Oops, my bad - thanks for the clarification! Kern is doing a bang job too!

Without a doubt, I was just giving an explanation for what jawjaw probably meant with his comment. Time does = $$ though and we know that if not for investors bailing them out JJP would most likely be OOB.

Forget "some of" they are the LEADER in those areas. The only place they lag is in getting them made and on route reliability.

Take it as you want. I was just pointing out facts. JJP ought to have amazing games for the amount of development time and cost. I am more impressed with AP for cranking out two pretty nice looking games from scratch in such a short time and sell for a competitive price. I don't think quality translates to just pretty animations, music, and fancy lights. A good game can have a few warts.

If it hasn’t been posted before... Pac-Man Entertainment in Schaumburg, IL has an Oktoberfest on location! Looks to be production game possibly based on the backglass and cabinet.

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Art blades and cabinet art are both different, so that's probably the real deal.

Did they change the name of Level 257...? I was there a few years back for Pac-Man's 35th birthday.

The bumper car riders are still gone, and the American Pinball sticker is back to a white background.

Did you play it?

Looks great!

It would be good if Otto on the playfield looked the same as Otto on the back glass

How much extra are you willing to pay for that? On that one point I can suspend disbelief, but yes, it would be nice.

Why would it cost any extra to make , you just mold it to look the way you want . Unless they just found some random head to use .

Random dude's head with generic oktoberfest hat is cheaper than molding an exact 3D version of the dude from the backglass. Also there may be engineering considerations that would require design changes to accommodate the wider lower face of the backglass version. And figuring all that out takes time, which costs money. There's definitely costs involved in getting the face changed. I'd like to see it too, but if we're spending money, I'd rather see better animation and art direction on the big screen.

Looks like an opportunity for mod makers

How much could todd tuckeys face cost?

Quite a bit that's a lot of extra plastic , just kidding love the guy he makes great videos .

Side art looks less busy which is a good thing. I'm excited to actually shoot it.

Yes! Level 257 changed their name and added some more redemption games, but other than that the place is the same.

I was able to get a couple games in on it and the animations have definetly improved! The flow and feel of the pin is still great and pretty similar to the expo proto pin. The callous and sounds were great and loud! The stock bass in this Oktoberfest is unreal. Can feel it from the ground! Overall, me and my dad had lots of fun playing all the new Sterns and classic titles there, but kept coming back to shoot on Oktoberfest! It’s a new game, yes, but it’s also a fun one!

The game is fun and while not a lot of people there were playing pinball, Oktoberfest was getting some action. I was able to make the ramps but misseed one for the corkscrew when it was needed! As expected, everything has improved since the Expo reveal. They've done fun things with the knocker and various coils, turning them on and off during certain modes and such. If anyone is nearby, check it out there or take Josh up on his offer over at American Pinball.

It looks like Oktober in March!

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does anyone have insight on the tent modes? Watching some of the videos (admittedly not all of them) I kind of had the impression they were all just “hit the flashing lights” without much sequencial progression within the mode. Is there more going on?

Yes. They are all very different. Never felt the same to me. Hell, one you have to play one handed.

Well, for one, the licensing would be excessive.

If it in anyway realistically looked like the main Otto, it would be less cute, and bizarre looking I'd say, not in a gufaw gufaw way either.

Oooh thanks to you both for your impressions! Going to have to go nag over in the Helicon Brewing thread to see when we'll get one in there!

That's a shame about the name change. I guess Level 257 was too obtuse for people outside of arcade gaming.

Don't forget to check out Octoberfest at the factory if you can this Monday thru Wednesday.

LTG : )

Still no bumper car drivers. Bummer, I really liked them? Can anybody share the story on what happened to them? Thanks.

I liked those as well. I don't know why, but I thought they were pretty cool. I'd buy them after market assuming there is a way to attach them easily.

Love to see Alternate plastics slings with these girls facing the camera!!!

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What's wrong with those ones?

I think he's talking about optional nekkid versions.

There Great! I love Black Hair and Redheads!

No, still needs to be Family Friendly.
Guess I'll spell it out...I'd like to see front of the girls....umm there Chests! Trying to be tactful.

Seems like a Correct place to put some Monkeys driving them! Great way to bring him back safely....

The fact that almost every woman in the artwork had their butts to camera was too consistent to not be deliberate.

My guess is butts are more "politically correct" (or more importantly wife-friendly) than boobs.

Dammit Ben we need more Boobs, I said it!
I also say you are dead on correct. These plastics would have been in development mid last year. We are all a little uptight in our #metoo society right now.
An alternate set needs to be sold in there Store after release. Not asking for flagrant tits in my face here. But there is a good reason Bally/Williams had all those big chested babes on pinball machines!! It puts quarters in the slots!! Was just at an arcade Sat that had Future Spa and Skateball, wow some great artwork.

The rollercoaster girl would like a word with you... She hearts Pinball

My wife doesn't care if there are boobs on the pinball machines. I hope this wasn't some effort to be "politically correct". In an ironic twist, it would be the opposite.

The 14 tent modes are each very different a far as what shots are needed (mode shots have inserts lit as Blue). It was a goal to be sure we leveraged all the different parts of the playfield in the modes. There is quite a variety . . .

