I would love to help tweak and provide rulseset comments if you need someone with a good idea, tons of ruleset experience, and some novel ideas. I have helped to polish other games and enjoy the process.

It's not missing any toys or originally known features as such. Per my post, it's missing one working feature due to a control board that's needed and SHOULD be there before Expo. Read the whole post.

Wider post. Previous post covered path to Expo and attempted to address prototype status. Some general bullet points first:

- Heighway have moved to their third factory recently, and been there for 4 months. This one seems like a better set up (better ratio of shop floor to office space) and better size (neither too small nor far too large). Also newer, in much better state of repair and significantly less costly than the huge 40,000ft2 place. This, I think, is about half the size. Small production line and most of the vital equipment is set up and working. Production line will be expanded considerably for Alien(s), with more stations. They're about to install a load of new storage for the mass of parts needed for volume production.

- Producing everything in house for now has been dropped, and some of the very expensive machinery which a lot of capital is tied up in will be sold. Good thing. Even if it was ultimately successful, too much for a small start up to take on and manage adequately. However they are continuing to conduct research and development on a couple of major elements, which may see fruit borne some time in the future.

- Focus is about to switch from producing Full Throttle to Alien(s). As you might expect, and HW certainly do, Alien(s) will be the main source of orders, machines wise. They'll produce Full Throttle to demand in future, presumably mostly in kit form. If Alien(s) goes down well, they should expect quite a few kit orders IMO.

- The cabinets and their trim continue to be refined. Many people, me included, weren't keen on the black with grey colour scheme. The newer black on black is a big improvement and should satisfy quite a few of the cosmetic grumblings. Finish looks to have been improved too.

- Trim options (even if not the full list) should be detailed at or by Expo. Some stuff may come after initial production. Nothing finalised on this yet. It'll be the last thing to be done, practically.

- Some new features, which should be the first to actually make it to production in pinball machines, have been added to the machine very recently. Proof of concepts were in the machine I saw, and cabinet waiting for the soon to be finished second prototype. Can't say what, but they aren't something which will take endless revisions to reach production. Even if you don't like the iteration, the way it's being integrated ought to allow for retrofitting of community developed alternatives. Also, if it were looking likely to be a cause of any delay, it shouldn't stop production or shipping of games (my opinion), as they ought to be able to be easily shipped on their own or in bulk and installed by end users. There will be a lot of this technology in future games across the industry.

- Difficult to really get a sense of it when playing with glass off, cacophony of noise from factory floor, and blinding studio lights, but the sound package David Thiel is responsible for looks like it's going to be what most fans of the franchise would hope for.

- Animations and game UX still not finished / all hooked up. But what is there looks decent and it's definitely evocative of the universe and its style. Finished animations look great. Not quite JJP level, but embarrasses Stern and better than Full Throttle.

- Hundreds of sound clips lifted from the films (not sure how many video clips). The original (to the machine) voiceover work sounded good, of the little I heard - definitely not a TWD situation. Seemless and fits in well with the licensed property.

- Some of the shots feel good. Some ... well, playing half blind in studio lights wasn't easy. I do think shots from the upper right (3rd?) flipper shot will require some significant skill and timing.

- TONS of skillshots.

- No video mode. Likely a good thing ... might have been a nightmare to get Fox to approve, and would probably break immersion rather than enhancing it.

- Some feature elements (rather than effects) of the game's UX are rendered in real time and interactive. Took a long time to go back towards Pinball 2000. Game doesn't make heavy use of it. But there's scope for Heighway and others to do way more of this in future. I would guess, if Heighway do have one speculated cartoon franchise (I don't know), it would employ a great deal of it.

- I wasn't aware, but Heighway have moved on from custom ARM based boards to an Intel x86 processor and board. At a guess, more expensive, but they're not going to have any supplier issues if they can buy completely generic off the shelf parts. Also, long, long into the future, and well past the point of being supported, obtaining replacement parts or an entirely new computer shouldn't be too much of an issue.

