South Park: Super-Sweet Pinball

"See, I told you this game was sweet!"

-Cartman

South Park: Super-Sweet Pinball was one of two tables in the South Park Pinball table pack, based on the animated Comedy Central TV series. Originally released for Zen Pinball 2, Pinball FX2, and as a standalone mobile app in October 2014, the table follows the absurd, unusual lives of the many residents of South Park. Following the release of Pinball FX3 in 2017, this table was discontinued due to licensing restrictions, but can still be played if it was bought when available.

This is the second ever pinball machine to be based on the South Park TV series - the first being a physical pinball machine released by SEGA Pinball in 1999, later known as Stern Pinball. Both tables were designed with support from the crew of the TV series, but play completely differently from each other and have very different layouts.

Table overview[]

The upper half of the table & Sarcastaball mini-playfield[]

At the very back of the table is a large screen, displaying the South Park residents by default, but shifting to other pictures when certain conditions are met. To transition between screens, a curtain drops over the frame, briefly displaying one of several memorable quotes from the TV series. To the left of the large screen is an animated figure of Mr. Mackey, the kids' teacher, accompanied by a back wall resembling that of a classroom; a school bus can be seen directly to the right of him, which acts as a cover for the ball lock post at the left ramp and has animated front doors that open when School Bus Multiball is activated.

To the right of the school bus is the Sarcastaball mini-playfield, a sideways-facing ovular mini-playfield with two mini-flippers, a swinging balloon attached to a string that can be hit with the ball, a standup target that can flash when an extra ball is available, a kicker target that acts as a slingshot, and the entrance to the ladder ramp which exits the mini-playfield. The back half of the mini-playfield is marked with the letters in "SARCASTABALL". The ladder ramp sends balls to the right flipper by default, but when "LADDER" is spelled, the ball will instead be sent back to the plunger area; the ladder ramp can also raise to reveal an orbit that feeds the right mini-flipper. The Sarcastaball mini-playfield can be accessed from a strong plunge, and during normal play by shooting the side ramp, then the left ramp; if the toilet is lit to lock balls, shooting Kyle's scoop will also send the ball to the mini-playfield. The ball can exit the mini-playfield either by shooting the ladder ramp, or by draining between the flippers, which sends the ball to the left flipper. Below the exit of the ladder ramp is a replica of a toilet marked with "SKILL SHOT" on the front-facing side, which can open to lock or eject balls at certain times and can also be accessed from the plunger.

The table has a fairly standard fan layout, meaning that with the exception of the two upper flipper shots and mini-playfield shots, all shots can be made from the lower flippers. The upper flipper itself is located flush to the entrance of the left orbit, gated by a spinner marked with the Canadian national flag and marked with inserts for the Canada Multiball lock, the anal probe, and a depiction of ManBearPig. To the right of the left orbit is a standup target designed to look like a box of Cheesy Poofs, Cartman's favorite snack. The entrance to the left ramp is located directly right of the Cheesy Poofs target; this ramp normally sends the ball to the right flipper, but can also send balls to the Sarcastaball mini-playfield if the balloon insert in front of it is flashing, or lock a ball if the school bus insert is flashing. The left ramp is also marked with inserts of the letters in "SCHOOL BUS". Passing behind the entrance to the left ramp is a small lane feeding a saucer, marked with the letters in "CARTMAN" and a school bus insert, that feeds the ball to the upper flipper.

A large depiction of a computer sits in front of the table's center lane, which acts as a standup target; however, if the center lane is required either to start a mode or score points during a mode, the table will lower the target so the shot can be made. The center lane is marked with inserts of Mr. Hankey's hat, a Canadian flag with "JACKPOT" under it, a gun for the Pirate Skill Shot, and a treasure chest that lights when the ManBearPig mode is lit. Directly right of the center target, and to the right of the exit to the upper loop, is another single standup target marked with an insert of Timmy. The standup target is located directly below an animated figure of Kenny, who can leave his area at certain times and spawn as a series of cardboard drop targets on that can be hit with the ball. Shots to the upper loop, which can only be made by either strong shots to Chef's lane or the upper left flipper, collect letters in the "KENNY" inserts seen to the left of it; a school bus insert is also in front of this shot. The table's only side ramp is directly in front of the upper loop, marked with the letters in "RANDY" and a balloon insert, and always feeds the right inlane.

