LOL, thanks for posting that. Funny, and good info.

*edit* Keep bringing those bitch baby downvotes, ya'll. Nobody's hit this one yet.

so do you have to have 2.0 installed before you install this?

Huge thanks for an amazing update! And to go through community feedback and already plan tweaks to an update only a couple days old?! Outstanding support.

Here’s a couple questions (admittedly from a guy who doesn’t know the old code all that well... my th has lived at my brothers house since unboxing...):

1. Is there a super duper “i beat everything” wizard mode?

2. Have the rules changed significantly enough to warrant a new rule sheet and/or a new flowchart?

Thanks again to JJP and especially Ted and Keith for continuing to update and improve this amazing game.

Yes, or 2.01.
--Ted

Love the new code so far, and looks like a good number of small issues I've seen are going to be addressed for the next update. I did have a question about Smaug's head movement though. It seems erratic during Smaug MB. The first Smaug MB I started his head didn't move at all, though it did during each ball lock, and he was talking throughout. The second MB I started his head was moving but wasn't tracking the ball properly, seemed reversed of where the ball was hitting targets.

Anyone else seeing weird head movements during Smaug MB? I saw someone else mention that re-running the update fixed some issues.

One thing that I would eventually like to see and study a bit (maybe after the cleanup and next release) is a flow chart (like the rule sheet flow chart) that shows how the multipliers effect each other - book modes tiers and number completed, map repeats before Arkenstone modes, beast mode "waves", Arkenstone mode levels completed, Smaug Multiball levels completed or number of kills, etc. - all the things that add multipliers to the next level of depth. I know this would be complicated, but it would be good to know and understand the priorities (weighting) for which multipliers have the biggest impact, the smallest impact, and which ones are compounded as you get deeper into the depth of the game. Is the book multiplier weighted the same as the maps completed multiplier? Things like that. Very interesting, but tough to figure it all out from what Ted has told us so far. It might show some reasoning for holding off on starting Arkenstone modes.

Really good stuff ...

Game 1 first lock the head didn't move at all
Game 2 first lock the head moved faced me and then returned to the left

Seems the movements are random?

This was posted by a dedicated Pinsider a long time ago. No idea how accurate it is, would be awesome if JJP would release an official flowchart. Bear in mind your scores also have a variable based on where you are on the map. Also, you supposedly get an Arkenstone qualifier if you complete a series of modes but I'm not sure what that entails.
bb25ec62ab8fb24c6bc4cb17537a392498a8cb06.png.png (resized).jpg

Ok, going to ask a stupid question. People keep referring to a mode's position on "the map". What map? Feel free to point me to a post th as t I must have missed.

Those are the qualifiers … I'm looking for how the multipliers mesh together and add up for the deeper modes. For example, book modes have tier/star ratings and the more stars the higher the point multiplier for "Into the Fire". The number of times you complete the map with the spinner before playing "Into the Fire" also adds multipliers. The same weighting as the book modes? Beast Frenzy and Smaug Multiball have different levels in those multiballs. I think that they have an effect on the points multiplier for "Into the Fire" also. The "Into the Fire" has levels within that. Does that highest completed level have a multiplier for "Barrel Escape" and is that weighted more than the next round of multipliers that I mentioned, or is everything just all summed together? Maybe just the "Into the Fire", "Barrel Escape" and "The Battle of Five Armies" multiplier equation in layman's terms.

Another comment. The red lights on the ramps and Radagast hole are overkill. It's already obvious on the main screen if you completed the shot. They aren't necessary and I liked the lights there the way they were.

The bait - left ramp doesn't drop beasts to hide for right ramp shot

Shot was changed to left hole ("Balin") so that it sets up the shot to right.
--Ted

Refers to how far along you are towards Erebor. As you hit the orbit spinners, you move closer and this is shown on the map in corner of screen.

Biggest mystery to me, when you drain on right outlane and start preciouss ball save, what determines where and how big the band, or highlighted save zone are? Anybody have an idea?

