Pinside rating

This game received 75 approved Pinsider ratings and currently rates 4.999 _/10

4.999

Top 100 ranking

This game ranks #346 in the Pinside Pinball Top 100.

Score breakdown

Score breakdown in the 4 main categories:

Game Design: 5.049

Artwork: 6.192

Sounds/Music: 3.037

Other Aspects: 4.667

Pinside staff rating

This is how we, the very knowledgeable (wink wink) Pinside.com staff & moderators rate this game. 3 of us have rated this game.

6.493

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Found 46 ratings (with comment) on this game

There are 46 ratings (that include a comment) on this game.
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3.355/10

43 days ago

JFM

Striker

Pinside member

Alexandria, VA

2y 31,550 16 45

Strictly a novelty game. It’s a must-play-at-least-once game because of the size of the game and the fact the ball is a cue ball, not a pinball. But one game is usually enough. If the flippers are weak the game is unplayable.

6.018/10

84 days ago

RRR

drwasabi

Pinside member

<1y 11,750 10

It's one of those games you just have to play once. It's a must.

5.842/10

3 months ago

CGS

NoahsArkadePlayr

Pinside+ Frequent

1y 21,400 4 4 14

I remember when this machine first showed up at Noah's Arcade in the front of the arcade prime play "new machine" show-off location.

It was (and is HUGE), but sadly that is about the most this machine has going for it. The game play as I still recall was very uninspiring and the ball was a slow moving boulder (and not in any positive sense). My friends and I played it a fair amount the first few weeks after it initially arrived, but ultimately did not hold our interest, after those couple of weeks.

I encountered this machine again many decades later at the Pinball Museum in Banning CA. I had a brief temptation to play, but it quickly passed, and I went off to play my other "old" friends. I did enjoy showing to my daughter and being able to relay my first encounter stories to her.

2.396/10

3 months ago

PIE

SilverballGamer

Pinside member

Somerville, MA

2y 31,900 9 2 37

What a terrible game, though it’s incredibly obvious why, and considering where Atari was at the time, this game being released is logical.

Pro’s:

I like the backglass and playfield artwork.

The game does deliver on the fact it is, in fact, humongous.

When you first play it, it’s admittedly kind of funny how bad it is, though that wears off quickly.

Con’s:

I have played 4 of these in my life, and no matter the condition, they are always slow, clunky, and miserable to play. You can immediately look at the layout at be able to tell this game sucks.

Cabinet artwork is, admittedly, weak.

The plunger on these games are always incredibly stiff, which is rather annoying, especially when your reward is a lousy machine to play.

Overall, of course this game was bad. It was almost destined to be. As much as I dislike Thunderbirds and Playboy 35th Anniversary, I feel this game should take the crown for the lowest rated game in my opinion.

4.534/10

5 months ago

WXW

Lawlor_and_Order

Pinball 518

5y 81,400 38 109

Ah, I finally got a chance to play a working Hercules at the Strong Museum in Rochester, crossing another one off my list.

And....it played just like everybody else said it plays. It's sort of amusing for a couple of balls and then the novelty has completely worn off by Ball 3 and it's like you're playing a computer game that suddenly slows down because the refresh rate required on your screen isn't matched by your processor.

I will say though that in terms of thematic reach, having the mighty Hercules as the theme for a REALLY BIG machine was a decent idea, and honestly the playfield layout isn't that bad considering. What they probably need to do to make this sucker work better was to juice up the flippers and the bumpers, and instead of using the cueball provide a special steel pinball that is the same size but with a slightly hollowed out core to provide just the right weight.

My 14 year old played a remarkably good game on this just feeling out the flipper action -- he's better at playing the flippers as they are without muscle memory intruding, and essentially working the machine up the slot from bottom right flipper to the bumpers, and around the right "orbit" from the left flipper worked quite well for him.

I do have a use for this: this should be the tiebreaker machine at a big tournament sometime. I mean, it's an unusual test of skill, it's different from any other machine, and the very fact it's a bit of a stinker for gameplay would be its own test. Meh, yeah, OK, maybe not.

4.488/10

8 months ago

CMW

RoxasUrSoxas

Pinside member

Middleburg Heights, OH

5y 44,050 33 18 40

Hercules is more of a pinball gimmick than a game you would want to play consistently. Is it cool to play once when you see it? Yes. Does it have the rule set and lastability of traditional sized games? No. It's cool to see though and is definitely unique.

