Congrats...I am jealous! Been trying to talk myself into selling/trading something from my collection, but I'm pretty attached to all of them at the moment. He will pillage his way into my basement at some point though!

Can't wait to see what kind of goodies you guys come up with to dress him up a bit!

What a great pair...congrats! Exactly the two pins I hope are next in my collection. Enjoy, and welcome to the madness!

Those are old style leg protectors which aren't needed on modern Sterns. Stern started including the new style awhile back which hold the legs off of the cabinet itself, plus the decals are now cut to not go under the legs. I wouldn't use these as I'm pretty sure they could actually increase the chance of decal damage due to being larger than the legs themselves and potentially rubbing on the decals.

I wouldn't take the risk, but that's just me. Flashbacks of pretty much every Transformers ever are flashing through my head.

LOL on the switch...I think you need to clap twice.

Congrats on the new game...I'm jealous! Have fun!

Yeah...I'm not sure I understand why the pro still hasn't been updated, weeks later. I do not think we have ever had a substantial update for one and not the other at nearly the same time. I do not see any reason why the new features added to the prem/LEs couldn't be added to the pro. Heck, with a little creativity they could even add catapult multiball and have it make sense, though I know that's just a pipe dream. I really hope we do not see Stern go down the road of having multiple major code features missing from pros. While I do not love the idea, I at least understand things like Tron's DP multiball, GoT's Castle multiball, and Catapult multiball in this case. But if things like the BK2K mode isn't added at least, that's pure BS. Fingers crossed Tim will take good care of the pro guys too!

Joined the club this past weekend. Love this game! Just put in the Stern art blades tonight and I think they look awesome and really help fill in the vertical space on the pro. Love them!

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Stern

It's great! The new callouts with BK trying to talk you out of fighting when you are qualifying the modes are freaking hilarious! "Can't we talk about this?" "Let's lay our weapons down and have a discussion". LMAO!

Got to the Black Castle and fought BK for the first time. Did the modes get a bit easier with the update? I hadn't even gotten close before. What a great mode. Loved that Intro! That is how you make a mode feel special! Unfortunately I didn't defeat him, so no Rage for me, but can't wait to see it. Wasn't close to Ransom though...probably going to take me awhile to see that one.

Awesome game all around. Both Steve and Tim (and the rest of the team!) really knocked it out of the park in my opinion. The combo from the ramp into the shield lock with an on the fly backhand is one of the most satisfying shots ever. Every bit as good as the warp ramp, Picard maneuver, etc. Lich Lord start animation is my favorite animation ever, and the entire game is just amazing from an A/V standpoint. Just beautiful work! I am so in love with this game..

Sorry you are having trouble. My pro updated with no problem. You mention unzipping though...these newer games do not require unzipping. Just download and go. I even download direct to my USB drive now to save the step of moving the large file once it's done.

I knew there would be at least a few people in this camp. I would agree if he were being a wuss right from the start, but it's cleverly programmed so he only loses confidence as the player gets closer to his castle. He is as cocky and evil as ever in the beginning, only wavering once he sees your power. I think it helps tell a cool narrative.

You don't like it. I understand your reasoning. I happen to like it, but I enjoy a bit of humor in my games. I am sorry you feel so strongly about it that it's ruining the experience for you though. I personally can't see something like that driving me to dump a game I otherwise enjoy (much less driving you to purchase JJP instead). Have you thought about using Pinball Browser to replace the callouts you dislike? You could simply reuse a few of your favorite taunts. Even though you'd be reusing, I am guessing it wouldn't be any more redundant than the earlier code was (before the wussy callouts existed). Just a thought. Hate you see you sour on such an awesome game over it!

I hope you get your wish and they add a setting. I totally get where you are coming from. Options are good, and it doesn't seem like too big of a setting request (then again I am certainly not a programmer, so no clue really). And for real LOL at Samuel L Jackson setting.

No, they didn't get rid of the evil taunts. They just added some humorous "maybe we should talk about this" second-thoughts-about-fighting-us comments during the later battle qualification. Basically the better the player is doing against his minions, the more BK starts worrying about getting his butt kicked. Some like it, some do not.

I fully acknowledge that I am still in the honeymood stage with my pro, but at this point I honestly can't see it leaving my collection. It has so much personality and an addictive nature. It is brutal, but not unfair. Adrenaline rush from start to finish. I find the code to be great. It isn't the deepest code in the world, but it is well matched with the brutality of the playfield, if that makes sense. If it was much deeper, only the elite players would ever see the end. The battles are each unique with a feel and personality of their own. I love the "supers" system, with its risk/reward strategy and accidental cash-ins. The sword / power is a much more interesting take on the Star Trek Away Team / GOTG Upgrade idea. The risk/reward of having supers and power start from the crazy dangerous Black Knight shot is genius. Knight retro mode is amazing as a fan of the first game. It is very obtainable during a decent game and is a really nice mid-point mini-wizard to break up the battles. The Black Castle is the perfect difficulty in my opinion. It takes a great game, but it's doable. I've only gotten there once so far, and I didn't beat BK, so I have yet to see Rage. I also haven't seen Ransom yet, so that is another challenging yet obtainable reward waiting for me. This game definitely can't be breezed through (at least for me), but I do not think anything is too difficult or impossible for mortals to reach. Great balance.

I will admit, I do wish there was one more stackable multiball available in the pro. Catapult could have been implemented and tied to the left VUK, but I get that it was kept as something special for the prem/LE. That said, it doesn't really feel like anything is missing, it just would have been nice to have.

As for the layout, yes, it is a simple layout, but every single shot is so satisfying. I have only played a handful of games on the premium, but the upper playfield just didn't grab me. Then again I am (oddly) not a big fan of BK2K, especially the upper playfield, so I guess that's not a surprise. The catapult is a very cool mech and difficult yet satisfying to hit, but I found it to distracted me from the rest of the game too much. If all you are doing is concentrating on the upper playfield and getting catapult going, it is going to get repetitive fast. It also killed the flow of the ramp. The pro ramp is simple and shallow, but man it feels so good to hit. And comboing the ramp into the shield lock from an on the fly backhand has quickly become one of my favorite combos ever. It just feels so good...even better somehow than an upper flipper ramp Picard maneuver type shot. I feel sorry for the prem/LE guys losing that combo. Sure, you can do it when you drain from the upper, or by letting it just pass through, but it will never be the same as off of a silky smooth ramp. Nearly every shot is backhand-able which is always fun. The light lock target can even be backhanded, which is a cool shot. Yes...this game even manages to make stand-up targets feel good, LOL! It would be nice if Magnasave was a little stronger or better positioned to be as effective as the older machines were. My old BK could suck a ball half way out of the outlane. This one is more of a preventative measure than a real save. I probably use it on a fair number of balls that wouldn't have needed it, but better safe than sorry. As long as it's above the post it will usually catch (unless very fast moving), but once it's a hair down the outlane, forget it. Still, I love it, have gotten used to how to use it, and am very glad it's here. And I personally love it being on the lockdown bar. Nothing more satisfying than smacking it and watching the ball snap onto the save with that awesome sound and shaker effect firing. Good stuff.

