Hey maybe people are getting it and sending a message as Mustang sales are not great right now... Thou IMO it has more to do with theme then a total revolt on NIB code updates... I really hope the wait it worth it like it was on MET... I know for myself there will be no more NIB purchases for me until the machine has a solid code update. Glad I just bought my ACDC BIBLE as it makes a big difference when you have a machine that is complete, just no love for ST right now until we get a massive code update to improve the rules... However, IMO if they actually listen to some of the suggestions on the boards the update will be awesome, like the MET one was...

If ST sales are stagnant, it's purely based on code & word of mouth. The theme & design are solid and popular....but, since the LEs are pretty much sold out - there's no rush for potential customers to get a Pro or Premium until current owners are like "HOLY SHIT! BEST GAME EVAAAH!"

If Mustang sales are stagnant, that's purely theme....that game could get the most amazing code ever, but "the masses" just won't feel motivated to drop a ton of dough on it. Sure, all licensed themes are licensed, but pop culture/movies/music feel cool, with nostalgia for stories, characters, and tunes....Ford Mustang just feels like product placement. It feels a little skeevy to pay for product placement.

I keep saying this, but it's not just the Mustang theme causing stagnant sales (assuming that's true). I drive a Mustang, and when the pin was announced I felt for sure it would be my next NIB. I had the 'ok' from the wife and everything. I was *stoked* to buy a Mustang. But, after playing the pro, prem and LE I just wasn't very excited about it. It wasn't the theme. For me, it was that Mustang didn't stack up well against Met or ST (I already have AC/DC). Compared to those two, I just could not pull the trigger on Mustang, and ended up getting ST prem instead. So far, I'm happy with that decision, and look forward to the next ST code update.

Theme can drive initial sales. The game will have to speak for itself to remain a hit (AC/DC, for example).

Mustang theme: Dud out of the gate

You're saying the game blows, too? Double whammy....although gameplay is highly subjective. Many people like playing Mustang. It's just never gonna get over its theme to gain a Prem/LE sales spike.

I feel much better after venting in this thread yesterday, went ahead and got the next part of my Star Trek translite done that I had been putting off. Couldn't really proceed with out it, so now I'm in tinker mode again.

Now I can race the code release!

Pics or it didn't happen

image-554.jpg

yea, maybe I'll put a pic of you hand on my ST as the translight. Can we get alternative watch brands though?

I could offer a different Omega, have an Aqua Terra with blued hands and indices, might work nicely with the Pro t-molding color.

I'm out of room in my game area. I have IMVE and MMR coming in. Something has to go. I've been holding out on an update for ST, but my breath is running out and I'm turning the same color as the playfield....

^ I'm thinking of getting the MMR and then waiting to see how the code update looks for ST. At some point, I am going to have to sell another pin, but it's a very tough decision. As they say, first-world problems. I am incredibly fortunate to be in this dilemma. Do you remember how amazed you were to get even one pinball machine in your house? I never would have dreamed I'd have a wall of them.

I'm very curious about this. I hope it integrates well with the Premium cabinet art, which is my favorite of the 3 designs. It's conveys action and danger in a simple shot from the movie.

All I can say is it will feature the Enterprise instead of head shots, not a fan of big actor faces, and it won't be a scene from any of the movies, or use any non-original art (movie stills, posters etc). That would be dull as a project.

I shouldn't have teased it in the first place, I know better, but I got a little giddy when I got the machine I guess and couldn't resist. I hope I haven't built it up into something mythical, it's just a fun project to try and bring the ship to my machine (I have a Premium myself, but I'm conscious that it needs to work with both the red and blue t-molding options). I hope people like it, but I'm not done, so I haven't reached the important part, which is when I like it. Won't be done until that happens.

Funny how ranting at Stern seems to have broken the "artist's block" I had about it, enjoyed doing some digital painting on it today. Just needed a little passion in some form I guess.

nice, I hope to get a speedmaster some day...

I love the original but I'm

a) lazy and want an automatic and not a hand wind

b) mentally deficient about what day it is, and need a date window

so Speedmaster Date was perfect. Plus it's 40mm, which is good because I'm a skinny dude and can't pull off these massive watches that got popular. 44mm and up beasts aren't for me!

Code! Release the code!

What did all the MET guys do while they were waiting for code? ...that thread was epic, but I could not keep up with it.

Well chessiv and I started putting real money down towards the end.

I'm not betting anything this time around, because frankly I don't think the code is close.

Holiday hours today, done at 1PM, code should be up soon?

wishful_thinking180.jpg

I just played it...cuz it was still fun.

Stern's programmers have some extra time this summer with MMr and Iron Man being made that require no coding on Stern's part.

I'm guessing the code drops in August.

