Pinball Labs - A New Pinball Simulator/Editor/API for VR,Cabs and Homebrew

Wow, awesome! I wish you much success in your kickstarter. What a great project!

Very cool ....be sure to keep us posted when you launch the kickstarter...this is a project that i would happily back....and i cant wait to be able to download and use the final product!
Best of luck!
--ed

Have you talked to the P-ROC or FAST folks? Having a 3D dev environment for those controllers would be very welcome.

The PyProcGame P-ROC'ers have been able to use Visual Pinball 9 and now are using Visual Pinball X, too. More options in the space would be better.

Not sure what sort of API you're going to provide to link to game code but if you'd like to talk send me a PM.

You might also want to talk to horseypin, who has been on the forefront of the use of VP X with PyProcGameHD, for the development of entirely virtual tables.

I had seen Tmek's video a few weeks ago and that was the first thing I asked about. It's very nice software & would love for it. Tmek has it in the list, I hope the kickstarter succeeds.

There's a nice more in depth thread about it all on VPF.

Fast pinball is on pinside here as well

When I was trying to get the VP Getaway running PyProcGame I failed miserably. The chain of Windows -> Visual Basic -> Python -> Virtual Pinball was always clunky and required a lot of highly technical understanding.

If this could go PyProcGame / MPF -> Virtual Table direct, and also be available on Mac! Sign me up!

Sorry about the website issue. I moved it to another server and must have messed something up.

I'll PM you my info. There has been some discussion of your work amongst the FAST User group.

Aaron
FAST Pinball

There's an installer that will get you up and running in PyProcGameHD and another that will get your VP set up with PyProcGameHD (made by horseypin). Might be worth looking again

Well, it was never really that easy and yes it's a lot to take in.

If you went by JD example and VP9...going through lots of its pygame & VP script, for someone new wanting to learn, that probably would've been too much for alot of people.

A lot has been improved though, especially much easier installs and Micheals framework. I made a basic game for VP10 & skeleton, you should try it out again, it's really stripped down. All game modules, VP script, machine config. You are ready to go in about 15 minutes.

With that you can take a look through and pick it up easier first. Modding it etc. You'll see it's not too much work.

I will read up about your efforts. You can use our FAST Pin Protocol (same thing MPF uses to communicate directly with out hardware) to interface directly with the hardware. All that is needed to be installed to do so is the FTDI Virtual COM port driver.

Aaron
FAST Pinball

would love to hear more about this. The physics look great. Seems like because it's a true 3d environment using the unreal4 engine, it'll make laying things out much easier. #1 thing I hate about both virtual pinballs is that everything is done in 2d with layers and heights. I'm used to designing in 3d in solidworks, and panning around the object to make sure it looks right.

Provided you will have device workshop ready in time, I'm pretty sure this will be the first kick starter I ever donate to.

Very interested in this project.

Sounds interesting... but I guess I'm wondering what the value is?
I'd love someone to take the STMU files and create a standalone virtual table that anyone could enjoy if they wanted to.
Then I'd love the use some kind of editor to work thru some concept geometries for the Borderlands: The Pinball Project; then output a drawing / DXF so I can do some minor editing to go to CNC.

Not sure how you project fits with those needs.

Same here. Any further updates on this project?

Man I'm excited for this project! Any sense for type type of specs for a computer? Especially for not full VR, but just playable?

I don't know of a universal term. Personally I like "structural" or something like that? Or just "playfield parts?" You might browse the websites of Marco Specialities, Pinball Life, and Bay Area Amusements to see the category names they use for things for some inspiration?

So I have question. You mention this:
" our API supports connectivity of virtual pinball to real world hardware or emulators"

Not sure what this implies. Are we talking about controlling solenoids and shaker motors to make virtual cabinets feel more real, or do you think this can be used similiar to PROC where I test my layout virtually (including building my code), then that same code can be used to run a real pinball game? Or both?

Also from the standpoint of just the simulator, how does it compare to future pinball and visual pinball (beyond the fact that you're creating in a true 3d envoirnment). Can I import new models as needed (for toys for instance, or maybe I want to model my ramps in a 3rd party program)? And if so, what format? (I'm assuming since this is based on the Unreal 4 engine, it needs to be .fbx)?

Cool stuff. Hope this gains some traction!

It should be very straightforward to wrap libpinproc with your API implementation, allowing you to configure and control a P-ROC (or P3-ROC) setup with very little work. No need to reimplement all of the low level communications to the hardware; that's already done by libpinproc.

- Gerry
http://www.multimorphic.com

This one will succeed. I think it's a really fair model, affordable to all, a potential life eating game\editor for $45 ain't bad.

A few weeks back I installed UE and played around. Camera movements & smoothness of the whole thing is great, it's going to be nice for pinball.

