KME is exactly where he needs to be. Stern was in desperate need of some fresh playfield designs and ideas which they now have. Spooky has Scott Danesi and JJP has Eric Meunier who have have their own innovative ideas that are moving pinball forward. The future of pinball is bright!

Three years ago at SFGE 2016 I was chatting with Charlie in his booth and told him to take a close look at Archer and hire Keith. Funny how a few months later Stern hires him. Wonder if Bowen is willing / able to design a playfield layout for Spooky?

You can start any other ladder, and every other ladder is actually faster to complete. Most people are just lazy and start the "easy" one. That is why is is four rungs instead of three or two, like the others.

I disagree with 99% of stantman's post, but I do agree there were a lot of bricked shots and ramp rejects in that video. Could be a combination of factors, pitch, player unfamiliarity with layout, etc., but as an average player on my best day it does worry me a little.

Still planning on a Premium, but hopefully one or more of the local pin locations will get a Pro soon and I can put some games on it to get a real feel for the shots.

Best pinball animations ever not even close

I hear Etsy sells it

I suspect you will be able to advance to other (further paddocks, with better rewards) before deciding to activate the mode. So for example you could advance the MAP shots, taking a bit more time, then tackle one of the more difficult paddocks as your first mode. But I could be completely wrong, just my impression.

Yeah not going to lie when I heard that they weren't going to use movie clips I was disappointed, but after watching the stream I really do love them. It reminds me more of the video games and it honestly lends itself to a new experience instead of just rehashing the story line of the movie.

BKSOR animations seem like they were better than JP based on the video (have obviously not viewed it in person).

Shots look very interesting though, much more interesting than BSOR to me (pro for sure).

Playfield art seems a little cluttered and the style isn't my favorite.

I was never a buyer for this machine so it really didn't sway me either way but I can't wait to play it on location.

I remember hearing a podcast (not sure which one) about Elwin's hiring. He's a California guy & was really reluctant to take the job because he didn't want to relocate to Chicago. Stern really had to twist his arm. Looks like everyone is happy now.

I have ordered JP2. I’m excited to get it but the animation could have been better. It reminded me of Contra

OMG You must be kidding show the same image and pan to the right pan to the left add space ships add steam geysers

Hold on now mister! There is not enough banter yet for our opinion of the game to be given to us quite yet. Lets slow down and allow everyone time to chime in and give our opinions to us before you go do something crazy like form your own.

I’m super excited too. The only animation that really bothered me was when you start rescuing people and they are standing on a rendering of the playfield.

I don’t think it’s particularly pretty, but mostly don’t like that it’s the only animation I saw that took you away from the world they are trying to put the player in.

I'm a huge JJP fan and agree with you completely. JP2 crushes Wonka in every way.

arms too short to play pinball?
natural selection appears to work.

Yeah, at first that seemed pretty weird to me, but then I realized it's a great way to convey to new players where they should be shooting. Definitely a pretty clever idea.

Sooooo good, I am perfectly fine with the new adventure concept and minimal movie references. I am in on a Premium

Said I wasn't going to buy another LE, but then this all happened!

I'm absolutely stoked about this one!

I actually agree with you. Love DI, but the screen animations don't really wow me. Could have done a lot more with that giant screen.

The GB linear "bitching" came to my mind as well as I watched them start at the bottom of the map and move up. I don't know how they would "advance" up the map without playing the lower paddocks, based on Keith's description of left/right path progression.

Honestly though, I really couldn't follow the rules very well from just watching the stream (all of it on both games). Keith said he didn't want to give anything away, but I'm not sure that there is a whole lot to give away yet. Code looked pretty basic, but the layout and total number of shots/combos that could be made looked really good. 4 possible ramp shots + loops is pretty innovative.

I'm sure code will improve, and with so many shots, hopefully the depth comes. I just couldn't figure out why they were doing what they were doing without more dialog. Bottom line is I'm much more interested in this than IMDN. Can't wait to try it.

Are control room modes separate from the paddocks, or are they one in the same? My guess of how it worked assumed they were the same... keep progressing map shots, then when you get to the paddock of preference hit the control room shot to activate. I got this impression after reading the TWIP deep dive, but could be wrong.

Good point

Love these posts. Welcome aboard. Wait til you get that first one in your house and you can just “keep pressing start” as we like to say!

P.S.
Man, the dichotomy between a post like this one I quoted and the perpetual JJP/STERN stuff...

If you listen very closely, it is the sounds of the Dilophosaurus that killed Nedry. It is the sound when he tries to have the dinosaur fetch a stick. Then it keeps following him and eventually he meets his demise.

