Found 95 ratings (with comment) on this game

Fun game , not common one with theme well integrated.
Oktoberfest is a traditionnal german party. Overseas people have to participate in an Oktoberfest to really appreciate the game theme.
Have a bretzel with your beer and play Oktoberfest : The basic …

Just starting to get into the game. There is some definite pros for me - beer theme, I am a big time beer nerd and this is great. Some funny schtick items like playing one handed and mixing that stuff in. But the overwhelming amount of steins, tents, etc is ALOT to understand and it may be a while before I really understand this game. The ramps are great (if you can get the ball up them) and the beer barrel multiball is fantastic with the balls coming out of the spout. My review may need to be returned to at a later date.

This is maybe the closest throwback ever to a B/W loaded, original theme pin - with much deeper rules. With the new beer barrel coil stop and other changes post release, both ramps are very makable and extremely satisfying. It’s not a Stern with polished art and animations - so what, you don’t play the art or animations. The theme integration, deep but approachable rules and pure fun are great. Shame this pin and its creators don’t get the level of deserved recognition.

Fun game but the code in the machine I played seems to flake out a lot.

Have only played on location. The theme seemed dated and would have been more suited to late sixties or early seventies. The game itself felt well built and solid - which was nice. The flippers performed well and the layout was fine. Two things really bothered me and neither are at all important to how the game played. I hated the animations - I kept thinking "why even have a LCD screen?" and I hated the way Otto looked on the playfield. The LCD animations looked like they came off a 2008 Iphone and Otto's sculpt just did not match the other artwork. Later I saw someone came up with a mod that fixed this and I felt vindicated it was not just me that disliked that look. Music and call outs were . . . fine - nothing special. The art does the theme justice (except for the Otto sculpt which looked terrible when compared to the game art). The modes were silly but I guess fit the theme. Sadly, I think the game overall was "meh" with some tight/difficult shots but would have rated it up a couple of points higher with improved animations and the Otto re-imagined mod (which looks great). Call me shallow. It did feel like a quality design/build (good job AP) and I was impressed with how it played from a new company. Just not my cup of tea . . . err, my mug of lager. I do realize having it at home may be a different experience where the game rules really shine.

I wanted to love this one, it's a theme that resonates with me completely. There's some fun shots and the ruleset has a lot going on. Unfortunately the playfield and video art let the whole package down for me.

29th APRIL 2023: Played Oktoberfest on location at The Pinball Office in the UK.

I, like everyone else, is curious about Galactic Tank Force (ice cream! Cows! Tanks! IN SPACE!) and decided to spend some time with this earlier American Pinball offering. May I say, after playing Oktoberfest, I can categorically say that the insanity of GTF did not emerge from nowhere. Instead, it was lurking beneath the surface of American’s earlier pins like a very fat Prussian in a World War I-era submarine.

Oktoberfest has more dodgy German stereotypes than a goose-stepping mad blond scientist with round glasses. It has women with pigtails in aviator hats. It has very fat men in lederhosen. It has juggling and shooting ducks in tents. It has tacky folk music that seems to be being played on a sousaphone. Flipping heck (pun intended), it even has gingham-patterned flippers.

The playfield layout felt mediocre, with a preponderance of randomly-orientated target banks, some bumpers with large clogs (?) on and a couple of scoops, one of which had the design recycled for the execrable Houdini. It also has my pet hate, a magnet that throws the ball about randomly. In this case, it throws it about randomly near the outlane, which isn’t as disastrous as it may sound.

I started a couple of modes and a multiball - they felt uninspired somehow, probably because the curved target banks and ‘quack’ targets simply weren’t fun to shoot. I’m not sure what was missing, but the layout seemed to lack ‘kinetic satisfaction’, rather as though it had been assembled somewhat at random without considering whether any of the shots were fun, or how they came together into a complete game.

I played a few games for the novelty value, as much as anything, but it was… both too much, and somehow too little. Too little gameplay and too much of the cringily-deployed theme.

“HOLD MY SCEPTER!” (Sorry, wrong game)

Some of the callouts are very difficult for me to hear over and over but this is a surprisingly good game with a poor (sorry) theme.

Owned now for approx 2 months, and on latest code.

First Impressions:
The backglass is a little underwhelming, but it's fun and suits the theme well. Cabinet as well suits the theme, although I might call it functional more than anything - it certainly doesn't pop like some of my other recent games (Halloween - wow). The armour and powdercoating are really nice, and the playfield artwork is busy, and gives a pretty good Oktoberfest festival vibe. Those wireforms are absolutely beautiful - really make you want to press start and begin shooting for them, and the toys, especially the beer barrel and the bumper cars are quite brilliant.

