On vacation, saved a few hours to play some pins on location. Some "me time" away from the family.
Now, to clarify why this topic matters. With all the high price machines coming out, many say "well, I won't be buying, but will play it on location"
So I played some pins I will never buy but figured I could get a piece of the magic for a buck a play. First was TS4. Immediately noticed the flippers were odd. Very odd, as they would flip and bounce a little at the end. And they were unusually "limp ". All of them. Made the experience frustrating. Didn't enjoy the pin. After $5 I was done.
Godzilla. So unlevel, I couldn't cradle the ball on the left flipper, it would roll to the right. Some really cool flow and shots, but I could not dial shots in with such a lean. Frustrating again.
Elvira and the house of horrors. Started out good, but after 3 games, it rebooted mid ball. Same thing happened with this machine almost a year ago when I was playing it, 3 times. For a buck a game... Wtf.
Circus Voltaire. First time playing this. Really cool shots, a real change of pace. Really cool toys. But it was sooooo unlevel I could barely shoot anything consistently. Also, there was such a bad glare from the windows I could barely see what was going on.
Conclusion, playing on location doesn't do pinball justice. Yes, some locations are very good with keeping their machines playable. But the ones I've been to are about 50% the fun they could be. Especially with the deep rules that need a dialed in machine to fully explore the pins potential.
I can't imagine playing my Halloween on location and enjoying it. Having no distractions, dialing in the machine, and focusing 100% on gameplay is so much better than what I've experienced on location.
Oh, and TAF was off, one of my favorites.
Maybe it's just me, but location pinball isn't even close to what it was when I feel in love with this hobby.