(Topic ID: 182465)
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Alien (Heighway Pinball)
Heighway Pinball, 2017
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Quoted from cavalier88z24:Alt brew!!!!!!!! I will be there tomorrow. When do they open? I get off work at 5pm. 1 hour to madison. 30 minutes in traffic. Say about 7ish tomorrow???? Yeah
Won't be available for public for a day or two. I will fine tune before public play. brand new games need a little shaking out.
i can say it is playing very nice out of the box, just a few switch adjustments thus far.
Quoted from Manic:Head work on this one? Left ramp fully register? Trying to think of the issues the other stream showed.
all switches work. only issue I can find from going over the entire game is one of our pop bumper lights is out. Does not appear to be connector but it is tight in there. I will look it over more on Tuesday when I get more time.
In general this game is built like a tank. Screws and nuts need a little tightening but that is expected upon arrival from as far as it went in the past week. That was the same as for our FullT and same as any game I have had shipped in.
I had a buddy come over and my wife along for set up. We put 20 games on it and consensus is that it is a Grand Slam. I had high hopes and expectations, but initial feeling is simply W O W!!! Code is already pretty nice and just at polish stage. We had fun starting to learn modes and multis but have a ways to go.
The APC drops are difficult but doable. the upper ramp is really nice but will take some time before it becomes a more regularly made shot (in a good way). My buddy whom is a top 200 player proclaimed something along the lines of "I expected it feel like STTNG for some reason, but it doesn't. It feels very different but in a VERY good way"
He argeed that Dave is officially the new king of flow.
Looking forward to more play on it. I know what i am doing over lunch on Tuesday 
Quoted from Borygard:Just one?
--
Rob Anthony
Pinball Classics
http://LockWhenLit.com
Quality Board Work - In Home Service
borygard at gmail dot com
just one
(for now )
Quoted from Lame33:Any chance this game is going to make an appearance at MGC?
nope. not this year.
It will be available for play in Madison in a few days. Our monthly meetup at Alt Brew is this Thursday and I plan to have it ready by then (no 100% promise, but probably a 98% promise )
Do people want photos of anything specific? I will have some time today at lunch or later tonight to do more dialing in and can grab photos for anyone. Just let me know what you want to see.
Video will have to wait a little while. We took some short stuff last night but working on getting Jack Danger up here soon to stream.
Quoted from Dexter:I SHOULD BE THERE WITH YOU AND DAVE! Congrats Hilton!
Daves not here man That is Tim.
Wish you were here!
Quoted from PoMC:Can you also document all adjustments, fixes and tweaks you've had to do?
So far just normal stuff for any NIB game.
Check to tighten every screw and nut on the game. Better safe than sorry and some will be loose from transport.
Just check over everything top and bottom before playing a game. We had a slightly loose IO board (#1 board) on bottom of pf and it needed the screws tightened down to seat better.
Tight flipper mechs and coil stops especially. I will likely regap the bushing/bat today as they are a little snugger than I like and I am particular about my flippers. Adjust EOS gap to be 1/8 inch.
Adjust pop bumper switches to be a bit more sensitive. That use the whole mech DE/sega style so being tight is important for some action.
Adjust slings to be more sensitive.
Small adjustments to try and fine tune flow. Shoots are really smooth but small adjustments once set up and at your specific pitch can make the game play even smoother.
Andrew let me know to up the main flipper fuse from a 4A slo blow to a 6A. Ours did not blow the 4A but I will update proactively today.
Quoted from Kevlar:Does the tongue ball lock work?
Oh YEAH baby!!!!!
Works awesome! Quick and super cool!
My buddy grabbed a short video of it last night and I asked him to post. He will likely upload it later today.
Quoted from Buzz:I would love to see some pics of playfield,whole and some close ups. I can't get enough. I'm curious about bottom left of what's going on as well. Thanks for sharing and congratulations again.
will do.
The bottom left is just a standard outlane of sort. As I understand currently you can earn "revive" by hitting down APC drop targets and then locking a ball towards a Multi but hitting the upper ramp. We were unable to accomplish this task in our few games last night, but I am sure that once we get a better feel the shoots will get easier for us. I think once you get a revive then you can steal your lock but get a ball saver form the left out lane by nudging approriately to the lit "revive". I could be wrong on this as still learning.
Quoted from luvthatapex2:Does it come with a manual?
Can you change settings from the coin door?
How do you update the software? USB?
Does it include wi-fi or is it wi-fi capable?
What type of video content is on the new mini display? movie clips during modes?
no
yes
yes
no idea
all sorts of stuff. clips, instructions, video, space hyper video, likely some place holder for now. Mini screen and all 3 screens look amazing and are ont he right track for theme integration.
Quoted from PanzerFreak:Awesome. That seems like such a cool and unique pinball toy.
After the Alien toy grabs a ball is it stored or is it then ejected back out onto the playfield at some point? Can the toy hold multiple balls?
grabs and dops in down from inside the head. That goes to subway to air lock eject (to the left of xeno head). I assume it can hold more than one but not sure (i will check for multiple switches in subway today).
Quoted from bemmett:Didn't Heighway state the "border" of that LCD screen in the game would be greatly reduced in size? It looks about the same as early pictures of it, is that not a thing anymore or am I imagining this all or is that the reduced size one?
this is reduced. It looks really good in my opinion. Not distracting, but just big enough to provide info and show clips and add to the immersion.
I am sitting here looking at my schedule and trying to figure out what meetings I can cencel or skip today just so I can leave and go play more!
lol
I have it bad!
