A sci-fi pinball table in a deep-space star forge. Light the lock, trap two balls in the Core for Ignition multiball, and collect orbit and ramp jackpots, then the super jackpot at the Core. Finish all four missions to forge the star. Play Classic (3 balls), Blitz (3-minute clock, endless balls) or Meltdown (shots feed the Core clock and heat raises the multiplier).
How Nova Foundry plays
Nova Foundry is a single-player pinball table set in an orbital star forge. At its centre sits the Core, a white-hot star held in spinning brass gyroscope rings. Around it are two orbits, a clear plastic ramp with a wire return, three pop bumpers, a bank of drop targets, three stand-up targets, the top lanes and the slingshots. A full-colour display shows the score and every big moment, and the panel beside the table lists what each shot is worth right now.
The Core is guarded by a containment field. It only takes the ball when something is lit there: a lock, a mission, or the super jackpot. Otherwise the shot is turned away, so the game is about lighting the Core first and then hitting it, not shooting the middle over and over.
Rules: locks, Ignition, and the four missions
Knock down the whole drop-target bank, or make three ramp shots, to light the lock. Shoot the Core to lock a ball inside it. Light the lock again and lock a second ball to start Ignition: the Core releases its balls for three-ball multiball. During multiball both orbits and the ramp score jackpots; collect all three to light the super jackpot at the Core, and completing the drop bank raises the jackpot value.
Hitting all three stand-up targets lights a mission at the Core. Missions are timed: Solar Flare (two orbit shots), Plasma Harvest (nine pop bumper hits), Ion Storm (two ramps) and Containment (five target hits), and each hit adds a little time. Every completed mission lights an extra ball at the ramp, up to two a game, and finishing all four forges the star for 5,000,000 points.
Completing the top lanes raises the end-of-ball bonus multiplier, up to 5X, and relights the right-outlane shield. The left kickback is lit at the start of every ball and is relit by pop bumper hits.
Modes and what they reward
Classic is three balls with missions, multiball and extra balls. Blitz puts three minutes on the clock with endless balls and a scoring boost; each drain costs twelve seconds before the next ball launches. Meltdown starts the Core clock at 65 seconds: every major shot adds time, every few shots raise the heat multiplier (up to 3.5X), and a drain vents ten seconds and cools the heat. All three modes share one leaderboard and are balanced to score in the same range.
Strategy: light it, then aim
Trap the ball before you aim. Hold a flipper up as the ball comes down and it will settle on it; from a stopped ball the orbits, the ramp and the Core all have usable timing windows. Rotate between shots: the same shot made again and again scores less each time, while a run of different shots builds combos up to 5-way.
Use the skill shot. While the ball waits in the shooter lane, the flipper buttons move the lit top lane; plunge into the gauge's sweet zone and drop the ball into the lit lane for 250,000 or more. Nudge when a ball heads for an outlane: a nudge always pushes toward the middle, but too many in quick succession tilt the table.
- The Core only takes the ball when something is lit there (a lock, a mission or the super jackpot); otherwise its field turns the shot away. Light it first with the drop targets or stand-ups.
- Repeating the same shot, or bouncing between two, scores less each time. Rotate through the orbits, the ramp and the Core for full value and combos up to 5-way.
- The left kickback and the right-outlane shield are lit every ball. When a ball heads for an outlane anyway, a nudge pushes it back toward the middle.
- Why does the Core reject my shot?
- The Core only accepts the ball when a lock, a mission or the super jackpot is lit there. Complete the drop targets or make three ramps for a lock, or hit the three stand-ups for a mission, then shoot the Core.
- Can I play on a phone?
- Yes. Tap the left or right half of the table to flip. With a ball in the shooter lane, touch and hold, then release to launch. Portrait works best; held sideways, a camera follows the ball and a star chart shows the whole table.