Pins and Needles, Los Angeles

[Sinistar]

Molly wanna get married? What? Some of you were thinking the same!


And come onnnn people surely these in and out burgers arent THAT good?

In N Out Burgers moved out here to Carson City 3 years ago and was the first one of the chain in Northern , Nevada . The Drive thru lines wrapped around the parking lot for 6 months straight , having lived in So. Cal I never realised how popular the chain was . all the ingredients are fresh , and the french fries are only good while they are hot from the fry vat . They are phenominal , but the quality comes at the expense of fast prepared food , and waiting for orders can be a ordeal.

 

[Matt McIrvin]

Hahaha, I'm a complete idiot. I don't know if I was just tired or what, but when I saw "pinball arcade fans" I...I don't know how, but I didn't mean you meant the straight video pinball stuff, TPA. Not my world. I thought this was a forum for fans of pinball arcades, so I was a little surprised at the tone of Post 1. Now it makes total sense. You guys enjoy your In-n-Out; I'll be over here feasting on this big pile of crow!

Many of us are fans of the real thing too! But some of us don't get the opportunity to play it much.

 

[Sinistar]

Hahaha, I'm a complete idiot. I don't know if I was just tired or what, but when I saw "pinball arcade fans" I...I don't know how, but I didn't mean you meant the straight video pinball stuff, TPA. Not my world. I thought this was a forum for fans of pinball arcades, so I was a little surprised at the tone of Post 1. Now it makes total sense. You guys enjoy your In-n-Out; I'll be over here feasting on this big pile of crow!

Anyway, shutyertrap, I thought your tune changed quite a bit from your first post to second, but now I see you were sorta bagging on pinball rather than MY pinball. Either way, no hard feelings at all. I actually had no idea that this core of individuals who play TPA almost exclusively even existed; I suppose I never gave it much thought. "RL" pinball seems to be fully marginalized here, I see after some poking around. Amazing! I bought TPA a few times now (3?) and it only ever gives me TOTAN (a least favorite of mine) which is so glitchy and weird that I find it unplayable. Like, you flip and the ball is somehow back in the plunge lane. Onscreen pinball is just NOT my thing, but if I'm on a plane I suppose I'll get into some Sorcerer's Lair rather than TPA.

Regardless, yes, I can read; suppose I should've tried it out before opening my mouth and "mama bearing". Very embarrassing that I go on a rant like that totally spacing the obvious facts. It's like rolling a keg into an AA meeting. Oops! Hopefully no one's mad, and you guys are free to slam my space-sucking overpriced maintenance-heavy imperfection-filled beast-boxes all you like! Or just come play them with me. Ah, no, I'm not marrying anyone, ever...that's a one way ticket to losing half your machines! Obviously you've never seen a photo of me, I'm monstrous. No marryin'.

The Pinball Arcade is by a group of developers right there in California (Big Bear Lake) , these hardcore pinball enthusiasts are trying to preserve the hobby by recreating them for people like me by recreating the machines like in your establishment , so that they are on every portable and home consoles . They do this in a painstaking process which is far from perfect ripping apart the actual tables they bought, and digitising the parts into 3-D models , and then using the actual ROms from the pins. These video tables have revived interest in Pinball Machines from just about everyone here. So it's to your benefit , as alot of guys like shutyertrap are going out their way seeking the "real tables"

 

[shutyertrap]

I think you sounded a bit more negative than was deserved, but hey, if that's what your impression of the place was, then you're entitled to your opinion.

I had my wife read what I wrote, cause I told her I ticked off the owner of the pinball place I'd just gone to ("oh no, what'd you write?" Yeah, she knows me well!). After reading it and the responses, she said, "they obviously don't know your writing style, cause if you wanted to write a negative piece, well you have a certain way with words that can utterly decimate when you want to. This just seemed like you describing playing real pinball and sucking at it!". And how.

I feel a bit like Ferris Bueller doing his best to soothe Cameron over a comment made about his car. The exact words aren't anywhere near appropriate, but the sentiment is...she has table, I don't, she wins.

I thought about checking out the Family Arcade, but seeing as how all the tables in my area are distributed by them, the Family Amusement Corporation, and seeing as how none of the pins in my area are worth wasting a quarter on in the state they're in, I wasn't going to bother. Maybe I'll give 'em a look though next time. If you had of said there was an AC/DC there, I'd be driving down today! God I wanna play that table.

 

[Heretic]

I had my wife read what I wrote, cause I told her I ticked off the owner of the pinball place I'd just gone to ("oh no, what'd you write?" Yeah, she knows me well!). After reading it and the responses, she said, "they obviously don't know your writing style, cause if you wanted to write a negative piece, well you have a certain way with words that can utterly decimate when you want to. This just seemed like you describing playing real pinball and sucking at it!". And how.

I feel a bit like Ferris Bueller doing his best to soothe Cameron over a comment made about his car. The exact words aren't anywhere near appropriate, but the sentiment is...she has table, I don't, she wins.

