Tom Devaney, where are you?

[RJB]

Hello! Tom,

Can you confirm for everyone on these forums once and for all that you are still around and are going to be continuing to improve and fix bugs in TPA for the PS4?

I like many on these forums have stuck by Farsight and have spent a small fortune on tables over the years, I also bought many more tables just before you lost licenses on the promise that Farsight would still continue to work on fixing bugs and various issues in the game, so I'm badly hoping customers like myself will not be let down.

I'm starting to become really concerned that since the loss of licenses the support for TPA on the PS4 has more or less dried up in regard to fixes, also Tom you were much more active and "doing a great job" earlier this year but now hardly seem to be around anymore, I hope this is because your busy working on fixes and have not just abandoned us?

Just because your Pinball rival "Zen Studios" has grabbed licenses from Farsight I would still much rather stick with you guys at Farsight but you need to start showing some real love and support for TPA real soon, I truly hope you can do it because TPA on the PS4 is to good a game to leave and simply let rot away.

Thank You
RJB

 

[HiHat]

I would like to know when Whoa Nellie and that other new game are coming to PS4. Anyone have an answer?

 

[Gorgar]

Tom disappeared for a while when he was assigned to work on Big Buck and Whoa Nellie and said that when he isn’t working on them, he is working on getting them into the PS4 version and that it should release around the same time as other platforms. I think his recent lack of posts suggests that Farsight is giving him different assignments.

 

[Byte]

swuth66 the dev apparently working on the Switch ports also seems to have vanished (since June).

 

[RJB]

Whatever the reasons I certainly hope we start hearing some solid news soon that updates (fixes & improvements) are on the way! for TPA.

I'm sure there were a lot of customers (myself included) who only bought more tables before they got removed from the PS Store because Farsight said at the time that even though they were losing the licenses tables would still be worked on, I'm hoping that is true and it was not just said so they could get more money from us all before they lost the licenses, time will tell I guess.

 

[Citizen]

Hopefully PS4 users don't get treated like PS3/V users.

Glaring outstanding issues that will never be fixed or even spoken of in spite of the fact that they've persisted since before they stopped support for that version.

 

[FarSight_Matt]

I think Tom was on a vacation recently

 

[xZOMBIEx]

Hopefully PS4 users don't get treated like PS3/V users.

Glaring outstanding issues that will never be fixed or even spoken of in spite of the fact that they've persisted since before they stopped support for that version.

Oh we will, matter of fact, they did the SAME THING for 360 users, which I used to be and have all their tables that came on that system and for OVER TWO YEARS they kept saying that they were still supporting xbox 360 and that there would be new tables released for it. I believe Adams Family or Starship Troopers was one of the last ones to come out on 360... The support email people kept saying they were coming out with a big patch, the two morons that do the streams kept saying the was a patch coming to 360 just around the corner and all we kept being told was "Soon"... That was it...

Even in their Facebook they said the same thing... Anytime there was update info on it, tons of 360 users kept asking what about them and same thing...

To this day they STILL haven't updated it or released any new tables since the last one... I finally jumped shipped two years ago and went to PS4 and I made the mistake by buying all the tables little by little because they USED to look good and playable and they were steady with releases and updates like every few months or so, then a little after I finally switched to PS4 they started releasing content and patches further between, it went from 3-4 mo's to 5-6, then 7-8, and then once a year....

And it wasn't because they had caught up and no bugs, they were far behind, it took over a year to get Season 6 after it released on PC... That's when I knew they just don't care about console customers because it wasn't just PS4, it was also Xbox One...

Now we are back to the same... HUGE glaring bugs like the missing plunger rod on Twilight Zone and Elvira's chipmunk voice on her table and the wonky physics... They say that adjusted them to make them harder and less predictable, but I don't buy that excuse because it's only on some tables including Twilight Zone, T2, and a few others, but then the are others that still play the same and these wonky physics started when those bugs I mentioned showed up....

I've said it a hundred times, but it's obvious the regular PBA version on PS4 and I'm assuming XB1 are Frankenstein ports from last gen consoles and from the PC version with maybe a little original coding...

The Stern PBA version is a lot better and looks better and i bet that was built from the ground up...

Either way this is the beginning of the end for them... They are probably just going to get these last two tables out and that's it... I wouldn't trust anything they say... Unless they came out and admitted they were moving on and tell the truth, but if they say they are still supporting it, blah blah blah, then I'l believe it when I see it... We heard that before and still never got anything....