Quoted from vdojaq:Where in Madison?
Alt Brew to start. 1806 Wright St.
follow MadisonPinball on Facebook for full updates. We try to also keep pinside map and pinballmap.com up to date with all our games.
Quoted from Ericpinballfan:What's the best way to order this bad ass??!!
I'm probably sending email today and cancel my order of another NIB pin, tired of waiting.
Congrats and thanks for sharing.
I would reach out to Andrew directly! He has been amazing to work with, great customer service and more than helpful the whole time I have known him and worked with him!
Quoted from Kevlar:Nice to hear, thanks. Is it hard ( with the glass on ) to qualify a xenomorph head ball lock? just seems strange in 4 hours of streams we've watched so far no tongue action
nope, not hard at all. We just were switch testing with glass off when that video was taken.
Every game we played the xeno ate the ball atleast once I think.
some of the color changing for certain modes is AMAZING on this game. One mode everything went green. Another mode all red.
There is a mode where everything appears to shut down and then a call out about how do they do that.
Man the immersion is going to be over the top on this title! First game I pulled out of a box for route and knew within 5 games that I would also be getting one for myself eventually!
Quoted from PwninShiznat:How long do games usually stay at Alt Brew? I'm moving up there end of March for a couple months and would love to get some time on this. Also is GB still part of their lineup?
We rotate games fairly often. Aliens will be out on route no matter what for the foreseeable future.
If not at Alt, then at Pooleys as it will be on the eastside for a bit.
GB is currently at our westside location, Schwoegler's. Hope to see you out playing and always happy to meet up for some games. Happy to meet fellow pinsiders IRL.
www.madisonpinball.com and folow us on FB for all the details on what is happening in Madison for PInball.
Quoted from PwninShiznat:How long do games usually stay at Alt Brew? I'm moving up there end of March for a couple months and would love to get some time on this. Also is GB still part of their lineup?
also, it will for sure be at Alt in March as it at minimum will be at Alt Brew through the launch party which is happening on Sat April 1st.
Be sure to come on out for that.
thanks for the review Tim!
I think I am heading back over at 2ish to finish tweaking and more play testing
I will post more photos and info later tonight.
I will be sure to update as soon as it is available for public play. Likely on Thursday at the monthly meetup will be the first shot.
Quoted from musketd:So how does it shoot? Is it fast ? And feel hooked up can't wait to get play it
fast, GREAT combos, great flow, satisfying shots. Been busy playing and fine tuning stuff for route purposes. Just stopped to grab dinner then heading back over to do more.
Ill grab photos in a bit and post more later.
I will grab more photos on Wed. Sorry but I had a plumbing emergency to attend to this evening.
It was a crappy situation...
only bad thing about this game... Is I want to play it more. I dream aliens pinball the past 2 nights, lol.
I wake up and the first thought is, can I sneak over to play a few games on lunch.
Quoted from pinlink:I am considering ordering this pin?
not weird at all.
Quoted from pinlink:Is it weird that I have never seen Alien or Aliens
slightly weird. I am a guy that does not watch movies and even I have seen them
Quoted from CrazyLevi:If this game proves to have a fun ruleset, and proves to be reliable I could see it and the manufacturer carve out a nice niche for itself.
I can say what I have seen so far is a top notch ruleset. Challenging but in the "just one more" sort of way.
Some modes are more straight forward (hit the shots)
Some modes are something to learn (hit shots in a specific order)
Some modes prevent flailing and require great control (hit blue but AVOID green)
Some great multiballs and plenty of them but you have to earn them.
Some background running modes (like save newt which seems to progress during times when not in a specific other mode and happens form colelcting things on the pf.) Other background mode seems to be from collecting switch hits over time to work towards another MB I think.
The code is already really solid and I assume is just going to get better over time. It si not even at 1.0 yet!
Quoted from MikeS:Hilton invited me over to check out Alien last night and I managed to get a couple plays in while I was there and also take a few pics and video. Here are my initial impressions.
Looks: This is one of the most stunning games I have ever seen in person! pictures don't really do the game any justice. The green lit up cabinet panels give the game an eerie and cool look. The EL lit inner side blades also looked awesome and would be a worthy upgrade for people ordering a standard. I also think Aurich's playfield art fits the game perfectly and looks great! I like that it's not too busy and doesn't overpower the game. It's dark and eerie and gives you just the details you need. The LED lighting in the game really catches your eye and is utilized to its full potential. Everything is full color changers and it seems well coded to match the rules and the gameplay. The toys in the game look well made and don't look like "toys" at all. Everything seems custom and high quality. This doesn't look like a game that was put together with a calculator as Jack would say. The Xenomorph head was glossy black and just looked awesome! These toys clearly didn't come off the shelf at Walmart. As an overall package I think this is one of the coolest games I've ever seen. It probably does help though that I love the theme though!
Gameplay: I look forward to playing many more games once this is on route but after playing my first ball my first words to Hilton were that I want one! I love Stern games but after a while many of them seem formulatic. I didn't get that impression at all from Alien. I loved that the layout was unconventional and felt different. The shots definitely took some getting used to but were smooth once you got the hang of them. I also can't remember the last time there was a game with 4 flippers on the main playfield that had unique shots assigned to them. I really enjoyed how the game played and the little intricacies of the layout. The hidden lane that returned the ball to the lower right flipper was my favorite. I This game is like a breath of fresh air and combined with a theme that I love really makes it intriguing to own.
