I've been putting off doing my third tear down cleaning and waxing. Might get to it this weekend

Here's my fix for Throne bounce-out: a speed bump. It's mostly hidden behind the throne, and it worked 50 out of 50 times in test mode for me. I cut a Titan post rubber down to about 1/2", sliced it down the middle and placed it over the wireform strut. Then use a little piece of electrical tape to seal the cut. The ball does a tiny little hop, which slows it down enough to always fall correctly.

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I only resorted to this because none of the other fixes worked for me.

I was thinking of how I could slow the ball down and had a hard time so thanks

I guess I've been pretty lucky with my (week old) NIB Premium so far.

Just about all left orbit shots go all the way around. Haven't hit enough right orbits to see if this is an issue.

Throne works perfectly so far. VUK seems to get the ball up to the UPF fine.

The only little nitpicks I've uncovered are:

1. "Lock is lit" ramp tunnel--ball sometimes bounces back--doesn't back it to the ramp.
2. Sometimes on a Blackwater lock / pre battle start right ramp lock once the ball is locked and the battle selected it takes a while for the next ball to launch from the shooter. Might take 20 second or more--just hangs. I usually have to jiggle the machine and then it will kick in again, after making a sound like a "locating a ball" clunk.

Ck your shooter lane switch in switch test mode.

I'm loving my GoT premium, but there is one issue I'm having. About half the time when I shoot the right orbit Martel shot, it will not register. Works perfectly in switch test.

When I hit the shot smoothly, it registers, but if the ball rattles up through the orbit, it will go past the switch but not register/give me credit for the shot. Has anyone had to adjust this switch? Any guidance?

Yes, and I also tried my buddy kermit's fix. Basic problem is that the ball is going too fast.

Haha, yep. This is just straight up "play better". Happens to me a lot, but usually a quick hit from the right flipper will send it home. It's not bouncing back, it's coming back because it wasn't a true enough shot.

Yeah, you're right. This really is a shooter's game--precision is key. Still haven't figured out how to reliably hit the right side "lock is lit" bank with a direct shot, and hitting the "Castle Black" fast shoot out line is a challenge. Definitely a game that can demands you to improve your skills. I haven't come anywhere near completing more than one or two houses at this point. I may have to up to a 5-ball or more game if I ever want to see this through to a wizard mode, LOL.

The toughest shot for me to hit reliably is the ramp to the upper playfield. I can backhand a trapped ball from the right flipper about 10% of the time - it's not quite strong enough to consistently make it all the way. The sweet spot from the left flipper is really small. I wish I could boost my flipper strength about 10-20% (I already have coil strength = HARD).

Whenever I get a game with a metal trough, I cover the inside of it with Mylar. It cuts down on the metal-on-metal action, and the game stays clean a lot longer. An enterprising person should be able to create and 3D-print a liner.

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Yep, good idea. Lined mine wherever the ball makes contact, including the back wall and lip.

Now, if i could control the black dust from the upper playfield flippers that rains down into the orbit/ramps I'd be happy. I'm always wiping down those areas.

I second this. It just seems excessive. My left ramp is the first thing to look dirty.

What are all the different versions of alternate translites available and where to get them? I can't stand the Stern translite, it needs to go!

I did my LE penance this weekend, and I'd like to share what I've learned.

Loop Diverter

The first pic below shows where my loop diverter came to rest before I worked on it. Clearly this was bad for right orbits. The ball would hit the end of the guide and fall either into the pops or down the left side. Fortunately the fix was pretty easy. I just rotated the entire diverter coil assembly about 3-4mm clockwise. Right orbits are beautiful now. The second pic is the "after" shot.

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The ball elevator (VUK)

The trajectory of the ball in the VUK is very sensitive to the angle of the chute. If you tighten the top too much (tilting it back), the ball won’t reach the throne because it will rattle around in the chute. But if it’s too loose, the ball won’t make it to the upper playfield on the first try. Best bet is to adjust it forward (loosen top screws) until the Throne works perfectly, and then fiddle with the upper playfield diverter if needed (i.e. by bending the struts down, or by adding/removing washers). I was lucky and found the perfect angle to get reliable kicks up to the throne and the upper playfield. I won't be touching it again.