The lower half of the table[]

A large door blocks Chef's lane by default, which is situated right of an animated figure of Chef himself. The shot is marked with letter inserts spelling his name and a large, heart-shaped "DATE" insert; the door lowers when enough shots are made to it, to allow shots to the lane behind it. The lane can only be shot from the right flipper, and will feed the upper loop if a shot to it is made with enough strength. The right side of the table's lower half is primarily occupied by the bumper area, which can be fed to either by making a skill shot, shooting the left orbit, or making a late flip from the upper flipper. The bumper area has four bumpers, each colored to look like the outfit of one of the kids, and animated figures of Terrance & Phillip can be seen above the two bumpers towards the back of the area. The table's right orbit passes directly through the bumpers, marked with the same Canada Multiball lock & ManBearPig inserts as the left orbit, but replacing the anal probe insert with an insert of Stan's girlfriend. A single standup target, marked with the five letters in "JIMMY", can be seen to the left of the bumper area and can only be hit from the upper flipper.

Flanking both sides of the right orbit, directly in front of the two frontmost bumpers, are two scoop shots. The left scoop has an animated figure of Kyle above it, marked with inserts of the letters in "KYLE" and a school bus insert; while the right scoop has an animated figure of Stan above it, marked with the letters "STAN", another school bus insert, and an insert of Mr. Hankey's hat. To the right of Stan, and to the left of the plunger, are inserts spelling "MANBEARPIG" that solidly light when either orbit shot is hit.

The table has five return lanes marked with the letters in "TIMMY!", two slingshots, and two lower flippers. The two outlanes are protected by spring-loaded kickbacks, marked by the yellow arrow inserts located directly above them. In the dead space above the flippers are the nine letters of "SOUTH PARK", which must all be collected to start the wizard mode. Several stuffed plushies can be seen above the slingshots; many leftover containers of snack food and scattered Cheesy Poofs can be seen on the apron behind the flippers.

The plunger[]

The plunger is a spring-loaded mechanism depicted as a 3D model of Kenny's car, which launches the ball up a short jump ramp and onto the mini-playfield during normal play. At the start of each ball, however, the plunger is controlled by the player. The goal of the skill shot is to plunge the ball with a medium amount of strength so the ball will fall into the toilet funnel; each successful skill shot in a game scores 1 million points more than the last.

An optional, Pirate Skill Shot is also available by plunging at full strength so the ball enters the Sarcastaball mini-playfield. All targets and orbits on the mini-playfield will be lit to add to the skill shot value, which starts at 2,500,000 points and increases by either 100,000 or 500,000 points per lit shot; when the ball exits the mini-playfield, the player must shoot the center target within 5 seconds to score the skill shot value. The Pirate Skill Shot value maxes out at 10 million points, and the first time a 10 million Pirate Skill Shot is collected during a game, extra ball will be lit.

Objective and missions[]

The goal of this table is to complete nine different missions, each depicting iconic moments of the lives of the South Park residents and each mission spotting a letter in "SOUTH PARK" above the flippers, to start the wizard mode. Each mission has their own unique startup method, and must be completed without draining the ball to collect their corresponding letters. The value for completing a mission increases by 1 million points each time the same mission is completed on the current ball, and repeating the missions for any of the four kids will increase the jackpot value for the wizard mode by 100,000 points.

All missions, with the exception of the Sarcastaball Field Goal, can be started at any time during play; no restrictions are placed on stacking missions, but no increased scoring will be granted for completing series of stacked missions. Stacking missions simply makes it easier to reach the wizard mode.

The following nine missions must be completed to unlock the wizard mode:

