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Will the Kit Plans be Available?

mrdandyman — Sat, 23 Jun 2018 20:06:47 GMT

I'm wondering if or when the plans for the mini pinball game will be available.

I'll have access to all the tools I need (and hopefully time enough) to build a mini-pinball machine this summer at my local makerspace. I'm taking a CAD class too, so hopefully I can design new parts as for class projects [View:/resized-image/__size/16x16/__key/communityserver-discussions-components-files/162/contentimage_5F00_2516.png:16:16]

RE: What pinball game would YOU want?

cht0026 — Fri, 09 Mar 2018 21:14:35 GMT

Yeap! I love something like that! Ghost and vampires and werewolf

Ball density

davidpizon — Wed, 22 Nov 2017 22:18:12 GMT

I never cared for the physics of smaller steel pinballs. They lack of control and wild ricochets cheapen the play experience.

A denser material should be used for the ball. Ben briefly mentions lead in the second video. I would have gone with depleted uranium. If those are inappropriate for a toy, what about tungsten?

RE: Ball density

mrdandyman — Sun, 03 Dec 2017 01:31:49 GMT

The weight of the ball is just one factor. The ball also needs to be conductive so it can trigger the pop bumpers, which would probably rule out tungsten (it's a semiconductor...), and the ball needs to be durable, which rules out soft material like lead. I don't know much about uranium other than that the word scares me, so I think that's ruled out from the get-go.

Brass might be an option...it's a touch heavier than steel. I'm not sure it's enough to be noticeably different. Brass also corrodes over time...

I agree that I haven't liked the physics of the "mini-pinball" found in the family guy game or the shrek game (although, there's a lot of factors that make those games not so good), but this game (the ball and playfield) doesn't look to be nearly so small so I'm hopeful. Steel balls are cheap and easily replaceable so it makes sense to use them. The physics will be tuned by changing the angle of the playfield and the strength of the solenoids.

RE: Ball density

rob65 — Thu, 23 Nov 2017 01:05:48 GMT

I don't have an answer to your question, but an interesting snippet of info.

The pinball machine Twilight Zone, used regular steel balls, but during a special part of the game

it would release a ceramic pinball onto the playfield. It was much lighter than the standard ball, it moved a lot

faster and also played more erratically adding to the challenge of the game.

It was then used as a bonus multiplier, so the longer you could keep it in play, the higher your score became.

Why do you actually need a ball loader?

zepatrik — Fri, 08 Sep 2017 21:30:27 GMT

I would just make a channel for the ball in a way it would be loaded by gravity. Keep it simple [View:/resized-image/__size/16x16/__key/communityserver-discussions-components-files/162/contentimage_5F00_3.png:16:16]. That way you could also save some (quite a lot) pins.

What's Your Favorite Pinball?

makerkaren — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 17:48:41 GMT

element14's The Ben Heck Show

Join the Ben Heck team every week for amazing hacks! Watch them build and mod community-inspired projects using electronics!

Back to The Ben Heck Show homepage

Mini Pinball Kit

Featured Bonus Content

See All Episodes

Pinball has evolved a lot over the years. Scores used to be displayed with mechanical numbers that would rotate as you racked up points. That evolved into using 7-segment displays, then LEDs, and now some even used monitors to track players and points. Some mechanisms have gotten more sophisticated, while others remain classic. At the Midwest Gaming Classic, as well as my local arcades and bars, I've tried out quite a few pinball games. I've found that different things draw me to love some games more than others. Sometimes it is the theme. Sometimes the flow and feel of the game makes the ball seem to travel smoother making it superior to others. Sometimes there is a certain mechanism or feature that just makes the game more fun. I especially like the games that have a mini play field at the top that feels like playing a mini game where it is fun to see how long you can keep the ball up without the fear of losing the game if it drains. I've played games where the LEDs are just too bright and it hurts to look at or the ball is difficult to track through the lights and displays. My favorite games are a mix of old and new either because of smoothness of play or fun theme/mechanisms.

What's your favorite pinball game and why?

RE: What's Your Favorite Pinball?

Jan Cumps — Tue, 08 Aug 2017 18:54:32 GMT

RE: What's Your Favorite Pinball?

makerkaren — Tue, 08 Aug 2017 17:42:30 GMT

Kitten!

Yes, that makes a good pinball game.