As for the Black Knight himself...what a great "toy". Tying three different shots into one highly themed and great looking toy was just genius. The flail is wicked cool and used in great ways. The body target is such a sucker shot, but so valuable when supers or power is lit. The shield lock is awesome. I love that the shield not only blocks the lock lane, but can smack the ball back at you like the old Gottlieb kicking targets. Top it off with the bling of the face LEDs changing color based on what he's saying to you! So fun, so well theme integrated, and great looking to boot.

All of the art assets are second to none in my opinion. Just a beautiful machine all around. The animations are killer. Lich Lords mode start is my favorite animation of all time...just so intense. Every mode start feels special and like the start of an epic battle. It just pulls you in like few games do. I just can't say enough good things about the animations. Kudos to the team behind them...they killed it! I would like to see a little tweaking done to when WAR hurry-ups start, are going, and are finished. When in the middle of a battle, half the time I do not know WAR is happening (other than the insert lights, which are very well done). I'd like a little more fanfare to call more attention to it, but that's a nitpick. Maybe just a "THIS IS WAR" callout at the start? The lightshow overall is amazing. Sound, speech, and the killer music are all awesome. My only gripe is I never EVER, EVER want to hear the Black Knight call me "brah". I appreciate the humor added, including the "waivering confidence" stuff as you get closer to him, but BK should never say that word, LOL. (Yes I know...i'm too old...get off my lawn. ). I might even change that one using Pinball Browser as it's the only one that actually makes me cringe, and not in a good way. Other than that...everything is spot on. I do get some distortion from the speakers at a fairly low volume, so I think some audio levels could probably be tweaked, but that's minor and there are some adjustments in the settings that could probably help. Also, the shaker motor integration is great...one of the best I've played.

Sorry this turned into a bit of a full review (actually I may copy paste it into the review section). I just am really in love with this game and can't say enough good about it. I feel sorry for those that have dismissed it as being stripped down or too simple. Steve Ritchie once again proves that a great game doesn't have to be too complex. This is a pure battle pin...fast, flowy, and brutal, with a fun and fitting ruleset, wrapped in amazing art and A/V assets.

As for the comparison with DP...that's a tough one. I actually sold my DP pro to fund my BK, however I only let it go because I intend to upgrade to a DP premium at some point down the road. I would say they are very close to equals in my mind. DP is a bit more lighthearted fun, BK is a little more intense and adrenaline pumping. BK shoots better, but DP has more interesting, though sometimes clunky, shots. DP is probably a bit deeper, which is appropriate as it plays longer. DP is a bit more unique in both layout and code, but that isn't a knock on BK by any means. If forced to choose, at this point I would say BK as I love the intensity and adrenaline, but DP is right there with it. Once I manage to bring a DP premium home, they will both be long term keepers for me, so you can't go wrong with either.

Good luck with the choice!

Made it to the Black Castle for the third time last night. Such a rush, and I love the intro animation. Every other game should take note on how to make a wizard mode feel special! But...I again failed to slay the Knight, so still no Rage for me. Anyone know how many hits it takes? I didn't get too many in this time, but last time I got there it seemed like I was battling him forever with no end in sight. Is there a stamina meter or anything I should be watching? I didn't notice one, but also couldn't really look up much.

Damn I love this game!

Finally knocked that rotten Knight on his butt and got to RAGE! Awesome mode. The opening animation again proved that BK is second to none in the animation department. So freaking cool!

Still no Ransom for me. Ended up one letter away. Someday. How are you guys getting there? Alot of WAR hurry-ups? I generally do not concentrate on those but try to complete them when I see the shots flashing. I generally do not get more than one or maybe two per game, so it takes getting to the Black Castle and then a couple more modes after to get there. Is WAR the better way of getting there instead?

I would love to see a second monster for each realm. I am guessing (and just a guess) that was planned, at least in the beginning. Otherwise it doesn't make sense that they labeled the inserts with the realm name instead of the monsters name. That said, I realize that is a huge undertaking and am not holding my breath. Sure would be cool though since the character designs in this game are freaking awesome...I'd love to see more.

I'd also like to see RANSOM be a little more obtainable. I have gotten all the way to Rage multiball by defeating BK, yet was still less than half way to a second KNIGHT spell out. That doesn't seem right. Retro is just right...can see it almost every game. Black Castle is also just right. The Knight is hard to defeat...but that's not a bad thing. I would like to see a health bar added for him so you have some idea of progress. If there is an indication now, I missed it in the heat of the battle.

I would also love to see one more multiball mode to help make up for the pro losing catapult. I still think catapult could be added by simply assigning a light lock/lock function to a different shot (I would use the left orbit-VUK since it's kind of catapult-ish, and then you have to think about the timing strategy because of supers). But if not, some sort of quick two ball mode would be cool. Maybe make one of the battles a multiball (like Quills Quest)...maybe Hydra since it has multiple heads and each need to be hit twice, so it would make thematic sense?

These things would be great icing on the cake...but I'm very happy with the game as it is. The extra ball lit/collected animation order is all that really needs fixing, and a "coward level" setting for those that do not like BK getting nervous would be nice. Oh and tweaking the magnasave strength if possible. I have gotten pretty used to anticipating when to use it, but it's still way weaker and less reliable than the old games. I'm hoping Tim still has a couple surprises up his sleeve for us though!

Been to Black Castle multiple times. Defeated the Knight once. Best I have ever gotten was to the G the second time. I really think this needs to be dialed back a bit in the next update. It shouldn't be significantly harder to get to Ransom than to Rage.

There could easily be more thresholds for collecting letters:
-Half way through monster
-Defeat monster
-At least one hit during WAR hurry-up
-Complete WAR hurry-up
-Successful MagnaSave use?
-Super skillshot
-Cash in a certain size (1m+?) Super Modes Jackpot
-X number of U-turns
-X number of jackpots or super jackpot in Triple Knight Challenge and Catapult

(I know some of these are already how you earn them, just putting together a potential full list)

I like that idea better than just spotting more letters. Of course you don't want to be handing out RANSOMs like candy, so likely can't do all of these, but adding a couple more letter earning opportunities could go a long way to making it more obtainable. RETRO seems just right...I wouldn't want that to be easier. So if this was done I would eliminate the initially spotted letters. Or...maybe some of these could only go into affect after RETRO? Lots of possible solutions.

To me, it's more of a one trick pony WITH the upper PF. Why would you ever bother with the lower pf shots when you can progress battles with one target in the upper (thereby sucking all uniqueness out of the battles), and start multiball up there? The upper completely takes over the game, and just isn't much fun to shoot in my opinion. Plus you lose one of the best combo shots in pinball...the ramp to shield lock backhand. Sooooo good.

