"Whoa Nellie!" / "Pabst Can Crusher"

[Mopple]

Since this table apparently doesn't have a normal display then how do I access the settings menu for pricing, free play etc.? I tried every key on the keyboard but nothing happens. There seems to be no online information about it, so what don't I see here? (and never having encountered the original machine, where is the display there? Hidden inside the cabinet somewhere?

 

Also, how can I switch the credit button from the "5" to the "3" key, as is used in every other pinball table? 

 

Sorry for my dumb questions and many thanks in advance as always! 

Edited May 16 by Mopple

[RabidUrko]

AI Overview

 

To alter settings in the Visual Pinball X (VPX) version of Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons (Stern 2015), you will primarily use the in-game menu system, as it is a script-based table (EM style) rather than a ROM-based table. [1]

Accessing Settings

Start the table in VPX.

Press the 7 key on your keyboard to enter the audits and adjustments menu.

Use the 7 key to navigate through menu options and 1 to change settings. [1]

Common Adjustments

Volume: Press 7 until you see "Volume Adjustment" or "Background Music Volume," then use 1 to change the percentage (0% to 100%).

Number of Balls: Similar to volume, navigate to ball count settings to change them.

Saving Changes: Continue to press 7 until the menu cycles through, or press F3 to reset the table and save changes. [1, 2]

 

(copied and pasted from Google AI)

 

https://www.ipdb.org/files/6252/Stern_2015_Whoa_Nellie_Big_Juicy_Melons_Service_and_Operation_Manual.pdf  

The manual link here and ive looked through it several times but i cant see anything about which diagnostic numbers are what,

leaving link as it might be some help. Most manuals have them listed easily to see.

Edited May 13 by RabidUrko

[Mopple]

Thanks for your reply, I appreciate that, but that's exactly where I'm now as well. 

 

The AI just gives the standard information about pressing the standard buttons but as I said, no keyboard button has any effect whatsoever. 

 

And you're right, the manual reads as if this was a regular machine with a display, but from what I can see it isn't, this is sort of a "retro EM" machine, but then again,  where is the display supposed to be?

 

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks again!

[Rappelbox]

I have table version 2.0, in case you don't find the following line...

open the script and go to line 212

"    if keycode = 6 then   ' Add coin"

 

change "6" to "4"

 

save script, done

[Mopple]

That worked, thanks!

 

(Although in my script (v 2.51 MW Mod) it's line 460; line 212 is empty space between two sections! (?)

 

One problem solved! But do I see this right that there are no big rule adjustments / settings anyway? It's a pretty straightforward and simple table... So maybe there is no "menu" in the regular sense?

Edited May 14 by Mopple

[Rappelbox]

20 minutes ago, Mopple said:

So maybe there is no "menu" in the regular sense?

 

 

that's correct!

afaik, it is a very basic table and if you'd like some rule changes you would have to do them in the script

[Dazz]

1 hour ago, Mopple said:

That worked, thanks!

 

(Although in my script (v 2.51 MW Mod) it's line 460; line 212 is empty space between two sections! (?)

 

One problem solved! But do I see this right that there are no big rule adjustments / settings anyway? It's a pretty straightforward and simple table... So maybe there is no "menu" in the regular sense?

This game is not emulated, so you will not see anything such as adjustments like that.  Everything is in the game script.

[Mopple]

Thank you everybody for your kind answers. But may I ask another question:

 

Do you like this table? What are your thoughts about it? I mean, even for old "EM" standards, this table is pretty simple and, hm... well, pretty boring? Just a few pop bumpers and a handful of targets and before you know, the ball drains in the middle!

 

Add those tiny EM flippers (which I never really liked on old machines) and I ask myself: Would I actually pay money at an arcade in 2015 (or 2026, which makes no real difference for me here) to play this machine? What brought Stern to produce this in the first place? The more I try it here at home the more I wonder about that. It's cute, yes, with the voice callouts and hillbilly music, but, in the end,...seriously?

 

Comments welcome!

