New Xmen Code 1.5 Finally Out!!
- Thread starter quarter grabber
- Start date
-=RCade's=- X-Men v1.5 changes and rules!!
link: http://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/ ... st-1446547
-------GENERAL STUFFS-------
- hitting the Magneto shot during MagsMB now has text saying that he has recharged all hero shots.
- attract sounds
- instant info now displays total combos, unique combo count and how much combos until Deadpool.
- MagsMB has it's scoring scaled more now. Rather than 1mil a shot at full value (all heroes collected) he awards 1.6 mil a shot at full value. The SJP and the victory laps have been increased as well
- Wolvie WXMB is still the same it seems, but now he has scaling scoring dependent upon how many times you've beaten his mode.
- end of game light show has changed. I don't remember there being a flasher show with GI out at the end of v1.3
- Gambit pops animation has had it's priority VS other animations reduced, seemingly.
- Gambit hurry up is now worth BIG points! Hurry up now starts at 15mil rather than 3mil as it was in 1.3. This, I think, is awesome. Gambit hurry up is a super satisfying shot to hit, and should be given a great reward for getting it quick!
- Previously complete hero modes now have scaling scoring. Re-completing hero modes are worth more point each subsequent completion.
- "Wizard multiball" mode is still in the game and qualified still by playing DP and DR and beating Mags. Nothing has changed here no animations and the "Lonnie Special" special for rules, except for the music being different. This mode seems awkward now considering how points rich DP and DR are and how low comparatively the scoring is for Wizard Multiball. But I'm fine with this, because the chances of reaching this in legit play is pretty slim.
----------DEADPOOL---------
-Deadpool is in. He starts first at 15 combos, and then you can re-hire him at every 10 combos after.
-You can "hire" Deadpool while in non-villain mode play, he will activate immediately on the next villain mode you choose. If you hire him while in a villain mode, he will start immediately, so it's best to keep track of how close you are to hiring him and put off hiring him Until you're not in a villain mode to make sure you get full value out of him.
- While hired, the playfield flashers will pulse to signify he's available
-he seems to be switch based. Every switch on the playfield, from what I can tell, goes towards some total, and when you hit that total, he does extra damage to the villain, even if you're not hitting the villain shots. Usually you will see a DMD animation that says "Deadpool has helped you!", or something like that, and Deadpool will say some smart ass remark. This seems to make Clops' spinner MELT through villain modes because each spinner switch hits adds up quick.
-he is active until you finish the villain he is helping you on. After you beat the villain or lose your ball during the mode, Deadpool is gone and you must "re-hire" him.
Pretty good addition, IMO. With Deadpool now you can absolutely DEMOLISH the villain multiball modes. Really helps a lot on Shadow King too.
---------DARK PHOENIX--------
The DP rules are most similar to Power Down in JM. The idea being that DP is going to destroy the city, and the X-Men have to stave her off for a certain amount of time until her rage ends.
-DP is a 3 ball mode, but you play it one ball at a time. This will make sense, read on....
-the "city" is split into 3 "sections", and each section has a timer attached to it. The timers all count down independently and start at 118 secs each.
- each switch on the playfield is "attached" to a certain section of the city, and each switch will add a certain amount of time each hit to the section of the city it's attached to.
- each time you drain a ball, one section of the city gets destroyed and the next ball is ejected. Thus this is why it's a three ball mode. After you drain the third ball, you fail and the mode ends.
- the Hero shots in DP are worth an OBSCENE amount of points. We're talking 6-9mil a shot.
- okay, ready for the "bad" news? The "point" of the mode is to keep at least one section alive for a certain amount of time. In Power Down on JM, the timer is 45 secs to go nuts. In DP, the overall mode timer that you have to keep the sections "alive" through is TEN FREAKING MINUTES!!!! Yup, move over LOTR, there's a new longest mode,lol.
- if you keep at least one section of the city alive through the ten minutes (assuming your attention span is that long) the SJP shot(s) will light. Hit it and collect a SJP proportional to how many sections of the city you still have in-tact. When I collected it with one section left, my SJP was 50mil.
- combos do not get counted while in DP, so no Deadpool for you!
DP is BAR-NONE the biggest scoring opportunity now. Just from my testing (including me just sitting and waiting not hitting any switches while waiting the time out) I finished DP with a MODE total of over 400 million points. Cray-zee.
link: http://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/ ... st-1446547
-------GENERAL STUFFS-------
- hitting the Magneto shot during MagsMB now has text saying that he has recharged all hero shots.