Great game either way, but I'm glad we have options!

One of the best integrated shakers I can think of. Highly recommended!

This type of mylar will come off super easily if needed down the road. Where mylar can become an issue is old games where they were put down with heavy adhesive on a non-clearcoated playfield, then baked by the incandescent insert bulbs for a couple decades. A small self adhesive piece like this one on a modern clearcoated playfield with only LEDs under it will peel off later with minimal effort. If you put down a layer of wax first, even easier.

That said, I am not sure I see the benefit of putting this one on in a typical HUO environment. Just keep it clean and waxed. But there will be absolutely no harm in putting it on if it makes you more comfortable.

Oh such a very loaded of a question...LOL! There are many who would argue that the game simply isn't BK if it doesn't have an upper playfield. I do not buy into that, as to me it's more about the battle, personality, and themed world it creates. I personally like the pro better, but I will admit I wish we had catapult multiball, or at least one more "side mission" type goal.

Here is a copy / paste of my defense of the pro when it was accused of being a one trick pony without the upper playfield:
"To me, it's more of a one trick pony WITH the upper PF. Why would you ever bother with the lower pf shots when you can progress battles with one target in the upper (thereby sucking all uniqueness out of the battles), and start multiball up there? The upper completely takes over the game, and just isn't much fun to shoot in my opinion. Plus you lose one of the best combo shots in pinball...the ramp to shield lock backhand. Sooooo good."

That's just my two cents though. I totally understand and respect that some like the prem/LE better. It's nice to have choices, and it's a great game either way. I think it's a lot like GoT, where they really feel like two different games. Some will prefer one over the other, but they are both awesome. I'm happy with my pro, but if only the prem/LE existed, I would be happy with that too (again, just like GoT)!

My fingers are crossed for a code drop that will rival the JP code update. Not holding my breath, but hoping! LOL

While I would love more features, modes, etc...I am really just expecting some tweaks and polish. But I will keep hoping Tim has some crazy surprises for us!

Really hope the soundtrack isn't the only thing. Feeling kind of trolled right now. :/

The button position isn't the problem with the magna-save. It's the power and/or position of the magnet. I am hopeful they can make it a little more effective with a software update, but I'm not holding my breath.

How are you getting to RANSOM more than Black Castle? I have been to the castle multiple times, including beating him once, and the closest I have ever been to RANSOM is to the G the second time (and usually more like the N). Since you only get one letter per monster, are you doing a ton of War hurry-ups to do it? Like you say, I am also terrible at WAR, often leading to drains, so that really limits my KNIGHT letters. Am I correct that the only way of getting letters is one per monster and one for finishing each WAR hurry-up?

Of all the things this machine could benefit from, tougher monsters wasn't one of them...no idea who thinks the game needs to be harder.

Nice scoring tweaks though. So there's that at least.

What we really need is more ways to earn KNIGHT letters. And at least one more multiball or interesting side goal would be good. Especially for the pro. Just port catapult lock to a different shot even!

I can't disagree there. I love the game, but it just needs more to do rather than making what is already there even more difficult. I'm all for having a very tough to achieve wizard mode, but with how difficult Black Castle, RAGE, and RANSOM are, that just doesn't leave much else to do for the average or even above average player. It really needs another layer.

Now that would be awesome! Never thought of it, but yes! That would add some nice strategy, risk/reward, and more strong reason to shoot the right side of the playfield.

Still better than him calling me "bruh". Wish that had a setting. Waiting for the code update and then I'll take care of that with Pinball Browser.

I'm all for options, so do not get me wrong, but there is a world of difference between Escape Nublar and Black Castle. EN very much feels like a minigame of its own. Hell...on it's own it is deeper than many games. You get three balls, work your way through the entire map, etc. It is very long, varied and satisfying as a game of its own. BC would not have nearly that effect. It is more of a traditional mode...really not that much different than any of the monster battles, with a cool multiball frenzy mode in RAGE if you beat it. Again...not saying options are a bad thing...but it's really not apples to apples here to throw the feature into BK.

PRO V1.01 - February 11, 2020
==========================
Fixed:
- Fixed an issue that sometimes prevented players from earning KNIGHT letters
from a mode that had been continued on a subsequent ball.
- Fixed an issue that sometimes kept foreground display effects on the screen
during KNIGHT multiballs.
- Fixed an issue that sometimes prevented the war hurry up display effects
from playing over the main play display effects.
- Fixed an issue during modes where players could sometimes share mode shot
progress.
- Extra ball is lit display effect will no longer play if extra ball is not
lit.
- Fixed an issue that could sometimes cause the left ball save not to save a
ball when the player took a tilt warning.
- Fixed an issue that prevented the War Hurry up champion high score from
getting updated.
- Fixed an issue that caused the mystery awards to be shared among players in
a competition game. Each player's mystery awards are now tracked individually
in competition play.
- Fixed an issue that could cause Black Castle mode to remain lit if a player
tilted while playing Black Castle mode.

Tweaked:
- Deep Freeze mode shots will always start with the same shot array, even when
the mode continues from ball to ball.
- Reduced the intensity of GI effects during the mystery award light show.
- Shield Diverter Disabled adjustment will allow you to start all shield
features by bashing the shield.
- Removed critical lights from skill shot and war hurry ups light shows.
- Changed the TKC Multiball start video to play after the mode start video.
Lock videos still play before the mode start videos.
- Locked out the Horse Whinny sound for game start - no credits for 30 seconds
after it is played.
- Moved the War Hurry up priority above mode priority. This makes it easier to
see hurry up and score values for the war hurry up shots.
- Added flail movement logic to Retro Multiball.
- Added additional flail movement logic to Triple Knight's Challenge
Multiball.
- Removed shoot again light from the Magna-Save light show.
- Added a display effect to show how many left bank completions are required
to earn Ball Save.
- Lowered the default slingshot power to 16. Competition install will set
slingshot power to 24.
- Modified the Extra Ball display effect to show the score if the game is set to
award points instead of an extra ball.
- Changed KNIGHT feature start rules. KNIGHT modes can be started while modes
and WAR Hurry ups are running. Doing so will end all running modes. KNIGHT
modes cannot be started while any multiball or wizard mode is running.
- Made Sword of Rage easier to qualify.
- SWORD OF RAGE DIFFICULTY adjustment defaults to EASY
- Prior to starting 1st mode - Sword is 70% completed.
- After power is activated - Sword is 40% completed.
- Rest of game - Sword is 0% completed.
- Center target and right drop target bank add more progress to filling
sword meter.

- Sound balancing and additional audio enhancements.

- Various Scoring Tweaks

- Reset the value of upper playfield loops on every ball.

- Increased the value of Magna-Save bonus. Starts at 2.5m. Increases by 750k
for every successful Magna-Save.

