Official Williams Volume 2 news

[Pinballfan69]

Man BR and AFM have been brutal for me today. Almost got to attack Mars but just shy. Really wanted that trophy. scored a sensible. 9,034b 7th on the leaderboard as of an hour or so ago. (Sgt_Tenor)

My strategy has been trying to open the UFO gates and then use Total annihilation or Missle multiball and perhaps Martian Multiball to shoot at the target so it doesn't drain STDM. It seems to work pretty well. Granted the Missle multiball lock lane has been tough to get. I've been backhanding it from the left flipper that seems to work ok but that's only when lock is lit. It's a harder shot from the right flipper. This table was fairly easy on TPA and this to me, is by far the best iteration of AFM.

 

[karussellbremser]

What, nobody comments about the ability to turn on and off 'family mode'?

For those wondering how to, just go into options, select the interface tab, scroll down. There you can also turn on and off the 'action cam', the match DMD screen, and more.

And for those wondering, yes Fish Tales is even fully restored.

I do I'm just going to buy both Williams packs!

 

[Silverball67]

This Option is missing on PS4

 

[infernogott]

I think the family mode option is only on Steam.

 

[warh0g]

I feel the mechanical noises are too loud on the new tables?

AFM - Bumpers, Slings, Saucer, Multiball "gate", Martians. They are substantially louder than other mechanical noises like the flippers and plunger.
Black Rose - Bumpers, some metallic collision noises and mechanics. They are substantially louder than other mechanical noises like the flippers and plunger and in this case including the slings. Plus, I think they are playing sounds from the "enhanced" mode in normal mode? A lot noises from the pirate woman, including what sounds lika a coin toss.

 

[ScotchYeti]

Talking about Black Rose, is it still impossible to escape from the shark in the video mode?

 

[jrolson]

Talking about Black Rose, is it still impossible to escape from the shark in the video mode?

I've only won once and my fingers were smashing the buttons as fast as they could... I don't even bother trying to out swim the shark anymore because it's so hard.

 

[shutyertrap]

Talking about Black Rose, is it still impossible to escape from the shark in the video mode?

I can't do it holding a controller normally. I have to wedge it in my lap hands free so that the buttons are facing up, and then mash like it's an arcade console. So no, not impossible, just awkward.

 

[Kaoru]

Okay, I have yet to see an actual AFM machine out there in the wild to see how it plays in real life. But 9 out of 10 center shots being assured STDM drains? Really? Really? I mean, it's not like the whole center section isn't the most essential target of the table or something. Okay, I suppose that's "brutal". But "fun"? In real life I would have stopped dropping coins into this one after a few tries or so and then moved on to something else, something that doesn't make me feel as if I'm being ripped off.

At least none of the other tables in this pack feel as downright broken as The Getaway did in the last one, but "Black Rose" comes close. There's just no real power behind the flippers, let alone behind the plunger. Every shot feels "flat" and "lifeless". It's almost as if you're playing a table that needs a little check and restoration.

But... you know... this is kinda a running theme for these Zen tables, the way I see it. The matchup mode this week showcases "Bob's Burgers" and "Rome", from one of the few packs I actually own, so naturally I looked into these a little bit more these past few days. And I have the same problem with them as I have with pretty much all of the other Zen tables. They play strangely limp. The flippers barely have any power, the ball physics are all over the shop and seem to randomly switch from "ping-pong" to "heavy metal" to "badminton" and God knows what else with every single shot. According to Steam I have sunk about 50+ hours into various incarnations of Zen pinball games, and still I find it impossible to wrap my mind around what the heck is going on with those ball physics, and I still find it seriously hard to pull off an aimed shot. The ball nearly always ends up somewhere else than I intended it to go to.

This will most likely be my last Zen pack purchase. It really has to end somewhere, so it just might as well be here.

 

[kimkom]

I feel the mechanical noises are too loud on the new tables?

AFM - Bumpers, Slings, Saucer, Multiball "gate", Martians. They are substantially louder than other mechanical noises like the flippers and plunger.
Black Rose - Bumpers, some metallic collision noises and mechanics. They are substantially louder than other mechanical noises like the flippers and plunger and in this case including the slings. Plus, I think they are playing sounds from the "enhanced" mode in normal mode? A lot noises from the pirate woman, including what sounds lika a coin toss.

It's not that the mech sounds are too loud, the problem is the table music is too low on every Williams table except PZ.

Try playing AFM then going to an an original Zen table. Women of Power Champions is a good example of how much louder the other tables music is compared to the Williams tables.

Even the UI music is louder than the Williams tables music!

Zen, can you please fix this and make the Williams tables music volume more consistent with everything else.

 

[Jeff Strong]

Okay, I have yet to see an actual AFM machine out there in the wild to see how it plays in real life. But 9 out of 10 center shots being assured STDM drains? Really? Really? I mean, it's not like the whole center section isn't the most essential target of the table or something. Okay, I suppose that's "brutal". But "fun"? In real life I would have stopped dropping coins into this one after a few tries or so and then moved on to something else, something that doesn't make me feel as if I'm being ripped off.