Good luck

I don't really like virtual pinball but I backed it. More options out there is probably a good thing.

Will this be released for anything other than Windows?

Im in on Wizard tier. Looks like you've almost hit 10%. Good luck!

Sorry, another question (and yes, I'm totally backing this). How will this work for distributing tables. Will it be a file like a map on unreal engine, or something specific you created? Will every user need to install the unreal engine? Is it possible to compile say an executable (like the retro arcade game room), or would that be too large?
http://www.digitalcybercherries.com

very excited to get an early beta when it's ready. I'd be curious, is there limitations on table size? What I'm getting at, could it be possible to create something wacky like the total recall side by side table? Because it's not possible in the current 2 emulators:
TR-pinball.jpg

I was so annoyed at the arbitrary width limit in Future Pinball

This looks outstanding! UE4 for pinball is an excellent idea. Here's hoping the UI is easy enough for the coding-challenged to create a virtual machine. Backed!!

Not a problem
t_recall_v1[1].jpg

Lots to read, but looks like you have some good positive support from people who are knee deep in simulation supporting this project. Big thing I saw was someone posted a video of converting a pirates of the carribean from future pinball to visual pinball X (because of the improved lighting and ball trails). To me, visual pinball still looks crappier to me (but FP hasn't been updated since it's release). My hope is people wait for this to take off, and convert every table to pinball labs.

More questions:
1. Since your beta simulator is showing a walkable room (as apposed to future pinball where you're either standing in front of the machine, or flying over it), Can I assume it might be possible (very much like retro arcade game room) that at some point I could "build an arcade" where I have a specific row of machines all in the same room, and I walk up to each one (rather than flipping through a menu). If so, how does that work. Will the program do a dumbed down attract mode of each machine until I step up to it (so as to not put the CPU at full load)?

2. Will the room always be generic, or is there a possibility for constructing a custom shaped gameroom, not unlike making unreal maps? And could those custom gamerooms be downloadable just like the games themselves?

bump
13% funded, let's get this thing off the ground!

I want to correct "some interest" to "MAJOR INTEREST" from the Mission Pinball guys!

The API @tmek has created for Pinball Labs via that lightweight binary protocol he's calling Pinball Event Protocol (PEP) is fantastic. It lets external software (Mission Pinball Framework, PyProcGame, Open Pinball Framework, etc.) talk to the Pinball Labs virtual pinball machine's drivers, switches, lights, and LEDs just like a P-ROC, FAST, Open Pinball Project, etc. hardware device. It's dirt-simple and much easier and to use and modern than the external APIs for Future Pinball, Visual Pinball, and/or Visual PinMAME, and I'm really excited about it!

If this program gets funded, virtual pinball will take a big step forward.

Thank you so much fore clearing this up (I think I saw you on the vpforum). Sounds like this is a killer program that if gets funded will be a HUGE jump in pinball emulation and the homebrew hobby. This software alone could be a huge boon for pushing the hardware side. Really hope this thread gains traction.

Tried the demo and it is very impressive. Backed!

Depending how contributions go maybe you can boost them by doing a mid-campaign demo with lighting controls and the completed table in the video. That is what most sims lack.

I can't wait to try the alpha this evening. My work computer is a mac so I gotta wait. I did go ahead and back the KickStarter. Come on people we need 338 more people to back with $45. Or less if you can give more!

I ran it on my current crappy dual core cpu with a geforce 8400, it's very slow (but so does everything in the U4 envoirnment, or the retro arcade demo, or any modern game released in the last 3 years). I run most tables on future pinball fine, but that just goes to show you how efficient (but cumbersome to program) future pinball.
I have a core i5 desktop 64-bit with 4gb ram and GT730 video card just waiting to get all my software transferred over, should run it fine. Just a heads up for those interested, computer has to be within this decade. For the record, the newer desktop is used, and cost less than $150.

@tmek are there plans to open up the format of that PEP system? Open standards for that stuff means anything the community makes can all talk to each other.

Pledged the max plus a little extra! I'm really hoping this project gets funded and finished so I can get back to making original pinball games. Future Pinball was great despite its shortcomings, but ever since being abandoned/limited to PC, I never felt the urge to start up any of my other ideas for games.

I would love the opportunity to recreate Junkyard Cats for the Unreal Engine, so I will be eagerly watching and supporting your progress!

-BB

Perhaps a later version of Hololens could integrate with Pinball Labs and you could play a holographic pin in any room of your house, or basically anywhere. Maybe it could tie into some sort of custom table that has flipper buttons and can be nudged etc., with the full 3d table laid out/looking just like the real thing. Just dreaming here... obviously.

Imagine using it to project extra info and effects on real machines