The world is also pinball so works for me but get what you are saying. I also think the animations where you are rescuing people could be better. I first thought the Jeep was running over them. Too bad you also don't see the dinosaurs eating people when you don't save them. Guess that would be too gruesome lol.

Hoping someone here can help explain the rules around crew rescues. During the stream I seem to recall something about flashing lights on the play field and the speed at which they move or blink varies depending on the danger posed by the dinosaur (herbivore vs. carnivore). Every time they started a crew rescue mission/mode (relatively new to this hobby so still picking up lingo) the animation looked like augmented reality showing the crew member and dinosaur (usually a Spinosaurus I think) standing on the right side of the playfield. How does this all work? Apologies if I missed this but it seemed to be the one part of the game I couldn't grasp while watching the stream. Thanks in advance!

The game is just right on so many levels!
For a house with kids, and guests ts an instant hit with theme, sound, and playfield/art.

I think of my choices...I really felt I was done looking at new games.

This game appears to be a repetitive start button press....I want to play more over and over.
For me, Im stoked. Its been quite a number of years to be this excited.

Interesting to get this gut feeling after 52 years of playing.

This is exactly what I thought. I like the sound they used for the Dilophosaurus spinner because it is true to the film. The only other sound I can recall that dino making is the aggressive roar before it spits at Nedry in the Jeep. That could work too I guess, but I prefer how it is today.

I hope the American Pinball team watched that stream to see what can be done with the LCD. Stern is really taking the animations to the next level (pinball-wise anyways).

Awesome stuff!

I mean they could've shown a zoomed map near a paddock that showed a group of people needing rescuing, but I think the "augmented reality" of characters on PF's will also resonate with those coming into the hobby from PinballFX/Zen/whatever as that's incredibly common in those games.

I've only watched about 5min of the stream so far and already have this on my wish list.

This game reminds me of Alice Cooper and Houdini. Incredible games held back by shots that are just toooo tight. Big difference between KME hitting the Smart Missile shot and me bricking it. I'm going to have to play it before I can comment.

im glad keith is designing pinball machines for stern. he benefits from working alongside a staff of experienced designers, engineers, and programmers he would not have found elsewhere; economies of scale for his designs, and a marketing dept headed by zach sharpe. stern provides him the opportunity to sell more than 500 of his games every 18 months.

I just took delivery of a ACNC. I admit I was worried that the game wouldn't be fun because of the tight shots. So far, I'm loving it and don't find it that difficult. I actually find making shots much easier than I do on my IMDN. I have no problem ripping combos. If the game didn't have some form of difficulty, it would be Way to easy and get stale fast.

This game really looks good. Tons of shots, lots of toys, a unique approach to the license, etc. Looks to be a real winner.

Now I'll let some of you get back to JJP vs Stern. Someone please PM with who finally wins as I cant really stand to read the same people spewing the same crap over and over again.

Seen Dead flip Stern JP.
Best Stern game EVER.

Best theme 2019.
best playfield layout 2019.
Best megs (captureball and t-rex).
Best sound effects 2019.
Best animations 2019.
I you want to thumbs down i don't give a fuck.

I saw that at lunch time and went back and tried to find it. I was like am I on the wrong thread?

From what I could tell from the stream, each dinosaur "mission" has an increasing amount of people to rescue (orange shots). The dinosaur (a slow roving green shot) moves around the playfield. If an orange rescue shot is not made in time, the dinosaur reaches a person on the island (a rescue shot) and mode/mission ends. I believe the countdown voice was time left to make the rescue before dinosaur wins. It also seems like certain breeds of dinosaurs have the power to move more quickly around the playfield, and some can't be stunned. Completing a mode/mission provides unique scoring opportunities throughout the rest of the game (not just the ball) such as more scoring on pop, easier in-lane rules, etc.

Robin!?!?

Maybe they are sick of you changing it every 20 minutes?

I get that you want to have a monopoly on all "next stern game" threads from now on but it is a little much. If you truly love your thread, set it free.

Seriously.

Welcome to JP2 “Chamaeleon Thread”

With all the praise on the animations I watched some of the video again. I like that they have a lot of animations I am just not sure they are great. Based on what I saw I do not believe they are better than BKSOR.

Great! Thanks for clearing this up for me. That seems to match what they were doing in the stream.

When some random kid at the mall is hanging over the glass while you play

pasted_image (resized).png

I'd like to buy a JP2 LE, but need a sugar daddy to make that dream come true. I'd settle for a JP2 premium, pending flesh on plastic testing. I'm not ruling out JP2 pro either, especially if Dino is caught mouthing balls when all I want him to do is spit them out. All models of JP pinball are stone-cold winners!! and everyone planning to buy one is smart!!

dino1.gif