What's so special about a SPECIAL?

RetroBlast · Apr 26, 2012

I have been wondering what you get when you get a SPECIAL ... in real life, you get a free game, but since you are not dropping quarters to play this game, it would be pointless to earn a SPECIAL ... then I thought, maybe you are awarded an extra ball if you get a SPECIAL but in the heat of battle I have never been able to confirm that. So I am asking WHAT DO YOU GET WHEN YOU EARN A SPECIAL?

Jan Duin · Apr 26, 2012

You get an extra ball, which in a way makes playing tables like Ripley's easier than in real life.
In Pinball HOF you we're given credits to unlock other tables iirc. It would be nice if you could save Special credits to unlcok extra content.

goforthewall · Apr 26, 2012

alternately it would be great to use earned credits for buy-in games, where you can extend a great game by one extra ball for the price of a game... Of course buy-in achieved scores would have to be made visible in the leaderboards! We discussed that concept in the wish list thread...

superballs · Apr 26, 2012

I think being able to use credits earned to activate "arcade mode" where you could play the game using the coin-op roms would be cool

RetroBlast · Apr 26, 2012

Thanks, I'm happy it was confirmed a SPECIAL earns an extra ball. I'm not sure how the mechanics of CREDIT play works, so I'm not sure if Iike it or not.

superballs · Apr 26, 2012

In Credit play, a special earns an extra ball,
There are some tables like Eight Ball Deluxe where it can be set to a point value instead ( I think in that instance it's actually a whopping 40,000 points)

SqueakyG · Apr 26, 2012

In FarSight's retail Gottlieb and Williams collections a Special would give you a free game just like real life, which was useful if you were using the in-game credits to play tables while they were still locked. Of course you eventually got to a point where you'd unlocked all the tables for free-play by completing goals and stuff, so it didn't matter.

In TPA they're not using a credits system at all - you buy the tables and they're free-to-play, so free game awards mean nothing. It might have been interesting if Specials gave you virtual-quarters which you could then use to have full games on trial tables you haven't bought. But that would be very difficult for FarSight to balance in their economic model!

RetroBlast · Apr 27, 2012

Hehe, don't expect that option coming anytime soon! Now a SPECIAL is even more special to me ... as I used to play and get the SPECIAL, and was thinking, geeez, I hope that's a free ball, but I never knew for sure ...

Credits? Here is how I think they should work in TPA ... earn a special, earn a credit, use credits in wagers against opponents in online head to head play ... credits can then be used to buy skins for your balls ... have a shiny red or orange ball, or a glowing white one ... credits can also be used buy other things in the in game store such as avatars, wall papers, etc.

There are other things I can think of like being able to pimp out your table with added LEDs on the table ... but to be honest, I do not think Farsight would go for something like that as it would change the tables appearance and since one of the biggest draws of the game is that you are playing authentic tables with authentic rules, I do not think modifying anything on the table or its rules will ever be allowed.

IdontHave50cents · Apr 27, 2012

RetroBlast said:
Hehe, don't expect that option coming anytime soon! Now a SPECIAL is even more special to me ... as I used to play and get the SPECIAL, and was thinking, geeez, I hope that's a free ball, but I never knew for sure ...

Credits? Here is how I think they should work in TPA ... earn a special, earn a credit, use credits in wagers against opponents in online head to head play ... credits can then be used to buy skins for your balls ... have a shiny red or orange ball, or a glowing white one ... credits can also be used buy other things in the in game store such as avatars, wall papers, etc.

There are other things I can think of like being able to pimp out your table with added LEDs on the table ... but to be honest, I do not think Farsight would go for something like that as it would change the tables appearance and since one of the biggest draws of the game is that you are playing authentic tables with authentic rules, I do not think modifying anything on the table or its rules will ever be allowed.

I like all these suggestions. And I wouldn't mind playing modified tables for fun using credits. If the physics or gameplay changed, scores from the modded pins could have disabled leaderboard scoring. It just dawned on me after reading this thread that people were getting elevated high scores due to getting extra balls for special instead of a extra game.

RetroBlast · Apr 28, 2012

Its fun to dream, who knows what can happen! I like the table THE BLACK HOLE, and actually earning the special is quite easy in that game, but once you light the special and nab it, it vanishes and you have to go through the steps again. On the other hand, on that table, once you light the extra ball, you can nab it two times and if you lose your ball, it remains lit until you knock down the light blue drop targets in the lower black hole portion of the table. On that particular table, you need all the extra balls you can muster up to get a nice score.

Rudy Yagov · Apr 28, 2012

Black Hole is one table I wish didn't have extra ball specials. It's way too easy to get them in that game. At one point, I had so many extra balls that the ball counter started going backwards (which it shouldn't do), then eventually disappeared (which it really shouldn't do).

RetroBlast · Apr 28, 2012

For me, its a real challenge, even with the extra balls, I need them ... and because the game is not a high scorer like ToM, I don't mind the special extra balls. You know, for the first time in 22 years I played real pinball tonight (check out the real pinball section) I was watching a guy do flipper passes and if I can do that in TBA, it will open a world of possibilities for me ... as of now, I have only done dead flipper passes.

heybuddy · Apr 28, 2012

Correct me if I'm wrong, but after watching some Kerwin vids he's mentioned that if a game is on Free Play, the game shifts to awarding EBs for what would normally be a Replay.

Plus, isn't that what's awarded in Tournament Play? You're essentially playing one game so the replay is moot. Would rather get the EB to raise my score. What's going to suck is when I play the next pin IRL and expect an EB when I get a replay.

heybuddy · Apr 28, 2012

Jan Duin said:
It would be nice if you could save Special credits to unlcok extra content.

THIS.

Not a bad idea instead of just releasing flyers, etc.; that or maybe add unlocking a way to play video mode (i.e. FT's SeaWolf-style video mode) unattached from the game, etc.

Richard B · Sep 15, 2012

What's so special about Specials?

Specials are usually regarded as one of the biggest rewards offered in pinball, but they are usually not worth very many points, nor do they appear to do anything else that's really valuable (except give an extra ball on some TPA tables). So, why is it they are held in such high regard?

Tony C · Sep 15, 2012

They are usually worth a free game and only available after a considerable amount of work during the game. Even on free play at home, it's still rewarding to hear the knocker and know that I got something back from the operator.

In TPA, it gives you another extra ball which is always helpful, too.

Jeff Strong · Sep 15, 2012

Richard B: I merged your thread with this older one.

mmmagnetic · Sep 16, 2012

That's funny - I never really knew what a special was either, and never even bothered to check. Now I know

Matt McIrvin · Sep 16, 2012

Generally speaking, pinball machines have the award for a Special (and for the Replay value) as an operator setting. I think that on the emulated tables, all Farsight had to do to get them to award extra balls instead was to adjust that setting.

While most real-life tables are set to award free games, I think the option exists to have them award extra balls instead to deal with jurisdictions where free-game awards are forbidden by the gambling laws (I'd guess you can disable the match too). In the electromechanical era, there were actually separate versions of the tables made for this purpose.

Fungi · Sep 16, 2012

Ah, all this time, I never realized why the term "special" was used instead of "free game" or "credit" until now. And now I know. And knowing is half the battle.

What's so special about a SPECIAL?

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