Hobbit looks extremely well polished, just wish the price down in australia was a bit more affordable. Well done JJP.

Mc cune , your maturity in your PM to me is astounding. Are you a grown man or a teenager. Seriously? If there is a reason for the constant bagging of JJP let it out, otherwise it comes off petty. One day if I come to the states or you down under I would like you to repeat your PM to my face.

Anyone with grade level comprehension would understand the hate you have for JJP.lm leaving it at that and have a nice day.

If you release a machine based on a 70 year old movie a little late it doesn't matter. Its a different story when its based on a new movie series that came, fizzled and basically disappeared.

I don't even mean this as a knock on JJP, I understand what a humongous undertaking this is. They really should avoid time sensitive themes until they can crank games out fast.

Thankfully The Hobbit is a timeless theme. Tolkiens The Hobbit and is three Lord of the Rings books are very popular and as spin off to something Bilbo says in The Fellowship of the Ring "and they always will be".

Are The Hobbit films as good as the Lord of the Rings films? No, those are masterpieces in my opinion. However, I and many others find The Hobbit films to be very enjoyable. If you have only seen The Hobbit films in 3D or 3D HFR I would encourage you to rewatch them in standard 2D as the LOTR films are. Personally I find that The Hobbit films are more enjoyable in 2D then the annoying / distracting fast motion HFR 3D theatrical releases that I originally saw.

It's still a wasted opportunity for JJP to capture some sales from the hype of the movies.

I agree that it would still resonate with pure hobbit fans but this baby will sink or swim on the pinball community and its response to it... which from all appearances will be great if it ever ships.

that's a little premature to be boasting at this point. Lets see how well the parts are to come by 15 years after the fact. You have no idea where computers or motherboards are going to go. JJP's platform may get outdated as well. It's a little early to tell. They do have better chance of outliving, since they are not pigeon holed into one processor like the prism card did, but things could happen with no formats that could not have been predicted.

Seriously? I kinda doubt it but even so I'm sure one could be had from a recycler for cheap unlike prism cards.

and don't let the door hit you McCune

Hobbit trilogy grossed over 3 BILLION world wide. (not including licensing and merchandise) Cost was circa 760 million (source Forbes). Fizzled? I wish I could get that kind of fizzle ROI.

He doesn't get that no matter what the environment can be run native, virtualized, etc. Whatever. I guess we will see in 10 years.

finally video of the game play
there's 2 YouTube
the hobbit in crazy town
https://YouTube/8XHsOM0GRWk
https://YouTube/EHjGUl5mXXk

What did I miss? What happened to McCune?

your link didn't work for me. Fixed it:

Thank you

Hobbit sure is an attractive package of art and lights.

No problem! Is the second video gone? I couldn't fix the link up any way to make it work.

The game is a bit of hot mess at times, but Keith will tune that code in and the game will be even better. After a few code updates it will be sweet as honey!

Here is a link to the uploads for the channel so you can open the vid you want...

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClk_FLiDHE7TdyKo6pxuxzA

One thing I've noticed is that the ball down the inlane isn't smooth. KInd of slows down and rattles around little when going around the corner to the flippers?

He had to change his diaper. I'm sure he'll be back

If Mc cune is reading I would like to say I appreciate the last PM sent to me and would like to reply but cant as your account is deactivated.

They are cheaper in Australia than the USA

How much in oz?

I didn't mean to infer the movies didn't make money. That has no relevance to the pin at this point (I guess fizzled was a poor choice of words). What I meant was that it was a disappointment in the eyes Lord Of The Rings fans and that hurt its staying power as a theme.

Will it sell well to non pre-orders based on the theme and its quality as a game? I hope so, but wouldn't bet on it.

Its 12k AUD including GST
Which means 10.9 ex GST (ex Tax is how US supplier advertise their price anyway.

10.9k AUD = $7869 US Dollars
so over $600 lower than RRP

Pretty sure that will just be for the first batch as they where prepayed when the dollar was better and now it has crashed.

I will help you unload them when they come Wayne if I get the first one

When you put it that way it is technically cheaper in oz, but still 12k is a lot of cash. Scary to think new price once our new exchange rates are calculated!!!

The movies were a letdown. But they were full of good parts, it was just horribly bloated. It's not like the effects and acting sucked.

I imagine the pin won't have a 30 minute barrel fight scene.

If you suck at making it to the wizard mode, it could!

lol- spot on!

The more I think about it.... the LONGER the game takes to shows up - the more likely my memory will fade of Jackson's sell-out "trilogy" ... and the more i may want to the game....

Thanks for posting this. I was just in touch with Wayno and am probably going to pick one up from him (got my WOZ from him). Nice he paid for these a while ago so not as big as a currency hit this way. Seems like he is expecting them fairly soon too

Haha. Soon is relative

dammit, I need this now...Was on the fence about this or GoT, but after seeing the latest gameplay here, it's the clear winner.

I briefly considered getting a GOT, until I started watching hobbit pinball videos on youtube. There is no comparison. Hobbit is a masterpiece. I'm still on the fence though, the price might end up being to much for me.

