[Minsc]

FarSight's response to a question about the PC release Things are looking good for the PC version! We hope to make an announcement about this soon.

They actually posted that like 2-3 weeks ago I think (something to that manner anyway, re: PC announcement), we never got the update :(

[Cardigan]

With a PC announcement, I have to keep my expectations in check and realize that the initial PC release will probably have a horrible UI, sub-par graphics and non-customizable controls (if the Mac version is any indication).

[Minsc]

With a PC announcement, I have to keep my expectations in check and realize that the initial PC release will probably have a horrible UI, sub-par graphics and non-customizable controls (if the Mac version is any indication).

Well, they did say a while ago that the PC version would be at least on par with the PS3 in terms of lighting etc... and you'll be able to force AA on the PC and AF, and I believe they patched in control mapping support for the mac, so hopefully your preparations oft the worst are not met. Although, it'd be common sense to support both kb+m and gamepads on the PC, I wouldn't be surprised if they don't do gamepads at first.

[jvm]

Just checked the Amazon App Store and Pinball Arcade from Farsight is up there for 99¢. Downloading now. Has 5 reviews at the moment, haven't read them yet.

Edit: Played a couple of games of TotAN and it was a bit jerky. I'm clearly spoilt by the PS3 version. There have been several times in the games I've played on the Kindle Fire where I activated the flipper, the image on the screen seemed not to react, I saw the ball going down the drain, but then it teleported up as if I had actually hit it. It's like the simulation underneath the game is somehow slightly out of synchronization with the graphics.

Still, happy to have SOMETHING on the Kindle Fire. :P

[Triz]

Just checked the Amazon App Store and Pinball Arcade from Farsight is up there for 99¢. Downloading now. Has 5 reviews at the moment, haven't read them yet. Edit: Played a couple of games of TotAN and it was a bit jerky. I'm clearly spoilt by the PS3 version. There have been several times in the games I've played on the Kindle Fire where I activated the flipper, the image on the screen seemed not to react, I saw the ball going down the drain, but then it teleported up as if I had actually hit it. It's like the simulation underneath the game is somehow slightly out of synchronization with the graphics. Still, happy to have SOMETHING on the Kindle Fire. :P

Yeah I downloaded it yesterday and the game is very laggy on the kindle. I dot use it much as it is technically my wife's. But will having open books in the background mess with the ram on the device? Never thought I would be playing games on the thing lol.

[Shaneus]

Any idea if it's compatible (yet) for x86 Androids? I want to play it on my MSI tablet :(

[Minsc]

Seems it was just announced online multiplayer will be making its way in to the game via an upcoming update. Wonder if it'll be both real-time and asynchronous, so if you want you can jump in and out and see how the other person is playing, obviously the asynchronous matter would be less exciting, but it would be a little fun going against each other's score ball by ball. Perhaps the tournaments will use some form of this to ensure there's no cheating?

[StrikerObi]

Glad to see the Twilight Zone kickstarter doing so well. I was in for $10, but upped my pledge to $25 when they added the special pinball to use on other tables. That's pretty cool. My guess is it will just the the speed ball from the TWZ table that is super light (and therefore fast) and also non-magnetic.

[FyreWulff]

Seems it was just announced online multiplayer will be making its way in to the game via an upcoming update. Wonder if it'll be both real-time and asynchronous, so if you want you can jump in and out and see how the other person is playing, obviously the asynchronous matter would be less exciting, but it would be a little fun going against each other's score ball by ball. Perhaps the tournaments will use some form of this to ensure there's no cheating?

Would people be able to tolerate input lag from synchronous in pinball?

[added_time]

Seems it was just announced online multiplayer will be making its way in to the game via an upcoming update.

Awesome news! Where did they announce it though? I didn't hear anything about it!

[Minsc]

Would people be able to tolerate input lag from synchronous in pinball?

I guess it depends how they handle it. I'm not familiar with how Zen works online (if it even does), but on their Twilight Zone kickstarter faq, they say "We are adding support for online pinball tournaments to the Pinball Arcade," so whatever they're doing it must work well enough for tournament use.

Awesome news! Where did they announce it though? I didn't hear anything about it!