 

 

[Dazz]

8 hours ago, Mopple said:

Thank you everybody for your kind answers. But may I ask another question:

 

Do you like this table? What are your thoughts about it? I mean, even for old "EM" standards, this table is pretty simple and, hm... well, pretty boring? Just a few pop bumpers and a handful of targets and before you know, the ball drains in the middle!

 

Add those tiny EM flippers (which I never really liked on old machines) and I ask myself: Would I actually pay money at an arcade in 2015 (or 2026, which makes no real difference for me here) to play this machine? What brought Stern to produce this in the first place? The more I try it here at home the more I wonder about that. It's cute, yes, with the voice callouts and hillbilly music, but, in the end,...seriously?

 

Comments welcome!

 

 

I've played both Whoa Nelly and Pabst Blue Ribbon.  I think both are novelty machines with no real staying power... Fun to play a couple times, but wouldn't want to own one.  There are much better EM games out there.

[deadmanworking]

17 hours ago, Mopple said:

Thank you everybody for your kind answers. But may I ask another question:

 

Do you like this table? What are your thoughts about it? I mean, even for old "EM" standards, this table is pretty simple and, hm... well, pretty boring? Just a few pop bumpers and a handful of targets and before you know, the ball drains in the middle!

 

Add those tiny EM flippers (which I never really liked on old machines) and I ask myself: Would I actually pay money at an arcade in 2015 (or 2026, which makes no real difference for me here) to play this machine? What brought Stern to produce this in the first place? The more I try it here at home the more I wonder about that. It's cute, yes, with the voice callouts and hillbilly music, but, in the end,...seriously?

 

Comments welcome!

 

 

 

You'd probably want to own one of these machines less for gameplay but more for novelty/collecting reasons, you gotta consider that Whoa Nellie originated in a homebrew based on an actual 1950s EM and was produced for actual sale in probably very low numbers. Similarly Pabst and Primus (all 3 share the same design btw) - I'd consider all these more like gimmicks with a niche/novelty appeal. 

[Mopple]

Novelty, yes, and according to the apron card, it is (or was) $1 a game?! Seriously?

 

But most interesting information here, thank you a lot for that! 

 

I read about this strange "Primus" machine and also the "Pabst Can Crusher" but never saw (nor played!) one of them. I'll look into them, even if only out of curiosity! 

 

So thank you very much again for the nice conversation, Happy Weekend to you and now back to the silver ball, I'd say!

Edited May 15 by Mopple

[RabidUrko]

Not a table i play a lot of.

[Mopple]

To my surprise I just discovered that the "Pabst Can Crusher" table has the exact same playfield layout as "Nellie"! Wow, that sure saved some money development-wise, but what kind of creativity is behind that?

 

Did they really expect players to play (and pay for) the exact same pinball twice?

 

If I saw them in a location side by side I'd be embarrassed somehow...

[deadmanworking]

They are all so rare you'll probably never see one for real Primus is another cousin of those machines, only 100 made, sold out almost instantly .. 

[digitalarts]

Both Tables come from creators who put a lot of work, ideas and time and heart in it to create.

So imho both of them deserves a place in a well sortimented vpin-collection.

 

[Mopple]

After playing some more "Can Crusher" games something happened I would never have thought: I'm beginning to really like it! 

 

Despite having the same layout as "Nellie", maybe it's the different artwork but especially the Jukebox mode where you have lots of songs playing during gameplay, and since I love classic country music I thought this would fit like a glove and so I set up a playlist for the game of my own, including CW McCall's "Convoy" for the attract mode and for gameplay tracks from, among others, Johnny Cash (Folsom Prison Blues"), The Mavericks' "There goes my heart" and of course Dwight Yoakam's "Guitars and Cadillacs" plus Merle Haggard's one and only live version of "Okie from Muskogee". 

 

Somehow the simplicity of the playfield and ruleset is quite a welcome change from the often overly complex tables we are used to play. 

 

The more I play it the more I like it! I also love the Harley-Davidson tables, maybe I'm a sucker for classic American themes and driving (or riding) across the USA.

 

So this is Rubber Duck and I'm about to put the hammer down and crush myself some cans...! 🙂

Edited May 17 by Mopple