Pinball was great when it was original, Maxis thing.
This one. When MS obviously bought it and modified rules, they essentially broke them. Original is much easier, with it's extra shot after each successfull mission, slower ball and more smooth physics. Windows one feels quite crazy fast and random after original.
Also, right now pinball have some rebirth in Steam. There are quite a lot of them, and I am personally fond of Pinball FX2 - it's modular, with most tables sold separately, and quite good. Also, I believe, you can try game and every table for free.