Sega

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

Pinside Rating

This game received 169 approved Pinsider ratings and currently rates 7.620 _/10

7.62

Top 100 ranking

This game ranks #164 in the Pinside Pinball Top 100.

Score breakdown

Score breakdown in the 4 main categories:

Game Design: 7.666

Artwork: 7.621

Sounds/Music: 7.342

Other Aspects: 7.593

Pinside staff rating

This is how we, the very knowledgeable (wink wink) Pinside.com staff & moderators rate this game. 4 of us have rated this game.

7.058

Your Rating?

You need to be logged in before you can rate pinball machines. No account yet? Registering only takes a sec!

Found 93 ratings (with comment) on this game

There are 93 ratings (that include a comment) on this game.
Currently showing results page 3 of 4.

List options

Ratings sort order

Type of ratings to show in list

Owner status of review

Exclude flagged ratings

Keyword or username search

8.820/10

9 years ago

MTB

mtbpinball

Pinside member

Harleysville, PA

10y 77,550 582 27

I really enjoy this game. I think it's very under rated. Great sound. Music from movie soundtrack or my choice- Edgar Winters Frankenstein. Lots of great shots. Good gameplay. Moving playfield monster and large dot matrix display.

7.004/10

9 years ago

YPS

cooldan

Inactive member

London

13y 54,800 129 5 53

MSF is like BSD. i mean WTF? they should be called Frankenstein and Dracula, right?

anyway i got me a Franky and i enjoyed it. it's a fairly standard Sega in that it feels a bit clunky and the flippers stick up too much, but it's basically a fun pinball game. i like the ball-launching flip switch thingy, i like the cab design and the smoky ramps and the bluey playfield and the big old ugly head in the middle of the playfield (a tiny bit better than from a pound shop but not as good at Nightmare Freddy). i enjoy the (unobtanium) enormous DMD, i like the ramp placement and the VUK at 11:30pm, and i love the idea of Franky being able to fight back with either hand.

but none of it quite works together perfectly. it's like the film in many ways. Robert De Niro was in it, and Kenneth Branagh, and Helena Bonham-Carter. but i bet none of them bring it up too often.

this is another fun starter pin, a 7 out of 10

cooldan has owned this game in the past.

8.420/10

9 years ago

FNF

FightNightFZ

Inactive member

10y 61,300 872 3 13

Glad that it is in the top 100 but still feel that it is underrated because it is not a B/W. With the right LED lighting the backglass and playfield put on quite a show. The sound quality and dots are beyond anything at the time. The rules are fairly deep and Frank throwing the balls and tracking them with his head is a cool toy. They playfield layout has everything you'd want, good pop placement and spacing, scoops, the ice cave shot, ramps, orbits, it's all there. To me it's the best SEGA and if it was a B/W with a different theme, it would be a top 30 pin. Give it a try and some good plays, you'll be surprised.

FightNightFZ has owned this game in the past.

8.700/10

9 years ago

SSD

PinFan4Life

Pinside member

Tampa, FL

12y 63,400 570 14 47

I really enjoy this game. This is my 2nd time owning it and will not trade it again. It's a keeper. One of Sega's best efforts IMO.

PinFan4Life has owned this game in the past.

6.645/10

9 years ago

SSS

scottydoesntknow

Inactive member

Woodley Reading

11y 34,650 33 4 37

Fun pin to play my newest addition, franky throwing the pinballs around for multiball is awesome, sound effects and music is top class great sega pin very underrated

scottydoesntknow edited previous rating on April 15, 2016.
scottydoesntknow has owned this game in the past.

7.089/10

9 years ago

GIL

Imagineerie

Inactive member

10y 44,550 7 190

Love the theme and there are some good things about this game. But I was a little disappointing, but the creature multiball wasn't working. So, admittedly, I can't truly rate this machine until I get to play a fully functional machine.

Imagineerie edited previous rating on August 09, 2016.

9.080/10

9 years ago

JDS

Crazypins

Inactive member

Spokane Valley, WA

9y 32,150 22 12

This game is a lot of fun and looks great. It has a crazy 6 ball multi ball and is as deep as any top of the chart pin. The art work is some of the best IMHO for a machine priced in any range. Priced very low for such a great layout and music. Pick your music add LED's and play. So many levels to complete. The lights and music for each level is very satisfying. Lot's of fun and will keep you coming back. Hard to reach the end of this game without a few extra balls. Best bang for the buck machine in my collection.

