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Well, I finally got a chance to try the new Avatar machine by Stern. It is... ah... not so great. I dumped about five dollars into it, which usually gives me enough time to get a feel for a table and play around with some goals. Not so on Avatar. The gigantic left outlane is absolutely brutal, and I lost probably 80% of my balls to it. There's no kickback on either outlane, nor is there an upper flipper to try to defend that area of the playfield. There's only one ramp, and it's an extremely long shot with a steep incline. In all of my plays, I hit it maybe five or six times. Fortunately, the bottom end of the ramp curves enough that a ball failing to make it through won't drain directly down the center. Some of the other features (especially the left orbit) do suffer from this problem, however. The table itself is not particularly fast or slow. The flippers felt a lot weaker than I'm used to, resulting in a few lost balls due to late button presses. All of the shots on the table, even the side targets, feel extremely long. The ramp and orbits are really far up the table, and combined with the weak flippers, make for some frustrating non-shots. Other table features seemed pretty standard. There are not a lot of bells and whistles (figuratively or literally) -- the only mechanical element is the mech-walker thing from the movie, which can be made to squat down/open up, allowing you to shoot the target inside. There are a couple of under-table magnets as well, but nothing too unique. Overall, I just didn't enjoy Avatar too much. I walked in intending to drop about ten dollars into it, but ended up falling back to my two current favorites: 24 (which for all its floatiness is really fun) and Family Guy (also known as Shrek, depending on which branding your arcade opted for).
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Nov 5, 2010 20:17
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WhiteHowler posted:Well, I finally got a chance to try the new Avatar machine by Stern. I haven't played it, but I've seen stills and videos, and everything about it seems like it was designed to minimize playtime. It looks like a quarter muncher and your description pretty much confirms it. I think that, like the movie, I'll give it a pass.
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Nov 5, 2010 21:11
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Add Hal 1ncandenza for some hot hot Pinball FX2 lovin' if you want. As a lifelong pinball player, I wish I had more to add to this thread... I bet I can beat anyone at Video Pinball for the 2600 though... maybe I should pick that up in Gameroom...
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Nov 5, 2010 23:52
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WhiteHowler posted:Well, I finally got a chance to try the new Avatar machine by Stern. It's kind of disappointing that the table design sounds so uninspired, but then again it seems like a lot of Stern tables just don't really have that magic touch to them. I'd like to believe the weak flippers were just due to miscalibration, but I guess I'd actually have to play the table to be sure either way. Speaking of weak flippers, anyone else familiar with the pain of finding your favortie table in some out of the way place, only to find the flippers are mismatched? The one time I found a working High Speed table it was so cobbled together that it had one black-ringed flipper and one dingy yellow one, and the yellow one was slightly shorter than the black one so half the ramps were basically inaccessible. Such a letdown. 
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Nov 6, 2010 01:43
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BlazeKinser posted:It's kind of disappointing that the table design sounds so uninspired, but then again it seems like a lot of Stern tables just don't really have that magic touch to them. I'd like to believe the weak flippers were just due to miscalibration, but I guess I'd actually have to play the table to be sure either way. I saw a Space Shuttle at the local arcade dealer's booth at a home show but the right ball lock kicker was broken.  I did get to play Slugfest and an electromechanical table from Spain though.
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Nov 6, 2010 02:12
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Some of you guys are lucky that you live near places with actual pinball machines. The closest place that I can find online that has pinball machines is ~80 miles from me.  There is another place that's about half the distance that might have pinball, but they don't list it or even mention the word pinball on their website. The town I live in does have one movie theater that might have some arcade/pinball stuff, but I don't wanna buy a ticket for a movie that I won't watch just to play those games. Edit: I just remembered something I wanted to ask. A long time ago (maybe about 15-20 years ago), did a company make a plastic tabletop version of Earthshaker by Williams? I want to think that I used to have that, but it got thrown away years ago. I don't remember the company who made it (I don't think it was Williams themselves), so I can't go by anything else aside from the name. I've searched the internet on and off about this, but found nothing in regards to a tabletop version of the game. Obeast fucked around with this message at 02:52 on Nov 6, 2010 |
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Nov 6, 2010 02:45
