A nice spinner shot with appropriate sound effects could really add to the sensation of running away...

Things weren't so quiet when Aurich was posting.

I wonder how the LE artwork is coming along???

Just wanted to mention that I played Full Throttle on the weekend at the YEGpin show in Edmonton. I've played the game before so nothing new to report there (fast & fun, I don't dig the artwork), however, the full size display in the backglass is really nice. Sharp and bright and *really* dark blacks, like plasma TV blacks, which should bode well for a dark theme like Alien.

If you ordered it you won't be disappointed.

Yeah, having recently seen the screen on a Full Throttle I was really impressed by the picture quality, colors really popped and the blacks seemed super "plasma like" black. Really nice!

That's because the machine was calibrated for men, wasn't it? Men don't need at that mamby-pamby sewing of the abdominal wall, just a few cosmetic staples to keep our guts from falling out and we're good to go!

Fools! The real Alien reveal will be happening at the Vancouver Flipout Pinball Expo on Sept. 23rd!

http://www.vancouverflipout.com/speakers

...okay probably not, but a guy can hope for some super-secret info drop though, right?

You need to pick up one of these: FK403-Left-890 (resized).jpg

http://matias.ca/ergopro/pc/

I've been using mine for over a year now and couldn't live without it. Once you experience the joy of a split keyboard you'll never want to go back! I use the Mac variant.

...unless, of course, you do a lot of one-handed keyboarding while working a tablet with the other...

Soooo it's maybe looking like a big reveal could happen as soon as next weekend (Sept. 24th) at the Vancouver FlipOut Expo!

(http://www.vancouverflipout.com/)

...Ah crud! I just noticed that Andrew is no longer on the Speakers page (he was until recently).

I get that folks have been waiting a long time for this game but it is far more important "what" they show than "when" they show it. They only get one chance to grab the spotlight and a full reveal with everything as final and solid as they can make it is in their best interests.

They wouldn't want the post-reveal discussion to be centered around something relatively inconsequential to the big picture by showing something unfinished or rough ( eg. "yeah, but the giant space monster didn't work very well...", etc.)

Just look at momentum The Big Lebowski lost between their stunning reveal and when games started shipping. Everyone knows Alien is coming anyway, so if I were them I'd save the reveal until they were ready to start shipping games imminently.

As far as competition goes, there will always be other games freshly released to compete against so I don't see it as that relevant. ...though an overpriced rehashed B level game with a 50 year old super-hero theme, from a company that seems to have lost the ability to ship games without defective playfields probably does feel like a tempting opportunity!

I'd say that Full Throttle generally impresses those who get a chance to play it, and that without having played the game the theme (for us Americans, anyway), and artwork aren't so compelling to stimulate a sight-unplayed(?) purchase, (similar to Dialed In). The other challenge is it's the first game from a new company, so no positive history or famous designer to market it with.

So, given these realities, it was always going to be a slow burn, with sales gradually increasing as more people play it and Heighway develops a positive reputation. If Alien is as successful as it seems poised to be I would expect a fair mumber of new Alien owners to pickup FT (probably even in kit form ) over time, so in that sense it still has sales "legs" going forward, IMHO.

No, all I'm saying is the more popular Alien ultimately becomes the more Full Throttles Heighway will sell as well.

Not everyone goes to shows, they wait until someone they know or a nearby location has a game to really try it out. Plus, if they have a positive experience with Alien picking up another game as a kit for a lot less than NIB Stern, etc. would make sense, vs. buying it as a complete game.

What you wore out that Metallica already??

I also feel like this game wants me bring it home...

Not sure what to make of the audio in this clip, since it seems to contain movie clips that aren't actually used in the game (?), so maybe doesn't reflect the actual in game sound effects, etc.

Anyway, I hope the spinner makes an awesome sound(s) and isn't ignored, or worse yet, annoying and lame (I'm looking at you RBION!).