Software: Hard to say much with only 2 plays but the modes that were coded in were a lot of fun and showed some creativity. I liked that a mode like Acid burn punishes you for hitting the wrong shots. In the finding Jonesy mode you have to track down the target with an orange LED and it moves around the playfield quickly. It looks like the game also keeps track of things like combos and has quite a few multiball modes. I look forward to figuring out more as I put more plays in.
Overall I came away extremely impressed and this game jumped to the top of my most wanted list. I will likely order one at some point (once these start shipping in quantity to homes and I sell a game or two) but at least for now I can enjoy playing one on route. Thanks Heighway and Madison Pinball for making this possible!
Glad you like it Mike. You had that glimmer in your eye as soon as you stepped away from ball 1!!! lol.
I know the feeling. I am pretty sure I will be placing an order for my own LE very soon. This is one I am going to want at home even though we will have it on route less then a mile form my house.
For those locals that are wondering. I should be able to finish up play testing and adjustments tonight so this will be available for play on Thursday starting at the monthly meet up.
I will update on FB page and here when it is 100% open for public, but that is my current plan (hoping no other home plumbing emergencies...)
biggest thing the few players I have invited over to help play test have said, is that they are impressed with the price point for what you get on Aliens.
Just the feature list alone for what you get is phenomenal.
I have to htink that this is exactly what Heighway needed.
I can also say I have been over the whole game and through all the mechs and thinsg are super solid! well engineered! A pleasure to work on and really smart stuff here. You can see the passion and thought put into this game!
Quoted from paulywalnuts23:what is the list price again?
I suggest contacting Heighway direct for a quote on price. There are quite a few differnet options and things you can add on/ change to your taste. That is the best way to get an accurate quote on what you need/want.
Quoted from TomGWI:Question: Do the loop shots always go into the pop Bumpers or are there control gates at the top?
Just looked like in the video Mike posted the ball would always go in the Bumpers.
I may have to put this game in my collection. Looking great.
There are 2 diverter/controlled posts in the upper orbit (i.e. code option to stop a ball from either direction in orbit). Depending on mode or other things you have enabled, the post will go up. This is actually very good and nicely coded. I am still learning when the post goes up but in general it seems when you have a lock lit at upper left ramp then a left orbit shot will up post to divert to pop bumpers. From the pop bumper I would say 70% of the time it will come out to the upper right flipper which sets you up for a chance at and upper left ramp shot to lock.
Quoted from Tsskinne:Just curious after watching the new gameplay videos does it shoot a little like The Shadow with the orbits and inner loop?
not really.
Honestly, it plays te most like WOOLY in many ways. It feels the most like Full Throttle, which makes sense given it is Heighway
The shots are different in feel but once you get dialed in it is a flow machine with major speed and great geometry. Launch to left ramp to right ramp to left orbit, to left ramp, to right ramp, to scoop is my favorite so far.
Game also has a fair amount of pause which is nice. Is has an almost frantic feel and keeps you on your toes.
Game is officially out for public play.
Please text me if you experience any issues. As expected with any NIB game (esp one that came from 1/2 way around the world) there will be a few bugs to hunt down (pun intended) I want everyone to be able to get the best experience possible on any new game. My number is on all the games/ price cards on the other games at ALT. I live and work less than 1 mile from there, so really is not issue and i would rather hop out to fix things than have someone drive all the way in for nothing.
i cant promise I will always bee right out, but often i show up within 10 min of a text.
Quoted from chadderack:Uh, Hilton? I'm experiencing an issue. I'm not in Wisconsin
I have you covered.
A preemptive thanks for any and everyone that stops out to support by dropping in a few quarters and drinking a frosty beverage (I recommend Hollywood nights if you like hops and the Kickback Klosh if you dont). We really cant do any of this without players dropping coins in.
I feel pretty fortunate that we have the ability to buy rare and new games to share with the local community but it really comes back to the local community (even those traveling through) making it all possible.
I said it before, but please make it a point to say thanks to the bar tenders or Trevor (the owner ad brew master) if you see him. Let them know that you came for the pinball but stayed for the beer and good times. It really does make a difference.
Please follow/like us on FB
Quoted from pinballaddicted:Fantastic thread! I would love to know how well it goes (number of plays) and how hard and costly it is to maintain.
We are definitely interested in one
If it is anything like Full Throttle is will be pretty solid after the fin tuning over the first month happens. i am going to guess it will earn very well. It is sitting next to a GoTprem so that will be a nice comparison.
Quoted from cavalier88z24:Is the monthly there tomorrow (thrusday night)?
Yes. 630 start time. Most come early to warm up. Come on over, always a good time to be had.
Quoted from pinballaddicted:If you would not mind, putting the numbers up would be greatly appreciated.
Great work!
sorry but our partnership agreed when we first started that we would not share numbers. This is a business, even though just an extension of the hobby for us. I will see what they say about sharing some percentages.
Maybe they would be open to comparing Aliens to GoT prem % for the month? Those are the 2 most comparable games in price and newness at this location so maybe it will give people some insight without showing anything behind the curtain so to speak.
I can try to answer but Joe would be the better person since he is the coder.
-How many of the Alien or Aliens modes are also multi ball. none. Modes are 4 plus a 5th mini-wiz mode for each movie (left and right column in center bottom area of pf). You select either Alien or Aliens at start of game and then play your way through modes. The center column of main inserts seemt o be all the MB modes.
-Is there a video mode? I have not seen one yet.