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I'm lucky - my dad has always loved pinball and he got me into it when I was young. We used to go visit any arcade we could find and see what machines they had, but soon we found fewer amd fewer pins around, and those that we did find tended to be in poor condition - if they worked at all. We could never get into video pinball as what we love is the tactile feeling of moving a heavy metal ball around a huge box filled with toys, and we never found games captured that.... so we thought that was the end of pinball for us. That was until one day we started idly talking and joking about buying our own machine. After a bit of research, a few drunken conversations, and some bargaining with my mom, we took the plunge and bought a good condition Twilight Zone, and we haven't looked back! Our second machine was a beautiful Medieval Madness, which cost a considerable amount more than the first, but is worth a good deal more now than we paid for it - not that its ever likely to go. We've been limited to two machines at a time due to 'space' (my mom still doesnt understand the appeal), so whilst keeping the MM we've rotated machines through the other space - once TZ went we got a Theatre of Magic, which was in turn replaced by an Addams Family, which was only recently moved on so that we could bring in a Stern Spider-Man. My dad is beginning to retire in the coming months and has somehow persuaded my mom to let him buy a third because of this (the man must be a genius), so we'll be collecting a Monster Bash in the next week or so. I LOVE this hobby, and can't wait until I can afford to start my own collection. Until then I guess I'm stuck going to play his! You may think of an actual pinball machine as a huge luxury, and to an extent it is - however, unlike any other conceivable 'toy' you may end up buying yourself (eg a new tv, videogame console etc...), a pinball machine will retain its value, if not increase in value, if kept in good condition. In fact, if we were to sell our machines now we would make a tidy profit. This rule does not apply to the newer stern machines which may still be settling in value, and certwanly doesn't apply to machines bought new in box however. Also, some fantastic machines can be had for not too much money - machines like White Water, Fish Tales, Terminator 2, Bram Stoker's Dracula, Tales From the Crypt, and Judge Dredd are all great players and won't break the bank, and if you don't love them you can almost always get a full return on your investment by selling them on! Its like having money in an amazing, playable bank. If anyone has any questions about owning pins, or is interested in getting a real one and wants some advice on where to start looking etc please ask away. They're wonderful toys that have that slight element of magic to them. Oh and a bunch of friends, a couple of cases of beer, and a couple of pinball machines on free play is a great way to spend an evening! Oh and please forgive any spelling mistakes, this post became much longer than I intended and I'm writing it while sick in bed, on an ipad - I've proofread but I'm sure to have missed something.
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Nov 6, 2010 03:30
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JustLikeMe posted:Our second machine was a beautiful Medieval Madness, which cost a considerable amount more than the first, but is worth a good deal more now than we paid for it - not that its ever likely to go. I heard that one of these in very good condition is worth twice as much now as when it was new in 1997, and I don't mind telling you that I am very envious of you right now.
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Nov 6, 2010 03:50
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I've been playing the poo poo out of the new tables on FX 2 the last few days. I'm also a big fan of The Williams Collection and of course real pinball, but I haven't played much of that lately. GT: ParallaxScroll
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Nov 6, 2010 03:50
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BlazeKinser posted:It's kind of disappointing that the table design sounds so uninspired, but then again it seems like a lot of Stern tables just don't really have that magic touch to them. I'd like to believe the weak flippers were just due to miscalibration, but I guess I'd actually have to play the table to be sure either way.
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Nov 6, 2010 04:02
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My Secrets of the Deep score is better than yours.
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Nov 6, 2010 07:03
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Cleared up some friend space so if you want to add me (Spatula King) but couldn't before, go for it. Reclaimed my top Earth Defense spot among the goon friends I have, came in second on Speed Machine(44 mil...my previous score on that board was 8 mil) God I love this game.
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Nov 6, 2010 07:21
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Just got all the Pinball FX bundles and tables, having a blast so far! Add my GT to the list: Bloody Hedgehog
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Nov 6, 2010 13:36
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Trying to beat other player's scores is so much fun. This game was completely worth the asking price.
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Nov 6, 2010 19:44
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Dissapointed Owl posted:Trying to beat other player's scores is so much fun. This game was completely worth the asking price.
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Nov 6, 2010 20:23
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quietmonkey posted:It feels awesome when you get a good game going and then start seeing updates on topping your personal best and then all of a sudden you're watching multiple avatars show up in the corner as you bust out the pinball wizardry. I had my best Pasha game ever earlier (which still wasn't great), and then I saw someone on my friends list with 240 million on the table. 
