New Pinball Arcade from makers of Williams Collection

[+FujiSkunk]

I assume the repeated tables were built differently for the Stern collection. Farsight has mentioned before how they have to build emulators for all the electronic hardware inside modern tables, which takes away from resources that could be dedicated to things like more realistic physics and better lighting effects. For the Stern collection, Stern gave Farsight access to the source code that drives the electronics, allowing Farsight to recompile that code specifically for the platforms the virtual tables are running on. This eliminates the need for an emulation layer and frees up CPU time and other such resources for those other things.

[Austin]

That's different though. TPA didn't exist when the Gottlieb and Williams collections came out. The Game Cube collection was a fine piece except for a minor bug in the golf themed table where the ball could get permanently stuck forcing an exit and loss of score.

 

Name aside, TPA *was* the continuation of those compilations, ya doofus.

[Andromeda Stardust]

 

Name aside, TPA *was* the continuation of those compilations, ya doofus.

I'm aware of that. The Pinball Arcade also didn't exist in it's current form when those original compilations were released on PS2, Xbox, and GameCube. I fail to see how stating this fact makes me a "doofus."

[Austin]

I'm aware of that. The Pinball Arcade also didn't exist in it's current form when those original compilations were released on PS2, Xbox, and GameCube. I fail to see how stating this fact makes me a "doofus."

 

Right, you seem to be indicating TPA was special in some way, while simultaneously missing the point that a good majority of early TPA tables were taken from those earlier compilations.. which is exactly what they are doing with some tables for the Stern Pinball Arcade, they are taking existing tables from TPA. /facepalm

[HammR25]

Why the repeats from TPA, then?

 

I'm pretty sure it's been caused by the super moon. If you don't understand why Stern wants all of their tables in one app I can't help you.

[Asaki]

I would love some ACDC pinball but it's doubtful I ever get to play it since I have no plans on getting a PS4.

Stern Pinball is coming to more than just one platform, is it not? I assume PS4 is just the first to see release (for whatever reason).

 

The Game Cube collection was a fine piece...

Was it?

I tried the Gottlieb Collection for XBox, and it was...not very good. Humble beginnings, for sure.

 

For the Stern collection, Stern gave Farsight access to the source code that drives the electronics, allowing Farsight to recompile that code specifically for the platforms the virtual tables are running on.

Oh, I see. That's awesome =)

[Andromeda Stardust]

I heard the Stern app is not coming to Mobile or other platforms because it needs a beefy x86 CPU. I think currently it's just PS4/Steam but Xbone is a possibility???

 

I do not use Steam (not a fan of online-verification DRM) and I do not have plans to get a PS4, so I guess I'm up the creek...

 

I'm drolling over the ACDC table however. I wish I knew somewhere nearby that publicly had one available for play.

[negative1]

I heard the Stern app is not coming to Mobile or other platforms because it needs a beefy x86 CPU. I think currently it's just PS4/Steam but Xbone is a possibility???

 

I do not use Steam (not a fan of online-verification DRM) and I do not have plans to get a PS4, so I guess I'm up the creek...

 

I'm drolling over the ACDC table however. I wish I knew somewhere nearby that publicly had one available for play.

the xbox one has been confirmed on physical discs.

 

later

-1

[Asaki]

later

-1

Sometimes I feel as though I am being stalked...

[HammR25]

Stern Pinball Arcade came out in the last day or two on Steam. The game automatically ported my settings from the Pinball Arcade. I've got a 2560 x 1440 monitor and I run it in portrait mode for TPA. When I fired up SPA I just got this menu. The black side bars are because I recorded it with Shadow Play and then had to rotate it so it wouldn't be sideways on youtube.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rig15vD9lM

 

I tried playing the game in landscape mode and the menus are really clunky. Some options could be set using my 360 pad while others required using the mouse. For example I could change the table lighting with my 360 pad but the room light required me to use the mouse even though they're in the same menu.

 

This thing is a disaster in it's current state on Steam.

[Asaki]

Yeah, I'll probably download it just to have it ready, but the Steam reviews sound like it's not very playable yet.

 

I might cave in and buy TPA Season 1 soon. I was hoping it would drop to $10 for this sale, but I guess not.

