i dont regularly come on pinside but do read this post
reading some posts on here i do wonder why coin taker put up with lie after lie from hp and dont just bin them off i see some weeks ago ct where told they had shipped but not excuse down to the weather i then see another post they would ship friday i now see a pic of the factory and they are still there its sunday here in the uk today oh another lie why cant hp be honest or just say nothing the pic only shows around 13 in the box and others i various states around the factory 21 isnt even a full container so that is not very cost affective

you may be right. reading the UK facing pinball forums, at least for now, people have grown disenchanted with Heighway. The price hikes were not well received. While limited, the posts over there do not indicate people are waiting for a prepaid games.

Something i do find hard to comprehend is that delt31 [US customer] says he put down a SE deposit with CT only 10 days ago and talks as if he is expecting to pick up one of the 25 games from the forthcoming shipment. if true, that would be disconcerting for the actual number of presold SE Aliens here in the US. are there really only <25 people still in on a preordered SE?

"We'll be making 100 per month starting August". Halfway thru September and they manage 21? Got to be pretty gullible to take anything said by them as fact.

Yes I am getting one from CT in their initial batch of 21. I believe it was more than 10 days ago but still dinner in September. I'm sure many dropped for to the delays.

Delays are understandable. Most dropped due to false promises.

"Yours will be one of the very first produced..."

"First larger batch of 25 built. Some still need to go through QC." Let's repeat... "Some still need to go through QC". In other words... they were not packed yet. Sheesh! Damned if they do, damned if they don't.

I like how you put that in quotes as if that's what they actually stated.

And another pre-order customer is born wondering what the fuss is all about with pre-orders.

I saw that Heighway Pinball updated their address on FB and their website. Did they move the facility?

In quotes as "I" am not the "we". here's what they actually stated.

We are pleased to announce that our game Alien Pinball is now in full production. We aim to start shipping games out in numbers on August 14 and onwards.

Better than a basement or empty warehouse....how many and when?....anybodys guess....

I'll take this over the alternative I suppose. I'm more sad, than pissed, actually....alot of good pinsiders have bailed over the years of bs that has been given. Cant blame them at all.

We ALL were super excited for this to happen...Im sort of in a "whatever" state until this ends, one way or the other.....gonna have to be alot of healing time for the communiry even if the game rocks..

Am I the only one that thinks one year from now it will be a completely different picture, Alien will be a top 5 pin, that people (including naysayers) will be scrambling to buy and play?

No I totally agree

Also, it seems that the code from Alien is relatively finished, which is a nice change from some other manufacturers. I'd rather have a game that the manufacturer works on properly, does due diligence, and releases quality, than just gets the game out the door, and the code is never complete. I think Ghostbusters' wizard mode still isn't finished.

I hope I'm one scrambling for it - but not taking a chance now. I'll let the company and pin prove itself first...

I've been saying this everywhere I can. No question. So many people don't even think about this game bc of all this drama but those that know the secret is out

I would say that all of us believe this, or wouldn't still be in. Now may not be the best time to be a fanboy ( hint to a couple new to thread sharing " info" that's been out there for some time now). Someone suggesting reading this thread to understand why....I couldn't agree more. This has been a LOONG journey for some. But an excellent pin awaits...when they start showing up in the wild, you are spot on.

AlienLE212 at my door before Christmas ( my hope)!!!!

Yup, ALIEN will never eeever be a top 10 pin.

People will still seek to play it because it's rare and the vast majority will not have played it yet still.

Alien / Widebody game fans will seek it mostly.

None of us " know" yet. You posted your machine is first in line, already shipped w PDI. I sincerely admire your enthusiasm, but there are others that knew games hadn't shipped at all yet, much less w Roman glass ( they just reached out to him last week). This I " know" because Roman himself told me when I inquired.

Tempered enthusiasm is best.... I've had my spot ready for over 2 years..( hell, changed my Avatar almost 3 years ago).

This game is no secret......

Your optimism is refreshing but u need to read a few more pages in this thread! You can't join this conversation and think pumping peeps tires is gonna win over the skeptics! 2 weeks ago u wanted to buy someone's spot in the prepaid line.. this week you're receiving one of the 1st pins shipped! Curious if you actually get one of the "21" shipped pins next week!

MKPIN - I'm not even sure what to say to you. I'm just excited for the pin and simply relaying back to others what I've been told. It's called helping the thread. And yes - others do "know" it's good b/c they've played it and are now buying it (like me).

For those doubting I'm getting one of the first ones, that is what I was told by CT. Again just relaying back to what I was told.

Holy shit at the amount of sensitivity in this thread. I didn't know this was the pinball wives of Beverly Hills.

Delt31- I'm not " sensitive" at all. Just suggesting to chill a bit. Maybe some don't see it as " helping the thread" when you convey some info as " fact" ( place in line, glass, shipping, etc.) when it's more speculative.

There are many that have been promised many things, and possibly a few that still haven't got their requested refunds back yet.

I'm with you, and very sincere when I say that. Hopefully we will all be playing our games soon. All good...

Sure - when you say facts though, I'm just telling people what I've been told myself. Never said anything else. I agree though - we're all looking forward to owning one.

Ok....you added this after I responded to your post. I'm done suggesting, beyond saying this does NOT help the vibe of the thread .....good luck on some the replies you are going to get to that comment.

that's fine with me. Kind of sick of people putting down others who are just listing what they've been told especially when they're doing it just to help out the group.

And I was told my LE wold be in my basement by March 31st of this year ("The first ones are finally shipping"). That caused me to accelerate other things so I could have my Alien Day party on 4/26. That didn't happen.

I was also told my LE would be "In the first container". That didn't happen.