- Development and conveyance to production status of future games should be expedited. The idea is to have some staff dedicated to each game.

Regarding Alien(s) itself. Per the above bullet points, it wasn't really possible to form much of an opinion about it from play due to the conditions and the ongoing filming. It needed some tuning, and there was a software bug, but those can be addressed - the latter probably swiftly once the games are with the American team in the flesh. What I was really concerned about was how the sound and any original speech used (if any) would turn out. I like it. Difficult not to smile at the promo video when played in a quieter office. It's typical(ly excellent) David Thiel work. A big feature was waiting on a board, so I didn't get to see it in action; its arrival is imminent. Cosmetically, except the brand new features I can't talk about, one toy (the one Fox want to look a little different) and some decals, it's done. So almost everything I saw above the playfield should be what you see when it's revealed. I.E. It's ready to see the light of day. Inserts' light show wasn't really in yet, but there was some potentially good news on that front which was added recently; shouldn't delay production, but may take some extra time to fully utilise in code as it ought to allow for more creativity. Fibre optic lighting will be on the left and right ramps that run parallel to the left and right side of the cabinet. This is both for LE and as a pay-extra upgrade. Wasn't in yet, but I think the work that took so long to complete it for Full Throttle should mean there are no issues. On the LE front, translite and side panel artwork will be LE exclusive. Wasn't 100% confirmed, but looks like the 27" backbox LCD is going to become standard. Hardly a surprise as this has been default for pre-orders through CoinTaker for some time now. Could increase the price of admission slightly, but this HAS to be done, imo. The translite and frame for it would require 6 (SIX!) versions with the original scheme of full translite, small LCD, large LCD and a Standard and LE model. 2 seems like a much more manageable number. Besides, it's a shame for spectators not to be able to see what's going on, and during more cinematic moments, the player's likely to enjoy a 27" screen more than the one in the pf. Also it seemed like a major point of confusion for people interested in Heighway's games. Removing that must be positive. If some features aren't fully working for Expo, or play is limited, I don't think that is or should be seen as evidence of a malaise, it just happens that the game has reached its approval state mere days before Expo.

Regarding production. Assuming approvals go through as quickly as expected, Andrew's still adamant that they can get a first small run of games out and shipped by the end of October. This does seem optimistic to me. But it is doable. They can definitely be built by then, but that depends on suppliers coming through with parts on time and in shippable standard; with all that's going on at the moment, there is acute awareness at Heighway of how vital QC is. But small numbers for the initial run oughtn't to be a big issue. Of course, there could be other unforeseen circumstances that delay things. However, whilst I expect this target to be missed, days and weeks are what we're talking in terms of delays, from what I've seen. That's only 4 weeks away now, and there would be no shame in running slightly past it. We should be able to say goodbye to the endlessly churning score reel of month after month of delays. When I said they were in the final furlong in the previous post, I really think they are. Code probably shouldn't be a worry, given that Full Throttle shipped in a reasonable state, has seen updates, continues to be developed, and most seem to agree that the code is good.

In terms of mass production, that is expected for November. Again dependent on parts, of course. I expect it may slip a little, and their ramp won't be as quick as they or their contemporaries at DP or JJP hoped and experienced. But I do think they're in a good position to enter mass production VERY SOON and with a minimum of potential operational pitfalls.

Lots of new labour, after new hiring, and until they set foot over the threshold of the facility, completely untrained for the required task labour, likely also devoid of any knowledge of pinball, could be a huge headache generally, and a nightmare as far as QC is concerned. But, per the earlier mention, they are cognisant of this.

