Rate tables in Season 4

Haven't bought season 4 just yet but will in a day or two. I was making sure the Jack*Bot conversion came out well (unlike HRC which sank season 3 for me) and it did. BTW, you can totally reach Casino Run in the unpurchased trial version.

HS2 has the wizard mode in Red Line Mania which makes all the difference over HS1. There's always a clear objective to reach and a substantial payout for it, unlike HS's paltry jackpot.

I'm waiting for all the tables before I rate them. My favorite so far is TPZ, when all is said and done Jack*Bot might end up the winner.

EldarOfSuburbia said:

I'm waiting for all the tables before I rate them. My favorite so far is TPZ, when all is said and done Jack*Bot might end up the winner.

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TPZ better than TAF
Alright if you say so lol

1. Xenon (at least I hope it will be great )
2. The Addams Family
3. Jack-bot
4. Earthshaker
5. Starship Troopers
6. Cyclone
7. Party Zone
8. Phantom of the Opera

So far, season 4 has had only 2 tables that I think have real staying power for me (this is before the last 3 so more can still be added here)
Season 3 had 3 tables with that extra apeal for me. Fish Tales, Dracula and High Speed, but the rest of the pack was better than the bottom in season 4. Mainly only physics problems that keep me away for most of them
Season 2 had Centaur, Whirlwind, White Water, Flight 2000, Firepower, pinbot and Terminator 2. All of them fun to revisit for me. Even though season 2 is the one with most of my lowest rated tables(6-7 Gottlieb tables), half of the rest of the season was still really good. Pity about the physics in Cactus Canyon and Champion pub
Season 1 is of course the clear winner, but that was never in question. We knew that it would be impossible to match sess 1 already before season 2 started.

Closing thoughts: With a strong finish, season 4 can almost match season 3. I also believe that season 5 will have no trouble keeping up with season 4. Still a lot of great tables out there.

1. Jack-Bot
2. Addams Family
3. Starship Troopers
4. Earthshaker
5. Party Zone
6. Phantom of the Opera
7. Cyclone

I dig Starship Troopers /shrug

I like all of the tables thus far, no real clunkers. Still waiting for this Seasons Light Camera Action, but maybe it wont happen.

Hopefully the two tables after Xenon really pick up Season 4,.

My current ranking:

1. Jack*Bot
..........
2. Addams Family
3. Starship Troopers
4. Phantom of the Opera
5. Party Zone
6. Earthshaker
7. Cyclone

pm1109 said:

Maybe you should start learning them if you intend to stay active in this forum

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I am active in the forum and have been for long. Still, I always have to think for a few seconds what ST or BSD means, so Rich is absolutely right. Wasn't there a mouse-over function for those (horrible) abbreviations before?

I understand the need of writing short hand once in a while but still Addams or TAF. Starship vs ST. Dracula vs BSD. It's not that difficult (have to admit I succumb to it once in a while as well). The comment about you had to write "Ripleys believe it or not" or whatnot is just ridiculous. RBION or Ripleys? Compare the time to write to readability!

1. Addams Family (nostalgia + sound + game play)
2. Starship Troopers (great game play)
3. Earthshaker
4. Party Zone (fun table but with no real character in my opinion)
5. Cyclone (just plain boring)
99. Phantom of the Opera

Storm Chaser said:

Still, I always have to think for a few seconds what ST or BSD means, so Rich is absolutely right. Wasn't there a mouse-over function for those (horrible) abbreviations before?

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There was, but consensus opinion was that it looked more cluttered than helpful. And it would add confusion, putting up Monster Bash when someone used MB to mean multiball, or the wrong table for one of the overloaded abbreviations CP or SS or WW.

And yeah, I always use a word when it fits well. Creature or Addams or Ripleys or Phantom for short. A few tables don't work well with a single word, like Attack From Mars, but they do tend to be the more popular and recognized abbreviations.

Storm Chaser said:

The comment about you had to write "Ripleys believe it or not" or whatnot is just ridiculous. RBION or Ripleys? Compare the time to write to readability!

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Actually, that's a great point. I think Ripley's is just fine. In that same vein, Creature is ok to. I get it and it's not CftBL gobbledy-gook.

Storm Chaser said:

I am active in the forum and have been for long. Still, I always have to think for a few seconds what ST or BSD means, so Rich is absolutely right. Wasn't there a mouse-over function for those (horrible) abbreviations before?

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Well, ST means nothing (it could be Star Trek). Use SST for Starship Troopers. Note that www.ipdb.org has a "Common Abbreviations" field.

The alphabet soup always just struck me as enthusiasts practicing some exclusionary code-talking to feel distinguished from the plebs.

1. Addams Family
2. Starship Troopers
3. Cyclone
4. Jack-Bot
5. Earthshaker
6. Party Zone
7. Phantom of the Opera

Nolan said:

The alphabet soup always just struck me as enthusiasts practicing some exclusionary code-talking to feel distinguished from the plebs.

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I always do it just because I'm very lazy. I'd rather type POTO than the other thing. Although I think from now on, I'm just gonna go with the most recognizable word. Like Addams or Phantom. I mean, I really have no other choice with tables like Genie or Cyclone.

at first the acronyms were tough and hard to decipher. but I caught on fairly quick. it helps that most of the time the acronyms people are using are mostly tables from tpa. when someone uses an acronym from an un released table it does get a lil confusing sometimes. example : (bttf = back to the future) that one always gets me.

also, when I myself use acronyms, I often get mm and mb mixed up when i'm typing, or even reading them.

didn't jeff and Montana frank make a thread listing the commonly used acronyms?

1. Jack*Bot
2. Party Zone
3. Addams Family
4. Cyclone
5. Earthshaker
6. Starship Troopers
7. Phantom of the Opera

I have to admit that I haven't spent as much time with 5-7, however, so the order may change in the near future!

Fungi said:

I always do it just because I'm very lazy. I'd rather type POTO than the other thing. Although I think from now on, I'm just gonna go with the most recognizable word. Like Addams or Phantom. I mean, I really have no other choice with tables like Genie or Cyclone.

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I remember my head spinning when I was new here trying to figure out what the hell people were talking about. So my negative perception is probably just a result of that frustration.

This forum was never had hard to follow as some of the other pinball sites though, like Pinside, where trying to follow along could lead to a stroke.

RBION and TOTAN are the worse for me.

Dedpop said:

RBION and TOTAN are the worse for me.

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And from now on, I am calling those Ripley's and Arabian Nights. I can't go with just Arabian or Nights. That just sounds douchy.

I remember having great fun playing TAORABAF at my local arcade 20 years ago.