White Walker kickback

I hate to sound like a newb, but I thought my kickback was defective because sometimes it kicked weakly, or not at all. Now I can see that the optos are at the end of the kicker stroke. A strong hit will be kicked back forcefully, but a weak hit will catch the very end of the kicker stroke. I can't say I like this design, but at least now I know my kickback is okay.

The left orbit

I did capgun's rollover lane mod (heat shrink over a coil sleeve, very clever). But without his other mod, there's no full orbit from the left. I'm actually okay with this. Pop bumper awards are lucrative on this game, and hurry-up timers are paused while the ball bounces around in there. If I want a fast Martell finish, I just use the right orbit.

Iron Throne

I stared at this for a long time before I realized that the throne is held in by 2 very long screws that enter from the bottom of the playfield. It's not bad at all once you know that trick.

Final thoughts

Even with all the tweaking that's needed, I still think GOT Prem/LE is a Steve Ritchie / Dwight Sullivan masterpiece. A day of tweaking is nothing. I've spent months on some games, only to discover that they were no fun. GOTLE is a blast, and I know it will endure. Fire and Blood, fellow players!

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Here are some more pics of the game, torn down. I'm glad I learned how to take this beast completely apart and put it back together. One tip I would share is to remove the optos from the ramps by unscrewing them. Then you don't have to worry about getting the connectors wrong below the playfield, and you don't have to futz with the wire management.

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You and I had very similar days swampfire! My orbits are working great now after I slapped on the coil sleeves and enlarged the holes under the divertor to push it forward. Also added some washers to the VUK screws. Pretty scary to rip everything apart like that but glad I went for it and I think I'm ready to do my WH20 now. I can't believe how simple it is to take the throne off once you find the 2 Philips screws holding it on, it took my longer than it should have to find them hah.

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Actually GOTLE isn't nearly as bad as WH2O or DH or The Shadow. Those games were nuts.

Thanks for this. I took a 3/8 OD rubber and put a small cut on one side and place it in the same spot. 2 for 2 so far

Joining club tues or wed...Great details and pics...Ill have to read back for the orbit fix in a nutshell. Do I need to order parts? or kit from stern?

Congrats! Keep calm and enjoy the game. Shooting a complete left orbit is 1% of the game. IMHO.

YOU GUYS. How crazy is this. I watched tonight's episode, and then played my GOTLE. Got Midnight Madness for the first time:

Hodor, Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor
Hodor, Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor
Hodor, Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor
Hodor, Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor
Hodor, Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor,Hodor

I loved that guy so much.

In 1980, I was 16. On Fridays and Saturdays, my buddy Joe and I would clean the fry vats, sweep the floors, wipe down the drink machines and have a few beers (we loved our ex-con manager). At about 1:30am, we'd head over to JP's Steak and Eggs to play pinball. One day, there was something special: Black Knight. What a crazy game, it had ramps! We assumed the big points were on the upper playfield, and we'd fight like crazy to get up there. Every successful ramp shot made us super happy - especially that Mystery Gate shot.

Decades passed. In the 90's the upper playfield saw some innovation: The Shadow had its quirky paddle, White Water had a 1-flipper deal, and TZ had a cool magnet-flip playfield. The new millennium saw a few more attempts at an upper playfield: TSPP, Family Guy, Elvis, World Poker Tour...all great games, but they treated the upper playfield as something separate, and small. Mini-flippers told us "this isn't the real game, so finish this mode and get back to business."

Then Steve Ritchie made Game of Thrones. It was a return to form...bring back the upper playfield, and make it a big part of the game! For the first time since 1980, the ball launched to the upper playfield right away. 2 full-sized flippers, 5 switches and a signature tight loop told us: "This isn't a side show, this is part of the main event." Dwight Sullivan brought this vision to life by allowing players to advance modes with the upper playfield, and gave it a life of its own with independent progress and a killer multiball. The upper playfield was back in a big way, and its fans were happy again!

