Pinball Arcade: "This Clock Is Worth Millions!" Tournament Talkback

[netizen]

How about "push your luck"? Play as much as you want, but only the latest score is counted.

This is actually the idea for tournaments i am most in support of.
Go ahead play all you want but the latest entry is the one you are stuck with. As it is, afaik, your score is only updated if you get a higher one.
The next step might be to implement PAPA style scoring where you have to finish a whole round of all the tables in the tournament before your score is submitted. You'd have to play one game on each table before you get a score, and if you want to restart a game then you have to re-play all of them. This may cut down on the grinding a bit, but at the same time it would likely be the least appreciated format with having 8 tables in a tournament; even with 20 minute maximums.

 

[jbejarano]

So, if a cat jumps in my lap while playing or I have any other distractions whatsoever, I'm automatically out of the tournament?

Ugh.

-1

Uh... no. You'd have only one of the three strikes. Plus, you have a pause button if the cat jumps in your lap so that presumably your whole game wouldn't be screwed up. If you play one lousy game, and the cat jumps in your lap three more times on three different games and you can't use the pause button each time, and you whiff beating that original lousy score all three times, then... geez, find another place to play pinball already.

 

[jbejarano]

How about "push your luck"? Play as much as you want, but only the latest score is counted.

I like this idea a lot. However, your latest game's score should be submitted whether you finish the game or not. If you have a crappy first ball and rage-quit that game to start another, you should be penalized by having whatever score you accumulated on that aborted game count as your score in the tournament.

 

[RetroDude]

Uh... no. You'd have only one of the three strikes. Plus, you have a pause button if the cat jumps in your lap so that presumably your whole game wouldn't be screwed up. If you play one lousy game, and the cat jumps in your lap three more times on three different games and you can't use the pause button each time, and you whiff beating that original lousy score all three times, then... geez, find another place to play pinball already.

LOL... sorry. I misunderstood your scheme.

I was thinking that you could play up to three times, but only as long as you beat the previous score.

Playing at home on a PC, console or hand-held device is quite different than playing on a physical machine in a moderated tournament setting.
Real life tends to intrude at inopportune times occasionally when playing at home, be it cat, dog, child, SWAT Team at the front door, etc.
Just didn't want to see a tournament scheme that didn't allow for any potential disruptions to play at all.

 

[jbejarano]

LOL... sorry. I misunderstood your scheme.

I was thinking that you could play up to three times, but only as long as you beat the previous score.

Playing at home on a PC, console or hand-held device is quite different than playing on a physical machine in a moderated tournament setting.
Real life tends to intrude at inopportune times occasionally when playing at home, be it cat, dog, child, SWAT Team at the front door, etc.
Just didn't want to see a tournament scheme that didn't allow for any potential disruptions to play at all.

I figured as much. Sorry, I didn't write that as clearly as I could have. I can relate about cats interfering with playing The Pinball Arcade. One of my cats loves to walk right between me and my iPad propped up on a box while I'm playing. I've had to get fairly handy with that pause button as a result.

 

[Eegah]

How about "push your luck"? Play as much as you want, but only the latest score is counted.

To be followed by "Press Your Luck."

Big points, big points, no whammies STOP

 

[Dumpstar]

I think a simple two chance to upload scores for tournaments would be good. You would have to determine if you think the score is good enough to upload. You get a second go at all tables so you can come back in the tournament if the first score wasn't the big score you thought it would be. After that you can't upload any further scores. It would mean that those leaderboards would get a hammering in the last few days of a tournament after people upload one score, and then wait a while until they have a second score which they believe may put them in the medals.

 

[SydyneBall]

Another tournament format idea:

When you join the tournament, you start with X amount of tokens. Each token is one game play.
Each day, you receive Y tokens for that day. Tokens do not expire until the end of the tournament.

For example: Receive 32 tokens for joining the current tournament. This gives at least 4 plays per table in the current 8 table format or up to 32 plays on one table.
Each day, you receive 16 more tokens (2 more attempts on each table or 16 more attempts at that tough table. + the tokens you have left)

Rage quiting would still use the token, so would cats, SWAT, low battery, etc...
Specials and free games would work as is today.

This would limit the grinding and create some leveling for games played.

 

[Dylan_h]

Nice to see Crusty is playing now and has jumped up to 2nd!

 

[Granny]

"Oh man, I'm ahead of JJ on three tables now, 8th overall," I say to my wife last week. "That's nice sweetie," she replies. Tonight she asks, "Hey, how are you doing in that tournament? Is that butthead Sum Ting Wong still winning?" I really need to put the ipad down and take her out, I think...

 

[Pod]

Back on topic,

I've rushed through two litz but only managed 1.6b. My best so far is 1.8 which only contained 1 litz but did double a 250m bonus via the camera.

I suspect the top scores have just managed to double bigger bonuses (I had a 600m one once which would mean I'd have scored over 2b

Pod

 

[Crusty Booger]

Nice to see Crusty is playing now and has jumped up to 2nd!

Thanks Dylan, I didn't realize it was going on until a few days in. Imagine how discouraging it was to see the scores you had already posted! I can see a couple of potential paths, but it's gonna be tough...

 

[Dylan_h]

Thanks Dylan, I didn't realize it was going on until a few days in. Imagine how discouraging it was to see the scores you had already posted! I can see a couple of potential paths, but it's gonna be tough...

Well you put up some great scores for the limited time you had. Always fun
Congrats to the other top guys in gold as well!

 

[Korven]

Surprised I didn't drop more in rank since I only played the first 2 or 3 days. Bummer the individual tables scores can't be seen afterwards. Did anyone top that 115M on Ripley's for example?

 

[Crusty Booger]

Well you put up some great scores for the limited time you had. Always fun
Congrats to the other top guys in gold as well!

Well done again Dylan...And congrats to all as well!

 

[Crusty Booger]

Surprised I didn't drop more in rank since I only played the first 2 or 3 days. Bummer the individual tables scores can't be seen afterwards. Did anyone top that 115M on Ripley's for example?

Totally agree - would love to see where the individual table scores netted out. I have no idea how MOO came back on the last day and took over second place.

 

[Korven]

Totally agree - would love to see where the individual table scores netted out. I have no idea how MOO came back on the last day and took over second place.

OT: I don't really trust MOO, keep in mind he started out under the nickname "database_error"

 

[Dylan_h]

Totally agree - would love to see where the individual table scores netted out. I have no idea how MOO came back on the last day and took over second place.

I'm also kind of curious how MOO came back. I think he must've taken one more table back from me in the last hours of the tourney. Tough to know now without the table standings.

 

[Crusty Booger]

OT: I don't really trust MOO, keep in mind he started out under the nickname "database_error"

Interesting...I was kind of wondering about him. His HoF points are off the charts and came out of nowhere. One day not there, the next day on top of the charts.

 

[lazmama]

Yeah, MOO did seem to shoot up to the top fast - overnight fast. I like to give people the benefit of the doubt - but his last minute high score of 44 mil on Haunted House gives me pause. Is that even possible in 20 minutes?

Also, I managed to get 123 mil on Ripley's - MOO bettered that with 130 mil. Those are the only two games that I happened to know MOO's scores on, because they were my best tables. I also seem to remember that MOO had a 3 bil+ TZ score?

Truly impressed with Dylan and Crusty -> you guys have some amazing flipper skills. It's an honor to play in the same bracket with you.

Crusty - you and I were tied at 2nd for a few hours on Sunday. Well done with that Space Shuttle game! I think you legitimately earned 2nd place.

I wish I could trust MOO's place on the leaderboard....