Although it was conceived as an operating system for working, Windows has always had a place for games. Since the first versions of the operating system we have found classic titles such as Minesweeper or Solitaire with which we have spent hours and hours. But it doesn’t end here, and with Windows XP came one of the best Windows games in history: 3D Pinball Space Cadet.
The original game comes from a company called “Cinematronics”, which launched a pinball game called “Full Tilt Pinball” in 1995. This game was available for Windows and Mac, and included three different game tables. One of them was the famous “Space Cadet”.
However, before this developer launched its game, Microsoft launched Windows 95, along with an entertainment-focused expansion pack called “Microsoft Plus.” Within this package we could find a large number of additional programs and tools, but the jewel in the crown was the so-called “3D Pinball Space Cadet”.
This pinball game was different, but suspiciously similar, to the original Cinematronics title. Microsoft had limited its resolution and introduced some aesthetic changes to it. But, in essence, it was the same game. The game was so successful that it came, as an option, in Windows 98, although when the instructions were incorrectly given, people were unable to install it.
It was not until Windows ME and Windows XP when “3D Pinball Space Cadet” came installed as standard for all users. And it was in this version when it achieved its maximum popularity. Microsoft also included it in the NT 4.0 version of the operating system, as well as in Windows 2000, two systems designed, above all, for professional use. This game was included in the early development versions of Windows Vista, but it didn’t make it to the final version, and no one knew why.
Download and play on Windows 11
Although we have not heard anything more about this classic game, since it seems that it has completely died for Microsoft, it is still possible to download and play it, even on Windows 11. All we have to do is look for a modified version, so that it works in the new Microsoft system, and install it on the PC.
For example in this link We have a version of Microsoft’s 3D Pinball Space Cadet, with an installer, and 100% safe and reliable to be able to use this classic game on the PC again. Once the file they propose has been downloaded and installed, we can see the game in the Start menu, in a new section called “Games.”
If we launch it, we will be able to play the legendary Windows pinball again. All the sounds, and all the features, work perfectly. We have tested on several virtual machines and this game works on Windows 7, Windows 8.1, Windows 10 and Windows 11, all updated to their latest versions.
Plus, if you want, on the Internet Archive you can also find the original 3D Pinball Space Cadet from Cinematronics and Maxis, so you can compare the differences firsthand and play at the tables that Microsoft didn’t bring to its own game.