Where they announce most of their information, through random posts on facebook :(

[added_time]

Where they announce most of their information, through random posts on facebook :(

haha not even their own post! It's a response to a random guy's post!
They are truly the masters of marketing!

[lobdale]

Another weekly PSN update, another week of nothing new for Pinball Arcade. So much for that mid-May update eh guys? Pretty great that iPod/Android users have four new tables to use on the shit handheld versions while console gamers have yet to receive any DLC or updates whatsoever. COME ON GUYS

[Minsc]

Another weekly PSN update, another week of nothing new for Pinball Arcade. So much for that mid-May update eh guys? Pretty great that iPod/Android users have four new tables to use on the shit handheld versions while console gamers have yet to receive any DLC or updates whatsoever. COME ON GUYS

Handheld versions are pretty good, bugs and issues related to weaker hardware models aside, lots of people enjoying it on iPad/stronger devices. :) Remember, focus your anger at Sony for the wait, not FarSight:

PS3/Vita - An update that includes DLC Pack #1 is currently at Sony North America for approval

[Triz]

Cracked 4 billion on Theatre of Magic last night. Finally beat teh wizard mode for the first time. This thing really runs best on the vita IMO.

[jvm]

Cracked 4 billion on Theatre of Magic last night. Finally beat teh wizard mode for the first time. This thing really runs best on the vita IMO.

Nice score. I'm personally up to something like 2.7-2.8 billion. Sent a note to the PSN guy on my friends list whose score I was trying to beat. ;)

[Baron]

And another week passes with Sony sitting on the new table DLC. Does it really take more than 3 weeks for Sony to "approve" the release of submitted DLC? Surely something is up with it at this point. It must have been rejected or some such thing.

[Elvin Atombender]

And another week passes with Sony sitting on the new table DLC. Does it really take more than 3 weeks for Sony to "approve" the release of submitted DLC? Surely something is up with it at this point. It must have been rejected or some such thing.

And another week passes without this game being released on PSN in Europe.

[Triz]

They announced the next DLC today. Gorgar and MONSTER BASH! That makes my 3 favorite tables with the first three updates. I could not be happier.

[loborzelda]

Any word on when the Mac version is getting updated with DLC tables?

[jvm]

They announced the next DLC today. Gorgar and MONSTER BASH! That makes my 3 favorite tables with the first three updates. I could not be happier.

Gorgar is a really fun table. Can't wait.

[Baron]

Gorgar is a really fun table. Can't wait.

Yeah, Gorgar is one of my faves from the Williams Collection disc. Along with Firepower!

I love the backglass art in Gorgar. It just screams 70s fantasy cheese.

[Minsc]

Any word on when the Mac version is getting updated with DLC tables?

I believe the latest news was around another week for DLC packs 1 & 2 for Mac (give or take, depending on Apple's approval speed).

[Shaneus]

Yeah, Gorgar is one of my faves from the Williams Collection disc. Along with Firepower! I love the backglass art in Gorgar. It just screams 70s fantasy cheese.

Damnit, I want Firepower more than Gorgar :( But Monster Bash is a good release, too... not in either the Bally or Williams collections, either (I don't think).

So, Android release on X, iOS x+14 days, 360 X+?. Still gonna be difficult to curb my anticipation.

And PC release. Come on. At least some kind of announcement. Didn't they say they had some info about the PC release soon?

[Minsc]

Damnit, I want Firepower more than Gorgar :( But Monster Bash is a good release, too... not in either the Bally or Williams collections, either (I don't think). So, Android release on X, iOS x+14 days, 360 X+?. Still gonna be difficult to curb my anticipation. And PC release. Come on. At least some kind of announcement. Didn't they say they had some info about the PC release soon?

Yes, but they hinted at the PC announcement weeks ago too. At the latest they'll have to say something when it's time for Twilight Zone to release, probably sooner since they have to send out surveys asking what platform you want to redeem your code on if you backed the kickstarter.

Ultimately it will be :

Android/PC - same day (unless PC is GFWL i suppose, not sure how that'd work)
Mac/iOS - 1+ week
360/PS3/Vita - 4+ weeks

Of course a rejection on consoles can be a huge delay, since then you're looking at another 4 weeks past the initial 4 weeks, which is what has happened to the 360.

