Nah f*** that guy, you payed, you play.

This happens a lot at the arcade actually 90+ machines in the place and people always wanna play what I'm on (to be fair, I look like I'm havin the most fun in the place so that probably factors in). Because I know how frustrating it is to have the game you were hankering to play be occupied, I always leave a credit for whoever is waiting. This has a two pronged effect: the nice patient person is always flabbergasted by my generosity, and the impatient dicks look like well... Impatient dicks even more.

When its pay to play waiters gonna wait. Seriosly you were more than accomodating, dont stress it you sound like a straight shooter.

You pay you play, went to a pinball show the other day that had the new ghostbusters and there was two guys playing so I waited for my turn and when there game was over he matched and asked if I wanted to play with them because they wanted you to play $1 to play so he put $5 in because there wasn't anyone around, I told him if you have to pay then do the worry about it because I suck at pinball and I'm not paying $1 to play and wouldn't have stood in line if I knew you had to pay, he insisted so I played a game and thanked him after. You should have put more credits in that machine.

You put extra credits on it to 'hog' it for a while? What if everybody did that? If the credits were won, ok, but just to preload to hold your spot... doesn't sound right.

You both seem reasonable, just a small misunderstanding.

I think it's kind of a dick move personally, but I guess there's no actual rule. I dunno. I can kind of sense when someone has been hovering around for 15 minutes or so, especially if I had been on a given game for a while.

If it's a good game or two, that's one thing. But someone continuing to start new games for over an hour would bother me a bit.

What ever happened to putting a quarter on the machine to let the player know your next? We did this a lot as teens in the 90's

Patience is a virtue
Mike

in my 'hood as well.It was great to be a good player I would often "cash out" and scoop up some quarters for candy and hockey cards......or maybe try and get a plastic mini Giants helmet.

To the op:You did nothing wrong,once the credits are in they're yours.

Never mind pinball, but it sure seems like what many would consider common courtesy to let someone else that wants to play have a turn. You don't have to put all your credits in at once, you don't have to insist on playing all of them.. you don't have to make some random dude that just wants to play a game wait until you've decided you've had enough. I think when I was in preschool it was taught as 'sharing'

To me, it kind of depends on how much you loaded up the machine while there was no one there. I subscribe to the idea that you should only be putting in enough credits to get whatever kind of discount the machine might offer, and no more, precisely because you never know when someone else might want to come in and play. Free credits through replay awards or matches you should, of course, absolutely get to play out. That said, if I were sitting with 6 credits on a game that I won through matches or replays, and someone else wanted to play, I'd probably ask if the person wanted to buy the credits off of me, especially if I'd already been playing for a while.

It seems like the guy in your story could have handled things better, too, especially at the start. No fair getting pissed at someone staying on a game unless you make it clear that you want to get on (either by politely letting the person know or by waiting patiently). You're not a mind reader, after all.

I dunno, if you were on there for hours that's kind of a dick move.

I'm not a very good player, so I'm usually the person waiting to get on a machine rather than the "hogger", but I don't think you did anything wrong. You offered him a generous option to join in as you finished out your credits, and it's his own problem if he can't make a game last as long as you can to even out the wait. Plus there were plenty of other games for him to choose from while he waited. When I've been in that guy's position, sometimes I wait patiently there for my turn and sometimes I go off and focus on other games. I'd only get pissed if the good player just kept dropping in money *after* I began waiting. And even then, I'd probably just go get a beer and curse him under my breath as I played other games, lol. Why waste valuable playing time getting in fights with random people?

Frankly, I love to play with someone who knows the games really well so I can pick up tips from watching them. But that guy wanted to focus on being angry instead. Oh well, his loss!

That sounds like a case of butthurt millennial syndrome.

But they need to learn the quarter on the playfield glass rule.

If you have credits left, it's all you brother. That other guy will have to wait. Whether you won them or paid for them. 1st come,1st serve. He was probably from the everyone gets a trophy generation...............bs.................

Putting a quarter on the glass always meant that would be the next quarter to go in. You would still get to play out what credits you have. You could have offered to let him cash you out but you did offer to share with him and he was unwilling. As long as you did not put more money in you shouldn't feel to bad.