Been waiting for an update like this
I had only done one delta update , so I have had to do the full 2.0 and then the 2.01 (delta) and then finally the new delta 2.95 .
I have had no problems with my machine at all , but once the latest delta was installed the trough vuk would not load the ball into the lane .
I have gone into coil settings and the trough vuk was set at 10 , I have adjusted it up to 15 to get the ball into the shooter lane .
Has anyone else had a similar issue and is 10 the correct setting and is being set to 15 going to create problems?
Thanks David

I agree, the tone is different/ prior was more aggressive

Hobbit drop error today in start up.
Dragon head error today on startup.

Downgraded code to 2.01 no errors.
Reinstalled 2.95 errors reappeared.

Ran tests and they cleared but reappeared on a reboot.

Definitely code related.
Definitely something to fix.

I really like the dwarf horn !!!!

I really like the dwarf horn !!!!

See image still says left ramp

IMG_2897 (resized).JPG

Never mind, I see now that the qualifiers are pretty much detailed in the Journal and the modes to get an Arkenstone qualifier are complete Bilbo modes, complete Radagast modes etc, also noted in the Journal. This game is awesome. Thanks Ted and Co.!

I noticed this as well. Didn’t happen every time the ball was launched up the trough to the shooter lane but it did happen a couple times. I may need to boost my VUK ball trough coil as well.

Have run into this twice. Hey LTG I found a bug I had to press tiny green switch button below the spider mech and then the led right beside it changed from red to green, and more importantly, both dragon head and hobbit drops errors were fixed. Thought my machine was possessed or was getting an attitude, but it must be software related. This happens when I first boot machine up and was preventing me from bypassing it in the menu aka my machine was "out of control".

Carnac the Magnificent predicts the next Hobbit software realease won't be for four weeks and it will be numbered higher than version 3.0. No problems waiting, 2.95 update really allows the game to shine. Better mode lighting showing where to shoot, user controlled (1-4) balls stacking for modes (from version 2.0) gets used more, preventing Smaug/Beasts overlaps, a final wizard mode (I've been promised) and more sounds. All good my preciouss!

sigh ... 30 year olds don't know the joy a good Johnny Carson skit can bring.

Whoops! It should say "Left Hole & Loop". (Lights for the shots are correct, though. And the drop targets in front of the Balin shot are kept down.)
--Ted

Thanks for pointing me in the right direction! Turns out ma(N) target spring was broken and fell off into the cabinet - so the error reporting was right on. I replaced the spring and error is gone. The nomenclature was just a little confusing

Thanks, Ted!

Love it

I wish my operator would update. His Hobbit has all the lights lock up about half the times I see it. Power cycle fixes it but when it happens mid game I'm stuck.

Glad it was a real error and not a false positive. Ideally, the Test Report should tell you exactly which target to check. That takes a bit more work than what's in place now.
--Ted

The reason you don't see head or drop errors reported in earlier software versions is because the code that reports those errors was added in 2.95.

That said, it's possible that the error detection is overly sensitive. However, check these items on your game:

dragon: At power up, and when exiting Diagnostics, the head will calibrate by turning all the way to the right (Smaug's left) and then back. If the "away" limit switch is not triggered within several seconds, the game will flag an error.

drop targets: If a drop target does not set/reset three times in a row when the associated coil is fired, an error is flagged. It takes two successes in a row to clear the error. Try running the Drop Bank Life Test for a few minutes to see if the retry counts are increasing.

--Ted

Played all day today and teds list of comments / fixes cover everything I’ve noticed as well as other members keen eyes !
Re the Smaug/Beast MB setting, I did put to ON to prevent it but after a few plays and listening to comments on the stream regarding the beasts now appearing in waves and the ability to cancel beast MB with the ring button, I have now changed it back to default setting off NO and find it better, so worth trying.
Finally, Ted, after you’ve entered your name in high score, it then shows last game “player 1” etc, is it possible to insert the just entered name/s instead?
Only minor, would just make it look better.
Thanks yet again

I love it too. Nice to get the positive feedback showing you’re making the right shots/progress! The green is awesome!!!

That same thing has occurred to me once or twice. Easier to describe than to implement, though. Maybe I can talk Keith into tackling that one.
--Ted

Trying to update . Wish me luck. My friend always does it for me since I’m not computer savvy.

