Rest In Peace Patrick Stewart; New Boss Rush Mode in Sonic Pinball; Enhanced Galactic Tank Force Tanks Shipping Now; The Ducks are Coming
By knapparcade
I'm going to try to keep any history posts separate from current news about the hobby going forward to accommodate people who are interested in one and not the other. Without further ado, here's today's news update. I was going to start with the new JJP code, but news just broke about the passing of the great actor Sir Patrick Stewart. He was obviously a brilliant actor, but he is also tied to the world of pinball. He is prominently featured in both the artwork and the custom voice callouts for the 1993 Williams Super Pin Star Trek: The Next Generation. That Steve Ritchie-designed game, featuring art by Greg Freres, sold a whopping 11,728 units. Here's a few pictures that I took of one at the PinLodge in Indianapolis, Indiana. Rest in Peace Patrick.
Next up, we have a new mode out for Jersey Jack Pinball's latest game Sonic the Hedgehog. In the new Boss Rush multiball mode, Sonic and Shadow team up to battle Dr. Eggman. Players qualify Boss Rush by winning four boss battles. The mode is a multiball where players work through seven of Dr. Eggman’s bosses in a row, each one harder than the last. More balls in play means higher scoring potential. Blue shots power Sonic’s attacks and red shots power Shadow’s. To break Dr. Eggman’s shield, players have to work both the upper and lower playfields, defeating Badniks and completing required shots along the way. At the hardest levels, JJP says Sonic and Shadow’s attacks have to be coordinated across both playfields to bring Eggman down. Beating all seven bosses completes the mode. Boss Rush is timed, and the fastest completion earns the Boss Rush Champion spot. The new Sonic code update also changes how players can enter their initials (at least I think this is new). When a player gets a high score, the game now displays a QR code containing the name or initials they entered. Players can photograph that code with their phone. The next time they get a high score, they show the photo to the JJP player camera, and their name or initials are entered automatically.
Let's hop over to American Pinball. The beautifully-sculpted upgraded tank mods made by The Art of Pinball for AP's Galactic Tank Force pinball machine have begin to ship. From the looks of the AP website, they are still available to order for people who haven't done so yet. I got a chance to see the new tank in person at this month's Pinball Expo and it is a huge improvement over the original. https://store.americanpinball.com/products/galactic-tank-force-upgraded-interactive-tank-sculpt
Minutes ago, Barrels of Fun sent out an e-mail update to members of its Barrels Reserve Club letting them know that their collectable pinball rubber duckies are on schedule to be delivered directly to club members in December, before Christmas. Barrels will send out another update when they have been mailed.
