.

The game looks like shit!

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Does each game come with a free magnifying glass?

Why make important items so small and irreverent items so big???

What's with the goofy hot rod flame coming from the rocket ship?!!

Meh...

Anything ever made...

X% of people like,
Y% of people don't like,
Z% of people don't care.

X + Y is usually < Z.
X is never zero,
Y is never zero.

If X > 4Y, then continue into production.

This is one of the most exciting populated play fields I have seen in a long time. I can't wait to play it.

Congratulations to Aurich and the entire team.

Doing hand drawn art wasn't an option, for the record. The assets I had to work with were the assets I had to work with. So it goes. I think that people will be happy with the package when they get to play it, I know I'm looking forward to trying the game myself.

I take no offense if you don't like it, it's been a challenging project, and everyone has their own tastes, but once you experience the game I think all this talk of "it doesn't feel like the theme" will vanish.

Completely agree!!! This machine is not going to disappoint by the looks of it.....can't wait!!!

It's unfortunate that artistic creative expression wasn't an option. That's normally the way it goes with licenses.

Thanks anyway for the explanation.

I would never ever buy NiB. This is the first game making me rethink my stand. I think it looks amazing. This is going to be the greatest Expo ever.

So you get to make excuses it seems. And yet when you criticize all of your competitors, you give them no such consideration.

Interesting.

Honestly with this theme kinda like ST and really anything Sci Fi the art is better simple, I'd be ok with just a space background, I love what Aurich has done with it but the meat and potato's for Aliens is in the gameplay and sound, some of the pins out there with amazing art play like shit, what would any pinhead prefer, gameplay or good art and nice cabinet, foolishness, I wouldn't want drawn pictures of the cast or an overly cluttered colorful playfield trying to cram everything in there anyway. Looks great and its going to be a tough 4 days waiting to see it flip.

wwwoooooo wwooooooo axe grinder alert wooooot woooot

Oh I see... carry on then.

Cut him some slack. It's just a side gig for him. He doesn't actually want to work in this industry.

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It's all good guys, no need to get snippy with each other. I take nothing personally, and I'll answer what questions I can. If I didn't think this could be a great game I wouldn't say so, but I've seen the work everyone has put in, and that's what gives me confidence.

Dave Sanders isn't a household name, not yet at least, but he knows his geometry. Full Throttle has some great shots. This is a game with 4 flippers, and they all have dedicated shots that make sense. He says he's loving how it shoots, and for me that'e enough to feel excited about flipping it. That's what really counts right? Flipping the game needs to be fun.

Kelly has done a great job with the animations, the film is represented really well, but you're never sitting there watching movie clips just play out. The game is for playing, watch the Blu Ray if you want to see the film. It's not Stern's Indiana Jones, if that comparison means anything to you. You're being immersed in the world, our rule of thumb has been that the player is Ripley, and you're experiencing everything that happens around you.

Joe and Brian are super thoughtful programmers, they really think everything through, and they're really trying to keep things accessible to all players, while also providing deeper scoring opportunities for more serious players. This is a mode based game where you're going to want to finish modes.

David Thiel is a master at what he does, the game is chock full of both his original work and tons of audio taken from the film. I mentioned that he also directed the voice of mother. The original actress unfortunately passed away, but if you own a certain Stern pin that David did the sound for you've already heard the woman who filled in. Leave that one as a hint.

I've been proud to work with this team, and I honestly consider my contributions to the art the least of what will make this game. I'm not being modest here, I really think you need to look beyond anything I did to judge this pin. We've done our best to really bring the theme to life, and when you're playing it you're going to see that, I can say that with confidence even without flipping it myself yet.

Little Enis! Good to see you still trollin for your bestie....

As a moderator I am not a big fan of seeing private (?) FB conversations reposted on pinside - except when done by the original poster.

But the sad truth is that many of us would agree in large part with what Aurich wrote. And friends I know experienced the exact same thing.

When is this kid glove treatment going to stop? Are we really so scared of downvotes and hurting you know who's feelings?? I believe Sanders is the man, Thiel is a boss & that this thing will be built like a tank... But you guys seriously think this is a homerun art package?

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This is the same community that made this happen correct?

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yes this is in fact the same community that whined until something interesting and well designed (imo) was forced to be redone through excessive moaning into a major hurdle for a company already late on delivering into a bland (imo), less colorful, and slapdash something else that had almost no effect on the overall game. yes this is the same community that made that happen.

The Hobbit playfield art is really good - but they had the reload to get it right. Aliens isn't too bad - but I do like the toys a lot.

