Why don't players like Gorgar?

[Dutch Pinball ball]

You always have to work to beat your own high score, ;-). No mather how many points you get on a specific table. If its 12.000 points after many plays, you will have a hard time getting 12100 or more.

When on a machine your highscore is 300 zillion points, you still need to work hard to get 300 zillion + points to beat your high score.

 

[Jeff Strong]

You always have to work to beat your own high score, ;-). No mather how many points you get on a specific table. If its 12.000 points after many plays, you will have a hard time getting 12100 or more.

When on a machine your highscore is 300 zillion points, you still need to work hard to get 300 zillion + points to beat your high score.

Yeah, but regardless of the number of points a machine dishes out, some tables just have easier shots, or shots everywhere. In TOM you can almost close your eyes and still hit a shot SOMEWHERE.....that's one of the things I meant about not needing to work as hard for points, compared to BH for example.

 

[Fungi]

Yeah, but regardless of the number of points a machine dishes out, some tables just have easier shots, or shots everywhere. In TOM you can almost close your eyes and still hit a shot SOMEWHERE.....that's one of the things I meant about not needing to work as hard for points, compared to BH for example.

Kinda like people still achieving decent scores in MB after the camera locks up on them.

 

[IdontHave50cents]

I know some of you won't relate but..Gorgar is such a satanic looking table, isn't it?. I mean...could it look any more evil? I feel like I'm being a bad Christian when I play that table... Like I would never play that one in front of my mom.

 

[mmmagnetic]

I know some of you won't relate but..Gorgar is such a satanic looking table, isn't it?. I mean...could it look any more evil? I feel like I'm being a bad Christian when I play that table... Like I would never play that one in front of my mom.

Yeah, it´s really looking super evil! Though really more in a trashy, comic-book way. Well, you´re fighting him, right? "Look mom, I´m defeating the prince of the underworld! Die, mangoat!" The only table I´ve seen so far that looked even more unholy is Centaur - now that´s just a true black metal table!

I definitely share the Gorgar love. I´ve first got to play it on the terrible PHOF 3DS port, and really liked it despite the cramped screen, the constant zooming in and out, and especially the floaty, jerky ball physics. The table has just a very pleasing design to it, and on the iPad 3 it really shines (even though the main playfield illustration is a wee bit pixelly).

And Fungi nailed it, it really feels good to get to really push the ball through a spacey, wide-open play field. I LOVE LOVE LOVE the spinner shot - dewdewdewdewdewwww The sounds are bass-heavy, crunchy and satisfying, and for one an early SS table has a "background music" that doesn´t chip away at my concentration (like Black Knights constant droning, Space Shuttles "dededede" or especially Black Holes constant 3 tone loop).

And not to mention, of course, the brilliant idea of the heartbeat getting faster and faster, increasing the tension in the player. Poor Gorgar - he should really learn to just let go, and cut back on the caffeine.

The bonus countdown sounds really satisfying as well (this is something I love in Space Shuttle and Black Knight too, and ToTAN seems to pay a little tribute to that with the lamp), the light looks really great even on the relatively static iOS version. It really has a "clear" feeling to it (despite the gory, busy graphics) that makes everything easy to see - I can even play this on the train on my iPod Touch, something that is just out of the question with tables like RBION or TOM.

And really, to me it isn´t about SS versus DMD. I don´t really have a preference - a good table is a good table, and there is so much more to it than just the pure technical capability. Recently I played Black Hole some more and while I can appreciate is on a theoretical level is just leaves me cold - I just don´t feel like continuing on, and at that point a game (any game, really) dies to me. Gorgar, on the other hand, while technically on a very similar level (and even lacking a playfield gimmick like the lower field in BH) just keeps me pumping in ball after ball. I mean, I love RBION, but really, the ball is gone for half the time, hidden behind a loop, hidden in a scoop - on Gorgar, the ball is really flowing freely (and dangerously!).

Also, Gorgar really shows off the fantastic ball phyics. Since the ball has so much space to flip around, it´s a great table to learn quick reflexes, stuff like dead bounce, trapping etc. To me, pinball in general isn´t about the thrill of going for a high score (though that definitely is a part of it!), but very much about the joy of the (virtual) physical interaction with the flippers, the ball, and the table. I guess you could say Gorgar has great "feedback".

So yeah, a well designed game can really transcend the design limitations of the era it´s been built in. It´s also very cool to see the technical aspects of each table, for instance the almost Sega Genesis-like rough FM-synthesis in games like Funhouse or Taxi, the Atari-esque sounds in Gorgar or Black Knight, and the graphical taste and themes (check out Ataris "Time 2000" on ipdb for something that truly could only have been built in the 70s!).

