You are expanding too fast, and significantly damaging the quality of your product.

[starck]

They said they are fixing the BK magnasave buttons? OK, well this means that this is fixable, but they just didn't get it right the first time? How did ALL beta testers not speak up on this? Let alone 1 or 2 of them. Or does FS get the feedback but choose to do nothing with it?

Betatesters did mention this and all other issues. FS management chose to release the table as is. You can see this process on the android forums.

The choice to release this table with the absolutely ridiculously placed, broken buttons speaks for itself. (not bashing you bavelb- just using your info).

1. From a UI standpoint- what logical sense does it make to put the buttons on the top?

2. They don't work anyways. You have a greater chance of tilt-locking the table than actually hitting those buttons, and furthermore, I have yet to actually see them work on iOS anyways.

Decisions like these in the game are what really annoy me. If they can't get the buttons to work, then don't put them on the table yet! Or, better yet, don't release that table yet!!


It's more than just the buttons. I keep encountering game-breaking bugs on BK. And I really love this table. Not just things like the audio being screwed up (which it completely is). Things like me having to quit the table after a multi ball because the frickin' software doesn't know what to do. These are things that I noticed within 5 minutes or less of playtime. Within 1-2 minutes of initial play time, I could immediately tell the audio was screwed up.

BK = Broken.

 

[robx46]

I almost didn't want to post this, but after playing some real pinball for the first time in over a year last week-end, I actually prefer The Pinball Arcade just because the action is more consistent so I can focus on improving my game rather than overcoming the limitations of the machine. The machines I was playing were in very good condition, but the power of the shots felt weak and on Lord of the Rings the ball movement on the table wasn't smooth and natural - it was like there were misplaced magnets below the playfield.

I expect two updates this month: one for bug fixes and the other for the announced pairing of Taxi and what must be Harley Davidson from Stern.

If those tables played like that, then they clearly weren't in very good condition like you say. On the 4 machines that I own, if anything I'd say my flippers are maybe even too strong at times on all of them. Because when I get a game I simply take 15 minutes to replace the coil sleeves on the flippers, which cost like a dime, & usually that makes them like new. Unfortunately, many operators don't take the time to maintain the games properly. Even newer games, if they are played a lot in a location, the flippers will weaken if the game isn't kept clean & maintained. But it is a totally different story for home use or a place that does maintain properly. A great example is a place I'm going to next weekend. The PAPA warehouse in pittsburgh. Hundreds upon hundreds of games, & all of them are well leveled, cleaned, & maintained.

But if you go to a pinball show where people are selling games, you never know how the games are gonna play. Virtual pinball will likely never be as realistic & fun as real pinball, even 100 years from now. There are just certain things you can't 100% simulate that pertain to the pinball playing experience. There is nothing quite like playing some well maintained pinball machines. & it makes me mad to hear stories like yours because you got all these people not having the proper pinball playing experience, all because operators don't maintain their games. & it tricks people too because like I said, even newer looking games can play like crap, which makes people think the game must be 100%, but it isn't.

 

[starck]

A good example of this is a stern transformers pin near me. The thing is a disaster and the bowling alley owner should be ashamed. The table isn't even level. It definitely hasn't see maintenence in a long time, if ever. I couldn't waste any more than a buck in that thing, it just wasn't playable and wasn't fair (unlevel table/play field drifting the ball unnaturally SDTM). which is sad- had they maintained it, I would have gone back there more. Even if that place did leave my clothes smelling like 'bowling alley' (whatever the hell that smell is- it stuck to my like glue, and I was in there 20 mins, tops!)

 

[Moon Jump]

A lot of people that I've spoken too will not buy any more Stern Pinball machines because their fed up with the quality of the builds of the tables and all the special edition BS. But onto the subject.

I think rather then updating next month with two new tables, that'll have new problems, just take that month to patch the games that are already out there. I for one am also worried about the whole thing of them dropping access to the Free version, which I am currently using because it was the only version that was up at the time. Please combine both games so I don't have to purchase the games again for my iPad/iPod. Fix the stuff on the console versions and work out the other issues of getting it on the PC. I think the players will like that if the company just focuses on fixing the problems rather then trying another Kickstarter to get TNG. (Which I will support again when the time comes, but even though it's impossible to please everybody just try to iron out some of the problems first before asking for more money to get harder to find and license tables)

 

[Tokyo Rose]

A lot of people that I've spoken too will not buy any more Stern Pinball machines because their fed up with the quality of the builds of the tables and all the special edition BS. But onto the subject.

