TPA versus your average Real Life Machine

[Bass Mummy]

I have found that when I play real pinball I drain a lot early on until I can get used to the increased difficulty of real machines, but after a while I start doing considerably better. There's no doubt that playing virtual pinball games has made me a better player overall.

 

[Kolchak357]

Yeah it helps me the most with the rules. Totally agree about early drains on a table you aren't familiar with. Tables are so different from each other even for the same title. I've played Addams Family's that have nice predictable easy to control kickouts. But I've also found Addams tables that have unpredictable lightning spit from the kickout. Every table is so different based on age, wear, and setup. It usually takes a couple of games to get a feel for the flippers, kickouts, and figuring out where shots can be made from. But TPA sure helps with understanding table rules. I've played many machines where I didn't even know where the ball lock was.

 

[Sumez]

Yeah, there are so many mechanical and physics heavy items on a real table that can act differently, and some shots might be more difficult on some tables than others, especially backhand shots.
The kickouts are often an issue, though they are intended to always deliver the ball to a flipper, usually for an easy trap, bounce pass, or at the very least a somewhat controlled shot.
If they don't, they haven't been calibrated properly - or, they are intentionally set so to prevent long games, or abusing certain repeated patterns for easy high scores. I think PAPA tournaments have a tendency to readjust the kickouts to be particularly nasty.

 

[Carl Spiby]

Try playing a worn AFM that kicks out STDM.

Seriously frustrating.

 

[fenderbendr]

Based on the AFM preview video, the kickouts seem much slower than they are on the real table.

 

[Carl Spiby]

Based on the AFM preview video, the kickouts seem much slower than they are on the real table.

Very true.

 

[DrainoBraino]

I have found that when I play real pinball I drain a lot early on until I can get used to the increased difficulty of real machines, but after a while I start doing considerably better. There's no doubt that playing virtual pinball games has made me a better player overall.

Ya gotta get warmed up. I always play a few throwaway games to get used to the machine before taking it serious. Otherwise your gonna get frustrated real quick.

Another problem I have is that I tilt waaay too much. I'm too wild with the slapping and the slamming and what not.

Fortune cookie: "Pinfucius say if you aren't tilting, you aren't trying!

 

[neilpinbot]

Yeah, there are so many mechanical and physics heavy items on a real table that can act differently, and some shots might be more difficult on some tables than others, especially backhand shots.
The kickouts are often an issue, though they are intended to always deliver the ball to a flipper, usually for an easy trap, bounce pass, or at the very least a somewhat controlled shot.
If they don't, they haven't been calibrated properly - or, they are intentionally set so to prevent long games, or abusing certain repeated patterns for easy high scores. I think PAPA tournaments have a tendency to readjust the kickouts to be particularly nasty.

Picking up on "backhand shots" I used to use back hand shots a lot on real table's. I use back hand shots on ZEN Pinball but incredibly I can't recall making use of it in TPA not sure why that is ! I guess I will just have to boot TPA and look where it can be used.

 

[Richard B]

Anywhere I go, I always try to find real machines to play on. I use the pinfinder app and I always peek in to the game room for pizza places or movie theaters that might have them.

Where did you get this app from?

 

[Sumez]

Ya gotta get warmed up. I always play a few throwaway games to get used to the machine before taking it serious. Otherwise your gonna get frustrated real quick.

l:

I find that my game is at its best after a single beer.
True story.

 

[Bonzo]

Picking up on "backhand shots" I used to use back hand shots a lot on real table's. I use back hand shots on ZEN Pinball but incredibly I can't recall making use of it in TPA not sure why that is ! I guess I will just have to boot TPA and look where it can be used.

Lyman's Lament?

 

[Bowflex]

Where did you get this app from?

It is on the App Store for iphone. The app is called Pinfinder and is currently v2.0.7 by "Sam & Neil"

Oh, and just like the Pinball Arcade, you can "upgrade to pro"

 

[Sumez]

Why isn't there an app like that for Android?

