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Welcome Back to Digital Pinball Fans - please read this first
Stern Pinball Arcade first impressions
- Thread starter dtown8532
- Start date
KillRideMedley
Member
- Jun 29, 2013
- 76
- 0
Probably Coming to Xbox One Version in 2017/2018
I BOUGHT BUNDLE #1 ON PS4 - Full Impressions:
This bundle comes with Star Trek, AC/DC, Starship Troopers and Ripley's Believe It Or Not for $20.00
Let's get this out of the way first: THE OLD PINBALL ARCADE TABLES ARE EXACTLY THE SAME!
I have Season 1 of TPA on PS4 and was able to do a direct comparison with Ripley's. Everything is the same, EVEN THE PHYSICS, WHICH TPA PS4 HAS NOT UPDATED TO 3.0 FLIPPER PHYSICS. In fact, even the mobile version has updated some tables, like Monster Bash, to the new flipper physics. PS4 has not.
Starship Troopes on Stren Pinball Arcade also still has the old physics. Frankenstein does not because it was a post-Xenon table. For the record, PS4 TPA is still running the old UI. That's how out of date it is.
Want more proof that these are untouched from the TPA versions? The DMD display on the old tables still shows individual dots, the new Stern table DMDs do not.
Bottom line, don't buy the old tables if you already have them, they are unchanged in any way beyond the fake room environment. Here's a curious thing: The ball is gun-metal dark on every table I've tried except for SST. The ball looks proper shiny and really good on that table. It should also be known that the ball looks too dark in TPA for PS4 but not as bad as SPA.
Now, on to the new tables:
I'm 90% sure Star Trek's lighting is just straight-up busted. It is way too dark, as others have pointed out, but in the screenshots on PSN it looks fantastic. Something isn't working right. The multiball disco lights are definitely busted. Rather than red points of light it casts dark specks.
AC/DC looks pretty good by comparison and matches the screen shots.
In general, I'm really unimpressed with the lighting on Star Trek and AC/DC. It still looks really baked-in and the lighting doesn't seem to actually illuminate the surrounding objects, including the ball. There seems to be no interaction whatsoever.
Gameplay/physics-wise, things are feeling pretty good. That said, I'm really not noticing an improvement over TPA's.
Farsight has really over-sold this. In the case of what they implied regarding improvements to older tables they pretty much just lied.
I would recommend NOT buying these tables. Who knows when they will fix things? Who knows how often we will see updates and improvements to the PS4 version?
If you are still hard-set on the tables, I suggest buying the three new tables for $30 and save your $10, the old tables are not worth it unless you don't have them already. Even then, I'd at least wait to see what they do about Star Trek and how quickly.
This bundle comes with Star Trek, AC/DC, Starship Troopers and Ripley's Believe It Or Not for $20.00
Let's get this out of the way first: THE OLD PINBALL ARCADE TABLES ARE EXACTLY THE SAME!
I have Season 1 of TPA on PS4 and was able to do a direct comparison with Ripley's. Everything is the same, EVEN THE PHYSICS, WHICH TPA PS4 HAS NOT UPDATED TO 3.0 FLIPPER PHYSICS. In fact, even the mobile version has updated some tables, like Monster Bash, to the new flipper physics. PS4 has not.
Starship Troopes on Stren Pinball Arcade also still has the old physics. Frankenstein does not because it was a post-Xenon table. For the record, PS4 TPA is still running the old UI. That's how out of date it is.
Want more proof that these are untouched from the TPA versions? The DMD display on the old tables still shows individual dots, the new Stern table DMDs do not.
Bottom line, don't buy the old tables if you already have them, they are unchanged in any way beyond the fake room environment. Here's a curious thing: The ball is gun-metal dark on every table I've tried except for SST. The ball looks proper shiny and really good on that table. It should also be known that the ball looks too dark in TPA for PS4 but not as bad as SPA.
Now, on to the new tables:
I'm 90% sure Star Trek's lighting is just straight-up busted. It is way too dark, as others have pointed out, but in the screenshots on PSN it looks fantastic. Something isn't working right. The multiball disco lights are definitely busted. Rather than red points of light it casts dark specks.
AC/DC looks pretty good by comparison and matches the screen shots.
In general, I'm really unimpressed with the lighting on Star Trek and AC/DC. It still looks really baked-in and the lighting doesn't seem to actually illuminate the surrounding objects, including the ball. There seems to be no interaction whatsoever.
Gameplay/physics-wise, things are feeling pretty good. That said, I'm really not noticing an improvement over TPA's.
Farsight has really over-sold this. In the case of what they implied regarding improvements to older tables they pretty much just lied.
I would recommend NOT buying these tables. Who knows when they will fix things? Who knows how often we will see updates and improvements to the PS4 version?
