Grayling, MI
In your opinion, what is the most complicated toy or mechanical feature in a pinball game which contributes the smallest effect on the ball or overall game play?
I've got a few ideas. Interested to hear yours.
(Topic ID: 206963)
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Creature from the Black Lagoon
Bally, 1992
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Quoted from TheLaw:Twilight Zone 3rd Mag. Neat little trick but not worth all the shanans. Ha mines been turned off for years.
Agree there also. 3rd magnet is less bang for what its worth.
I'd also say the ship in POTC doesn't do much but is a pretty complicated mech.
Indiana Jones from Stern
The swordsman
Way to much crap to make him swing out
Could of just used a flipper assembly
Quoted from hAbO:I'd also say the ship in POTC doesn't do much but is a pretty complicated mech.
I dunno, its pretty important to fighting davey jones as it blocks the path and you have to time your short correctly
Quoted from Frax:The skull jaw mech in No Fear. It has literally ZERO gameplay interaction, it's only there for looks,
To be fair, it does tell you to play better.
Quoted from tamoore:Getaway supercharger. WTF does it do, really?
It fully interacts with the ball and is visually stunning. Not to mention the sound it makes. Much more interactive than the castle turrets on MM.
The ball lock mech on Jurassic Park actually works and looks kinda cool the very first time you see it work - and only the first time you see it work. Every time thereafter you're wondering when it will finish and let you finally get back to playing pinball.
Quoted from littlecammi:The ball lock mech on Jurassic Park actually works and looks kinda cool the very first time you see it work - and only the first time you see it work. Every time thereafter you're wondering when it will finish and let you finally get back to playing pinball.
13 year old me says BOO to that! That mech got me into pinball.
Here are two from Apollo 13:
The Rocket. Rotates a couple of degrees, then drops your ball into a subway.
The left orbit to the drop ramp. Only used in one mode, I think... and almost always the ball misses it because it retracts too soon.
Predictive reply from TheLaw: "Who cares. It's a SEGA. Nobody is going to play it anyway."
Quoted from jahbarron:ZR1 in Corvette is pretty over-engineered and stupid. Why not just a shaker motor and be done with it? There's also very little super solid repair info out there when you do have an issue.
This was on my list. 
Im going with the planet lock as it was intended on JD
HEAR ME OUT!
They designed and engineered all of that (deadworld mod)
just to take it out at a later date so technically IT DID NOTHING
Im so glad someone went thru the effort to recreate that entire fiasco as when working properly its pretty awesome
Quoted from Djshakes:Lots of switches and logic for the stupid phantom flip on MB.
It's fun to play with though! 
Quoted from hAbO:Agree there also. 3rd magnet is less bang for what its worth.
I'd also say the ship in POTC doesn't do much but is a pretty complicated mech.
It's also one of the coolest mechanical toys on a modern game. 
Quoted from supermatt:It's used to light the jackpot and super jackpot. It also scores points in the supercharger mode.
You interact with it? Or, do you just watch it shoot around there a few times, before you get your ball back?
Quoted from supermatt:It's used to light the jackpot and super jackpot. It also scores points in the supercharger mode.
A ramp that loops back around probably could have done the same thing. Maybe include a release gate of some sort if you want a timed release.
Bouncing topper on AFMR.
It has no effect on gameplay or the ball and must be complicated because in many cases it doesn't work at all.
Quoted from whthrs166:It's fun to play with though!
I got my machine two weeks ago, reset the data and still have yet to see the Phantom Flip inlane inserts light up. So mine doesn't even work.
Quoted from tamoore:You interact with it? Or, do you just watch it shoot around there a few times, before you get your ball back?
Quoted from ForceFlow:A ramp that loops back around probably could have done the same thing. Maybe include a release gate of some sort if you want a timed release.
What you say is true. I wasn't saying it was essential to the game, just saying what it did.
Quoted from tamoore:You interact with it? Or, do you just watch it shoot around there a few times, before you get your ball back?
Yeah, I take the glass off and stick my fingers in there and see how fast they get broken. I thought you originally said "ball interaction".
Quoted from o-din:Yeah, I take the glass off and stick my fingers in there and see how fast they get broken. I thought you originally said "ball interaction".
That is true. I guess I meant player interaction, but I didn't word it very eloquently at all.....
Haters gonna hate, but I just picked up my second Getaway after a three year absence and i'll take the supercharger over tie fighter on a spring or mouth opening groot anyday!
Quoted from o-din:Haters gonna hate,
F&*^ YOU
Quoted from o-din:i'll take the supercharger over tie fighter on a spring or mouth opening groot anyday!
Actually they are not equivalent. Would you take tyhe supercharger over the space supercharger is more accurate.
Quoted from TheLaw:Would you take tyhe supercharger over the space supercharger is more accurate.
At half the price and more fun, yes.
Quoted from westofrome:Popeye skill shot mech?
This!
I remember the first time I played this game, had the skill shot locked down on by ball 2, and by ball 3 I was like "is there any way to bypass this skill shot? For a 10 second wait, I don't even want these crap rewards."
I was going to nominate the Roulette wheel on HRC, but Popeye's skill shot mech. totally beats this.
Quoted from Djshakes:I got my machine two weeks ago, reset the data and still have yet to see the Phantom Flip inlane inserts light up. So mine doesn't even work.
Takes 10-20 games before it "learns" the Phantom Flip algorithm.
Quoted from Pin_-_K:Takes 10-20 games before it "learns" the Phantom Flip algorithm.
I've probably played 100 games. Nothing. It is a prototype machine so maybe it doesn't work. All switches work and phantom flip is enabled. Never get the phantom flip lights to light.
Quoted from Djshakes:I've probably played 100 games. Nothing. It is a prototype machine so maybe it doesn't work. All switches work and phantom flip is enabled. Never get the phantom flip lights to light.
What ROM version are you running?
Quoted from TheLaw:Half the price? You got ripped off.
OK a third the price. And I'm sticking to my original posts that it is still a more interactive feature than that stupid exploding castle.
Sydney
Quoted from per3per3:The entire upper playfield on Aerosmith Premium/LE
Don't agree - playfield multipliers have a pretty big effect on gameplay (which you can't get without the upper pf). And a Flipper and some targets are not overly complicated as far as mechs go.
I'm voting for the Star Wars hyperloop.
Quoted from chad:Hurricane Juggler lock. Shoots 270 degrees to lock ball.
This is a good one, yeah.
It shoots it so fast you can't actually see it transfer from one hand to the other. It also happens behind a painted plastic with a small-ish window, which is behind the very large Comet ramp.
Even worse is the ball sometimes bounces out of the one-way gate and has to sit while the machine does a ball search.
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