Of course, not everyone was happy. Some said: "Where does my ball go when it's under that playfield, hmm?" Others said: "What do I do up here? It seems pointless." Stern made a version of the game where the entire upper playfield was replaced with a single ramp, and legions of players were happy again.

But some of us knew. We knew that it's great to play a multiball on 2 levels. We knew that 4 flippers are better than 2. But most of all, we knew...The King was back.

But it dominates 99% of the discussion.

If you're talking about the "orbit" issue, my Premium (bought new late April) has had no issues making complete left or right orbits. It may be a machine by machine issue or maybe Stern has fixed this in later production runs.

Mine is a few months old so I am sure Ill have a few things to tweak.

Hold the door, hold the door.........

Never assume anyone is dead.

Laserific topper will be for sale soon. Need to see ball park value of topper. Pics soon. Send pm of intersted.

I'm surprised how much I'm liking the light shows for WIC and Battle For the Wall. I don't like bright light shows, but this is really the opposite. It's kind of like Martian Hynobeam on RFM. And I love the sound of the ice cracking, awesome with the sub.

What does it mean when the arrow just in front of the ram turns blue? Does that give me credit toward qualifying Targaryen if I hit it?

It's really kinda lame. Blue means next hit lights the playfield multiplier insert in front of the ram, then next hit actually lights playfield multiplier.

Officially joined the club today!

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Grats! That LE sure looks bitchin. Definitely the best looking of the 3 models, IMO.

It was pretty hard for me to choose between Premium and LE. I thought the cab art on the Premium was fantastic. But I liked the LE playfield better, and I reasoned that that's what you look at the most. I would have been happy with either. Family prefers the LE dragon sideart, but I loved the mammoth and direwolf.

Your family was right, and you got the right machine. You're the first person to say they like the LE playfield better, I think, but when it's lit up, it's a beaut.

Guys, since I got my GOT Premium I had the occasional problem of "nothing happening" when a ball would go to the right ramp to start a battle. It would let me choose the battle, but the new ball wouldn't launch. Eventually, the game triggers a "lost ball" and it does launch.

After I installed a protecter on the right outlane, the problem got worse. What I think is that when the ball gets to the ramp it needs to be "touching" that phallic white plastic thingie sticking up through the bottom--that somehow signals that the ball is there and start the mode. With the protector in there, the ball sits in the "cradle" but doesn't touch the white thing...just sits in the middle. I guess that protector is somehow lifting up the ramp enough that the ball doesn't move forward enough.

I guess I could remove the protector entirely to restore the "tilt," but I was wionder whether there's a way to adjust the pitch of the ramp itself to increase the downward slope? I supposed it could also level the game to make it steeper, but I kinda like it where it is--just enough to make it fast without jeapordizing the ability to make orbits or get to the upper playfiield.

Oops. He's the second, then.

Let me be the third then that likes the LE playfeild better. Like somebody else said it looks like winter has already come and melted on the premium.

The LE playfield looked much better to me after I swapped out the cool white GI for warm white frosteds.

I much prefer the LE cabinet and playfield art. I hate the translite on all of them. Does anyone have the alternate translites that are on Ebay? Just wondering if anyone has seen the print quality. It look slike I'm too late to the party on the hand drawn one some people have.

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This is the only good one I've seen on eBay. Someone around here as it and it also looks good lit up in the game.

I really like the LE backglass, now that I have the game. The details are really good.

There's some great art on DeviantArt, if you want to make your own translite. That's where most of the eBay ones come from anyway.

I'm a freak. I really like the backglass on the premium and it's one of the reasons I went with that version.

All those guys north of the wall are freaks.

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Tormund gonna git some....

Great game. Anyone give me couple quick strategies to start learning gsme. Thx