Pinball Expo 2023 - Labyrinth Amazes - AtGames 4K Pinball Disappoints

[@cooltoy]

Who do you think had the best showing at Pinball Expo this year? Let me know in the comments below!

[@canadaphil6068]

Best summary of the Expo put out thus far! It's amazing how much info you were able to pack into this one short video. Thanks! 😊

[@cooltoy]

Thank you very much, glad you liked the video!

[@canadaphil6068]

​@@cooltoyAnd... I cannot disagree with anything you said about the Atgames/Zen launch "grand reveal". Some of this is really unfortunate.. like completely unforced errors.

[@paulberres9878]

First time going and agree it was an amazing event. Brought my son and played just about every table on the floor. Loved Pulp Fiction and Toy Story 4. Didn’t wait in line for Elton John. Maybe next year for the 40th. Heard Rob Berk say he wanted to add an additional day. Probably need to stay down there next year for a couple days. Good Times!!

[@cooltoy]

I’m sure he’d like to add an additional day, but I know that’s likely a difficult decision since it takes so much effort to move everything in and out for set up and tear down

[@paulberres9878]

I would like to do the Stern and JJP factory tour next year, if possible. I guess staying offsite would be good too, since everything is so close

[@cooltoy]

I wanted to do the Stern tour, but I backed out when I was told there was no photos or video recording allowed.

[@MichaelSmith-fd9ec]

Good to know Mr.Beres is a pinball fan!

[@paulberres9878]

😂 Mike, I didn't know I was, but I'm starting to really enjoy it. I'm looking forward to playing more in the near future. Good to hear from you, bud!

[@jerrytorres4787]

that was cool seeing all those new machines! i thought i would never see hercules pinball again more like cueball if you played it. redondo beach ca. boardwalk last time i played it many years ago.

[@RichieCavsRetrocade]

Good to hear about Pulp Fiction. I put a deposit down on the Bad Mother Flipper Limited version months ago. It'll be my first brand new out of the box pinball and can't wait for it.

[@cooltoy]

Nice! I’m sure that bad boy when bring you loads of enjoyment when it arrives. 👍

[@hvntr]

Beautiful video production! And cool documentary of the event. Greetings from Helsinki, Finland!

[@cooltoy]

Thank you very much, glad to hear you enjoyed the video!

[@kantidinda6218]

Very nice to meet you on the weekend Doug. I agree, show was fantastic and well organized. Some great games and great people. Now to bed after 8 hours in the car lol.

[@cooltoy]

Absolutely, great meeting you in person and getting to chat with you! Rest up, I know my butt is sore from all the driving I did today to get back home.

[@ScottParisi]

Super recap. The adaptive booth had some amazing innovations. I was impressed with their gear. Really played well. The new Namco bowling game was also great. Good time for sure.

[@cooltoy]

Yeah the bowling game was super cool, I loved how that machine also doubles as an at home jukebox

[@geneg136]

Amazing time at Pinball Expo! Pulp Fiction was the winner for me - absolutely amazing. Already have played Venom and The Big Lebowski but they are my other 2 picks for recent and or great newer games. All had that one more play factor!

[@cooltoy]

I’ve got a friend who has Pulp Fiction on preorder, so I’m looking forward to spending more time with the game and learning it more when his machine arrives.

[@cwafflestx]

I’m sure (hopeful) that Zen will tighten the code up on Addams Family before its release. I have this pre-ordered as part of Wave 1 and really don’t want to be disappointed.

[@cooltoy]

The Zen side of things is the least worrying to me, it's the AtGames side of this arrangement that has me worried. AtGames seems to get in their own way a lot of the time and fumbles new product launches with oddball choices.

[@cwafflestx]

@@cooltoy Part of my reason for getting it is for the OTG mode and the ability to hook up a PC (like I have now on my modded A1U) and run my tables from there on 4K screens. This seems like it would be a good setup for running VPX on a 4K playfield in theory. I don’t have the skills to build my own vpin from ground up.

[@ien2023]

Finally some real critique about ALP HD. They should of center the buttons with the faux coin door and not the cab.

[@therexershow]

Good video Doug, thanks for the recap.

[@cooltoy]

Any time!