I think rather then updating next month with two new tables, that'll have new problems, just take that month to patch the games that are already out there. I for one am also worried about the whole thing of them dropping access to the Free version, which I am currently using because it was the only version that was up at the time. Please combine both games so I don't have to purchase the games again for my iPad/iPod. Fix the stuff on the console versions and work out the other issues of getting it on the PC. I think the players will like that if the company just focuses on fixing the problems rather then trying another Kickstarter to get TNG. (Which I will support again when the time comes, but even though it's impossible to please everybody just try to iron out some of the problems first before asking for more money to get harder to find and license tables)

Don't hold me to this ,Moon Jump , but I do believe that free app users now can purchase the 99 cent app and not have to repurchase all the tables they have bought once they have done so-however you will for different platforms. What you have written is a logical option , but I feel that this is now the kind of app that interacts with its users in terms of feed-back for the initial versions that are put out and I like that aspect.

What I don't like are previous tables suddenly going nuts that appeared to be, for the most part, fine before updates. I believe our input is taken in by Farsight and they will not leave tables in a flawed condition for long if they can help it . Their goal , after all , is to give us the best emulations that both they and their users are proud to have produced and own. Granted though , this could be a bit risky for customers who download now and expect everything to be in tip-top shape .

Personally , I would like to continually see regular updates that can be tweaked to as near perfection as Farsight is capable of . Losing those updates would be a bit demoralizing to me -whatever the state of the game - in that getting a look and a try on the 1.0 version is still worth the reasonable price charged for new tables ,imo . In my mind, getting a new table that has bugs is no worse than trying a real life pin that is not in the best of shape . I am certain , though , that they all will eventually be improved to play at a level most people would expect from a machine in good condition, understanding however , as you have pointed out , that the more tables that are out there , the more difficult it may be to get them all to this state across platforms. For the time being, one can easily choose a less bugged table until others are patched up .

 

[Fuseball]

BK is totally unplayable right now. It has horrible frame rate issues. Sometimes the game will glitch out and get stuck doing something and I'll have to completely quit and start over. Only here, I can't call the attendant and ask for my money back to play another game. I'm stuck playing the same horribly broken mess, for a flat fee.

I'm hoping that rom emulation isn't too far away, as that will solve the multiball problems, as well as the missing sounds and sound priorities which are all out of whack on BK at the moment. I've been collating all the issues with BK that I can think of in the BK subforum.

I set Game Center Save: Off in Options, and that cured the frame rate problems for me. Might be worth a try.

 

[Tony C]

I don't know what you guys have on your phones/ipads/ipods, but I haven't had any of the slowdowns you are talking about that can't be attributed to something obvious like a notification appearing or going away. I haven't got to the million mark on BK so I can't speak to that issue, but I have all of the tables on my iPad2 and my iPhone4 and not one of them is unplayable.

The bottom line is that this is a game, not a program to control high speed rail traffic. If you've bought all of the tables so far, you still haven't spent as much as you would have in one trip to an arcade. Everyone expects the game to perform flawlessly right out of the box. Even a brand new pinball machine can have problems. Some of those problems aren't defects, either. (Stern has no control over the condition of the floor that you put their machine on and FS has no control over the other apps on your device that will compete for resources.)

 

[RetroDude]

For me... I now know of four total pinball machines that I can get to to play within a one hour's drive.
Every one of them has playability issues that probably exceed what most of the bugs in TPA are.

With the condition of these machines (and their particular settings), it's easy enough to blow through $5 in an hour.
That's not counting having to effectively pay an entrance fee or buy a crappin nasty meal at one of the places just to get access to the machine that may or may not work.

For me to hit a decent arcade with real machines in good condition, I've made a road trip that was about 10 hours of driving, then hotel costs...

Buggy or not, the TPA games are a BARGAIN... and the bugs ARE being addressed and fixed.

