(Topic ID: 220291)

2018 Pintastic-post show reviews and comments

By Grizlyrig

5 years ago


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  • 198 posts
  • 67 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 5 years ago by oilspot
  • Topic is favorited by 14 Pinsiders

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    #26 5 years ago
    Quoted from Grizlyrig:

    I paid enough to get in the door, I be damned I'm gonna put money in a machine to play it too!!!
    -Mike

    When the BBB was present for previous years, it was on coin play...there was rarely a line for that game

    #32 5 years ago
    Quoted from Grizlyrig:

    if I remember correctly wasn't the owner even donating the money to charity?

    Yes, I couldn't say which one off-hand, though.

    #40 5 years ago
    Quoted from Irishbastard:

    Only thing that kinda pissed me off, was the pencil eraser size chunk out of my driver rear door's paint

    I heard about a number of people who received fresh door dings while in the parking lot. I was gifted with one too, unfortunately

    #78 5 years ago
    Quoted from Matesamo:

    * Facebook is not a great way to communicate updates and schedule changes. The algorithm they use could push or even eliminate posts from peoples timelines. Use Twitter if you want to communicate changes, anyone can see the Pinside account and all the posts are in order. (cue complaints about technology now)

    I agree. I didn't check facebook even once. It's a bloated platform these days, and isn't really designed to present users with the latest info--just what facebook decides what you might be most interested in. It's a good marketing tool, but not a good tool designed for instant communication any more.

    Twitter is better for notifications, but not everyone uses that. I rarely do.

    Opt-in show alerts might be the best option. There are plenty of those texting services available. And, there are APIs you can even integrate into a web application, such as Nexmo. Using a texting service might also help supplement PA announcements. Half the time, I couldn't hear them.

    When one of my games was down for an issue on Friday (a loose flipper bat), I didn't get any alerts, texts (yes, my number was on the info sheet), or emails or anything. Someone just left a note on the game, so I only found out about the issue when I passed by the game.

    Quoted from 1974DeltaQueen:

    The point system definitely needs work, I didn’t use mine as nothing enticed me to do so.

    Maybe have the goodies/rewards available at the registration table when checking in?

    Quoted from Matesamo:

    * A couple of rope stanchions leading up to the newest game titles with a sign explaining one game per trip would work wonders.

    Nice idea. Maybe spread those out around free play as well. Maybe also mention something about not starting 4-player games, needing to only press the start button once, and a sign near the EM games about 5-ball play instead of the usual 3-ball play.

    Quoted from Matesamo:

    * Invest in printing up a lot of magnets of an arrow with "Press Start" printed on them and put them on coin doors when needed.

    That's a really neat idea--I might have to use that one.

    Additionally, some "press to add credit" magnets could be useful as well. Some games modified for free play use a separate button to add credits, such as the coin reject button on EM games, or on System 80B games, often times one of the arrow buttons is used to add credits. I saw a number of people walk away from 80B games confused as to why the game wouldn't start.

    Game bringers could even make something like this themselves if they really wanted to. Get some printable magnet sheets, print out the arrows & words, and cut the shape.

    #81 5 years ago
    Quoted from dmarston:

    We had lots of signs around telling people about the online system

    A few people stopped me about issues with games, and I told them about how to report issues since they weren't mine. They didn't understand how to use QR codes, and were either confused or didn't want to take the time to enter the URL. For non-tech savvy players, this system was a little too high tech or too time consuming for them to figure out, so it didn't seem to work for them. They just wanted to quickly tell someone about the problem and move on to other games.

    Quoted from dmarston:

    Even so, the repair ticket (half of it) should go back to the Repair Station to get into the queue for Repair Team attention

    The repair station didn't look welcoming for people trying to report a problem--there were no obvious directions visible from 10 feet away that you could leave a note there about a game, and there wasn't usually anyone near by when I checked. Maybe post a big sign that says "report game problems here"? It didn't seem obvious enough to casual players that it was a customer service area, and not a staff-only area.

    Maybe add stands at the ends of rows with repair sheets people can fill out? Or tablet kiosks? I've used vidabox enclosures before, and they're solid and not *too* expensive. Then, in kiosk mode on the tablet, show a page that shows a "tap here to report a game issue", ask for a game name and/or number, show a couple of common issues, and a comment field, and submission button.

