Here at Pinball News we have been aware of ROKR‘s self-assembly mechanical kits for many years. Founded in 2017, the Robotime sub-brand has been producing impressive build-at-home models which have always featured amazingly intricate detailing as well as incorporating genuinely surprising levels of functionality.
Their series of rolling-ball ‘Marble Run‘ 3D model construction sets, for example, is both striking in the designs they have created and ingenious the way in which they operate. They also come at an impressively low price, ranging from just $40 to $65.
ROKR piqued our interest three years ago when they released their 3D Pinball Puzzle, a playable circus-themed tabletop game complete with a trio of working pop bumpers, multiple ramps with optos, illuminated inserts, computer-controlled lighting strips, music and sound effects, along with a rudimentary ruleset and scoring system.
(picture: ROKR)
That game came as a kit with 482 individual pieces, from the smallest of screws to the whole playfield. The parts were largely wooden – including the ramps and ball guides – with a build time for the whole game estimated at twelve hours.
Buoyed by the success of that model, ROKR have brought out a second, and this time given it a title – Dinosaur Lab.
Although not exactly licensed, the theme will certainly be a familiar one. A dinosaur breeding operation is in chaos after the hitherto captive creatures manage to break free from their enclosures and run amok around the facility.
ROKR invited Pinball News to review this new game back in July 2026, several months ahead of its shipping to customers.
However – at the time of writing this review – while the game was complete and fully functional, the self-build kits were not yet ready send out. This presented us with something of a dilemma.
In our opinion, building your own interactive 3D model is a large part of the challenge and satisfaction of owning one of ROKR’s kits. They take a not insignificant investment of time to complete, which means the presentation of the parts, the clarity of the instructions, the skills required, and how easily (or otherwise) all the components fit together are important factors in fully reviewing the pinball kit.
So, those particular aspects will have to wait for now. Instead, we are presented with a pre-built Dinosaur Lab model which we can review to show how the game looks, how it operates and how it plays, but not how it all fits together. As it is pre-assembled in the factory, we will consider this to be built to the highest quality, rather than something that is the end result of our own somewhat feeble efforts.
Having completed our review in July, ROKR asked us to hold back publication until the game kits were ready to send out to buyers. Getting those kits ready took a couple of months longer than initially planned, but they are now shipping and so we can bring you this review.
Dinosaur Lab was launched as a Kickstarter project on 1st June, 2026. ROKR had previously used Kickstarter to promote and launch three other projects, starting in December 2022 and, most recently, in August 2024.
Early backers of the Dinosaur Lab project enjoyed a significant discount on the ultimate price, with the first 100 units available for around $65. Subsequent batches saw small price increases until the campaign ended on 9th July, at which point the project’s fundraising target had been achieved eighteen times over, with more than 4,000 backers.
Whereas the company’s first game accentuated the light wooden construct with bare panels and delicately sculpted accents, Dinosaur Lab‘s appearance has a darker, more plastic aesthetic.
Before we get to that though, it’s worth seeing just what was received here at the Pinball News office, and the care and attention given to making sure it arrived fully intact.
Layers of inflated plastic tubes surrounded the contents, which was assumed would be the assembled model itself. But no. Inside was another cardboard box containing a rigid frame made from particleboard which held the actual machine securely in place.
Inside the frame, the pinball was tightly wrapped with cling film, while more film held a small goodie bag of extra components which needed to be added to complete the model.
There are no legs to install. It is, literally, a tabletop game, with the playfield slope a fixed part of the design. There are a few smaller components to fit though.
Inside the bag we get two palm trees, two Velociraptors models, a Pterodactyl model, and a bag containing 15 miniature 8mm pinballs.
What we didn’t get are any instructions, so a certain amount of trial and error took place to figure out how everything worked.
With the minimal final construction completed, it’s time to examine just what we have and how it works.
The Cabinet
The game has two manually-operated flippers. The cabinet buttons are directly linked to the flippers, so the harder you press the harder they flip. There are no rubbers on the flippers, so don’t try to bounce pass the ball as it won’t end well.
