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Pinball company phoning it in?

johnwhitfield

johnwhitfield

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John Whitfield
Well according to a new thread on Pinside (Which is never wrong or full of wild speculation) the new theme for JJP #3 has been leaked and as anticipated it is an original theme.

While some of the best games of the 90s are original themes (assuming AFM is original and it was coincidence that Mars Attacks came out at the same time;)) I really can understand why Stern has a policy of only releasing licensed material. (Although as SEGA they did manage to license some stinkers....)

Stern rep "Here we have GOT based on the most watched/downloaded current TV program..."
Heighway rep "Here we have Alien/Aliens based one of the most loved Si-Fi films of all time..."

Looking forward to seeing the game in the flesh.
 
Just read that - must be a disgruntled employee? Sounds rubbish (yes, I know, wait and see how it plays...) - Dialed in?! Also the American English spelling of 'Dialled' looks wrong to me.
 
I like the idea of an original theme as it allows maximum creative licence for the designers, artists, sound engineers etc. If what has been 'leaked' is true, then it sounds like a very innovative and different style of game. Whether this will be more fun to play than Stern's approach of speed and brightness with a gambling element to scoring is yet to be seen.
 
Innovation opportunities can only be a good thing. Whether the game will have lasting appeal and not just be a short lived novelty remains to be seen. Is it fun to play? Do i want to play it again?... and again? etc.

I'm hopeful. JJP's Wizard of Oz and Hobbit themes don't appeal, but i love the platform.
 
Taking Full Throttle (and Cpt Nemo) out of the pic what was the last original theme? Would Mustang almost count? I know the name of the car was involved but did that affect game play in any way? Were they limited as to what they could or couldn't do than if it had been called "4 wheel drive"?

I suspect we have to go back to RFM for the last original theme.

My worry is that ops simply won't buy a "follow the phone" game in the same volume that they might have bought into one based on "Taken". We might be in a situation where the best playing new game actually sells significantly less than a so-so game with a good theme.

Doubt it can sell less than Wrestlemmania though;)

Fingers crossed they can produce a cracking game.
 
Actually thinking a bit more about it maybe I shouldn't discount Full Throttle. It's an actual machine with an original theme and it used new technology with the LCD screen. Not knocking Andy's achievements but I'd be willing to bet that there are more pre-sales for Alien than actual sales for Full Throttle at this moment in time. Just goes to show the power of a great theme

Dan - Jack's next game is allegedly going to be called "dialled in" and is about a phone call. I suspect it's more like Safe Cracker or a chase them down game than a tribute to BT. Mind you maybe it's just a clever ruse and it's code for ET
 
I haven't read about it - can you use your phone to interact with the machine? Text it to raise targets or such like.
 
And rumours about next few titles.


Here is what we know about Pat's game from the Stern insiders.

It's titled "Dialed In" and is a game where a cell phone located on the game calls you and the guy tells you what shots to make. A robot's arm stops a shot on the upper ramp when lit. Pat is using his 4 magnets again to throw the ball around the playfield below the cross cross ramps. Lit inserts move toward the player and you must stop them before they reach the flippers. There is another lcd display that has 2 way mirror that you have to shoot at like pin 2000. His 3rd flipper on the right middle shoots the ball up a ramp. Pat has moving target in the middle playfield blocking shots to the jets. Pat is directing this narrow game to the engineer like he did with us at WMS using someone named Wally and some Mexican as a cad drafter. I guess Jack will have to get some more investors to produce this game......as we all know of the delays from Hobbit. They are more than 4 months behind and still working with the same 2 year old white wood. Don't look for this game anytime soon.

3 new games Jack has in the lineup are Muppets, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Toy Story. He has the Disney license for them now. The Muppets is a poor choice as is only one of many Jack has made with JJP.
 
Oh, I see this post has been removed from pinside as I guess it is revealing secrets that were not supposed to be revealed. Not sure if I should edit/delete above?
 
Keeping secrets in the internet age must be a nightmare. One post and it's all over. GOT was one of the worst kept pinball secrets in recent years. In the 90s it was a different market, no one outside a select circle would know anything until you started to advertise (or a machine turned up in a pub). Secrets, the internet and long development times are simply things that don't go together.
On the other hand is it that bad of an idea for potential customers to know what's coming up? Everyone has a limited budget, if I buy GOT I can't also afford to buy the Muppets or Toy Story for example. Maybe this leak is actually worse for Stern than Jack for potential Muppet buyers as it will affect current purchases rather than future ones.
 
And Jack has just announced Hobbit production starting November.
 
The relevant posts have all been deleted. I think it might have been a genuine leak by someone unauthorized.

Thinking there may be a mobile phone app that interacts with the game in some way.
 
I'm thinking the app might be one that sends a "cease and desist" notice to ex-employees;)
 
So, a Killer App to go with the Dialed in game.

Seems like this rumour has legs:cool:
 
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