Zombie (aka
Dawn of the Dead)
While the table is actually called Zombie, it has Dawn of the Dead
right in the middle of the table and it says "Dawn of the Dead" when it starts.
So I call it Dawn of the Dead (it may be named Zombie as this was the name of
European release of Dawn of the Dead). Whatever you call it, you know what
movie it is based on.
Visually the table is quite interesting. It features alot of pictures from the cult film with a few odd pictures. But overall it is a nice layout and builds the atmosphere. About the only real letdown is the targets are just plain. With so many other little details, I expected something on them. But this may have detracted from the overall look of the table, so maybe less is more.
The sound is a mixed bag. There are some very good lines from the movie and some nice usage of sound effects (bullets for bumpers is nice). But there are times when it is dead silent with no sound whatever and then there are times when you have multiple sounds going at the same time and they tend to blend into each other. It really seems like feast or famine with the sound effects. Not really sure how to balance it better, but maybe a few less lines would help. But overall, the sound is quite good. Just a little tweaking to balance it out. I also found it odd that there is a line from Night of the Living Dead ("Barbara, they are coming to get you"). It is a good line, but I figured the table would keep with Dawn of the Dead lines as there are plenty of them.
There is quite a bit to do in the game. A generous amount of targets can be knocked down and there is numerous places to send your pinball. Different bonuses pop up and keep things interesting. I keep finding different things each time I play and I have played it quite a bit. Dawn of the Dead is one of my favorite movies (second only to The Warriors, a movie that deserves a pinball table) and this does capture the movie pretty well.
While there are quite a few horror based tables, this one ranks among the best. It does offer solid gameplay, lots of variety and enough challenge to keep it fresh. It only has a few very minor flaws that keep it from being a great table. But as it stands, it is a very good table and one that you will play quite a few times (and not just at Halloween).