HyperSleep chamber complete, thanks for the model Redferne ! I changed up the pod a bit, the picture is not very accurate as to color or saturation

8ECDF483-009A-4889-BB6A-3D8D134112F3 (resized).jpeg

Are you talking to Jimmy Lipham ( Compy )? He's fantastic and the nicest guy - he originally did the TZ interactive backboard (https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/new-mod-twilight-zone-interactive-backboard-display) before Tron. They're very cool mods!

I am. He is thinking 7 inch screen to the right of the xeno.

I am doing pics and measurements and wiring locations for him.

i have to say that i am super excited about this... good stuff. Please put me on an early adopter list! I will drop the dough!!

Great idea! I saw the one on Tron in person this weekend, it would be perfect for alien

I’d certainly have to see what they can come up with before getting excited. To me it would be difficult to keep the dark theme of the game with a video screen back there where it is intentionally dark. Keep in mind it’s unlikely any Alien(s) assets will be able to be used.

I think it will be used to give a more 3d effect to the egg nest that will have some motion..These screens can still can keep that area dark. He also makes it interactive to what is going on with the game. Maybe the eggs actually exploding when the pop bumpers hit or when the spinners are spinning..

What mirror blades fit this version?

I'm kind of hoping pingraffix makes some nice powerbladez for it.

Im hoping someone make non powered ones that look good.

From my understanding (Could be wrong) WPC ones fit.

I have WPC in mine, they fit perfectly

TY for the confirmation!

Is WPC “Bally/Williams?

yes - 90s era

So, meet everyone over at the docks to help unload?

I'll meet you at customs

I'll drive the truck and bring a gas generator, so we can play en-route!

Lol..Never seen this commercial before..

LOL. I remember this commercial. They had a bunch like this for various popular movies.

Now that we know how her agent works, they must have paid super high dollar for that commercial.

OhmyGod are they EVER going to unload that ship?!?!?

It's on it's way back to Europe. Everything must now be in dock and waiting on customs or someone to come put it on a truck or rail.

I was really hoping to be playing my Alien pin over the Thanksgiving holiday...but it looks like that's not going to happen.
Looking forward to hearing when the container lands at Cointaker and they start to go out though.

New 2.4 code didn't fix our trough issues, only made it worse. Cato said from the logs it looks like a board or cable issue, so he is going to send out replacements. Really looking to get this sorted so we can get some high scores!

Don't give up hope. Cointaker uses fedex freight which delivers fast.

No way it makes it through customs and 2 sets of shipping by Thursday

Yeah, right. FedEx is the worst.

Mine delivered days after Cointaker received it. My Halloween machine by R&L sucked. Waited all day for a delivery window on a Monday and they didn't even call me to say they didn't receive it at the train depot yet. Ended up coming on Thursday instead.

It cleared customs yesterday FYI. So it's possible that they actually are en route to cointaker as we speak. I do think Thanksgiving Alien isn't happening which sucks, but oh well. Prolly the week after we will see them!

Still works best for me, I'm travelling for Thanksgiving. I was worried about it sitting at a warehouse or worse, the curb like some people have had happen to them.

That's good news - where did you hear that?

So...here's how my day went...

The correct cables for v3 targets came in, so I set about to install them. Did not go so great at first.

The old targets and the new targets mounting bracket are not shaped the same. The new ones are not 90 degree, they are angled up at about 85 and have longer lips. This caused the targets by the reverse ramp to be pushed against the front of the holes so they were always activated. I think they did this trying to angle the targets slightly down toward the pf so that the back plate would be less likely to bend (and they do indeed bend...all of my originals are bent pretty far).

I ended up having to swap the new brackets with the old brackets for that ramp. There were other minor issues with the new targets that prevented me from installing them so I only did the airlock and reverse ramp targets..which, honestly is fine. Those are the ones that get the most action. The new backplates seem to be slightly thicker than the old ones, so we'll see if they bend over time --- but really...this target design is just not a good design to hold up to repeated impacts. They need to move away from it if they make future games.

So then I turn it on to test and everything works except the LCD. I fudge with all the cables and try again. This time I'm watching the LCD. It does indeed come on, until the PC posts, and then nothing. So I spent another 10 minutes tracing and figiting with cables until it finally comes on, but when it comes on, the right half of the game doesn't work (but not the same as if a fuse blew). Checked fuses all good. Booted another 3-4 times with same result. Figit with cables again, and finally right side comes on, but LCD doesn't come on again. SMH. I get into this alternating issue of if the monitor works, the right side is out and vice versa....and then...for no apparent reason everything starts working. I turned it on and off a few more times, and played a few games with no further issues, so I seal it up and put it back in place (slowly as to not shake any cables). Played for another hour with no issues.

I know this is going to be an issue later....I'm just not sure why.

Woukd you mind showing a picture of the correct V3 wire cables. I have the new V3 targets as well but just want to make sure I got the correct cables. Doesn’t sound very promising. They should redesign these targets with leaf switches. Thanks!

If you have a single big connector on one end and the other end has a 2 prong and 5(?) prong connector you have the correct ones. It's easy to spot because the separate connectors do not fit in the new targets.

The original have the 2 and 5 on both ends.

What are your thoughts about game play? Most post here have been about bling and waiting for the game. I am tempted to start another thread but here goes.

It is a brutal game but everyone dies in the alien franchise so it is fitting. It has been a brick-fest for me with shots ricocheting of of the post bumper that surround the ramps but I am getting better. I have some muscle memory now dialed in for the ramps to light the right and left inlanes to start the mode and advance the bonus. The upper ramp for the hypersleep is difficult to hit. The upper flipper seems real punchy and the angles are tight. Again brick fest.

