Pokémon Pinball has five bonus stages, miniature tables where you play for points and for progress through the sequence. Each table has two stages of its own, followed by a Mewtwo Stage shared by both. This page brings together the access rules, the order of the stages and the mechanics they share; each stage then has its own page.
How to reach them
Below the central panel, a counter of three Poké Balls tracks your progress:
- capturing a Pokémon lights up one Poké Ball;
- evolving a Pokémon lights up two, or just one if only one is left unlit;
- when all three are lit, the panel displays “Go to Bonus” with the image of the next stage, and the bonus hole opens: all you have to do is get the ball into it.
The Slot Machine can also send you straight into the next stage, on the 5th, 10th, 15th, 20th and 25th passes of its sequence. When you return to the table, the counter starts again from zero.
Each table’s sequence
| Order | Red Field | Blue Field |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Diglett Stage | Meowth Stage |
| 2 | Gengar Stage | Seel Stage |
| 3 | Mewtwo Stage | Mewtwo Stage |
After the Mewtwo Stage, the sequence goes back to the table’s first stage. If you fail a stage, the same one will be offered to you next time: you only move on to the next stage by clearing the previous one.
The stage names
The stages are named after their star Pokémon. The US version calls them Diglett Stage, Gengar Stage, Meowth Stage, Seel stage and Mewtwo Stage. Poképédia, the French-language fan encyclopedia, names them the same way in French, after the Pokémon’s French names. The Gengar Stage is sometimes called the Gastly Stage: it does indeed start with Gastly, moves on to Haunter and ends with Gengar. In the Japanese version, the text displayed uses the Pokémon’s Japanese names, for example “Go to Pawou Stage” for the Seel stage.
Common rules
- Base ball. In the bonus stages, the ball is always a Poké Ball with no multiplier. On exit, the ball you had before entering is restored.
- No entry points. No points are given for entering a stage or for completing it: only the points earned during the stage count.
- Balls. Losing a ball in a stage doesn’t take a ball away from your game. Depending on the stage, you can lose as many as you like, within the limit of the timer, or only once.
- Isolated table. Flipper presses used in a stage don’t shift the lights on the main table.
- Clearing. Completing a stage takes you to the next one; failing it makes you start it again.
On-screen messages
The US version announces each step with a scrolling message. Access is announced by “GO TO DIGLETT STAGE”, “GO TO GENGAR STAGE”, “GO TO MEOWTH STAGE”, “GO TO SEEL STAGE” or “GO TO MEWTWO STAGE”, depending on which stage is waiting. At the end of a stage, “END … STAGE” indicates a failure (the stage will have to be replayed) and “… STAGE CLEARED” a success. These labels are the game’s reference names. The European version offers them translated into the chosen language, but we have no reliable source for the exact French wording; this is why this guide relies on the designations used by Poképédia.
After each stage, the ball reappears at the top of the table, motionless, and the table’s music resumes. The counter of three Poké Balls is empty, and the main table is exactly as you left it: arrows, CAVE lights, travel counters and captured Pokémon haven’t moved.
Recap of the five stages
| Stage | Table | Limit | Goal | Notable points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Diglett | Red | None, a single ball | Knock down 31 Diglett, then hit Dugtrio three times | 1,000,000 per Diglett, 50,000,000 per hit on Dugtrio |
| Gengar | Red | 1 min 30 sec | 10 Gastly, 10 Haunter, then 5 hits on Gengar | 1,000,000, 5,000,000 then 50,000,000 per hit |
| Meowth | Blue | 1 min | Collect 20 coins | Up to 6,000,000 per stack collected |
| Seel | Blue | 1 min 30 sec | Collect 20 icons by hitting the Seel | From 1,000,000 to 256,000,000 depending on the streak |
| Mewtwo | Both | 2 min | Hit Mewtwo 25 times | 50,000,000 per hit |
Why chain them
The bonus stages serve two purposes. First, scoring: the Mewtwo Stage is worth more on its own than the rest of the game put together, and even the Seel stage can exceed half a billion with a good streak. Second, progress toward Mew: clearing the Mewtwo Stage twice is the first condition for meeting it. The scoring strategies page explains how to optimize this chain.
Finally, note that these stages are separate from the Pokédex. No Pokémon can be captured in them, and each stage’s music is unique to it: see music and sounds.