Ring Toss is about hitting the targets on the Oktober and fest target banks, alternating one side from the other

Stein Race, which is one handed play, starts with several shots lit, but if you shoot a shot already made (shows red), then you spill beer and the point value reduces.

Chugging -- a sequence of shots, first a two shots sequence to beat Inga, then a three shot sequence to beat Otto. And then a more difficult sequence in the re-match.

Looper, is about shooting the left ramp that feeds the coaster

Juggler is an add-a-ball, starts with two balls, then a sequence of shots to complete that adds another and then another series to add one more

Target Shooting is shooting a shifting set of lights on the PROST target bank in the middle of the playfield.

Duck Hunting hitting the four ducks targets around the playfield, can't hit the same one twice in a row

Rockin Express -- spinner scores, shoot lit orbit to increase value

Rotor -- shots lit one at time, moving left to right and then back again

Füd Frenzy -- should be self explanatory

Bumper Cars -- shoot pops and slings

Sky slide -- knock down drop target, shoot the vuk before it times out and target comes back up

Tap-it -- Video mode

All modes have a goal to meet to get the 'win' (tent on playfield will then show up as Green), if you don't win, you can play the mode again (shows as yellow) and it will resume where you left off. A 'beer colored' tent on the playfield means you have the stein that boosts it, but have not yet played it. The Tent you are currently in shows Blue. Play all 13 to get to the 14 tent, Flipper Meister (available soon)

They were a casualty of budget issues, but I believe they will be available for purchase.

Is this at the Streamwood or the new Palatine location? Thanks.

Streamwood

Cool! Looks to be another wide-ranging collection of fun modes - one of the reasons I love Houdini!

Will there be an optional "adult oriented" set of bumper car riders offered as well?

They look great. Glad they might be available separately.

LTG : )

Thanks, that works for me. Bet they'll be a popular add on.

The elimination of the bumper car figures is a classic case of stupid economics. In quantities, how much could they have cost? $5 each? As for buying "mods" later, the cost will be undoubtedly higher, a needless added cost to the consumer. The MOD guys are the winners here and the OKT buyers and AP? Not so much. This sure casts a new light on AP's mindset, It is as tight as JJP was in not including a print copy of the manual for the POTC LE. For $7000 for a plain OKT and $9500 for a POTC LE, such items previously shown/provided are not too much to expect. WTF, if margins are that tight, add $15 to the price of the game and do it right! Really poor behavior by a company that is trying to create a name and a niche for itself.

Whoa dude. Chill. Everyone has their own little personal vendetta against API for leaving out or not spending money on this or that. Maybe they've saved the $5 and hired a better animator since everyone's bitching about animations.

Poor behavior? Really? That have to earn money at some point. Small features add up. Oktoberfest is already $400 over Houdini's MSRP and is almost priced higher that I can really afford for a NIB this year. APIs niche is a full featured game, packed with real toys. If you really need cheap plastic, non functional adornments at a premium price, go buy a Stern. I'd rather have cool mechanisms that really add to game play.

You really, REALLY need a Premium level machine option. Factory-installed art blades, invisiglass, shaker motor, EOS switches, knocker, cliffy protection (shooter lane and holes - you'd be the first, JJP just did holes), bumper car characters, matching face on playfield dude (okay, maybe not the last one, but you'd have at least one buyer down under with that) would be a hit with a good portion of the users.

You're leaving a fair amount of money on the table by not offering it. I understand and appreciate holding the line on pricing, but offering a Standard and a Premium will only fatten your bottom line and most of the parts you already have in-house sitting there, not making the money they could. Plus, there's still the Standard version that's always been there for people that only want that.

Hand made by Matt at Back Alley Creations ? Quantity might not have mattered once you make them and hand paint them. And they'd have to withstand the pop bumper actions.

Main thing is three feet away, playing a game. Who cares.

If you like them for the aesthetics, the possibility of buying them later might happen. Or other mod makers might make some interesting variations too.

When building a game. Manufacturers have to make some hard decisions. And American Pinball knows best if the money needed to go elsewhere on or in the game.

Octoberfest is shaping up to be a lot of fun and a great game.

LTG : )

Lloyd, I understand your point. But, let's wait and see how much they will cost each individual buyer that still wants them. I will hazard a guess that if AP offered them as an add on item for even $50 per set, they would get a high take rate. And, I would also bet that a set as a mod will be at least $50 if not more. I just hope that AP does not nickle and dime other more important features and components. Could this be a harbinger of that? We shall see.

I think AP needs to start charging what it costs to survive as a low-volume manufacturer. Their pricing is great, but it's too low for what they're offering, and a bump in price would give them the budget to fix art and animation to bring them up to a survivability level, too. Also, why re-invent the wheel with the power situation? Stern is buying off-the-rack Meanwell power supplies. If it's good enough for Stern, it should be good enough for AP.

Oh, I didn't realize they had adult versions!

It is probably pretty hard to start spinning out different versions at their scale. If you're producing thousands of machines, it could be justified...with hundreds, it is probably best to stick to one single variation.