-Is there an option NOT to sacrifice a sleep multi ball lock for the left ball save, or does it always happen no matter what? Not currently but I know Joe has said they are looking at optiond for the hypersleep multiball and revive stuff
-Do you select one specific shot as the skill shot (like Ghostbusters) or is everything a skill shot (like Metallica)? All are available. From what I can tell you can get different things possibly depending on what you hit?
Quoted from jonesjb:Thanks, for my first question, While the center column is multiball specific, but do any of the dedicated film modes have more than one ball... kind of like Enter hotel Monolith on the Shadow (compared to the Shadow and Khan multi ball).
none that I have seen, but there are plenty of other multiballs IMO.
I have made it to the Aleins mini-WIz but did not last long enough to tell what happens. It was cool, I can tell you that!
Quoted from gliebig:Jackpot/Super Jackpot shots fun/challenging? Any callouts for them?
From what I can tell, I have not heard them yet (doesn't mean they are not there)
Depending on MB, the jackpot shots are different.
The Super insert is on the upper inner orbit which can be a fun but appropriately challenging shot.
Quoted from Rockytop:aurich The magnet on the right inner lane shot is gone right?
If I'm seeing things right the ball locks on the magnet on the far left and sets up the shot from the upper left flipper to the lane, where it bounces off a standup target, and comes back for the shot from the upper right flipper to either the left inner orbit or the upper left ramp.
Does that sound right?
only mag is in the center upper pf for the xeno to reach out and grab. The upper right flipper shot is set up by hitting an orbit and when appropriate a diverter will stop the ball and drop it into the pop bumpers. From the pop bumpers there is a 50/50 shot it drins right to the upper right flipper for a clean shot to upper inner orbit or to upper ramp for hypersleep lock.
Other set up it to shoot just to the right of right ramp where the ball hits a standup and then comes back to upper right flipper. This is a tight shot but doable.
Thus far I find that I try to hit the orbit to get a divertor to upper R flipper for a upper ramp shot.
Quoted from Fytr:How do you set that shot up?
shoot either the right or left orbit.
If you have a lock enabled then a diverter pops up. That causes ball to drop into pops with a 50/50 (I would say it is more like 70% to right flipper due to geometry) shot of coming right to upper right flipper.
Alternatively shoot just to right of right ramp (aley to left of UR flipper) and ball will come back to UR flipper.
Quoted from Fytr:Sorry, I was talking about the Upper LEFT flipper.
oh, sorry. my bad.
Upper left flipper is fed from hitting the left saucer above it (the 1 insert shot). The saucer kicks out for a perfect feed to upper left flipper.
Upper left flipper can hit:
the right ramp (yes, VERY fun shot!)
cross shot to feed upper left flipper (tough but fun combo; think TAF style when you go upper left to upper right to left ramp! woohoo that is cool; only done it once so far)
the around the outside feed to right inlane shot (the 2 insert shot)
the APC drops
act as a upheld diversion tot he right flipper.
Quoted from benheck:Played a few rounds tonight. Really sweet game it's come a long ways since Expo.
Plenty of Paxton quotes too, for the win!
Glad you liked it Ben!
Quoted from Pale_Purple:Once LEs are shipping it'll only be a matter of time before they're sold out. People seeing and playing them, game over. Should be great for Heighway!
Happy to see an early game go to Madison, the first place I played Full Throttle (also the best set up Full Throttle I've played to date) wish I was going to be in town before the fall.
Thx! I really appreciate that!
Quoted from Deaconblooze:Do you live in the rafters?
I can't wait to check this out! It really looks like it plays well and seems to be well packaged with sound and aesthetics.
shhhhhhh...... I set up a couch over the fermentation room. dont tell Trevor
Ran the ALTBREW monthly tourney on it last night and people were really digging the game form what I saw. It held up well to tourney player abuse
For anyone that is stopping in this weekend to play it, just a heads up that I will largely be in Waunakee helping with the waunapin tournament that Tully runs. That means I may not be as readily available if you note an issue.
Quoted from VolunteerPin:When I had my Full Throttle one of my biggest gripes (had very few gripes actually as I think it is a very fun game) was that the pops were very insensitive and weak despite adjusting the gaps. How are the pops on this now?
they are better but not full power like you are used to on other games. The geometry allows for better action thank on FullT and they are not as essential for game play (FullT used them to boost RPM and pf multiplier).
I hope for a bit more power over time, but they are acceptable as is.
Quoted from u2sean:So, I FINALLY managed to make it out to Alt last night for the monthly tourney and had time to play 2 games of Alien. The animations are seriously incredible - very immersive and fun. The gameplay was really fast (for me...I sucked!) and fun! I'm definitely looking forward to getting some serious time on this one in the near future! Great job Heighway!
glad you are digging it Sean! I look forward to playing some games on it with you soon. I have learned a decent amount of the rules and can help you over the learning curve.
Quoted from RobT:Given the current market, Alien appears to be one of the better values out there.
100% agree.
So far people are amazed when they see how much is packed in there combined with the price tag.
Quoted from Ericpinballfan:Aurich, thank you for your detailed responses and knowledge on this pin.
Maybe you autograph mine if I buy one.
Damn, I really want one.
It really is fun!
I do plan to sneak over this morning and play a few games before they open for the day
Just a BIG shout out to Heighway! I let them know that we have the deadflip stream coming up on Monday and I noted a few small bugs and a few suggestions for improvements that would be great to have prior to the stream.