5.509/10

11 months ago

EJH

ehex9

Pinside member

Saint Albans Town, VT

1y 44,500 1 8 178

Cool gimmick but this game plays like a big pile of @#$%!

8.241/10

1 year ago

DAV

Gritty

Pinside+ Frequent

Cinnaminson, NJ

11y 96,850 589 81 4

This is a fun unique game and a very cool piece of pinball history. Should not be compared to traditional pinball. This is a novelty game and if setup right and working correctly with strong flippers and a lighter ball it is fun to play. This is usually the most popular game at pinball shows. Unfortunately many experience this game on location where they are poorly maintained and setup.

Gritty edited previous rating on September 11, 2021.

2.110/10

1 year ago

AJH

AndHart120

Pinside member

North Aurora, IL

11y 57,300 682 9 46

Worst game ever.

5.933/10

1 year ago

EJS

Pinball Outpost

9y 189K 4,791 59

First time playing: Wow this is really cool, unique, biggest pin ever, etc.
Second time play: Yeah this sure is a big pinball, I wonder if the flippers could be stronger?
Third time play: I wonder how many other machines could fit in the place of this game?
Fourth time: (I'll let you know when I play it the 4th time)

Yeah, it's a novelty but it won't be in my lineup. I'll play one for yucks and giggles if I see one again. Probably not more than 2 or 3 times.

2 Pinsiders starred this!

2.628/10

1 year ago

DCD

cdnpinbacon

Pinside member

Alcona, ON

8y 96,800 5,286 8 10

A large heavy useless turd.

4.057/10

3 years ago

CLA

SkaterVet

PIC

Marvin, NC

5y 65,800 263 5 37

A neat novelty game and is an eye catcher when you walk into an arcade. That said, the playability is not fantastic. The nostalgia factor is high as I remember my younger brother and I being too small to reach each flipper button so he would take one side and I'd take the other. Certainly worth playing if you get the chance.

2.504/10

4 years ago

H2O

zh2oson

Pinside+ Member

Pasadena, CA

4y 112K 978 6 66

I've never walked away from a game of pinball in my life...even when location games have had maintenance issues. I walked away from this game after two balls. It is butt. Pure butt. An hour later I felt bad and tried again, but just couldn't do it. I let ball one drain and continued living my life. I have no regrets.

I do think it is important to always find at least one nice thing to say about everything. So...

Sure, the gimmick (I'm throwing you 3 Pinside ball rating thingies on this rating scale for Toys and Gimmicks) of a giant pinball machine is a curiosity. Yes, I can brag to everyone about how I've played this game and how special this should make me. And the backglass is better than at least 50 others in the annals of pinball history - especially if you are tired of looking at all the scantily clad women that grace just about every other machine in history.

2.065/10

4 years ago

MOF

mof

Pinside member

San Francisco, CA

9y 137K 10,904 27 93

What a disgrace. Worst game of all time.

6.572/10

4 years ago

JDR

jdrenner32

Inactive member

5y 21,000 5 1 22

It's kind of neat to play "The Largest Pinball Machine Ever!", but it's more of a novelty than an awesome game. Playfield runs kinda slow because it so large. You're constantly waiting for the ball to come back. Over all, fun the first few times, but I might pass on this in the future.

5.305/10

4 years ago

MJS

Matesamo

PinballRI

Warwick, RI

5y 117K 1,291 112

A true novelty game, if you ever seen it out in the wild watch people point at it excitedly, start a game and then struggle to even play all the balls before they walk away.

6.149/10

4 years ago

CPI

cait001

Pinside member

8y 111K 4,027 36

It plods along, but I find the extra patience and different physics really appealing. And the theming is kind of perfect. I always play a bunch of games whenever I have the chance. A very unique and pleasant experience if you can find one that works.
Probably the lowest-rated game that comes with the caveat that I'll ALWAYS want to play it when I see it.

cait001 edited previous rating on September 04, 2020.

