Level 1 (Clear 25 red pegs from 101 total - Pro target 425k)
This design is a ring of round and diamond-shaped pegs around the pot with more round pegs radiating outwards.
Attempt #1 - No power ups. Score: 385,660
- Layouts like this with lots of scattered pegs are always difficult to judge catches in, and this was no exception. I still had three or four red pegs left at the end, but that was mainly because I'd been concentrating on the purple peg for quite a few shots.
Attempt #2 - No power ups. Score: 199,730
- I made just a single catch in that game which was never going to be enough.
Attempt #3 - Laser Ball. Score: 239,120
- A pretty dismal effort with a laser ball. Only two catches made this time. The laser ball didn't come early enough or clear enough pegs. I was hoping for a decent rim bounce but didn't get one.
Attempt #4 - Laser Ball. Score: 446,210
- Another awkward yellow peg placement that seemed to take an age to get to. But when I eventually triggered the laser ball, I managed to take out a good chunk of what was left, leaving predominantly looser pegs on the left hand side which were easier to pick off. I got a few lucky catches and ricochets towards the end and it was just enough to carry me over the pro target.
Level 2 (Clear 25 red pegs from 129 total, with only 9 balls - Pro target 475k)
This design follows some of the lines in the picture - the curve of the door, the rim and the bands around the pot and the curves of the hills in the background, plus lots of single round pegs.
Attempt #1 - No power ups. Score: 321,970
- I made a reasonable attempt at this one without power ups, but I don't think it's going to go easily that way. There's just too many pegs in the way.
Attempt #2 - Laser Ball. Score: 662,150
- Yet again, the yellow peg proved awkward to get to, but I made quite a few unexpected catches and that made a big difference. Once I did get to use the laser ball, I got a decent rim bounce off it, despite having taken an unorthodox line.
Level 3 (Clear 30 red pegs from 114 total, with only 9 balls - Pro target 450k)
This design is of a big leprechaun-style top hat.
Attempt #1 - No power ups. Score: 279,980
- Only a couple of red pegs left, but I was struggling for points. I probably could have made more catches if I'd had a bit more luck, but I'll finish it with a laser ball and move on.
Attempt #2 - Laser Ball. Score: 599,260
- I triggered the Big Bucket with the laser ball, so didn't get a rim bounce at all, but despite this I found it quite straightforward with the laser ball.
Level 4 (Clear 30 red pegs from 104 total, with only 9 balls - Pro target 500k)
This design shows an imaginary rainbow leading to the pot of gold in the picture. The bottom half of the layout is just a random scattering of single round pegs.
Attempt #1 - No power ups. Score: 501,930
- I got the points but not the pegs. I can't blame catches as I made quite a lot, but I think it's worth another try without power ups.
Attempt #2 - No power ups. Score: 566,860
- I got there by taking my time on this one. I managed to clear most of the left-hand side without losing too many balls. After that I made a lot of single peg catches, mainly off the rainbow as the angles are quite conducive to them. There were a few decent ricochets in there, but not many. I played quite a lot of single blue pegs in the mid-game, just to clear the decks a bit. I could have waited for purple pegs in the right place, but I felt I would have been there all night if I had. Besides, I thought the points would probably come anyway if I managed to finish the red pegs, and indeed they did.
Level 5 (Clear 25 red pegs from 139 total, with only 8 balls - Pro target 500k)
This design gives us three four-leaf clovers. With over 40 pegs in each clover, there's a deceptively large number of pegs in this layout. All those blues may get in the way.
Attempt #1 - No power ups. Score: 262,810
- Yes, all those blue pegs get in the way very quickly. I made one catch, I think, and was a long way from either the pro score or clearing the reds. There seems little points in any further attempts without a laser ball.
Attempt #2 - Laser Ball. Score: 404,130
- A better effort, but the yellow peg was too awkward to get to. I made three catches this time which is a slight improvement.
Attempt #3 - Laser Ball. Score: 633,140
- It still took a few balls to get to the yellow peg, but I did better with the laser ball than on the previous attempt. I also made more lucky catches.
Level 6 (Clear 40 red pegs from 114 total, with only 8 balls - Pro target 800k)
The same design as level 3, but with 10 more red pegs, one less ball, and 350k on the pro target. The increase in the pro target looks like being the biggest hurdle here.
Attempt #1 - Laser Ball. Score: 697,350
- This one seemed to go pretty well. I picked up quite a few lucky catches and unexpected bonuses. But I was still quite a way short of clearing the reds, although not that far off the pro target. I could have done with some more ricochets at times, mind you. I'll add a Big Bounce and see if that helps.
Attempt #2 - Laser Ball & Big Bounce. Score: 925,700
- I got some much better ricochets that time. Plus the laser ball was triggered after only two balls, and it did quite well. The Big Bounce didn't get triggered until quite late on, which is often the best way, and that too did quite well. That just left a relatively small cluster in the middle which was quite easy to make catches off. I ended up picking the whole cluster off one at a time for a total clearance.
Level 7 (Clear ALL pegs - 30 red and 71 blue, with only 9 balls - Pro target 575k)
The same design as level 1, but with 5 more red pegs, one less ball, 150k on the pro target and a total clearance now required.
