I exchanged emails with Helmut Langenbruch at Heighway today. He is wanting to prepare a quote for me for a Zotac mini PC replacement for my Full Throttle's broken utilite.

Which would make me believe three things
- some of the old guard are still there, great news!
-they are trying to help us FTh guys out right away
-the FTh software can, at this moment, already run off of the current Alien generation Zotac mini PC - has been successfully transferred

I will let the forum know once Helmut confirmed that they are ready to ship, that is when I will finalize the order.

My pulse has come down a hair, this is finally some good news for me. I did not buy NIB from Heighway direct but rather from their US distributor, but Heighway are now following up, which is great.

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Always glad to help. Just ask.

My favorite part of the game so far is activating the "Sentry Guns" while in "Ambush Multiball". So crazy with all of the sentry guns firing and the red lights everywhere.

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No problem Dustin
Thanks for the offer Mr68,but we got this.
He is only three or so hours away,lol.

P.S. Dustin is making me a beacon mod for mine,looks cool so far

To follow up, Helmut contacted me today, and its a known issue - he sent instructions for changes you have to make to the bios, game is working great now

Special thanks to the US team, great guys.

awesome news!!!

Helmut rocks!

U know that could be taken the wrong way.

That's great news libtech~! And while we all wait for even more good news from Heighway, here's a few more pics of Alien I took while playing last night. ...the game is FUN, and I think it still looks bad-ass even without the playfield LCD and a few lights working.

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Man I hope this ship gets righted. I'm not a Serious Pin Collector, but I hope I own this game some day.

I've been really happy to hear reports recently of some people getting refunds, some people getting their games. I personally feel the new investors/managers are making all the right moves to get things settled; it won't happen overnight, but I think it's happening. I'd love to see everyone get their games ASAP, but I certainly understand those who want to get their cash and run. I hope everyone winds up with what they want.

But I have very little special insight about what's happening in the Wales factory ... so I thought I'd share a few thoughts on what's happening on the software side of Alien. LOTS! Our Slack channels and to-do list have been hopping with more activity in the past couple weeks than in the past couple months. daudioguy got a game into his studio last week, and since then he's tuned or added ~50 sound effects and callouts. We've got new Game Over callouts (yes, we know already, Not Bad For A Human!), tweaked scoring rules, better choreography, bug fixes... and much more on the way. We're all excited to make sure the software shines as much as possible when people do get their games.

To that point: in recent weeks, as more people have played the game at shows and private homes, I've seen comments like "the software seems almost complete". That's... almost great! If you've played the game and have feedback, please don't hesitate to tell us (either publicly or by PM) what about the software didn't work for you or seems incomplete. I know what *our* to-do list is, but if there's something in the software that didn't feel awesome to *you*, let us know about it. No promises of anything, but we'll definitely consider all feedback.

Thanks! And if you're able to play the game, I hope you have a great time with it.

Are you getting paid for doing the software?

are u his agent?!

I think he is alluding to the fact Aurich was supposed to be getting payment (in the form of a machine) + percentage of machines sold.

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/alien-pinball-official-game-thread/page/298#post-3800533
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/rebirth-of-heighway-pinball/page/13#post-3809397

It is sad and disgusting what so many of you are insinuating regarding the team that worked to put this game together!

I suggest taking a step back and realizing that they are not schilling for a game so they can get paid. If anything they have all been the opposite and have been open about the situation and provided insight to others that may feel left out of the communication loop.

These guys are all first and foremost pinheads and have so much passion that they have been working for free in many cases. They have so much passion and desire to help that they made arrangements to NOT get paid unless the game does well and actually sells. Many of them take payment of an actual game and pennies for the time they put in. Please take a moment to reflect on the reality of this situation and stop attacking your fellow pinheads. If anything you should be supporting them and commending them for their hard work to get the game this far, their passion to keep pinball alive and keep it moving forward, and their willingness to come here and provide info when they are able.

They are all super genuine guys in real life and frankly some of you are being HUGE dbags to them.

Wow Hilton you need to chill. I didn't see any "insinuation" at all, just quoting the fact that Aurich has stated he hasn't been paid yet. That is a fact, nothing more, nothing less. I believe he'll get paid.

you need to also respect that there are a few people that have either never had money in, have already gotten funds back, or purposefully are in every HP thread on a daily basis trying to constantly stir for the drama effect only. When these same people go out of their way to attack the character of people that dont deserve it then frankly it pisses me off. This is not about 1 question... This is constant pot stirring from the same handful of people. They need to get off their loser butts and do something constructive for pinball if they want any leg to stand on when attacking these developers that are not even remotely part fo the problem.

We all need to also keep in mind that ANYONE that paid even a penny over the 1k deposit needs (on their own and so long as not lied to about game being ready to ship) to take on some blame in this situation. These people opted to pay in more than needed for their own personal reasons (jump the line, get a game sooner, etc...) but those funds enabled this all to go on/ go on longer. So sick of all the people in this hobby taking no personal accountability for anything in life.

Lets face it, at this stage in pinball if you pay anything for a game in advance then that risk is on you. If you pay anything more than a nominal deposit then you are enabling a situation (good or bad; that is your decision but you automatically take some ownership of the situation once you pay more than deposit).

Want to be mad at someone, be mad at Andrew. Be mad at new managment team as they are now the new Andrew and took on that finacial risk and potential reward. However, dont be mad at the guys that worked for free at this stage and put in countless hours for the love of pinball. Attacking their character will not stand man.

