As myself and Spencer embarked on our pilgrimage ooop North to visit Pinball Heaven, I had a few machines I was looking forward to playing for the first time.
Top of the list was Stern’s James Bond. This was a creation of my favourite designer George Gomez and I’ve grown up watching Bond so it was a good theme. Whilst the machine itself has been beset with licensing issues which delayed and released the reveal and software updates, the shots looked fun.
I was also looking forward to playing Queen which has been produced by Pinball Brothers, who for some reason had less licensing issues than Stern.
The one game which had completely evaded my radar was Legends of Valhalla by American Pinball. Thinking back I can’t recall seeing the release or any promotional material so I was less than excited to get the chance to play it.
The full details are contained in the video below but suffice to say it was an unexpected pleasure. A pinball machine with all the fun and ramps of a 90’s Bally/Williams WPC game but wrapped up in a modern veneer. The shots were fun, the flow was great most importantly it had that one more game factor.
A lot of fuss has surrounded the news releases such as Godfather, Foo Fighters, Galactic Tank Force, Pulp Fiction and Scooby Doo. But if they’ve managed to eclipse the unheralded Legends of Valhalla, we’re all in for a treat.