AtGames is bringing Star's Phoenix EM+ to Legends Pinball this week

AtGames is releasing Star's Phoenix EM+, a new virtual pinball table for its Legends Pinball platform, on April 2. The release is a heavily modified digital recreation of a 1987 physical machine originally built by Italian manufacturer Zaccaria.

Developed by Magic Pixel, the team behind the extensive Zaccaria Pinball digital library, this "EM+" version takes the core layout of the 1980s original and dresses it up in a 1950s casino aesthetic. It strips out the solid-state electronics in favor of an older electro-mechanical feel, but keeps modern digital lighting effects. It is a strange anachronistic blend. The result is a bright, noisy table that looks like it belongs in a mid-century Vegas lounge.

The electro-mechanical plus format

For those unfamiliar with Magic Pixel's naming conventions, the EM+ designation is a specific style of digital table. The developers take an existing solid-state or modern layout and retrofit it with the logic, scoring, and chime-box sound effects of an older electro-mechanical machine.

Real electro-mechanical pinball machines rely entirely on physical relays, switches, and spinning score reels. Solid-state machines, which took over the industry in the late 1970s, use circuit boards and digital displays. The original Star's Phoenix was a late-era solid-state game. Magic Pixel's digital demake strips away that 1980s technology and replaces it with the clatter and physical bells of a 1960s cabinet.

Then they add the "plus" elements. These are digital enhancements that would be impossible (or at least very expensive) on a real physical table from that era.

In Star's Phoenix EM+, this means you get the physical clatter of relays mixed with glowing prism lamps and complex mode tracking. The table integrates slot machine and card game mechanics directly into the playfield. There is an animated roulette wheel right in the center of the board.

Chasing the jackpot

The original 1987 Star's Phoenix was already a gambling-themed table, but this new version leans into the concept much harder. The playfield is covered in casino motifs, from the card suits near the flippers to the large "Lucky Star" tower on the upper deck.

Gameplay revolves around five main objectives. The lower playfield has dedicated light-up inserts for "Jackpot", "Gamble", and "Hot Streak" modes, alongside specific "Slot" and "Deal" targets. Players have to manage the table's verticality. You shoot the ball up into the top lanes to spell "WIN" before it drops back down into the teal pop bumpers.

A weird piece of pinball history

Zaccaria is an interesting footnote in arcade history. Based in Bologna, Italy, the company was briefly the third-largest pinball manufacturer in the world behind Bally and Williams. They built over 40 distinct machines before closing their doors in 1987. Star's Phoenix was one of their final releases.

Magic Pixel has released several digital variations of the table over the years, including a Deluxe version and a Retro demake. This EM+ edition feels like a middle ground. It keeps the fast shots and combo potential of a solid-state game but wraps it in the warm, analog charm of an older machine.

The table will be available directly through the AtGames ecosystem this Thursday. You will need a compatible Legends Pinball cabinet to play it natively, though Magic Pixel's Zaccaria tables usually find their way to Steam eventually.

Digital pinball is at its best when it stops trying to perfectly simulate reality and starts getting weird with the format. Mixing 1950s chime boxes with modern combo tracking is exactly the kind of weird we like to see.