Goat Simulator & The Princess Bride Pinball FX | Xbox Review

Zen Studios isn’t letting up on the Pinball FX releases, and I’m here for it. More recently, I’ve taken a stronger liking to physical pinball tables, but I’ll still never tire of the digital originals provided by the developer. Two of their latest offerings couldn’t be more thematically different from one another. One is based on a property I have almost no experience with, and the other is based on one of my favorite films of all time. It should come as no surprise which one I enjoyed more, but both are solid entries into a franchise of which I’m obsessed.

Goat Simulator

It’s probably obvious already that I’ve never played Goat Simulator. I’ve got nothing against the game; I just never got around, as I didn’t quite understand the appeal. It seems very goofy to me, and my experience playing the digital pinball table based on it only enhances that opinion. This is an odd table in every aspect of the word. It’s hard to even describe what your goal on this table is. The missions are arbitrarily random, giving the player a sense of chaos. Even the ball itself gives a certain quirky flavor to playing pinball. It changes from the traditional silver ball to random sports balls. One moment you might be flipping a basketball, and another you might be watching a tennis ball bounce around the playing field.

As zany as the Goat Simulator table is, it’s still a lot of fun. It’s just one that will take a lot of studying to understand exactly what you’re supposed to do. In my experience playing pinball, I often find that I’m able to put up my best scores on my very first run at a new table. This is what happened with my time with Goat Simulator. I focused less on completing tasks and just kept the ball alive as much as possible and aiming for lit ramps and shots. Whatever I did to achieve my high score is a mystery to me. But that’s a big part of the fun behind pinball: learning what makes a particular table work to use it more efficiently.

It’s far from my favorite table on Pinball FX, but it’s definitely a solid one that should be played by any experienced player. It’s like nothing you’ve ever come across before, and will make you either laugh out loud or stare in confusion as to what’s going on.

The Princess Bride

I didn’t stumble upon the 1987 film The Princess Bride until the mid-90s, but it instantly cemented itself as a personal classic for me. It had a little bit of several genres of movie wrapped up into one and had some of the most quotable lines of all time. You’d be hard-pressed to find anyone who truly hates this movie, which is why it’s a perfect theme for a pinball table.

The most significant part to me about this Pinball FX table is that it uses actual audio from the film. Where a lot of the licensed properties on this platform use voice actors mimicking lines to sound similar, this one is 100% authentic. It’s an important touch that fans of The Princess Bride will appreciate a great deal, especially considering how much it must have cost Zen Studios to acquire. They’ve even used lines from the movie in clever ways. For instance, if you miss a skill shot, you’ll hear Fezzik say, “I did that on purpose; I didn’t have to miss.” These moments never get old and constantly bring a smile to my face.

On top of that, the table is absolutely fun to explore. The spiral ramp up the very middle is something I’ve never seen on any other. My favorite part, however, is how the “battle of wits” translates to pinball. It’s one of the most iconic scenes from the movie, and its use here is one that feels incredibly novel. When you start this mode, the game actually quizzes you on trivia from the film. A statement appears on the screen, and you have to choose “true” or “false” by pressing the respective flipper. If you’re as familiar with The Princess Bride as I am, you’ll appreciate this addition as much as I did.

And that’s just the beginning. There are so many recognizable moments that translate beautifully to pinball. Couple that with the familiar music and sounds, and you’ve got my favorite new table to the franchise in a long time. I can’t recommend this one enough.

Final Verdict

Goat Simulator and The Princess Bride may be vastly different in themes and style, but they’re both worthy additions to Pinball FX. If I’m being honest, I’ve never played a bad table on this platform. I have my favorites, but every single one brings something fun and exciting to one of my favorite games. But both of these are highly polished and well worth the price of admission. Do yourself a favor and help me keep this awesome franchise alive and pick up both of these tables.

To hear me talk more about these two Pinball FX tables, be sure to listen to our September 5th podcast episode around the 1:47:55 time stamp.

This review is based on an Xbox copy of Goat Simulator & The Princess Bride Pinball provided by Uber Strategist for coverage purposes. It is also available on PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, PC via Steam and Epic Games Store.