 

[Sean]

I'm lucky I know where there are four tables I can play in my entire city (and given how niche pinball is in the UK I wouldn't be surprised to find that whomever owns that machines isn't making a nickel off them, so the condition they're in is actually pretty good) so yeah, this suits me just fine. And whilst I can confirm the BK slowdown issue, if I want to I know I can turn off Gamecentre notification and that will sort that.

Knowing that a bug fix release is due out imminently makes all this very tolerable, though I do wish they had heeded beta testers and held off for another week. I don't keep the books there however, so I don't know the reasons they decided to go ahead regardless...

 

[bavelb]

What goes for Retrodude goes for me as well: I have no access to these games so Im happy to be a paying betatester.

Maybe others think they are being ripped are off and think its only fair to pay money for flawless reproductions, but maybe you need to consider it from the other side and think that these tables can be so cheap (dont kid yourself, 2.5 bcks avg is damn cheap) because we inititally get tables that are works-in-progress.

You can complain about BH or BK (the 2 tables that are in worst condition of the bunch) you want, but I paid less for them than the 7 games I played on a badly maintained table that shut off its flippers at random times earlies this week.

 

[Stormchild]

While I remain hopeful that the growing list of problems with TPA will eventually be fixed, I have to agree with the overall sentiment of this thread. It's very clear that the quality of the software has taken a nosedive over the last couple releases, with existing bugs and problems not being fixed, and new ones being introduced.

The leaderboards are a complete disaster right now. Multiple disconnected accounts, previous high scores swapped between BH<-->ToM and FH<-->CV (this is potentially an epic mess, as new scores are now being recorded in the wrong lists, and it may be impossible to sort them out later; most likely they'll need to completely reset the leaderboards), low frame rates when Game Center is enabled, not getting GC achievements for standard goals when the wizard goals have been completed, and so on.

Then there's the growing list of issues that mess up the games themselves, from balls getting stuck (and "call attendant" not doing anything to help) to passing through flippers, walls and ramps like ghosts.

It would really help boost my confidence if we could get an update or two that are focused purely on making the existing tables and scoreboards actually work properly before any more new tables are introduced. I'd also like to point out that the reason people are so concerned about this trend is that TPA is an incredible product, and currently the only legitimate effort to preserve all the great tables we've played over the past 20-30 years. I love this project and will do anything I can to support it (hell, I'd apply to work at FS myself if I was willing to relocate to Bumblelake CA; I'm a UI/UX designer/developer and I could definitely help), but I can't continue to recommend it to friends if the quality continues its downhill slide.

To put this in perspective, I don't think the situation is that bad right now. I'm a little bummed about the leaderboard mess, but most of the tables are still fun to play. I just don't like the overall trend of updates introducing new bugs and problems while not addressing any of the existing ones.

 

[Shaneus]

(hell, I'd apply to work at FS myself if I was willing to relocate to Bumblelake CA; I'm a UI/UX designer/developer and I could definitely help)

What will it take to get you there? Hell, I'd start up a Kickstarter just to get some half-decent UI guys working there.

 

[Ryan Routon]

They don't work on Android.

In the next release (or beta release if you are following the android area) they will be placed lower.

 

[HOW]

Cheers Ryan...Hope same holds for iOS?
PS. Where're/is the iOS dev(s) on here....Chase 'em out-We'll go easy-Honest
Andy

 

[Worf]

I found out about TPA through some other forum (they had a "challenge" where you had to get 200M on ToM - which is the limit of the free play, and why it was chosen), and yes, I'd have to admit the feeling is the quality has gone down. Heck, I had to view the credits because the emulation seemed very good, only to find out why (I remember the guy from the previous projects he did and did help him in a small way on one of the pins way back when).

I've bought everything on iOS, and am considering buying MM on Android and getting it for my Xbox as well. But given that the only time it was "good" was at the beginning, I'm hesitant to buy it elsewhere. After all, the next update to MM took all the lights very dim, then an update fixed the GI but the playfield lights are dim (and the castle grew some moss - from the moat), and now, MM is unplayable to me...

Of course, the MM withdrawal is killing me. I wish there was an arcade nearby to play it. If it wasn't going for $15K+ I'd buy one immediately.

That and some of the other tables just seem... off to me. CFTBL seems to have way too many SDTM issues to be fun (yes, I bought it).