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Williams Hurricane - Why The Hate?

C

CrisUK

Site Supporter
5Years
Joined
Mar 30, 2015
Messages
79
Location
Shropshire, UK
Hello Everybody,

I'm working on a Williams Hurricane at the moment, I'd noticed a bit of hate for this machine online before I picked it up. Almost made me not get it.

It looked like a tidy enough machine and well within my capabilities to fix up what needed doing. So off I went. Didn't expect to really like it all that much, but now it's up and running properly I'm really enjoying my test games.

So, why do people hate on this machine? It's well themed, game is easy enough to understand and there is plenty to do. Not sure I get why it's under-rated.

I've put LEDs into it, and some of the light sequences are great! It's ticking a lot of boxes for me, so what did I miss?

Cheers

Cris
 
Hate is a bit strong a word.

I haven't played a real one but I don't like the art or theme. I assume a lot of people don't like clowns either.
 
I have always enjoyed Hurricane, it`s a bit different from other games in the way it builds your scores which is no bad thing. You need variety to keep your interest up , i reckon anyway.
 
I enjoy Hurricane on the Williams Pinball app. I was told the mechs slow the gameplay to a crawl in real life.

That said, if we had a shedload of space and I saw one, I’d probably buy it.
 
Just bad compared to the games around it.

For 10 years on eBay they would not sell for more that the value of the parts so dozens bit the dust.

It was the same price as Addams so a lot of operators were burnt by it as well

Cyclone is the best of the Barry Oursler fairground trilogy
 
I enjoyed my Hurricane until I passed it on to @paul h - good fun.. colourful and the call outs are great. Only DMD I've owned!! In fact probably my most modern game - as I enjoy the EM side most - both on playing and fixing.
Every community has certain snobbishness - but for me - if it's fun and you enjoy playing - it's a winner..
I liked the artwork - and even enjoyed swapping playfields - but I know some freak out with any clown motifs - I blame horror movies!! I'd miss mine if I had room to! :)
 
There’s no such thing as a bad pinball if you only own the one!
However It’s generally easier to see what is wrong with a pin when they start to multiply and you have a benchmark of how good/bad they compare alongside each other.
 
I like the fact I can go to the toilet and make a brew whilst the ball queues and rides the Ferris wheel.
Was my second ever pin. Traded a bop for it. . Had the option to take a demo man instead whilst I was there but naively stuck with hurricane. 🙄.
 
When it came out it was the first time I had seen a DMD on a pin which, at the time was a massive improvement in pinball. However, the ruleset is really basic and doesn't match the DMD upgrade. Personally, I love the game.
 
Interesting.

The feedback I've had from people who've had a go on this one is they really like it. But they are not pinball people. So maybe that is it? If you are pinball nut there just isn't enough there for you, but if you are casual player (I would put myself in this slot, I like to fix them more than anything) then it's easy to play and that is rewarding.

The LED upgrade has really made it pop, especially the flashers. The better speakers as well, adds quite a bit to the soundtracks bottom end.

I kind of want to keep it now, which wasn't really the idea of this one :)

Cheers

Cris
 
CrisUK said:
I kind of want to keep it now, which wasn't really the idea of this one :)
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this happens, be prepared.

Personally I think you've got it spot on. As long as you're happy with it, everyone else's opinion is interesting but superfluous really.

However, in 5 yrs time you may have got more into the gameplay side of things and moved it on for a Spider-Man (for example) instead - then the differences will probably be much clearer. I bought Addams Family because I had fond memories of it from the 90's and it's still an enjoyable game, but it didn't last that long as I now find other games much more interesting, relatively speaking. I'm only a very casual player/owner.
 
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I remember playing it when it first came out at Uni.
At first it was fun to dunk the bully and work towards MB, but it didn't take long to realise that you may as well just shoot the ramp over and over and ignore anything else - and only ever shoot the ferris wheel if you need to go to the toilet mid-game.
 
I love the theme integration, especially the Python artwork - so much detail on the playfield.

Classic B/W DMD game IMHO
 
Monkeyboypaul said:
However, in 5 yrs time you may have got more into the gameplay side of things and moved it on for a Spider-Man (for example) instead - then will the differences will probably be much clearer. I bought Addams Family because I had fond memories of it from the 90's and it's still an enjoyable game, but it didn't last that long as I now find other games much more interesting, relatively speaking. I'm only a very casual player/owner.
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Honestly, this is like board gaming over again :p

I like challenging shots and beating the high score table, and I'm quite happy to shoot the same shot over-and-over provided it's a fun one. And, I don't see that changing. I probably play Flash Gordon more than Godzilla, and I definitely play it more than Lord of the Rings (which left). I have, so far, beaten the high score that arrived on Flash Gordon twice, and am currently aiming to go three times. It's a completely different mindset to people who love the story-based play of modern Sterns - and that's okay :)

So, as you say, if he likes Hurricane, he likes Hurricane. I enjoyed Hurricane a lot on the Williams App, despite shooting the same shot over and over, and the thing that put me off the real pin was the reportedly slow Ferris Wheel and my coulrophobia.
 
VeeMonroe said:
reportedly slow Ferris Wheel...
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Mine isn't that slow. Just a few seconds, not much slower than a trip around the Hurricane itself.

I've replaced the belt as the old one had been tightened beyond its max and was slipping. Never played it with the old belt, so maybe that is what causes a slow ferris wheel?

Are most pinballs not the same shot over and over again? Maybe I need to spend a bit more money at some point and get one of the top flight machines. Give me some perspective.

I've had my TFTC for 18 years, still not fed up with that one. So maybe I have simple tastes.

Cheers

Cris
 
The solution to the problem of hitting the centre ramp over and over again is to simply not do it - nobody is making you. Fortunately, I'm not good enough to hit it repeatedly anyway and find the rest of the gameplay perfectly ok. The best bit is trying to get 2 balls going round and round the right ramp at same time - I guess that's why the ramp was made so long.

The code might be a bit shallow for the decent players on here and the 2 Ferris wheels slow things down (should have been a single wheel), but it's still a fun game.

@Phil Lee - I've still got your old one and enjoying it - has been extremely reliable.
 
they’re all the same shots over and over. even the latest GZ, same shots. it’s a bit disappointing really. they could so easily code these modern games to randomise
the required shots, in certain modes and battles, etc. (and maybe make the “tournament” setting derandomise).
 
It is all relative. It is a DMD but has the limited gameplay of late alpha numeric and skinny DMD titles.

When it was in my university arcade it sat alongside titles like Bad Cats, Checkpoint, Turtles, LW3, Phantom.

I played it regularly back in the wild in the early 90s. It held its own in this company BUT pinball suddenly got a lot better and TAF was a game changer. Then TZ, STTNG, Roadshow, Shadow ..... and Hurricane got left behind
 
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