Rapid Vienna Kick
n Roll
Visual Pinball offers programmers a chance to do something
that would most likely never be done in real life. Without financial
constraints or worry of pinball tables that would be more susceptible to
breaking, they can pretty much do whatever their imagination and abilities allow
them. Rapid Vienna Kick n Roll is a perfect example of a table that works
beautifully in Visual Pinball but would not be too practical in real life.
As one can easily see from the table layout, this is based on football (or as it is known in the USA, soccer) and is probably the only time that pinball and foosball have been blended. Your main goal is to score a goal against the opposing team. And while some games would have you scoring goal or something similar to that to achieve your goal, this game makes you actually have to score a goal. And while a goal would be tough due to the fact that it is all the way on the other side of the table, this game makes it ridiculously hard objective. You have to send the ball all the way across the screen and get it past seven moving opponents, including a very tough goalie. But like real football or soccer, it is a real challenge and one that is richly rewarding when you finally achieve it. This game is one of the best of giving you a feel of real accomplishment of any table that I have played.
While the gameplay is challenging, it is more than just the challenge that makes this table a classic. Visually it is of the quality of a table you would expect to buy at retail. It looks great, the animated characters are done well and the use of lights is superb. Score and goal and you will see some great use of lights. The game is a treat for the eyes and I cannot say enough about high level of quality.
The sound is also well done. The use of crowd noises really adds to the atmosphere of the table. I especially like the groan when you have your shot on goal blocked. It is enough to make you want to keep trying and get the crowd on your side.
The gameplay is also more than just scoring a goal. You have sponsorship that goes up or down depending on how well you do. And there is a generous amount of targets to light up and a few different ramps to send the ball. There is enough to keep you busy, but you will find your main focus will be on scoring a goal and if you have the skill and some luck, maybe you can score two!
While there is talk that Visual Pinball is archaic and needs a major overhaul (and there is some merit to that), suddenly a table like Rapid Vienna Kick n Roll will come along and show just how much can be accomplished with this program if the author has the time and desire to put into a table.