Yeah, the way the video was cut I wasn't sure the clips were directly from the game.

But I didn't hear any specific sound effect when the spinner was hit so that's what prompted the comment. Probably just a side-effect of how the video was put together.

This is awesome news!

One of my favorite shots is ripping the spinner in Black Knight. But way better is ripping the lit spinner in BK with its glorious early 80s Williams algorithmic digital sound!

...pure heaven is ripping the lit spinner in BK so hard that the sound effect "wraps around" from the highest pitch back to the lowest one. That is one of the simpliest but most enjoyable things that can happen in pinball.

The way I look at it, we've all been waiting *30 years* for this game, what's another month or two?

Enormously thick playfield protector on every LE - confirmed!

C'mon guys. In life, the anticipation is almost more fun than the realization anyway.

I'm sure we'll see Alien shipping soonish, but getting cranky about it isn't going to change anything.

Hey, I said "almost"!

Yeah, but that was Batman, totally fake and not real like Alien...

I think having one beacon in the middle would look better and less like little antlers. But really, WGaF, let's play the game already!

Yeah, but where's the queen...

Too late! They made the one they planned on making already...

I'm sure they'll make as many SE's as they can sell for a couple of years to come, anyway. I hope they sell 10K of them - love what they're doing!

Shiny / Jet black would be my choice.

There is enough going on with the art package in this game and lighting it doesn't need eye popping rails, etc. Plus black would "hide" the otherwise more noticeable bezel around the top of the glass a little better, look classy, and would work for any future Heighway game kit that you might drop in.

Though I will say that when I saw the brilliant red Full Throttle cabinet, with the glossy black bezel and legs, for the first time it was stunning. So, yeah, still glossy black.

full-throttle-limited-2 (resized).jpg

I have to say, after revisiting the Heighway site yesterday, the information could be presented a lot clearer, plus a lot of it is old. The chart that was posted here isn't even on their site, from what I could find. Kind of a hindrence to people looking to make a quick purchase decision.

Of course, I'd rather they build more games right now myself if that is the choice, but I can't fault folks for asking the same questions over and over after seeing how they are presenting things.

Here's a pic I stole from the http://www.heighwaypinball.com/alien/ page...

alien1 (resized).png

Yes, because that's what "fingers crossed" means...

Just everyone being eager and hopeful. No official statement one way or the other from Heighway AFAIK. I'm sure they'll show as soon as they can.

Love the heavy duty "service bars" on these playfields! Love the large subwoofer! And absolutely love the real knocker!

Pinball is back baby!

Are you sure that little "euro-truck" is rated for that load?

Congrats guys! This feels like the early stages of something big.

If I were as uncomfortable with pre-order as you appear to be (rightly IMHO, due to the unfortunate situations with Zidware, DP), I'd simply wait and see how things unfold in terms of the production ramp-up, etc.

Doesn't matter what Andrew says at the end of the day (and I have nothing but admiration for what Andrew and the Heighway team are doing), the only thing you can "bank" on is seeing games being delivered in a timely manner and at an ever-increasing rate to thrilled customers.

If you must have an LE, then a min. deposit to a distributor is the safest option. By the time your full payment is due there should be ample evidence of volume delivery, I would think. If things went completely off the rails for some reason, your deposit should be refundable by the distributor.

Or just wait and pick up an SE when they are widely available. Anticipation is half the fun.

I'm sure that Fox's "Alien" marketing dept. is pretty swamped due to the new movie coming out and all the associated marketing initiatives that must entail, that a pinball project would reasonably be considered lower priority.

Here's hoping they make it happen for you guys, but either way, love what I'm seeing of the game and looking forward to playing one soon!

You sure seem to *know* a lot! So what IS going on here? Do tell...

A few (2 or 3) more Alien games will be in Edmonton at the Yegpin (http://www.yegpin.com/) show this weekend, and going home with customers afterwards. So there are games going out, just not hundreds.