The heighway team went out of their way to ensure we got the update and even assisted with install (this is an early version game and slightly different update process this first time around; dont worry further updates are just a USB and hit the button like everyone is used to). They spent a few hours of their Sat evening to walk me through everything and get it done!
WOW! Great customer service!
Side note, the new code is the exact improvements we were hoping for. THANKS for the special treatment of making this happen so we can have more fun on Monday with Jack and crew!
Quoted from cavalier88z24:Great job madison pinball love it. Thanks for having it out to play.
Glad you enjoyed the game!
Quoted from cavalier88z24:The bottom right GI string is out see pictures.
Please feel free to text me if you ever experience any issues with any of the eastside games. That is by far the quickest way to get a fix. I obviously am on pinside quite often , but today I have not been on here again till now (I know, hard to believe)
Quoted from Toads:What's wrong with the bottom pop lamp?
just a loose connector likely. i did not see it when I was in this morning to update code.
Quoted from cavalier88z24:True but i dropped $16 bucks consecutively. Im not the best player and it is a brand new rare game. Not complaining just saying it would be nice to have a little spiff. I like the match feature
@ whysnow my apologies i should of seen your number and texted you. I didnt see it on aliens because there no place holder for the cards. Suppose i could of looked on the other games but i wasnt there for the other games. thank u again appreciate it.
no worries.
I now have a sticker on the backbox of Aliens also with my number
GI all good. Just a bulb that came loose. Like many of the other new games to come out, Aliens has light and switch boards on the bottom of the playfield. One bulb slipping loose can remove the current from the remainder of the common ground in that sector.
In regards to match feature.
I have it currentlyturned off, along with also turning off auto % on both match and replay. (i.e. the replay is set to a fixed amount so not too bad to earn free games)
Why do I have the match and auto % turned off? This is early code and it is not working correctly currently. When turned on, EVERY game gets a match. We cant afford to put a brand new premium game on route and essentially put it on free play
It will eventually be on in future code updates.
In regards to $1 per play. We set up all of our new games on route at $1 per play for the start. After the first month we typically switch games to $1 per play and some sort of bonus. For example 6 games for $5. This is typical on new and top tier games. We have a primary goal of putting QUALITY games on route to share with others and also of maintaining these games. We have found that in order to do this, we have to charge a fair amount to play these games. There are of course other companies offering other pinball to play in the region, but we believe they are offering a different product. We also return 100% of all coin drop into the games and getting more new games for what it is worth. Almost 4 years now of doing this and I have not made a single quarter yet We like to hope/think that the community supports us because of that also. Basically, you can know that every coin you drop ensures more new and fun games to play in Madison.
Quoted from cavalier88z24:Im concerned about upper left flipper being blocked by the left ramp. Im 6' 4" and had a hard time seeing it.
I was curious about this?
I am 6ft on a good day and here is my POV of the playfield from my typical playing position.
Granted I move around alot when I play, but I think all shots and flippers are clear site lines.
It would be cool if the left return had some of the clear "acid ate through it" spots down in the outlane area IMO.
Like it does further up on the return.
Quoted from Yipykya:Man those electroluminescent side panels really add to this "world under glass." What a treat for LE buyers.
I think they are available to standard as an upgrade?
I agree, they look amazing!
Quoted from cavalier88z24:you got your donger on the lock down bar lol
lol!
Hey man, I really dig this machine. Dont judge me
Quoted from Agent_Hero:pop bumpers are as limp and mostly a non-factor as they seem to be in some of the videos posted
pop bumpers are as expected for that style (i.e. the plastic mech body type used on various other games Atlantis, some DE stuff, Spooky)
In short, yes, they have less power that you get out of a B/W deck. That said, their is enough power and they are a protected part of the pf so not really used as a randomizer. More used as a little bit of randomness on which way they exit (to UR flip or not) and also used in some modes (one where you collect eggs and it is set at 15 to start).
I would like a little more ump out of the pops but not a huge issue. I wonder if they can be pepped up in code?
Quoted from MikeS:I have never seen the LE version with fiber optic ramps so I don't miss them when playing the standard. Ignorance is bliss
I bet the fibre ramps will look great m but I am in the same boat as you! never see them and iggnorance is bliss.
Reminder that the deadflip stream will be happening tonight.
6pm tentative start, but could be 7pm depending on set up.
Worth note up front that we have a few insert lights out so dont be tweaking if you see that on the stream as it is not indicative of the full prodcution games. The one thing on this particular game #2 that is not production, is that the under playfield boards were hand built at the factory (if you remember Andrew previously mentioned that the full pf light/switch boards were part of the delay due to china new year stuff). These hand built (i.e. every single surface light or switch was hand done) are not the quality to expect on the full production units (we wanted the game ASAP and said to ship with hand built boards). I can attest to the normal production unit quality since we have had Full Throttle on route for over a year without a single under pf board, light, or switch tweak needed.
I say this as I dont want team Heighway to catch any flak about this. This is on me as I screwed up something when trying to fix the lower left popbumper light switch yesterday but ran out of time to finish up my work and get the few insert lights working like they should.
I am hoping to ditch out of work early to go diagnose and fix (it is likely a single cold solder joint or something I knocked off, but I need to find it), but not sure if I will get it done in time. Feel free to bash on my and my crappy tech skillz
Quoted from Whysnow:Reminder that the deadflip stream will be happening tonight.
6pm tentative start, but could be 7pm depending on set up.
