Bram Stoker's Dracula sucks

[JuniorJr]

Bram Stoker's Dracula has to be one of the worst tables I've ever played.

The playfield was absolutely weak, it was too spaced out and there weren't a lot of features or toys to play around with; the center drain was too wide and it's so easy to lose the ball, it's annoying, and there was only one ramp (personally I only really like tables with two ramps).

The multi-multiball feature was nice though, I wish more tables used that often.

 

[ZenTron]

Are you talking about the table in general or the table in pinball arcade?

 

[DA5ID]

This is your first post and this is how you want to introduce yourself to the members of this forum? ***** fest belongs over on FB. Dracula is an awesome table with lots of features and modes and the table being brutal is what most of us prefer. Welcome to the forum - please try to keep the criticism constructive.

 

[workshed]

Blasphemer! Seriously though, welcome to the forums. BSD can certainly be a punishing table, but it is one of my favorites, and many around here would agree. It has one of the few video modes I really enjoy, I love the way mist multiball is started, and stacking multiballs is oh so satisfying. There is certainly quite a bit of open space in the middle but that is part of the challenge of the table. With that gaping wide center gap it gives you a bit more time to nudge the ball onto a flipper. I think the release of BSD improved my nudging skills more than any other table on TPA. It forces you to learn those early and subtle nudging skills, big last minute slap saves often won't save you here. If you aren't enjoying it take some time off from it, there are plenty of other tables to play. I'd really recommend taking the effort to come to terms with BSD some day though. Once you have a few decent games it can become awfully addicting.

And again, welcome.

 

[pinballchris]

Blasphemer! Seriously though, welcome to the forums. BSD can certainly be a punishing table, but it is one of my favorites, and many around here would agree. It has one of the few video modes I really enjoy, I love the way mist multiball is started, and stacking multiballs is oh so satisfying. There is certainly quite a bit of open space in the middle but that is part of the challenge of the table. With that gaping wide center gap it gives you a bit more time to nudge the ball onto a flipper. I think the release of BSD improved my nudging skills more than any other table on TPA. It forces you to learn those early and subtle nudging skills, big last minute slap saves often won't save you here. If you aren't enjoying it take some time off from it, there are plenty of other tables to play. I'd really recommend taking the effort to come to terms with BSD some day though. Once you have a few decent games it can become awfully addicting.

And again, welcome.

I agree, much like Centaur, once you get flowing, which isn't often, it is addicting and high scoring.

 

[GibGirl]

I didn't appreciate it that much until I watched the PAPA Tutorial on the game by Bowen Kerns - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EuHQQqor3KI

It still can be frustrating, as it doesn't take much for the ball to go flying down the left outlane, but the reward for being able to get all of the mutliball modes running at once, and the satisfaction of having a great game, make it worth it to me. It's definitely one of the ones I tend to play more than average.

 

[Extork]

My favorite table! but I'm not gonna try to stick up for it because everyone has different taste. Same with tastebuds

 

[The Digital Man]

BSD Is one of my top 5 favorite tables, IRL and TPA.

I'm genuinely sorry that you don't appreciate it more.

 

[kinggo]

BSD isn't in my top 5, maybe not even in top 20. But that really doesn't matter. Sure BSD looks a bit "open, empty" and layout actually is quite simple but it is amazing how many "to do" things they managed to put inside such a relatively simple layout. It is brutal, esepecially IRL, but it is also very fun to play.

 

[Zaphod77]

This game is very punishing. but that's part of what makes it a very good home table. on location this thing will eat your quarters for breakfast.

You play this table for the experience of getting that big multi billion point game where everything goes right.

 

[Squid]

Well, of course Dracula sucks. He's a vampire.

(I couldn't resist. Sorry.)

 

[JuniorJr]

Every time you try to make a ramp shot or coffin or scoop shot, if you miss, it always falls down the outlanes, it pisses me off and I want to punch this game.

 

[pm1109]

Love BSD.One of the best tables in TPA
But definately difficult to play especially in the beginning

 

[EldarOfSuburbia]

Every time you try to make a ramp shot or coffin or scoop shot, if you miss, it always falls down the outlanes, it pisses me off and I want to punch this game.

I've been there - in real life. And I probably did punch it once or twice.

At least in TPA it's not constantly eating my perfectly good beer money.

 

[mikehg]

Every time you try to make a ramp shot or coffin or scoop shot, if you miss, it always falls down the outlanes, it pisses me off and I want to punch this game.

But the other way of looking at it is those are the only three shots you need to get 1.5 billion points or something. Practise them, and learn the nudges you need to recover failed ones. It's an elegently simple table, and that's what makes it work.

 

[Kolchak357]

It's a very difficult and frustrating pin. It's the kind of quarter thief I usually avoided back in the arcade days. But here you can play it as much as you like. Good games are less common than on most pins. But that makes them even sweeter when you have everything clicking for you.
Give it some more time and see if it doesn't grow on you a bit.

 

[Sean DonCarlos]

Every time you try to make a ramp shot or coffin or scoop shot, if you miss, it always falls down the outlanes, it pisses me off and I want to punch this game.

Dracula isn't an intricate game in the sense that something like RBION with lots of things to do. Instead, its rules and objectives have been simplified and the machine instead focuses on how well the player can make tough shots under pressure and how well s/he recovers from errors. Hence you get this machine that looks like it should be easy as pie and instead is tough as nails.

You need to nudge whenever one of the shots you named rejects, and whenever the ball starts bouncing between the slingshots. Dracula's outlanes are voracious, and by the time the ball gets there it's too late to do anything about it, so you need to nudge to keep the ball from getting near those outlanes in the first place.

Bowen Kerins has an excellent tutorial video on the PAPA website. Somewhat less illustriously, if you listen to Blahcade Podcast #12 (see the Podcasts section of this forum for links, or search iTunes for it) you can hear me discuss Dracula from a somewhat more TPA-specific standpoint.

Other than that, it's just a lot of practice, and realizing that BSD is one of the tables where you're going to have 10+ crappy games for every good one. Once you've got that firmly in mind, you can accept the machine for what it is.

And that's how I learned to stop worrying and love the Drac.

 

[Rich Lehmann]

You must not be very good at it yet. It is one of the harder ones to figure out. Once you get BSD going, it is one of the most exciting tables.

 

[Rich Lehmann]

And BSD can't be the worst table. The things you don't like about it are 10 times worse in Phantom of the Opera.

 

[Reagan Dow]

And BSD can't be the worst table. The things you don't like about it are 10 times worse in Phantom of the Opera.

No doubt. Was wondering why no one had mentioned that one. By far the most frustrating table. Makes Dracula a walk in the park