Feedback on new UI

[Shardz]

@Spork: Thanks for the report and the screens. I always play in portrait, but that pretty much sums up the depressing view of cluttered crap I'm seeing as well, minus the perspective issue. That is truly....decimated. And well worthy of closing the shop for the weekend while we think about the fate of our investment. Not a big fan anymore at this point cause I think this decision of theirs will take many months to fix. Absolutely ridiculous business sense...

 

[jaredmorgs]

FarSight needs to ask themselves: What will hurt business more? Shoving out an unfinished pile of junk or delaying the next table release by a week or two. Hint: One of this has a short term effect, the other will stick in people's heads for much longer, creates negative reviews and will make people switch to other products.

Well said.

 

[rehtroboi40]

FarSight needs to ask themselves: What will hurt business more? Shoving out an unfinished pile of junk or delaying the next table release by a week or two. Hint: One of this has a short term effect, the other will stick in people's heads for much longer, creates negative reviews and will make people switch to other products.

Especially now that Zaccaria Pinball is now available on three platforms. But they all seem to be top-quality versions. Zen Pinball (or Pinball FX2) was originally available on just the Xbox 360. Thankfully, pinball sims are easier to port from console to console than re-creations, and thus the quality stayed consistent in between ports to additional platforms.

FarSight went bold and promised to deliver to every console short of the TRS-80 computer. While TPA is now available for all promised platforms (only took 4 years) the quality from platform to platform often varies wildly. Bugs have piled up, and there have been numerous complaints about the three different UI's made for TPA. I would imagine how weary the people of FarSight must be just from trying to bring TPA out on a monthly basis, and dealing with console companies who have been less than accomidating with them, and now they're trying to do STPA, which, so far, is not looking good. (Have you seen Star Trek? Yuck!)

It seems as though FarSight has boxed themselves in. In my opionion, FarSight's new UI is just another something they'll have to fix, but won't.

 

[Baron Rubik]

I first learned TPA was coming about 4mnths before the Feb 2012 release. I had no experience of Farsight not being a console player and couldn't wait to see this grow. I thought this would revolutionise and create a legal, easy to use alternative to the underground VP scene and would grow as the technology and techniques developed.

6mnths in I was beginning to have my suspicions that Farsight weren't quite up to their promises. 1yr in I personally knew this was never going to be a quality product.

I'm sad that Farsight have done this now personally despite initial excitement. Due to licencing it means that these tables might never be legally done properly now. Imagine if Zen or the guys behind Zaccaria could have had the licences behind these tables to do them to their quality standards.

This update was a seriously stupid move to make, right before a new season launch. I'd imagine this will sway a lot of decisions on up front season purchase. It has mine.

 

[Xanija]

I have bought every Season Pass in advance since it was available on Steam. On Android as well with the exception of S5, because it costs (even if it is just a little) more than the Steam version now, which is totally unacceptable for me. It used to be cheaper on Android, now it's more expensive. Steam is my main platform anyway, but I would have bought the Android S5 pack eventually, maybe once it gets discounted or even at full price to support further development. At the moment I have no desire to do so. Absolutely none, zero, zilch.

Here's the issue: With every decision not to fix game breaking issues on older tables and shove out things like this UI I get reminded of how this company is working and I'm convinced this won't change any more. For now FarSight won't see any more money from me. Not for S5 on Android, not for S6 on Android, not for S6 on Steam, not for SPA on Android, not for SPA on Steam.

It's a difficult decision for me because I love Pinball and while Zen & Zaccaria are nice additions, in a long run nothing beats the recreations Bally, Williams, Sterns.

Fix this mess! We want to see a polished product and we want to see you having success.

 

[Gorgias32]

I can see potential in the new UI, buggy as it is. Things I like:

* I like being able to sort by ratings, it is easier to put current favorite tables on top (and push "Goin' Nuts" down to the bottom forever)
* I also kind of like the ability to change ball texture easily right before starting a game, I wouldn't have asked for this feature, but it has had me trying out different ball textures more than before, which is kind of cool
* Random table is a nice feature (although a few times it has pulled up a table that I don't own, which is not that great)
* Last Played is nice too, to have on the home screen