 

I really like how the sale prices make it difficult -not- to get the Pro packs =)

[Andromeda Stardust]

Stern Pinball Arcade came out in the last day or two on Steam. The game automatically ported my settings from the Pinball Arcade. I've got a 2560 x 1440 monitor and I run it in portrait mode for TPA. When I fired up SPA I just got this menu. The black side bars are because I recorded it with Shadow Play and then had to rotate it so it wouldn't be sideways on youtube.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rig15vD9lM

 

I tried playing the game in landscape mode and the menus are really clunky. Some options could be set using my 360 pad while others required using the mouse. For example I could change the table lighting with my 360 pad but the room light required me to use the mouse even though they're in the same menu.

 

This thing is a disaster in it's current state on Steam.

Epic fail.

[Asaki]

I'm used to the menu being clunky, since TPA is like that too, but I can't get portrait mode to work at all yet. The menus are all squished together on the left side, and interestingly, there are some headers for Arabian Nights.

 

Landscape mode, I logged in and got one table for free (plus the two monthly freebies). Trials won't work, as reported, but the free games worked okay, even with my gamepad (Logitech in 360 mode).

 

I'm sure they'll get things a little more stable later. From what I've read, TPA didn't even have portrait mode for a long time.

[SoundGammon]

When are the new tables like EIGHT BALL DELUXE & DR. WHO coming to the XBOX 1?

 

I use to collect them on the PS3 but got ripped off by SONY when I got a new PS3 a couple years ago when my first one quit working.

 

They wanted me to "re-purchase" some tables I already bought!

 

No way I'm getting a PS4!

Edited December 29, 2016 by SoundGammon

[Andromeda Stardust]

If you're not on PC or mobile, updates are a crapshoot. I have com to learn this truth. No updates on Wii-U since I bought the first four seasons at launch. It's been like 9 months now (and still no release at all in Europe). Still waiting on the second half of season 5, and my Dr Who kickstarter table (survey: Wii-u)...

[boog]

More info about the Stern Pinball retail releases...

- the PS4 disc includes 10 tables, same as the two download packs, with Ghostbusters next month (?) as a free download for retail disc owners or for anyone who owns bundle # 2 digital. There are no LE versions of the new tables on the PS4 disc. The case artwork shown on websites was preliminary and the final PS4 case artwork advertises Ghostbusters in place of the LE 'exclusives'. The LEs don't exist on PS4.

- the xbone disc includes 13 tables. The 10 unique tables, two LE versions of AC/DC, and the LE version of Star Trek. The LE versions are also available as a separate $10 upgrade on xbone beyond the two $20 packs. The xbone will also get Ghostbusters as a free download for people who own the disc or bundle # 2. The xbone case artwork matches the original images advertising the 'exclusive' LEs. Apparently they're exclusive to xbone and not exclusive to the retail disc.

 

 

Hopefully the $10 LE upgrade will eventually be released for PS4 but Farsight hasn't given any info.

[boog]

Also, TPA Season 6 is almost over. Season six has had a lot of Gottlieb/Premiere tables because it took a while for Farsight to negotiate a new license with Williams/Bally. With Stern/Data East/Sega tables now in a separate game and no Williams/Bally contract, season six has been pretty disappointing. There's still one more table to be announced for season six and Farsight has confirmed that it will be a Williams/Bally table! TPA isn't dead yet...

 

No news on any TPA console releases though... consoles continue to fall further and further behind.

[Tanooki]

I wasn't aware they shoved the Sega and DE stuff under their new Stern package. I guess they had to cut the line somewhere as there aren't that many Stern tables if they wanted that bundling deal to last longer and have more tables to it. I quit buying season packs way back as it just added up to too much over multiple formats. I think I stopped at 1 or 2 depending on if it was PC, iOS or Android.

 

Is it too much for them to figure out how to get that Indiana Jones table (Williams) into their program? One of the best tables ever and nothing. You'd think with the Indy movie coming in a couple years and the last one not too far back it would be a priority.

[boog]

Data East sold their pinball division to Sega in the mid-90s. Then Sega sold the pinball division to Gary Stern in the late 90s and it evolved into Stern Pinball. So, past tables from all three companies now fall under the Stern umbrella.