At least none of the other tables in this pack feel as downright broken as The Getaway did in the last one, but "Black Rose" comes close. There's just no real power behind the flippers, let alone behind the plunger. Every shot feels "flat" and "lifeless". It's almost as if you're playing a table that needs a little check and restoration.

But... you know... this is kinda a running theme for these Zen tables, the way I see it. The matchup mode this week showcases "Bob's Burgers" and "Rome", from one of the few packs I actually own, so naturally I looked into these a little bit more these past few days. And I have the same problem with them as I have with pretty much all of the other Zen tables. They play strangely limp. The flippers barely have any power, the ball physics are all over the shop and seem to randomly switch from "ping-pong" to "heavy metal" to "badminton" and God knows what else with every single shot. According to Steam I have sunk about 50+ hours into various incarnations of Zen pinball games, and still I find it impossible to wrap my mind around what the heck is going on with those ball physics, and I still find it seriously hard to pull off an aimed shot. The ball nearly always ends up somewhere else than I intended it to go to.

This will most likely be my last Zen pack purchase. It really has to end somewhere, so it just might as well be here.

AFM is regarded as one of the best machines of all time, so they must’ve done something right with the design, but yes, the middle shots are notoriously dangerous. 9 out of 10 STDM is an exaggeration, but the laws of physics tell us that the ball is going to ricochet somewhere in that vicinity if you’re aiming directly up the middle at a flat target. If you’re just shooting the ball straight up all the time then you’re doing it wrong. The super skillshot and multiball are your friends. Use the ball saver to your advantage.

It sounds like maybe you just need to play more and learn the machine a little better before you give up (maybe you’re too accustomed to the TPA version, but FX3 is much closer to the real deal). Anyways, judging by the last paragraph, it sounds like you’ve already made up your mind, so this was probably a waste of time.

 

[warh0g]

It's not that the mech sounds are too loud, the problem is the table music is too low on every Williams table except PZ.

Try playing AFM then going to an an original Zen table. Women of Power Champions is a good example of how much louder the other tables music is compared to the Williams tables.

Even the UI music is louder than the Williams tables music!

Zen, can you please fix this and make the Williams tables music volume more consistent with everything else.

But the individual mechanical sounds on the same table also differ in intensity. I don't mind the loud mechanical noise as long as it is the same level for all mechanical noises, then it is easy to adjust the volume accordingly.
The flippers on AFM should be much louder compared to the volume level of the pop bumbers and slings for instance?

Either way, Zen needs to have a little look see I believe.

 

[Pinballfan69]

AFM is regarded as one of the best machines of all time, so they must’ve done something right with the design, but yes, the middle shots are notoriously dangerous. 9 out of 10 STDM is an exaggeration, but the laws of physics tell us that the ball is going to ricochet somewhere in that vicinity if you’re aiming directly up the middle at a flat target. If you’re just shooting the ball straight up all the time then you’re doing it wrong. The super skillshot and multiball are your friends. Use the ball saver to your advantage.

It sounds like maybe you just need to play more and learn the machine a little better before you give up (maybe you’re too accustomed to the TPA version, but FX3 is much closer to the real deal). Anyways, judging by the last paragraph, it sounds like you’ve already made up your mind, so this was probably a waste of time.

Well said. Even in MM, (who is designed by the same people I think), where you shoot at the gate when the drawbridge is down is dangerous to shoot at where it could go STDM.

 

[kimkom]

Either way, Zen needs to have a little look see I believe.

Agreed. Williams audio levels certainly need tweaking.

 

[MadScience2006]

Agreed. Williams audio levels certainly need tweaking.

Agreed here as well. I believe I'm a minority here since I'm playing on a MacBook Pro (13" Late 2011) and the only offering on the Mac side is Zen Pinball 2. Regardless, the audio levels are all over the place on Volume 2...Volume 1 is much better.

 

[switch3flip]

Lol why does every diagonal shot at the centre shield targets on AFM keep bouncing back to the flipper I shot from??

 

[kimkom]

Talking about Black Rose, is it still impossible to escape from the shark in the video mode?

You know, I got to the point last night where I decided it wasn't worth the effort (and the risk of busting my controller!)

I can't see me bothering with it in future, even on Level 1.

It's a very poor video mode, imo. Just give me the ball back!

 

[suffocater]

Of what level of walk the plank are you guys talking? First one seems easy to me. I got a big problem escaping the dog on JY.

 

[DA5ID]

You know, I got to the point last night where I decided it wasn't worth the effort (and the risk of busting my controller!)

I can't see me bothering with it in future, even on Level 1.

It's a very poor video mode, imo. Just give me the ball back!

in the tpa version i was able to escape the shark on mobile by tapping the screen with all 8 digits - haven't been able to do it once once using the ps4 controller on playstation pinball fx3

 

[ZREXMike2]

in the tpa version i was able to escape the shark on mobile by tapping the screen with all 8 digits - haven't been able to do it once once using the ps4 controller on playstation pinball fx3

Yep, just let it go by.