Which is better Cyclone or Whirlwind?

[The Doctor]

I hear everyone talkin' about Whirlwind.. but I have fonder memories of Cyclone! Will it be coming to TPA?

 

[Crush3d_Turtle]

Damn that is a close one, but I would have to give a slight edge to Cyclone. I just love what they did with the carnival theme in that table especially with the Ferris wheel and the ramps. Whirlwind is also an excellent table, but I got more enjoyment out of Cyclone.

 

[Fungi]

You may wanna change the titles if you're going by themes. Cyclone is carnival themed and belongs with Comet and Hurricane, all of which are the names of the in-game rollercoasters. They even share similar board layouts. Whirlwind should be paired with Earthshaker.

 

[brakel]

Comet will always be one of my favorites. There was a convenience store that I used to go by everyday that had Comet and I would play it almost every day. The guy that owned the store was an old German guy and he would say in his German accent "I'll never get rid of that game as long as you come in and play it every day!" And he didn't! But eventually I moved away. With my car filled to the brim with my stuff I stopped by the store on my way out of town and played one more game. I told the old man that I was moving out of state. He said "I'll call the game guy up and have him take that old machine out tomorrow." and then he flashed a cheesy grin at me as I left.

 

[Fungi]

Comet will always be one of my favorites. There was a convenience store that I used to go by everyday that had Comet and I would play it almost every day. The guy that owned the store was an old German guy and he would say in his German accent "I'll never get rid of that game as long as you come in and play it every day!" And he didn't! But eventually I moved away. With my car filled to the brim with my stuff I stopped by the store on my way out of town and played one more game. I told the old man that I was moving out of state. He said "I'll call the game guy up and have him take that old machine out tomorrow." and then he flashed a cheesy grin at me as I left.

Now THAT is a cool dude.

 

[Actionball]

Yeah, not remotely similar games in theme, playfield layout or modes so this is not a fair comparison.

Cyclone is my favorite game ever, mostly just due to good memories but its a solid game that stays fun without even having advanced modes or even a multiball. I still drop random bits of soundtrack in my daily life that nobody understands. "Hey you with the face!"

I pick Cyclone over Whirlwind even though I own a factory DP Whirlwind. Ive never been a WW detractor though I like the playfield layout better when its called Addams family BUT, Its just not deep enough and some of the audio gets tedious, the reward for learning to play it fast and smooth (3 way combo) is pathetic...the siren is a better reward than the points. I just feel it would have been so much more if built 3 years later with a DMD, deeper rules and much better sound.

 

[The Doctor]

oh wow I was thinking Whirlwind was a carnival type theme. I remembered wrong ... I cant edit the poll...

ooooooooops

 

[George Klepacz]

oh wow I was thinking Whirlwind was a carnival type theme. I remembered wrong ... I cant edit the poll...

ooooooooops

hahahahaha

 

[Jeff Strong]

oh wow I was thinking Whirlwind was a carnival type theme. I remembered wrong ... I cant edit the poll...

ooooooooops

I can edit it if you want, but both options already have a few votes, so you might just want to start a new poll/thread and then I can close this one if you want.

 

[dtown8532]

Whirlwind for me. I just played very fine examples of these two within the past couple weeks and Cyclone is just too much of a SDTM drain monster for me. That Drac target is killer. While I do think Cyclone is the best of the amusement park trilogy it just doesn't get my blood pumping like Whirlwind.

Cyclone may have some very fine artwork but when you lock that third ball in Whirlwind, the fan comes on and it tells you "Feel the power of the wind. Here it comes!" I'm sold.

 

[Ark Malmeida]

I had to vote Cyclone just because some of the sound samples are permanently burned in my brain. I can't think of that table without hearing "Ride the Ferris Wheel!" or "Hey you, with the face!" in my head.

 

[Sean DonCarlos]

Whirlwind. There's nothing else like the adrenaline rush you get when those spinning discs send what looked like a well-controlled ball screaming toward the drain and a tenth of a second later you just barely save it with a desperate nudge and the last few atoms of the tip of the flipper. The fan's a nice touch, too. (And for those who have never played a real Whirlwind, the wind from the fan is a lot more distracting than you think it would be.)

 

[brakel]

Whirlwind. There's nothing else like the adrenaline rush you get when those spinning discs send what looked like a well-controlled ball screaming toward the drain and a tenth of a second later you just barely save it with a desperate nudge and the last few atoms of the tip of the flipper. The fan's a nice touch, too. (And for those who have never played a real Whirlwind, the wind from the fan is a lot more distracting than you think it would be.)

I told my daughter about the fan on Whirlwind so for one game we manned a floor fan while the other played and turned it on appropriately. It wound up being distracting but mostly because we couldnt stop laughing at the sillyness of it.

 

[Sean DonCarlos]

I told my daughter about the fan on Whirlwind so for one game we manned a floor fan while the other played and turned it on appropriately. It wound up being distracting but mostly because we couldnt stop laughing at the sillyness of it.

Heh heh, that's great! But you're right, it is a tad silly.

At CP Pinball they have a Twilight Zone in one of the corners. So I'm going along and playing it halfway decently when I start the Fast Lock feature. It starts counting down through the stations (Pat Lawlor's previous games) and because I'm rusty I don't manage to actually hit the lock until it's on the Whirlwind station. The multiball begins, the Whirlwind jackpot music starts...and I suddenly feel a continuous stream of air on the top of my head! After I finish freaking out (and consequently scoring very poorly on the multiball), I look up and it turns out that the TZ is located under a vent for the air conditioning system, and that it had turned on at precisely the correct time to match the "Whirlwind" multiball.

I've approached that particular TZ very carefully ever since...

 

[Frostyglitch]

I played Whirlwind at a local bowling alley with all my friends growing up, great times were had by all. I'll never forget that deep voice during multiball saying Whirlwind. It just flows very naturally, and the difficulty level is just right. It's not too easy for pros, but doesn't demand a pinhead to get a decent score. The local arcade had Cyclone, and while I enjoyed it, it didn't have the same appeal. Come to think of it, my strongest memory of Cyclone is just wondering why the hell Ronald/Nancy Reagen was on the back glass. =)

 

[Adam]

You really must experience the real machine to get the most out of Whirlwind. Hearing the booms, seeing the flashes, feeling that fan...so good.

 

[Richard B]

I can care less about nostalgia. Whirlwind was and is the better table.

 

[Jay]

Comet will always be one of my favorites.

Mine too. That's the game I hope they bring back. I had a chance to own the table for $500, but the playfield was a mess, the sounds were screwed up and the display didn't function. I would have basically had to replace most everything in it.

 

[Actionball]

I can understand the love of whirwind. There is nothing like standing in my kitchen on a hot summer day and sliding that last lock into place. The deep booming "Feel The Power Of the Wind!" that just did not translate AT ALL to the PHOF version, the fan kicking up and cooling you down, its certainly one that need to be played live to be appreciated properly. I love my Whirlwind.

There is just something about Cyclone that keeps me coming back the way few games of that era can do.

Certainly the fact that Addams Family is 90% the same playfield with a way better soundtrack and deeper rules chips off some points from whirlwind for me. Its hard when you get a poll that while flawed in its original intent about similar themes happens to hit you square in your Top 5 games by accident. Im not trying to make my WW cry, I just want a Cyclone to keep it company some day.

 

[Rudy Yagov]

I've got a Whirlwind and plan to get a Cyclone sometime in the future. No vote until I've owned both.