 

I have TPA S1-S5 on PS3/Vita and will stick with that platform as long as they continue to support it. Season passes with cross-buy make it cheap enough that I can justify buying them all. Still can't bring myself to give them $40 for Stern Pinball PS4 though... even more so with the LEs being xbone exclusive. Farsight continues to find new ways to alienate customers.

Edited February 14, 2017 by boog

[Tanooki]

They really would be amazing if they'd make it an account based game and had the tables cross buy over all formats. I'd buy every single table they put out if they did that with both packages (TPA and Stern Pinball.)

 

I'm not up on the whole Stern company and their buy outs so I didn't know they held both of them so that does explain it. I wonder if they'd mirror existing tables in TPA to the Stern package as that would almost feel like the right thing to do keeping them all bundled.

[HammR25]

Is it too much for them to figure out how to get that Indiana Jones table (Williams) into their program? One of the best tables ever and nothing. You'd think with the Indy movie coming in a couple years and the last one not too far back it would be a priority.

 

Farsight would only do that table if they could get customers to crowdfund the licensing fees. However, according to Farsight, Disney won't even talk to them about licensing any of its properties so that's a moot point.

 

There are already, I think, 4 Stern tables from TPA in the Stern app. At least on Steam if you've already purchased those tables in TPA they're automatically available to play in the Stern app instead of them forcing you to rebuy them.

[boog]

The 'full' Stern Pinball selection includes 2 Data East, 3 Sega, and 2 older Stern tables that were all available in Pinball Arcade. Once Ghostbusters is released, there will be 4 newer Stern tables that are only available in Stern Pinball. I don't think the PA tables have been changed at all, so they're just mirrors of the Pinball Arcade versions. They even use the same leaderboards as PA.

[Tanooki]

Wow F Disney that's rotten. They won't even talk that's just selfish as like it would do them any harm other than to rake in some cash off a couple Indy and Star Wars related tables that would be huge with the fans.

 

If I could still figure out (I've tried, got fed up and quit) how like 10+ years ago I setup VPINMAME and some other side app I had that old Williams table on my computer back in the XP days. I played the hell out of it around when I could still locate it somewhere to play. Only time I see it anymore in person would be if I go to Disneyland as they still have that custom one just outside the ride.

[Andromeda Stardust]

 

Farsight would only do that table if they could get customers to crowdfund the licensing fees. However, according to Farsight, Disney won't even talk to them about licensing any of its properties so that's a moot point.

 

There are already, I think, 4 Stern tables from TPA in the Stern app. At least on Steam if you've already purchased those tables in TPA they're automatically available to play in the Stern app instead of them forcing you to rebuy them.

Indiana Jones was never a "Disney" flick as far as I'm concerned, they were never produced by Disney back in the day when they were created, however the recent acquisition of Lucasfilm by Disney changed a lot of stuff.

 

Oh, and a new Indiana Jones starring Ford coming in 2019. He was already getting pretty old in the Crystal Skull IMO, not sure how many more action movies his body can endure.

 

Also I think it's funny, with Disney acquiring Marvel comics, yet maintaining family friendly image. Deadpool was incredible but well deserving of the "R" rating. And a new flick coming up, Logan, also earned an "R" rating. So if Disney owns Marvel, who is producing these new "R" rated superhero movies? My Deadpool DVD doesn't mention "Disney" anywhere...

[boog]

The movie rights to Marvel characters are split between a few companies. Long-term contracts that were made with Marvel before the Disney takeover. Fox owns film rights to the X-men, Fantastic Four, and all related characters (like Deadpool). Sony owns the film rights to Spider-man but they worked out a crossover deal with Disney to put Spider-man in Civil War in exchange for having Iron Man in the next Spider-man movie. Fox hasn't been so cooperative and it's started a feud. Under Disney, Marvel has cancelled the Fantastic Four comic book (after 645 issues) and removed Fantastic Four/X-men characters from posters, t-shirts, and merchandise. They've even edited old comic book artwork for t-shirts to remove Fox licensed characters that were originally in the pictures.

 

 

As far as pinball, Disney has a contract with Zen Studios for the Marvel and Star Wars licenses. Maybe Zen has an exclusive for other Disney owned properties as well?