Worth note up front that we have a few insert lights out so dont be tweaking if you see that on the stream as it is not indicative of the full prodcution games. The one thing on this particular game #2 that is not production, is that the under playfield boards were hand built at the factory (if you remember Andrew previously mentioned that the full pf light/switch boards were part of the delay due to china new year stuff). These hand built (i.e. every single surface light or switch was hand done) are not the quality to expect on the full production units (we wanted the game ASAP and said to ship with hand built boards). I can attest to the normal production unit quality since we have had Full Throttle on route for over a year without a single under pf board, light, or switch tweak needed.
I say this as I dont want team Heighway to catch any flak about this. This is on me as I screwed up something when trying to fix the lower left popbumper light switch yesterday but ran out of time to finish up my work and get the few insert lights working like they should.
I am hoping to ditch out of work early to go diagnose and fix (it is likely a single cold solder joint or something I knocked off, but I need to find it), but not sure if I will get it done in time. Feel free to bash on my and my crappy tech skillz
for those that are on the stream, please feel free to share this when the quesiton comes up (I am sure it will) as I dont want Heighway taking heat for my screw up.
Quoted from Toads:The only reason I bought it up in the first place is because I noticed the same issue on the other Alien pin that's in the wild.
interesting. Maybe I did not mess something up? Maybe it is the new code update? It happens with first run machines so not really concerned. It will get figured out one way or another.
I just wanted people to know it is not indicative of full production games.
Enjoy the stream folks. Shuold be fun. I am excited to battle with Jack!
Just got a message from Andrew that the production run of boards are arriving this Wednesday and he is shipping me a full set as soon as he gets them. Talk about great customer service!
Thanks for tuning in folks. Over 1500 viewers stopped by. Pretty fun experience to be able to share with everyone. Much appreciated.
A few comments that came up.
Pops as I understand it >>> Coils run on 70v line. That specific plastic body type mech (DE, Sega, some early 6803, spooky) was originally designed for a 50v power. As I remember it from FullT, they run them at 50% strength at start in order to ensure no breakage of that mech (assuming 70v would be too strong). Full T got better with code update. I assume Aliens will also. All that said, a little more umph would be nice, but not much more is needed for this design.
side note >> i will tighten switch gaps. i had over gapped originally due to initial code pf validation stuff. that has since been fixed so i can tighten those gaps for more action. sorry about that.
Right orbit is makable. After stream was off we immediately noticed need to adjust the inner ball guide. That made it much smoother.
new light boards should arrive next week!
Quoted from LoveNeverDiesGuy:YouTube stream post link, please?
I think it usually take s day or so for Jack to upload. He said he would do so when he gets a chance.
Quoted from Ferret:Also, I can't do anything about the difficult lock ramp shot, but Mother Mystery now overweights Advance Hypersleep Lock if she has nothing more timely to award (e.g. Add More Mode Time, Multiball Add-a-Ball).
Joe > It is really good the way it is now! Seriously from someone that likely have more time on our game than anyone, please dont make it any easier to do hypersleep. That upper ramp lock is tough but with time you start to get it dialed in. If you watch towards the end of the night, quite a few of us are getting the feel and lock multiple balls in it. It is challenging in a good way.
Plus I find that ambush and sentery happen quite often.
For code feeback from last night, everyone wants to know how many hits left on xeno for ambush. I agree
Also, revive was always serving 2 balls. (I dont think it is a switch issue on our particular game as the double ball serve only happened on revive and not at other times.
I forgot to mention. Xeno head mech ball eating is a pretty cool mech, but I had messed with the opto that triggers the tounge. i am sure the code team will tweak this over time to be more accurate at the times they want it to eat the ball.
For those that did not watch the stream, the idea cam up for a topper that shoots out KY jelly on the player to alien slime them, LOL
Some good standard Ben Heck comedy gold. Ben also dropped a few hints about his next game if you are paying attention to the background convo.
Quoted from bcd:Everyone on the design team agrees that there needs to be more feedback on the number of xeno hits remaining.
The Xenomorph is also supposed to "animate" a little bit as you get closer, but I could not see that happening in the video. We'll probably add something to the display or to the lighting.
I'll also take a look at the magnet grab for the final shot - it probably needs to be more powerful to help the ball get stopped.
worth note that I did adjust the magnet time from 10ms to 8ms per suggestion from Helmut on Sat. It was working more prior to the stream. I think currently the opto that appears to be the key for the tounge to come out (I assume the mag is supposed to hold on final shot, then with the hold the opto will see the ball, then the opto signals the tounge to come out and grab the ball?). It may be a good idea to add some reduncancy to the opto and basically on the final target hit, program for the tounge to come out no matter what?
I am sure you guys will get it dialed in to work as intended. My appologies that I did not have the opto fine tuned for the stream.
Quoted from bcd:We've never observed that in testing, so that was a bit surprising. The switch might be double registering as the trough kicks the new ball into play. We can probably fix that.
thanks. My new light/switch under pf boards will likely ship out this week. I will install as soon as I get them and report back. It may be that, but seems to be in the code since either the left or right revive both had the same symptom. Really appreciate how much you guys are on this. Great to have the quick feedback loops and communication!
Quoted from bcd:I watched the entire stream and am glad to see that everyone had a good time. Thanks again for the feedback!
we had a blast! I think our feedback will get better over time as we get more time on the game. I will keep it coming.