I thought about checking out the Family Arcade, but seeing as how all the tables in my area are distributed by them, the Family Amusement Corporation, and seeing as how none of the pins in my area are worth wasting a quarter on in the state they're in, I wasn't going to bother. Maybe I'll give 'em a look though next time. If you had of said there was an AC/DC there, I'd be driving down today! God I wanna play that table.

Its irc syndrome were all rude bastards!

 

[Heretic]

Ah, no, I'm not marrying anyone, ever...that's a one way ticket to losing half your machines! Obviously you've never seen a photo of me, I'm monstrous. No marryin'.

Pfftt your very purdy, tho i like that yer whacked enough not to know it, here i cnt get **** 3 tables in 250 miles all ****, its not the pinball i swear!

Anyway with yer ipad 3 on the road tpa rules...are youn saying you cant get iap?

Id love you to stick around for an arcade owners prespective on digital pinball...zens cool but your spoilt with real tables and apprently better burgers....****er

You can tell i fancy you

But yeh stick around...i like your postage...

Dont be wcared im drunk and ranting

 

[shutyertrap]

Id love you to stick around for an arcade owners prespective on digital pinball...zens cool but your spoilt with real tables and apprently better burgers....****er


Dont be wcared im drunk and ranting

I was gonna say that too. Stern says they're seeing increased interest in real tables this past year since TPA has been released, maybe the arcades have noticed it too?

And Heretic, I'd be scared if you WEREN'T drunk and ranting, cause then something would obviously be wrong!

 

[shutyertrap]

When I saw "pinball arcade fans" I...I don't know how, but I didn't mean you meant the straight video pinball stuff, TPA. Not my world. I thought this was a forum for fans of pinball arcades, so I was a little surprised at the tone of Post 1. Now it makes total sense.

See? It's all just one big Three's Company episode of misunderstanding! And here's what I love about the pinball community, we can all make nice really quickly. Grudge pinball just isn't that fun.

So next time I come in Molly, I'll extol the virtues of The Pinball Arcade and how it makes us all rabid slobbering dogs when we see an actual table, and you can give me a proper tour of your tables. Just good luck on getting me to like Genesis. I swear the image of that table is permanently scarred on my brain, and it keeps popping up at random moments to scare me!

 

[BonzoGonzo]

Is it **** in the hat?

wot?

sth = something

 

[BonzoGonzo]

Many of us are fans of the real thing too! But some of us don't get the opportunity to play it much.

i think all of us here are fans of the real thing

thats why we like tpa, coz its an affordable surrogate for the Real Thing... sadly one needs the moneyz and place to have a rl pinball machine... or luck to have one operating (properly, not broken) near your area of residence...

 

[ClaudeHenrySmoot]

..."RL" pinball seems to be fully marginalized here... Onscreen pinball is just NOT my thing...

Gotta agree with the TPA crowd - I think we ALL have a true love for REAL pinball. And I think FarSight would agree! Do you really think any of us would turn down a choice between playing a real AFM vs iOS/XBOX/PS3/Android AFM? I notice this sentiment in other pinball forums - Pinside, RGP... pinball owners seem mystified why anyone would want/choose to play a video simulation.

We love TPA because a solid majority of us don't have:

- Tables nearby
- Tables at home
- Money to buy tables
- Time to maintain tables
- Space to store tables
- Time to visit tables that are nearby

Shoot, I'd love to pick up a table for the basement. And I probably will some day. But taking this year's WallyWorld vacation fund and dumping it into a Monster Bash would probably leave me divorced/hated by my children. So I owe FS a huge thanks for allowing me to remain an active pinhead and enjoy a hobby that I'd otherwise have no access to.

Not trying to pick a fight here - just felt the need to clear up the fact that we're ALL pinheads. Sorry for ranting off-topic!

 

[shutyertrap]

Not trying to pick a fight here - just felt the need to clear up the fact that we're ALL pinheads. Sorry for ranting off-topic!

Yes please try to stay on topic. And that topic is the deliciousness of In-N-Out burgers.

The nerve of you. Some people, sheesh.

 

[Pinball Molly]

Woah, did it sound like I was putting you guys down? I wasn't; I was making fun of myself and my closed-off RL Pinball mindset because I didn't know you existed. I honestly didn't know about the new wave of folks "trying out" old-school pinball after trying out some video pin, and I'm in no way clumping all of you in that category. To reiterate, I was saying "geez I'm dumb", not "geez YOU'RE dumb".

If there's anyone who knows the suckitude of trying to find access to good working pin, it's me. I gave up my career and shifted more or less 100% into providing pinball for interested parties to play! As someone who works full time+ in the arcade industry, sales & tech, I know how UNpopular pinball is compared to video gaming. I'm not mad about it; I like how different people like different things! So I'm not coming from Camp Video Games Suck. Yes, I far prefer "the real deal", but I'm not disparaging anyone for their own interests, and I never said people who play TPA aren't real pinball fans.

****, if I had any brains, I'd be more into TPA!

I don't have the attention span to look at games on a screen; I'm just the type who loses interest in vids REAL quick. Got me a Ms. Pac Man and a Swimmer last month, though, so who knows?