As we all know art is subjective but even though I'm not an Alien guy I can see that a lot of thought and effort has been put into the Alien art. If you zoom into the flyer on the first page there is a lot of detail there, a lot of which, for example the artwork on the ramps and plastics, we haven't seen before.

In no way this is a fair comparison.

Alien was never in the same league as The Hobbit was when it was first presented.

You are comparing ants to elephants, makes no sense at all.

The flyer picture of the populated playfield looks really washed out compared to the much more dynamic color and contrast of the naked playfield. Seems like it was a photography issue.

The only criticism I have for the playfield is the screen integration into the art. I'm not sure what would have been better but that's why I don't do that for a living. Maybe it would have been best to take out those planets instead of cut half of them out because of the screen. That's a small nitpick though and the playfield taken as a whole with the alien head, airlock, and alien eggs looks great.

I'm looking forward to hearing the sound package and seeing the lights and playing the game. The layout reminds me of Black Rose at first glance with some added shots because of the wide body. I like that lower left area.

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yup, seriously...

I really like the art on aliens and am excited to see it in person.

All these rediculous comments on the art from a frickin flyer. Wait till you see the game in person and then judge.

And meanwhile, over in the Batman '66 thread, everyone is judging the game without even seeing a flyer!

very dissappointed. I know everyone is saying it's just a flyer, wait until you see, etc. but after seeing the ghostbusters flyer
I knew that game looked great. I def will give this game a chance but the cab looks like a toy, the PF seems very dull - it all just
seems underwhelming. I CAN BE TOTALLY WRONG - just saying based on first impressions.

I do really like the idea of the swapping kits though - how does that work? Swapping out PFs too?

....yes. Check the pinside user " HEIGHWAYPINBALL " they have several threads...

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/how-long-does-it-take-to-swap-a-heighway-pinball-game

It's a grand slam...if you pre-ordered the pin.

I don't care for the artwork or the black cabinet much at all. The overall appearance is disappointing to me.

That said, it isn't going to prevent me from possibly owning this pin in the future. I've owned other pins where I was very underwhelmed by the artwork, so it's not going to be any different with this one.

Best thing I think will be the sound package - very immersive. I guess in 3 days we shall find out for sure.

I thought these were toys?? I mean there is no real function to them aside from playing a game. I see the HP cabinet as more of an evolution in design for pinball machines. Illuminated side panels, a smaller form factor head that is more accommodating to a modern LCD display vs reels and circuit boards that no longer exist there, a modular design that can have multiple games and art swapped out. It's refreshing that a company is leading the way on this and not just accepting that it has to be the same as cabinets from decades before. I'll have to admit that I have been excited to see a really cool art package on cabinets and that does play into my purchase decision. However, it always ends up the same way for me, once I get the game in my game room, I pay little to no attention to the side art and focus on the playfield and back glass. It becomes very irrelevant for me personally once I own it, but its really exciting to see on the flyers. I think that with the lit up panels it may draw my attention back to the side art (though its smaller) at least while the game is on. I guess I'll find out soon.

Wow, cabinets, plungers and art the most important factors for me when I play a pin by far, sound and gameplay not so much.

Yeah TH artwork is great but the gameplay isn't there at all for me anyway, who buys a game based on the artwork, I personally like it and couldn't be more happy it isn't cartoon like depictions of the cast with over use of colors, it would ruin the theme. I think this might be one of the best playing pins ever and, well.........

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even more true when most of the people on here own 3+ machines so you hardly ever SEE the sides of a game.

If all you want is pretty artwork, buy some paintings. Obviously there are limitations in designing licensed pin artwork. Aurich already mentioned the hand drawn stuff we like was not even an option. Gameplay is always king. If a game plays great, has decent art, good color displays, and doesn't cost silly super le money then that sounds like a winner to me. I almost wish it looked bad so I wouldn't be so interested.

Same issue I have with TWD, I have with this game. I want to see Ripley, Hicks, Hudson etc. On the playfield. That is disappointing, but gameplay is king, and the design looks great. Excited to try this game out.

I think the game looks really good. Best art package ever? Not in my opinion. For a frame of reference, I think Ghostbusters art blows... Art and its incorporation into pinball machines is obviously personal and polarizing!!!

But - if I had the disposable income at the moment, Alien would be on my list of games I would seriously consider adding. I like the theme, I like the stuff Heighway is doing and I hope to add one of their games to my roster some day.

Looking forward to more info as the week wraps up!

Also wish I was going to Expo!

Most guys quite like the art - its personal preference. Aurich did a good job, the only thing I dont really care for is the green alien by the head looks too cartoony; aliens should be more gritty and industrial feeling IMO. Its still a huge step up from all but 2 or 3 sterns.

