In the concluding paragraph of my review of the Elvira DLC packs for Pinball FX VR, I mentioned that I wanted to see classic Williams pinball tables, Creature from the Black Lagoon and Monster Bash brought to VR next.

Looks like I just have used some powerful wishing juice (that’s definitely a thing, right?), because they’re here, with two tables for the price of one in the Universal Monsters DLC! Are they any good? Let’s find out!

Creature from the Black Lagoon

My love for this pinball table knows no bounds. It was released at a perfect time in my life, when I was able to get out and about on my own as a teenager, and just as waves of 1950s nostalgia were hitting, leading to me watching the 1954 movie on the big screen; the original 3D version no less.

The table itself has a drive-in movie theme, and you can kickstart a short clip or two of the movie itself when you trigger multiball. The real machine features a glorious Gillman hologram in which he ’emerges’ from the titular lagoon, and the soundtrack is full of versions of classic 50s rock and roll, albeit in a muzak style.

Zen Studios have done their usual sterling job of recreating the table and adding animated parts and characters to give it some extra flair. The table design itself has always felt a little unfair in places, but nonetheless it still remains great fun, and being able to play with the Gillman himself standing right next to you, as a very animated, cel-shaded style 3D model, is amazing. This alone justifies my investment in Pinball FX VR; it means that much to me! Of course, your mileage may vary, and you may prefer the other monster-themed machine here…

Monster Bash

The delightfully silly Monster Bash features a plot which sees the classic Universal Monsters being gathered together to play the ultimate rock concert. These Monsters of Rock need to be gathered one by one, and when you have each of them and their unique instruments, the show must go on, full moon or not!

Monster Bash is another firm favourite, real world table of mine. The table design is superb, and doesn’t suffer from the sometimes frustrating shots that Creature from the Black Lagoon does. It’s all very open and feels far less linear, and the Gillman himself is among the monsters in Dracula’s band.

Speaking of Dracula, it’s him standing next to you as you play, but you’ll also have a guitar and gravestone beside you on the other side of the machine.  The table is beautifully recreated with some helpful additions, as well as some lovely cosmetic touches with the monsters on the table that I absolutely loved.

These two Universal Monsters tables will be getting a lot of play on my Meta Quest 3; they’re essential purchases for me, and while I may be speaking from behind a window of very rose tinted glass here, in my opinion Monster Bash definitely holds up even without the warm glow of nostalgia.

Creature from the Black Lagoon’s table design doesn’t hold up as well, but I simply can’t separate that from how important the table was and still is to me. Just know that, going in, if you aren’t already familiar with either of these tables, or don’t have as big a fondness for the Gillman as I do, Monster Bash is going to be your MVP.

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