I didn't really expect them to ramp to large quantities quickly, I've yet to see any pinball manufacturer achieve this without a significant amount of time to do so. Just the nature of the beast I think. Too many (literally) moving parts to expect mass production to be achieved quickly. It's one thing if you have an established operation already rolling, but something else to ramp up from a small number of games being made to a larger one.

Patience is the key. I'm sure more and more games will be going out over time, just not 0-60 in 8 weeks flat.

Hey, the one I put up is!

Ah, well, what can you expect from crufty old hardware that's been floating in space for so long, neglected...

I think a glitchy computer fits the theme perfectly.

Seriously, awesome that you are here and responding to issues and suggestions!

Was fortunate enough to get some quality time on pingod and libtech ’s Alien machines at YegPin on the weekend. Played probably 10 games on Friday just hours after they came out of the box(es). Was especially awesome playing against friends during the late-night VIP party where the house lights were lowered, music was pumping, and beverages were flowing - lucky us!

Since these were just unboxed, being played uncalibrated on a show-room floor, ability to hear varied between a little to not at all (due to loud show conditions, not the game), and didn’t have the Xeno head installed, I will reserve final judgements until I can play the game in a controlled setting, fully equipped, etc.

Initial Impressions:

I really like the cabinet, it looks and feels industrial strength. Side blade lighting and side cabinet lighting is really great in a darker room. I like the refined details like the recessed legs and the industrial looking plates. The glass bezel really frames the playfield and provides an extra level of security when you pull the glass against accidental shattering.

The game feels really solid, when the slingshots fire, for example, you feel it, but nothing like the cabinet thumping that you get from a recent Stern game. I would wager these cabinets may be virtually indestructible and are definitely built to last many years with different games installed in them. I get why traditionalists won’t like them at first, but I think playing on one would grow on most people, it feels really good to me.

The 27” backbox screen is completely extraneous from a player’s perspective, when I’m playing I rarely have time to look up and all the information is right there on the playfield, which is a great approach IMHO. However, for people watching the game, or if the game was on location, the large backbox screen is amazing! Feels huge when you are right in front of it, and really grabs your eye from a further distance out. Animations and effects are fantastic as well, they’ve done a great job of it.

But how does it shoot? I was able to make all the shots in the game while I played and once you get some flow going with successive shots it really speeds up fast. However, it is definitely a wide-body game and it is also easy to brick a lot if you aren’t on the mark. It actually reminds me of STTNG a bit, in that if you are off your game (or the game isn’t setup well) you will may have a tough go of it being unable to make the shots, but on a properly setup game and a little skill/experience on the game you will have an amazing good time. The game has a ton of shots from different angles. I think it would offer a lot of depth in a collection as it would take some time to master them all, which is a plus in my book. When I was playing well on Friday night I found the ball times quite long, actually, so not a real drainfest. It’s not looking to rob your ball at every turn like a GB.

What I really enjoyed about the playfield is the way the shots can be so counter-intuitive to most other games. For example, nailing the left loop from the upper right flipper instinctively feels like it will return the ball the upper right flipper, ala STTNG, ST, TS, etc., but instead it goes whipping behind it and down the playfield. That sucker surprised me everytime! Also, the center post is great for the same reason, you have to keep your wits about you to use it effectively, and not many recent games have one. I really like a game that has challenging shots and variety so this is a win in my book. Forces me to up my game, both physical and mental (do the right thing, at the right time, and not the same thing everytime). When you do string a combination together it feels really good.

Didn’t get much of a feel for the modes, but I did play a variety of them and a couple multiballs, but was hard to figure out what to do in the show setting. The Ambush (?) mode with the scanner is awesome, very adrenaline inducing to hit the incoming aliens before they reach you. Like a hurry-up mode on steroids. Find Jonesy was fun too, with the need to follow the orange insert “Jonesy” as it sneaks around the playfield, and avoid other shots at the same.

