Pinside rating

This game received 171 approved Pinsider ratings and currently rates 8.018 _/10

8.018

Top 100 ranking

This game ranks #63 in the Pinside Pinball Top 100.

Score breakdown

Score breakdown in the 4 main categories:

Game design: 8.244

Artwork: 7.764

Sounds/Music: 7.472

Other Aspects: 8.245

Pinside staff rating

This is how we, the very knowledgeable (wink wink) Pinside.com staff & moderators rate this game. 7 of us have rated this game.

7.469

Your Rating?

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

Ranking history

An overview of this machine's ranking over the last years. Lower is better.

Rating history

An overview of this machine's rating over the last years. Higher is better.

Found 72 ratings (with comment) on this game

There are 72 ratings (that include a comment) on this game.
Currently showing results page 1 of 3.

List options

Ratings sort order Type of ratings to show in list Exclude ratings flagged as "bogus" Keyword or username search

8.436/10

4 days ago

JAR

jasonaross

Pinside member

5y 32,750 10 26 2

Have about 20 games on this. The levitating ball trick, magic wand trick, and the trick shot are fantastic. I love the theme and game play.

7.949/10

8 months ago

TKM

Daditude

Pinside Moderator

Rockwall, TX

2y 242K 6,448 11 260

This is a pretty rare game, but worth seeing out. It has several neat gimmicks/toys (the levitating ball and the wand). The artwork is good and I like the theme a lot. This would look amazing in a lineup with ToM, Houdini, and abracadabra.

The shots aren't as smooth as I would hope and the fact that it was made in limited numbers by company that put out very few pins and has extremely limited available parts today makes this a tough buy for me. It is also in DIRE need of LEDs. It's like 2 different pins with and without leds.

I would only recommend it if you absolutely love the there and toys in it, or if you gave a 20+ pin collection.

Daditude edited previous rating on September 08, 2020.

8.315/10

1 year ago

???

Zoomtop

Pinside apprentice

Liverpool

1y 8,250 2 20

Nice theme game just ashamed that William brought out theatre of magic otherwise they may have sold more pinball magic

7.973/10

1 year ago

DOC

TractorDoc

DPS

Ashland, OH

3y 216K 2,505 18 77 1

Beautiful game all around.
My only hesitation with owning is my limited knowledge of Capcom technology and limited aftermarket parts/support.
Definitely worth spending time playing especially if Magic is your thing.

8.056/10

1 year ago

???

GezTheHealer

Pinside member

Trowbridge

1y 14,250 3 10

Really nice surprising toys, fun little skill shot, getting it to drop on the loop is a bit annoying in two player waiting for someone trying to make it. Cool levitating ball, Cool Moving wand hand. I like theatre of magic, which, is more what you'd expect, and well polished with better artwork. But it doesn't have a levitating ball or magicians stage on the table. Tricky shot on the right to start multiball. Certainly recommend, a bit different.

5.684/10

1 year ago

DVD

dawasa

Pinside member

8y 58,150 436 39 7

Not a keeper. Limited shots. Didn't enjoy sequential shots and having to start all over. Game would have benefited by adding another ramp and some code updates.

dawasa has owned this game in the past.

8.820/10

2 years ago

LMS

Tranquilize

Pinside member

5y 71,050 2,260 33

This game is UNIQUE! No wonder Williams attempted to rip off the design to create ToM, which is, by far, the inferior machine.
I acquired this machine on a trade+ for a WW, and I am happy with my decision.

__________________________________________________
DESIGN & TOYS
__________________________________________________

— Capcom hit the pinball market running: they sought innovation!
— You want toys? Well this game has two firsts for pinball: the wand and levitating ball.
— The trunk lock is very cool.
— There are great ramp diversion choices with the wand guiding the ball
— The ball drop into the critics is EPIC FUN! I cannot stress this enough!
— Excellent sewer system and theatre kickout.
— Captive ball is great. It can be really tough and punishing, yet you can light xb, which can also be tough to hit.
— The single theatre bumper works well if switches are adjusted properly.

__________________________________________________
THEME/LIGHTING/SOUND
__________________________________________________

— Theme of "evil female magician (witch?) sending magicians after you is original and cool.
— I love the almost monotone, scripted callouts from the woman. They make me laugh. "Behold, real magic" lol.
— The insults from the woman and critics are funny. "Loop this, pal."
— The various voices and for the magicians are integrated well.
— Really good DMD work on this machine, particularly the closing animation after your game ends.
— Lighting is pretty good with an OCD card and LEDs. Bummer that you can't add LED flashers.
— Music is okay. I have played the game for long sessions and do not get annoyed. It doesn't stand out either.