- Removed all the existing score mystery awards (250k, 750k, 1.5m, 2.5m) and
replaced with high scoring awards (2m, 3m, 4m, 5m.)

- Increased mode scoring.
- All modes have a base value starting at 2m.
- Increased by +200k for each mode completed.
- Increased by +950k for each lap of modes completed.
- Draining while a mode is active will reset the mode scores to the base 2m.

- Increased the score bonuses for shooting the flail prior to starting a mode.
- Flail bonuses are reset when the mode starts and cannot be earned until
the next mode is qualified.
- Flail bonuses are reset when the ball drains.
- Shooting through the spinning flail awards +250k (increases
by 25k.)
- Shooting the flail when it's closed awards +200k.
- Shooting the flail when it's spinning awards +400k.
- Shooting the flail when it's open awards +250k (increases by 25k.)

- Increased the scoring in Hydra and Lich mode on mode shots that did not
progress toward completing the mode.

- Changed default mode difficulty to MEDIUM.
- Tweaked the number of mode shots required to complete modes.
- Molten Fire (Magma Beast)
- Easy: 6 shots to complete. 2 shots for KNIGHT letter.
- Medium: 8 shots to complete. 3 shots for KNIGHT letter.
- Hard: 10 shots to complete. 4 shots for KNIGHT letter.
- Wicked Cavern (Hell Hand)
- Easy: 6 shots to complete. 2 shots for KNIGHT letter.
- Medium: 8 shots to complete. 3 shots for KNIGHT letter.
- Hard: 10 shots to complete. 4 shots for KNIGHT letter.
- Mud Bod (Hydra)
- Easy: 3 heads sealed to complete. 1 sealed for KNIGHT letter.
- Medium: 4 heads sealed to complete. 2 sealed for KNIGHT letter.
- Hard: 5 heads sealed to complete. 3 sealed for KNIGHT letter.
- Deep Freeze (Lich Lords)
- Easy: 3 liches defeated to complete. 1 defeated for KNIGHT letter.
- Medium: 4 liches defeated to complete. 2 defeated for KNIGHT letter.
- Hard: 5 liches defeated to complete. 3 defeated for KNIGHT letter.
- Burning Sands (Sand Worm)
- Easy: 6 shots to complete. 2 shots for KNIGHT letter.
- Medium: 8 shots to complete. 3 shots for KNIGHT letter.
- Hard: 10 shots to complete. 4 shots for KNIGHT letter.

- Increased war hurry up scoring.
- Base Value for all hurry ups is 3m.
- Score for subsequent hurry ups is set to the value of the hurry up when
it was awarded or when it was terminated.
- The left pop bumper increases the value of the flail hurry up by
+225k+(5k*number of left pop bumper hits for this player this game)
- The bottom pop bumper increases the value of the target hurry up by
+175k+(5k*number of bottom pop bumper hits for this player this game)
- The right pop bumper increases the value of the target hurry up by
+195k+(5k*number of right pop bumper hits for this player this game)
- Increased max value of each hurry up to 25m.

- Modified the Super Feature rules and scoring
- Super Features now run with no timer.
- Super Features are started at level 1 (Green) by hitting the center
target.
- All running Super Features are boosted by 1 level when a player shoots
the Left VUK during single-ball play.
- The Super Jackpot value shown on the UI is now collected by having a ball
roll over the right return lane switch within 5 seconds of a player
activating their Magna-Save.
- The Castle Spinner (Pro Only) will score 5,000 points. Super Spins scoring
will not boost the value of this spinner.

- New Super Feature Scoring

- Super Lanes Level 1 (Green) -- 50,000
- Super Lanes Level 2 (Yellow) -- 75,000
- Super Lanes Level 3 (Red) -- 115,000
- Super Lanes Level 4 (Magenta) -- 140,000

- Super Orbits Level 1 (Green) -- 115,000
- Super Orbits Level 2 (Yellow) -- 185,000
- Super Orbits Level 3 (Red) -- 275,000
- Super Orbits Level 4 (Magenta) -- 400,000

- Super Pops Level 1 (Green) -- 35,000
- Super Pops Level 2 (Yellow) -- 50,000
- Super Pops Level 3 (Red) -- 95,000
- Super Pops Level 4 (Magenta) -- 115,000

- Super Slings Level 1 (Green) -- 100,000
- Super Slings Level 2 (Yellow) -- 200,000
- Super Slings Level 3 (Red) -- 350,000
- Super Slings Level 4 (Magenta) -- 500,000

- Super Spins Level 1 (Green) -- 14,000
- Super Spins Level 2 (Yellow) -- 20,000
- Super Spins Level 3 (Red) -- 28,000
- Super Spins Level 4 (Magenta) -- 38,000

- Super Targets Level 1 (Green) -- 100,000
- Super Targets Level 2 (Yellow) -- 150,000
- Super Targets Level 3 (Red) -- 250,000
- Super Targets Level 4 (Magenta) -- 350,000

New:
- Added topper support.
- Custom Black Knight speech plays when the flipper buttons are pressed
during attract mode and during gameplay with a topper installed.
- Full animatronic motion of the Black Knight head is synchronized with all
Black Knight speech effects and interacts with events during gameplay.
- Additional test menu support added for topper calibration.

- Added speech calls for WAR when war hurry ups start and RAGE when mystery
is lit from the inlanes.
- Added announcer speech calls on mode completion.
- Added alternate game soundtrack.
- Added adjustment for shield hold power.
- Added diagnostics icons to game menu.
- Added flame panel test menu entry.
- Added adjustment for backpedaling speech frequency. Defaults to NEVER.
Also has adjustments for Occasional (30% of the time) and Frequently.
- Added Butcher skeleton speech to Skill Shot.
- Added auto-adjusting Extra Ball to U-Turn Combo rule.
- Added new Adjustment "REQUIRE MODE FOR CATAPULT LOCK"
- If enabled, a mode must be started to light subsequent Catapult Locks.
- If enabled AND CATAPULT LOCK DIFFICULTY is set to hard, a mode must be
started before Catapult Locks can be lit.
- Install Competition sets CATAPULT LOCK DIFFICULTY to HARD and REQUIRE MODE
FOR CATAPULT LOCK to YES.

Moved to System 2.43:
- Updated to nodeboard firmware v0.56.0

- Allow the knocker sound effect to play completely when a replay is
awarded during the last ball bonus and ensure the normal game volume is
restored.

- Added Standard Adjustment "MAX PLAYERS PER GAME". Values are 1 to 4,
with a default setting of 4. This can be used to limit the number
of players that can be added to a game.

- Using LEFT+START to end a game during bonus count could leave game graphics
on screen while in attract mode. This has been corrected.