Good luck. ( if you make a mistake, the delta failure shouldn't hurt the game, you just won't have the newest software in it )

Instructions are in the manual.

LTG : )

vertical up kicker isn't hitting hard enough now to put ball on left ramp. takes at least 3 trys. i'll adjust and see. was fine 5 minutes before installing new code, could new code effect this? i'll vamp up power a bit, see what happens.

Just got all 31 modes, killed Smaug and all 3 wizard modes The two holes flashed white. I rattled the left hole 3 times before draining sdtm.

I did notice that, after completing all the modes for Man, Gandalf and Radagast I got a free Arkenstone completion and an add a ball. No major malfunctions up until then. Lots of chaos getting there. I'm not a great player, this is a lot more attainable than I original thought! Incredible job Ted and Co.

I've changed my assessment:

Seeing that running tests cleared the errors, I decided that it was vibration causing and fixing the errors.

I ran through and refreshed all of the connectors on all of the affected mechs.

Rebooted and no errors.
Went to tests and ran the dragon and drop life tests for 8 mins each.

Rebooted and no errors.

Went through and combed through the harnesses.

Rebooted and no errors.

Turned off the game for 45 minutes.

Rebooted and no errors.

There is no software bug as I reported earlier, I was fooled by loose/oxidized connections. My game has set for a year waiting for updates.

The new testing element is working flawlessly.

It uncovered marginal/weak connections in several areas.

It may be true that it's a bit sensitive, but it works really well.

Other than that minor adjustment to my game, the new code is more dynamic and seriously fun to play now.

Thank you so much!

Thanks Ted

Is load arrow working? The insert lights up purple, but I haven't seen it work once in about a hundred games.

After learning about some of the multipliers in the live feed last Friday and 5-10 games played since then, I played a great game this afternoon and beat my GC score with a little more than 2.5 mil that has stood for more than 6 months. Great new code additions/enhancements. I got pretty far along, had the GC score already, had only one ball left, 5 armies was lit, launched the ball and my wife yells downstairs to me that dinner is ready. Yelling back that it will have to wait … was distracted enough and the ball drained. Ugh! Gotta hate when that happens. Wish that there was a way to look back at the % completes once the game is over, but I know that would be pretty difficult for multiplayer games. Maybe a "one more time final stats" journal pages pass through at the end of your last ball that can be canceled with both flippers for the next player. Wish list item for me. Thanks to the JJP team for this great effort that really does improve the game.

I'm so happy for u guys. I sold my hobbit about a year ago due to code and I wanted a dialed in. I'm very glad the new code kicks ass. Congrats to those who stuck it out and waited.

Can anyone explain the different levels of Beast Multiball? I believe there are eight? What happens when you beat all the levels? I thought the new code would provide more clarity, but I am still clueless.

Does the latest version of Hobbit code allow entry of "High Score of the Day" initials at game over? I don't know who came up with that feature on Dialed In, but people that stop over at my house to play REALLY like that feature. They don't have to be great players to get the chance to enter their name or initials into the game, even if it is a temporary entry. Would love to see that feature in Hobbit.

That was there in the previous release. You just need to turn it on in the settings. I have used it for a few parties and it goes over well.

Pick one up while they are still cheap. I see one listed in market for $6.5k. This game kicks ass.

So far I’m loving the updates to the core game with a few minor issues.
- new Smaug audio seems muffled/low volume compared to the old callouts.
- new light shows are good but an adjustable brightness would be appreciated, some flashing sections were a little intense.

However, I have a HUGE complaint about Into the Fire. The epic music on my game appears to be completely gone from the first stage and intermittent on the second stage. I didn’t realize how much I liked the music until it was gone, absolutely ruined Into the Fire for me.
Other than the voice callouts, all I hear is the new switch sound that kind of sounds like a lightsaber. PLEASE tell me there’s a setting adjustment I’m missing.

Try adjusting the sound music mic?

It's in the settings.

Others have said go back to defaults.

I haven’t installed new code, but from what I’ve seen it starts at a standard width that’s random high/low in the band and then with each successive opportunity it narrows more and more.