I'm not a fan of preloading a bunch of credits. But if they were earned, yours.

But... You did the proper thing by asking him if he wanted to join the game. To me that is the polite thing to do. The only time I don't do that is on a brand new machine. I let them take their first game alone.

Quarter on the glass... memories. But we did that for video games.. can you do that/did people do that with pins? I would think they might slide under the lock down bar?

The subject of this thread is wrong.

You're talking about etiquette, not ethics.

2 quarters on the glass should be the general rule. Basically it means that no more credits go in and once the credits that are in are used up they are next.

Gracious of you to offer letting him join you.

I wouldn't put in six credits. And if I had six and someone was waiting I might just leave them and play something else. Maybe say, "I've got six credits in it, holler at me when you're done and I'll finish them."

You were a bit of a machine hog but not unreasonably so.

Preloading a pile of credits is poor etiquette. Winning them is one thing but loading up for a couple hrs of play is a no no. Put your money in, play your game out, look around to see if anyone is waiting on the game, if they are not start your next game.

If you preloaded a bunch of credits you were in the wrong, the guy was a bit of a tool about it though so I see you as both being wrong.

Sometimes the credits are set to encourage preloading - 75c per game 3 games for 2 bucks, etc. Besides, sometimes you need a few games to feel out a machine/warm up, etc. Its not like this was the only game in the room. Too bad, so sad, but if the op paid for or won the credits, there is no ethics or etiquette involved...

I agree with the guy above that preloading to get the extra game is no big deal, but putting 10+ credits in at a time would be a bit excessive. Who knows though, maybe the op got his credits through matching and replays. I know there is a local place where I have played for close to an hour on one credit through matching and replays. It's especially easy when the first replay is set low.

I'm going to say yes to this one. If you're at a place that has more than you wanting to play pinball, I would only be putting in 50 cents to a dollar in at a time. Then if someone else wants to play rheir wait time is minimal. Treat it like a pinball show. If someone else wants to play they get the game next or asap. Then you get it the game after that or asap. And so on.

You gave him the chance to play with you. He turned it down. Doesn't matter how many credits where in the machine. He wanted to play all alone and that's not your fault.

I guess you could have done what others said and told the guy he could have bought the credits from you which I've never thought of before. If he said no to that then he would definitely just be a dick.

Try being the other guy then ask yourself if you did the right thing.

My question is, what was the point of putting more than one credit's worth in? Was it 2 tokens for 3 plays or something? Again, makes total sense if you played one credit and kept getting replays and matches, but I think you should in the future just pay for one credit and when that credit(s) are gone, see if others are waiting to play before crediting up again.

I would honestly just let the next person play with my credits especially if I had been on the game for a while and I knew they were waiting. I've done that a lot.

We did that in the 60's as well!

I think a lot of it boils down to what kind of player you are. Since your goal was to reach "Rule the Universe", and you kept getting free games, I have to assume you are a pretty darn good player. Because of this, it's probably not fair to sit on one game all night, whether the credits were legitimately earned or not. As experienced pinheads, it's our job to set a good example for others. When we are out on location, we sort of become unofficial ambassadors for the hobby. If you're hogging one of the machines, this hardly gives off a positive vibe to others who may not take pinball as seriously, or are just getting into it.

I don't think you did anything wrong so I wouldn't even think twice about it.....but I also would just drop in a token or two and work off the free match and replay credits.

If a game is poorly set up on route I can usually only play it once as I won't reward an operator that cant level a game.

"Was it wrong for me to put a bunch of credits in one machine?"

If the machine itself offered you no discount games then yes I think you were hogging the game by putting in four tokens. Rule the Universe or not do it one token at a time. If someone else wants to play then let them in. Some people do not like to play doubles, maybe they want to get in the zone and Rule the Universe themselves. So I think you did not have proper pinball etiquette from the start. No reason to preload the game other then to be able to hog it if others arrive.

So I keep playing and about 15 minutes later he taps me on the shoulder and says "Are you going to let anyone else play? You have been on there forever."

Doesn't seem totally rude a little sarcastic with the first question but hey you've been on the machine awhile with preloaded credits (4 to start) I understand why he was annoyed to begin with.

I had about 6 credits in so about 30 minutes later I still have a couple.

