The New Pinball FX Launches on Steam; Testing It Out on the Steam Deck

Knapp Arcade·article·analyzed·Apr 13, 2023

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.016

TL;DR

Pinball FX launches on Steam with massive content library but demands significant storage and optimization on Steam Deck.

Summary

Knapp Arcade reviews the launch of Zen's new Pinball FX platform on Steam, including hands-on testing on a Steam Deck. The article highlights the massive 35GB file size and performance optimization challenges on entry-level Steam Deck hardware, but praises the extensive content library at launch including classic Bally tables, Marvel remasters, Godzilla/King Kong tables, and Star Wars content.

Key Claims

Pinball FX file size is approximately 35 GB on Steam
high confidence · Direct user experience: 'Pinball FX takes up something like 35 GB'
Default graphics settings cause performance issues and thermal throttling on entry-level Steam Deck
high confidence · User testing: 'it was all laggy and the device eventually started huffing and puffing super hot air from the vents'
Zen botched the launch of new Pinball FX significantly
medium confidence · Author opinion: 'I know that Zen bungled the launch of the new Pinball FX about as badly as it could have'
Pinball FX Steam launch includes Bally Twilight Zone, three Godzilla/King Kong tables, Marvel table remasters, Star Wars tables, and Crypt of the Necrodancer
high confidence · Direct content listing: 'Bally Twilight Zone, three new Godzilla / King Kong tables, remasters of myriad of Marvel tables... Crypt of the Necrodancer table. All of the Star Wars tables are on there as well'
Pinball FX is not yet available on Nintendo Switch at time of Steam launch
high confidence · 'Since the game still isn't out on the Nintendo Switch'

Notable Quotes

“Sure it's not exactly the same as real pinball...and it doesn't have to be for it to be fun.”
Knapp Arcade author @ N/A — Defends digital pinball against purist criticism; indicates platform positioning for casual/accessibility market
“I know that Zen bungled the launch of the new Pinball FX about as badly as it could have, but I still like the product.”
Knapp Arcade author @ N/A — Acknowledges significant launch issues while maintaining product appreciation; context for broader Zen launch problems
“Pinball FX takes up something like 35 GB. That's a massive chunk of the unit's available memory”
Knapp Arcade author @ N/A — Documents technical barrier to entry for Steam Deck users; storage constraint may limit adoption
“When I tried my first game of pinball on the my Steam Deck it was all laggy and the device eventually started huffing and puffing super hot air from the vents.”
Knapp Arcade author @ N/A — Performance optimization issue on target hardware; indicates unoptimized default settings for Steam Deck platform

Entities

Zen StudioscompanyPinball FXproductSteam DeckproductSteamproduct Knapp ArcadeorganizationBally Twilight ZonegameGodzilla / King Kong tablesgameMarvel tablesgameStar Wars tablesgameCrypt of the NecrodancergameNintendo Switchproduct

Signals

$
market_signal: Pinball FX file size (35 GB) creates significant storage barrier for entry-level Steam Deck users; requires external memory expansion for practical use
high · base Steam Deck has 64 GB of internal memory... Pinball FX takes up something like 35 GB.
?
announcement: Pinball FX officially launched on Steam with extensive launch day content including classic Bally table, Marvel remasters, Godzilla/King Kong tables, and Star Wars collection
high · Today's the big day for digital pinball, Zen has finally released its new Pinball FX platform on Steam.
?
product_strategy: Pinball FX not yet available on Nintendo Switch platform; Steam launch precedes Switch availability
high · Since the game still isn't out on the Nintendo Switch and the Steam Deck likely has better performance than the Nintendo anyhow
~
sentiment_shift: Author maintains positive view of Pinball FX product despite acknowledgment of Zen's problematic launch execution
medium · I know that Zen bungled the launch of the new Pinball FX about as badly as it could have, but I still like the product.
?
technology_signal: Steam Deck hardware insufficient for Pinball FX default graphics settings; performance optimization and thermal issues require manual downgrading of graphics quality
high · When I tried my first game of pinball on the my Steam Deck it was all laggy and the device eventually started huffing and puffing super hot air from the vents.

Topics

Pinball FX Steam LaunchprimarySteam Deck Performance and OptimizationprimaryDigital Pinball Content LibraryprimaryZen Studios Launch ExecutionsecondaryDigital vs Physical PinballsecondaryStorage and Hardware Requirementssecondary

Sentiment

mixed(0.55)— Author appreciates the product and extensive content library but criticizes Zen's launch execution and technical performance issues on Steam Deck hardware. Acknowledges digital pinball skepticism in community but personally enjoys it.

Transcript

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Today's the big day for digital pinball, Zen has finally released its new Pinball FX platform on Steam. In anticipation of the game being set free on PCs, last week I ordered a Steam Deck. I know that a lot of people don't like digital pinball, but to me after a full day of work, working out and taking my son to sports there's something that I find amazingly relaxing about flopping down on the sofa and playing a few games of digital pinball. I love it. Sure it's not exactly the same as real pinball...and it doesn't have to be for it to be fun. I know that Zen bungled the launch of the new Pinball FX about as badly as it could have, but I still like the product. So this morning during breakfast this morning I loaded Pinball FX up on the Steam Deck to see how it played. First and foremost, man the Pinball FX file is really big, at least for the entry level Steam Deck, which is the one that I bought. My thinking there was, the only difference between the tree available Steam Deck models is the internal SSD memory so I went with the cheapest one and I have a 1 TB memory card coming in the mail this week. Anyhow, the base Steam Deck has 64 GB of internal memory, some of which is taken up by the OS and other necessary files. Well, Pinball FX takes up something like 35 GB. That's a massive chunk of the unit's available memory, at least until my memory card arrives. So I cleared out most of the existing games on my Steam Deck and got it to work. The default graphic settings for Pinball FX look amazing on my Alienware gaming PC, but they sure tax the Steam Deck. When I tried my first game of pinball on the my Steam Deck it was all laggy and the device eventually started huffing and puffing super hot air from the vents. So, I decided to lower the graphic quality of the game in the settings and it plays much, much better. I'm busy with work today so I haven't put in many games on the Steam Deck yet, but I have the sneaking suspicion that I am going to play the heck out of this thing while relaxing on the sofa with my family in the evening after a long day. If you recall from my earlier post, in addition to today's new availability of Pinball FX on Steam Zen also dropped a bunch of new tables for it, including Bally Twilight Zone, three new Godzilla / King Kong tables, remasters of myriad of Marvel tables that were out on an earlier version of Pinball FX and a Crypt of the Necrodancer table. All of the Star Wars tables are on there as well. There is a TON of content on Pinball FX at its Steam launch. Since the game still isn't out on the Nintendo Switch and the Steam Deck likely has better performance than the Nintendo anyhow this is going to be my new go to digital pinball platform.