S - Stan's Digestive Problem: Stan can't seem to talk to the girl of his dreams without throwing up. Spelling STAN at his scoop with a total of four shots will briefly light the right orbit for a hurry-up value, starting at 1 million and increasing by 1 million points each time the mission is successfully won. The hurry-up value decreases very quickly, giving the player only 10 seconds to shoot the right orbit and finish the mission.
O - Sarcastaball Field Goal: Randy, overcome with sarcasm, creates a new version of football that quickly becomes the most popular sport around. Shooting the side ramp from the upper flipper while the red balloon insert is flashing will light the left ramp to feed the mini-playfield for 60 seconds. On the mini-playfield, the player must spell "SARCASTABALL" by hitting the balloon a total of 12 times with the ball; if the timer runs out or the player drains from the mini-playfield, progress towards spelling "SARCASTABALL" will carry over (it can also be spelled during Multiball). Once the word is fully spelled, an extra ball will light at the upper standup target and the kicker target will deactivate, revealing a scoop behind it. Shooting into the scoop will eject a balloon ball onto the mini-playfield, which has very different, floatier physics than a normal pinball. The player must get the balloon ball to the upper mini-flipper, then shoot the ladder ramp within 20 seconds to score a field goal worth 5 million + 1 million points per success, and finish the mission.
U - The Losing Edge: Randy takes on a trash-talking Little League "Bat-Dad" who dares to insult the Denver baseball team. Shooting the side ramp five times to collect the letters in "RANDY" will activate a moving standup target of Bat-Dad, which moves around the left orbit, left ramp, and Cartman saucer on the left side of the playfield. The player must first jab at Bat-Dad for 100,000 points by hitting the standup target directly, then follow up with a haymaker for 1 million by shooting the quickly flashing shot. Each shot takes bars out of Bat-Dad's health bar, with haymakers depleting more than jabs; depleting all of Bat-Dad's health will complete the mission for 3 million + 1 million for each success. The mission ends in failure if the player fails to defeat Bat-Dad within the 60 second time limit.
T - ManBearPig: Trapped in the Cave of the Winds during a search for the mythical ManBearPig, Cartman comes across a cave full of treasure and tries to smuggle it all... by putting it in his mouth. Spelling "MANBEARPIG" with 10 shots to either the left or right orbit will light the center lane to start this mission, where six pieces of treasure will spawn around the playfield. The player must collect all six pieces of treasure in 60 seconds by rolling over them with the ball, with each treasure scoring 250,000 points increasing by 250,000 per treasure; once all six are collected, the player must escape by shooting the center lane to finish the mission for 3 million + 1 million per success, and some rather dirty treasure.
H - Mr. Hankey Multiball: Kyle attempts to convince everyone that Mr. Hankey, the "Christmas Poo", is real; to everyone's surprise, he is. Shooting Kyle's scoop four times to spell "KYLE" will cause all further balls that enter either the scoop or the center lane to enter the Sarcastaball mini-playfield, where the ladder ramp will be lit to lock balls in the toilet. Once 3 balls are locked this way, a 3-ball Multiball will start, and the balls will eject from the toilet in the form of... you-know-what. The player must shoot Kyle's scoop or feed the mini-playfield through other shots to collect jackpots worth 500,000 points each, then shoot the ladder ramp to score a super jackpot worth 1 million points and lock the ball back in the toilet. The mission is considered complete and 3 million + 1 million points per success are scored once the player has collected one super jackpot, and will end once the player locks enough balls in the toilet to return to single-ball play or drains down to single-ball play.
P - Cartman's Probe: Cartman's crazy dream about "visitors" becomes reality. Shooting Cartman's saucer seven times to spell "CARTMAN" will start this mission, split into two phases. The player must first shoot the spinner in front of the left orbit a total of 30 times in 60 seconds for 10,000 points per spin, each spin further summoning the alien spaceship by filling the "probe progress" percentage on the display up to 100%. When the probe progress reaches 100%, the second phase of the mission starts, where the player must hit three rapidly moving alien spaceship targets with the ball within 30 seconds, for 1 million points per shot. Defeating all three spaceships finishes the mission for 3 million points + 1 million points per success, and rescues Ike from his demise.
A - Chef's Dates: Chef is notorious for having dated many women during his tenure as a South Park resident. Hitting the door in front of Chef's lane four times to collect the letters in "CHEF" will lower the door and begin the mission, where the player must shoot the lane behind the door to score one date and 100,000 points times the date number; if the player shoots the lane with a strong shot that enters the upper loop, an additional date will be collected. The player must collect 10 dates within 60 seconds to finish the mission for 3 million + 1 million points per success.
R - School Bus Multiball: To the kids of South Park, missing the school bus becomes an epic adventure. Shooting the left ramp nine times to spell "SCHOOL BUS" will light the left ramp to lock 4 balls; the locks remain lit until School Bus Multiball has been played. Once the 4 balls have been locked, a quick 4-ball multiball mission will start where the player must shoot the four shots corresponding to each of the kids and lock balls back in the school bus to score 1 million points each. The left ramp lights to lock balls once a shot with a school bus insert has been lit. After all 4 balls are locked in the school bus, the mission will be completed successfully for 3 million + 1 million per success; the mission ends as soon as the player locks all the balls, or drains down to a single ball.
K - Kill Kenny: It wouldn't be a typical day in South Park without Kenny being killed one way or another. Shooting the upper loop five times to spell "KENNY" will cause him to leave his area and spawn as a series of cutout drop targets on the playfield, each blocking certain shots. Each target hit scores 200,000 points times the ordinal number of the shot, and six targets must be hit within 60 seconds to finish the mission for 3 million + 1 million points per success.