Now if you'll excuse me it's In-n-Out day here at Vintage Arcade Superstore. M'burger is here!

 

[shutyertrap]

If there's anyone who knows the suckitude of trying to find access to good working pin, it's me. I gave up my career and shifted more or less 100% into providing pinball for interested parties to play! As someone who works full time+ in the arcade industry, sales & tech, I know how UNpopular pinball is compared to video gaming.

Actually we all like redemption machines here like at Chuck E. Cheese. Could you please find a way to have pinball tables spit out tickets instead of replays and extra balls?

Now if you'll excuse me it's In-n-Out day here at Vintage Arcade Superstore. M'burger is here!

See ClaudeHenrySmoot? THAT'S staying on topic!!

Hey Molly, how many tables do you actually have? Not on sight at any one time (cause that's what, 25?) but total?

 

[ClaudeHenrySmoot]

So now I've contributed to the misunderstanding in this thread? Crap! We should all sit down over a tasty meal at In and Out Burger and talk things out.

Seriously though - TPA is bringing a lot of us back to the game. I consumed a TON of pinball back in college. I haven't thought about pinball since maybe 1998. TPA changed all that. I have a college buddy - same story. Now he's out shopping for an IJ for his house. My 3 year old daughter walks by the TV when I'm playing TOTAN - "Daddy, did you rescue the princess from the bottle yet?" She also says "Youuuuu bigggggg sausage" from time to time. I love it! She plays TPA too! We're passing the torch to the next generation - thanks to TPA.

To top it off, I had no idea my wife of several years was a pinhead! It just never came up! Until TPA! I told my wife the other day, "We should try and go to this Pinball EXPO thing one year." I can assure you... I didn't know what Pinball EXPO was 12 months ago.

TPA should be embraced by all pinheads as a way to keep this passion going. Despite the recent surge, the future is still questionable. Hats off to Molly and people like her who are doing a huge service to this game!

 

[Jeff Strong]

Yes please try to stay on topic. And that topic is the deliciousness of In-N-Out burgers.

The nerve of you. Some people, sheesh.

 

[SKILL_SHOT]

Do you have the IN-N-OUT app? Seceret menue on the go! But all you need to memorize is 4x4 ANIMAL STYLE I dare you! It will make you sweat and shake from meat overdosing, the way a burger should.

 

[jaredmorgs]

Hi, I run Pins and Needles. Thank you for coming in, though I'm sorry you didn't like it. The best thing about your visit was the parking? Ouch.

<big snip>

Pinball pinball pinball! Play more pinball!

I wish there were people like you in Brisbane, Australia Molly.

Curators. Enthusiasts. Preservers of all things hallowed and electro-mechanical.

Apparently TNT Amusements have been restoring and shipping a few machines to Australia for a "museum". I subscribe to their youTube channel, where for each customer restoration they do, they make a "delivery inspection video" and make it public. Most videos have gameplay tips as well.

I have no idea where this hallowed museum is, but I want to find out. To the Google machine!

 

[Matt McIrvin]

My 3 year old daughter walks by the TV when I'm playing TOTAN - "Daddy, did you rescue the princess from the bottle yet?" She also says "Youuuuu bigggggg sausage" from time to time. I love it! She plays TPA too! We're passing the torch to the next generation - thanks to TPA.

For a while my daughter (now 6) just watched me play PHoF and TPA on the TV, but when we visited Funspot she was interested enough that I got her to play co-op with me, operating the plunger and the right flipper on Pinbot and Gorgar, which she recognized from the videogame. Then I pointed out that we could do something similar at home with the Wiimote and nunchuk on PHoF.

She had enough fun with that that she started trying to do the same thing in TPA on the XBox, which is more awkward because of the controller. But that motivated her to just play it on her own. She was initially hesitant, but the magic words were "it's OK if you mess up."

Now she wants to go to Pinball Wizard with me and try out the games there.

 

[shutyertrap]

Finally got back to Pins and Needles tonight after work. And yes, I approached Molly and introduced myself as the guy that started this thread and sorry for riling her up!

Anyways, place was hopping, there were different pins than the last time I was there, but most importantly...

I got to play Centaur!!

Was very stoked to see it sitting there. I've only ever played it in VP, so getting a shot at the real thing before TPA finally works their version up was exciting. I'll tell you what, the ball doesn't move incredibly fast, but it has some wicked drain mechanics. Cannot wait to play this without dropping quarters in, 'cause I fed that beast tonight! One thing I never got from VP was that when you get multiball the lights go out! They come back on and then turn off, and considering Molly doesn't have lights on, that table got dark! Pretty cool.

Also actually enjoyed an EM called Spanish Eyes from Williams. Strange placement of flippers, thought I was gonna hate the table. Turns out it loved being nudged and I was able to keep the ball in play a good long time. That was the surprise of the night for me.

Anyway, my whole point in writing this and bumping the thread is so that any of you in the SoCal area that wanna play Centaur for real, head over to Pins and Needles. 50 cents a play, but that table was well worth it.