- Added UTIL->VOL Adjustment "SELECT AUDIO FILTER". Values are:
"NONE", "HIGH/LOW SHELF", and "10 BAND EQ". Default value is
"HIGH/LOW SHELF".
"NONE": No filtering will be performed on the audio output. Useful when
using the Line Out as input for an external device.
"HIGH/LOW SHELF": A High/Low Shelf Filter is applied to the audio output.
The Bass Frequency can be set to: 125Hz, 250Hz, or Disabled.
The Treble Frequency can be set to: 4KHz, 8KHz, or Disabled.
The Gain can be set to -12dB .. +12dB
On Spike 2 the Shelf Frequency and Gain can be set independently for the
Backbox and Cabinet speakers.
"10 BAND EQ": A full 10 Band EQ is applied to the audio output.
Sliders are used to adjust the Gain of a specific range of frequencies.
The Frequencies are: 31Hz, 62Hz, 125Hz, 250Hz, 500Hz, 1KHz, 2KHz, 4KHz,
8KHz, 16KHz.
The Gain curve has a 60dB dynamic range across the -120 .. +120 Slider
settings.
On Spike2 the Gain can be set independently for the Backbox and Cabinet
speakers.

Moved to OS V2.0.17

The new "super" rules add some interesting risk/reward strategy for when to use the MagnaSave. Really surprised they used that for the super jackpot collect...but I like the twist! Before I was quick to use it even if I had a good chance of saving the ball myself. Now I will be hesitant and lose more balls, lol. Do I take the sure save, but cash in my supers early? Or risk it and keep building. It will also cause people to sacrifice a magnasave in order to cash in a big super jackpot. Very interesting...

Yeah...alternate soundtrack is a headscratcher for sure. I thought that was the part of the machine most people agreed was awesome. But hey...I'm all for options so interested to see (err...hear) what it is.

Ahh...cool. I'm all for anything that gives people a better option for them. Looking forward to checking it out, but will be surprised if I do not change it back quickly. I love the metal soundtrack. Glad the option is there for those that want it though!

Also now I want chicken.

Oh man...I knew something seemed off but couldn't put my finger on it. YES...need to bring the roars back! Please Tim!!

I was getting an insane amount of airballs off the slings, misc posts, etc. Discovered that basically EVERY post in the game was loose. In some cases barely finger tight or less. Went through and tightened them all and it plays much better now. Still get an occasional airball, but no where near as bad. At minimum check your sling posts and the posts around the knight, ramps, etc. But it wouldn't hurt to check them all. Not sure what Stern is thinking, but they really need to check and follow their torque specs. Most of my newer machines have had this issue, but none quite to this extent.

Had a killer game last night, first time breaking a billion and finally hit RANSOM. Such a fun mode! Just wish it was a little more accessible. Was able to battle the Knight again in the Black Castle which is always a good time. This is the first time I have done it on anything other than my last ball, and was a bit disappointed to see the fight does not carry over to your next ball like all the other battles do. No RAGE for me. Would be nice to see this be a setting in the future (or maybe it is and I never noticed it??)....kind of like Jericho on Iron Man. Either way...it always feels great to get this deep on such a brutal game.
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Wish I could tell you something magic...but really I just had a lucky game and didn't drain.

My strategy is super basic...just concentrate on modes, take WARs, supers, and multiballs as they come without really concentrating on making them happen. I try to do WAR hurry-ups when they come, but they are usually deadly. In mutiball I concentrate on supers (they are too deadly to focus on during single ball for me). If I am in the right mood I will try to boost the mode values, but that is usually playing with fire. I might have done that once or twice during this particular game, but not often.

I would love the Black Castle battle to have a status/health bar so we could see how many hits remain. Every time I get there, I swear I got dozens of hits in (realistically probably like 3, LOL), and no idea when it will end. So nasty making you hit those center shots so often!

There were some posted earlier in this thread.
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/black-knight-swords-of-rage-club-honourable-knights-only/page/38#post-5383942

Now if anyone has pics of them on a pro, that I'd be very interested in seeing. Not sure how that will look with the sword on the artwork being the focal point on the pro. I like the side rails, but I think they could be better without the Black Knight title on it. That looks a little busy and crammed in. Would have been better if it was his helmet, similar to how GoT have the house sigils or SW has the imperial / rebel logos.

I am 98% sure they ARE random, at least in the pro. If not I have literally never noticed in the year I have owned mine....and I think I would have noticed. Will let you know for sure once I get a chance to play mine later.

Unfortunately, the way they worked around the catapult lock not being there on the pro is they took catapult multiball away altogether...which kind of leaves a hole in the pro's code. I love the game, but it really needs that one more thing to do. They could have remapped that shot any number of ways, but unfortunately chose not to. I'm still hoping that is changed someday, but not really holding my breath. It's a bummer.

I doubt it's that low. I have done it, but only once in the ~year I have had it. RANSOM is nearly as difficult for me...I have only saw that twice. I'd love a few more ways to earn letters...mix it up like TWD earning multikills.

Getting to the castle to face BK is fairly achievable. I'm guessing I get there about 1 out of 10 games or so. Beating him is another story all together. You are forced to make so many deadly center shots that it honestly comes down to luck. There just isn't any real way to mitigate the risk of hitting the spinning flail or the center target....and there is no way around them during that battle. It's like being forced to do WAR hurry-ups over and over. You are just screwed, LOL!

You have gotten to RANSOM 11 times, but only BC twice? I must be missing something in the rules, because that seems almost impossible to me. There are only 5 modes before Black Castle. You need what...four letters (I think 2 are spotted?) to get to Retro, then another six to get to Ransom. So 10 letters total to get there. If you are getting 5 or less from modes, that means you are getting at least 5 successful_ WAR completions! That's some crazy skill. WAR almost always means death to me. They just seems way to difficult requiring 4-6 shots (depending if the flail is spinning and/or the shield is down) at deadly shots that are nearly impossible to mitigate. I guess I need some serious practice...LOL!

Ahhh! That makes much more sense then. I forgot about Catapult multi and that you can get WARs started during. Yeah, on my pro I usually only get one, MAYBE two Triple Knights Challenge multiballs going per game. I get Retro most games, but unfortunately no WAR progress during those. I still think Catapult multi could be added to the pro fairly easily, but I know that's just a pipe dream at this point. :/

This game is so close to awesomeness. I really hope Tim puts it over the finish line, but honestly I'm losing hope on that.

First thing I would check is make sure the target isn't stuck. There is very little room between the edge of the target and the post rubbers along side of it. Targets can shift a bit over time, and it wouldn't surprise me if this happened.

Next check that it's adjusted properly. Then check to make sure a wire didn't fall off the switch. Not sure if there are diodes on these, but if so, make sure that's still attached too. If all those are good, start tracing the wires back as far as possible to make sure there isn't a disconnect or break. Good luck!

