Hmm. This is telling. I mean, even if tomorrow isn't Bond, the idea that, to Gary Stern, a Bond-themed pin must include the assassin Jaws tells me a Bond pin is likely to focus on Roger Moore's run. Is that good? Is that bad? I don't really know, but when you consider that Moore's run spanned from '73 to '85, it's certainly old enough to appeal to no one under forty-five. And how would Jaws be utilized on a pinball playfield, anyhow? His schtick is to mortally bite his targets. Whom would he bite in this case? You? The ball? Jaws was the original "grille." Perhaps the game could have a Beast Mode, a la Marshawn Lynch.

Giving up?

At what point do we conclude that today is *not* the reveal?

Don't Stern's Tuesday reveals happen in the late morning, Central Time?

If it *were* going to happen today at, say, 10:30, someone at Stern would by now have said, "Hey, what are you all doing this morning at 10:30?" That kind of thing. And yet it's quiet as a crypt over there.

It looks like we're pushed a week. Drat!

"I think it's great," he says. MNPinball, some of you may remember, was among the first to declare the brilliance of IMDN. Seeing it in advance of the rest of us non-industry-insiders, he gushed about it. The hyperbole flowed like water in his descriptions. And here we have a second Elwin layout and in response to it MNPinball has only, "I think it's great." This worries me.

My point exactly. His enthusiasm this time around seems tepid.

Kenada's low-res "spy" image shows a layout with *lots* of elevation. Those wireforms are high off the PF!

Features matrix, please.

What time is this reveal expected to happen? Ten-thirty Central Time?

It's quiet on IGN's News page:

https://www.ign.com/articles?tags=news

+1

JP Premiums ship...when?

End of August?

Mid-September?

Thanks.

You know, I am *very* excited about just about everything to do with this game, but you have a point...

The Premium translite has the least impressive art of any part of any version - which is a bummer. There's no denying that the foreshortening of the dino' on the left is - well, not great. But you know, the colors on the PF just pop like crazy. Add those great LE artblades to your Premium (or PRO) and you've got some standout art for sure. Heck, I bet a PRO translite would look great in a Premium head. Johnny Crap's webpage had me thinking his style was a lot more amateurish ("high school," perhaps?), but for the majority of these art packages he raised his game. Overall, I'll call him a welcome addition to the art department at Stern. Go, Crap!

Crushing Loops: How Difficult?

When I watched the gameplay trailer, I was relieved to see, in the very first shot of the ball on the PF, a loop shoot like that of IMDN. But when I look closely at the entrance to the orbit on the left side of the PF, just above the inlet to the ramp beneath the tower, it seems tight enough to make multiple consecutive loops *very* difficult. It's stringing together loops in rapid succession that is the most fun. I can foresee the majority of my loop attempts ending up in that ramp inlet instead. The Warp Ramp on ST, by contrast, has a large mouth - and I need every bit of that to string together loops. KME likes to make the shots on his games as hard as he would prefer them himself - which, for the best player in the world, can be exceedingly tight/hard. The shot through the pops to that standup target at the very back of the PF is another one that will demand an elusive degree of precision.

JP.mid.PF.left (resized).jpg

I agree. That actor is funny. I also think he'd bring better callouts than even Jeff Goldblum.

Skill Shots?

Any ideas on the skill shots from the plunge? IMDN is loaded with them. Expecting more of same. Shooter lane sends the ball into the right orbit, no? Where does it go from there? Does it follow the orbit wall all the way to the outlet above the Tower ramp? Is there a soft-plunge skill shot somewhere up top? Yeah, I realize the smart thing in this case is to wait for KME to tell us tomorrow, but maybe some of you PF scrutinizers know something we don't.

Thanks, Lapean. I was *way* off!

That suggests skill shots will have to be shots from the right flipper - which, to me, aren't really plunged skill-shots. Metallica's full-plunge skill shot is another example of a skill shot from the flipper rather than from the plunge.

Opinions Sought: Raptor Pen Comparison: PRO vs Premium

To those of you who watched the Deadflip stream with care, what is your opinion on the Raptor pens between the two models? Keith described the Premium's pen as "Dirty Pool," a la AFM. I see the reference. Still, does the gate in front of the pen that retains the ball, as well as the up/down post, add up to more fun? The PRO allows the ball the trickle out the back of the pen and down the Control Room lane to the left flipper. I read the features matrix carefully and the additional up/down post in the pen, along with the gate, the responsive raptor sculpt, the animatronic T.Rex, and the kinetic helicopter blade are all that separate the two versions. There isn't any mention of a better light show on the Premium either this time. I'm fine with forgoing the T.Rex, but I do like the helicopter blade (if it has a switch and triggers a sound). I'm on the fence re: the two pen designs. The PRO's pen "flows," since the ball trickles out with every hit and becomes available for a flip almost immediately. Do you consider the chance for "dirty pool" there worthwhile? The pen mech takes up a fairly big swath of playfield. I guess I would like to have the significantly better design if there is one.

I agree. An opportunity for some creative light shows in different modes was missed. I would call the light show a bit uninspired, frankly. I mean, all jackpots have all the inserts and GI flashing. No sweeps. No spirals. No radiating rays. Just flashing in unison. That's lazy coding to me. I love better light shows. I would wager that the same coder for IMDN's light show was hired here. Jackpots are lit the same way in both. And certainly RGB inserts would have been great. Don't we pay for them in the Premium package? Where are they?

Now I'm worried...about you! Did you make this clip? I'm sending the orderlies. They will take you to your new "room." It has soft, mattress-covered walls and floor. A special jacket will be provided. (Think: Eddie) You will be safe there, but I think an expense or two will be spared.

Goldblum's turn as a beefcake was a surprise to many. He started his career in nerd/dork roles (The Big Chill), but worked out and got buff for The Fly. That role (Seth Brundle) was still nerdy, but more brilliant/nerdy and, thanks to his sculpted bod', perhaps even "hot." At that time he also married sexpot Gena Davis and suddenly he was equal parts dork and beefcake. Spielberg was probably aware of this arc and chose to give him that scene in JP where he reclines like a pinup on the couch. My hunch is that his story inspires Pinsiders because he's the dork that actually got some play. Lesson: work out, get confident, marry a babe, don't look back.