[@MidwestVillain_Z]

My local pinball arcade actually has a Hercules, very cool to play in person

[@cooltoy]

Wow, that’s impressive

[@kjhoskins]

Looks like you had a blast. I wish I could have been there. Thanks for sharing.

[@cooltoy]

Next time definitely make it out if you can, I had a wonderful time there!

[@Bearcade]

Enjoyed the show and was great to meet ya in person. Thanks for chatting.

[@cooltoy]

Glad I ran into you!

[@jeffmeyers8417]

Looks like a lot of fun! I will be there.

[@MichaelBtheGameGenie]

Great video Doug! Glad to hear Pulp Fiction is good. That’s on my radar to check out. Did you get a chance to check out Turner Brothers Ninja Eclipse?

[@cooltoy]

I did check out Ninja Eclipse, game was so so, the most impressive thing to me was his coinless point of sale system he had created. I think he should have been trying to sell that to game operators and not trying to sell Ninja Eclipse honestly. He's got a huge money saving idea that has loads of upside potential for game operators but he seemed to be focusing on trying to show of the pinball machine itself more than anything.

[@TerryRed]

Thanks for mentioning the off-center coin door on the ALP4K. It drives me nuts, lol :)

[@cooltoy]

I’m seriously blown away that something like that would pass “the sniff test” of a product before it goes into production. It’s so glaringly obvious that it’s off center that it boggles my mind that it wasn’t changed.

[@thebrokebrick7755]

The quality of your videos is always top notch. Great editing, too. Loved the Expo but never spotted you or Cary! Looking forward to Barrels of Fun getting an ip I care about because Labyrinth was an outstanding first effort even if not my dream theme. Honestly, the build of that machine had me FOMOing and wanting one even not caring much about Labyrinth. Sounds like you may be buying one because you're fond of the source material. Awesome! Great staff at this event. They deserve a lot of credit all around for keeping it all running smoothly and great.

[@cooltoy]

Thank you very much. Sorry we didn't get to bump into each other. I know it's kind of hard to meet people when most of us are facedown staring at machines looking the other way a lot of times.

[@Lithonion1]

You solidified my reason for not per-ordering the new AtGames pin. I will always have a V-Pin so I can play the pins I can't afford and with the way the prices have gone, that's a lot of them. lol Might just keep my Gen 1 and put a bigger back box on it.

[@cooltoy]

happy I could help!

[@patrickheim7823]

Yes, I have a personal interest - I put the anti-reflective coating (that's what we call it) on both sides of the glass. Thank you.

[@bystander85]

The AtLegends machines would be much more interesting to me if it had a 120+ Hz screen and had the ability to bring the screen closer to the lockdown bar if you opted not to use the arcade stick add-on

[@cooltoy]

You and me both, those two things would certainly enhance not only the look, but the overall gameplay experience

[@silentlyjudging]

This year they had two stern stranger things one was modded with extra dice / cars in the playfield pretty cool. Had to get a pinball expo t-shirt the designs are great every year. Woodfield mall nearby has a new restaurant with some pinballs/arcade/bowling. For next year I hope the convention center would book something pinball-adjacent instead of home & garden whatever that was going on at the same time!

[@King_Henry]

What a badass rundown man!! I need to check out your older content; I like your ‘cool cat’ attitude without the hardass mentality. Subbed!

[@cooltoy]

Awesome! Glad to hear you enjoyed the video. I appreciate the kind words and feedback!

[@BrigetteSinging]

Great summary !!! Thank you.

[@cooltoy]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@stringerfilms.]

Great meeting you in person! Have a safe trip home bro!

[@cooltoy]

Thanks, had fun chatting with you too!

[@TiltingT]

I had an absolute blast at Expo..and I agree Labyrinth absolutely won Expo! It's was awesome getting to play a few games with ya. The Atgames was terrible so much flipper lag it was unplayable. Hope to see ya at next year's expo!

[@cooltoy]

So glad we got to meet and play some pinball together! Fingers crossed I can come up to expo again next year.

[@TiltingT]

@cooltoy Yeah brother I had a blast playing with ya and talking would love to do it again next year!