Crazypins edited previous rating on December 19, 2014.

8.800/10

9 years ago

BAM

brettam

Inactive member

Gilbert, AZ

9y 12,150 2 1 6

I owned this machine for about 10 years prior to selling it. Fun movie themes pin. Various modes including putting the monster together part by part. Edgar Winters music. Fun fast play. All the family enjoyed the artwork of the pin and had fun playing. Well played.

brettam has owned this game in the past.

9.200/10

9 years ago

USA

MrMaryShellys

Inactive member

Unknown

9y 5,750 1 2 9

One of the best pins ever made. Tons of fun.

MrMaryShellys edited previous rating on October 15, 2014.
MrMaryShellys currently owns this game.

9.060/10

9 years ago

HOS

Hoser

Inactive member

Montreal, QC

12y 33,050 241 5 15

Frankenstein is another one of those games that needs to be set up properly to shine. For home use, turn off the ramp memory. This makes the game much more difficult to start the main Multi-ball. And that is a good thing. The game then becomes Risk/Reward.

There is a potential big payoff in that multiball ... so earn it. Meanwhile the easier to achieve Geneva Multiball is much less lucrative.

Make no mistake. This is one of those under-appreciated games, just because of the Sega badge.

Have you noticed the trend. Data East and Sega games are no longer the amazing Bang for Buck they used to be. They are now catching up in cost to B/W. I own many great B/W and this holds up. A fun, deep game, with one of the best multiballs out there. Can you say mutli-staged multi-ball 5 times fast? How about that Roaming Jackpot?

Oh ... and the game has to be played with the music Cranked Up! One week I feel like Edgar Winters. The next ... dramatic soundtrack. Love having the choice.

Hoser has owned this game in the past.

9.900/10

9 years ago

TBP

lspin

Pinside member

Kcmo, MO

9y 26,650 36 7 11

This game is so underrated in my opinion. The play is quick with many skill shots needed to complete a task. It's fun for all ages.

lspin edited previous rating on August 19, 2014.
lspin currently owns this game.

8.920/10

9 years ago

BOK

Bok013

Pinside member

11y 37,800 216 19

This game was a lot more fun than I thought it would be. There are a few different modes. You can pick the music you want to play to which changes the feel of the game. The artwork is very nice. Too bad the movie wasn't very popular.

8.028/10

9 years ago

NAM

kwiKimart

Inactive member

San Diego, CA

12y 90,650 10,693 3 71

Fun Sega overall!! Love the layout and shots.

8.104/10

9 years ago

WUF

wolfy

Pinside member

Winston-salem, NC

14y 80,850 1,087 15 113 1

Best Sega overall. The shots are challenging and fun. I have one and have logged over 250 games and like it more than the first game. Game needs a little more light. LED'S and extra spot lights a must.

wolfy edited previous rating on November 27, 2016.
wolfy has owned this game in the past.

7.614/10

10 years ago

ROB

RobKnapp

Pinside member

Colorado Springs, CO

13y 110K 3,116 13 183

Good playfield lay out Fun

8.140/10

10 years ago

RCA

alexanr1

Pinside member

12y 74,550 1,338 85

Love the extra large DMD display. It irritates me to see people's rating, especially low ones and their reason are things like, it was at a skating rink and people bumped me' or the machine I played was one that the operator didn't maintain the machine so things didn't work. C'mon people, really! Rate a machine when you play a working machine and your childish anecdotal comments keep to yourself.

alexanr1 edited previous rating on January 19, 2021.

10 Pinsiders starred this!

7.936/10

10 years ago

NMS

nikpinball

Pinside member

Cleveland, OH

10y 77,050 1,249 7 30

A great game, awesome to pick the music you'd like! Frank's head likes to stop working and so does the huge display. Some modes are really tough, the main scoring mode is too easy.

nikpinball has owned this game in the past.

9.420/10

10 years ago

SIM

Wizbiscuit

Inactive member

Bideford

10y 15,150 21 6

My first pinball, so trying to be honest :) Its a great game, I think the theme goes well with pinball, tight playfield, so I find it best to keep hold of the ball and consider your next shot, deep rules, very cool multiballs (x6 is madness) and a real drive to want to get a better score... After all this time I still love it, plays great, looks great, under rated table for sure...

