Greetings from a life long gamer

mewzard

Member
Apr 18, 2015
77
0
Hey there, figured I might introduce myself before getting to the posting.

My name's Colton, but I go by Mewzard on the internet. I've been a gamer for pretty much all my life (had a NES back when I was 1-2 at the tail-end of the 80s, played PC games, Console games, Board games, Arcade games, etc). I did, naturally, occasionally dip into the world of pinball. While my real life experiences with them are quite limited sadly (I do remember a pinball table that gave you baseball cards being at a restaurant a few blocks away as my most commonly played), I got more time with virtual tables, like the 3D Space Cadet that came with so many computers for a number of years, one called Enigma that I remember getting at a Blockbuster Video, and even some Sonic Spinball (it may or may not count, but hey, it was memorable).

Not the most impressive resume, but availability was always my issue. Just couldn't hit the arcades enough (and damn those tempting 90s Arcade Cabinets for eating so much of my time) and few restaurants we went to, but I always wanted to play more. Well, I got my first modern urge when I noticed Zen Pinball on the WiiU. Got that and a few tables, and enjoyed that experience, but I wanted more, since it was fun. Discovering the Pinball Arcade was "coming to the WiiU" quickly became "downloading on Steam". After trying out a few tables, and finally having a job, I unconsciously decided to be fiscally irresponsible, and within two days had all four Seasons of tables on my Steam account (pro versions if you must know, didn't know if I'd want the features later or not).

After a while of playing with Keyboard and mouse, I finally got a controller to use, and am now enjoying the experience of a metric ton of pinball and regretting not sinking more quarters into some of these tables back in the day.

Well, that and having a dated computer if the lag in the DX11 beta is any sign for me.

Anyways, nice to meet you guys! Hope we can have some fun conversations about Ye Olde Virtuale Pinballe.
 

Dedpop

Active member
Jun 3, 2014
4,284
0
9196b91a.gif
 

workshed

New member
Feb 26, 2015
227
0
Welcome! The controller should make nudging much more controllable, and that will become important. Don't be afraid to converse about Virtual Pinball, that is of course why we are all here.
 

mewzard

Member
Apr 18, 2015
77
0
Thanks for the greetings!

I'm very new to nudging. I was too terrified to even try on actual pinball machines as a kid (who wouldn't want to break a machine that costs an army and a leg), and for some reason, my experience in Space Cadet always seemed to insta-tilt me (I can't remember why, I haven't had a computer with that game on it in ages), so the Pinball Arcade was my first time actually nudging with any success (I learned of nudging as a technique while trying to figure out how to avoid unsavable balls/how to do better in general).

I had to resort to using the mouse buttons for the flippers because trying to pinky the shift keys while using the main fingers on WASD was not really working for me. So yeah, the controller is helping me a lot in that regard (the triggers are certainly a lot closer to the Pinball experience than a mouse, that's for sure, lol).
 

workshed

New member
Feb 26, 2015
227
0
Thanks for the greetings!

I'm very new to nudging. I was too terrified to even try on actual pinball machines as a kid (who wouldn't want to break a machine that costs an army and a leg), and for some reason, my experience in Space Cadet always seemed to insta-tilt me (I can't remember why, I haven't had a computer with that game on it in ages), so the Pinball Arcade was my first time actually nudging with any success (I learned of nudging as a technique while trying to figure out how to avoid unsavable balls/how to do better in general).

I had to resort to using the mouse buttons for the flippers because trying to pinky the shift keys while using the main fingers on WASD was not really working for me. So yeah, the controller is helping me a lot in that regard (the triggers are certainly a lot closer to the Pinball experience than a mouse, that's for sure, lol).

I like the bumpers to control the flippers, not the triggers. The triggers have too much play for me, at least on PC where I have played with a PS3 controller and a XBox 360 controller. I usually play PS4 these days and much prefer the bumpers to the triggers, although the loss of the ability to stage flippers with the bumpers between the PS3 and PS4 is unfortunate.
 

mewzard

Member
Apr 18, 2015
77
0
Hello!

I suppose I can see your point, though I do feel like the fingers rest a bit more naturally on the triggers. I try not to get into too many weird hand positions (why I changed the button layouts for NES and N64 games on the WiiU gamepad to reflect how I would use the old controllers).
 

mpad

New member
Jan 26, 2014
1,398
0
Hi.
If you are a handy man build your own controller. There is one great thread around here. Or if you decide to be fiscally irresponsible again build a cabinet
 

mewzard

Member
Apr 18, 2015
77
0
Thanks for the greetings!

Not much of a handy man, but I suppose my dad could help me. Custom fabrication is his specialty (though he doesn't usually work with electrical stuff).

Building a Cabinet would be awesome, but it might also be a bit extreme, lol. Maybe if we ever build a bar for the house, we can build one for entertainment.
 

Extork

New member
Mar 14, 2013
1,811
0
Thanks for the warm welcome!

It's kind of like you said, we are all here for the same reason. Digital pinball, or real pinball. TPA is the main thing. Just like the real thing, there's always more that you can learn. About scoring. Well I'm just glad to have a new member that isn't like, it's all the same you just keep a ball alive and get points so it's all exactly the same. Sad thing is, there is no way to convince our 'everyday friends' how cool pinball is, and why we get that rush. Everyone's got their thing. You'll notice that people that have played pinball in the past are easier to convince to play TPA (Espescially with the free table of the month). Well I'm not saying anything new to you. We are fanatics. You've come to the right place. No one here is going to judge you. You could be into the crappyiest machine, and we'd still root for you. Because that's what TPA is, preserving the machines that people remember and want to play. So don't think that you opinion means nothing. Well I hope you have a good time here. And remember, your opinion matters! No matter what you have played in the past
 

mewzard

Member
Apr 18, 2015
77
0
It's always nice to have a shared passion for something, be it sports, movies, music, or games of some sort. The internet gave me a bit more in the way of that when it came to my love of comics (I got to talk to people who shared my interested in those things, whereas my local friends shared other interests with me).

I suppose a love of pinball is almost a niche within a niche, but that's fine. We all have those little things that excite us.

Thanks for the warm welcome!
 

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