Last Gladiators: Digital Pinball

Last Glabiators is a pinball simulation for the Sega Saturn. There are four digital tables in this collection. I remember seeing this title back in 96 or so, and not feeling too excited about it. But recently I decided to give it a try and was pleasently surprised. First, I'll start with the MOST important factor for any home console pinball games..the controls. Last Gladiators, fortunately, controls pretty well. The ball feels like it has some weight on it and when you hit it with the flippers, they move in a realistic manner.I've played some pinball sims where the ball feels like it is made of paper each time you hit it. So the most important part of this game passes with flying colors. The other parts of this game are good but not great(and in some cases kind of lackluster). All four tables include a dot-matrix screen(I didn't know this in 96 since the picture behind the box doesn't show any). It also includes some helpful arrow boxes that pop-up from time to time directing you to the various bonus slots. Now, the dot-matrix screen is also a pop-up.This is good since it doesn't take up screen space but can also be distracting. The dot-matrix comes on for a few seconds when you lock a ball or earn a special mode. I found it disappointing that there are no Video-modes on any of the tables(all dot-matrix pinball machines had a video mode of some type). The number of modes and specials are rather limited for each table. Although the tables are supposed to be from the 90's, the sparseness of the playing field makes it look more like a table from the early 80's. What's there is good, but there just isn't enough to do on each playfield.The playfields themselves look nice, although I would say Warlock looks the best and most modern(of all the tables) with its cool blue theme and two half loops on each side. Dragon Showdown is the most lackluster looks-wise with its coloring scheme and layout. Unlike with the Pro-pinball series, there are only a few options available. No way to adjust the angle/width of the playfield or the strength/condition of the flippers. Also, you can only save your high score to the Saturn but not directly to a memory cartridge. Despite these factors, this is still a nice-looking and solid pinball sim that ranks right behind the Pro-Pinball series.

Years ago I had a pinball game on my Nintendo NES, then later one on my Sega Genesis, they were OK but nothing to write home to mom about. ( the balls felt like they were made of cotton, Aaarruggh! ) So I never really wanted one on my Sega Saturn. After all, we went to the arcades to play the real pinball tables. Last year I ordered Last Gladiators Digital Pinball off of Amazon, and was I ever pleasantly surprised with this game. ( It's worth writing home to mom about! ) I love having games that I can just " put in and play " at a whim. A game that can be played for five minutes or an hour, without investing a lot of time into just setting it up. ( Like Iron Storm ) Those games are great too, but sometimes we just need a " guilt free " game to play, and LGDP does it in spades! There are four playing tables in this great Sega Saturn classic. There's: Last Gladiators, You fight as a gladiator in 1st century Rome. The bonus rounds are: Roman Triumph, Thracians, Blood Arena, SPQR, Chariot Race, and Empire. Next we have: Knight of the Roses, your a 16th century Knight doing battle. Your bonus rounds are: Return to the Castle, Guardian Angels, Save the Princess, Dragon Cave, Roses, and Black Knight, Then there's: Dragon Showdown, you're a 17th century Samurai Warrior. The bonus rounds are: Thunderballs, ( sounds like an AC-DC song to me ) To the Temple, Feed Dragon, Sorceress, Lite Shrine, and Banzai Showdown. Then last but not least, Warlock. It's in an unknown future and it's Judgment Day. It's bonus rounds are: Moonstruck Jack, White Wolf Millions, Bloody Jets, Rats, Sacrifice, and Last Judgment. As in most retro games the high score rules above all, and along with the initial bonuses, the bonus rounds are a great way to rack up 50-100 million points a pop! My favorite tables to play are Last Gladiators and Knight of the Roses. The physics in the game works well, and the balls have a weighted lifelike feel to them. ( unlike the cotton balls of yesteryear ) The graphics are great, the game-play is fast and furious, the music simply rocks, and the colors and sounds bring you back to a simpler time of gaming. Last Gladiators Digital Pinball is a sweet SS game that has a place of honor in my Saturn collection. " Happy Pin-balling! "

If you are a video pinhead, I highly recommend this title. There are four tables to choose from, each with reasonable physics and great replay value. The music and sound effects provide plenty of atmosphere, which is a crucial element of many a good game. If you do not own a Sega Saturn, I believe a couple of these tables were re-released for the iPhone.