If you are still hard-set on the tables, I suggest buying the three new tables for $30 and save your $10, the old tables are not worth it unless you don't have them already. Even then, I'd at least wait to see what they do about Star Trek and how quickly.
kaworu
New member
- Oct 17, 2016
- 247
- 0
link or not happened
wolfson
New member
- May 24, 2013
- 3,887
- 0
for us in the Europe region yes that includes Australia,and we`re part of Eurovision too WOOHOO,we just have to wait,no worries !!!
I`m looking into my crystal ball,i can see Visual Pinball Table coming,maybe 2 tables. one for TPA and one for SPA.MY GLASS IS ALWAYS HALF FULL!!!!
I`m looking into my crystal ball,i can see Visual Pinball Table coming,maybe 2 tables. one for TPA and one for SPA.MY GLASS IS ALWAYS HALF FULL!!!!
- Feb 19, 2012
- 8,144
- 2
3 glasses...1 bourbon, 1 scotch, and 1 beer.
kaworu
New member
- Oct 17, 2016
- 247
- 0
this glass is not half full, its not half empty - it is broken.MY GLASS IS ALWAYS HALF FULL!!!!
wolfson
New member
- May 24, 2013
- 3,887
- 0
Jeff sounds good to me cheers !!!! and some cheers to you kawaru,be happy3 glasses...1 bourbon, 1 scotch, and 1 beer.
New Impressions!
I broke down and bought Mustang. No need for the bundle with that one.
This one looks pretty good, but man, the dull ball is still a real bummer. The lighting around the car on the turntable is lacking, it's rather dark. I'm not overly familiar with this table but it seems pretty easy.
Honestly, of the 6 tables I've played, Star Ship Troopers looks the best. It has very good lighting through-out and it looks great when it goes dark and does its little colorful light show. The ball looks bright and shiny and is very easy to follow compared to the other tables. I'd say AC/DC looks second best, followed by Mustang and the Ripley's.
The game really needs more options. For one thing, I don't like that you can't change the launch buttons, or the button for SST's red flipper. I'd also like the ability to use the dpad and face buttons for flippers like on the Vita version of Zen (I'm weird).
It would also be great to be able to adjust the volume of table music.
I still think the mechanical sounds are very weak.
I can only dream, but I'd also love the option to display SPA (and TPA) in portrait mode. That might sound silly, but I have a rotating monitor and I'm sure a lot of people with smaller TVs and monitors wouldn't mind flipping them on their side. See, the reason I prefer using my iPad for pinball is portrait mode. I really can't ever find a camera angle I'm happy with in landscape. There is no good compromise. I especially dislike the camera movement, but when it's locked the back of the table is hard to see.
With portrait view you can see everything quite easily.
Anyway, assuming the iOS version of SPA is up to snuff, I'll once again be making that my main platform and probably won't buy anymore tables on PS4. It's nice to have a few on there, though. I do like the rumble! The real tables rumble too!
Btw, I realize I could buy the tables on Steam to utilize portrait mode but for some reason my laptop struggles to maintain a solid framerate in TPA. At least, in DX11. So i assume it will have issues with SPA, too. I'm sure, if nothing else, the iOS version isn't going to have the dark lighting issues.
I broke down and bought Mustang. No need for the bundle with that one.
This one looks pretty good, but man, the dull ball is still a real bummer. The lighting around the car on the turntable is lacking, it's rather dark. I'm not overly familiar with this table but it seems pretty easy.
Honestly, of the 6 tables I've played, Star Ship Troopers looks the best. It has very good lighting through-out and it looks great when it goes dark and does its little colorful light show. The ball looks bright and shiny and is very easy to follow compared to the other tables. I'd say AC/DC looks second best, followed by Mustang and the Ripley's.
The game really needs more options. For one thing, I don't like that you can't change the launch buttons, or the button for SST's red flipper. I'd also like the ability to use the dpad and face buttons for flippers like on the Vita version of Zen (I'm weird).
It would also be great to be able to adjust the volume of table music.
I still think the mechanical sounds are very weak.
I can only dream, but I'd also love the option to display SPA (and TPA) in portrait mode. That might sound silly, but I have a rotating monitor and I'm sure a lot of people with smaller TVs and monitors wouldn't mind flipping them on their side. See, the reason I prefer using my iPad for pinball is portrait mode. I really can't ever find a camera angle I'm happy with in landscape. There is no good compromise. I especially dislike the camera movement, but when it's locked the back of the table is hard to see.
With portrait view you can see everything quite easily.
Anyway, assuming the iOS version of SPA is up to snuff, I'll once again be making that my main platform and probably won't buy anymore tables on PS4. It's nice to have a few on there, though. I do like the rumble! The real tables rumble too!
Btw, I realize I could buy the tables on Steam to utilize portrait mode but for some reason my laptop struggles to maintain a solid framerate in TPA. At least, in DX11. So i assume it will have issues with SPA, too. I'm sure, if nothing else, the iOS version isn't going to have the dark lighting issues.
Last edited:
PeacemakerPIN
New member
- Nov 19, 2015
- 134
- 0
Maybe a visual description might help.
Here's how Mustang looks in real life. Notice the table is well lit and you can see the car toy clearly.
