Enough goofing around, I finally bought myself a CFTBL It just seemed silly not owning this machine. After all, I’ve been working on this MOD for over a year now, man how time flies...
Update:
Rusty and I installed the MOD in my machine last night as well as the latest software. We then spent a few hours playing the game, looking for any bugs. It’s funny what a simple spelling error will do Anyway, we got everything working. We still have some fine tuning to do, but all of the videos play as intended.
Software Changes:
Based on customer feedback - we do read all the posts in this thread – we decided to rewrite the entire program. Without getting into all the programming “mumbo-jumbo”, here’s a list of some of the improvements:
• Converted all static images to videos (so, now the screen saver and FILM letter award images are videos). FYI - the video software we created for V2.0 will allow you to take any static image and turn it into a video.
• Added 3 new video features – new screen saver, multiball intro, and one surprise video for you to find The MB intro video plays when you start MB; this video plays until you find the creature.
• Added video looping capability.
• We are now booting into the program without using “X”, so the boot up time is only around 30 seconds.
• We are now utilizing a USB. The code is still run off of an SD card, but the videos are saved on a USB.
• V2.0 ships with our custom Windows based video editing software. You just load the software on your PC from the USB drive and you’re ready to start making your own videos.
• Plus a few more surprises
I will say that the video editing software is pretty slick. You launch the program from your desktop, use a browser button to select your base video or picture, and then use various radio buttons or numeric entry fields to modify and create a finished movie for any video feature supported in the MOD (attract, screen saver, FILM letters, move your car, snack bar, left ramp, right ramp, MB intro, MB and more). The software gives you the ability to rotate, re-size, and position your video exactly where you want on the MOD’s TV screen. We also give you the option to choose between any of the graphical overlays we utilized for our own videos (black bezel, black bezel with “Creature from the Black Lagoon” text, drive-in movie screen, your own custom overlay, or no overlay at all) - just click a radio button.
We even give you default window sizes based on the overlay you choose. So, let’s say you want to make a video and have it displayed on the drive-in movie screen. You’d just load your video, select the “Drive-in” radio button, select where you want to save the video, and click the “create” button - you’re done. Once the video is made you just move it to the right location on the USB drive (each video feature has a specific folder on the USB card). If you want to make a test video to see how your video looks before you make a full length video, just use the preview button to generate a 5 second test video. This is a great feature that allows you to get the sizing and positioning exactly the way you want.
Now the MOD can be whatever you want it to be. I’m hoping you guys come up with your own videos, customizing the MOD and making it your own. If enough people start making their own videos I’ll see what it takes to create a share site where we can all upload our videos for other CFTBL owns to try.
Anyway, I gotta get back to work. I’ll post more in the up coming weeks.
Mike
Frequently asked Questions/Answers:
(1) How do I get one? - To get on the waiting list for our MOD please email me directly at
Pinballmiked@gmail.com. Another batch of MODs should be ready in the next few weeks. However, unless some people back out all of the units in the next run are currently spoken for.
(2) What does the MOD include? How do I install it in the machine? - Go to my website: Pinballmiked.com and watch all 3 installation videos under the MODs tab; these should answer a ton of questions. There is also a demo video of the MOD in action, but this is only for V1.0.
(3) What does the MOD do? - The MOD has two modes of operation (1) Standard Mode and (2) Hologram Mode. These modes are setup by simply removing or re-installing a jumper pin on the MOD's interface board.
Standard Mode Features:
* Attract Video - plays when the game is in attract mode
* Screen Saver Video - plays when no other modes are active
* 4 FILM Letter Videos - these play for 1 second when the FILM letters are awarded
* Snack Bar Video - plays when mega menu is running
* Move Your Car Video - plays when move your car is running
* Left Ramp Video - plays when Ultimate Millions in running
* Right Ramp Video - plays when Big Millions is running
* Multiball Intro Video - plays once MB is started.
* Multiball Video - plays once the Creature is found
* Multiball Restart Video - plays after the Creature is found and you lose a ball
* Surprise Video (don't worry its family friendly)
Hologram Mode Features:
* Attract Video
* FILM Letter Video
* Multiball Video
Hologram mode was made to "emulate" the original game, so we video taped an NOS hologram for the FILM letters and MB video.
Version 2.0 allows you to change any one of the videos listed above (for either Standard or Hologram Mode). You can make any of the videos featured in the MOD what ever you want. You just need to use our software to ensure that the videos have the right format and codec. The only limitation is the size of the USB drive.
(4) How much does the MOD cost? - After SPF I should have all my materials in stock to start building the MODs (we had to change vendors for several items in this production run), so I'll reevaluate the cost and post an updated price once we are ready to ship. Are costs did go up though, so the MOD will be more expensive than the first go around. However, I think the new software and features will certainly justify the additional cost. Hope this answered your questions.
