Which tables are NOT a possibility?

Since Data East and Sega tables are included under the Stern license, FarSight has the ability to pursue any machine manufactured by the Big Six. But what does that leave out? The way I figure it, there aren't many great tables excluded from FarSight's licensing agreements. I'm sure it would be difficult to get Disney to allow Pirates of the Caribbean or TRON: Legacy, but most of the newest tables would be tough due to emulation differences, anyway. George Lucas whores out his Star Wars and Indiana Jones IPs to all kinds of products, from convenience store novelty suckers to weird LEGO cross-promotion, so as long as FarSight coughs up the cash, Star Wars by Data East or Indiana Jones the Pinball Adventure by Williams should be relatively easy to acquire.

The Capcom tables are out, of course, but that's really just Big Bang Bar and Pinball Magic. Unless you count Airborne, that is, but Williams already has a better fighter jet table with F-14 anyway.

Atari had Superman, Hercules, The Atarians, and a handful of others, but none were that good. Zaccaria's only noteworthy table in the US was Farfalla, and Mars Trek or Butterfly from Sonic are probably too old (both EM tables) for anyone to care. Mystery Castle from Alvin G. would have been nice, but again, there are similar and superior tables under the Williams and Gottlieb licenses.

Game Plan has a handful of noteworthy machines that we won't get a chance to play, like Andromeda, Cyclopes, and Agents 777. And while Unidesa was a Spanish/European manufacturer, I must admit that Mephisto was a dang cool table. Still, the point here is that FarSight has covered 99% of the great machines in its four primary licenses. There won't be much that we can't get, so I hope FarSight keeps TPA going for a few years to cover my Top 100 or so.... Here's hoping.

Taking the money out of the proposition, and just look at willingness/possibility of acquiring licenses: Guns and Roses, anything Marvel (and by extension Disney?) is out due to Zen Studios, pinball 2000 tables, and very very likely any table Stern still produces and sells.

The only Marvel table I would care to see in TPA would be Spider-Man anyway, but even it wouldn't be a top priority. The new X-Men machines are cool, but I don't think anyone really expected it to make it into FarSight's collection of classics, with or without the Zen deal.

Any chance in hell at cross-promoting Jersey Jack's new Wizard of Oz table by including it in TPA? Probably not, but otherwise, I don't know how I would ever play it... Shame.

JoshuaKadmon said:

Any chance in hell at cross-promoting Jersey Jack's new Wizard of Oz table by including it in TPA? Probably not, but otherwise, I don't know how I would ever play it... Shame.

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From what I understand, that 26" LCD in Wizard of Oz is an integral part of gameplay. Unlike a DMD, it's not going to fit in a corner, so I'm not sure how FarSight would get both the LCD and the actual table on the screen - especially on mobile devices.

bavelb said:

anything Marvel (and by extension Disney?) is out due to Zen Studios.

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I heard that Zen's license covers only original tables, and doesn't necessarily exclude FS from acquiring it for recreations. Even if Disney won't give FS license for Marvel, that shouldn't affect other Disney properties, such as Tron and Pirates. However, all the Stern Disney and Marvel tables use SAM, which is not emulated yet.

During research I discovered a Rolling Stones pinball table , that's the kinda music license that would make age 40 something rockers buy a PS3 to play . Once the Twilight Zone is released FarSight will watch closely and see how it affected the sales and the game's overall popularity , the results will determine how viable a expensive license is on their overall bottomline . For the record I'm for any new Pinball table that gets more people into the game , it's all the same to me as a 100% supporter of this game .

I doubt we will see T2.

Sinistar said:

During research I discovered a Rolling Stones pinball table , that's the kinda music license that would make age 40 something rockers buy a PS3 to play.

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I'm a 40 something rocker and would love to see the rolling stones pinball table. As long as it is the Bally version from the early 80's. The new stern version with the Mick figure going back and forth makes me ill.

The Gottlieb Super Mario Bros machine. I can't see this ever happening considering how protective Nintendo is with their icons.

Hah, yeah. That one was so far outside the realm of possibility that I hadn't even considered it.

JoshuaKadmon said:

The Capcom tables are out, of course, but that's really just Big Bang Bar and Pinball Magic. Unless you count Airborne, that is, but Williams already has a better fighter jet table with F-14 anyway.

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And Breakshot, and Kingpin, and Pinball Circus...

Kingpin and Pinball Circus are unlikely just due to rarity, though.

That's a shame. Kingpin is really fun.

We probably won't see a Space Invaders pinball table (unfortunately).

I believe there was a lawsuit from Fox with the Alien on the back glass being a huge rip-off of Giger's artwork.