[@JZgameSta]

Nice, succint summary. Well done and Ty

[@cooltoy]

Glad you liked it!

[@SpringfieldsPerfecTint]

I wish I could’ve made it but I’ve spent the last five days building a fence. I’m glad to hear playing Pulp Fiction was a good experience for you, I’m looking forward to getting mine. First I’ve heard of Magic Girl, I’m going to do some research on it now. Thanks for showing the Expo experience, I hope to make it next year. I’m hoping to go to TPF, in March.

[@cooltoy]

I'm also going to see if I can make it to TPF in March. Texas weather in March certainly beats the hell out of what we have in Missouri around that time of year! Plus I'm sure we will have some more new machines ready to be shown off from some of these companies by then, so I'd love to check those out.

[@patperez4]

Great coverage of the expo this weekend!

[@cooltoy]

thank you so much!

[@theiceman1972]

Thanks for being honest about the atgames Adams family machine. It’s very much appreciated.

[@cooltoy]

Always! I hope they work out the kinks because more pinball options out there wether its virtual or physical is always good for customers. But in it's current state, this machine just does more harm than good for the pinball player.

[@richardabkstorm9009]

As far as AtGames goes.... I am a big fan as I have owned 2 ALPs now and am a fan of their products... I was so excited to see their 4K machine there and my first thought was...Why are the Start and Home buttons so small and why is everything not centered?! Then playing the machine, the lag was too much on the flippers to me, and I had a hard time believing some of those games were 4K... Do better AtGames. Please.

[@cooltoy]

Definitely not the kind of grand reveal they were hoping for. The whole 4K thing just comes across as a marketing gimmick to me on that machine. It’s just not nearly big enough nor a high enough quality to really be anything the average consumer would notice a difference in. A 120hz screen should have been their priority with this machine and not 4K.

[@richardabkstorm9009]

@@cooltoy 🎯🎯🎯

[@Sprogster]

yeah, a 1440p screen and 120hz seems smart. Addams Family plays smooth as butter on my mid level gaming pc at 1440p and up to 165 fps (tho' I generally cap at 120 or 144). @@cooltoy

[@ProjectGenesisMusic]

Definitely gotta go back next year I had a lot of fun for being a casual pinball player.

[@cooltoy]

What was your favorite(s) machine you played at the show?

[@adamkalb1412]

❤next level pinball news here ! Great work Doug🏁

[@cooltoy]

Glad you think so!

[@adamkalb1412]

@@cooltoy ❤️🏁

[@shadowolph3225]

They need to put carpet down, I went there the first year since the move and that concrete floor was brutal on the feet. There were several people complaining about it. I may go back next year

[@cyanidechrist]

Nice work. Right down to business.

[@cooltoy]

Thank you

[@deanmcmanis9398]

Thanks for your video, and especially unbiased Atgames review. I pre-ordered the 4K pinball, and it will be my first virtual pinball game. Hopefully they will get the delays and bugs sorted out before deliveries begin.

[@timothyroth1980]

It was good meeting you at expo

[@cooltoy]

Yes sir, glad we got to meet!

[@svenop]

The ALP HD with s screen upgrade to 1440 is the way to go

[@Brian-kn1qw]

The show was amazing! Labyrinth was cool but the code has a long way to go to make it a keeper!

[@kiodiekin]

Thanks for sharing

[@cooltoy]

My pleasure

[@Diskoboy1974]

I still don't see how Elton John won best pin of 2023. 1. It hasn't even been shipped yet. So most pinheads haven't played it yet. 2. Foo Fighters should've won. It's one of the best shooting games I've played since TZ. 3. I'm more hyped for Pulp Fiction than any other pin coming up, with the exception of possibly Jaws.

[@BiggggyD]

American pinball did well with Galactic Tank Force but I've also enjoyed Hot Wheels.

[@cooltoy]

Yeah both were really fun to play. American Pinball definitely put on a good showing and display for all their products at the expo.

[@dangerdonk6670]

I bought a Labyrinth, can't wait.

[@cooltoy]

Nice! Did you get any of their other accessories to go with your macine?

[@YourRetro-Cade]

Bummed you didn't stop by and say hi!

[@cooltoy]

I'll have to catch you all next time!