Has anyone installed the Hooked pop bumper caps on a Pro? Instructions say they just screw right on top of the existing caps. No problem on the top two, but the bottom one has the ramp wireform on top of it. There's only about 1/16" or so between the wireform and the stock cap. The Hooked caps are pretty thick...1/4" or maybe more. There's no way they are just sliding under there. It would be easy enough to loosen the wireform to install, but there would be some major stress on the wireform (and cap) when reinstalled and tightened down. Am I missing something? Maybe I have less room between the pop and wireform than I should?

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Tried that too. Lots of stress on the wireform even then. I might try adding a couple washers under the wireform spacers to see if that gives me enough extra room. Otherwise I might end up using only the top two. Not the end of the world as you can't see the bottom one from the players position (at my height anyway, LOL!). Thanks for the idea though!

Thanks..and thanks again for the caps! They are awesome!

Agree 100%. I've had my machine just over a year and only gotten to RAGE once and RANSOM twice I think, and I'd like to think I'm a decent player. Black Castle is a fairly common achievement for me...I'd say 1 or every 10 games or so I can get there. The battle against BK should be hard, but as it is now, it's just too much. It's an amazing mode, but it has way too many shots required, and way too many of them being the three center shots which are all instant death risks. I understand "Play Better", but there is no strategy or skill involved with surviving those three shots...it's literally all luck. At bare minimum, the fight should continue into the next ball like every other fight does. That will not help me much as I rarely get there on anything but my last ball, but it would be something! An instant extra ball for getting to the castle would be a nice bonus, and combined with continuing the fight would be a perfect solution. Still hard, but more manageable. Possibly smart programming of short ball saves when those center shots are required would be nice, but I'd hate to see it get TOO easy. (yeah right ). All this could be managed in the settings to keep people that like the crazy difficulty happy too.

RANSOM I have complained about many times. That's another one where the only practical way to get there is by making tons of the three center shots by doing WAR hurry-ups over and over and over. We all know that's playing with fire. This could be made much more manageable by simply adding more ways to collect letters. Think about HORDE in TWD. There are many ways to earn multikills, which makes HORDE obtainable but I do not think anyone would argue it's too easy to get to. Follow the same philosophy for collecting letters and you'd increase the number of people that can enjoy RANSOM exponentially. At minimum add a letter for completing a super skill shot. As of now, all you get for a super skill shot is a few extra points, but lose out on the easy WAR letter. Not worth it at all. Give me a letter and it would be worth it! Letters could be added for every so many jackpots (or for a super jackpot) in TKC and maybe even Retro. That would make those multiballs more useful than they are now too. Letting WAR hurry-ups happen in Retro would help, but it would take away from the theme of the mode, so I do not think I would want that. You could even give a letter for every so many orbit shots or drop target bank completions...giving you more reason to actually shoot the right side of the playfield.

This is a great game, but honestly as-is it is missing a layer of things to do. This is especially true of the pro, which has a big gap where Catapult multiball should be (and 100% COULD be if they simply mapped the lock shot to the left VUK or something similar). As it is now, two awesome modes are locked behind requirements that only very good players will ever see, and only the elite will enjoy regularly. In a super deep game such as LOTR, TSPP, TWD, etc...it's ok for the final wizard modes to be that far away. For something with the depth/breadth of BK though...it just doesn't leave enough to do for the average player. I honestly think they either need to make those two modes more obtainable, OR add another layer of things to do for those that struggle to get to the end (or...perfect world, both!).

I know I sound like a broken record for those that have read my previous posts, but this is such a fun game, and is SO CLOSE to greatness. I really hope Tim pushes this over that line. Unfortunately seeing the radio silence on this game while we see almost all of the other games released recently get huge update after update makes me start to lose hope. It's a GOOD game as it sits, but it could be a GREAT game with some relatively minor tweaks. (Or course if they want to go huge and give us a second set of monsters for each realm too, my head would explode, LOL).

/Rant off. Love the game...just hope to see some minor tweaks that would make a huge difference.

Wish I could give this like 6 thumbs up. Colored protectors kill the art just as bad as color bombed LEDs.

I have found that usually the shaker just needs to be tightened down to the cabinet when it gets noisy. Sometimes the cross bolt that goes across the top of the shaker can be tightened a bit too.

Good call. Colored protectors are like the next generation of color bombed GI LEDs.

You will not lose anything by disconnecting at playfield, and like you said it's pretty straight forward. Removing the pf is definitely the easiest way to install blades if you are comfortable lifting it in and out. Otherwise it's really not hard to do it with the pf just flipped up against the backbox. Good luck!

There should be a one-way gate stopping that from happening. Yours must be missing or needs to be adjusted.

Yup. I had to adjust mine a bit as a slow moving ball would occasionally get stuck in the gate. Never had a bounce out, even with making it looser by bending up the spring steel flap a bit.
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After seeing the extent of the AIQ and STh updates, this is kind of a big old middle finger after how long we've been waiting. This game is so good, but could be great with a few minor tweaks. I am really disappointed in Tim's lack of dedication to this game compared to pretty much any other coder, including Lonnie who usually gets crapped on (but is killing it with STh code). SMH

I've said it before, but KNIGHT letters should be more like TWD's multikills. Instead of one per mode or the crazy dangerous hurry-ups only, have them earn-able for additional goals. Super skill shot. Certain number of u-turns. Super jackpot. So many drop bank completions. Etc, etc. That's a way better solution to making RANSOM more obtainable without just spotting more letters.

I agree Black Castle should be able to continue on ball drain. Every other mode works that way, so why make the hardest, most dangerous, difficult to get to mode a one-shot deal? Even with the continue, it is still a super hard mode to complete. I have gotten there many times, but only finished it to see RAGE twice.

The game, especially the pro just needs more obtainable_ content. The sad part is that the cool content is there, it's just locked behind insanely difficult requirements that the average player will never, or very rarely, see. That's ok for a very deep game, like TWD, TSPP, etc...but for a game with the simplicity of BK, you can't lock half the game behind those walls.

If you want to keep RANSOM and RAGE that difficult to get to, then give us more lower level content. Catapult multi on the pro would be a nice start, and very easy to implement by lighting lock with the drop bank, then lock in the left scoop. Done. That adds much needed content utilizing assets that already exist, and gives us a reason to shoot at the right side of the playfield. Win-win. Everyone's happy with a minimal amount of work. I'd love to see more than one monster per realm, but I'm sure that's a pipe dream and would be a much bigger undertaking.

The supers system has potential to be awesome, but it needs...something. At least a better way of cashing out other than wasting a magna-save. Not sure what to do here. I don't hate it as-is, but it seems like something could be better. That's the least of my wants though.

Seriously, this game is so close to amazing that it's infuriating to see it stagnate as-is. With a small amount of effort it could be so much better. I'm keeping my fingers crossed, but rapidly loosing hope at this point. I enjoy the game as-is...but it could be so much more with a few minor tweaks.

Adding catapult multiball to the pro would have exactly 0% effect on the value of the prem/LE. That damage has already been done by initial impressions and lack of code updates. Those that love the prem/LE do so because of the upper playfield, not because it currently has a mode that the pro doesn't have.