Gorgar definitely has its place in the TPA collection. I think that about every table so far - there isn´t really a table yet that doesn´t have a very unique style to it. It really warms my heart to know we already have so many great tables (well... iOS and Android users at least) that ALREADY are more than enough to keep you busy for a few years, and with just more and more greatness to come on the horizon. It will be a long time until we run out of interesting, unique, defining tables to be digitzied, and I love that Gorgar gives me a little taste of the late 70ies

 

[Fuseball]

Well said mmmagnetic. Although it's not my favourite early SS table, I'm thoroughly enjoying Gorgar. The sound is a huge part of that. I play that era of games as much to get the background sound wildly out of shape as I do for high scores. That is something I miss on later games, where the sound is done with digitised speech and music. There's a real artistry to the sound programming on games like Black Knight and Centaur.

 

[an ox]

I'm enjoying Gorgar too although I've noticed a couple of audio glitches. Sometimes his heartbeat stops entirely during a ball and he seems to lose his voice too. I find myself saying his words for him when that happens .

I also once had a ball pop straight through the wall of the right side alley and end up back in the plunger lane. Which was actually a nice surprise as the side alleys are so voracious. DEAR GOD NEVER LET THE BALL NEAR THE SIDE ALLEYS.

But yeah, having lots of fun with GORGAR and his mighty nipples .

 

[Fungi]

Yeah, it´s really looking super evil! Though really more in a trashy, comic-book way. Well, you´re fighting him, right? "Look mom, I´m defeating the prince of the underworld! Die, mangoat!" The only table I´ve seen so far that looked even more unholy is Centaur - now that´s just a true black metal table!

I definitely share the Gorgar love. I´ve first got to play it on the terrible PHOF 3DS port, and really liked it despite the cramped screen, the constant zooming in and out, and especially the floaty, jerky ball physics. The table has just a very pleasing design to it, and on the iPad 3 it really shines (even though the main playfield illustration is a wee bit pixelly).

And Fungi nailed it, it really feels good to get to really push the ball through a spacey, wide-open play field. I LOVE LOVE LOVE the spinner shot - dewdewdewdewdewwww The sounds are bass-heavy, crunchy and satisfying, and for one an early SS table has a "background music" that doesn´t chip away at my concentration (like Black Knights constant droning, Space Shuttles "dededede" or especially Black Holes constant 3 tone loop).

And not to mention, of course, the brilliant idea of the heartbeat getting faster and faster, increasing the tension in the player. Poor Gorgar - he should really learn to just let go, and cut back on the caffeine.

The bonus countdown sounds really satisfying as well (this is something I love in Space Shuttle and Black Knight too, and ToTAN seems to pay a little tribute to that with the lamp), the light looks really great even on the relatively static iOS version. It really has a "clear" feeling to it (despite the gory, busy graphics) that makes everything easy to see - I can even play this on the train on my iPod Touch, something that is just out of the question with tables like RBION or TOM.

And really, to me it isn´t about SS versus DMD. I don´t really have a preference - a good table is a good table, and there is so much more to it than just the pure technical capability. Recently I played Black Hole some more and while I can appreciate is on a theoretical level is just leaves me cold - I just don´t feel like continuing on, and at that point a game (any game, really) dies to me. Gorgar, on the other hand, while technically on a very similar level (and even lacking a playfield gimmick like the lower field in BH) just keeps me pumping in ball after ball. I mean, I love RBION, but really, the ball is gone for half the time, hidden behind a loop, hidden in a scoop - on Gorgar, the ball is really flowing freely (and dangerously!).

Also, Gorgar really shows off the fantastic ball phyics. Since the ball has so much space to flip around, it´s a great table to learn quick reflexes, stuff like dead bounce, trapping etc. To me, pinball in general isn´t about the thrill of going for a high score (though that definitely is a part of it!), but very much about the joy of the (virtual) physical interaction with the flippers, the ball, and the table. I guess you could say Gorgar has great "feedback".

So yeah, a well designed game can really transcend the design limitations of the era it´s been built in. It´s also very cool to see the technical aspects of each table, for instance the almost Sega Genesis-like rough FM-synthesis in games like Funhouse or Taxi, the Atari-esque sounds in Gorgar or Black Knight, and the graphical taste and themes (check out Ataris "Time 2000" on ipdb for something that truly could only have been built in the 70s!).

Gorgar definitely has its place in the TPA collection. I think that about every table so far - there isn´t really a table yet that doesn´t have a very unique style to it. It really warms my heart to know we already have so many great tables (well... iOS and Android users at least) that ALREADY are more than enough to keep you busy for a few years, and with just more and more greatness to come on the horizon. It will be a long time until we run out of interesting, unique, defining tables to be digitzied, and I love that Gorgar gives me a little taste of the late 70ies

Ditto.