[@IanJacobyandcompany]

Good to meet ya, bud. I still owe you a mag!

[@cooltoy]

It was a pleasure chatting with you man, maybe I can catch you at the next big show.

[@richardabkstorm9009]

Too bad I missed you Doug...I live 5 minutes from there in Schaumburg and was there every day...👍🙏

[@cooltoy]

Bummer, maybe I can catch you next time! It’s hard to bump into people at the show when most of us have our heads down facing machines a lot of the time. Gotta say I thought Schaumburg was a really nice place 👍

[@jdteney]

Glad you liked pulp. Pretty much everyone who plays it ends up liking it a lot

[@cooltoy]

Yeah that’s a key factor that points to a well designed game, if it wins over the neigh sayers the moment one plays it, then it’s clearly a winner.

[@joplinpinball916]

How much was the invisiglass at expo? I looked at buying some but thought it might be cheaper at a show.

[@cooltoy]

I paid a show special price of $180 a sheet from one of the vendors there

[@joplinpinball916]

@@cooltoy thank you. I'll wait and get some at TPF or another show.

[@rushmore3927]

AtGames should have disabled the special effects, since that graphic layer at 4K is a GPU burden for that ARM chipset. Probably would have played smooth then and they could say the effects are being worked on.

[@Johnny-Five]

Did you get a chance to try Ninja Eclipse? I was wondering how it was.

[@cooltoy]

Ninja Eclipse to me felt more like a home made game than something that was a polished product, and having the reduced cabinet size makes it feel like a lesser product automatically, and certainly not something justifying a premium $7K+ price tag. There was nothing to me really wrong with the gameplay, but also nothing really exciting or impressive either. I think the best thing about the machine honestly was the coinless point of sale app that he has developed. I think Turner should have been selling and marketing that at the show to operators and not trying to sell his pinball machine.

[@CombatandCollecting]

Great video. Kudos.

[@cooltoy]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@nerdloftgaming]

Shame for the buggy build on the AtGames 4KP. The faux coin door misalignment is an issue that’ll be addressed by them thankfully. I agree if folks are adding the SSF, it should be preinstalled before reaching customers. The UI is a huge improvement over the ancient one they’ve been using across their home arcade lineup. I wouldn’t blame AtGames if players aren’t familiar with a vpin UI, because it now follows a traditional setup - new players would be a little confused with navigation controls in a vpin setup, AtGames or not. That said, awesome coverage good sir!

[@LordCyler]

I was personally surpised by the lack of pinball themed tees/hoodies/hats/etc for sale. Felt like an obvious gap in the market at the Expo.

[@cooltoy]

I did see lots of merch for sale, but I found them way off in corners and far out of the way of general foot traffic, which definitely is not ideal for the sellers and vendors.

[@LesZaldor]

My son was there as his friend helped out with the Elton John game... Surprised you didn't have any footage of the Elton John game!

[@cooltoy]

I have a dedicated video already uploaded on the channel about the Elton John game.

[@Rushlarz2112]

Bummer about atgame. I preordered mine and looking forward to a fun Christmas getting it first. Love Addams Family the pin and the Zen licensing really made it more. Hope the bugs are fixed. Your word is trusted I know your and AEW fan so maybe we just gotta trust the story

[@cooltoy]

They really need to delay shipments of the machine if they can’t get the bugs worked out quickly. Because if you opened this up on Christmas morning and played it in its current state you’d be very unhappy,

[@BiggggyD]

Great video, PD7 said he gave you a fist bump at the convention, looking forward to meeting you someday. Are you going to Texas pinball festival?

[@cooltoy]

Not sure yet, I’ll have to figure that out as that show gets closer. I definitely want to attend, it would be a good excuse for me to visit some of my Texas family while I’m down there.

[@burnoutjunkie42]

Love the AtGames criticism, you might be the first one who gave out some really good advice before the release in December/January. The navigation menu looks awful, why oh why is it set up that way?

[@cooltoy]

hopefully someone listens over there and takes the free advice

[@EQOAnostalgia]

@@cooltoy Eh, i doubt it, they are surrounded by a bunch of yes men who want dibs on free product and algo priorities. Thanks for keeping it real as usual man. We appreciate you here!