I think you might be storming the wrong castle here...

Yeah...I think I posted a similar PSA earlier in the thread, and it's well worth mentioning again. Every new Stern I have bought the past few years have had loose posts, but not to the extent of BK. Literally every post on my game was finger tight or worse. Stranger Things, GOTG, SW, TMNT, all also had many loose. I just unboxed an Avengers:IQ and while it had a couple loose, it wasn't nearly as bad as those.

Here is a copy/paste of my wishlist:

I've said it before, but KNIGHT letters should be more like TWD's multikills. Instead of one per mode or the crazy dangerous hurry-ups only, have them earn-able for additional goals. Super skill shot. Certain number of u-turns. Super jackpot. So many drop bank completions. Etc, etc. That's a way better solution to making RANSOM more obtainable without just spotting more letters.

I agree Black Castle should be able to continue on ball drain. Every other mode works that way, so why make the hardest, most dangerous, difficult to get to mode a one-shot deal? Even with the continue, it is still a super hard mode to complete. I have gotten there many times, but only finished it to see RAGE twice.

The game, especially the pro just needs more obtainable_ content. The sad part is that the cool content is there, it's just locked behind insanely difficult requirements that the average player will never, or very rarely, see. That's ok for a very deep game, like TWD, TSPP, etc...but for a game with the simplicity of BK, you can't lock half the game behind those walls.

If you want to keep RANSOM and RAGE that difficult to get to, then give us more lower level content. Catapult multi on the pro would be a nice start, and very easy to implement by lighting lock with the drop bank, then lock in the left scoop. Done. That adds much needed content utilizing assets that already exist, and gives us a reason to shoot at the right side of the playfield. Win-win. Everyone's happy with a minimal amount of work. I'd love to see more than one monster per realm, but I'm sure that's a pipe dream and would be a much bigger undertaking.

The supers system has potential to be awesome, but it needs...something. At least a better way of cashing out other than wasting a magna-save. Not sure what to do here. I don't hate it as-is, but it seems like something could be better. That's the least of my wants though.

Seriously, this game is so close to amazing that it's infuriating to see it stagnate as-is. With a small amount of effort it could be so much better. I'm keeping my fingers crossed, but rapidly loosing hope at this point. I enjoy the game as-is...but it could be so much more with a few minor tweaks.

Even if you have the reaction time, the magnasave on BK:SOR is weak compared to the original and pretty much every other game with magnasave ever made. Not sure if it's physically weaker, positioned worse, or if it's just due to the higher ball speed on the new games. Maybe a combination of all the above, but it's a significant difference. My old BK could suck a ball back out of the outlane a good inch or more down. With SOR you need to use it as an insurance policy. If in doubt, use it. If you know it's going to drain, it's already gone. I laugh when I hear people talk about drilling a hole in the cabinet thinking it's going to make a difference. It's not. Only reason to do that is if you just plain want the button there. It won't help in game play.

The sad thing is, the code is good...there are some really, really good ideas there...especially for Tim's first outing. It is SO close to greatness...but just not quite there, and the things stopping it short are some pretty big things. I think we all had high hopes that Tim's obvious passion for pinball would carry over into his work and he would be the type to really push it over the top into greatness. Unfortunately, so far, he hasn't done that. I really hope he circles back to it and puts it over, but at this point I think it is what it is.

It would be the simplest thing in the world to at least throw the pro a bone and give us catapult multiball. Map light lock to either the drops on the right or standups of the left (prefer right so we have some reason to use the left flipper). Virtual lock at the left scoop (which looks like a catapult anyway). Done. The assets are already done. A few minor tweaks to how the balls lock and relock and you're done. That alone would go a LONG way in our enjoyment and faith in his work. Tweak Black Castle difficulty (at minimum make it carry over to the next ball like every other battle), maybe do some work to the supers system (not sure exactly what, but it needs...something), and it would be great.

To really push it into awesome, I would make at least one of the two crazy difficult to get to multiballs (RAGE and RANSOM) more obtainable. As it is, very few players will ever see either of them, especially not on a regular basis. They are already there and great...make them easier to get to and that would be a big boost to the available content for most players. Or if both stay that difficult, an additional obtainable multiball or similar mini-wizard mode would go a long way. You just can't keep such a big percentage of the "cool stuff" locked so far away from the average player. If there was more easier stuff to do, sure, lock that stuff away. But as-is...it's harsh. Catapult would help the pro hugely, and another 1-2 obtainable modes would help everyone. I consider this stuff optional, but would sure make the game amazing.

I wouldn't go as far as awarding those huge modes directly from a mystery. I would be all for awarding a KNIGHT letter from mystery though, and as an award for other things besides battles and WAR. That would make getting to Retro and then RANSOM much easier. Make it more like TWD multikills. KNIGHT letter for a super skill shot (give me a reason to get it...right now it's a negative since I lose a WAR letter for a few extra points), for so many jackpots in TKC, for so many u-turns, for so many drop target completions, etc. That would be a good option for making RANSOM obtainable. I do not want it to be a gimme, but make it obtainable for the average/good player. I would default to no spotted letters then though, otherwise Retro would be even more of a gimme than it is now.

I think Rage would solve itself by making Black Castle slightly less brutal. Let it carry over between balls and cut down on the sheer number of dangerous center shots needed. Let's face it, those three shots are luck (especially the center standup)...there is very little if any skill in hitting them safely. Maybe only require one "knight shot" per volley of hits instead of all three. Rage should still be very hard to get to, but not the nearly impossible it is now.

I think 2 hours straight against the knight would kill me! Nice!

I wouldn't count on the older style mech fixing anything, and if it does it's by luck. The older one wasn't much different in the mechanism itself, and there were just as many problems in that era as there are with them now. It is luck of the draw honestly, and some games a weak plunge is much less noticeable than others. Tron is one that could have a crappy one and not make much difference since it doesn't have to go up any sort of ramp to make it to the top of the playfield. It's simply a poor design. Lots of moving parts and joints with tolerances too loose to work together 100%. The best you can do it adjust the forks to give the best ball contact and maybe try to take up some slop in the mech with a washer or e-clip. And that can be tricky too as if you take up too much tolerance, you can lose power by binding up. There is simply no way to get a 100% perfectly consistent launch with how this mech is designed. Hopefully you can tweak things enough to make it good enough for your game.

Yeah...it can be a bummer for sure. The thicker forks definitely still bend though. I spent many months messing with my (original) Avengers, and eventually just had to accept the fact that between the mech and the flimsy ramp that it launches up on to, there was no way it would ever be 100%. Thankfully a crap launch just leads to a nice safe right inlane feed, so it's not a terrible issue on that particular game.

I do find that bending the forks in can help sometimes. Hope that keeps working for you or you are able to find the magic bullet!

Yeah I'm afraid that one is in your head.