[Shaneus]

Yes, but they hinted at the PC announcement weeks ago too. At the latest they'll have to say something when it's time for Twilight Zone to release, probably sooner since they have to send out surveys asking what platform you want to redeem your code on if you backed the kickstarter.

Yeah, that hinting was what I was referring to... nothing's been said since. And you can bet that when it's announced, it'll be in the form of a reply to someone commenting on their FB. But you're right about the TZ thing. Hopefully that'll bring some more info out of the woodwork.

[dkeane]

Stretch goal for their kickstarter!
If they reach $110,000 they'll also make the Star Trek: The Next Generation.

[Shaneus]

Stuff that. Close off TZ so I can hurry up and contribute directly to TNG. I want Star Trek-related bonuses, not TZ ones.

[Minsc]

Stuff that. Close off TZ so I can hurry up and contribute directly to TNG. I want Star Trek-related bonuses, not TZ ones.

Just for posterity, as I mentioned in the other thread, the bonuses would be for both tables. So the same $10/25/50/100 pledge now gets you both TZ and TNG related bonuses, if it gets to $110K. If it doesn't just pull out your money at the last day, no harm done and costs you nothing. Better return this way (2 for 1), so why not help take a shot if you want it :)

[Mister Zimbu]

The other bit that hasn't been mentioned is that the 360 version is now included in the rewards.

[Remy]

They just passed 100% on the Kickstarter campaign. Huzzah!

[Shaneus]

Just for posterity, as I mentioned in the other thread, the bonuses would be for both tables. So the same $10/25/50/100 pledge now gets you both TZ and TNG related bonuses, if it gets to $110K. If it doesn't just pull out your money at the last day, no harm done and costs you nothing. Better return this way (2 for 1), so why not help take a shot if you want it :)

So every time a reward level mentions TZ, replace that with TZ and TNG? Wow. Good deal.

[jgkspsx]

I haven't been following this thread. TNG?

TNfuckingG??????

Shit. Maybe that $100 pledge IS the way to go.

[Benedict]

Still waiting for the EU PSN release.

I am starting to get a bad feeling that there are some license issues instead of the Sony approval that Farsight are claiming...

System 3 released the PS3 disc version of Pinball Hall of Fame: The Williams Collection in EU pretty late.

System 3 is also the company behind the Ferrari Challenge games that forced SEGA to withdraw Out Run from PSN because of the Ferrari license. .

[Shaneus]

The PAL version of Williams Collection came out on 360 woefully late as well. Last year, I think?

Pathetic effort. It's one of the main reasons (no shit) that I bought a PS3... so I could import Williams.

[jvm]

It's one of the main reasons (no shit) that I bought a PS3... so I could import Williams.

I ... but ... you know ... ah, screw it. You're harder-core than I ever will be.

[Benedict]

Response from my Facebook question to Farsight:

Q: Still waiting for the EU PSN release... : (
Is it still in approval or are there some licensing issues?

A: The Pinball Arcade: We're as frustrated as you are by the delays in getting the DLC out for console (maybe more so- these delays cost us money!) We know that what you really want is a date- but until Sony Computer Entertainment Europe tells us "OK, you can launch it!" we just don't know for sure. We don't want to guess because we think you'd find that even more frustrating. We hope to have something to announce very soon. Everyone here is working very hard on this- please be patient with us!

[Minsc]

Speaking of runarounds, their official answer for the PC release in the Q&A on TPA forums from the other day:

2.) Can you please give us an update on the PC version? Will the PC version support Cabinet view, multiple screens, and/or real DMDs right off the bat? Do you guys have a virtual pinball cabinet in your office yet? Our rendering tech for the PC version has been taking longer than we thought and we want to launch it with a solid plan and partner for distribution. On the PC, we’re not going to release the game until the lighting and effects look as good as they should. We are planning to fully support cabinets and multiple screens. The cabinet features are not in yet, so I can’t say for sure if we’ll ship with them at launch. We haven’t bought a cabinet yet, but we will be.

Sounds like we're back to square 1. But maybe they're just being overly cautious about committing to anything. You'd think the PC would be so overpowered that it could brute force through any rendering challenge (maybe they just want great results on low end hardware too I guess), hopefully their engine doesn't hold them up for too long, I want to play on PC w/ lighting effects by at least when Twilight Zone hits towards the end of the year!

