Which bug are you talking about here?

I wish AP cared about the games at their test location, but every time I go there they're broken or have some sort of error. Had to play next to a GTF that constantly was making a screeching sound last time I was there. It was distracting as hell. All the people who work there constantly joke about what a buggy mess GTF in particular is.

I am not the person you are asking, but I have heard that OKT does not record the HSTD for games that happen in a regular multiplayer game because of bug introduced via the co-op mode. And it's been broken for a while. So, maybe that one?

Any info about Cuphead being released yet? Any photos?

Ah, that one... hmmm, yeah, that's been lurking for way too long, let me see what I can do about that. Thanks.

As an OKT owner, thank you!

There's also a bug during Stein Slinger. The screen is totally black except for the red score. It used to show people sitting at a table, but not anymore. Very odd.

Oh man - I really should get Oktoberfest back.... What an unbelievably fun game that is.

OK, I was not familiar with that one, so I'll examine that too -- thanks for the report.

Thanks for going back on OKT Ferret - makes us owners feel like there is some support remaining.

QQ - My OKT will freeze up / lock up while in attraction mode - or randomly freeze up when playing. Is there any diagnostic codes or logs that I can pull to find the issue? I've reinstalled the software and still having the issue.

I saw that there was a Houdini at the TPF show last week being sold for $1600 off MSRP. What a great game. For a moment, I tried to figure out how to get it purchased and transported back to california, but some ongoing support concerns I have and a few unique parts availability (e.g. stage servo) made me a bit uneasy.

All AP games dump an encrypted log file zip when a blank usb drive is inserted into the usb cable when the game is on. You can send this zip file to AP support.

Yeah, the stage setup is the only part of Houdini that would make me think twice about jumping in again. Everything else is repairable/replaceable, IMO. Otherwise, I'd totally have that game again. Enjoyed when we had it.

Could just be a bad drive. SSDs are dirt cheap these days (as little as $20 for a 240GB one), so pretty painless to test.

Servo is easily sourced. The curtain weldment would be the bigger concern, but have only seen a couple that have had serious damage and/or welds break and in most cases can be repaired. continuing to use the machine on location when the curtain shows damage could lead to more serious damage, which I did see on a location game with 40,000 plays where the curtain was beyond repairable.

If freeze ups are software related logs will typically show that, important to pull logs right after an issue, note date and time and be sure system clock is correct. Freeze ups are more likely to be a hardware issue such as the SSD, memory or cpu.

If I remember correctly, one needs to separately program the limits into the servo before installing? My memory may be fuzzy on this, but I did buy one of these standalone programmers when I had my Houdini and needed to replace the servo.

https://www.revrobotics.com/rev-31-1108/

Yes, it’s best to program the stops in the servo itself using the programmer, as that will extend the life of the servo and insure proper operation and performance. Using the software settings to do it is far from ideal, and was added as a work around and was not intended to replace programming the servos.

There are no stop/limit switches for the curtain as the servo has the programmable stop points. Oktoberfest uses steppers and a home switch for the bar door.

It is best to program after installation.

Yeah, I get the freeze up while playing every so often also. Sucks when it happens, but it's not very often. I haven't seen it in attract mode, but most of the time my game if turned off.

In nearly all cases I've seen, hard freezes wind up being some sort of hardware problem, and a computer swap resolves the issue. But if it happens to you again, please feel free to send me logs ( luvthatapex2 posted instructions above) and I'm happy to take a peek and see if there's any indication of a software problem. (Usually in these cases, the logs just abruptly end, which unfortunately doesn't help much.)

If you're computer savvy, you could also try opening it up and doing basic tune-up tasks (make sure all cables are secure, blow out any dust that has accumulated, etc) and see if that helps.

Thanks, I'll give that a try.

In my opinion AP has never made a bad game, there's just a series of hiccups with support, assembly and code. This is something I'm fairly certain every other pinball company has faced at one point or another.

But for the love of god I wish there was an option to change the sound effects on Hot Wheels.

Questionable themes aside (I'm looking at you, BBQ) there's always fun to be had.

Try telling that to the Haymaker. Dude hates just about everything these days.

Own HW, OKT, JP, GB, CCr and hot wheels gets the most play with Cactus #2.

Wrong again

From the MGC thread - Did you bump into each other at the show or cross paths somehow

Sounds like folks had a bloody good time.

Did AP have a booth ?

Didn't bump into him, thank God. Dude was probably running around wiping his nasty, bloody hands all over everyone else's machines.