People were sceptical about the claims of assembly man-hours for Heighway machines of less than half the average at Stern and JJP. However they appear to have done a fantastic job of simplifying the under playfield mechanisms and drastically reducing the amount of wiring (much of which is plug and play), boards, mechanisms, mountings and points of contact. Having seen what they've done, I'd be very surprised if their claims aren't accurate. The function of assembly should be a lot easier and less likely to result in damage than traditionally. So one would hope that QC and a ramp to volume production targets shouldn't be nearly as difficult as other recent examples. If Alien(s) is a huge hit, all this work should aid them in scaling up seamlessly.

Like many of you would be, given the history of continual delay and unrealistic schedules, I was braced for a series of red flags and the possibility that the game might be stuck in 'development hell'. However, I didn't see the former, and if it ever was in the latter, I don't see any evidence of it being extant. Indeed, while nothing is really ever certain, it looks like some kind of catastrophe would be needed to significantly derail production at this juncture. The first customers ought to receive their games pretty soon.

I know Andrew does and will think I'm unfair to cast mild doubt about their schedule, but they're at the end of a long, hard road on bringing Alien(s) to market. Development time, I think, has been wholly reasonable, it was just announced far too early and estimates were continually way-way off due to a combination of lack of experience, over-optimism and no doubt various unknowns. Any misses now shouldn't be a mark of shame, or a cause of huge consternation, hand wringing and tittle-tattle, they ought to be a rite of passage into becoming a volume manufacturer and just a normal if frustrating part of the management of a business of this type.

It's impossible to say how well the game will sell, but it looks to be in a decent place, and even in a market that's getting increasingly crowded, they have a unique selling point in the modular system that allows space starved collectors and operators to acquire new games, and with less onerous financial commitments. Moreover, its benefits should become more apparent, the closer to saturation the market gets. Like Alien(s), their upcoming two games are famous IPs, so it ought to bode well that they're able to obtain these from rightsholders.

Aside from hoping they'll succeed, I've tried to keep bias to a minimum - if something was highly personal or potentially exclusive to me and I liked or disliked it strongly, I tried to avoid it here. The visit was informative. Hopefully my account of what I saw and thought about it will be of use and interest to some of you.

TLDR if you're lazy. They're in a good place from an operational perspective, relative to starting mass production; a lot of the work they did on planning their system looks like it'll pay dividends. Alien(s) is pretty much done. Vast bulk of the work is behind them. Physical changes should be extremely minimal. Code should be close to going gold, hooking up all the media will be the biggest change. I was told a lot of the animations and UX were still placeholder, soon to be replaced, but they still looked good. If there are further delays, they should be very minor, at this stage. Couple of new features to be revealed at Expo. David Thiel seems like he's done another great job on the sound package. People will have games soon, barring calamity.

Rubberducks, i missed it and would like the context...

Who are you and how do you have all this info?

Nobody really. Had been meaning to go on a factory tour since January when I met Andrew at the arcade and amusements show in London. Either i couldn't come or it wasn't convenient. Last opportunity for a while was this week, which happened to be in the middle of the final approvals shoot.

It was gracious of Andrew to show me round and spend time chatting to me.

Full disclosure I suppose, I have a deposit down.

Optimistic but doable. But dependent on others.

It seems incredibly unlikely that production Alien pins will ship 30 days from now.

Thanks for the great informative post. I was not aware of all the substantial changes that Heighway had gone through regarding their facility and change of plans regarding making almost everything in house.

Well that's the main thing. They've done 99% of their work. Assuming approvals are smooth, they just need suppliers to deliver. Per the brief on what they've done to simplify things, I assume that has a positive effect as far as parts are concerned, too. Fewer of them and less potential bottlenecks in the production pipeline.

But you dictate what you do with those elements which saves time and money.

Waiting on FOX is fun though I'm sure.

Thanks for the clarification and the more detailed post a little later. I guess I read your first post a little fast and misunderstood some of what you wrote.

PS! My post was not meant as a complaint. More like I would want them to be sure it is ready before going public.