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Nov 6, 2010 20:32
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WhiteHowler posted:Yep. It's really encouraging to see those messages. It's a little like having a crowd start to gather around your machine in the arcade when you're busting out a huge score. You think that is crazy, ask Parallax Scroll about his loving 585 Million on Secrets of the Deep of all tables (I think, the table might be wrong)
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Nov 6, 2010 21:08
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JustLikeMe posted:If anyone has any questions about owning pins, or is interested in getting a real one and wants some advice on where to start looking etc please ask away. They're wonderful toys that have that slight element of magic to them. Oh and a bunch of friends, a couple of cases of beer, and a couple of pinball machines on free play is a great way to spend an evening! What sort of regular maintenance do you do, and how hard are replacement parts to obtain? Obviously the toys are going to be difficult to replace depending on the machine, but those typically see a lot less wear than the nuts-and-bolts elements like the flippers. Basically, tell us everything you know/have experienced about maintaining a pin. On another note, anyone else out there who absolutely loved the first Pokémon Pinball (BLUE TABLE FOREVER!) and was extremely disappointed by Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire? They really dumbed and slowed it down. The day after I got it I caught Jirachi, and I still haven't gotten Mew in the first game. The basic table layouts and goals are just fine and similar in most ways to the first game, but everything's tweaked to be so easy and slow with no way to bump up the difficulty.
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Nov 6, 2010 21:38
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Discount Viscount posted:What sort of regular maintenance do you do, and how hard are replacement parts to obtain? Obviously the toys are going to be difficult to replace depending on the machine, but those typically see a lot less wear than the nuts-and-bolts elements like the flippers. The vast majority of the time, regular maintenance is incredibly easy - we replace the balls in the machine every now and again (dimpled balls can cause damage to the playfield), clean and occasionally wax the playfield with novus products, replace any burnt out bulbs, worn out rubbers, or cracked plastics, and clean the inside of the cabinet and backbox. To a large extent, this will help to keep the machine in good playable condition, and is about as easy as it sounds. Rebuilding flippers is a bit more of a hassle, but there are easy to follow guides, and if you are vaguely competant with a soldering iron then it shouldn't prove to be much of an issue - even if this is beyond you, there are pinball techs out there who will sort these issues out for you for a small charge. Occasionally a more complicated problem will occur, which requires some diagnostics - for example, our Stern Spider-Man kept thinking that a ball had drained whilst it was still in play, which made the game incredibly frustrating to play - and rendered it useless as far as any meaningful scores go. Luckily there is a large community of dedicated pinball enthusiasts out there, and any problem you may find tends to have been discovered by someone else before. We posted on the pinball enthusiast newsgroup (rec.games.pinball) with the issue and a few possible causes/solutions were suggested, one of which turned out to be correct - there was some cracked solder on the ball trough (metal chute at the bottom of the playfield where balls are stored before being ejected into shooter lane) opto board, which caused the machine to think a ball had drained when it was still in play. We ordered a replacement board and soon it was back to playing perfecfly. It is worth noting that we buy our machines in good working and cosmetic condition, which makes our job of maintaining them fairly easy. There is a large subset of the pinball communuty far more knowledgeable than us, many of whom buy machinss in poor cosmetic or non-working condition and restore them. At the moment this is beyond us, but we do plan to eventually buy a cheapish project machine and try and teach ourselves some of these skills. As for the ease of obtaining replacement parts - I think you'd be surprised! There are many online retailers dedicated to pinball spares, and parts for the more modern machines (say post 92 - Terminator 2/Addams Family onwards) are extremely easy to obtain. Hell, there are even companies out there who make runs of replacement playfields! We've been able to obtain a new magic trunk for Theatre of Magic, and a couple of parts for the Medieval Madness (side castle door, castle gate) that were repros made for the parts aftermarket. Similarly, repro ramps/decals/plastics are available for many machines. Due to the design of some games, certain areas of the playfield experience more wear than others, and due to this a market for playfield protectors has emerged - 'cliffy' protectors being the most well known and regarded. These tend to be thin, custom cut pieces of metal that fit over certain areas of the playfield, most notably kick-out holes, that either protect the playfield from wear of hide existing damage. Furthermore, a market of pinball mods has emerged, allowing you to somewhat customise your pinball machine - although this is not something we are generally into, I must admit we installed some fake plastic gumballs into our Twilight Zone's gumball machine/ball lock! If you're talking about the older electro-mechanical machines parts can be harder to find though. Anything you'd like to know more about? In case you can't tell, I really enjoy talking about this stuff! Edit: For a great example of how seriously some pinball fans take the hobby, have a look at this video - incredibly impressive work. http://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DRJT9wyceY-E%26feature%3Dshare&usg=AFQjCNF0z0dgK-KQed3LvaY0tk9_QpGRTQ JustLikeMe fucked around with this message at 22:53 on Nov 6, 2010 |
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Nov 6, 2010 22:49
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All right. I'll say it. I put on my robe and my wizard hat  Thanks to the dozens of pinball-playing folks on my friends list!
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Nov 6, 2010 23:35
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Haha, awesome. I can't wait to look like a superdork along with you.
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Nov 7, 2010 00:05
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Wow thats awful
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Nov 7, 2010 00:08
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elf help book posted:Wow thats awful hahahaha it REALLY is. Why are we all trying so hard for this again?