Also added all LED's to mine with a blue (for the cold areas) and red for the rest, now looking very groovy...

Wizbiscuit has owned this game in the past.

8.744/10

10 years ago

TOP

GoChiefs70

Pinside member

Bentonville, AR

11y 32,400 221 7 11

I played this game on location and was pleasantly surprised how fun it was. I played 18 games before it was done! Great playfield toy, shot selection, music and sound. I have to say that I am impressed by this Sega game and it makes me want to play other Segas. If I found this game for a decent price, I would buy it for home use.

2 Pinsiders starred this!

2.010/10

10 years ago

JRM

Mato

Pinside member

Perth

11y 75,800 2,717 11 105

Not my genre or theme, hated it was boring and bland.........YUK!

9 Pinsiders flagged this.

7.469/10

11 years ago

JJ

Hoopjohn

Inactive member

Eagle River, WI

12y 52,400 495 4 32

I played this game about a dozen times. Certain my ratings would change after really getting to know the pin. Shows some promise for home ownership. Most annoying for me were some of the callouts.

Hoopjohn has this game on the wishlist.

6.740/10

11 years ago

ZUL

Caucasian2Step

Evil McBooty

12y 163K 1,455 51 1011

Frankenstein has been spoeken about in a positive manner by players that I respect. I finally got the chance to play this table. I have to say that this copy was not in the best of shape and it needed work on the electronics. But from what I got from the games I played... here goes.

The Pros:
Choosing music is something I like in pinball. Both tunes are very well fitted to the theme of the game. But between the two... I go Johnny Winter every time. Tight shots require skill and good timing. The 6 ball multiball is frenetic, but never a blast that passes too quickly. I like the loop and the hole-shot from the upper flipper, both are tight shots. The upper hole can be a luck bounce sometimes, the upper loop has to be hit to pass all the way around. Hit the right ramp for the "bobby pinches a loaf" sound cue.

The Cons:
Ummm... does the game work? The BG muddy and the PF is not much better. This is from the man who did the art packages for Centaur and Paragon? Possibly Paul Faris's worst package ever (it grieves me just to even consider typing that last sentence down). I mean, really, what happened after he left Bally? DMD's are impossible to find. Franken-arms are prone to failure. Movie-tie in's really were not Sega's best way to spend their time on games... and they did it over and over and over and over.

The Takeaway:
I like what I see, but the jury is still out for me. I am more than willing to give this game a go (if and) when I encounter it again. Right now, it's ok. I promise to update this score once I get the chance to session this table out in complete working order. Please take this into consideration for the current rating with this pinball game review.

Caucasian2Step edited previous rating on March 26, 2013.

9.000/10

11 years ago

SRS

ssbodyman

Pinside member

12y 74,800 840 48

I was a little nervous about buying this game because of the cost and difficulties of replacing the large DMD should something happen to it but I am so glad I bought this game. The animations on this game are great the extra size really is nice. Frank is a cool toy and game play is fast and fun with a nice mix of hard and less hard to make shots. Awesome 6 ball multi that is hard enough to get that it never gets old. The choice of music at the start is nice for two player games when you have been drinking as it helps keep track of who's turn it is.

ssbodyman edited previous rating on October 16, 2013.

7.169/10

11 years ago

MAK

teachp8

Inactive member

13y 57,800 146 2 97

Great theme, great artwork, great music. MSF has a lot going for it....at first glance. I find the gameplay slightly disappointing. There are lots of multiball modes which are great fun but it seems that the ruleset is missing that extra something to make the game a real smash. A shame as I always seem drawn to play this.

7.916/10

11 years ago

CJ

Chrisbee

Pinside member

11y 66,150 3,054 8

I really enjoyed play this game, even thought the machine I was on need some TLC the game was still fun. The cabinet art work is excellent, and the video themes selection was good too. If I can find a well priced machine I would almost certainly buy. It's in my wish list.

Previous Next 1 2 3 4

There are 93 ratings (that include a comment) on this game. Currently showing results page 3 of 4.

You too can add your own comment by rating this game! Click here to rate this game!

Over the years

Visualizing this game's rating and rank over the years

Hey there! Welcome to Pinside!

Donate to Pinside

Great to see you're enjoying Pinside! Did you know Pinside is able to run without any 3rd-party banners or ads, thanks to the support from our visitors? Please consider a donation to Pinside and get anext to your username to show for it! Or better yet, subscribe to Pinside+!