Gameplay:
Holy cow this game is pure FUN! The oompah band music and the superbly cheesy callouts, the festival game modes, sparkly bumper cars on the pops, 4 magnets with 2 being controllable, one handed modes so you can drink a beer while playing, knocker (yes a real one) integrated with target and duck shooting - seriously, just how good is this theme integration? Shots are really satisfying - especially a right orbit/beer barrel combo shot it's up there with any of my other games including Elwins. Did need some minor adjustments to the beer barrel flipper and ramp, because that shot was way too hard requiring absolute pinpoint precision. Shortening the flipper stroke helps and AP actually sell a longer coil stop to achieve this (but you can adjust the flipper manually) and making some slight adjustment on the ramp so the ball wouldn't fly off made it a fair shot although still hard as nails. The rollercoaster ramp is possibly the steepest I've ever seen but it's absolutely no problem shooting it - I've seen complaints the flipper isn't powerful enough to make it, but that's certainly not the case on my machine. The layout is fresh, it's interesting and there is a LOT to shoot for and do on this game.

Rules:
Really superb ruleset on this - there are several paths you can take as you play the game: go for tent modes and try to get Flipper Meister, go for ducks and start Duck Derby, try and complete the food stand modes and get Food Coma - or go for the multiballs. Scoring is very nicely varied, and collecting Steins at the bar boosts certain aspects of the game (boosts certain tent modes, boosts MB jackpots, makes it easier to collect ducks etc), there is just SO much to do... Serious kudos to the team in giving the player such a great variety - and all paths are accessible from the get go. I tend to go for the mutliballs just because the shots are so great to get them (the beer barrel shot for the beer MB, and that rollercoaster wireform is just amazing).

Negatives:
Well, the artwork and backglass could be a little more appealing - it is fun and ties in with the theme, but it's a little bland at the same time. The beer barrel ramp on mine did need some serious dialling in - it was a makeable shot, but maybe 3 or 4 out of 50 shots would get there, and an orbit/barrel combo would never make it - the ball would just fly off the ramp. Adjusting the flipper stroke, widening the barrel entrance slightly and a tiny bend of the wireform and now its perfect. Other than that, I'd say maybe the animations aren't very engaging but they are fun just like the rest of the game.

Overall - I really have not played many machines more fun than this. I got hold of a Stern JP at the same time and I've hardly played it. Don't get me wrong JP is an absolute stellar game and I love it - definitely deserves its top 10 rating, but damn this game just has its hooks into me. I keep saying it, but it's just a joy to play. I'm genuinely really surprised this game isn't ranked higher, maybe its the theme which I guess isn't to everyone's taste. It has great shots, it's absolutely loaded with toys and mechs, the music is fantastic and the rules are varied and fun. Superb game, really superb - I would highly recommend trying it if you haven't.

This game doesn’t get the love it deserves. Admittedly, when I first started playing, I was frustrated until I got the shots down, especially the beer barrel ramp. Once you get it though, it’s a very satisfying shot. Love the festive theme and the tent modes are great. Definitely need to play quite a few games before everything starts to click. Sober mode is hilarious! Second favorite game in my collection of seven, behind Wonka.

This game requires a good setup and has a bit of a learning curve. It doesn't play like a Stern so you have to get used to it. Once you start to figure it out it's very deep and has a lot of fun modes. The theme is very well integrated so your experience will probably come down to if you like the theme or not and whether or not you want something in your collection that plays a little differently. The shots from the upper flipper are a little too difficult for me but that might be more of a reflection of my ability level.

Update: after owning the game for a year and improving my skills this game is starting to shine more. It's not a great machine for beginners, but if you can control the ball this game has incredible depth and several tough but satisfying shots. The weak link is the playfield artwork and I understand that the theme is somewhat polarizing. But if you love pinball and enjoy the theme this is a great game to own in your home. Pinstadiums really help on this machine.

I really like Oktoberfest, the festival and the Pin. The layout is pretty unique, and the feel of the machine is fun. I held off on buying one for a long time because I thought the animations were weak, but after owning one they grow on you, and now I think they are kind of charming.

This game wasn't really on my radar but once I played it, I became a fan. There are numerous hidden shots, naughty callouts, multiballs, and I'm always finding new things the more I play it.

The theme is exceptional and so much fun! Music and animation is very good !

Personally, I don't care for the Oktoberfest theme and I was a late (recent) buyer because of this. But after spending time on the game at a local Arcade/Pinball show, the improvements I noticed (from when I played it initially in 2018) were significant. The amount of love that went into all the various modes and gameplay ideas is palpable. The game is solid, unique, and gives you a TON of stuff to do. I LOVE the bumper cars, corkscrew wireforms, multiple physical ball locks, etc. Relative to other games being sold on pinside, I think the !/$ value of Oktoberfest is very strong as well.

Wow what a steep ramp.

This is an absolute pleasure to play uniquely different from many pinballs.Knocker add on is cool.
Will keep longer than most.

Many people hate this game but even though the artwork is somewhat weird (some would say ugly) i find it fun and original. It's so refreshing from time to time to have something different from licensed games. The soundtrack fits the theme and the callouts with the fake german accent and somewhat raunchy humour at times are excellent. The game is fun to play with interesting and challenging shots plus some interesting innovations in the use of magnets or the "drunken" mode where your flippers are delayed when pressing the buttons just like you would have a lack of reflexes being under influence. Epic !