THIS is why I'm anxious to get my updated Xeno mech and LED lighting. I'm stuck on ver 0.94 until I get new hardware. ...and I'm honestly more excited about the new code than I am to see the xeno eat the ball.

"Want to be mad at someone, be mad at Andrew. Be mad at new development team as they are now the new Andrew and took on that finacial risk and potential reward. However, dont be mad at the guys that worked for free at this stage and put in countless hours for the love of pinball. Attacking their character will not stand man."

Well said. Except I think you meant to say, 'be mad at the new management team...'
Andrew is the one that deserves the most scorn. He took deposits/payments late in the game when he knew their was no chance he could deliver the games. I bought a Full Throttle while waiting for my Alien. Haven't seen jack.

correct. I meant new managment team

The people told their game was shipping and it was time to send their money in? After being shown photos of other customer games being shipped from the factory?

There was straight up deceit happening towards the end here. And likely some time before the end, sadly.

That is sad. I had not heard that.

Everything I read is from people that paid in full in order to jump the line. I did not know that people were told their game was ready to ship and full paymnet needed. Obviously those people done deserve the ownership of those that opted to send in more than 1k on their own accord or for their own potential benefit.

Wow, you seem to be the perfect life coach [sarcasm off]

But obviously you make statements even not knowing the context of the story. Think before you talk.

No alien to play with yet.

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What they should have done was send out a letter to buyers

Giving people an option

If you wish to stay in the new refundable deposit is $250 to max $1000
Refunding the difference already paid.

If you want them to keep full payment and are happy to do so that's fine as well

Or 3 refund in full

They would get a ton more orders and show the investors and banks they have orders on games.

Even I would order a container if they were the terms

WTF. I asked a simple question because I don't know what the incentive is for anybody to be working on the game presently. I was not insuating anything.

Wow, you guys sure are reading things into a generic and sincere question:

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I'm just wondering what business it is of yours? are you a full paid or just a deposit customer? and why would he have to tell you if/what he is being paid? sincere question.

I understood what you meant.

Jesus Christ, some people around here.

It affects just about everybody in pinball what happens to these pinball manufacturers. If games get made then great. If not then then that is lost money in the hobby that will not be going to the manufacturers that are surviving and also possibly causing people to drop out of the hobby over disgust. The less people in the hobby the less the games are in demand.

I guarantee you if I contacted Heighway and got a job building pinball mechs there and posted about it here, many people here would be asking me if I was getting paid because they would be curious what incentive I had to work there?

I doubt that they are getting paid much right now if at all, we should be thanking them for continuing to work on the game, this way in the event Highway fails, at least the games that do get built will have great code and sounds.

Completely agree. People do things for their own reasons, and see zero relevance to why the company is in the state it's in. Aurich gone from here, now I'm sure Ferret will be hesitant to post, as well. If/ how much compensation is given to an employee is between them and their employer. F**king rude question, period.

I'm out of pinside for awhile (at least)....really turning south for me. Love pinball, Hate this shit......

Just so we are clear, what *exactly* did you think I was insinuating that was so negative toward the team?

Nobody asked how much.

The only reason it was brought up in the first place was that there's been a few staff members now who have felt 'short changed' by the business under Andys rule. Personally, I don't think that the comment asking if he had been rewarded was a dig at them, quite the opposite. They wanted to make sure they had been rewarded for their hardwork.

I should also add, if Ferret is continuing to do the software as a job then I sincerely hope he is being compensated or has already been compensated. If he is doing it for the love of the game or pinball in general then I applaud him for his service to the hobby.

either way it's NONE of your business. how much are compensated for your efforts at work? you also didn't answer if you paid in full or just a deposit! So I'll assume neither and you're talking out your ass. Sonny_Jim is now the self appointed voice of the "short changed" staff members?! who the hell asked you to do that!? this thread is asinine! I come here in hopes of hearing news on alien pinball, not a bit of dip shits talking out their ass about shit they know nothing about!

Once again, nobody asked how much.

Anyway, my compensation for my job is public record, FOIA.

I think you might be onto something.

Well. When I posted that last night, I certainly didn't envision it turning into a lengthy discussion of my paycheck...

I am a professional software developer. Writing code and getting paid for doing so is how I pay my bills. Last I looked, the lights are still working, and if this message goes through, my ISP bill is also paid up. There is no need for any of y'all to worry about my financial status.

Unless the new investment/management team at Heighway Pinball decides to terminate my contract (and I have no reason to believe that's imminent), I intend to do everything I can to make Alien's software the best it can be.

Thanks for the answer...now we can all shut up...

New Heighway Logo (The Money Representing the Cash Infusion Investments)

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Ferret - the old company was called Heighway Pinball LLC (HP) - same as the reorganized one - right? I am asking because if you were contracted under HP and the new company had changed names, then you wouldn't still be under contract as you've stated. Of course neither would the new Owners be expected to automatically inherit the Alien(s) license to make pinball machines without additional steps. Pretty sure it is accurate to say the new company is still called Heighway Pinball LLC, and since you are intimately involved, can you confirm this is your understanding too?

On the question of whether you are compensated, a company will typically not issue the latest software or software updates if it owes the software developer for work. Primarily this is in regards to a hostile situation between parties. I am glad you are continuing to work on the software and are making significant progress. Hoping you are/will be compensated and that software updates flow. Some of us would have heartburn enjoying a game knowing that the creditors (vendors who did the work) got stiffed (see J-POP saga).

Deep State?