COMPUTER GAMES REVIEW : A New Kind of Tilt on Pinball Wizardy : The old standby has been PC-ized. The games are fun but don’t quite capture the real experience.

Remember the days when you didn’t just stay home and stare up at the computer screen? When you would get out of the house, head down to the local bowling alley or laundry--and stare down on a pinball machine?

Now it’s possible to combine the time-stealing attributes of the old and the digital. Pinball has come to the home computer.

Pinball games on CD-ROMs and discs don’t entirely simulate the real-life pinball experience--there’s no analog machine to gently rock, no real 3-D objects to maneuver and no fix-it person to corral when the game eats your coin.

In fact, you don’t even need coins, just $29 or so upfront. (When coins are not at stake, however, each round of pinball seems less vital.)

On the upside, computer pinball simulations are technical marvels. The effect is amazingly lifelike as a computer replicates a silver ball bouncing off bumpers, being drawn ever downward by gravity or picking up speed as it careens off a flipper.

There is, however, one basic, inherent problem with pinball simulations on computers, as pinball machines are rectangular, while computer screens are generally square. Game creators have tried to get around this with two solutions, neither of which is entirely satisfactory.

Some use a kind of letterbox-type format to squeeze the entire playing surface into the middle of the screen, filling the side spaces with counters and various graphics. This puts the game at an uncomfortable distance from the player, never allowing close-up views of the action.

Others take the scrolling approach, showing only part of the game. Players scroll up and down rapidly as the ball moves across the playing field. This provides good close-ups, but the effect can be distracting and even dizzying.

Here are some games available for the home computer:

* Tristan, Royal Flush, Eight Ball Deluxe (by Amtex):

Tristan, on DOS and Macintosh formats, was one of the first pinball simulations created by the prolific LittleWing software group in Japan. And though simpler than some later games, it remains one of the most enjoyable. Tristan has an easy-to-understand layout that is attractive to pinball novices, but the game is challenging enough to become addictive.

Royal Flush and Eight Ball Deluxe are DOS CD-ROM simulations of actual pinball games. Royal Flush is especially old-fashioned looking and sounding.

On both games, the ball replication and sound work are excellent, but Royal Flush seemed a bit on the lethargic side for repeated play. The designs of both, although probably authentic, don’t reproduce beautifully on the computer screen.

* Crystal Caliburn, Loony Labyrinth (StarPlay Productions):

These two games, also created by LittleWing, are among the most popular in the computer pinball field. Although they include lots of gizmos, they are not difficult for novices, and Crystal Caliburn has many fans among die-hard pinball players queried via the Internet.

Loony Labyrinth, however, was considered too easy by the experts. Even a beginner is able to achieve “multi-ball” play and other advanced features after just a couple of rounds.

Both games use the letterbox format and are lively, but some aficionados complain that the ball/flipper size is not authentic and makes the ball hard to aim.

Crystal Caliburn is available for Macintosh and Windows, Loony Labyrinth only for Macintosh.

* Epic Pinball (Epic Mega games):

This company puts out DOS discs and CD-ROMs that contain multiple games, making them a bargain. Epic has also made some of its games free on the Internet for downloading.

The action and scrolling are fast, but these games didn’t seem engrossing enough for multiple play. Although garish designs are a hallmark of pinball lure, the Epic tables often cross the boundary into schlock.

* Pinball Arcade, Pinball Fantasies Deluxe (21st Century Entertainment):

If you like your game action fast and crude, these multiple-game CD-ROMs might be for you. The games, which scroll, are not likely to win any art or music awards, but the ball does jump around at a fast clip. Judging by the content, the target audience seems to be juveniles.*