I think he did see me, since he mentioned people playing with taped fingers, and I'm like the only person who does that, but didn't actually come up and say anything to me. Then it kinda blew up in his face, so then he switched gears and now is going on about thinking I have leprosy or something, which is going even worse for him. I was exactly where I said I would be, blowing up games over in the Stern area. Played x-men and venom exactly 1 time and my scores lasted at #1 the entire show. One of the top players knocked me down to #2 on Metallica sadly. Plenty of other decent scores on the leaderboard over the weekend. It was hard to miss Haymaker at the show. I was there from open to about 6 or so, when I went to the Stern Army meetup over at the BBQ place. I can't believe they let me in looking like Carrie from all the blood!!!

AP was not there. Kingpin was kind enough to bring a Hotwheels and a GTF which were in a quiet little area by themselves getting handfuls of plays during the show. Didn't pay much attention to how they held up or anything like that. Those were the only AP games on the floor that I saw.

RMS go pick up that hot wheels you were supposed to pick up a month ago, enjoy it and relax a bit.

That was the plan, but unfortunately my dad passed away and the purchase had to be put on hold.

Hoping to stop by next week to pick it up.

Sorry for your loss.

Sorry for the loss

I'm sorry your family lost a loved one.

LTG : (

Hey, we may give you shit here on Pinside, but family is family man. Sorry about your Dad.

Finally!

PXL_20250415_150906172 (resized).jpg

Congrats on the Hot Wheels, fun game!

Sorry for your loss.

Get free 3d mods 9n thingiverse. Search for Draven tower and pizza building.

Great game

I think American Pinball won’t be around much longer. No new games, no sneak peaks nothing. That company was poorly managed and they decided to put out BBQ and told customers to reach out to BBQ restaurants and tell them to buy one.

This company was poorly managed for years and on social media I keep seeing ads for Houdini. I don’t see this company moving forward

They are. No idea on pinball but they are working on contract building. Not necessarily pinball.

LTG : )

I am starting to get a little bit concerned (again)…

I was told the next game was going to possibly be unveiled at an event in June directly by AP, but after checking for an update it seems they now have no specific show in mind for the reveal. It’s been quite a few months now where I had assumed the game was still going through final approvals with the licensor, but it truly has been nothing but radio silence.

If anyone with inside knowledge cares to chime in and perhaps provide an update on the game please do, but I am starting to think things might not be coming together after all.

RMS1977 - my deepest condolences on the loss of your dad. That is heartbreaking. Losing a parent is one of the very worst things I've endured. I wish you and your family the best of peace and love as you deal with your loss.

For everyone - it seems some folks have angst about American Pinball's next game, but we're diligently working on it. I don't know which show the reveal will sync with -- or perhaps it won't sync with any show -- but we hope you'll love the beautiful, fun game.

Golden State Pinball Festival is the largest pinball show in the west with close to 400 pins, and it's a month from now in Lodi, CA. Seems like a great place to debut a new pin and have the PR all to themselves since basically everything else is announced already.

Nitro has 2k off Barry O LE and Legends Deluxe, the only 2 games they're currently selling. Not interested in either but might bite on Tank Force at those prices, which of course is nowhere to be found

I also noticed about 2 months ago a local distributor put a bunch of stuff up for auction. No Sterns outside of 2 broken machines, but had 3x Hot Wheels, 2x Legends both brand new but no box. They cleared out all their inventory and no longer have any American machines on the showroom floor

Sadly, what AP doesn't seem to be working diligently on is quality control and customer service for those who purchased previous games. Many of the AP games I played at the Chicago Expo and elsewhere had issues. And there are tons of comments on Pinside about unfinished coding and poor customer service. Can you clue us in on what - if anything - AP is doing to address that?

Exactly! I would love to buy a Hot Wheels for my kids and a Houdini for myself, but I dont trust the support down the road. Im not talking about in 2 years, Im talking about in 2 months

You are thinking about a couple of the best titles anyway. I had Houdini (twice) and Hot Wheels. Also owned Oktoberfest. Fun games. Don't blame you on your trepidation though about AP as a company and ability to perform on any level and its longevity going forward.

I've been on the fence with Houdini for about a year but am worried about longterm support/repairs

Houdini is solid. So many good used one's out there for cheap. Tons of support in the Houdini thread.
I have one of the first one's made, #44.
I wouldn't be afraid to pull the trigger.
Get off that fence and pick up a cheap one close to you used.

Most of the stuff is bally Williams! My houdini runs like a tank and rosh is always helping with this amazing game. Servo issues can be fixed, also PC problems will be no problem in the future, proc parts are available.

Also LOV has a good support by Luvthatapex, both great individuals that have love for their games. Also LTG is super helpful with AP games.