RE: What's Your Favorite Pinball?

johnbeetem — Tue, 08 Aug 2017 04:18:32 GMT

RE: What pinball game would YOU want?

plyanthony — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 02:27:59 GMT

I was born in the 90's, so past the whole "pinball era". We played game consoles when I grew up, arcades with pinball machines didn't even cross our minds! I have played very very few real pinball machines in my time. With that said I am super excited to see and get my hands on this kit. For people like me and in my age range I would suggest to put an emphasis on the story mode. Make it really known to the player that they are progressing in some way by doing certain things on the table, like record sound bytes by you guys saying "HIT THIS OVER HERE!" or "PUT THE BALL OVER THERE!".Or with the use of light up arrows. For people who never had real pinball in their lifetime it would help them acknowledge that there is an actual game to it and a "story" and how to progress. As for the theme Im thinking a "spy" or "secret agent" theme, like a mix of James Bond seriousness with the comedic effects of Archer mixed in. Who doesn't want to be a spy!

RE: What pinball game would YOU want?

rask4p — Tue, 04 Jul 2017 19:59:48 GMT

I can't wait to see how the kit turns out! For features, slings and pops are essential I find games feel anemic without them. Ramps are optional for me, but not everyone likes street level games. Drop targets would be great! The biggest must have in my mind is RGB LEDs! The code can get so much more complete if we create color coded modes!

RE: What pinball game would YOU want?

f5kn — Fri, 30 Jun 2017 18:55:52 GMT

As to which features it should have... The ones I find indispensable are pop bumpers, slingshots, drop targets, spinners and ramps.

Habitrails would be cool, but I guess hard to put on a customizable machine. You could have 2 different kinds available for people to add to their machines, though.

EDIT: And of course, blinking lights everywhere.

RE: What pinball game would YOU want?

f5kn — Fri, 30 Jun 2017 18:19:59 GMT

Okay, so I was rewatching the Community Feedback video (this time with a bit more attention and less of an adrenaline rush), and Ben mentions the 2016 Aliens pinball and the P3 pinball to answer my question (not exactly a suggestion, it was kinda unrelated, sorry) on using LCDs in the playfield... That in turn took me to, y'know, go look for those, and upon seeing the P3... They have some neat ideas, but one that Ben might be able to use to make his customizable machine is to attach some obstacles, targets, bumpers and stuff not to the playfield board, but to a structure above it, using different transparent polycarbonate "modules". Then you wouldn't need to make too many holes on the board, thus making it more customizable!

Now, specifically of using LCDs (and I don't think Ben will want to use them, because of costs... dunno, maybe!), Aliens doesn't use them well enough (it's just an effin' screen with video running on it, same as in the backbox) and the P3 is too much of a "video game", the actual pinball parts are around the screen, surrounding it. My idea is (now) to put obstacles on top of the screen, again, attached to a structure above it.

RE: What pinball game would YOU want?

ninjatrent — Thu, 29 Jun 2017 13:56:06 GMT

The Bill Paxton's Pinball Machine was an awesome. A Bruce Campbell's Evil Pinball would be epic.

An undead zombie apocalypse theme is one suggestion I have for future designs.

Another would be for a Retro Video Game Theme with graphics similar to what was used in game systems such as NES and Sega Genesis incorporated into the score keeping, lighting, and overall theme of the design. The recent popularity of the "8-bit" pixelated style of animation would be an interesting aspect to bring to Pinball. Many early video games were designed with simple mechanics and simple themes but to this day are still very popular. The theme, characters, and aspects such music, graphics, and playability are often critical factors of a games overall success and popularity. I would really like to see current technologies such as RGB LED, OLED, eInk, LCD, UV LED, EL Wire and Panels and similar used in a design such as this.

I have a similar idea for a RetroPie console and LCD display in a picture frame as a low power functional art installation.

Thank you Karen, Ben, Felix, and Max for doing projects like this and all the work required to make the show. This show is how I learned about the Element 14 community. The projects that the team have made possible are inspiring and I look forward to future episodes.

Trent

PS tell Ben the beard is awesome and he should let it grow out if he wants to. Very suiting for an infamous pirate of electronics. Like Red Beard the Solderer. Yarr!!! There is hacking to be done in these circuits! No retro game console is safe from his plunder. Sorry, regrettable acting is cool.

RE: What pinball game would YOU want?

ninjatrent — Thu, 29 Jun 2017 06:09:40 GMT

Air hockey is fun, and the tech involved is very cool. I was a huge fan of the UV reactive tables.