 

[Russell Bergman]

Name calling FarSight staff is not the way to go. Very offensive and wrong.

 

[RJB]

Name calling FarSight staff is not the way to go. Very offensive and wrong.

You must be joking, I even praised Tom and said he'd been doing a "great job" earlier this year, only reason I mentioned Tom by name is because he seemed to be the only guy working on fixing the PS4 version.

I could understand your point if I was being nasty or offensive towards him, but, I was being totally polite and just asking if he was still working on the PS4 version of TPA, don't see anything wrong with that, just be nice if we all got confirmation that TPA is still alive and kicking on the PS4 instead of complete silence from Farsight all the time.

 

[RJB]

Now we are back to the same... HUGE glaring bugs like the missing plunger rod on Twilight Zone and Elvira's chipmunk voice on her table and the wonky physics... They say that adjusted them to make them harder and less predictable, but I don't buy that excuse because it's only on some tables including Twilight Zone, T2, and a few others, but then the are others that still play the same and these wonky physics started when those bugs I mentioned showed up....[/QUOTE]

It's truly frustrating any tables having major bugs on them, but, I have to say it's even more frustrating when major bugs are on tables like Scared Stiff and Twilight Zone, two of the highest rated pinball tables of all time certainly deserve better treatment, Elvira's chipmunk voice on Scared Stiff is so annoying and totally ruins the atmosphere when playing the table, disappointed it was not fixed as soon as it was pointed out as it's such an obvious bug/error.

 

[Jeff Strong]

You must be joking, I even praised Tom and said he'd been doing a "great job" earlier this year, only reason I mentioned Tom by name is because he seemed to be the only guy working on fixing the PS4 version.

I could understand your point if I was being nasty or offensive towards him, but, I was being totally polite and just asking if he was still working on the PS4 version of TPA, don't see anything wrong with that, just be nice if we all got confirmation that TPA is still alive and kicking on the PS4 instead of complete silence from Farsight all the time.

I’m pretty sure he was referring to Zombie calling Farsight employees “morons”.

[MENTION=6699]xZOMBIEx[/MENTION] We realize you’re frustrated, but please show some respect at least.

 

[RJB]

I’m pretty sure he was referring to Zombie calling Farsight employees “morons”.

If that's the case then sorry! for the misunderstanding

 

[The loafer]

I thought he was calling the blahcade guys morons lol

Farsight's console support has not been great, there's no denying that. On the 360/PS3, it was totally understandable because they were charged for every patch. In saying that, I thought I heard the new consoles had free patch update support so if that's the case, Farsight has dropped the ball.

If I had to pinpoint the biggest flaw for Farsight in this entire "TPA" adventure its their horrible communication strategy. I don't think it's necessary to have a forum presence daily, but releases that are coming for 18 months but never show up: SPA for Oculus rift?, delays in patches? Pincab support? 12 days of Christmas promises? Programming is fare to be deemed rocket science for us ignorant bozos but communication is not. It just takes honesty and effort. You don't have to provide answers to everything. I will commend the Farsight staffers who's regularly popped into the forums but IMHO that should not be their jobs, there are patches to do

On a positive note: overall I still like their product, I'm happy with the IOS version overall and I think considering when they started off, they've done overall decent work and helped promote the hobby, so the Farsight story is a positive one and if they keep coming up with Stern releases, I will support them. Just think in some cases they did drop the ball a bit. Oh well, no ones perfect

 

[Russell Bergman]

Oh I apologize RJB for not being clear. It was xZombiex I was referring to. He's been nothing but negative and I believe he's been warned in the past for his comments calling FarSight staff horrible things. Constructive criticism is fine, name calling isn't.

 

[Tom Devaney]

Hey everyone. I was on vacation in Taiwan for a couple of weeks, and I just got back several days ago. So that's why I didn't manage to get Big Buck Hunter and Whoa Nellie out in time for PS4. I actually left a week before we released, so some of my colleagues had to help finish up anything that popped up. Luckily, before I left, I had the tables working pretty good on the PS4. Had to do some additional purchasing stuff, but today I have a build that is ready for QA on the PS4. I will update again when I have a time frame for the update going out.

Hello! Tom,

Can you confirm for everyone on these forums once and for all that you are still around and are going to be continuing to improve and fix bugs in TPA for the PS4?

I like many on these forums have stuck by Farsight and have spent a small fortune on tables over the years, I also bought many more tables just before you lost licenses on the promise that Farsight would still continue to work on fixing bugs and various issues in the game, so I'm badly hoping customers like myself will not be let down.