This is such a fun table! The rollercoaster, the bumper cars, the beer!

I have finally gotten a chance to play this game in extended sessions, and I'm going to call it a great miss.

There's a lot to like here. The fun wire forms, the incredible array of shots, the solid feel to the whole thing, the unusual original theme, the variety of things to go for.

But there's a couple of fatal flaws here that keep it from being an actual want-to-own machine and a few that make me want to limit my playing time, despite the fact I kind of like the whole thing as a package.

The first is the insane side ramp, discussed much elsewhere. I have never, not once, managed to get the ball up this thing. I don't mind hard shots; absolutely physically impossible shots, they look like cigarette burns in the Mona Lisa. I mean, great picture, but there's a burning hole in the middle of it, and it gets distracting and finally takes over your whole experience of the thing.

Related but equally tragic: the Rollergames like magnet/stop at the spinner just above the side flipper, perhaps put in to help make the impossible shot possible? I don't know, since it doesn't help. But what it does do is kill flow all too often.

Then the mode choice - it's great that you can pick any mode, including doing more than one at once, but OTOH not having this auto-picked is also a flow killer. You have to page through the list of modes and select one, and there's no enforced diversity here, and this is also at the cost of tempo and flow.

I still have a sneaking admiration for American here in trying to break the typical design mold, and the clever mechanicals and things like the unusually nice curved standup banks on the lower playfield (which add elegant arcs to balls I haven't see anywhere outside of early 80s widebodies, which were too slow) create a really nice array of shots and pleasing ball play.

Until you get to the point of the stop and go magnet and the impossible hill and taking five minutes to pick a mode, and it just gets a little depressing.

A- for concept; B for effort; C for playtesting feedback loop.

Prototyp backglass is so much better, but overall it‘s so funny

After learning the basics of how ducks, food and steins multiply scores the opportunity score big opens up! It is not just the two main multi-balls.

Not your run of the mill, flowing pin game play but what a captivating game. Games upon games within one pinball machine. The game play never gets old or repetitive. So many different ways to play and score.

I’m not one for deep rule sets. This game manages to throw a lot at you but as I player I’m never confused as to what to do next.

Is the theme a little kitschy? Yup, it sure is. But it’s so much fun.
Tough ramps? Yup, sure are. But how rewarding when you make them.

AP makes an incredible, solid as a rock machine. And if anything does go wrong or if you have nothing more than a question, their customer service is second to none. They respond quickly, call if they have to and are always active on Pinside with assistance and suggestions.

Love having this game in my collection.

NOT A GOOD LOCATION GAME--AVOID IF ROUTING

What can I say about Oktoberfest? It's got a lot of positives, but ultimately I would say that the game is a miss. It never clicked with me, even though I really tried to like it. I actually enjoy the festival/carnival/beer theme, but just don't have a lot of fun playing Oktoberfest.

The game isn't particularly fun to shoot, and while I like the freedom of choice in the rules, I'm never really pulled in or heavily invested while playing. I do really like the physical knocker integration--it's a lot of fun when it goes off for bumper cars or duck hunting. That's honestly probably my highlight. While Okfst is certainly not a bad game at all, it's not really something that I would ever own again, or probably even play again on location.

Speaking of location, this game is a router's nightmare! I'm a hobbyist router with a couple games at a local arcade, and Okfst by far gave me the most headaches of any game. The software is sorta buggy, with occasional freezes and lag. Which isn't a big deal at home, but on location if someone puts money in and the game locks up mid-game, that's a problem. AP also doesn't have any game adjustments for disabling mechs/features. This is a huge, huge problem, as I had a lot of trouble with the ball locks, and there's no way to disable them and switch to a notional/code lock. If you need new lock switches (proprietary), then all you can do is turn the game off until new ones come in the mail. Compare this to my Stern Beatles, where almost every single mech/target bank/feature can be disabled in the software, while still keeping the game playable.

Plus, Oktoberfest doesn't even have pricing card slots. I literally had to tape in a pricing card to the apron. Also, the DBA pinout was wrong from the factory, and the service bulletin to correct the mistake was also wrong! I had to get my meter and punch-tool out and re-pin the DBA connector manually. Not hard, but certainly annoying. Speaking of annoyances, it literally takes something like 5 mins for the game to turn on. You can switch the game on, and then go make a cup of coffee before it's ready to play. More annoying than you'd think. Particularly if the game is acting up and you need to restart it.

So sadly, even though it's not awful, I'd say give Oktoberfest a miss. I will add one last positive, which is that AP's staff are very responsive. They're frequently on Pinside, and AP's Tech Support is very good.

Just picked this up yesterday and have really been enjoying it. It's a fun theme and the call outs are hilarious! The corkscrew ball lock and then multiball is a lot of fun, great light show. The shots are a lot of fun and satisfying. It's a low scoring game so for those spoiled with an easy billion on many games will be disappointed. It's a bit slower than most games but then surprises you when the magnets grab the ball and slings it. Love the center post.

Played this a few times on location. It was ok!