RE: What pinball game would YOU want?

rouverius — Thu, 29 Jun 2017 04:37:20 GMT

Here's a totally out of the box idea.
2 Player Pinball Game
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUE3zWnZbTo

Two pinball fields head to head with no backer board.

So, it's a bit like the plywood love child of pinball and air hockey.

She's got the concept but lacking any electronics for the project.

Might be interesting to reach out to her and see about a collaborative build.

RE: What pinball game would YOU want?

f5kn — Wed, 28 Jun 2017 15:28:53 GMT

My comment got selected! Yaaay!

RE: What pinball game would YOU want?

beacon_dave — Sat, 24 Jun 2017 11:26:51 GMT

Spotted this 'Pirates of the Caribbean' pinball machine build in this quarter's ft:pedia magazine, which may be of some interest to followers of this project

http://www.ftcommunity.de/ftpedia_ausgaben/ftpedia-2017-2.pdf#page=74

It looks like it has been inspired by the Fischertechnik Robo TXT Electropneumatic construction kit.

https://www.fischertechnik.de/en/products/playing/robotics/516186-robotics-txt-electropneumatic

RE: What pinball game would YOU want?

ninjatrent — Fri, 16 Jun 2017 12:58:10 GMT

Awesome! Thanks for sharing the link. Anyone spot me $5000? It's for a good cause.

RE: What pinball game would YOU want?

grahambest — Fri, 16 Jun 2017 05:27:10 GMT

Yes, so would I, but I don't have $5,600.

Disney TRON Legacy Pinball

What pinball game would YOU want?

makerkaren — Fri, 31 Mar 2017 20:30:37 GMT

element14's The Ben Heck Show

Join the Ben Heck team every week for amazing hacks! Watch them build and mod community-inspired projects using electronics!

Back to The Ben Heck Show homepage

Mini Pinball Kit

Featured Bonus Content

See All Episodes

I've been to a reasonable amount of arcades throughout my life. I spent quite a few days slinging quarters into machines at Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum. Despite this, I never paid much attention to pinball games. I wasn't very good at them. A lot were more expensive to play than other video games. I never became interested or invested. Working alongside Pinhead Ben here, it's difficult to not be cured of that. With his passion for pinball, I've learned a lot about the games through osmosis. One thing I didn't realize, was how well thought out the themes, storylines, and gameplay were. I always thought you just hit a ball around, get points for hitting things, and that was it. With some nice artwork to make it enticing. Boy, was I underestimating the creativity that goes into these things.

Most pinball games have a theme; over the last 30 years or so, they are more commonly licensed themes such as a TV show, movie, or band. Within that theme, there is a sort of storyline or modes that you have to play through to get the chance to beat the game. Hitting different targets and getting to different lanes of the playfield gets you more points and unlocks missions that you can complete to work your way through to the next mode. Progressing to the next mode will frequently enable a new, interesting mechanism such as opening up a door or a monster appearing. Since beginning working with Ben, I've paid more attention to the games, figuring out exactly what I need to hit and when to make things happen and progress through the game. It really can be a game of skill, not just chance.

For our mini pinball kit, we don't have any themes in mind. Licensing is expensive, so we likely won't be able to support any themes that are properties of Warner Bros, Marvel, Disney, or even smaller outfits with more niche characters and titles, but that doesn't mean we can't get creative with our themes.

What theme would you want in YOUR pinball game? Can you come up with a storyline with corresponding mechs to keep it interesting? Do you have any questions about pinball game development?

Tell us in the comments below!

RE: What pinball game would YOU want?

grahambest — Fri, 16 Jun 2017 05:21:52 GMT

If you really want to give people a chance to design a table, you might as use one of the existing programs that allow you to play them to see how they feel. Two examples are Future Pinball or Visual Pinball

RE: What pinball game would YOU want?

ninjatrent — Fri, 16 Jun 2017 00:01:08 GMT

Selfies of my angry video game face.

RE: What pinball game would YOU want?

ninjatrent — Thu, 15 Jun 2017 23:59:09 GMT

I would like to own a Tron pinball machine if one was ever made. It would really be cool to upgrade the lighting and electronics with modern technology such as El wire, RGB LED, UV LED, Lasers, Matte Black and UV reactive paint scheme with some holographic print graphics would be awesome. I want the experience to be as if the user begins quest in Flynn's Arcade with the sound of top 10 80's music blasting over the sounds of bells, whistles, and video game nostalgia.

Time to fire up the Retro Pi.

A Lawnmower Man pinball machine is another on my strange wishlist of things.