Stern Pinball Arcade

[karl]

If a few months of gear vr exclusive is the price for having AC/DC, I have no problem with that.

Just watched the video. "A little" lag in Starship Troopers is a mild way of putting it. If Star Trek and Ripley (more demanding tables on the system) is worse than that, I really can not understand why they released them this way.

It might of course be that the guy in the video has a really low-end phone, but since those other few that have played it, here on this thread, have the same impression, I find it strange that they even released it. A bad first impression like this will hurt them a lot. The game is almost unplayable.

I like the arcade setting, though.

I am pretty confident that the product to be released on steam(not vr) later this year will be a much, much better experience, so this release says absolutely nothing about how the app will actually be, but they have certainly managed to do some damage to the hypo-meter, with a rushed release like this.

 

[Metalzoic]

If a few months of gear vr exclusive is the price for having AC/DC, I have no problem with that.

Just watched the video. "A little" lag in Starship Troopers is a mild way of putting it. If Star Trek and Ripley (more demanding tables on the system) is worse than that, I really can not understand why they released them this way.

It might of course be that the guy in the video has a really low-end phone, but since those other few that have played it, here on this thread, have the same impression, I find it strange that they even released it. A bad first impression like this will hurt them a lot. The game is almost unplayable.

I like the arcade setting, though.

I am pretty confident that the product to be released on steam(not vr) later this year will be a much, much better experience, so this release says absolutely nothing about how the app will actually be, but they have certainly managed to do some damage to the hypo-meter, with a rushed release like this.

On mine Starship Troopers mostly ran smooth and fast (in fact the ball moves pretty damn fast on both tables I tried, faster than PC maybe?), but it did occasionally skip and there were a few moments where it also lagged. Not major and not gamebreaking, but there. Although I actually think it was caused by my phone getting notifications. My Anti-Virus also popped up twice while playing saying it doesn't trust SternPA so maybe I should except it.
Also it does look like those screenshots earlier, but remember that in VR you are shown 2 images. Both images combined and it looks better in 3D while actually playing than those screenshots make it appear. What I really loved was how big the scale of the table feels, like you're at a full size real one and being able to pause and look up at the DMD.

Still, yes, it doesn't feel exactly ready for prime-time and I'm sure there will be a ton of glitches found, but TPA itself is still riddled with glitches and issues and really still feels like a rushed release after being out for years. I doubt this will be any different or better. My actual problem is that this is a standalone game and that except for Star Trek and AC/DC the other 6 (8?) tables shown are already in TPA. I think that is really, really lame.

 

[karl]

Agree. I guess it is impossible to judge a VR product until playing it in person. It was mostly the lag/floaty graphics and the unfinished look on Star Trek (from pictures) that surprised me.

Glad to hear that the app shows promise in 3D. They might be old tables but at least you will have them in 3d Would be more fun with a couple of new tables in the launch app, but I guess they were in a hurry

 

[Metalzoic]

I imagine that it will be pretty awesome using a full Occulus rig. Although I won't be getting one.
On mobile you're definitely giving up rez and lighting for 3D and VR. They definitely don't look as good as their non-VR versions, but not quite as bad as those screens show. Somewhere in between.

Star Trek I haven't tried, so can't say how good or bad it actually is. Sounds like it has issues though.

EDIT: Forgot to mention this is on a Samsung Galaxy S7 edge. So about as powerful and up to date as you can currently get for a phone.

 

[Metalzoic]

Actually after trying out the normal TPA on my phone for a bit I'd say the normal version has just as many hitches, skips and lag moments as the VR version.

Sent from my SM-G935V

 

[lettuce]

I wish TPA would hurry up and come to the proper oculus!.....and that they also make it available on Steam

 

[SilverBalls]

I want this to be so good, but looking at the video it is just lacking realism. This is really apparent when the video flips between the Papa videos and TPA. The lighting doesn't look great and it still looks cartoony. I guess this is the 1st gen of consumer VR and it will get better in the future. Are there any videos showing the lighting controllers set to night mode?

