Okay, I'm 0 for 2. I didn't expect Zen Studios to deliver Marvel Pinball: Captain America so soon in the base game's lifecycle. I keep anticipating something a bit more mainstream; maybe I'm just really looking forward to the inevitable Marvel Pinball: Incredible Hulk or Daredevil. At the rate Zen Studios continues to surprise me, I guess I should expect that Marvel Pinball: Howard the Duck is well on its way. I'm just going with the flow, however; Zen Studios could release a table based on the Teletubbies for all I care. They know how to make pinball tables, and the Captain America table is proof.

Without spot-on theming, a pinball table is nothing but a modified pachinko machine. Zen Studios deals with more than its share of licensed properties, and it has always done so with the utmost respect and care. They sieve out each franchise's most iconic qualities, and adapt them to fit the rules of pinball without seeming too corny or contrived. Marvel Pinball: Captain America goes for the obvious route, turning the table into the battleground on which Captain America and the Howling Commandos have a showdown with the Red Skull. Half of the table is vintage wartime propaganda material and the other half is made up of no-man's land and wooden trenches. And, of course, this wouldn't be a Zen Studios table if Cap himself wasn't there.

Like each of its predecessors, Marvel Pinball: Captain America is a challenging and deep game of pinball. If you're one of those rare players who has complete control of the tiny steel orb's constantly changing trajectory, you'll find that there's a lot to do on this table. The missions are as interesting as they are difficult, and they make excellent use of the license. For example, one of the missions has Cap going after the Red Skull's dig site; you'll have to aim for two mine entrances to set the explosives, and then a designated target that acts as the detonator. Another has Cap duking it out with the Red Skull as you aim for special targets to land hits. There's way, way more to it than that, so if you're at all interested, dig in.

I'm still a big fan of the Pinball FX 2 pricing model. That is, pay for what you want -- no more, no less. Of course, if you're a pinball fan who likes to collect these kinds of "standalone add-ons," you might have already spent more money on this game than any other Xbox Live Arcade title. The way I see it though, as long as the content is solid enough, it's worth it. To be sure, 240 Microsoft Points usually doesn't get you very far at all. However, if you haven't gotten away from Microsoft's fundamentally flawed online currency system and still have a handful of points for no good reason, put them to use here.