With regards to the hobbit, yes its probably the best looking game I've seen, but I dont like playing it, the layout for aliens looks much better.

I enjoy the pinball gameplay but I also love the premium look of these things. Art, presentation - these are still factors in these games and although gameplay is king - this cabinet and look just comes off as cheap (to me). For 6k+ I am disappointed in what I'm seeing. It looks incredibly uninspiring and it does take away from the total package (IMO). Who knows how it will play and ultimately that will be the deciding factor but a missed opp in my mind and to overlook that completely seems misguided although again IMO.

Did you ever see the cabinet in real life?

My standard Full Throttle cabinet breaths quality. And yes it does look premium. If you go for the LE version it gets even more premium. This of course is my opinion, but rest assured I think I am not the only one with that opinion.

I have and I agree - it didn't come off as bad as this one looks. EDIT - looked at FT again and that style of cab is just not what I'm looking for. I like the idea of changing out tables but taking out the PF, storing it somewhere - I feel like it's just going to get damaged. Not sure how practical it is but good on them for thinking of it.

For some reason (it might just be the pic) this looks cheap. That side art? seriously? Also - I hear comments like hand drawn PF wasn't an option, etc well I wouldn't care if this was a cheaper pin (less than 5) but it's 6200 and that's base right? It's not like this is a discounted pin.

If this was a stern produced pin - these forums would be on fire right now. Literally server crashing.

Did the Heighway cabinet just debut? Or has it existed for a couple years in the exact same shape and form and there was never any chance that it would be different since it's part of their game swap system which will allow you to have unlimited games in the same cabinet?

My Full Throttle seems rock solid, sturdy, just as "manly" as the not at all drastically different traditional cab which the ONLY difference is decals vs lighted side art.....what are you all on about?

What is different about the cabinet? The overall dimensions? No. The overall shape? No. It has lighted side panels that allow you to swap them out for different games. The head is removable and has no hardware in it...hence no need for extra material/weight. That's. The. Only. Change.

I think the main issue is the low res. image they used for the flyer, it's not inspiring. It's the worst image I've seen of the play field to date. I like the play field, but the picture quality in the flyer sucks! Come Thursday night the server's might crash, from excitement of seeing it in person!
As far as the modular system goes, it's an option. An option no one else has. If you're concerned just buy the entire pin, instead of saving 40%. I sold my Full Throttle to cash in on the savings of the modular system. Full Throttle is a great pin & I will be buying it as kit.

I was Very critical of GOT's art. So critical I wrote it off in my mind. That was a mistake! What a fast & fun pin, with outstanding rules! So, while you might not like Alien's art, I wouldn't cast judgement until you see it in person & give it a flip.

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Everyone should keep in mind how much lighting and light shows give a playfield a different look when you're actually playing it. There were plenty of games like Tron, AC/DC, and Iron Man that made me go "oooph!" when I saw the "flyer picture" ...but in person, I LOVE how the games look. I think Tron might give one a good idea how Alien will look when lit....but then you also have the possibilities of the color changing lights - I have a feeling the minimal look of the playfield might vanish when interesting light shows are sweeping over the action.

People care now because they care about Alien.

There are many options of pins with great gameplay, yet limited space in my game room. Also, my pins are off more than they are on yet I can still enjoy them for the works of are that they are. So, aesthetics are important to me in making a 6K purchase as I'm sure is the case with others.

The Heighway cabinet design is clunky and unappealing. The awkward configuration of the side cabinet artwork and large amount of blank space exacerbate the lack of appeal. (The P3 solution is much better IMO)

I would be much more likely to purchase an Alien pin with a standard cabinet with full cabinet artwork.

then you would be the perfect person if they made a sort of "universal" cabinet which you could then switch the entire game out in 5 minutes and have a new game to play....if only a company was doing something that innovative. I could foresee the company charging maybe 60% of the full price for one of these...let's call them "kits"....if only

Actually Andrew did say recently he would seriously consider offering a traditional cabinet so all the people posting that are saying that's what they would rather have are just simply giving him the data he needs to make that option a possibility.

So the cabinet whiners could get and pay for what they say they want despite the actual lunacy of bypassing the swap out system.

Only later might they realize what kind of decision they made when 3 or 4 cool titles follow and the path they chose leaves them regretful in a financial sense.

I appreciate the swap approach but cmon now - it's completely not practical (hold on - let me just move my gigantic super fragile PF with all the components on it to the side while I swap in another). In actuality it might actually cost you money considering it's likely to get damaged. We're not talking about swapping out a pair of socks here - we're talking super fragile, highly likely to get scratched and an absolutely gigantic piece of hardware. I love options so sure but don't try to sell this like it would be a huge mistake if we don't take advantage of it.