30 minutes you played and didn't let this guy in after you were hogging the machine initially....yes I would be pretty mad myself..I dont think he was being socially blind or a dick.

Ok, so it was to hog the machine to get to Rule The Universe. I think what we have here isn't quite black and white, it is a matter of the shade of grey. You were both wrong. Clearly you were hogging the game, and clearly you were both a bit dickish about it. You did offer for him to join, and he should have probably accepted that... But if your whole thing is getting to RTU, that is a long game and not fun to play with. So just be more aware that others also want to play. And between games, look around you to see who was waiting. You can rule the universe another day.

To the other guy: If someone offers to let you join a game you want to play, join. Play the game and have fun. Don't be a bitch. Most of the time in the small world of pinball, you will run into each other again. Then the conversation is about that fun time on AFM instead of that time you were both dinks.

Taking the route operator/location side, who cares as long as the games are being played and making money or covering ROI? I believe that's what pinball's were designed to do in the first place. If it were a pinball show, that would be another story. In "the wild", there really aren't any ethecs rules out there to guide anyone other than your own conscience, unless there are house rules posted on site.

Steve

Ehh, I can see the guy's perspective - sometimes you don't want to play a two or more player game, you just want to play ball after ball and not wait around. Especially if that other player is any good, then you're standing around a long time.

IF I've been on a game forever and someone tells me they want to play, why wouldn't I give the game up? The tap on the shoulder was a little obnoxious, he should have just said "hey I want to play can I take over when you are done?," but we are dealing in nuances here.

The "want to join in with me?" gambit is great at a pinball show, or with some pinhead buddies or at least people you recognize, but on location, with some total stranger who already doesn't like you?

Come on that's ridiculous. Not exactly a shocker the guy didn't want to take you up on the offer. He's spent enough time watching you play.

Sell him some credits, let him play, and then jump back on when he's finished. Seemed like a pretty cut and dry situation to me.

And I'm guessing you never did Rule the Universe so all you succeeded in doing was pissing some guy off who just wanted a chance to play the game you'd been on since the Clinton Administration. Well played. I'm sure you weren't playing your best pinball at this point anyway as I'm sure the guy glaring at you, and your thoughts on the pinside post you were gonna whip up about this whole situation, had to be at least mildly distracting.

By offering to let him join, you went above and beyond. I always ask people to join that I don't know, some do, but most don't. The ones that do are always great people. I enjoy meeting new folks and chatting with people who share my love of the game.
Somebody pissed in that guys cereal, that is his problem.

He didn't want to join in. He wanted to play the game by himself just like the OP had been doing for an hour or so.

Eight credits at once is a lot, and if you're good enough to aim for ruling the universe then you were probably racking up a few replays along the way.

If it's a 3 games for $2.00 I'll go with that but that's the limit for me. Don't like to hog games when others are there. However I'll keep throwing in the 2 bucks until someone steps up to play.

This is a tough situation, don't feel bad. It can happen when you credit up a machine but it can also happen when you are playing well and winning lots of free games.

If it comes up again, I would offer to sell your credits. That way you are not losing the value of your games but you are also not monopolizing the machine.

-Jay

It isn't rediculous. I've done it quite a few times over the years. Sometimes the player has been one of the best in the area, and others he has been a double flipper hitting noob. Worked out fine every single time. Sometimes it was 1 game, and others it ended up as an afternoon of competition. It's pinball. I don't care if I spend 10 minutes less playing because I joined or let someone join for a game. I'm still having a good time. Maybe it's different in New York...

Tell the person you will give him your free credits, and sit down and have a beer.
Your money, your game, until the last ball drains.
It is not like you are standing there with the ball on the flipper.
There is no ethic issue here.

Agree with Trunchbull, loading up 8 credits is hogging the machine, plain & simple.

When I was in Florida last year I called around to see what pins they had at different places. One of them had AFM, which I had never played and was dying to, so I flew out the door and ran to the arcade. I was on vacation so time was limited as we had other things to do, but if I was in the position of the other guy, I would have been upset if someone kept the machine over and over, but I would have mentioned it to them why I wanted to play it.

Pinball is better played with other people. He should have accepted your first offer to jump in and not be baby.