Gaia Pinball was a new discovery for me biggrin I've always loved Windows Pinball (though I consider myself a mediocre player XD), so I thought I'd give this new game a try ^_^ As a beginner, it was quite confusing to figure out what was going on in the screen - how to get gold, where each ramp was - but, as always, experience brought wisdom, and I am now well-versed in the generalities of the game smile . The goal, of course, is to get points XD The point to gold ratio is something I still haven't quite figured out, but am working on (in the back of my head XD), as it seems to be arbitrary, or an exponential ratio (or something o.o). It seems that points are awarded for a large variety of things during play, and a great amount of points is added for your death XD. The amount of points added after you lose the ball likely depends on how long you've survived... Power-ups are a key factor in lengthening the survival rate. Floaties are unquestionably the most useful ones for me at the moment - they can save you if you happen to fall through an open side passage. I usually close these passages at the beginning of the game, using the Insurance Policy. Sticky Ball is a power-up I have many of, but it's sadly not very useful in gameplay. During the Von Helson's castle section, however, they are lifesavers XD They seem to catch the ball best when immobile, so it's better not to hit the paddles to often inside the castle. The next power-up, Fishing Net, upgrades the bait at the top left corner of the screen, which may be useful in getting more points immediately into the beginning of the game. Bag of Marbles is quite a useful power-up when out of floaties, as it can be used in its stead to procure two more balls on the screen and give another chance at life. Fool's Gold is a power-up rarely used in my case - it increases the field multiplier (otherwise done manually, by hitting all the green grunnies at the right of the screen), which in turn gives the player more points upon hitting various objects. I usually forget about that one and do it manually, so it doesn't really worry me too much razz . The last power-up, Armadillo, grants the player an extra ball. You can probably tell how useful that is ^_^ These power-ups seem to disappear after a certain number of uses - you don't get to reuse a growing number of them each game, which seems fair. They can be earned by entering the building at the top of the screen, to the left of the arena, and are awarded depending on the amount of gold one possesses (tallied beside the Boutique building). Gold is earned by completing a Trade or Slots (hitting all the letters, then hitting the ball into the side passages or the ramp to the left of the arena respectively), upgrading the fishing bait (hitting all four fish and entering Logan's shack), shooting the ball up the guild ramp (above the grunnies. Shooting the ball up the guild ramp a couple of times seems to grant a multiball bonus, where two more balls are added on the screen, similar to Bag of Marbles), or by smashing or rebuilding the Gambino mansion. Previous to being able to shoot the ball into the mansion, the three vials or cans in front of the mansion must be knocked out. Each time the building is destroyed or rebuilt, a letter of 'gaia', in the center of the screen, lights up green. Four sequences, four letters lit up, means that the ball must be shot into Von Helson's castle, and the letters inside be attempted to all be hit. This is unlikely to happen in one try, but the progress is saved, and another green 'gaia' would allow you to continue where you left off. I'm not entirely sure what the prize for hitting all the letters in the castle is, as the closest I've gotten was all but one (the 'e' at the very top T.T Lol XD) but I'll update this with results as soon as I manage to hit all of them ^_^ Throughout the game, there are also various random events such as the Zurg invasion, a wandering Rock Puppy or cow, and players popping up on the screen. These may sometimes be a nuisance (ah, the number of times I've died to that cow >.< wink but they may be made to disappear by being hit with an upward-moving ball... Well, that seems to be all there is to say about Pinball, so I bid you goodbye for yet another week, until I figure out a new topic to write about XD Hmm, let's see... the Aquarium maybe? We shall see ^_^
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Life of Pi(xels)
A collection of my various Gaia activities ^_^
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anchiel
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