 

[Jeff Strong]

I know some of you won't relate but..Gorgar is such a satanic looking table, isn't it?. I mean...could it look any more evil? I feel like I'm being a bad Christian when I play that table... Like I would never play that one in front of my mom.

Just think of it as you battling the Devil.....that's a good thing, right?

And yeah, what mmmagnetic said

 

[Richard B]

It's a simple formula why people do not like the non-DMD games on TPA.
DMD = emulation = authentic experience = awesome
non-DMD = simulation = inauthentic experience = suck
awesome > suck

 

[Rudy Yagov]

That only works if you ignore Bride and Funhouse...

 

[Fuseball]

That only works if you ignore Bride and Funhouse...

Bride and Funhouse should be emulated as they are the first two WPC games and, display aside, they have the same system as the first DMD games. There may be a couple of bugs in the emulation, which could explain the music playing inaccuracies in Funhouse, but those two games play absolutely correctly... and they would be a lot more complex to script than Gorgar or Black Hole.

 

[Sir_LANs-a-lot]

I don't really care whether they're emu or simulated - They all look and play OK in my book.

It's just ace having them to play.

 

[Rudy Yagov]

Bride and Funhouse should be emulated as they are the first two WPC games and, display aside, they have the same system as the first DMD games. There may be a couple of bugs in the emulation, which could explain the music playing inaccuracies in Funhouse, but those two games play absolutely correctly... and they would be a lot more complex to script than Gorgar or Black Hole.

I know that Bride and Funhouse are WPC. One of my best friends has a Funhouse that I play every weekend.

They DID script Funhouse in PHOF, so it is possible for them to do. However, they outright said didn't do that in TPA.

 

[jaredmorgs]

Might want to stay far, far away from AFM then...that one makes even the Theatre look low-scoring...

And let's not even begin to discuss Johnny Mnemonic... Because JM is a licensed table, it's fortunate we will never likely see this table that scores you in Gigabytes make it to TPA.

 

[jaredmorgs]

You can tell there's something a little custom about Gorgar when you look at the ball and credit indicator at the bottom left of the screen. That is a telling sign that the game is not a true emulation.

But, whatever. I've never played the machine in real life. I don't have any physical comparisons to make in game play.

I was frankly surprised at how much I went back to Gorgar when I downloaded it. It is very replayable because of it's simplicity.

The escalating heartbeat in Gorgar reminds me of the escalating Space Invader music on that table. Get a high enough ball score on Space Invaders and the music blurred into a wall of buzzing sound.

 

[Sean]

And let's not even begin to discuss Johnny Mnemonic... Because JM is a licensed table, it's fortunate we will never likely see this table that scores you in Gigabytes make it to TPA.

I played that one at a pizza joint in a Chicago ex-urb. I actually quite enjoyed it, though the film is pants-tacular.

 

[Fuseball]

I know that Bride and Funhouse are WPC. One of my best friends has a Funhouse that I play every weekend.

They DID script Funhouse in PHOF, so it is possible for them to do. However, they outright said didn't do that in TPA.

Yeah. Sorry if my original response came across as contradicting you. It was more to explain to Richard B why his theory didn't add up. Gotta admit I'm a little jealous of you having access to a Funhouse. My wife has banned me from ever owning one 'cos Rudy freaks her out!

I thought the PHOF Funhouse was scripted pretty well, so you're right - they can do a great scripting job. Black Knight is terrible though. There's so much missing or wrong about the sound and lighting. Interesting that they seem to struggle scripting simpler tables.

 

[Matt McIrvin]

I know some of you won't relate but..Gorgar is such a satanic looking table, isn't it?. I mean...could it look any more evil? I feel like I'm being a bad Christian when I play that table... Like I would never play that one in front of my mom.

I think it's hilarious, myself. It's so Seventies over-the-top, like something you'd have seen painted on the side of a van, with the mostly-naked barbarians facing the big goofy devil guy with the seven-word vocabulary. Reminds me of unsavory aspects of the world of my childhood. But I do find myself inhibited about playing it on my phone in certain company.

Gameplay-wise, I actually like Gorgar a lot. I kind of enjoy these more minimal designs. It's a little like an easier, condensed version of Black Hole: an asymmetrical drop-target-shooting layout with lots of open space, rollovers with no lane-change up at the top, captive hole on the left, vertical row of standups on the right. Only instead of the gravity tunnel and the lower-level playfield, it just has the Snake Pit magnet, which must have been freaky at the time.

 

[Matt McIrvin]

Gotta admit I'm a little jealous of you having access to a Funhouse. My wife has banned me from ever owning one 'cos Rudy freaks her out!

My daughter won't even let me play Funhouse in PHOF any more. Strangely, Gorgar doesn't bother her. I guess Rudy is creepier than Gorgar.