__________________________________________________
GAMEPLAY
__________________________________________________

— I was very concerned about the linear style of the game, but it somehow works great.
— Scoring "levels" by defeating the magicians gets progressively more difficult, which is great.
— Having to silence the critics to end level one is a perfect amount of difficulty.
— Later modes that require drops etc. add tremendous danger and pressure.
— It's awesome that you can't use the captive ball to complete end-of-level modes.
— This game can be very fast with spurts of great flow.
— If flow was non-stop, it would be too much as it is sooo fast if well tuned and waxed.
— The potential to start a two ball via skill shot after lock is great for balancing difficulty.
— Three ball multiball adds clever scoring options.
— Completing the game is pretty difficult and EPIC when you get there.

__________________________________________________
CRITICISMS
__________________________________________________

— It is very linear, so it is better in larger collections I would think.
— Two ball multiball could be considered a little on the easy side to obtain.
— Hat shot from the left flipper rejects quite a bit. It likely needs some padding to prevent bounce-outs
— Flipper strength needs to be pretty high (I think I'm two points lower than default), which means the pf can take a beating.
— As others have mentioned, parts can be a bitch, but I've been able to find most without much trouble. This may change.
— The backglass could be a little better, but there is far worse.

In the end, Pinball Magic is an excellent game. It is leaps and bounds better than Theatre of Magic, the game that attempted to outperform it. The innovation, great ruleset, and great gameplay make this game a winner. The price has gone up, but I still see this game as priced below its actual value. Get out and play this game!

8.656/10

2 years ago

CHU

Athlete

Pinside member

Littleton, CO

3y 30,400 10 11 23

Just got this machine. Had a few good choices of games for the price I paid. I made the right decision. Great pin! Lots of fun.

Athlete edited previous rating on January 02, 2019.
Athlete has owned this game in the past.

8.460/10

2 years ago

DEN

britrex1

Pinside member

10y 49,800 213 58

This is an amazing machine! It has an excellent ruleset even if they are linear. I see other people complaining about the rules but my advice to them is "Play better". This machine also has some of the best features with the floating ball and the magic wand not to mention the best skill shot in pinball! Just a very fun game!

britrex1 edited previous rating on July 04, 2018.
britrex1 has owned this game in the past.

6.578/10

3 years ago

YPS

cooldan

Inactive member

London

9y 50,800 129 5 53

I owned one of these briefly, so I feel obliged to write some kind of report on it...... trouble is I can't really remember too much about the game. which probably tells you all you need to know. it's a decent player and has some fun toys, but being a Capcom title there are practically ZERO spare parts available so good luck if anything breaks (when anything breaks, I mean).

Looks nice, sounds nice, plays ok.

cooldan has owned this game in the past.

7.956/10

3 years ago

RAW

Bomber19

Pinside apprentice

Central Coast

3y 15,400 4 4 13

Pinball Magic has some cool toys that tie in nicely with the overall theme. I'd be back for more.

7.740/10

3 years ago

MJS

Matesamo

PinballRI

Warwick, RI

4y 116K 1,285 112 1

Thanks to Pintastic I got to finally play one of these and it was one of Capcoms best pinball machines. As soon as I plunged I fell in love with the game play and shots, nice gimmicks and great artwork. Its a shame Capcom left pinball as they were just hitting their stride.

8.004/10

3 years ago

JCZ

Meegis

Pinside member

Vaughan, ON

6y 85,800 2,119 13 239

Game is alright. Interesting layout and cool toys/gimmicks.

Wish Capcom lasted longer, they could have made some great pinball.

9.420/10

3 years ago

MAH

wamonkey

Pinside member

Seattle, WA

5y 55,300 771 8 8

I always wanted a Capcom Game - obviously can't get a BBB - but I got the next best game. This game is excellent - great toys - great playfield game play. Hard not to love the animations and integration into the game, it is very fun. It is a rare game, you just don't see it much, that is why I think the game suffers from a lower score than it deserves. I rate this as a top game - so many great features to this game, so well built, nice hinges on the game, very serviceable. Buy the LED OCD board so you can upgrade the bulbs - makes a world of difference.

The game needs some playfield spot lights but you would have to wire them off the coin door to keep it lit - otherwise it can be a little dark. The playfield art is not that great but the plastics and ramps are so cool.

It is simply a fun game, the knock most people have is that it is linear. But, the game prompts you through what is next so it is triggers you to what you have to do. SO, some people don't like that it doesn't bother me.

It is a great game - if you get a chance to play it you will not be disappointed if you can buy one at a decent price $3800-4300 or less you are going to love the machine. It is a great game...

wamonkey has owned this game in the past.

8.115/10

3 years ago

SD

jokerpoker

Pinside member

Sydney

8y 74,900 992 3 14

Bought a player quality game and was surprised how much fun this was. When tweaked just right a really good game.

jokerpoker has owned this game in the past.

8.632/10

4 years ago

AWW

Triplecdad

Pinside member

Tucson, AZ

4y 32,200 49 6 8

First, let me say I own this game. It was the first pin I ever bought, and I did so without knowing much about pins. I have since owned numerous pins, and played most of the pins on the Top 100, and I will never, ever sell this game. It works for me, but I am one of those players who is bored by MM. I like this game because it is linear and challenges you to make shots in the right order. The artwork is not great, but fits the game. The play always brings me back. My family all love this game, and there are other pins I have that they do not even play. The voices are great. If you get a chance to play it, do so. The elevating ball in the stage is one of the best toys in pinball.