Stern Pinball Arcade version:
I think the car might also look more convincing if the lights in the back (The bulbs right above the word MUSTANG) had an effect on it (Mostly on the hood of the car).
That said, Mustang does look closer to the real thing compared to Star Trek.
And to be fair, here's Earthshaker in real life:
How it looks in The Pinball Arcade:
Like I said in a previous post, Farsight has nailed photo-realistic tables before, I just don't understand what went wrong with some of these new tables.
Another thing I noticed is that Mustang avoids having light reflections on the left and right sides of the table. It works to great effect in Party Zone and adds depth to the table, making it not appear flat.
Here's how Mustang looks in real life. Notice the table is well lit and you can see the car toy clearly.
Stern Pinball Arcade version:
I think the car might also look more convincing if the lights in the back (The bulbs right above the word MUSTANG) had an effect on it (Mostly on the hood of the car).
That said, Mustang does look closer to the real thing compared to Star Trek.
And to be fair, here's Earthshaker in real life:
How it looks in The Pinball Arcade:
Like I said in a previous post, Farsight has nailed photo-realistic tables before, I just don't understand what went wrong with some of these new tables.
Another thing I noticed is that Mustang avoids having light reflections on the left and right sides of the table. It works to great effect in Party Zone and adds depth to the table, making it not appear flat.
Last edited:
kaworu
New member
- Oct 17, 2016
- 247
- 0
here is already record of visual problems on Mustang in Master Issue List, and you posted video and screens from 2 different versions of Mustang - Pro and Premium which have different toys, - such references dont help at all.
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PeacemakerPIN
New member
- Nov 19, 2015
- 134
- 0
I changed it with a picture from the Premium table.
The point still stands that lighting doesn't reflect the hood of the car no matter what happens on the table.
I'm getting confused here. What are the official color cars for the Mustang tables? Yellow, Red, and Blue? Or am I seeing a bunch of mods?
Maybe the cars should be random like the neon bulbs in Cirqus Voltaire.
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kaworu
New member
- Oct 17, 2016
- 247
- 0
this one is from LE table, but yeah - here are a LOT of modded tables with cars from toy manufacturersI'm getting confused here. What are the official color cars for the Mustang tables? Yellow, Red, and Blue? Or am I seeing a bunch of mods?
Maybe the cars should be random like the neon bulbs in Cirqus Voltaire.
Last edited:
Crazy Newt
Member
- Dec 2, 2012
- 351
- 12
The cars on the rails for a real Mustang table are optional 1/64 scale models that can be installed. So there could be different colors and models depending on the preference of the owner. It would be kinda neat to be able to select your own or have them randomly generated like the CV neon color.
I have migrated to an almost exclusive PC gamer, but I still use my PS4 for MLB The Show and a few other games to keep in touch with friends.
Couldn't resist, and have been wanting to play Star Trek and AC/DC since the real tables were first mentioned. $40 got me the entire room full of tables, the 3 new ones (for me), along with the duplicates I already own on Steam. This was clearly an attempt to get the product out to take advantage of the holiday sales. There seems to be a bit of a rush job to get these table released, and some obvious features are missing. I am tentative that anything will get improved, and if something is improved, what might break as a result? No platform is perfect, but the PC and iOS versions seem to get the most love, where the console versions get neglected. But this is mostly due to the stranglehold that the consoles place on themselves, and not anything that the developers/publishers can control.
I'm confident that there is a major patch in the works and maybe even ready to go or already submitted, but after that, it could be a long wait. The sound is excellent on the new tables, which is really cool as I enjoy the music on Mustang and AC/DC a lot.
Overall very fun, too dark for now, unless I turn the lights off at night. The tables are a bit fuzzy compared to my PC at 2560x1440 rez with a GTX 1080 FTW video card.
I have migrated to an almost exclusive PC gamer, but I still use my PS4 for MLB The Show and a few other games to keep in touch with friends.
Couldn't resist, and have been wanting to play Star Trek and AC/DC since the real tables were first mentioned. $40 got me the entire room full of tables, the 3 new ones (for me), along with the duplicates I already own on Steam. This was clearly an attempt to get the product out to take advantage of the holiday sales. There seems to be a bit of a rush job to get these table released, and some obvious features are missing. I am tentative that anything will get improved, and if something is improved, what might break as a result? No platform is perfect, but the PC and iOS versions seem to get the most love, where the console versions get neglected. But this is mostly due to the stranglehold that the consoles place on themselves, and not anything that the developers/publishers can control.
I'm confident that there is a major patch in the works and maybe even ready to go or already submitted, but after that, it could be a long wait. The sound is excellent on the new tables, which is really cool as I enjoy the music on Mustang and AC/DC a lot.
Overall very fun, too dark for now, unless I turn the lights off at night. The tables are a bit fuzzy compared to my PC at 2560x1440 rez with a GTX 1080 FTW video card.
kaworu
New member
- Oct 17, 2016
- 247
- 0
one of the worst examples was improving of UI on PC