Anyway, it was stupid of me posting it. Of course Andrew knows what's best. I am really glad to hear that they are so close to the finish line. I have a strong feeling that I will love this one and I am very excited about the reveal.. whenever it comes.

Best of luck, Andrew

Just one more tiny advice. It would be a really smart move to release the Addon playfields first. Makes perfect sense to me at least

G-damn it, now I've got another pin I need to add to my wishlist... Looking forward to seeing the videos! What a crazy year

Wow, changing the architecture of the primary computer entirely.

Andrew, will this have any affect on us original Full Throttle owners looking to buy swap kits for future games? This makes it sound like we now have old, outdated hardware that will be very difficult to support in the future.

Damn, that was a nice essay. Pretty sure I learned things I didn't know from reading it even!

Good to hear Heighway is strengthening their hardware base.

Thanks for the state of the union assessment and high quality writeup rubberducks. Your investigative skills turned up a few surprises and the tone of the piece seemed both realistic and neutral.

Thanks Rubberducks! That was the most informative post I've read in 6 months. Greatly appreciated

I'd be willing to guess that the feature you described above is WiFi connectivity, but I honestly have no idea. If that's the case, it's a welcomed addition to modern pin production. Easy code updating, world leaderboards, tournaments, connecting with friends.....lots of potential....if that's what it turns out to be. Just my thoughts from reading that.

Standardizing the 27" backbox screen is also the right move. I've often wondered how they were going to have to design multiple translight art packages for the various build options, and anyone who's seen the big screen in person can agree on all the benefits it provides.

Keep up the good work Andrew. Sounds like you're positioned for future success & everything is finally coming together. Really looking forward to the Expo presentation

If I had money, I'd probably buy this.

Those early adopters helped keep the $$$ flowing in...

On making the 27" LCD standard. Really?

I completely understand making the 27" LCD a standard on route where it's constantly powered on throughout business hours and takes the form of an SE more often than not and panders to larger groups of people all around it and from across the room.

Assuming the LE models are going into homes and private collections where the pin will be off more than it is on, where it's part of the room decor, (or furniture, if I can call it that) I'm hoping the 27" LCD isn't standardized in the LE model where the pin ends up with an empty looking back box when not turned on.

I suspect/hope the LE buyers that pre-ordered are going to have a choice to opt out of a standardized 27" LCD and have the art there. Afterall, what's the point of the special 35th Aniversary back glass art if it's just going to be trim around a tv screen? Not much to celebrate there.

I know I may be in the minority but I've known what I wanted since the medium and large LCD screens were introduced as options. No medium or large video mirroring LCD's for me please. Call me nuts but I'm still all about the simplicity and innovation of the original concept idea from so so long ago.

I would go LE. It would be placed in a downstairs play room in my home. 6 people could crowd around it and see the playfield if they just had to all watch at once. More than 6 people? Patience, wait your turn, it's not going anywhere.

I suspect there will be some beautiful animations and video clips from the movies that will look just spectacular on that huge 27" screen. I'll miss out on that. But I already know that after I've owned and played the pin for a year and watched all those goo gaas and doo dads a million times before I won't be looking up there anymore, I'll be concentrating on the playfield and planning out what I'm going to do next. The 27" spectical just doesn't outweigh a beautiful lump of Limited Edition furniture IMO.

I plan on throwing the translite back on when I'm not playing it and off when I am.
But then again I'm a huge dork.

And that is an elegant solution. My only concern is if we don't get that choice - the 27" LCD becomes standard take it or leave it and the LE back glass art ends up being decorative trim around the 27" screen and not a full piece of 35th Aniversary back glass art. Boo Hiss I would say.

My WOZ doesn't seem to suffer from ugliness when turned off due to a large backbox monitor ...

I don't know for sure what will happen, but it's total madness not to standardise. It's easier, cheaper and less confusing for all parties, broadly speaking. Of course some people will be dissatisfied, but that will be the case no matter what.