I'd make one, but there are already a billion different programs and services trying to map the locations and collections of pinball tables - people should just agree on a single central portal.

 

[brakel]

Why isn't there an app like that for Android?

I'd make one, but there are already a billion different programs and services trying to map the locations and collections of pinball tables - people should just agree on a single central portal.

Android has Pinball Map. Doesn't have all cities and seems to only be NA but maybe if they had someone in EU with some skills they could start adding EU cities.

 

[Sumez]

Aren't they user added?

I have a feeling a lot of these services could be better made, but of course, I haven't tried them.
GPS, geo-tagging, community features, backglass recognition for quick tags, local highscores, etc. There are a ton of possibilities. And most importantly, supplying eachother rather than competing.

 

[phreaker47]

http://www.pinballmap.com/ is good if they cover your area. There is apparently an AFM near me, and I'm going to find some time to go check it out.

I used to play pinball almost religiously, in that heyday of the 80s and 90s when the arcade crash happened and then the video game market shifted sharply to the home gamer... during that time, pinball was king, because it was the one thing that couldn't be recreated for the home.

Anyway, it's been pointed out, but several key things make physical tables tougher... but it mainly comes down to two things: tuning and consistent behavior (or lack thereof). In TPA, you always know what to expect. In real pins, it's another story. I know for example I could have never in a million years scored 72 million on a real Taxi machine. You could never hit those shots with such regularity. Flippers would be weaker, and the roll of the ball from the inlane to the flipper would often not be smooth. How many times can all of you recall playing a machine where the ball HOPPED when it reached your flipper from the inlane, making a measured shot difficult or nearly impossible? Or, you time a shot just right, but it just doesn't have enough power? Happens all the time.

Anyone remember a pin called Hercules? It's gimmick was it was a RIDICULOUSLY oversized machine... absolutely massive... the flippers, ball, everything grossly oversized. (watch this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9gvtl3o1no)
The main payoff shot in that game was hitting the lane on the far right with enough speed to complete a loop all the way on the left... thing is, the flipper almost never had enough power to do it.

Good times. I guess. Heh.

 

[Worf]

Thanks for that link phreaker47 - didn't know there was so much pinball near my work. So much I checked it out on Friday - at least one of them (the one that had MM). Alas, their tables were configured strangely - the ball moved way too fast (and I think they removed the level as well - I'm guessing they rigged it to be more than 6.5 degrees).

I don't recall MM being that fast when I played it. Though at least the machines felt decent - flippers were snappy and all that.

Alas, the place was dark and the GI practically off, so it's impossible to see the table (odd, since they replaced all the lights with LEDs, they didn't change the GI ones so most were burned out and difficult to see).

 

[Punisher]

The closest area to me that that place covers is New York. And that's over 150 miles away! They need one for my area... At least the orlando map might help out when I go there for vacation.

 

[ER777]

The closest area to me that that place covers is New York. And that's over 150 miles away! They need one for my area... At least the orlando map might help out when I go there for vacation.

Same for me. The site I found that covers my area (Syracuse, NY) is Pinside.com, but of course there are only a total of 5 tables in the greater Syracuse area that I know of..

 

[discerningdm]

For me, the main difference between playing a real table and TPA (besides how sad the condition of many pins are), is the SOUND of playing a table.

I accidentally "discovered" this today killing time playing Attack From Mars in my car through Bluetooth speakers, with the sound turned to normal volumes, but the speakers very close to me, just a few feet. When the Attack Wave starts, it's just amazing, and triggered this memory of the actual machines, with the light show and the sound of a row of pins and video games cranked up.

I immediately started going through tables, noticing that at decent volumes with the speakers so near, that the balance between table noise and speaker noise is much better, less "clacky" than the mobile speakers deliver.

But who has a setup to play TPA at a volume matching the arcades of yesterday, with dozens of machines in attract mode, blaring at full strength.

Just my .02 dropping in here - was looking for a thread on this subject to share this.