Bugs:
* The killer bug for me for day-to-day play is that on my device (Android phone) the "Table Setup" menu is completely broken - the arrow keys to choose number of players do not work, so you can't do anything but a 1 player game. Number of Balls selection (on Genie) has the number of balls selector off the side of the screen so you can't even see what is selected. I also have TPA on iOS, and this screen works fine there, so maybe it's a device issue
* Agree that the sorting needs work, we should be able to sort by table pack in reverse order, and completed goals should default to "owned tables with incomplete goals" at top, I would think

 

[jhs211]

Not very happy with the new interface. On my PC it's pretty low-rez looking and clunky. On my Nexus 7 and Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5 tablets, several tables that were part of table packs that I've purchased (and I've bought them all) are now showing as not purchased and there seems to be no way to correct this. They are: Bride of Pinbot, Gorgar, Big Shot, Flight 2000, and Goin' Nuts. While I really don't play most of them very often, I did pay for them and expect them to be available. I have received a reply for Farsight Support so hopefully this will be corrected.

 

[Xanija]

I got 5 high score achievements unlocked for S5 tables when installing the update to the new UI, but I don't own any of those tables on Android. I didn't even play them in demo mode. I think I received them when I used the "update all tables" function.

 

[Michael Taylor]

Like many others here, I think the new UI is a little clunky and I'm not sure if it's just my Phone or not, but the introductory text is popping out of the frame and it looks like a mess of text

 

[sedated]

It's awful. I think I'm done with TPA, this being the nail in the coffin. I just wish there was a way to downgrade and stick with the few tables I actually like.

 

[Spork98765]

The version that was updated on the 20th has some weird issues still.

If you hit the back key, and then re-access the app from your list of recent apps the UI will be slightly shifted the left and in behind the UI you can see the animated background of the old UI :/


The perspective issue that caused squashed buttons in landscape is still present on the game start screen, but it is reversed on the mid screen, between select and start, where the ratio is wrong is portrait.

In both portrait and landscape the HUD DMD is cut off by the UI overlay

Multiplayer selection arrows, while giving visual clues that they have been tapped, do not actually do anything. No multiplayer games are possible, still.

If you press both up and down on the multiplayer arrows then exiting out of the game setup menu, multiplayer, using the in menu back arrow not the android UI back arrow, will result in a resuming game countdown which then locks you out of the game options at the top of the screen gear. You have to exit the table go through the mid screen, and then you have access to the settings again. This will also lock perspective to whatever perspective you were viewing the menu at.

The touchzones for entering initials is ridiculously tight.

During instructions and IFPA tips the table name is still on the screen like on the start screen. It really cuts down on what can been seen. This is a bad choice.

Still cannot double tap the filter buttons for ascending/descending options, this is crucial, otherwise it's still just scrolling for the sake of scrolling. To go through the list I still have to scroll the height of my screen, in portrait, 10 times.

There is still no way to properly exit the app!!!!

 

[Xanija]

There is one way to properly exit the app: Tap on the Home button in the game (the house symbol in the middle) so that you arrive at the screen with recently played table, random table etc. From there tap the back button of your device and the game will actually exit. To me it's not understandable, why there is no real exit button as in the Steam version of the UI. But that's something which wasn't there in the old UI either, so maybe FS didn't want to confuse Android users too much by adding an exit button.

 

[Spork98765]

There is one way to properly exit the app: Tap on the Home button in the game (the house symbol in the middle) so that you arrive at the screen with recently played table, random table etc. From there tap the back button of your device and the game will actually exit. To me it's not understandable, why there is no real exit button as in the Steam version of the UI. But that's something which wasn't there in the old UI either, so maybe FS didn't want to confuse Android users too much by adding an exit button.

I did that and then checked the memory in Android and Pinball Arcade was still in the memory. It was only using ~24MB of RAM, compared to a maximum use of ~125MB, but still it wasn't closed.


If it were closed I likely wouldn't have been able to find that weird UI sliding bug I reported above. Previously when you hit the back buttomn and then called it from the list of recent apps TPA would have to actually restart, which tells me that it had probably closed prior to the UI change over.

 

[bigfatbass]

I enjoyed the app very much, and was very close to buying several individual favorite tables, but the "update" is a total deal breaker. Who OK'd this? This could be the single worst untested piece of crap I've ever loaded in my phone. Seriously. I can play one single game, and then it bombs the game engine clock and everything plays at hyperspeed. What a total waste of time/effort/money creating all those gorgeous tables and then completely screwing the pooch on the interface so badly that everyone is deleting your app. When I go to click "start" to launch a fresh game, it inserts an ad that opens in my browser automatically. When I go through the pain in the ass of closing it out to get back to pinball, the game engine clock is then completely jacked. The developers should be ashamed for releasing this. Really. From one of the fastest growing player communities in the googleplay store to one of the most deleted, overnight? What a colossal failure, on every level. Good luck getting your users back, lol.