 

[HotHamBoy]

I want this to be so good, but looking at the video it is just lacking realism. This is really apparent when the video flips between the Papa videos and TPA. The lighting doesn't look great and it still looks cartoony. I guess this is the 1st gen of consumer VR and it will get better in the future. Are there any videos showing the lighting controllers set to night mode?

It looks like the mobile version because GearVR is not capable of much graphically after all the VR processing. This is running off a phone. This will probably come to PC and be much better.

Quite a nice surprise for me. I have a GearVR and a Galaxy Note 5 and a controller. Downloading now, will report back with impressions.

EDIT: Well, I'm back. It's not good. I can get past the really low resolution and muddy presentation. But the game chugged on Frankenstein. Lots and lots of constant slowdown, especially as the ball neared the flippers. Sometimes my button inputs wouldn't register and sometimes they lagged or registered multiple times. Multiball was where things really got unplayable. It started sweating when two balls hit the field, but the 6 ball multiball was a showstopper.

I hope they can get this running right. Oculus Studios logo gives me hope, but pinball physics seem to be very demanding - especially for VR if what I've read about Zen on Oculus is true.

The game seemed to run worse for me than it did for that video above. I tried closing all apps and restarting the phone before testing the app and clearly that didn't matter. I wonder what the deal is.

EDIT 2: After putting the phone in Airplane Mode almost all issues went away on Frankenstein and game ran fairly smooth. Try it if you are having issues with other tables.

 

[invitro]

I guess this is the 1st gen of consumer VR and it will get better in the future.

Just my opinion: I think VR programs will be amazing some time in the not-too-distant future. But for now, I couldn't care less about VR. It's extremely expensive to use, and the games I've seen in it so far look much less fun to play than games on my boring old monitor. (I haven't actually used VR, and I'm not sure how I would go about testing it without buying it or doing too much work, but my opinion could possibly change then.)

I can't quickly think of a technology parallel to VR, as all the big techs I'm thinking about were awesome at consumer debut, and then just got better (or were useless and stayed useless, of course).

 

[switch3flip]

Yeah, VR to me seems to still be in a baby stage. Right now it's more of the immediate coolness effect than the actual overall quality. The big companies just want something to show off at the next trade show, to create a buzz, pretty much like the concept cars of car tradeshows. All flash, no function. It's to show what is a possibility in the future. They get written about in magazines, and they have pictures to go with it. Most of the people that buy the stuff don't seem to care about much else than to show off coolness to their "friends", or test out newest technology. They usually don't expect more depth, the immediate coolness effect is most important, and to be in the forefront of hitech.
But at the same time, big ups and kudos to all the companies and consumers who support this and help push things forward, the rest of us have much to thank you.

 

[mpad]

You two have obviously never tried a VR device
The immersion is what makes it great and very addictive.
Of course good graphics are to be desired, but it's already great without them.
Try it!
SPA still looks like crap

 

[Robert Misner]

Ya Immersion and presence on the vive with roomscale and the motion controllers are amazing.
There are plenty of great experiences and a ton of little ones too. I remember how thin the Xbox360 launch lineup was it was a year before things got better.
Elite Dangerous, tho still needing some antialias patching, is the most amazing cockpit experience I've had I've already put 100 hrs in to that game with hundreds more i'm sure, Project Cars with a wheel and peddles just feels so good I can handle the sacrifice in clarity from these first Gen HMD for the feeling of being in the car and driving.
Minecraft with Vivecraft Mod is a gamechanger for anyone that likes sandbox gameplay.
I just got PoolNationVR and its fantastic, Audioshield is the best light cardio rythem workout game I've ever played, Brookhaven Experiment is coming out in two weeks and Shooting Zombies in the demo just never gets old.
Vanishing Realms Tho short is only chapter 1 and 2 but man if you ever wanted to do a good old fashion dungeon crawl its that.
Budget Cuts might be the best demo I've ever played..the game comes out in the fall and its gonna be a huge hit. Best Stealth game ever.
I can't wait for NewRetroArcade Neon to hit and ya TPA for some pinball... Google's Daydream platform with Vive and oculus support, Microsoft Hololens working with HTC so Vive works with it as well.