I'm starting to become really concerned that since the loss of licenses the support for TPA on the PS4 has more or less dried up in regard to fixes, also Tom you were much more active and "doing a great job" earlier this year but now hardly seem to be around anymore, I hope this is because your busy working on fixes and have not just abandoned us?

Just because your Pinball rival "Zen Studios" has grabbed licenses from Farsight I would still much rather stick with you guys at Farsight but you need to start showing some real love and support for TPA real soon, I truly hope you can do it because TPA on the PS4 is to good a game to leave and simply let rot away.

Thank You
RJB

Thanks for the support RJB. As for why I haven't been as active on the forum and fixing bugs is because I was the person in charge of bringing Big Buck Hunter and Whoa Nellie out. Those were my first tables I've done, but not only that, the whole process can be difficult and time consuming. When I have some time, I would like to look into some bugs. The only ones I really know of right now are the sound issues, so I would like to look into those again. But unfortunately they are very deep and complicated issues that will take a lot of time to look into. Whenever an easy bug pops up like lighting or playfield reflections, I can do those in the matter of minutes to hours, but a big sound bug like this would take days. I'm going to make a post just for the sound bugs, so if you all could pitch in there, that'd be great.

 

[RJB]

Oh I apologize RJB for not being clear. It was xZombiex I was referring to. He's been nothing but negative and I believe he's been warned in the past for his comments calling FarSight staff horrible things. Constructive criticism is fine, name calling isn't.

No problem at all mate, sorry! again for the misunderstanding

 

[RJB]

Hey everyone. I was on vacation in Taiwan for a couple of weeks, and I just got back several days ago. So that's why I didn't manage to get Big Buck Hunter and Whoa Nellie out in time for PS4. I actually left a week before we released, so some of my colleagues had to help finish up anything that popped up. Luckily, before I left, I had the tables working pretty good on the PS4. Had to do some additional purchasing stuff, but today I have a build that is ready for QA on the PS4. I will update again when I have a time frame for the update going out.



Thanks for the support RJB. As for why I haven't been as active on the forum and fixing bugs is because I was the person in charge of bringing Big Buck Hunter and Whoa Nellie out. Those were my first tables I've done, but not only that, the whole process can be difficult and time consuming. When I have some time, I would like to look into some bugs. The only ones I really know of right now are the sound issues, so I would like to look into those again. But unfortunately they are very deep and complicated issues that will take a lot of time to look into. Whenever an easy bug pops up like lighting or playfield reflections, I can do those in the matter of minutes to hours, but a big sound bug like this would take days. I'm going to make a post just for the sound bugs, so if you all could pitch in there, that'd be great.

Thanks! for getting back to me Tom, greatly appreciated.

First of all I'd like to say I truly can't wait for the two new tables to release, seems a long time since we've had any new tables to look forward to on the PS4 version.

Also great to hear you will be doing all you can to fix other issues in TPA especially any sound bugs, fingers crossed you can get Elvira's voice sounding correct again on Scared Stiff in the near future as the table is a personal favourite of mine and Elvira's voice overs are a major part of the enjoyment of the table, so badly hope it can be sorted out soon. Cheers!

 

[FarSight_Matt]

I thought he was calling the blahcade guys morons lol

Farsight's console support has not been great, there's no denying that. On the 360/PS3, it was totally understandable because they were charged for every patch. In saying that, I thought I heard the new consoles had free patch update support so if that's the case, Farsight has dropped the ball.

If I had to pinpoint the biggest flaw for Farsight in this entire "TPA" adventure its their horrible communication strategy. I don't think it's necessary to have a forum presence daily, but releases that are coming for 18 months but never show up: SPA for Oculus rift?, delays in patches? Pincab support? 12 days of Christmas promises? Programming is fare to be deemed rocket science for us ignorant bozos but communication is not. It just takes honesty and effort. You don't have to provide answers to everything. I will commend the Farsight staffers who's regularly popped into the forums but IMHO that should not be their jobs, there are patches to do

On a positive note: overall I still like their product, I'm happy with the IOS version overall and I think considering when they started off, they've done overall decent work and helped promote the hobby, so the Farsight story is a positive one and if they keep coming up with Stern releases, I will support them. Just think in some cases they did drop the ball a bit. Oh well, no ones perfect

I come here entirely on my own volition, I like it here.

 

[Rayder]

I'll admit, the various bugs with the PS4 version of TPA are annoying, but I will still buy any and every table that gets released.