Regardless of needing the update, this game still has a lot of fun and challenge. I knew I was on a roll when I finished Prime Directive 2 by getting all the Blue/Yellow shots in a row...pretty much a "full game combo". I finally got to Enterprise Amok (2nd Wizard Mode for completing all Level 1 & 2 modes) and it was pretty cool...got a new GC score, too - which SURELY means an update is soon - cuz that's how it works, I get a great high score and then have to nuke it w/ the update!

ST_GCscore.jpg

I've been very happy with my STLE but reading this thread has me anxious.

I want Bones to give me directions!

Fixed it for ya!

We're not getting code before the 4th of July, that was an unfounded rumor. My advice is don't hold your breath for a while.

The one thing to remember is Lyman is not cranking this one out. He loves what he does and takes it home to work on. Not saying it won't get done, but may need to wait quite a bit longer for this code

Scott

Lyman has 0% to do with Star Trek code. It was Lonnie & Tanio's game.

6 months ago everyone was upset with Lyman since there had been nothing on MET. Funny how it changes...

Funny how it doesn't change you mean.

Yep, if only there was *some* way you could preserve your high scores when a new update comes out...

EDIT: Also congrats on the score and getting to Enterprise Amok. I've only done it once without cheating, but I find cheating makes not only baby Jesus cry, but the game more fun. That right outlane doesn't get much action nowadays lol.

I don't mind wiping the score...usually rules and scoring changes, so your old score is irrelevant....I wish you could keep the audits though...number of plays, etc.

Pretty sure that's the point he was making. Lyman often has a version of the game he's working on at home to work on. I doubt the guys on ST are doing the same.

Yeah, keeping scores is lame, when the code changes the scoring changes, would feel weird to preserve some score from a different playing game. Here's hoping the code update is actually substantial enough to make my point ring true.

I really wish we could keep the audits too though, total game plays for the life of the machine would be awesome.

I guess you just have to spend time jotting down the audits you think are important. I wonder if Stern's new hardware platform will address this. Would be nice to dump audits to a memory stick and then bring it in with the updates.

Isn't that what I said? Since he isn't working on it - it will take longer - my belief

I usually dump the audits to the USB stick before I do an update.

Seems like Big Buck Hunter did have a "total plays" audit somewhere that kept track of lifetime plays. I wonder which other games had/have it.

I guess...Steve read it that way...

"The one thing to remember is Lyman is not cranking this one out. He loves what he does and takes it home to work on."

To me, it sounded like you thought he was working on it... "not cranking this one out" means he won't just put out code unless he's happy with it (like Metallica)....then the comment about taking it home also read as though he was taking this code home to work on, and that's why we won't see it for a while. Had you said "Not working on this game", it would have made more sense to me.

Agreed - now lets get some code for our STs....

Im happy waiting, when I get it I want to to be DONE.

True - but I do miss the days of incremental updates, especially fundamental things or unused things. A baby update with flashers coded & kickback coded to kick again if it sense the switch again would have been nice.

The big difference is the MET rules were promising from the start...game was fun/challenging from the beginning. The rules simply needed to be finished.

With STLE, the core rules don't have as much promise...pin just seems flat. If this were a movie, it would need more than an ending. The story/plot would need more of a major overhaul.

Disagree. ST right now is more fun than Metallica was in the beginning. Lyman brought the pin to life, but it started flat and boring.

It's generally the same type of game as any traditional mode based game...just with mode modes/choice how to play the modes.

Agree 100%!

A-Word-Of-Encouragement.jpg

Different strokes for different folks I guess. Since I have an LE, believe me, I want to like it! STLE was almost 2x the price of my MET Pro (which I enjoy 10x more than STLE).

I have a Metallica LE, but I didn't buy it until the code matured, starting 4 multiballs wasn't enough to make me want to play before.

Now I love it! So code can make all the difference.

Yeah, Lyman does not "crank them out" when it comes to updates. He does get them done, and does a fantastic job. In a speedy manner? Hardly. MET is the most recent example.

I totally disagree MET was sub-par before the update, there were many comments to this effect, and many people who were actually dumping their machines essentially the new coding saved it...

I'm not a fan of the band Metallica, but the pinball machine felt to me like it had a lot of potential early on. I hope to own the game for at least a while someday. In the same vein, I'm not into cars, but I feel like Mustang has even more potential than Metallica did. I'd enjoy having it for a while. Point me towards an X-Men these days and I'll be happy for hours and hours. *g*

Before the Atlanta expo, I had played Star Trek maybe 10 times. It seemed okay, but nothing about it really grabbed me early on like I was expecting/hoping it would since STTNG is my second favorite machine of all time. After the expo was over, a deal on a ST Pro popped up that I couldn't pass up. I've put a lot more games on it now, and there is a lot of good stuff in it. Something still just isn't quite clicking for me though. I hope the coming update(s) help me turn the corner.