. Kissing-couple & other sound bytes are hysterical. Snack Bar "cucaracha" & Pac-Man "Snack Attack" music will make you laugh. Tons of entertaining DMD animations. "Move your Car" allows you to advance a scene of an angry drive-in patron, on his mission to destroy the van blocking his view, by all means necessary. He ultimately pilots a fighter plane & levels the drive-in with a nuke, only to have the van simply drive home. The "Peeping Tom" video mode fight sequence is also hilarious. Gladiator music plays while you swing your fists at a pervert ala Mike Tyson's Punch-Out (finish him off with a "Fatality" like in Mortal Kombat). Fairly difficult game. Large gap in the center drain, along with SDTM drains via failed shots, balances out a light ruleset.”
Letter_K rated this machine on August 02, 2010 with a score of 8.328 and said:
“I love a good schlocky pin. If you can find the right theme and pull it off no-one can beat it. This one takes 50's drive-in theatre and the greatest drive-in thriller and takes them there. The game is fun to; you almost feel like you're parking cars in a red hat.”
TheNJGamer rated this machine on July 27, 2010 with a score of 9.913 and said:
“one very coolpin”
dangermouse007 rated this machine on July 25, 2010 with a score of 7.687 and said:
“Beautiful to look at but no fun to play.The playfield feels squeezed in the middle which creates lots of messy shots just keeping ball alive.
This has to be the highest ranked machine that nobody likes to play....been to many a pinball party where this machine is barely touched.”
romeair rated this machine on June 23, 2010 with a score of 9.715 and said:
“What a fantastic pin!One of the best looking tables ever made. The art and lighting is really well done and the translite is in keeping with the film.
The playfield art is also well done i love the swimming beauty and the creature draped over the tear dropped shaped window where a lit moving hologram of the creature lurks.The likeness of the swimming beauty could be better Kay was never blonde or muscular.
It has a simple rule set that is very fun and addictive,nice flowing shots up all 3 lanes and the 3 ramps.The ball speed could be a little faster but the slower speed makes the game very methodical and precise.The 2 ball multiball is very difficult to keep going and would not have worked if the designer had gone for more.The multiball SUPER JACKPOT takes some doing i have only got it 3 or 4 times out of 200+ games but that may just be me being rubbish!
All in all one of the best pins i have ever played and it well deserves the top ranking it has. "YOU SAVED ME! YOUR MY HERO!!”
thokennedy rated this machine on June 14, 2010 with a score of 8.657 and said:
“A fun game and a theme that appeals to many. Multiball is the main focus and fortunately is a solid mode with more to do than just hit a jackpot shot (increase multiplier, movie madness, monster madness). Move your car and the video mode are perfect for the theme and fun.
Very challenging as well, I still have never gotten the super jackpot.
However, there are a lot of 'modes' that are simple time based modes where you gets alot of points for hitting a ramp or target (unlimited mil, big mil, intermission time). They just seem so uninspired compared to the modes that shine well with the theme.
The sound and playfield art is solid - very fun to just look at it sometimes.
Overall, you have to like stop and go games to really enjoy this over a long period of time - I did get bored with it being my only pin after about a year. But even with that, I will probably never sell it.”
thecaptain rated this machine on May 27, 2010 with a score of 6.220 and said:
“it is not fun. I had one and sold it quickly. sat in my games room unplayed for a year after selling. Whats with the drive in theme? should have stuck with the creature. Hologram is a source of problems and is not that great.”
henchman1 rated this machine on May 25, 2010 with a score of 7.164 and said:
“Looks great but ultimately a boring pinball machine. The cool ramp and whirlpool are almost never used. Save some money and buy one that does not go and just look at it!”
Pinbot60 rated this machine on May 19, 2010 with a score of 8.960 and said:
“The CftbL is a very interesting Pin,Playfield good and Music "Rock and Rolls"in the 50-Style.A good Bally Game.”
tacojohn rated this machine on May 12, 2010 with a score of 9.754 and said:
“Still the hardest total game I've played yet, not my all time favorite but super tough!”
TheBaro rated this machine on March 31, 2010 with a score of 9.427 and said:
“peraphs not the deepest rule pinball but a lot of fun and humor...for its period the ologram was a beautiful toy and mechanism...the more i play the more i like this pin...
take it in your collection if you have the possibility..
a very good jump in the past in the 60's drive in...A++”
Zadom rated this machine on March 13, 2010 with a score of 7.545 and said:
“Love the artwork on the playfield and the backglass. Not crazy about the sound and some of the modes, such as trying to get the kiss.”
lightguy rated this machine on March 02, 2010 with a score of 7.177 and said:
“I really wanted to like CFBL but boy is this game slow.
People have to love it because of the theme. Artwork is very cool. Colors are great. Backglass lighting for its day was pretty neat.
But s....l....o....w....!”
Piscitelli rated this machine on February 05, 2010 with a score of 10.000 and said:
“CFTBL is a classic movie AND ALSO ONE OF THE CLASSIC PINBALL. A PINBALL MACHINE SENSACIONAL: SOUND WONDERFUL, SUPER colorful and entertaining. THANKS,”
prowler1910 rated this machine on January 16, 2010 with a score of 8.703 and said:
“When i first played CFTBL it didn't impress me. Then i bought one a couple of years later and totally restored it. Now i can't leave it alone. There are so many things to do and it is hard to get them done since it's a bit of a drainer. It's very challenging which is what keeps me coming back for more.”
captainspartan rated this machine on November 30, 2009 with a score of 7.526 and said:
“Fun machine, but the playfield is crowded and hard to see the top of the playfield.”
jonnyo rated this machine on November 02, 2009 with a score of 9.758 and said:
“This game is one of the best. It combines old drive-in movie nostalgia with humor and a monster flick.
Creature is somewhat unforgiving of random shooting but can be brought under control once the basic shots are worked out. Missed shots to the right ramp, for example, like to drain a lot, but on some machines can be backhanded fairly safely.
The main goal of the game, and the way to get big points, is multiball. However, even when you get it, there's no "gimme" jackpack shot. You have to find the girl, rescue her, then shoot for the jackpot, all while keeping both balls in play. Then you have a chance at a super jackpot. Very challenging, but the payoffs are worth it.”
Avatar rated this machine on October 22, 2009 with a score of 7.463 and said:
“It's more of a looker then a player ... very nice as a showpiece, but gameplay I don't like it that much.”
Gizmo rated this machine on October 17, 2009 with a score of 6.412 and said:
“I tried to like this machine being that it is the predecessor to the awesome Monster Bash, but it just didn't do it for me. The play wasn't smooth enough and I just didn't enjoy the mixed theme. They should have gone full monster and left the 50's drive-in aspect out in my opinion.
Bottom line...this is an alright game, but I don't plan to go back to play it anytime soon considering the other options out there.”
Savage23 rated this machine on October 03, 2009 with a score of 8.260 and said:
“I really like the theme of this pin. It draws you in and it always manages to put a smile on my face. I think their could be improvements on the playfield and if your going to have a cool hologram feature please make sure that it is dependable. I know a lot of these machines don't have that working correctly. I love the dot matrix cut sequences. Music is fun and overall a fun machine to play.”
Go4Fan rated this machine on October 01, 2009 with a score of 8.435 and said:
“This game has grown on me as a result of more play and my buddy's constant and recurring promotion. A lot of fun, good flow...”
PCOTRAIN rated this machine on September 14, 2009 with a score of 8.661 and said:
“ANOTHER GREAT MACHINE I LIKE TO OWN!”