    #83 5 years ago
    Quoted from dannunz:

    People will realize that all they need to do is download the QR code reader app.

    I tried. I got the typical flustered "I don't understand this stuff" response you usually get with tech challenged individuals and they didn't want to proceed. I wasn't going to force them.

    #103 5 years ago
    Quoted from DaveH:

    I think all of us here need to assist by loading up an easy way to report repair needs on our phones. I don’t think informing newbs how to do it is going to solve it. We are the “Pinball People” that know what a broken game looks like. If I hear a chattering sling, or a VUK firing over and over it triggers a reaction of “problem”. If we all just watch out for all the games, repair needs will be more factual and easier for the staff. Maybe we all even carry little cards that say “please don’t power on, staff is informed of the problem” kind of thing. Get 40 Pinsider at the show to do that minor amount of volunteering at a place they will be anyways and the repair crew can be better informed.
    And speaking of repair crews... another shout out to Tony and the whole crew. Great job helping people.

    I don't mind helping out like this as I'm roaming around. I do most of that sort of thing anyway. Maybe have pre-printed "out of order" signs available and make it a bit more consistent/obvious for when a game is down?

    Quoted from dmarston:

    I think we won't put the contact info for the game bringer out in public on Not-For-Sale games. We would prefer to have our Tech Team intervene first, and we would prefer to go through the ticket system so that redundant reports are automatically compressed into one problem report. This allows the bringers to be undisturbed except for repair issues where owner intervention is required. The paper handout for game-bringers spells this out.

    I'd suggest giving folks the option of whether or not they want their number to appear--not just unilaterally make the decision for them. Some people do prefer to be contacted (I want to hear immediately when there's an issue with my game), and some people just want to drop it off and leave to do other things and not be bothered with issues or people trying to get them to sell.

    Quoted from dmarston:

    I would like our game-bringers to be able to enjoy a seminar in full and not have smartphones making various noises in the Seminar Room. Or they can play in the tournaments, haggle in the Vendor Hall, swim in the pool, etc., etc. All we ask is that they check to see if there is an "owner call" out for them every 1-2 hours. Bringers who don't have smartphones can check the monitor on the Repair Station. See: we actually have given this a lot of thought, and we have a wish-list of new features.

    Maybe put some "please silence your cell phones" signs up? I made sure to put mine on silent. I don't think I heard anyone's phone go off during the seminars I attended.

    Quoted from dmarston:

    I plan to review all the game cards to see what annotations the bringers put on there. Sometime before the next show, I'll review all the repair tickets, too. Game bringers can PM me with their suggestions and preferences for how they would like to interact with the software (and the Free Play Registration desk) during the show.

    I would suggest making the font larger and use a font with wider characters in order to increase readability from a distance. I think the cards should be easily readable by the person playing the game without having to lean forward and squint, and also readable by the person passing by or waiting behind them. The small font made it hard to see what was for sale and what wasn’t. The cards are certainly large enough, and had a lot of wasted space.

    For me, the most important bits of information are the game title, price, and contact number. Everything else is secondary.

    #119 5 years ago
    Quoted from dannunz:

    Actually we had 27 different vendors this year. All pinball and game room related. More than in past year. Vendor hall was sold out so not sure why you think vendors are light. We did have many different vendors but the hall was sold out.

    I think a lot of people were looking to pick up project games and parts, but there wasn't too much of that this time.

    #172 5 years ago
    Quoted from too-many-pins:

    I also have to "tip my hat" to Force Flow for being one of only a few guys actually doing something positive as far as shows go by trying to get a NY show on the map. This is his second year running his local show and it sounds like it will be even better than last year.

    Thanks for the compliment, but this show didn't spring up entirely out of nowhere The Saratoga show wouldn't even had been possible without Pinfest and Pintastic blazing the trail. I learned quite a bit from attending those shows over the years through observing how they did things, and seeing what worked and what didn't.

    I can certainly appreciate what they do a whole lot more now that I've gone through it to a lesser degree. There are a thousand things that need to be done even for a small show to happen, and dozens of people that need to be involved so that it goes smoothly. Pinfest and Pintastic (as well as other shows) are no small feat to pull off.

    We're incredibly lucky to have all these people who are so passionate about pinball who can help make these fun shows happen for us to be able to go to year after year.

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