 

[bigfatbass]

And just to be clear, I also have all the other issues/problems listed above, I just noticed that no one had mentioned the speeding up problems. Read this carefully FarSight: I was about to send you money, and more than likely to send you even more in the very near future. I was loving being able to play "Diner" last month, one of my top 5 fave tables of all time! Roadshow also a long time favorite board. I will now send you nothing, and will probably delete your now-worthless app if these issues are not addressed pronto. Nice job!

 

[jaredmorgs]

When I go to click "start" to launch a fresh game, it inserts an ad that opens in my browser automatically. When I go through the pain in the ass of closing it out to get back to pinball, the game engine clock is then completely jacked.

Is that on the free table of the month?

 

[jaredmorgs]

And just to be clear, I also have all the other issues/problems listed above, I just noticed that no one had mentioned the speeding up problems. Read this carefully FarSight: I was about to send you money, and more than likely to send you even more in the very near future. I was loving being able to play "Diner" last month, one of my top 5 fave tables of all time! Roadshow also a long time favorite board. I will now send you nothing, and will probably delete your now-worthless app if these issues are not addressed pronto. Nice job!

You're only playing the free tables each month, right?

How did the app work before regarding the free table ad injection?

And, if you were developing it, how would the ad injection work? Top banner ad present all the time? Ad takeover in app? Video ad?

We don't often hear too much about the free table functionality because the testers mostly purchase everything so we get full functionality.

 

[bigfatbass]

My issue is not with ads per se, I know I am not in a position to complain there. The problem is that the ad is not on the screen, then when you try to click "start" it's like they insert the ad under your finger right before you touch the screen, so the banner then opens to a full web page, taking you out of PA. The previous UI version showed the ads full screen before and after every game, but you had to directly click on the banner it to activate it. The current incarnation forces you to a web page, and then when you return to the game it is unplayable. This is not just for the table of the month, but for Arabian Nights, too. I have no problem with the ads, they just have to fix the way they "trick" you into clicking the banners, and the fact that it crashes the game. I am new to pinball arcade, barely a month messing with it, and I was ready to reach for my wallet to buy a couple tables I liked. Then they force this "update" on us, and I have to say my wallet has gone back in my pocket and will stay there until they fix it.

 

[jaredmorgs]

My issue is not with ads per se, I know I am not in a position to complain there. The problem is that the ad is not on the screen, then when you try to click "start" it's like they insert the ad under your finger right before you touch the screen, so the banner then opens to a full web page, taking you out of PA. The previous UI version showed the ads full screen before and after every game, but you had to directly click on the banner it to activate it. The current incarnation forces you to a web page, and then when you return to the game it is unplayable. This is not just for the table of the month, but for Arabian Nights, too. I have no problem with the ads, they just have to fix the way they "trick" you into clicking the banners, and the fact that it crashes the game. I am new to pinball arcade, barely a month messing with it, and I was ready to reach for my wallet to buy a couple tables I liked. Then they force this "update" on us, and I have to say my wallet has gone back in my pocket and will stay there until they fix it.

I agree. Predatory ad click behavior is pretty bad.

I've seen the latest beta patch. Things are definitely getting better with the updated UI.

If you do have a decent PC, there are some deep discounts available for season one to four on Steam right now.

Could save you some cash getting up to date if you want to switch platforms.

 

[kinggo]

And just to be clear, I also have all the other issues/problems listed above, I just noticed that no one had mentioned the speeding up problems. Read this carefully FarSight: I was about to send you money, and more than likely to send you even more in the very near future. I was loving being able to play "Diner" last month, one of my top 5 fave tables of all time! Roadshow also a long time favorite board. I will now send you nothing, and will probably delete your now-worthless app if these issues are not addressed pronto. Nice job!

to me this happens only if I turn off screen while the game is running. Game does enter in pause mode automatically but after resuming it is crazy fast and the only way back is to quit and restart. Pausing the game prior to turning of the screen solves that. But it is still annoying as hell.