- attract sounds
- instant info now displays total combos, unique combo count and how much combos until Deadpool.
- MagsMB has it's scoring scaled more now. Rather than 1mil a shot at full value (all heroes collected) he awards 1.6 mil a shot at full value. The SJP and the victory laps have been increased as well
- Wolvie WXMB is still the same it seems, but now he has scaling scoring dependent upon how many times you've beaten his mode.
- end of game light show has changed. I don't remember there being a flasher show with GI out at the end of v1.3
- Gambit pops animation has had it's priority VS other animations reduced, seemingly.
- Gambit hurry up is now worth BIG points! Hurry up now starts at 15mil rather than 3mil as it was in 1.3. This, I think, is awesome. Gambit hurry up is a super satisfying shot to hit, and should be given a great reward for getting it quick!
- Previously complete hero modes now have scaling scoring. Re-completing hero modes are worth more point each subsequent completion.
- "Wizard multiball" mode is still in the game and qualified still by playing DP and DR and beating Mags. Nothing has changed here no animations and the "Lonnie Special" special for rules, except for the music being different. This mode seems awkward now considering how points rich DP and DR are and how low comparatively the scoring is for Wizard Multiball. But I'm fine with this, because the chances of reaching this in legit play is pretty slim.
----------DEADPOOL---------
-Deadpool is in. He starts first at 15 combos, and then you can re-hire him at every 10 combos after.
-You can "hire" Deadpool while in non-villain mode play, he will activate immediately on the next villain mode you choose. If you hire him while in a villain mode, he will start immediately, so it's best to keep track of how close you are to hiring him and put off hiring him Until you're not in a villain mode to make sure you get full value out of him.
- While hired, the playfield flashers will pulse to signify he's available
-he seems to be switch based. Every switch on the playfield, from what I can tell, goes towards some total, and when you hit that total, he does extra damage to the villain, even if you're not hitting the villain shots. Usually you will see a DMD animation that says "Deadpool has helped you!", or something like that, and Deadpool will say some smart ass remark. This seems to make Clops' spinner MELT through villain modes because each spinner switch hits adds up quick.
-he is active until you finish the villain he is helping you on. After you beat the villain or lose your ball during the mode, Deadpool is gone and you must "re-hire" him.
Pretty good addition, IMO. With Deadpool now you can absolutely DEMOLISH the villain multiball modes. Really helps a lot on Shadow King too.
---------DARK PHOENIX--------
The DP rules are most similar to Power Down in JM. The idea being that DP is going to destroy the city, and the X-Men have to stave her off for a certain amount of time until her rage ends.
-DP is a 3 ball mode, but you play it one ball at a time. This will make sense, read on....
-the "city" is split into 3 "sections", and each section has a timer attached to it. The timers all count down independently and start at 118 secs each.
- each switch on the playfield is "attached" to a certain section of the city, and each switch will add a certain amount of time each hit to the section of the city it's attached to.
- each time you drain a ball, one section of the city gets destroyed and the next ball is ejected. Thus this is why it's a three ball mode. After you drain the third ball, you fail and the mode ends.
- the Hero shots in DP are worth an OBSCENE amount of points. We're talking 6-9mil a shot.
- okay, ready for the "bad" news? The "point" of the mode is to keep at least one section alive for a certain amount of time. In Power Down on JM, the timer is 45 secs to go nuts. In DP, the overall mode timer that you have to keep the sections "alive" through is TEN FREAKING MINUTES!!!! Yup, move over LOTR, there's a new longest mode,lol.
- if you keep at least one section of the city alive through the ten minutes (assuming your attention span is that long) the SJP shot(s) will light. Hit it and collect a SJP proportional to how many sections of the city you still have in-tact. When I collected it with one section left, my SJP was 50mil.
- combos do not get counted while in DP, so no Deadpool for you!
DP is BAR-NONE the biggest scoring opportunity now. Just from my testing (including me just sitting and waiting not hitting any switches while waiting the time out) I finished DP with a MODE total of over 400 million points. Cray-zee.
Chris Bardon
Well-Known Member
Wow, that sounds like a pretty major revision. I'll install it tonight and see what it looks like, but with deadpool it sounds like finishing the villains might be more attainable? Wonder if they made those simpler to light?
Changing the Gambit hurry up makes a LOT more sense there-I always just ignored it.
