I really need this machine, feel free to send me money i'm not rich enough ! ! !
Written by Martijn, published December 24th, 2007. 4 comment(s).
Medieval
Madness is considered one of the greatest pinball machines ever made
in the pinball community. Featuring a working drawbridge, a shaking
and crumbling castle, ugly trolls popping out of nowhere, a catapult
throwing pinballs, a dragon that looks really mean and lots of one
liners that are actually really funny, this machine truly is pinball
fit for a king and it fully lives up to its nickname 'the holy grail
of pinball'. Unfortunately this also goes for the steep price tag:
Medieval Madness is one of the most expensive machines you can buy on
the second hand market today changing ownership for prices that are
nearing the $10.000 mark if in mint shape.
The
plot of Medieval Madness evolves around battling and defeating the
malicious 'King of Payne' and all the King's evil men in a 'Battle
for the Kingdom'. To reach this goal the player must save several damsels by fighting the guarding dragons - judging by the one-liners the machine
throws at you the damsels are far more emancipated than this plot suggests by the way. He or she also needs to help peasants to
start a revolt, to get rid of the trolls the King sends after him / her to
'eat you for lunch' and to crush the 6 castles inhabitated by the
King's sidekicks and the 'King of Payne' himself. In doing so the
player is assisted by the old, but wise wizard 'Merlin', by 'Sir
Missalot' and 'Sir Lanceless' who teach him / her how to joust and by a
gigantic catapult that throws farm animals and skulls at the castles
you are sieging. If you think this sound ridiculous, you're
absolutely right. If you think this sound like a lot of fun, you're
even more right. Just have a look at the hilarious quotes this
machine has to offer and you probably understand what I am talking
about.
Are
there no flaws then? Well, while the machine's rulesheet is very
deep, it tends to leave a gap after you've reached 'Royal Madness',
giving you little to do but to go for 'Battle for the Kingdom' (see the rulesheet for more on that), which
can take a long time. So in this period the game's pace staggers a
bit breaking the player's flow, which is a shame. Secondly one might
argue that this game looks and feels a bit like it predecessor Attack
From Mars and its successor Monster
Bash, both in playfield layout as, particularly, in game play build-up. At the other
hand, taking the high ranking of these machines in consideration, you understand what they must have thought at Bally / Willams: why
change a winning formula? And personally I think that the highly entertaining game play, the humerous nature and the well executed variations of the themes make these machines easily stand out on their own.
So all things considered it's safe to state that this machine should leave even the most
demanding player happy for a long time, and since the machine is very
hard and expansive to come by, I would strongly recommend playing it
if you get the change. After all, there is a good reason for its high
ranking in the Pinside Top 100. It's just a whole lot of fun... Period.
I used to dump boatloads of money in to this machine at my local bar. I'm really considering buying a new one when it re-releases. Do you think the new one's will be identical or are they going to make a bunch of changes?
I am completely spoiled these days for my local bar has a beautiful Madness lined up next to an Attack From Mars that's finicky, but a great play. Madness is definately in my top 10 because if its straightforward playfield, accessible shots, great toys, and funny sound clips. Once I get a good ball going, the shots seem to make themselves and before I know it I'm approaching wizard mode. I haven't gotten there yet, but soon... very soon.
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WoLfZ
Inactive member
Castlegar, BC
15y 28,500 39 4 34
After reading this story I think I should start looking for this machine to buy because thats the only way I'm ever going to get to play it around here.