The flipper buttons are further forward than on a regular-size game, but the position works well for this scaled-down model. The silicone-banded slingshots are unpowered, making control of the ball a little easier.
The cabinet sides feature custom artwork bearing the game’s title. Both sides have the same artwork design.
Although the sealed packet in the goodie bag contains fifteen pinballs, only one is needed to play the game. As there is no playfield glass or dust cover included, the ball isn’t as contained as in a full-size game. That means it has the potential fall out and get mislaid, but with fifteen balls included you should be good for some time.
Fortunately, the rear of the game provides a storage area for six spare balls. It is also where all the game controls sit, along with the power connection.
Indicative of the level of detail found throughout, the back of the game not only includes bespoke artwork but also plastic moulded pillars.
The ball storage area sits on the right. This has a lift-up cover, below which six balls can be stored before the whole tray is slid into the machine’s body.
On the left side we find the USB-C power connector and two rocker switches to control the game difficulty and the volume of the game’s music and sound effects.
No power supply is included, so you’ll need to provide one capable of supplying 5V@2A along with an appropriate USB-C connecting cable. Most of us probably already have numerous suitable USB power supplies around the house, or even mains power wall outlets with built-in USB sockets.
The left rocker switch controls the rules for the game. The symbols on the switch aren’t that obvious, but selecting the top position (O) gives a simpler set of rules while the lower (I) makes it a little harder but adds a wizard mode. More on those rules a little later.
The right-most rocker switch adjusts the volume of the sounds and music. There is a background track which plays continuously, while making certain shots or completing a feature triggers sound effects or changes the music. Again, the symbols on the switch are a little confusing, but those printed on the back panel are more accurate. There are two volume levels – high (=) and low (O), while a third option (-) turns off all sounds.
The back panel features a T-Rex bursting through the containment gates, with some attractive red lighting effects, augmented by strobe LEDs mounted atop the side pillars.
The base of the cabinet has four rubber feet – one in each corner – for maximum stability. They work well in keeping the game in place, even during the more frantic gameplay moments.
And so, onto the playfield.
The Playfield
The game features one outlane and two inlanes on both sides, while the balls (lives) remaining count is shown on a small panel over the left outlane. Usually the ball-in-play LED flashes during play, unless you have earned extra balls and have three more balls remaining.
Dinosaur Lab is a scoring objective game, with a target of scoring 1,000 points. The fan layout features seven shots, starting with the left lane, then continuing with the left ramp, the target bank, the centre ramp, the pop bumper, the right ramp and the right lane. Of these, only five have sensors to register shots and score points.
Left Lane
The left lane is a dead-end shot with a hidden bell at the end. It doesn’t score anything, returning the ball either back down the lane or through a lane under the left ramp towards the centre of the playfield. It’s far-left position makes it difficult to backhand, so it is best shot from the right flipper.
Left Ramp
The left ramp has an opto sensor at the top which scores 100 points when triggered.
The black plastic ramp curves to the right around the dinosaur island and runs down the right side of the playfield, leading to a spin-around bowl which is for effect only and doesn’t score anything. This bowl then drops the ball into the right inlane.
The left ramp can be shot from either flipper, with a weak shot often rolling back down onto the left flipper.
Bump Target Bank
The ‘Bump’ target bank looks like three separate targets but is actually only one. It does, however, have three green ‘X’ LEDs which light up progressively with each hit. The target bank is easily hit from either flipper, though it does require a solid hit to register. Completing all three Xs scores 100 points.
Centre Ramp
The centre ramp includes a passive spinner at the entrance. There is an opto mounted at the top of the ramp which scores 100 points when triggered.
The ball then continues along the ramp as it curves round to the left under the island and onto a silver plastic track which leads to the left-most left inlane.
To the right of the centre ramp is a small target which isn’t really a shot as it doesn’t score or do anything, and is really only there to turn slightly when hit and generally get in the way of shots to the centre ramp or the pop bumper.
The next real shot is the pop bumper.