Triplecdad currently owns this game.

9.116/10

4 years ago

MAT

rattmuscle

Pinside member

Honor, MI

5y 35,600 102 18 9

My favorite dmd pin, got it from a fellow pinsider. Good call outs and animations (color dmd would rock!). Magnetic wand and ball levitating make jaws drop if they never seen it before. Linear game play is the only negative for this game. With only 1200 made, don't see it much. Played TOM alot, this is way better to me.

rattmuscle currently owns this game.

9.220/10

4 years ago

ALX

allicks

Pinside member

Calgary, AB

6y 44,100 45 34 29

Love the flow of this game. Toys are very unique. The levitating ball and the ball travelling under the wand are great. Beautiful art on the cab and back box. Playfield I'd well laid out and beautiful as well. Wish Capcom had made more games. The knocked this game out of the park.

allicks has owned this game in the past.

8.176/10

5 years ago

TBK

xTheBlackKnightx

Pinside member

5y 125K 4,083 137

Some people call this game the "The Fake Theatre of Magic", but the amount of error in this statement is unbelievable.
It offers twice the "tricks", gameplay, and variety than ToM, all for 3X less the cost than a ToM.
PM completely embarrasses ToM in terms of game design.
Additionally, you can buy TWO PM for ONE ToM! (If you can find two for sale quickly).
It is just a better quality machine overall.

The game kicks off from the skillshot "hat trick" and improves from there.
It has an outstanding backglass image and cabinet.
Yes, ToM has a better cabinet that PM.
So what?
Do you play a cabinet?
Playfield artwork above average.
Gameplay is varied and the magic show tricks are superb.
Ruleset is above average as it is linear, but this is a Capcom...
DMD animations are very good, and music is in line with the theme.
Sound quality is average, but get rid of the damn stock Capcom speakers, they are a$$.
Build quality is excellent.
Maintenance is higher than many machines due to some assemblies complexity.

Personally, I wish Capcom would have made many more, so new collectors can learn to appreciate the game.
Many collectors have never seen one in good working condition, let alone actually played one.
It is ALWAYS a big hit at every pinball show, and played constantly.

Negatives?
Spare parts, as this game has unique assemblies and plastics that have not been readily reproduced and NOS is getting scarce. Boards are still available, thank god. Games have literally been "gutted" and parted out to make two games into one at this point.

"Bang for the pinball buck"?
It is here.
If you have the the opportunity to own one, buy it, you will not be disappointed.

5 Pinsiders starred this rating !

8.004/10

5 years ago

SAP

seshpilot

Pinside member

8y 104K 2,229 161 3

Not sure I can add anything here that others haven't said but:
-a FANTASTICLY fun game!!
-great callouts
-TONS of gimmicks that come together to make a really cool game (they really threw everything at this game!)
-Bad artwork IMO
-Excellent build quality
-GREAT shots
-Monotonous due to the objectives ALWAYS being in the exact same order every game (calling mystery programmer!)

Overpriced at this point in pin history, but a REALLY fun game that I'd be happy owning someday.

8.028/10

5 years ago

GPS

onetaste

Pinside member

Adelaide Hills

7y 59,400 139 22 108

The best toys ever in a pinball machine, v popular with beginners and the ladies.

onetaste edited previous rating on September 21, 2017.
onetaste currently owns this game.

7.784/10

5 years ago

JAM

jroakland

Inactive member

Oakland, CA

10y 46,550 106 7 92

one of the best skill shots,(wish it was on t.o.m )they nailed it,the levitating ball ,wand, fit the theme well and are sweet.. i enjoy playing this game with not the best of flow but plays well enough for me to want to play it,not a keeper for me but wont pass up a oppertunity to play a few times if i see one in the wild...

8.336/10

5 years ago

DJT

Taxman

In Memoriam

8y 90,950 6,228 34 30

Beautiful game, well built. Fairly serial in terms of game play.

7.391/10

5 years ago

???

colonel_caverne

Pinside member

Biscarrosse

7y 70,300 2,987 7 71

Despite awesome toys and great theme, i could not get into it coz of poor artwork and atmosphere.

10.000/10

5 years ago

AK

AttilaK

Pinside member

Mt. Laurel, NJ

8y 38,150 88 24 46

Love this game ... had it in my collection for several months and great for the whole family. Fun theme, music and animations.

AttilaK currently owns this game.

Next 1 2 3

There are 72 ratings (that include a comment) on this game. Currently showing results page 1 of 3.

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

Hey there! Got a moment?

Great to see you're enjoying Pinside! Did you know Pinside is able to run thanks to donations from our visitors? Please donate to Pinside, support the site and get anext to your username to show for it! Donate to Pinside