No, BK did not come with superbands for the flippers or other usual rubber. I think he was referring only to the small post rings around the center shots. Those are a slightly different design and may be silicone (possibly even superband brand, not sure). Not the first time Steve Ritchie has used those...I think my Star Trek had them too (or maybe SW? Can't remember for sure). But the flippers, etc are good old regular rubber.

As for post passes, that isn't always a function of rubber type (though it can help/hurt). Some games just aren't as easy as others to do it on.

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Ransom (BK2K) mode can't be short lived...it's timed with unlimited balls! Then again the time limit is never as long as you want it to be!

Such a pain to get to, but what an awesome mode.

Yup. We aren't even asking for any new assets to be made or major rules to be come up with. Just give us (pro owners) catapult multiball please. Light lock wherever (I suggest drops to give us more reason to shoot that direction...or even the right orbit!), virtual locks on the left orbit/saucer. Boom. 100% happier pro owners!

Of course there are MANY other awesome suggestions scattered through this thread, but that single change would really improve the overall perception of this game. I'd personally tone down the brutality of the Black Castle BK battle too to make RAGE slightly more feasible. And give us more ways to earn letters so RANSOM is a little more common too. Less spotted letters initially, but more ways to earn them would be awesome. Make these few changes, and this is suddenly a top tier game in my mind. Something tweaked with the supers system (though I'm not sure exactly what) would be a cherry on top.

Come on Tim...please...we love you...we love the game. It wouldn't take much to push it over the top!

While it isn't the catapult multiball I was hoping to be added to the pro, I will say the Black Castle tweaks will be a game changer. This will make the knight much easier to deal with, and RAGE multiball will become a much more feasible goal.

The challenge modes are alright....a decent way for more people to experience RANSOM I guess. I still would have loved to see more ways to earn KNIGHT letters to help get there in-game. With the changes to Black Castle, I have a feeling RANSOM will now be the hardest goal to achieve.

Glad to see this update. It's not everything the game needs, but at least it's a step in the right direction and certainly better than nothing. I'm looking forward to seeing RAGE more than once a year, LOL!

Yeah, I think those are all. I mostly only see them from modes. WAR are dangerous death shots. Yeah, I still get suckered into trying, but usually regret it, LOL. I can rarely keep Triple Knight going long enough to get a super. Yeah I know..play better. But there could have been way more ways of earning them. Super Skill Shot especially, which would give a reason to actually bother with it. As of now, no reason to try for the SSS since you are giving up a WAR letter to hit it.

No, they added a ball save to the start of Black Castle and also for each of the non-knight progression shots (if I'm reading correctly). Hopefully that ball save is long enough to safely get a couple hits in on the knight before moving on to the next progression shot. It's not the "outer" shots that are dangerous...it's the knight shots where you need to hit all three of them between each outer shot.

I'm usually a huge Stern defender, but man...you have to wonder if they even bothered loading this new code onto a machine before releasing it. How do you not notice these issues immediately? This isn't the only code with major issues either. They completely botched LZ's EM multiball too. When will they learn you work twice as hard fixing the mistakes you made by rushing versus taking your time and doing it right?

And Catapult Multiball added to the pro as a "thank you for your patience". Hey...a guy can dream, right?

- Added adjustment "UPPER PLAYFIELD TARGET SPOTS SHOTS" that defaults to YES.
Competition install sets it to NO, and does not allow the Light Lock target
on the upper playfield to spot monster mode shots.

I just noticed this on the prem/LE code update. Being a pro guy, I hadn't paid attention to it. I have to admit...this one change has made me 100% more interested in a potential upgrade. Probably the biggest reason I prefer the pro (other than the obvious flow increase) is I HATE the idea of just bashing away at that target to complete the modes. One of the best things about this game are the unique battles...each one is completely different and fun. To me the prem/LE sucks the life right out of the battles by allowing you to just smack a standup target instead. I could see maybe allowing a spotted shot once per battle, but not all of the shots. Now that we can turn that ridiculous "feature" off, that's huge to me.

So why not...I'll just throw this out there. If anyone with a premium or LE within reasonable driving distance (from Plymouth, WI) wants to trade down to a pro plus cash, let me know. Maybe we can work something out. Still not positive I want to go there since I really love the flow of the pro, but it's worth thinking about!

Making Black Castle more manageable is a HUGE reason to upgrade. I can live with a slightly uglier UI now that I have a prayer when fighting BK!

I think RAGE might use all 6, but I'm not positive. I also can't remember for sure how many RANSOM uses. But either way, I agree that another multiball would really finish the game off nicely. I have said it enough to be a broken record, but there is literally no reason we couldn't have catapult multiball, and since the assets are already made, it should be a relatively easy thing to implement. Use anything you want to light the lock (I think I would use a drop bank completion since they aren't physically labeled as a specific function, but you could also use the Add Time standups or even the orbits), and use the left saucer as a virtual lock. The upkicker looks like a catapult anyway, so it makes sense. You could easily flash or pulse the lightening insert in front of it (if memory serves they are RGB, so you could use green, or alternate colors when needed for mode shots) to indicate the lock is lit. I am no programmer, but I am guessing this should be a pretty easy thing to do, and would be such a HUGE adder for the pro. I realize Catapult multiball was an "exclusive" mode for the prem/LE guys, but since they aren't being made anymore, and we are a few years down the road, I wouldn't think anyone would be offended that it trickled down to the lowly pros at this point.

Then again, there really isn't any incentive for them to add it either, other than to make us happy and build trust for future customer loyalty. It's probably hard for them to assign a dollar value to that to justify it. But...seriously...the assets are already there. I bet Tim could whip this up in a day or two! (again...I have zero idea if I'm talking out of my butt there...I don't know crap about programming).

Come on Tim...I'll treat you to foodtruck lunch at the next D82 tournament to show my gratitude!

Beat the Knight and got to Rage Multiball for only the second time. Man I love this game. Yes, I wish there was one more early game thing to do on the pro (Tim...I'm still hoping for catapult multiball someday...lots of good ways to handle it and it would be relatively easy to do!). With the tweaks made in the last update, Black Castle is much more manageable at least (but still a major challenge). It is such an underrated gem. Every game is an adrenaline rush and feels like a battle. I love it.

For me it is the "personality" of the machine that really makes it shine. The shots are good but kind of bland honestly (other than the flail which is a really cool trick, and the shield blocking the scoop shot is nice and thematic). The rules are good...there could be more there, but what is there is solid. The monster modes especially are fun and each has a feel of its own. The art, audio, and video are all awesome. It's the atmosphere, personality and attitude of the machine that keeps it in my collection.

I have always lumped BK and IM together also...to me they are the best games at making you feel that you are truly in a battle. Very similar adrenaline levels and "feel". No similarities in how they shoot or the rules/code...but they scratch the same itch. And in both cases I wish there was a bit more in the code!