I am not a fan of the upper eject trough. The way the ball comes down and hits the flippers and bounces around the posts is random. I have gotten use to it and mostly start with the left flipper up to catch the ball and then pass it to the right flipper if I am in APC mode. My TZ eject is way more predictable. I guess because it is closer to the flippers. I also lowered the power on that coil.

I like the way the left outlane was done so you can nudge and save the ball with the lit hypersleep lane. The right outlane is just brutal. I will be having a great game and then it will just go down the toilet with that one. It is soul-crusher. One thing I learned is you can do a ball save if you have one alien left to start multiball and then you hit the weapon button before the ball goes in the trough you kill the last alien and can launch the multiball.

The ambush, sentry gun and hypersleep locks are the most satisfying part of the game I have found so far. Again the hypersleep lock has been tough for me to get in but when it happens it is magic. I have the shot to start sentry gun into the mu/th/ur eject hole dialed in with a flip of the right flipper on a slow roll to the very end of the flipper. The eject hole coil strength is now perfect. People complain about missing the screen in the playfield in this model but when in ambush and sentry gun I don't look at the screen at all. It is just a shoot for the orbit fest and some end up in the airlock and alien targets anyway. I need to focus on the upper flipper orbit shot as well.

I think the right flipper should really be a two stage button so you could just activate the lower flipper without the upper flipper getting in the way. That would be nice to be able to hit the weapons targets with the right flipper. Currently the upper right flipper denies it like rejected slam dunk shot.

It seems like the stops for the Derelict ship and Queen's nest mode are working better for me with the 2.4 rev. Shoot for orbit with the blue arrow and it will stop the ball and let it drop into the eggs.

It is definitely making me a better player but it is annoying to keep on seeing you failed when a mode ends without successfully completing it.

Whats your thoughts?

Oh yeah after the 2.4 update things have been working great. I have the v3 targets on the way in a care package. It will be nice when those are more reliable. They have take a serious beating. Loctite is your friend with the hardware. I never had an issue with the trough eject or the ball launch. Had the game since the first week of September. Cheers.

Great Post, and fantastic idea about "I think the right flipper should really be a two stage button so you could just activate the lower flipper without the upper flipper getting in the way. That would be nice to be able to hit the weapons targets with the right flipper. Currently the upper right flipper denies it like rejected slam dunk shot."
I totally agree, did you forward your idea to Cato? These guys are on it which is fantastic. For hyper sleep, i think we need the perfect angle with the top right flipper, I'm still adjusting, working on it. Again, great post.. Thanks for taking time! cheers!

Thanks man! Good idea. I have been in coms with him and will float the idea. So have you adjusted your flipper more clockwise or counterclockwise?

so far i am right at the top of pin inline with rubber, exact same line. thinking more counterclockwise.

When you get it dialed in, care to share a picture of the final position for those of us patiently waiting for our machines?

I've also suggested the idea to him. Would love to have an adjustment in the menu to enable and then just tell me where to run the second wire to

I don’t consider this game to be “brutal” , I find it super smooth with great flow. The shots aren’t narrow like say Houdini.

The right reverso ramp can be hit with 3 flippers so staging would give you a fourth option if it was staged , the scoop can be hit with 3 flippers. The loops can even be backhanded. The Muthur hole is pretty easy off the tip of the lower right flipper.

The hypersleep ramp is difficult but it’s pretty much the same shot as my STTNG upper left ramp shot. After all it is a lock and I’m glad it’s difficult. I don’t think adjusting the upper right flipper anything other than directly in line with the post would be the way to go. That has the possibility of putting the post in play when it shouldn’t be.

The chestburster shot from the upper left flipper is also fairly difficult but also very rewarding.

The right outlane has an adjustable star post so you can make it more likely that it will come back through the gate to the inlane if adjusted.

My scoop always fires to the left flipper so I have no issue in that at all.

I did have to move my right loop ball guide out so that the ball would deliver to the right flipper as out of the box it would hit the right sling and ruin the flow.

For me the biggest part of this game is the theme and music integration especially when you're in a mode and running out of time, Combat Drop (and others) really gets the blood flowing.

To be accurate the “Shotgun” gives you 2 xeno hits, so you can start Ambush with 2 hits remaining while you’re draining. All of the weapons are important and it is key to know when to use each
5471B6AD-F7C9-4B28-8982-66792C0A602F (resized).jpeg

She’ll do this and not a few callouts!! ?? Wtf

I was thinking the same thing. I just thought I was beaten down by R&M so biased. I find this game to not be difficult, and the shots fairly easy to make. I don't have issues with the airlock, they all return to the exact same spot reliably.

One strategy I've found is to save the shotgun for when you are about to lose a ball, the mode will start even if the ball drains (assuming you are down to 2 shots or less).

The most difficult shots to make are the hypersleep ramp, and the far right vent (which is really the most difficult shot to make on purpose).

That was 20 years ago...this probably was never even brought to her attention.

can someone explain the locking in weapon and selecting it.. say i have all 5 weapons.. how do i select shotgun and activate?

the one flashing will change with each flipper hit, and you activate it by pushing the launch button. It cycles to the right, not back and forth. Takes some practice for sure. Note that if a ball is launching from anywhere (airlock/trough/mthr) it will not activate and you need to keep hitting it.

Thanks for posting what the individual weapons do. Besides the shotgun it looks like the flamethrower would save a draining ball as well and also the smartgun would give you an extra ball (good if extra ball was lit and you were draining on your last ball). Pretty cool

Are you able to activate multiple weapons as the ball drains by alternating flipper and launch button presses?