I do understand the difficulties of what your stating as for as the manufacturing goes. But what is an LE after all? To me an LE means all the bells and whistles. Give the LE buyers the full back glass art piece parts to exhange out as shwarz just stated. There would only be 2 manufactured swapping possibilities in this scenario if the 27" LCD becomes mandatory/standard right?

I believe Andrew has stated how easy it is to go back and forth between the 2 possibilities in this very thread.

...or maybe it was in a Full Throttle thread?

It's a translite. But regardless of backglass or translite, the LE and Standard artwork will not be the same, and can be swapped out if and when you buy future kits.

They'll probably have to make a few full translites for old FT customers, regardless, but it seems crazy to continue offering options that just make their lives more difficult.

Also, on Alien(s) the monitor is a lot more alive, be it with video clips from the movies, animations, interactive elements or just generally much better scoring and gaming information than Full Throttle. I don't expect it to become less alive in future titles. If you don't change your mind, I suspect others currently thinking the same will quite quickly.

Edit: misunderstood you. I think both versions of the translite are intended to ship with the LEs, so I guess you might be able to ask for LE LCD / LE full, but then a lot of people would probably do that and sell one, which they might not want. Guess we'll see when the options list is declared at Expo.

Good points. What would please me most is what was originally introduced with the Alien pin. The 2 art translites (thank you). No Back box LCD's.

We'll wait and see.

I had thought the same thing with my FT, but once I got it home, I never did. I looks just fine when it is off. Same thing with WOZ & TH, they look fine too.

Your dorkness is not as huge as mine dear sir, neither is your schwarz.

As a Full Throttle owner, I've had the small dmd size lcd first, before it was replaced with the 27". The 27" is just a superior experience and it made the entire machine look next generation. I can't be bothered or consider how the game looks dark.

right...looks fine next to "traditional" games when off.

With regards to the translight and LCD monitor... I thought this is where JJP did a nice job incorporating both together.

I agree with you rubberducks that making so many options available makes their lives more difficult. Of course it's up to them to simplify it and with time I'm sure they will. I think what they are doing right now is spot on in order to build their customer following/buyers.

If they include the both translights with my LE order I'll be stoked, but I know I would never worry about changing out the LCD and replace it with a translight...it's just too much trouble to worry about covering the black screen. I owned a WOZ for a year and can say the dark screen never bugged me. When the games were off it usually meant not I or anyone else were playing games. Maybe different for games on route...but assume those are always on so not a big deal either.

May the schwar(t)z be with you.

Not sure why you are getting down voted for politely stating your opinion, but I'd tend to agree with everyone else that for the vast majority of people the large screen is the way to go. Maybe there will be a way the place the backglass over top of the lcd when it's turned off?

Because when you down vote a post, it means you don't agree with it. What's wrong with disagreeing with someone's opinion?

Ditto, except I have a WOZECLE, no FT (yet). Would never downvote anyone for not wanting the larger screen, but can tell you when the machines are on, the screen looks killer (suspect the immersive nature of alien will further that experience). When the machines are dark, it still looks fine (there is a Artwork, just smaller), and I don't really care when they're off, anyway.........

disagree

I only down vote when someone is saying something stupid, disrespectful or stating something for a fact when it is clearly wrong. And even in those circumstances I try to keep it at a minimum.

Down votes can affect people differently, some don't care, others will get hurt.

If I where to down vote everything I disagree with, I would not be doing much else

Me too, accept in rare cases like my above downvote to Wickerman's post above which just struck me as a humorous appropriate response.

That being said, a downvote is supposed to mean "disagreement" so I try not to take offense when people downvote my posts.

too easy

(troll post removed)

What a way for a first post...........

Sounds like a troll to me.

more asinine bullshit from a suspicious "new" user

Should be easy enough to check out....

also...spellcheck

It's a repost of something someone posted on RGP.

well, the 8 or 9 people on RGP are being misinformed I think