After all missions are completed successfully, the untitled wizard mode will be available to start with one last shot to the center lane. This is a simple 4-ball victory multiball, where the four shots corresponding to each of the kids are lit to score jackpots starting at 1,400,000 + 100,000 points for every additional time one of the kids' missions has been completed. Each letter in the kids' names scores a jackpot, meaning a total of 20 jackpots will be collected if the player collects all the jackpots. The wizard mode ends and all mission progress is reset either when the player drains down to a single ball or makes all 20 jackpot shots.

Side modes[]

The folowing side modes can be activated:

Windy Bumpers: The kids of South Park love Terrance & Phillip's show, while the adults feel quite the opposite. Shooting the bumpers a total of 30 times will start a timed mode where all bumper hits score 100,000 points + 50,000 points per bumper for 30 seconds; the value is collected as soon as the ball exits the bumper area. Every time Windy Bumpers has been started during a game, 10 more bumper hits than the last mode will be required to start it again.
Timmy Scoring: Timmy finds success as a member of a rock band. Spelling "TIMMY!" at the five return lanes, which can be cycled with the flipper buttons, will start a 30 second timed scoring feature where hitting any return lane scores 50,000 points, and shots to the standup target directly below Kenny score 100,000 points times the ordinal number of standup target hits during the mode so far.

Multiball[]

There is only one optional multiball mode on this table, which can be started at any time when the required shots are made.

Canada Multiball: The kids head to Canada when their parents pick up on their swearing. Shooting the spinner in front of the left orbit 20 times will light both orbits to lock a ball for this multiball mode, which starts when 3 balls are locked this way. The center lane will constantly be lit to score jackpots, scoring 1 million points each. Every sixth jackpot will score a super jackpot worth 2 million points and light the extra ball the first time one is collected during a game. The multiball ends once the player returns to single-ball play.

Perks[]

The following perks can be collected:

Ball Saver: At the start of each ball and multiball, a 15-second ball saver will activate. The ball saver can be reactivated by spelling "JIMMY" while both kickbacks are lit.
Kickbacks: Spelling "JIMMY" at the standup target near the bumpers with five hits will light the kickback at the left outlane, then the right outlane. Spelling "JIMMY" when both kickbacks are lit will activate the ball saver.
Episodes: Shots to the computer target in front of the center lane will collect an episode. Episodes add points to end-of-ball bonus. At the time this game released, there were 247 episodes of the show, and collecting 247 episodes will light an extra ball (and score huge points in end-of-ball bonus).
Ladder to Heaven: Hits to any targets on the Sarcastaball mini-playfield add points to the Ladder to Heaven value, which starts at 3 million points and maxes out at 6 million points. Spelling "LADDER" with six shots to the ladder ramp will collect the value, and reset the letters so it can be collected again.
Bonus Multiplier: Making enough shots to the Cheesy Poofs target to the left of the left ramp increases the bonus multiplier by +1x. The number of target hits required to increase the bonus multiplier is based on the ordinal number of the bonus multiplier (ie. 5x bonus requires 5 target hits, then 6 for 6x, etc). The bonus multiplier maxes out at 10x bonus, and any further bonus multiplier increases will award a flat 5 million points.
Extra Balls: Extra balls can be lit at the upper standup target on the Sarcastaball mini-playfield by completing four of the missions, lighting the Sarcastaball Field Goal with enough balloon hits, collecting a super jackpot during Canada Multiball, maxing out the Pirate Skill Shot at 10 million points then collecting it, or by collecting 247 episodes. Extra balls can only be collected once per method each game.

Tips[]

Stacking is encouraged to complete all of the missions, particularly ones like the Anal Probe or ManBearPig missions that require hitting certain targets around the playfield. With a multiball active these can become very easy to complete.
End-of-ball bonus can be rather large on this game with a good bonus multiplier, but the constantly increasing shots to the Cheesy Poofs target required to increase the bonus multiplier can be difficult to intentionally go for. Focus on the other shots, and the required target hits will come naturally.
The right outlane area is very risky, making Kyle's scoop an important shot to nail. Many rubbers are spread throughout the right outlane area in case a ball enters it; avoid this area by only going for Kyle's scoop while the ball saver is active or while the right kickback is lit.

References & Easter Eggs[]

Simpsons did it! The table layout shares similarities to Stern's 2003 release, The Simpsons Pinball Party. Both games also have emphasis on stacking modes, to the point where a lot can be going on at once.
The extra ball standup target on the Sarcastaball mini-playfield is marked with an icon of a cow. While justified in-game because this is the name of South Park's football team, many real-life tables - including ones Zen later recreated - have cows scattered as easter eggs.

Censorship[]

To keep an E10+ rating, pieces of suggestive dialogue and adult humor from the source material was removed. This makes the South Park Pinball pack the only official South Park video game to have an E10+ rating.