Back to the Future

Back to the Future is one of three tables in the Universal Pictures Classics mini table pack, released in 2017 and available for Pinball FX 3 and the macOS version of Zen Pinball 2. It is based on all three installments of the Back to the Future trilogy, directed by Robert Zemeckis. The pinball machine chronicles the events of the film trilogy, depicting the time-traveling adventures of teenager Marty McFly and Dr. Emmett L. Brown, who invented a groundbreaking time-traveling machine in the form of a heavily modified DeLorean.

This is the second pinball adaptation of the Back to the Future film trilogy, with the first being Data East's Back to the Future: The Pinball, released shortly after the third film in 1990. Unlike the Data East machine, this Pinball FX table does not include any music or voices from the original movies.

The objective of the table is to relive the events of the Back to the Future trilogy, journeying through various times and locations using the DeLorean.

The player will always be in a particular time period while playing this table, and before the first ball is launched, the player must decide which of the six time periods to visit first with the time machine. Once a time period is chosen, the player stays in that setting until its missions are completed successfully or all balls are lost, meaning that it is not possible to fail a mission and no progress is lost when a ball is drained. After all tasks in a time period are completed, the player must shoot the flux capacitor through either of its two entry ramps to choose the next time setting (or start the wizard mode once all periods are completed).

Each time period is split into two parts. The first half involves completing three tasks, which are each completed by hitting certain targets or lanes. Each task is further split into two phases: the mission phase where the shots have to be made, and a time-limited bonus phase that provides an opportunity to earn more points (which will end prematurely if the ball is drained). Once the timers for all three bonus phases have expired, the second half of the time period is a "finale" where the player is tasked with one final mission to escape the current time period.

The timers for the bonus phases of each mission can be increased from 15 seconds by 5 seconds (to a maximum of 60 seconds) by spelling "TIME" at the standup targets. The timers reset at the end of each ball.

Tips:

This table offers a few extra balls that you can earn, so make every effort to earn them so that you can survive all 6 missions and make it to the wizard mode. Shooting the right orbit frequently with varying force can eventually lead to two extra balls if you are diligent enough.

Be considerate of when you want to activate multiball modes if you want to get through all missions faster because multiball modes will block you from going to the next time setting until they end once the current mission is finished. To avoid this problem, try to activate multiball modes during the first phase of a time setting mission.

There is no time limit for completing each mission, so don't get into too much of a rush trying to beat each one. Make good use of flipper-trapping, as well as some trial and error to line up, practice and master precise shots to the lanes or targets you need to hit.