Play both before you decide for sure! That's always the best advice when choosing a machine. Don't just watch videos...somebody else may be having way more fun on the machine than you will.

I'm sure both games are going to be fun but putting all features aside for both games TH will offer far more value due to the large amount of effort going into the games rules, audio and animations.

I don't have an easy option to try out all the new machines, youtube videos and research are the only way for me to know if I'll like a game. Hobbit looks amazing. Wish the price was about 1k less at least.

We purchased a Star Trek Pro a while back. We love the machine, I don't want to get rid of it. But I realized from growing up with a Paragon machine for 15 years as a kid that I love drop targets, and I love a wide open playfield. The Hobbit seems to have the best of everything I want, including 11 drop targets. I'm not a huge fan of upper playfields like WOZ, they are cool, but not a must have for me. GOT just doesn't do much for me, especially the Pro version, does the Pro version seem especially stripped down??? Or is it just me?

For those that preordered it was $1,000 less than the current LE and $1,500 less than the SE.

Riding the pre order train is not for everyone, glad I got on.

Pre-ordering would have been a 2 year wait though? I don't think I could have gone blindly into that, not knowing what the game would ultimately look like and play. It would have been nice to save 1k on the LE though. Maybe I'll cut out eating food in 2016 so I can get a Hobbit.

Especially since it can derail. I've been riding the TBL one, and like the Hobbit's, it has been a longer (and more anxiety filled) journey than originally marketed or expected. That said, I think that both of these games are going to be well worth the wait. And the lower buy-in price is a nice bonus too!

Also gotta say, that I agree with others in that although I've seen and played The Hobbit at past shows, I had been paying more serious attention to GoT. However, after viewing the recent videos of the sample game, my focus has been diverted to TH as it looks and sounds absolutely fantastic now! The price isn't cheap, but when I compare its many quality features with those offered on other current new games, it seems like a better deal to me.

Been a 3 year wait for me

Holy crap this thing looks amazing. Would get one in a heartbeat were it not for stupid money getting in the way!

Derailment is a serious issue to consider. I weighed the pros and cons with WOZECLE, since I had a relationship with Jack prior to JJP I felt it worth the risk and paid in full. I did the same for JPop and TBL, the games look fantastic but the risk/reward was to high for me so I passed.

Agree.

This tied for my #1 reason NEVER to pre-order (from Stern, JJP or ANY company).

It's a pinball machine, right? Meant to be played. How in the world can anyone make an intelligent decision on how a game will play YEARS before its manufactured. Unless some folks will buy blindly on theme alone.... then I guess pre-ordering MIGHT make sense.

Game looks amazing. I wish JJP would make a "pro" version for those of on a lower budget. Hope you all get your games soon and I hope to play one on location soon too.

Guilty as charged

Not really.

Really.

Pre-ordering is not fun.....
Was in on this one and got out last year. Used the money to buy a Walking Dead instead and don't regret the decision for one min. I've had 12 months of fun rather than 12 months of stressing about a machine that might or might not be made. (OK, maybe I've only really had 6 months of fun and 6 months of "why the fuck isn't the code better")

Hope people love their machines and fingers crossed they get them early in 2016 rather than production taking 12 months.

Doubt I'll ever pre-order again. The stress isn't worth the money saved for me. (Also pre-ordered MMr and still haven't quite got that one...)

Looking forward to playing the game but suspect there is very little chance I'll buy one new no matter how fantastic it is. Originally wanted it for my son who was excited about the first movie. I've not heard him mention the movies in the last 12 months, although he still talks about LOTR.

Whatever I think about the delays etc there is now one more game that exists and that's got to be a good thing for our hobby. Lets hope 2016 sees some other fantastic games coming out.

We give the "play before buy" advice every time. How many people "played" GOT LE before buying. Rob Zombie? Alien? Magic Girl? Predator? Raza? ARGUMENT!!!! You can't test drive Hellcat's people. It's only natural to rely on credible reviews from people who get to play these things at shows.

Hobbit has been a mixed bag of reviews. What I never get is this. Someone will say it's slow, someone else will say it's fast. A pin should have a setup that makes it play at the same speed, every time.

I still believe we buy these things on Theme / Art more than any other reason.

I avoided Hobbit because of the theme. 'Never been into the dragon, dwarf, Harry Potter, or anything like it. The pin even looked a bit lame at first. Later on JJP made some changes and things looked better, and better, and better. I finally preordered and read the book as well. I hope the pin is better than the book. I'm a sucker for pop up trolls, knock down targets, and a clean upper playfield.

Not into dragons dwarfs and Harry Potter? Blasphemy! Burn the witch!

You're right, of course. But at this point, with GOT released and Hobbit out soon, it's best to wait because you DO have the option to play before you buy. I preordered Hobbit, waited two years, played it four times, and hated the gameplay. I just do, even though I love the theme and JJP and I think it's the most beautiful game built. It bored the shit out of me. GOT is a dream theme for me, so I preordered, got it, and am loving it. I got lucky. If I had kept my Hobbit order, I wouldn't have been so lucky. But I do look forward to JJP's next game.

At this point, I'll never do a long term preorder again. Only on Sterns if I want an LE before they sell out, but that's it.