I’m looking forward to getting more time on this game in a controlled setting with the Xeno mech, etc. to truly experience it, but my initial impressions are mostly positive. It’s not perfect, certainly, needs some additional GI lighting on the centre of the PF for darker play conditions, several glitchy switches and sw, missing xeno, but I guess I discount a lot of that as being relatively minor stuff that will get worked out eventually.

That Robocop is pretty cool too. I assume you also have a Robocop pin?

For the scoop, make it extend out approx. 2cm from the hole on all 3 sides, and also down into the scoop to cover the pf wood edge there the width of the pf.

For the magnet, cut a circle that is maybe 2 cm wider in diameter (so it extends 1 cm. out from the magnet edge) than the magnet core itself, apply it centered over the magnet, and then using a razor knife carefully cut away the portion that is covering the magnet (cut in the gap between the magnet core and the pf). First check that the magnet core itself is level with the pf. If it is noticeably higher or lower than the pf, adjust it's height before applying the mylar (some mechanism under the pf for that).

I'd also do the shooter lane, just cut a rectangular piece that covers the section of the lane that the ball shoots into when fed from the trough, including into the trough hole itself as this area gets smashed with the higher power coil they are using there.

For the ramp drops, just cut a small square big enough to cover the precise section where the ball drops from the ramps.

Good luck and congratulations!

If you do the ball will wear through it very quickly, and make a nasty looking mess of it. It's actually very easy to cut out the circle around the magnet once it's placed, just be careful not to stab or catch the blade on the pf finish.

Sounds like the Heighway factory could use some lock washers and Loctite on those machine screws under the pf. They are awesome for re-use over the long-term, but not as snug against loosening via vibration.

Alien owners will want to pick some up: https://www.amazon.com/Loctite-37418-Strength-Threadlocker-6-milliliter/dp/B000FIXQXK

Pingod uses 'easy' settings! Might as well leave the glass off while you're at it Dan!

So why are you here?

Fascinating as always to get your expert insider's perspective.

I just wanted say thanks for all your contributions to pinball sound/music. I'm a big fan of dynamic audio where the pitch, speed, etc. changes in reaction to what's happening in the game and you're a real innovator in this aspect of pinball sound. Playing my Medusa this morning makes me wish someone would make a game with pumping early 80's algorithmic sounds again. Seems like so much could be done with today's knowledge. See this amazing demo written for the C-64 recently: https://linusakesson.net/scene/a-mind-is-born/index.php.

Maybe some edm or other electronic background music with these types of game sounds? I guess TnA might come close?

Anyway, sorry to get so far off topic. I've played a fair number of games on Alien and a couple on DI. DI shoots easy and is tailored for newbie/low challenge players. Looong ball times, childish theme elements, and trendy gimicks. It should do really well on location with casual players, which is a great thing. Call-outs seem kind of annoying, reminds me of the god-awful ones in Whirwind. Also probably too expensive for a location game.

Alien has one of the most immersive theme integrations in pinball, a large variety of mostly challenging shots that reward precision. You won't get far flailing on it. I love the way some aspects of it seem counterintuitive to most contemporary games, upper loop routed behind the upper right flipper, center post, penalizing hitting 'bad' targets in some modes. This is a players game IMHO and would last a lot longer in my collection than a DI.

As they say, different strokes for different folks.

Dude has 57 games. That's a "serious" pinball addiction. Seriously.

That's amazing! I had no idea he did classic arcade games either. And Reactor, QBert, and Mad Planets, those are the BEST!

"Hero status achieved!"

I find the game looks pretty stunning in person, esp. with the lit side art. Really stands out from the crowd, in a good way IMHO.

Indeed. But now I'm curious. greenhornet you might as stop posting until you can publish your paper and we all have something concrete to discuss, otherwise it's just unsubstantiated trash talking of the game.

Agree. If, however, the left flipper sees 300% more action than the right, that's a cause for concern (# of flips). However, if the theme rocks and the game is fun then who cares?