Not an owner, but popped in here to say I got to spend some time on Halloween this weekend at SFGE, and I really enjoyed it! The art, the layout, the gameplay, the theme, the music. (They had Ultraman there too, which I didn't enjoy as much purely based on the theme -- my personal preferences definitely lean more toward spookier horror than campy Kaiju fighting.)

My only complaints:
1) the sound quality of the callouts wasn't great, sounded like they were recorded by someone on lo-fi equipment, who was trying hard to fake the accent. Room for improvement there, since it's a theme that's supposed to be taken seriously for the scary vibe.
2) omg the inlane ball elevators!!! They were completely silent and smooth, which was both cool and frustrating -- and with the plastics hiding them, I lost SO many balls by it just rolling over the flipper and into the drain. This was largely due to my wanting to look at the screen during the stalls, to figure out status and/or what I should be doing, and my not being 'trained' enough for the sound effect to indicate it was about to come out. People familiar with the game and/or playing it a lot at home will get used to it, but it's going to absolutely kill anyone who's not familiar with it. I wish the plastics were moved back a little more so you'd have a little bit more response time.

Still, overall, really enjoyed it -- it was definitely a standout game at the show for me. The Spooky booth was right next to mine, and the three Halloween games were in operation nonstop during the entire show. I only saw the Spooky folks have to open any of them up once or twice, so hopefully that bodes well for reliability.

Congrats to you owners! I plan to work up my usual 3D start button and/or coin reject buttons in the not-too-distant future, so I'll let you know when those are ready.

I did notice the LED flashes -- but that was only helpful if I wasn't looking up at the screen for status/info/what's-happening, as I tend to do during stalls.

I did eventually pick up on the audio cue, but not until I got to play it in the pre-show hours -- typically the expo was very loud/noisy and hard to hear the game audio.

I really like the idea of the shaker as a warning. For example, on 'traditional' games with a stall, there's some sort of coil/mech that has to eject the ball so even if you're looking up and the screen and/or can't hear due to noisy arcade/environment, you still have that tactile indication -- "some mech just clicked, my ball must be loose now!" ... so adding a shaker indicator would be smart.

"It's Halloween... everyone's entitled to one good start button."

Ok maybe that's not exactly the line from the movie, but it's close.

New from Rocket City Pinball, 3D Start Button for Halloween -- using a virtual butcher knife, I virtually carved a jack-o-lantern, including START lettering for its mouth. The translucent tangerine base color creates just the right lit-up-jack-o-lantern color. The pumpkin is printed atop the base with a mid-print filament change, so it's all fused together as one single piece. The stem is detailed in a copper color during post-processing. Don't worry, the stem doesn't contact the housing; I've designed it with the button/switch stroke length in mind so it does not interfere with function.

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Since Spooky uses a smaller, recessed start button (unlike the now-standard larger start buttons used by Stern and JJP), this item includes a complete housing assembly to fully replace it. The new assembly will cover the counterbore in the cabinet, leaving you with a clean installation of the new larger button. (Very easy process, videos included in my shop listing to show you how to do it.)

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First person who is willing to take nice photos of it installed in their game (so I can update my shop listing) gets one at 50% off, using coupon code (((EDIT: coupon has been claimed, thanks!)))

Now available in my shop: https://pinside.com/pinball/market/shops/1282-rocket-city-pinball/07068-3d-start-button-halloween

Really? I haven't seen a start button that didn't light up, since the early 1990s!

The good news is, from digging around it looks like Spooky may be using 12V bulbs here (correct me if I'm wrong, spooky owners), and the housing assembly I use comes with one, so I can just include the bulbs with my jack-o-lantern buttons.

Here's a pic from the Halloween(s) at SFGE a few weeks ago, lit start button.

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Anyone else have a unlit one or did Pinman502 just get shafted?

Is it wired up for one at least? These are the wires that touch the bulb housing and not the microswitch. Post a pic please.

lol yes indeed! Not my machine though, it was one of three set up at the Spooky booth at Southern Fried Gaming Expo.

Here are a few more pics of the 3D Start Button installed on the game, sent in by a customer. I love the spooky glow!

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Trick or Treat with Rocket City Pinball! First five orders of Halloween 3D start buttons get 15% off with code RCP-HALLOWEEN !

Sale ends after five code uses, or at midnight tonight, whichever comes first. <ominous voice> Your time is running out....

Conditions: code is not valid on any other items; orders placed using the code to discount other items will be cancelled. If you wish to purchase other items to save on combined shipping, please PM me and I will send you a waive-shipping code for an additional order.

https://pinside.com/pinball/market/shops/1282-rocket-city-pinball/07068-3d-start-button-halloween

Happy Halloween!!!
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