[@rushmore3927]

@@EQOAnostalgia Most companies are- even the military. They don't want to disrupt their job or promotion opportunities.

[@gwildor8543]

Seems like we are very much on the same page. Labyrinth was best in show for me and I also loved the flow of Elton John. I also played Ninja Eclipse by Turner Logic and wasn’t impressed at all. It actually felt more like a homebrew and I don’t like the design choice for the cabinet. It definitely won’t look nice in a pinball lineup. Also what doesn’t sit right with me with Turner Logic/Pinball is there connection to Deep Root and Chris Turner’s purchase of all the leftovers of Zidware/Deep Root. I feel that alone is a curse.

[@cooltoy]

The best thing about the Turner Pinball thing was their new point of sale coinless application thing. It would be far and away cheaper for operators to use that system he was marketing than buying a card reader for each and every pinball machine they own. I agree, Ninja Eclipse felt more like a home made game than something that was a polished product, and having the reduced cabinet size makes it feel like a lesser product automatically, and certainly not something justifying a premium $7K+ price tag.

[@thesmoness]

RIght on glad you liked Alien - I have 6 machines now that include like GZ prem and my Alien LV is my most played and it's not even close. Amazing game, takes more tweaking and dialing in but once you got your machine dialed its epic. PB has been the best service and support in the industry as well. However I am worried about them going foward I think Queen was a flop and rumor has it ABBA is next but all the Pinball design talent seems to have been at Hwy not PB.

[@paulcleary8088]

Labyrinth looks fantastic. Legends 4KP is disappointing, but not unexpected. Most of use were suspecting that the internals were underpowered. Still, at $1,500 it might be a viable option for modders/ plug n' play for VPX, FP and Pinball FX. I don't know if I could build a cabinet with solenoids, buttons, artwork, glass for that price. The playfield screen at 60Hz is really the only thing holding me back.

[@cooltoy]

yeah all things considered the main display really should have been a high FPS monitor for the best overall experience, it's a shame they choose higher resolution over higher frame rate

[@scottgul174]

Shocked you didn’t show Elton John showcase!!!??? Crazy long lines and one badass pinball machine! I would have put Labyrinth 3rd or 4th best due to lack of anything in middle of the machine. But cool sound in it!

[@cooltoy]

I already posted a dedicated video on the Elton John machine prior to this video. Didn’t feel like rehashing it a second time

[@HitnRunTony]

Was looking forward to the AtGames, so I hope they fix the bugs

[@cooltoy]

Fingers crossed because in its current state it’s not something customers will be happy with

[@Jambon_Emmental]

Thanks for the vid. I think it would annoy me having a virtual cabinet with Addams Family artwork if it was mainly used to play non-Addams Family games. Maybe that's just me being OCD though.

[@cooltoy]

glad the video has helpful!

[@crw31399]

can you show off the glass you purchased?

[@cooltoy]

Not really, I mean it’s a sheet of non reflective glass. Not something that exactly shows up on a camera really

[@acidgougewaltz]

that line-up of atari pinball was pretty rare. and there was an Olympic Hockey there (which i'd never personally seen) years of being in the pinball hobby.... many many conventions, shows, etc..... never seen myself in anyone else's video.... but there i am in your video.... and i need to lose weight

[@cooltoy]

Did you enjoy your time at the expo?

[@acidgougewaltz]

@@cooltoy of course. good game selection. lots of familiar faces. always a good time

[@photograph17]

So disappointing to hear your impressions of the 4k pinball! Out of all the machines, this is the only one I could ever hope to afford. I held off pre-ordering as I have no affinity for the Addams Family thankfully. Hoping they might release an Indiana Jones version, and of course have the bugs fixed by then.

[@cooltoy]

I'm sure Indiana Jones will likely get it's own skinned cabinet release from AtGames. I think they said something like 15 different special editions are getting made, so I have to believe that would be one of them. It's too iconic not to be.

[@GuitarsAndSynths]

I am waiting for the new Jaws and Metallica pinball machines to drop next year.

[@cooltoy]

I’m really hoping an Elwin Jaws turns into a reality!