I was told "You'll have it in 30 days". That one got me excited, because suddenly I was looking at the possibility that my AFMr and my Alien would show up ON THE SAME DAY. The AFMr has almost a thousand plays on it now.

So while I admire your enthusiasm, there isn't a great track record for what people are told and what actually happens.

Now, I'm trying to figure out if CGC "Game #3" will be in my basement before Alien (I actually doubt it. ).

Got that big Alien bombshell ready to drop on us yet?

You're right - and I very well could be in the same boat but it's the only thing I know right now. Never said I guaranteed I'm getting 1 from the first 21. I will say that if CT renages on what they're saying (and I'm actually not in the first 21), I'm dropping out b/c that would be deceitful. I don't think that's the case though. Call me naive but I've dealt with CT before and it's been on the up and up. I have faith they are pulling through here. If not, lesson learned and I drop out and get my 1k from CT.

they are trying to help temper your expectations and enthusiasm a bit. The game has been "almost" shipping for literally a year unfortunately.

Yes, thanks for reminding, greenhornet when are you going to share your thoughts? I'm looking forward.

Let's change the discussion. To those that have played do you have a favorite Alien/Aliens mode and a least favorite one? Why?

Not only that, some defy the space time continuum. As reported, two weeks ago the container had shipped and was being delayed by storms. Then, one week ago the container was promised to ship no later than last Friday. Now, plans point to container shipping this week. When it does, there will likely be pics and we'll be tracking it here closely.

I agree - it seems that the facebook page is the best tracking mechanism here.

I like ambush but I'm not sure exactly how to beat it. Do the dots on the mini map (aliens coming to you) represent the shots on the PF? And if so, is there a blinking light on the PF itself to show which ones are the dots or are you just expected to line them up based on the mini map (aka screen built into the PF).

I don't doubt you at all. I'm just confused how you placed your order less than two weeks ago and you're somehow on the first container shipment.

I mean, I'm happy for you but I find this a very odd occurrence. Is my information incorrect or am I missing something?

I put a deposit on an LE in early March, and just sent an email today, requesting to begin the refund process. I ordered directly from Heighway, and added the 27" LCD and airfreight shipping, so I have $2,400 down. We'll see how this goes, and I'll update the progress in this thread.

I've played a few games on Alien, and I think it has potential to be a great pin. However, there are proven companies with some great pins that I'd rather own. I certainly hope that Heighway is successful, and that Alien sells in large quantities. If so, perhaps I'll pick one up on the used market some day.

did heighway post what their decision was going to be about the EL wire's?

probably gonna be a while before they start shipping LE's anyway. I hope they start pumping these out in numbers soon.

According to Melissa - she got me into the first shipment of 21. Info is correct.

We handed over this weekend an Alien Standard Game with 27" Screen to the Flippnic Club near Graz (Austria).

The machine was unboxed during the Austrian Pinball Open 2017 (APO17) and most of the people had several games on it, because it was set to Freeplay.

During the Side Tournament final it was also played and Krisztián Szalai made a great 99,5 mio Game on it.
You can find the video on our Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/rspinball/) There are also a lot of other picture of the event and unboxing etc.

The Video will be uploaded soon to Youtube and then you will see it in better quality.

BR Stefan
Ps.: Next week an Alien Standard will be also at the Badische Flippermeisterschaft in Germany

21740527_504286123253234_1415012003635081056_n (resized).jpg

Excellent, you are a very fortunate man. Please be sure to post pictures in this thread of your unboxing.

Did you order direct from heighway or a distributor?

really looking forward to this pin being available, glad to be out from the whole pre-order thing but once its in stock I won't be able to resist buying one, it looks and sounds quite amazing in that video.

That video is amazing. Got me all hyped up. The bass was coming through surprisingly well.

I was going to buy one, but they increased the price by 40% and forced buyers to buy via a well-known expensive distributor i.e. I can't go to UK factory anymore. I was quite excited as a UK person to have a UK pinball manufacturer, and had a fantasy to turn up in a van to pick up my Alien, but somehow these guys have managed to kill all that. Incredible really. So now they are more expensive than Stern, despite Stern being imported from US and UK import taxes being 20%. That is a level of greed that deserves a Sheen movie.

It will be interesting to see what sales they achieve at the new price point, but to be blunt I think they've killed the company. They've lost my custom, and I'm sure most others. Hey ho. Plenty more fish in the sea, I guess.

the company was dead prior to their arrival on the scene...they have at least given it a chance to hopefully find it's footing. Let's all glass half full it ya bunch of negative nancys

Good vibes all around and the Universe might listen.

Good Luck....There are many others that have been waiting a lot longer for their pin, and you want one of the first 21 shipped....not sure how that works, but good luck....

Brian

To begin with I very much doubt they have sold that many in the UK. The market here for NIB is *small*

Also amongst the hardcore pin crowd most have given up/lost all faith in Heighway pinball. Nobody is really talking about it anymore .The few that I know that did have orders bailed out some time ago. Doesn't help that here in the UK we are now being asked to buy through a middle man at hugely jacked up price.

https://www.homeleisuredirect.com/pinball-machines/new-pinball-machines/alien-pinball-machine.html

Currently GB£7500 ......which is approx US$10100

Not to mention this game is worth 20% more than any Stern I've ever seen (yes including their LE's). When you look at the features, the maturity of the code and the unbelievable sound integration it's a no-brainer value over a Stern game....and I like Stern games.

This is how it worked for me.

Me: can I reserve Alien still?
Melissa from Cointaker: Yes - I'm getting 21 soon. 1k down is all I need. Will be ready to be picked up in September and full payment expected then.
Me: Great here is my 1k.