Pop Bumper
Unlike the 3D Pinball Puzzle game which features three pop bumpers, Dinosaur Lab has just the one. It is surrounded by rebounds though to enhance the ball action in that area.
Because the mass of the 8mm ball isn’t enough to activate a mechanical switch, the pop bumper uses the ball itself to complete an electrical circuit to fire the bumper’s solenoid. Around the bumper’s base is a metal plate which is one contact. The pop bumper ring is the other, so when the ball rolls over the metal plate and touches the bumper ring, the circuit is competed and the bumper fires.
Three LED-lit inserts surround the bumper and light up when it is a required shot. Five pop bumper hits score 100 points.
The sixth shot is the right ramp.
Right Ramp
The right ramp is a short vertical turnaround which deposits the ball onto another silver plastic track which leads down to the same spin-around bowl as the left ramp.
Successfully shooting the right ramp scores 100 points. Although it can be made from either flipper, it is often safer to backhand it from the right flipper.
Right Lane
The final shot is the right lane. This is on the far right side and leads up to the top of the playfield. It is mostly hidden by the right ramp and the left ramp return.
Sometimes this shot will send the ball to the pop bumper area, occasionally it goes all the way up to ring the bell, but most of the time it rattles around and rolls back down towards the right flipper. It doesn’t score anything when shot.
Ball Launch
The ball is stored under the bottom apron and released into the shooter lane by the action of pulling back the shooter rod.
The shooter lane incorporates an illuminated arrow insert. In the 3D Pinball Puzzle this is used to show the number of balls remaining, but Dinosaur Lab has a separate display for that.
Instead, this arrow illuminates after a ball drains if you have another to play.
Launched balls travel up to the top of the playfield on a dedicated track and get deposited at the bell. Sometimes this leads to the ball entering the pop bumper area, but other times is misses that feature and just rolls back to towards the flippers.
Scoring
As we said, only the left ramp, the target bank, the centre ramp, the pop bumper and the right ramp score points. The ramps score 100 points, while the target bank and pop bumper score 100 points when they are completed.
Rather than having a numerical display, Dinosaur Lab uses illuminated inserts to keep track of your score.
Each letter in D-I-N-O-S-A-U-R-S represents 100 points. So, when you shoot a ramp or complete the pop bumper or target bank, another letter is added. Getting to 500 points earns you an extra ball, increasing the number of lit hearts on the ball count panel.
The objective is to reach 1,000 points. If you achieve that, what happens next depends on the game difficulty you have set on the back panel switch.
In easy mode, the game immediately ends with a fanfare and light show, before resetting to start a new game.
In difficult mode, reaching 1,000 points starts a wizard mode in which all scoring five shots are lit.
You need to shoot all three ramps, complete the target bank and hit the pop bumper five times to complete the wizard mode and end the game with the same fanfare and light show as easy mode ending.
There’s no start button, so as soon as one game ends another automatically begins.
Conclusion
For the money, ROKR’s models offer unbeatable value, while being able to build it yourself brings a whole extra level of ownership and engagement.
As their second pinball model, ROKR’s Dinosaur Lab shares some similarities with its predecessor, but also has many differences.
Some buyers will rue the loss of the wooden appearance and the increased use of plastic components, and it’s true that some of the aesthetic charm of the 3D Pinball Puzzle has been lost.
Countering this is Dinosaur Lab’s increased playability, tighter build tolerances, greater theme integration, and the ability to include larger, full colour 3D models. The rules for Dinosaur Lab have been expanded too, while the background music is much less grating than 3D Pinball Puzzle‘s carnival theme tune.
The game certainly still has the ‘Wow!’ factor for anyone unfamiliar with the company’s offerings. It’s a double ‘Wow!’ really – first at the very concept of such a detailed miniature pinball, and then again when you plug it in to show the lighting, music and gameplay.
Although we never had the opportunity to build our game from scratch, if you are lucky enough to have bought one of ROKR’s Dinosaur Lab kits you have quite the journey ahead, with an impressively fun game to enjoy at the end.