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Nov 7, 2010 01:32
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I just beat Merely Whelmed's Secrets of the Deep score by a measly 300 points to steal second place on my friend rankings and kind of feel bad about that. 60,370,300 vs 60,3700,000 - it just doesn't seem right. I'll have to try to make it a more convincing win but my left trigger finger is starting to hurt.
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Nov 7, 2010 02:04
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Zero Karizma posted:hahahaha it REALLY is. Why are we all trying so hard for this again? I think I'm at about 87,000 and even though its butt-ugly, I'm going to wear that robe for a month when I get it just because it seemed so unattainable at launch!
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Nov 7, 2010 03:21
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Zero Karizma posted:hahahaha it REALLY is. Why are we all trying so hard for this again? Its hard to tell how ugly it is when you are deaf dumb and blind.
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Nov 7, 2010 03:40
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Billy Gnosis posted:Its hard to tell how ugly it is when you are deaf dumb and blind. Dude, you can perceive the awfulness of it by sense of smell.
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Nov 7, 2010 03:49
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quietmonkey posted:I just beat Merely Whelmed's Secrets of the Deep score by a measly 300 points to steal second place on my friend rankings and kind of feel bad about that. 60,370,300 vs 60,3700,000 - it just doesn't seem right. Well you don't have to feel bad for very long.   Click here for the full 1024x768 image. I was actually shocked that that ended up being the 8th highest score in the game. It's certainly the highest I've ever been on any Live leaderboard. EDIT: I'm gunning for you Parallax Scroll!
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Nov 7, 2010 04:04
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Haha I just finished a game and saw that. Nice work. I doubt I'll be beating that as I seem to have lost my multiball magic for the time being. That and because it's a loving great score and I probably got pretty lucky with 60m in the first place. quietmonkey fucked around with this message at 04:19 on Nov 7, 2010 |
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Nov 7, 2010 04:07
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So while perusing Xbox Live Indie Games tonight, I saw a title called Elite Pinball HD. I'm always up for trying some virtual pinball so I downloaded it and played through the trial time.... Don't bother. The layout is one of those old-school video abstract ones (how many acute angles can we make the ball go through from top to bottom?), the pinball is the size of a b-b and everything from the ball's interia and the slow recovery of the flippers makes it feel like you're playing a 50-year-old table that someone horribly neglected to clean & maintain. Save your dollar and go spend it on a real pinball machine... there's still gotta be one around here somewhere.
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Nov 7, 2010 04:27
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drat, somebody local has a restored Star Trek: TNG pinball machine for sale. I have the money, but zero space.
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Nov 7, 2010 04:45
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Well, I just got Earth Defense, and it might be up there as one of my favorites. Also, I somehow got 150mil on it, which doesn't hurt. Inching ever so close to the robe. (Also it caused me to reclaim my title as pinball king. Suck it people on my friends list). Billy Gnosis fucked around with this message at 05:44 on Nov 7, 2010 |
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Nov 7, 2010 05:40
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I beat some ones Excalibur score by like 300k. Most of it was on my first ball, them I lost my mojo and scared like 700k on my last two balls.
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Nov 7, 2010 06:14
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I got my wizard "robe" tonight! It's ugly as hell, but I'm wearin' that poo poo for a while.
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Nov 7, 2010 06:58
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WhiteHowler posted:I got my wizard "robe" tonight! Let's get some screenshots of us in the OP for posterity!
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Nov 7, 2010 08:05
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I finally caved and bought the PFX2 core pack. My GT is below. So far, my favorite is probably Biolab, but the others are pretty fun too. I just wish I can be better at watching the score display and the ball at the same time so I know what the gently caress is going on.
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Nov 7, 2010 08:59
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Doggles posted:I was actually shocked that that ended up being the 8th highest score in the game. It's certainly the highest I've ever been on any Live leaderboard. Bring it!
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Nov 7, 2010 09:32
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Obeast posted:I finally caved and bought the PFX2 core pack. My GT is below.
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Nov 7, 2010 10:56
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I just finished a really good game (in terms of a second or third playthrough) of Pasha where I got myself into second place out of my friends who played it. I would've gotten first if Desdinova didn't get that super high score he got.  The General posted:I don't have my glasses, and can barely read the screen. I just shoot at flashing poo poo. 
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Nov 7, 2010 13:24
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Man, that sucks that THAT is the robe... I was hoping for something along the lines of a classic robe... big, red, with white stars on it or something, fluffy white trim, and blue on the underside. Maybe a blue coned hat with stars as well. I mean, who WASN'T thinking of this?!
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Nov 7, 2010 14:41
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