Quoted from Kevlar:I would guess the issue is you would not want the tongue coming out if the ball isn't definitely on the magnet, i.e chance of a ball in play hitting the tongue side on. Just my guess.
yeah, I would guess that also. Could be taken care of in code? ('if last hit on xeno, then hold magnet for x and if not other pf switches active within 1.5 sec then tounge it baby")
These code guys are amzaing! I am sure they will figure it out
I am also guessing the new production pf boards will help to stabalize this. Honestly until those are installed I dont want to really ask for any major adjustments. I am sure that with some fine tuning of the opto on my end it will work fine anyway, as it sits.
Quoted from ezeltmann:1. There appears to be no indication as to how many hits you have left on the Xeno head (to start multiball) displayed on the LCD screen.
2. I would like to see some sort of feedback on the screen for each Xeno head hit. My suggestion is a very quick static-interruption style menacing Xeno appearance overriding the standard "status" screen. The ball will most likely be rolling right past the playfield screen at the exact moment this animation appears.
3. It's been mentioned before, that the Xeno head would benefit greatly from having a dedicated spotlight and /or flasher strobe. I would suggest that each hit would spotlight the head (again very briefly); which would inspire the player to shoot there often for the coolness factor. This is the No.1 mod i would want should Heighway not change anything.
code team has said they agree to this and it will happen (I hope just a small spot on the screen or maybe even the 3rd screen will flash a life meter)
Quoted from ezeltmann:4. From what i have seen when the head has grabbed the ball in videos, it seems to happen all too quick. My suggestion to be to drag it out with movie clips related to the scene ala "sparky Multiball startup" , which is way too long actually. The main point is that it should be a spectacle (IMO) , especially at the current level of difficulty. The wow factor of this toy has yet to be shown to it's full potential. Please let me know if you disagree or support this (pinsiders and developers).
I mean this all as constructive criticism and fully realize that part or all of what i suggested might already be planned. I have in in my (not Xeno) head that this feature should be the main draw and selling point of the game (again, think sparky) and as we are seeing in these streams, it has been underwhelming , if not confusing. The sound it makes when you hit it is great , i must say.
when it actually grabs it, the timing is not too fast feeling in real life. It does some cool stuff, but I am sure there is more coming. My general impression is that the xeno will be more of a main featture as code progresses. It does already scream, growl, move at times, and grab the ball at other times. Maybe I will try to demo some decent ball in hand videos after the new light boards are installed.
Quoted from ezeltmann:Just hoping i don't piss off the guys working on this.
If I can't piss them off with sharing my feedback... nobody can
Honestly I have been super impressed with the whole team on Aliens. I hope to meet more of them IRL at some point. Seem like a fun group of people and a good mix of fun players and competitive players. I think that shows in the game design and ruleset in a greta way. They have also been extremely open to feedback and I get the impression they soak it up and do a very nice job of filtering and holding the line on their vision.
Honestly, I value the opinion of Mike S and Ryan (two of the guys playing on the stream last night) a bunch. They both like the game and dont have some of the inherent bias I have (we have it on route so I obsiously hope people like it and play it 
. That speaks volumes to me that they both like it. Mike has had some time on it and continues to like it. Ryan walked away with a smile last night and a high five. He is pretty critical of most games but dug aliens out of the gate. That is all good.
Quoted from mtdouble:From all the videos I have seen the ball barely enters it and when it does the pops and animations don't do much of anything
there are 2 divertors in the orbit. Depending on mode the divertors will come up to stop and drop the ball into the pops (they can stop from left or from right as needed). They were coming up last night on stream but often a little late to stop the ball so just a code thing (or switch thing on our game) that will get worked out (previous code they worked more to divert)
Dont be too quick to judge based on these early games.
I am guessing pops will get stringer with code and also some switch adjustments on my end.
the pops seem to be there to randomize either a right or left exit which is good and important as you can use the orbit to set up the UR flipper shot. Part of the reason people were not seeing as many UR flipper successes up to the left upper ramp last night was do to the divertor not enganing at correct timing. When it is then you get many more chances at learning that shot.
Quoted from Eskaybee:They look very similar
feels nothing like a Stern in play or rules.
Lots of modes actually prevent flailing (hit this but avoid that; look for the cat, figure out when to use a weapon correctly)
worth mention that rules are a very solid foundation already and we are talking beta/early production release. If making comparisons, I also got great tech support and help with an update on a Saturday, only five days after the machine landed.
Quoted from Eskaybee:Which leads me to ask; who are the US distributors for Heighway?
Cointaker
ok, guys
can we please keep this one positive and on focus of the cool things? I get the desire to compare but this game is really like nothing else.
The only close comparable is that is 'feels' liek full throttle. I do agree with mike that the style is also somewhat shadow-esque in the flow and need to work on the fly and adjust (all good things)
Code is not even remotely like any other game I have played, unless superficially i.e. shoot the blinky lights in this order.
Quoted from Nevus:Big thank you for doing the stream. Thanks to Jack and Hilton. It's a great way to see the game.
cheers and glad you enjoyed.
Quoted from daudioguy:Just wanted to express my thanks to Hilton for purchasing Alien #2 and being an excellent beta tester, plus hosting the JD Twitch event. I am still mining it for AV integration issues as the entire American Team has been starved for real play testing (except Joe of course).
Hilton has been very thoughtful in suggesting things and reporting boo boos.
We are proud that Alien is extremely close to feature complete upon its release but refinement to everything will be rapid in the next eight weeks and it will not be long before the package will be mature and polished.
ddt
Thanks! Always happy to help in any way possible.
My production boards are en route now. I plan to install as soon as they are and then will get you guys some more quality and in depth feedback. I am just starting to understand more things and hence my feedback will improve over time.