Attempt #1 - Laser Ball & Big Bounce. Score: 856,660
- I struggled on level 1, even with a laser ball, so I went straight in this time with the Big Bounce as well. Everything seemed to work pretty well here. I couldn't quite get to the yellow peg with the first ball, but I think I only lost one ball getting to it. I got the split ball with the laser, but because both balls travelled in much the same direction after the split, the extra ball didn't really take out many extra pegs. I did mean, however, that both balls landed in the bucket for a 100k bonus. The Big Bounce did reasonably well also, and I quickly got the point of only having 21 pegs left with still 10 balls in hand. This meant that I could go for catches without worrying about unexpected ricochets, because as long as I took two pegs out for the loss of each ball I would remain on target for the clearance.
Level 8 (Score 550k with 35 red pegs and 104 blue, with only 8 balls - Pro target 725k)
The same design as level 5, but 10 more red pegs, and 225k on the pro target, but no need to worry too much about the pegs as only a score is needed.
Attempt #1 - Laser Ball & Big Bounce. Score: 532,820
- Three pegs left at the end. Only 12 shots made, so I could certainly have done with some more catches. I did manage to get the yellow peg with the first ball though so that helped.
Attempt #2 - Laser Ball & Big Bounce. Score: 609,660
- Enough of an improvement over last time to earn me the badge, but not a pro score. Heading in the right direction though.
Attempt #3 - Laser Ball & Big Bounce. Score: 719,390
- So close! The laser ball was a bit of a washout as I didn't get a clean first bounce. I made a lot of catches in the endgame though, and very nearly made it all the way. Still heading in the right direction, though.
Attempt #4 - Laser Ball & Big Bounce. Score: 982,070
- It took a few balls to get to the yellow peg, but I found a good line for the laser ball, and then the Big Bounce seemed to go on for ages as well. Both were big scorers, which also earned me extra balls, so I had plenty of shots left in the endgame. I ended up making a total clearance for just short of the million.
Level 9 (Clear ALL pegs - 25 red and 79 blue, with only 8 balls - Pro target 775k)
The same design as level 4, but with 5 less red pegs, one less ball, 275k on the pro target, and a total clearance now required.
Attempt #1 - Laser Ball & Big Bounce. Score: 680,800
- This isn't an easy layout to score big points on so the pro target was always going to be a struggle. I could have done it there if I'd got a big final bucket bonus, but I just got the minimum 20k so it wasn't to be. I got the clearance at the first attempt though, so that's promising.
Attempt #2 - Laser Ball & Big Bounce. Score: 542,980
- The yellow peg was tucked away in the bottom right hand corner, blocked by the rainbow so by the time I triggered the laser ball, there were precious few pegs left to aim at. I got down to only two pegs left, despite this, but I was so short of points, I was forced to try and get them off the side wall first and trust to luck about the catches. Needless to say, my luck ran out.
Attempt #3 - Laser Ball & Big Bounce. Score: 888,240
- The yellow peg wasn't too badly positioned and I think I managed to get it with the first ball. I went high on the right wall with the laser ball to try and take out as much of the rainbow as possible, but I'm not convinced that's a worthwhile strategy. The Big Bounce then worked OK, but I was still left with a lot of points to score. I picked them off one or two at a time, making what catches I could, but I got myself into a position of having 8 pegs left (all blue) and only two balls, and still needing nearly 100k. The problem was that one peg was effectively blocking all the others. I tried to wait for it to turn purple, but after shooting 21 balls straight into the bucket I ran out of patience and tried to take a different peg. I was playing to miss the nearest peg on the rebound but hit it square in the middle. It worked out brilliantly mind you as the ball ricocheted off three other pegs taking out five in all, earning most of the points I needed and earning an extra ball to boot. From there it was an easy finish.
Level 10 (Clear 40 red pegs from 129 total, with only 8 balls - Pro target 600k)
The same design as level 2, but with 15 less red pegs, one less ball, and 125k on the pro target.
Attempt #1 - Laser Ball & Big Bounce. Score: 978,400
- I got a good rim bounce with the laser ball for a change which scored quite a lot of points, and the Big Bounce wasn't too bad either. Most of the catches I attempted worked, so all in all it was a pretty successful game. Before long I had all the remaining red pegs in plain view and more than enough balls to take them out, but I decided to carry on and took a total clearance.
SUMMARY
Level | Reds | Pegs | Target | Balls | Clock | Pro | Attempts | Record | Average | Video |
1 | 25 | 101 | Reds | 10 | - | 425k | 4 | 446,210 | 317,680 | |
2 | 25 | 129 | Reds | 9 | - | 475k | 2 | 662,150 | 492,060 | |
3 | 30 | 114 | Reds | 9 | - | 450k | 2 | 599,260 | 439,620 | |
4 | 30 | 104 | Reds | 9 | - | 500k | 2 | 566,860 | 534,395 | |
5 | 25 | 139 | Reds | 8 | - | 500k | 3 | 633,140 | 433,360 | |
6 | 40 | 114 | Reds | 8 | - | 800k | 2 | 925,700 | 811,525 | |
7 | 30 | 101 | All | 9 | - | 575k | 1 | 856,660 | 856,660 | |
8 | 35 | 139 | 550k | 8 | - | 725k | 4 | 982,070 | 710,985 | |
9 | 25 | 104 | All | 8 | - | 775k | 3 | 888,240 | 704,006 | |
10 | 40 | 129 | Reds | 8 | - | 600k | 1 | 978,400 | 978,400 |
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