I wonder if anything else changed (like the priority of animations on things like starting Xavier when anything else is running)? Should know soon enough though, either through hands on time or reading the release notes when they're out.
So here's the thing with an update like this-I think it's great to go back and "finish" the game like this, and I can even understand not shipping with rules like this. I can see where you'd need to have a game for a while, live with it, and see how it works in the field before making some of these decisions. The danger, though, is risking breaking something even more than it already is, which you can do when you introduce major new features. I wonder if this is really the last we'll see on X-Men, or if there could be one last polish pass to tighten up what's there after this has had a chance to breathe for a while.
In any case, glad to see the game being added to. Is there anything out there on who write the code?
Changing the Gambit hurry up makes a LOT more sense there-I always just ignored it.
I wonder if anything else changed (like the priority of animations on things like starting Xavier when anything else is running)? Should know soon enough though, either through hands on time or reading the release notes when they're out.
So here's the thing with an update like this-I think it's great to go back and "finish" the game like this, and I can even understand not shipping with rules like this. I can see where you'd need to have a game for a while, live with it, and see how it works in the field before making some of these decisions. The danger, though, is risking breaking something even more than it already is, which you can do when you introduce major new features. I wonder if this is really the last we'll see on X-Men, or if there could be one last polish pass to tighten up what's there after this has had a chance to breathe for a while.
In any case, glad to see the game being added to. Is there anything out there on who write the code?
This should make Adam happy! Oh wait... Waison probably did it, so scratch that. 
Either way, nice to see Stern is attempting to follow through for a change.
D
Either way, nice to see Stern is attempting to follow through for a change.
D
Vengeance
Well-Known Member
I still don't like the LE XM and am happy to be rid of mine, even before this code change I'd consider a Pro as per usual I feel it's the better machine.
Chris Bardon
Well-Known Member
This should make Adam happy! Oh wait... Waison probably did it, so scratch that.
That was why I asked-I noticed in the Star Trek video that he was mentioned as part of the art team, so maybe someone else took the game on?
DRANO
Super Member
domino said:
Where?
I don't see them selling anywhere :lol:
I was trying to sell my LE Wolverine for a while. Barely a sniff.
It seems the market on XM has been pretty soft since the game's poor release.
I can only hope that having the code completed to this level of detail will bring the game's value back up to a reasonable level.
This game should've been a home run for Stern. Too bad it took them so long to get it right.
Vengeance
Well-Known Member
DRANO said:
It's still not right IMO by any standard, the Pro is fine, but the LE still has any number of issues.
Nothing is more infuriating the a valid shot that is sent SDTM via the moving ramp.
DRANO
Super Member
Vengeance said:
One could argue that it adds a certain level of risk, and some necessary skill and timing to prevent that from happening
That being said, I think the moving Iceman ramp has caused me to lose the ball SDTM maybe twice since owning the game almost a year now.
I guess, if it bothered me that much, I could always just disable the ramp in settings.
Even with the ramp disabled, I'd still rather have the pop-up nightcrawlers, a magnetized spinner and all the cool interactive lighting effects that the pro doesn't have. It may be a moot point to the competitive player, but everyone that has played my LE and a pro always comments on how dull and flat the pro seems by comparison. Some have even stated it's less fun to play as a result.
If I was a huge XMEN fan, I would'nt want a pro. Same way I wouldn't want a pro ACDC if I really loved the band.
I have an Xmen pro.
I also have an ACDC pro.
They are my only 2 new modern Sterns.
I would only let them go to upgrade them,
for the exact reason Drano states: Theme appeal.
Gameplay, and pinball wise, I like both of the pro's and the LE's.
For competition purposes, I can see why the Xmen pro is preferred.
Since Brewmanager owns TSPP and LOTR and I can play them anytime,
and Drano and Wong both have Tron that I can play on occasion, that
rounds out my Top 5 modern Stern pins.
Only the new Star Trek really tempts me now. DOH!
The new Sterns are now growing on me though.
Basement's like Luch's certainly influence you.
I would buy/trade and try several more now.
Still, not replacements for mid 90's B/W's.
Just "in addition to", for a few for me.
Looking forward to installing new
code for Xmen pro.
I also have an ACDC pro.
They are my only 2 new modern Sterns.
I would only let them go to upgrade them,
for the exact reason Drano states: Theme appeal.
Gameplay, and pinball wise, I like both of the pro's and the LE's.
For competition purposes, I can see why the Xmen pro is preferred.