The only thing missing is the big studio Triple A titles which I dont care to much about just yet I'll wait for the 79.99 blockbuster games VR isn't made for run and gun shooters and thats what they want to make cuz its what they know.
For now being in it now where indie developers can flourish is fantastic...its like PC gaming from the early 90's again..before EA and them bought up evey good creative team and sucked the soul of them

 

[Lostboy]

http://www.newschannel10.com/story/...ios-launch-the-stern-pinball-arcade-on-oculus

I like the new animated Farsight Studios logo. Didn't care for their old one. Hopefully they keep using this one. Looks more professional.

 

[Metalzoic]

EDIT 2: After putting the phone in Airplane Mode almost all issues went away on Frankenstein and game ran fairly smooth. Try it if you are having issues with other tables.

Dude. Thanks for this tip. Mine was already running surprisingly good, but putting my S7 in airplane mode first completely smoothed out the few hiccups it had.
I have a feeling this will help with a couple other VR apps that have small hitches too.

I just played 10+ games on Starship Troopers back-to-back (this thing gets so hot on your face it's crazy) and didn't have a single bit of lag, ball skipping or jitteriness. Smooth and very fast, fluid motion. Very Nice and honestly I'm really surprised at how much better turning airplane mode off helps. That should really be the first thing that pops up when you start the game. A notice that says "close all other apps and put your device into airplane mode for best results". I still need to buy a controller for it though.

EDIT: Forgot to mention are the physics different feeling to you? The ball feels faster and a bit wilder than it does on the PC version to me.

 

[wolfson]

I ordered my Playstation VR and Gran Turismo Sport. I can play Project Cars and I believe No Mans Sky.if I can play TPA,SPA and ZEN I will be very happy.sad news today with the passing of Mr. Ali,when I was at school we used to watch his fights live. we all loved him.our school was not your usual,half the kids were from a Greek background and we had quite a few Aboriginal brothers and sisters.our Greek parents taught us treat everyone the same,no matter what colour a person is or what religion one has.LOTS OF LOVE !!!!

 

[Naildriver74]

Hating people because of their color is wrong. And it doesn't matter which color does the hating. It's just plain wrong. Muhammad Ali

 

[Metalzoic]

I ordered my Playstation VR and Gran Turismo Sport. I can play Project Cars and I believe No Mans Sky.if I can play TPA,SPA and ZEN I will be very happy.sad news today with the passing of Mr. Ali,when I was at school we used to watch his fights live. we all loved him.our school was not your usual,half the kids were from a Greek background and we had quite a few Aboriginal brothers and sisters.our Greek parents taught us treat everyone the same,no matter what colour a person is or what religion one has.LOTS OF LOVE !!!!

They've said No Mans Sky won't support PlayStation VR. But who knows... maybe that's why they just delayed the game a few days ago, so they could add it.

 

[Mk pinball fan]

Does anyone know if the PlayStation VR will support TPA? I thought I read that SPA was Oculus exclusive, thus it would most likely be for Microsoft and Xboxone. I would really love it if both TPA and SPA would be released on the PlayStation VR. I know I read that the PS4 would get SPA sometime in the fall.

 

[mrhorseshoe]

Pretty miffed that FarSight chose to release the game on GearVR (an incredibly underpowered headset that isn't for gaming) instead of Oculus. Hell, Zen was able to release a damn good VR Pinball game as a Oculus Rift launch title. Too bad I don't really enjoy Zen's tables.

 

[Metalzoic]

Probably because more people own Gear VRs than own Rifts. Not remotely as powerful, but. It's cheap, uses hardware people already own, no tether and works shockingly well for running from a smartphone.

Once Daydream hits I think we'll see even more VR focus on phones/mobile.

Sent from my SM-G935V