[@GuitarsAndSynths]

me too!@@cooltoy

[@joshua.hintze]

This seems empty and smaller compared to Texas pinball festival. Can anyone who has been to both confirm? I like the more empty part if true

[@jasenwm]

That KZbin money will. Pay for that magic girl. Next video I want to see a review of it in your house

[@cooltoy]

lol the KZbin money I make didn’t even cover my gas to drive up to this event.

[@jasenwm]

@@cooltoy we appreciate your hard work sir!

[@MichaelSmith-fd9ec]

Very cool seeing those pinball modifications! Atgames dropped the pinball😮

[@cooltoy]

There was lots of cool pinball mod vendors throughout the show, from little simple things all the way to super complex. Definitely something for anyone and any budget.

[@MichaelSmith-fd9ec]

@@cooltoy I liked the mods aimed at people with special needs. I’ve never thought about someone who had a disability and not able to use hands and still be able to enjoy pinball, but after watching your video it really made an impact. You’re the only one I saw cover that. Remember Xbox made a special controller, but never saw mods like pedals for pinball etc.. Well done Doug.

[@robertschweikl8827]

Yes anyone thinking about an ATGames pinball keep in mind just use it for what it delevers an seriously buy a pc to build for it an strip it back to run off of that as At games any model is so under powered

[@MidniteClimax]

Regarding pinball adventures, the owner andrew macbain is well known for his complete lack of understanding of IP rights, and he's also known for copying lots of other things, stealing people's art, and give swaths of his website are plagerized. That's not even getting into all the other slimey stuff he's done over the years

[@arcadetalk]

Zen has only been working with Atgames for about a month now so does not surprise me that That Addams Family table had issues. The first new game on a new platform is always the hardest one.

[@cooltoy]

Very true, but if they knew they had a big public reveal and testing showcase coming up at one of the biggest pinball conventions in the world, one would have thought the emphasis would have been made to make the flagship title run flawless. Otherwise you do more harm than good with trying to impress potential new customers.

[@arcadetalk]

@cooltoy I imagine those layoffs at Zen did not help matters.

[@Sprogster]

Gen currently (after the layoffs) still has 30 more employees than they did in 2020, so I doubt it's a huge factor. @@arcadetalk

[@joeyjojojunior4886]

AtGames is going to drop the ball on the 4K roll out. They make big promises but I doubt they will deliver a good finished product. I’m old enough to remember playing the Hercules pinball when it was new.

[@cooltoy]

That Hercules machine was such a funny thing to attempt to play. Quirky as all get out but still a fun experience that will bring a smile to pretty much anyone's face.

[@EQOAnostalgia]

Atgames really dropped the ball. They are leaving their original fans in the dust with Zen. . . i mean wtf!? lol. I JUST got this thing last year and paid almost $900 with the shipping cost, then i find out people were scooping it up for $350 at Sams etc. . . the right solenoid popped loose about 3 months ago and rattles like a bastad! Now i find out the best tables available pretty much for Vpin, is locked on their 4k model? The things runs at like 60hz... why not 2k ad 120hz? IDK... no idea lol. But what are they smokin over there alienating their original supporters and pulling this stunt?

[@davidhill2444]

Seems like Stern is the one to go with.

[@cooltoy]

They are the biggest and most successful manufacturer in the business by a large margin. Everyone else is a much much smaller scale in comparison

[@davidhill2444]

@@cooltoy They look really nice and durable. I think they run about 5k. It's just trying to find room in my office/game room. Ha

[@tyarnold4088]

​@@davidhill24445k? What? They start around 7k and go up to 13k

[@DavidBrown-bs7gg]

The Legends Pinball machines look homemade. The marquee needs to go, and the Addams Family topper is an embarassment

[@ehyouman]

What a major disappointment about the atgames table, glad I didn't pre order

[@cooltoy]

these days it typically doesn't end well for the pre-order and early adopter crowd, in most instances it's better to wait until these things have been officially sold to the public first.

[@purdue98]

Won’t be buying atgames take $1000 and put towards a real machine. Saw a ff pro for $5800.

[@cooltoy]

Yeah the market has softened quite a bit on used machines in the last 4 or 5 months recently, certainly some good deals out there to be had.