Since Brewmanager owns TSPP and LOTR and I can play them anytime,
and Drano and Wong both have Tron that I can play on occasion, that
rounds out my Top 5 modern Stern pins.
Only the new Star Trek really tempts me now. DOH!
The new Sterns are now growing on me though.
Basement's like Luch's certainly influence you.
I would buy/trade and try several more now.
Still, not replacements for mid 90's B/W's.
Just "in addition to", for a few for me.
Looking forward to installing new
code for Xmen pro.
Chris Bardon
Well-Known Member
Played around with this last night, and still lots more to discover. Still not sure on the exact rules for what triggers deadpool to assist during a mode, but it makes some of the villains much easier to finish. I managed to rip through brotherhood multiball with deadpool running pretty quickly. Combos now become super important (which is good given the layout), but it also appears to count an N way combo as 1 combo, rather than counting every consecutive shot after 1 towards the combo total. Is this the same on other games with combo scoring? You'd think a 3, 4, or 5 shot combo would be worth progressively more. Dots for deadpool are also pretty brief in a "blink and you'll miss it" kind of way, and I didn't notice a lot of distinct speech calls to let you know what's going on. There's a lot of potential here though, so it's a good step in the right direction. It's also not trivial to get Deadpool activated (10 combos per villain), and it's still no easier to light the scoop to start one of those modes, so you may never (or very rarely) see what it adds.
Anyway, some great changes to play with! I really hope they have a chance to go back at least one more time to polish these new features, but who knows whether that'll ever happen. Somehow, I doubt it at this point.
Anyway, some great changes to play with! I really hope they have a chance to go back at least one more time to polish these new features, but who knows whether that'll ever happen. Somehow, I doubt it at this point.
DRANO
Super Member
I also played it last night. Got deadpool a total of 3 times in about 8 games.
The animations are very brief but when you do start the villain mode, he seems to make more of an appearance. You'll also get the message "deadpool has just helped you" during the villain mode.
There doesn't seem to be much mystery on how to hire him, Just get to 10 combos, start a villain and he's there.
I thought the funniest part was him tapping on the DMD 'glass' and trying to get my attention
He also trash talks and makes fun of the villains a bit, so there's some good humour in there too.
He dealt some serious damage in my Shadow King mode... which I always struggle with. And, it seems like he does it via other shots and not just the ones particular to that mode... which is a nice bonus.
Considering that XM is built for combos, Deadpool really does add a nice dimension to the game by giving you a greater combo reward; and the feature is really tied into the theme very well.
The game may not be 100% perfect, but I think it is definitley some of the deepest code I've seen from Stern and the way the rules are tied into the overall theme, character modes and animations is pretty awesome. I have to give them some credit for that.
The animations are very brief but when you do start the villain mode, he seems to make more of an appearance. You'll also get the message "deadpool has just helped you" during the villain mode.
There doesn't seem to be much mystery on how to hire him, Just get to 10 combos, start a villain and he's there.
I thought the funniest part was him tapping on the DMD 'glass' and trying to get my attention
He also trash talks and makes fun of the villains a bit, so there's some good humour in there too.
He dealt some serious damage in my Shadow King mode... which I always struggle with. And, it seems like he does it via other shots and not just the ones particular to that mode... which is a nice bonus.
Considering that XM is built for combos, Deadpool really does add a nice dimension to the game by giving you a greater combo reward; and the feature is really tied into the theme very well.
The game may not be 100% perfect, but I think it is definitley some of the deepest code I've seen from Stern and the way the rules are tied into the overall theme, character modes and animations is pretty awesome. I have to give them some credit for that.
luch
Super Member
Nice new graphics , great use of magnet , and way more shaker motor use . new call outs . light show changed for better
DRANO said:I thought the funniest part was him tapping on the DMD 'glass' and trying to get my attention
knock, knock
Sounds like a great update and can't wait to give it a try it next time I am over along with your Banzai Run Drano!
Chris Bardon
Well-Known Member
True, but what about how to actually get him to do damage while you're in the mode? Is that switch based, or combo based then?
I was trying to line up Deadpool + shadow king + Magneto last night, but kept missing shots. Wanted to see if DP added damage to magneto MB as well.
DRANO
Super Member
Chris Bardon said:
It's switch based for sure.
He only does damage after a certain number of switch hits... so go for the spinner!
He also works on MMB... but not sure if you have it stacked with another villain? haven't seen that yet.
I can't wait to see Dark Phoenix now. Sounds like it's a variation of Power Down on JM!