Flip Flop

Flip Flop is all about “fun with flags” [with apologies to Big Bang Theory fans]. Besides getting points for flipping them, your bonus is built up with them: one for each flip, four for resetting them, up to a maximum of 19,000. This has the strange result that your end of ball bonus can only take on values of 1-5K, 9-13K and 17-19K. Extra ball, if enabled, comes on once your bonus reaches 11k, special (probably worthless) at 19k.

Flip Flop has one of the oddest inlane / outlane configurations you’ll ever encounter. Yes, they’re reversed, but the outer ones are only a return lane if you get a good bounce off of the rubber below them, back onto the little return lane ledges by the flippers. Too weak, bad angle, it can still drain. The inner outlanes are very rarely savable, so don’t count on it. You can’t safely do a hold flipper up and roll back to a cradle, the ball will just roll up and out. Dead bounces risk roll-up-and-out or bouncing back up into the slings or bumpers, so only dead bounce if the ball is falling softly. Live catches are best.

The Skill Shot is to hit as many of the top white rollover disks as you can before the ball comes down either side. When it does, you should be able to flip at it with an upper flipper; try to hit a stand-up target below one of the flags you didn’t flip on the plunge. If you’re lucky or good, the rebound may head towards the opposite upper flipper, enabling you to get off another such shot. Criss-cross target shots between the upper flippers tend to be safer than shooting the stand-ups with the lower flippers.

Strategy is to flip over the four flags, then hit either mushroom bumper to reset them. Each flag flipped scores a bonus advance; resetting them gives you four bonus advances. Bonus maxes at 19,000 and is doubled on balls 3 and 5; you can’t double it on the other balls.

Ball control is a real challenge, both due to the gap behind the flippers and by how close the bumpers are to them. Be ready to react fast\!

If you do get the ball cradled on a lower flipper, e.g. via a live catch or slow dead bounce, try to shoot it up top between the upper flippers and the mushroom bumpers. You can also shoot directly at a flag stand-up target, but that’s the riskier way to attack them. Up top gives you a chance to flip more than one via the rollovers, plus you’ll still get another crack at them when the ball comes down to an upper flipper.

The saucers above the upper flippers (worth 500 points) may kick the ball out low enough that you can flip at it as it exits. Otherwise, the saucer ejects will head towards the opposite-side bumper or slingshot. If you can practice or watch other players, see how each of not flipping, holding the upper flipper up, and flipping away immediately works best; it may differ for the left and right saucers as well.

The lower inlane and outlanes value is 500 until you get your bonus to 11k. At that point, one pair of them, either the inner or outer pair, will be lit for 5000. Which pair is lit toggles with switch hits.