Quoted from jorge5240:How do they hold up? Any maintenance issues? I have a baytec skee ball now and it is good but re-playability is not awesome because we just go for the 10K over and over. This seems like it would have more upside because you actually have to aim for different shots.
Thanks,
Mike
As far as maintenance and quality, I have had no issues. Out of the box, one wire had worked its way loose which affected the lighting on the lane, but once that was secured, there have been no issues at all.
In the sense that it is just a bowling game, yes, there is only one game on it. However, there are a number of changes to the settings that can be made. First off, the original 2 lane version of the game is designed as a redemption game based on points. The draw in FFCs is that there is a "golden pin stage". On stock settings, every time you get a strike, you get a separate golden pin stage where you try to knock down as many pins as you can out of 100. Lots of big sounds and effects when you do so. And your score in the GPS is added to your normal score. So the casual players in FFCs and arcades are trying to get strikes to get the highest score and redemption payout. On stock settings the game gives you 3 frames (with the last frame having 3 balls like a 10th frame) so you could get up to 5 strikes and 5 GPS.
The version that I have is the single game Lane Master Pro. It has a print out machine that comes with that prints out your total score. Its designed more for home or bar use where people can try to compete for prizes.
Having said that, there are adjustments for both the larger 2 lane version and the 1 lane pro. You can adjust the number of frames (1-10), and number of pins in the GPS (up to 100). In addition, if you want a pure normal game of bowling, you can turn the GPS off entirely and play a regulation game. You can also adjust to have virtual bumpers in the gutters or not (to make it easier for kids).
My game can have up to 6 players in one game. Each takes their turn each frame like normal bowling. You can enter the names at the start of the game, or only if you get a high score after the game (it keeps track of all high scores - e.g. it keeps one set of HS for golden pin games, and other HS for normal play).
The balls are a good size and feel about right in your hand. They are not heavy (to ensure things don't get easily broken) but not too light either.
There is a good sense of timing from when the ball ends its run on the actual lane to when it gets translated into its path on the screen. Feels really seemless. It doesn't really sense spin on the ball. But rather, if you throw it a bit harder, it will automatically spin the ball toward the pocket, simulating a 10 pin balls throw.
For a regulation game, scoring is higher than normal. You can adjust the difficultly, but it is fairly forgiving even at the hardest setting.
Overall its a lot of fun. The kids and their friends like it a lot, especially the GPS. I like the regulation mode as I am more of a purist and its nice to have the option.
Hope this helps. Happy to answer any other questions you may have.
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