Pachio-kun: Maboroshi no Densetsu
Not a single day goes by where I don't get at least 0 PMs requesting some conversation about pachinko RPGs. So, for the nobody who asked, and the one person high out of their mind enough to find this one interesting, here's Pachio-kun: Maboroshi no Densetsu!
Coconuts put out quite a few pachinko or pachinko-themed games, and they had their anthropomorphic pachinko ball mascot, Pachio-kun, star in many of them, including this PC Engine CD game. In this case, you travel about town from gambling parlor to gambling parlor in a setup that feels a little like Casino Kid or Card Fighters Clash, playing pachinko to earn... um, more balls? Like a traditional JRPG, you have your overhead view, and you can talk to other patrons or staff, save, or, when you're ready, walk up to your machine of choice and start to play.
I'm not going to go too in depth on how to play pachinko. You control by turning a knob, which adjusts the force by which your balls are launched onto the vertical playfield, which is strewn with pins and targets. Your goal is to hit targets to score points, which grants extra balls. Hitting certain targets causes special targets to open briefly, and your goal in this game isto try to drain each machine you can. You can zoom in and scrutinize the pin layout, which is a must if you actually intend to play seriously, in order to find the best launch trajectory to maximize your scoring chances.
If you for some insane reason want to play this game, the custom pachinko controller is a must. Yeah, you can control it kinda clumsily with the D-pad, but if you do, you're missing the point of playing pachinko seriously enough to play an RPG about it starring a living ball. The spring-loaded lever actually works quite well, and a steady hand can actually help you take some tables down. Fortunately, it is also functional as a standard PC Engine controller, so you can let the friend you like the least use it when you play Dungeon Explorer II.
There is some fun to be had here, especially with the controller. There is a weird story, too, involving your girlfriend (also a pachinko ball... no ball on human relations here!) getting kidnapped, and the way I've been able to advance it is by completely cleaning out individual machines, but I can't guarantee that that is the trigger and not a specific amount of balls earned. I can't say I'd recommend it to everyone, but if you are a pachinko enthusiast, this controller setup is pretty cool.
Heh. Balls.
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