I also don't think NAMCO is keen on letting other companies use their Pac-Man license.
So no on...



or on:

I don't want to speculate, I want Farsight to tell us which tables just won't happen, so we can know, and make our peace with them, and not wonder forever.

JoshuaKadmon said:

Atari had Superman, Hercules, The Atarians, and a handful of others, but none were that good.

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I might be kind of interested in the Atari tables; at the very least, they looked great. But you're right; the level of interest in them is probably not enough for Farsight to try to chase down the IP.

pseudokings said:

I don't want to speculate, I want Farsight to tell us which tables just won't happen, so we can know, and make our peace with them, and not wonder forever.

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Well, that's kind of the point... I doubt FarSight would waste time detailing which tables NOT to expect in their game, but most of them are clear based on common sense anyway. So I'd rather put them on the table now and make our peace that way, then turn our full attention and anticipation towards the viable machines.

Matt McIrvin said:

I might be kind of interested in the Atari tables; at the very least, they looked great. But you're right; the level of interest in them is probably not enough for Farsight to try to chase down the IP.

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The Atari tables tend to look better than they play, unfortunately. And since Atari is still an active publisher (not so much a developer anymore), I doubt they would be any more flexible with their licenses than Capcom, Namco, or Nintendo. Since you can't try the Atari tables in real life hardly anywhere now, you might as well satisfy your curiosity through emulation...

I actually did encounter a Superman recently; they've got one at Funspot. But I didn't get familiar enough with it to say much about the gameplay. It seemed to drain pretty fast.

JoshuaKadmon said:

Well, that's kind of the point... I doubt FarSight would waste time detailing which tables NOT to expect in their game, but most of them are clear based on common sense anyway. So I'd rather put them on the table now and make our peace that way, then turn our full attention and anticipation towards the viable machines.

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Speculation is speculation. Sometimes deals get done even against the longest of odds. Until FS says yes or no, all the common sense in the world doesn't mean we will 100% for sure not get table X. And a thread speculating about what we won't get tells anyone from FS looking that we don't expect X table, so it's okay to not try and make it happen. A couple of phone calls by the guy who makes the licensing phone calls that come up with a "no" isn't pulling anyone in the process of making a table for TPA away from their duties.

I want Capcom tables. I want Atari's Superman (as a representative). I want Farfalla (as a representative), I want Addams. And Indy. I want them to at least try. That's our job as fans, IMO, to get them to make the best software, and "preserve" the best tables, not just the ones that don't kick up any fuss.

I'm also all for putting my anticipation toward the tables that really are coming, but I want the people who actually know what is and isn't coming/possible, because they've been actually doing their do-diligence to figure that out, because they're the ones making the product, to tell us what is and what is not viable, instead of a bunch of speculation based on "common sense", which I find has far too varied a definition to ever truly rely on. If Farsight is 100% sure they won't be able to do a particular table, it is what it is, and they should just tell us, but THEY should tell us, instead of us telling them what we "know" they won't be able to do.

Doctor Who is an example of a long shot, with the necessity of getting permission from the estates of all seven doctors in addition to the standard stuff. But in my opinion, it's a waste of resources and fan anticipation to wish for Capcom tables. FarSight is doing more than any company would ever be expected to do. They're jumping through hoops that most companies would walk away from without trying.

The point of the thread was to point out which ones won't likely happen and also pay respect to the fact that FarSight has covered all the necessary fronts to craft a perfect collection in spite of those obstacles. Why would you set yourself up for disappointment by asking for "representatives" from companies that don't necessarily need to be represented? I'm extremely OCD about my collecting and listing of favorites, but even though I include Atari, Capcom, Zaccaria, Game Plan, Alvin G, Sonic, Hankin, and Unidesa tables in my personal Top 100, I can let go of those personal hang-ups out of respect to FarSight's vision. It's not just speculation. It's educated analysis, and if FarSight proves us wrong in the future, I would rather be pleasantly surprised than constantly disappointed.

Oh, and pseudokings, I never said big licenses like Addams Family and Indiana Jones: The Pinball Adventure wouldn't happen. In fact, I just told someone today that if I were betting good money on FarSight's next licensing pursuits, those two would be the highest priority. I EXPECT FarSight to try for those. That is their responsibility, as they have laid the groundwork for licenses like that to actually be viable. Pursuing Capcom and Atari is not a responsibility; it would be going above and beyond only once the higher-priority Williams, Bally, Gottlieb, Stern, Data East, and Sega tables have been exhausted.

Again, just my opinion. I respect yours and am not trying to be argumentative.