Zen Studios' Sky City-themed Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 pinball table will attempt to capture the frenetic action of Tecmo's game, with five multiball game modes, tons of missions, weapon combos, electrical ramps, and something called "ball slicing effects" which actually doesn't sound all that appealing. I'm not all that sure I can bring myself to spend my hard-earned dollars with anything that carries the phrase "ball slicing" in its description.

The table is tentatively scheduled for an October release, so stay tuned to PSN and the ZEN Pinball website to know when you'll be able to get your ball slicing on.

Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 ZEN Pinball Table [PlayStation Blog]

Zen Pinball is essentially the PlayStation Network version of Xbox Live Arcade's Pinball FX, albeit with a different set of tables. Last year Zen released a Street Fighter II Turbo-themed table for Pinball FX, and now it looks like they are releasing another one for Zen Pinball. Or potentially the same one. We've contacted the developer to find out, but have yet to receive a response. Just seems silly to release a Super Street Fighter II Turbo table at this juncture, unless you're releasing something you already have done.

Still, even if it is the same table, it was a rather nice one, and the tightened physics of the PSN pinball game should only make things that much better. No word on price, but we should find out by the end of this month - Zen has an August 2009 release date penciled in for the new addition.

ZEN Pinball Street Fighter Table [PlayStation Blog]

The demo version of Zen Pinball comes complete with Eldorado, one of the four pinball tables launching with the full version of the game. The board is heavy on early South American imagery, evoking the legend of the lost city of gold.

"We have received huge success with our Pinball FX title on XBLA and fans around the world have been clamoring for a solid pinball title on PlayStation Network," said Zsolt Kigyossy, managing director for ZEN Studios. "We're pleased to offer a free sample pinball table that introduces players to the intense realistic pinball physics and mechanics that can be found in the full edition. If you enjoy arcade games this is definitely a title you'll want to check out!"

Zen was gracious enough to pass on a few exclusive images of the demo table, along with shots of the Shaman, Tesla, and V12 tables as well. The full version of the game will be available on May 14th for $9.99.

Announced just last month, Zen Pinball delivers four tables worth of mission-filled pinball action to pinball-hungry PlayStation 3 owners. According to the developer, the final product is looking very good.

"Arcade fans have been anxiously waiting for this game, and we're pleased to announce that we have confirmed the release date," said Zsolt Kigyossy, managing director for ZEN Studios. "Our team has put a lot of hours and hard work into developing this title and the results look amazing!"

Of course developers always think their final product looks very good, just like parents always think their babies are cute. Hopefully Zen Pinball builds on the gameplay Zen established with Pinball FX on the Xbox 360 and isn't just another ugly baby.

The PlayStation Network release is from the same developers that brought Pinball FX to Xbox Live Arcade, which was far from perfect, but Zen Pinball looks sharp. Whether they'll be able to pull off a capable pinball table simulation remains to be seen, but we'll make sure to give it a whirl and let you know.

We already know the game has a built-in virtual level, so things seem to be going in the right direction.

Zen Studios is the developer behind Xbox Live Arcade's Pinball FX, which has proven to be one of the best 3D pinball games on any platform, as well as one damn fine marketing tool. Now they're preparing Zen Pinball, a completely new pinball title for the PSN. The game launches with four different tables - V12, Tesla, Shaman and El Dorado - with the promise of more on down the line.

Zen Pinball also comes packed with options, with local, online, and worldwide tournament multiplayer; an operators menu that lets you tweak the game's settings to your liking; and nifty features like mid-game saves and slow motion to take advantage of the whole video game aspect of video game pinball.

Keep an eye on the official website for screens and video, which they should have up any day now.

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