If ANY of you want to come out for a day or 2, I would be happy to host you for the stay and get you in for plenty of time on the game to dissect for yourselves. Serious and genuine offer. The bar where the game is, opens after 3 on week days so you could have exclusive time on the game all day long.
Quoted from rad:Whysnow - can you share how many games have been played on the machine thus far? I would expect some heavy play. Can't wait to see one at one of my local haunts
no, sorry.
I can tell you it has been played more in the short time it has been out than most games are played in an entire month.
If you stop in to play and see Aliens off/ with a sign on it, please do me a favor and shoot me a text (my number is on all the games). Chances are that the game is just fine. 2x this past week some smartass has turned it off, put a sign on it, and told the bar staff "Aliens is having issues and I contacted Hilton" I never get contacted and then the machine sits off till I happen to stop back in.
We are pretty sure we know whom it is, as this past Saturday the bar tender said he remembers the guy and will point him out to me next time he sees him.
Long story short, there is of course the chance for a machine to go down, but recently someone seems to have some other motive for doing this. If pinsiders drop in and see a sign, please do me a favor and text me. I would always prefer to get a second text even if I already know. I take a lot of pride in trying to address any issues ASAP, but I cant address if I dont know.
thanks in advance for your help.
1 of 3 light boards installed today.
Went smooth, I just had limited time.
Hoping to have some time on monday/ dip out of work early and do another board or 2.
Quoted from SunKing:How's it holding up to public play? Any recurring issues?
solid. only issue at all was a wire broken off drop coil lug. Just needed resoldered.
All fixed and good to go.
Similar to our Full Throttle on route for the past year, I dont expect any big issues or abnormal stuff.
1 week later
Quoted from cosmokramer:One week later, same question...How does it seem to be holding up?
holding up great. No issues aside from pre-production light board stuff.
I just got the final parts to be able to finish installing the production boards, so heading to the bar now to finish up the job.
Gotta get it done before the launch party on Saturday...
Quoted from SunKing:...ALIENS have landed in Houston too!
congrats! You putting it out on route also?
People LOVE it!
Quoted from SunKing:Nope. ...I don't operate - I'm just a happy owner.
cheers to that!
I am 99% sure I will be buying one for myself to keep at home in the future
new light boards installed. All switches now work as expected I have a few lights on the upper most section with issues I need to work out, but much better already with the new light boards installed.
If anyone stops in to play in the next couple days, you will see that the drop targets dont register. They have upgraded the drop target board and it will be arriving in 2 days (in time for the launch party on Sat). I will also be installing new code as soon as the new drop target board arrives. This should address the xeno coding to work more also
2 weeks later
Quoted from PanzerFreak:Just curious how Alien has been holding up on location?
Also, has the wear been minimal at the main mode start and left side lockout home?
Thank you
holding up well. Getting LOTS of play.
I put mylar down at airlock and magnet , so that looks good. I think they are doing this from the factory now?
No wear at muther hole.
Only thing we have are intermittent lights not triggering/getting connection, which is fixed post thes first 2-3 pre-production tables.
for further explanation >> This is due to the GI lights (GI poles really as they are tall and travel from under pf boards all the way through the pf) and the holes for them to go through in the pf being a bit too tight of tolerance (this was changed after the first 2 prototype games). This tight tolerance means that vibration sometimes moves a GI light a bit and it does not have good connection. If 1 GI light gets loose then the rest of the string of lights can also stop working. Next game the GI can vibrate back in place and lights look good again. Not really a big deal from the stand point of play, but worth note for anyone that stops out to play our particular game.
Quoted from PanzerFreak:Great to hear that the game is holding up well! Has there been any wear or chipping around the magnet right in front of the xeno toy?
I put mylar down on D2 to prevent any (mylar will fix the majority of any problem areas on games; just wax well before laying it down so it is easy to pull up later). Worth note that our pf is a pre-production and I am under the impression that the full prodcution ones have a slightly differnet process and will be even better. I would still put mylar down if not from the factory.
Quoted from spfxted:You've been changing boards and tweaking stuff for a while now and still there are things not working properly. Would it be fair to say they still have some work to do on these before ready for full production?
no
edited for clarity: Ted you obviously dont work on games so it is hard to put this in different terms for you. We have a prototype/pre-produciton game. Only 'tweaks' were to swap in new under pf light/switch boards. Something not for the non-tech person like yourself. Luckily, ONLY the first 2 games went out with these pre-produciton light/switch boards and we both knew exactly what we were getting. We also helped to provide the feedback to make the improvements to where they are now. Aside fromt that, there were just minor adjustments as typical for any NIB game going on route.
From what I gather, they are building full produciton games, with full produciton light/switch boards. That is not to say they wont be making further adjustments or modifications to later games, but I think anyone would be happy with the prodcution they are now putting out.
Swapping a xeno board it 8? wires to disconnenct and reconnect. Something anyone with even 1 game shoudl be capable of doing. Assuming that is the only change to still be done, then I woudl say things are all good.
Quoted from PanzerFreak:That's good to know, thank you. I have a chance to get an Alien standard on CoinTakers next batch of games they get in as a spot has opened up. I've been wondering if it's fine to get the game now or wait until a later batch.
I dont think there is any issue. From what I have gathered, they have been making changes as they go.
Sounds like the TPF batch onward has many/most things fixed fromt he first few.
Quoted from SunKing:I would ask if this batch of games has the final production Xeno board. If so, I'd say go for it.
yeah, that sounds like a good indicator of production status currently.
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