After months of rumors and speculation, the day has finally arrived where Jersey Jack Pinball has unveiled their next game. That title is the first pinball to be based on Sega’s iconic mascot, Sonic The Hedgehog, with the lead of game design being none other than JJP’s acclaimed Steve Ritchie. This is marking Sonic’s “birthday”, with the original game of the same name hitting the streets around about now back in 1991 (although don’t forget, Sonic first appeared in Rad Mobile!). Let’s take a look:
The ‘First’ Sonic The Hedgehog Pinball Game
Technically speaking, this really is the first mass produced pinball game that is themed around Sega’s lovable blue hedgehog (there have been a couple of homebrews over the years), but it’s not the first time that the character has appeared on a pinball machine. That’s because for a brief time in the 1990s, Sega Pinball was a thing (borne out of Sega acquiring Data East Pinball, which became Stern Pinball when they themselves sold it on again). If you come across a Sega pin from the 1990s, chances are that Sonic pops up during the attract mode.
On top of that, there was also the 1993 release of Sonic Spinball for the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive, as well as the lesser-known Sonic Pinball Party for the Game Boy Advance, although it’s surprising that Sega never turned them or something along those lines into a physical pinball machine. They weren’t shy about licenses either, so who knows why that was overlooked. But this is where Jersey Jack are now coming in, with their effort being led by “The King of Flow”, Steve Ritchie. His most recent creation before this was Elton John.
Now we’re getting this post out a little late, due to the livestream I did for it when JJP posted that trailer (and more info) online. If you want to go through that sometime, here it is:
Also of note, Sega is celebrating Sonic’s 35th birthday and this game was actually shown as part of their commemorations. They will be playing it on the livestream at some point.
The Editions
There are three models available for Sonic The Hedgehog: Arcade, Special Edition, and Collector’s Edition (priced at $9,999 / $12,000 / $15,000USD, respectively).
There are no layout differences between the editions, although it does help to have this chart that lays out the features and differences for reference. Kudos to JJP for making a clean and easy to follow chart:
The main differences fall under artwork/aesthetic items, toppers, shooter rods, but again, not the playfield. It also sounds like the Micro-LED rings have differences between each version, but that’s an aesthetic thing. All of them have the 27″ screen, the player camera, and nine song soundtrack, which includes two tracks rendered by legendary guitarist, Slash. Having the “Official Sonic Cast” do the apparent 6,000+ lines of dialogue for the game is also quite a feat. I imagine integrating all of that into the code is one of the reasons this one took a while to produce.
It’s too bad the Arcade Edition couldn’t have green armor… or perhaps have done AE as blue, SE as red, then CE as gold. The topper on the CE version looks pretty rad though, with a display for a backdrop and sculpted toys. It would be nice to be able to add that to the Arcade Edition down the road, but I don’t know that they offer such upgrades.
The Playfield
The playfield has elements of Black Knight and a similar battle zone to what was seen with Pokémon, although the upper deck is quite something here. This makes it a four flipper game, and there are magnetic elements to it to make the ball go even faster. Battle Robotnik as the moving bash toy on the upper deck, and also enjoy a cool loop-de-loop shot. Note that the ramps are standard silver color on the Arcade & Special Editions, you only get gold with the CE.
One thing that viewers pointed out on the livestream is that there are no SEGA logos anywhere on the design, which is surprising, but likely due to licensing requirements. Sonic is treated as a separate licensing entity, although it’s still surprising to not see at least a little logo somewhere there.
Overall
While I have to reserve full judgment on this for playing it in person, I do like the look, and as with Pokémon, I think that this is a fantastic license that appeals across generations from Gen X to Gen Alpha (or whatever it is kids these days are being arbitrarily classified as). It’s also stayed relevant over the decades, not taking some giant pause where everyone forgot about it for a time. Having a theme that can appeal to kids is great for arcades, and while bars don’t have them, that’s where the appeal to the older generations comes into play, as opposed to something that only bar patrons would care about, like a hair metal band from the 1970s or 1980s.
I’m glad that this doesn’t launch the ball straight onto the playfield – that was one major fault with Ritchie’s Star Wars design, where so often you had to nudge the machine to make it not drain on the left upon launch. Still, I’ll have to wait and get a chance to play it and see how that “flow” goes.
On the price, as I’ve mentioned with other pins, I’m not in a position to grab one right now (even in selling a machine). The problem as well is that pins just aren’t good money makers in most locations, so starting at $10k says that your location already has to see good takes to justify this. Sure, $8000 isn’t much better either when it comes to other pins out there, so this isn’t an attack just on JJP. For me to go after it, it will need to be out there for a while and we’ll have to wait and hear how it’s earning (and how maintenance is on it) before deciding if it was right for my location. I do imagine that it would do solid though, for the generational appeal lessons above.
Now Sega Amusements needs to get another Sonic video arcade game out there. How about Sonic Racing Crossworlds Arcade 😉 What do you think of Jersey Jack’s Sonic The Hedgehog pinball? Would you like to see it at an arcade near you?
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