[Shaneus]

I don't understand how it could be taking longer than they thought. Surely they're creating everything on PC first then porting or encoding or whatever to different platforms... I mean, the 360 is essentially a PC. Shouldn't be too hard to "port" that over to PC.

[Jo-El]

Valve is probably making them add Steamworks features, that's if they're going the Steam route. I hope that's the case at least. They mention a "partner for distribution".

[Minsc]

Valve is probably making them add Steamworks features, that's if they're going the Steam route. I hope that's the case at least. They mention a "partner for distribution".

They mentioned a while ago Valve turned them down (pinball games lol), so I'm not counting on it showing up on Steam, I just hope it's not Xbox Live for Windows 8 (like Zen Pinball), since that probably incurs fees for updates, and I'd rather them be able to patch/update on PC for free.

[Jo-El]

They mentioned a while ago Valve turned them down (pinball games lol), so I'm not counting on it showing up on Steam, I just hope it's not Xbox Live for Windows 8 (like Zen Pinball), since that probably incurs fees for updates, and I'd rather them be able to patch/update on PC for free.

I'm guessing they tried submitting it without any Steam features at all. Valve might give them a pass if the game supports proper Steam leaderboards and achievements. I honestly can't believe they would turn down the game purely because it's pinball.

[Minsc]

I'm guessing they tried submitting it without any Steam features at all. Valve might give them a pass if the game supports proper Steam leaderboards and achievements. I honestly can't believe they would turn down the game purely because it's pinball.

I doubt that, they're very big on leaderboards, though it's possible it was on their to-do list and not implemented. But either way, they specifically said Valve told them they were skeptical their audience would even want a pinball game (TPA, ~3rd reply). Which isn't surprising because the pinball games on Steam now all suck. Also, given that the engine still isn't even finished, maybe things will look better when that's in place.

[Shaneus]

My money's on GOG. Only place to be selling all (except for Timeshock, I think?) Pro Pinball games, as well as Dream Pinball 3D (lol) and the entire Dreams/Fantasies collection. Given their recent penchant for selling near-new, full-retail games (Witcher 2, Alan Wake/American Nightmare) and clear love for everything retro, I'd almost say it's a lock.

[krae_man]

There's a Demo of the game coming to PSN on Tuesday:

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2012/...-new-releases/

Does that mean we'll finally be getting the first DLC on Tuesday?

[jvm]

There's a Demo of the game coming to PSN on Tuesday: http://blog.us.playstation.com/2012/...-new-releases/ Does that mean we'll finally be getting the first DLC on Tuesday?

I hope so. I NEED Medieval Madness.

[FatBaby]

My money's on GOG. Only place to be selling all (except for Timeshock, I think?) Pro Pinball games, as well as Dream Pinball 3D (lol) and the entire Dreams/Fantasies collection. Given their recent penchant for selling near-new, full-retail games (Witcher 2, Alan Wake/American Nightmare) and clear love for everything retro, I'd almost say it's a lock.

How would they handle the DLC though?

[Shaneus]

How would they handle the DLC though?

Not my problem ;)

No idea, actually. Same way they handled patches for Witcher 2 that was sold through there?

[Shaneus]

New patch out, without DLC, to fix issues with Black Hole, Funhouse and Cirqus. Also adds special lighting (or something) for iPad 3.

Colour me surprised.

[Minsc]

New patch out, without DLC, to fix issues with Black Hole, Funhouse and Cirqus. Also adds special lighting (or something) for iPad 3. Colour me surprised.

Yeah, the new DLC table pack #3 was just announced last week, and at that point they had not even started work on it, so we knew it wouldn't hit any time soon, probably end of month. The iOS hot-fix was mainly pushed ahead because the Black Hole camera issue rendered the table unplayable, but I agree it is a nice surprise to see some form of improved lighting hit the iPad 3. I imagine as mobile/tablet platforms continue to advance the advanced lighting modes will become more widespread, hopefully the iPhone 5 / iPad 4 and beyond continue receiving special treatment with their improved hardware, along with the newer Android devices.