4.957/10

5 years ago

RHO

spiroagnew

Inactive member

9y 119K 981 161

This pinball machine is just like Andre the Giant late in his wrestling career. Imposing size and impressive to see in person, but slow, plodding and painful to experience. It is a game that you have to play a couple of times just to say you've played it, but it's really nothing to write home about, and offers little in the way of "fun" beyond having someone take your picture beside the game once your game is over. It fits in with the rest of Atari's bland pinball lineup. I can actually say I've tilted a Herc, not on purpose, in regular play trying to nudge a ball out of the outlane. I'm lucky I didn't pull a muscle.

3.392/10

5 years ago

PSN

Paul1478

Pinside member

Peachtree City, GA

7y 51,050 84 3 39

sorry but what a waste of wood. They would have been better off letting that tree grow instead of it dying to make this turd. When I first saw it I thought, Wow, this is going to be GREAT!. nope. SUCKED.

Paul1478 edited previous rating on August 08, 2017.

2.093/10

5 years ago

BW

KingBW

Pinside member

6y 111K 2,905 99

The entire game concept is a gimmick. It is really cool to play it once just for the "gimmick". Way oversized game that plays extremely slow. The pinball is not a nice small metal ball, but something like a plastic ball from a toddlers baseball and bat kit. "Lastability" for me might be to play it once a year (if I see it that often) just to smile at the gimmick concept of it. Not a "serious" pin for me.

6.444/10

6 years ago

TBK

xTheBlackKnightx

Pinside member

6y 128K 4,096 137

Everyone pretty much knows this was an Atari novelty pinball machine, but it still has historical value.

It is not as much that it is a "turd" as people think in terms of gameplay (but it is VERY SLOW), but it is hard to find replacement parts for machine.
Gameplay is average, if the game is well maintained, but most are not.
Reliability is average, but many of the assemblies were not really designed well for this game.
Game code is below average, and sounds and music is minimal.
Basically, it is like any other early Atari SS game.
Backglass makes a great wall hanger though, if you can find a parted out game which has reached an equilibrium these days.

It uses a cue ball as a proper ball, if it shipped with something different from the factory, I don't know, because I never saw one NIB, as this was just a few years too young before I started tech work.
Maybe gameplay could be fixed with a new improved polycarbonate or ceramic ball in the modern age?
Nah, not really.

When I owned one, I had to get specially built machines assemblies when something broke like pop bumper assemblies, yokes, and such. That was the real PITA.

As a game it has plenty of value in museums or businesses.
Really draws the crowds and makes good money.
Still REALLY EASY to get $1 a play.
No change in mentality today.

It is not always about pure collector value, this game was never meant for that consideration when designed.
If you have the space, a full size pick up truck, and a small wad of Benjamin Franklins, certainly a consideration, but make sure it is COMPLETE, as many seem to be missing parts these days for the reasons I mentioned.

5.936/10

6 years ago

DEF

DefaultGen

Pinside member

Morrisville, NC

9y 120K 2,806 10 166

OK, Hercules is far from a good game, but I think it's better than it gets credit for. I played the one at Flippers which is in excellent condition with strong flippers. It looks like you'd want to play half a game and walk away but I kept coming back to it. I mean, it's kind of a pinball machine. It's got loops, pops, slingshots, targets, a... "spinner" that never really spins. Ball control is easy because the ball often comes to a dead stop or rolls up the inlane if you just hold the flipper up. And hey, left lane up to the rollover lanes and the right loop shot... I'll say those are two decently satisfying shots for a novelty monster. And for such a simple slow beast... the rules are fine! There are definitely worse novelty games out there, even the polar opposite Super Mario Mushroom World is worse IMO.

3.497/10

6 years ago

SAP

seshpilot

Pinside member

9y 104K 2,336 165 1

The first and last of its kind!! And for good reason.

I really wanted to like Hercules! It looks so cool. But the hype is true: it plays terrible. In some ways, it's not as bad as I thought it would be; in other ways, it's worse. There's just not much to shoot at, there isn't much skill involved, and the whole affair just feels overly clunky and unnecessary. If you're looking for a unique conversation piece, sure grab one...otherwise, I'd steer clear.

3.500/10

6 years ago

ACE

wingnut707

Pinside member

8y 26,000 1 2 33

This game is NOT fun. End of story.

3.377/10

6 years ago

QNT

Quint

Pinside member

Warwick, RI

7y 61,300 228 97

The novelty wears off very quickly and all you are left with is a sparse, boring play field

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