Masters of the Universe - Collector's Edition

[TerryRed]

Masters of the Universe - Collector's Edition

Not only was an update to this table long overdue by me... but the type of update I can do today is dramatically different than what I would have done years ago.

Needless to say, the big focus is:

- adding FizX 3.0 physics
- fleep sounds
- PinEvent V2 features
- all new lighting
- new shadowmaps, ray cast shadows
- table fixes / changes / updates / modernized features, etc


I decided to NOT use my Mastered Edition mod (or any other updates of that version). In many ways it would be more work for me. I wanted to start fresh without any mods of any sort from the past that I would need to remove anyways. I also may or may not add in my videos directly to the table like I did before. If I did, it would most likely only be on the playfield, and as a result, the resolution of the images needed can be reduced by a lot.

So I decided to start with Rom's last official release (the 2.5 version). This had no DMD updates (I never wanted the squished animations on the DMD, or the fonts used), and was the easiest for me to start from.

I know the 2.5 version used low res artwork, so I retrieved the best 4K / hi-resolution art I could find from his older tables that look much better (playfield, plastics, etc). More importantly... I didn't want to use the pre-baked lighting / shadows the 2.5 version used on the playfield and plastics, as that isn't ideal to use with modern BAM lighting and shadowmaps, and since the pre-baked lighting was also coloured pinkish for the GI areas... that is not desirable if I ever want to change GI colours during gameplay, or even just want to turn off the GI (this table has very basic lighting as it is) or update the inserts, etc


The original 2.5 playfield art with baked in coloured lights and shadows

 

 

The older untouched art, which is much more desirable for the kind of updates / lighting / shadows I do. Same goes for the plastics.

 

 

 

To give you an idea of the differences of how much work is needed to achieve the results I do.... this is the original table with its original FP lighting.

 

 

 

...and when I make the changes for BAM's main lighting and post processing I typically start with... you can see how little real dynamic lighting there actually is on the table. This means that literally everything on the table will need to be updated / replaced / changed regarding lighting or texture colours, etc.

 

 

 

 

I get asked alot... or I should say I "used" to get asked alot as to why I create on FP and not VPX. My more recent releases have answered those questions for many who have tried them out (they now know FP tables can play great and look amazing). There are many reasons why I prefer creating on FP, and anyone who has seen my previous Silent Hill wip videos can get some of the reasons why. It's not like I haven't ever done anything on VPX, or helped others with their VPX projects before.

As a favor, I assisted randr with converting MOTU to VPX years ago. There was a lot of back and forth between randr and myself (I was living in a hotel room for a military course). Creating the pup-pack for the VPX table took me a couple of days (and was more fun), whereas randr converting the table took much longer (and me helping with fixes, details, DOF, PUP, etc). Back then, the only main benefit for converting a FP table to VPX was better physics.
 

 

So years later, needless to say a lot has changed and I've learned a lot since then. Today instead of spending weeks to months doing a VPX conversion... I can update a FP table to have great FizX 3.0 physics (basically nFozzy on FP), with great modern lighting, shadowmaps, ray cast shadows, PinEvent features, etc in a short amount of time. So... that's exactly what I did with MOTU in about 2 days!

I have a process that I've got down pretty good for adding PinEvent, SSF, DOF, FizX, and my own style of lighting / shadows, and the other features I typically add to a table. Once I have all that added, I can then work to do more things specific to the table, or add new lighting effects, etc.

So after adding the initial lighting changes and adding some real lighting for G.I. (there was none on the table), I also added more G.I. bulbs, and made all lighting use a more natural light appearance. This alone shows a huge difference compared to the original FP lighting and the prebaked pink lighting on the playfield art. As you can see though, the inserts and plastics are dim compared to the rest of the table with no lighting visuals... and there are no shadows at all.

 

 

 

Shadowmaps and shadows

So now I added shadowmaps to the main G.I bulbs, and most of the flashers. Shadowmaps do a few things. They add shadows automatically based on the table's items. They can enable ray cast ball shadows for normal bulbs (flashers work automatically). They also act as a lightmap to create coloured light on the playfield for each bulb. I created the ambient lighting shadowmap and added that directly to the playfield image, as its more visible that way. The shadows really bring out the depth of the table.

I also brightened the inserts in code, so their brightness matches the rest of the table correctly for when the G.I. is on and off. Older FP tables never had direct control over the lighting / brightness in code, and the G.I. never turned off on this table. (that will be changed later on, so its why I need to add more control over that)

 

I also added bump / normal maps to most of the models which makes them look much nicer!

 

 

 

 

 

Plastics - lighting

For the plastics, I decided to try something a bit different this time. I cut out portions of the plastics art in the areas of where the G.I. lighting would normally light them up. I then used this "cut out" image to use as a light image layer on top of the plastics. This would allow for the possibility to change the GI colours and change only these cutout portions (where the bulbs are underneath) without needing to change the colour of the entire plastic (looks more correct)... and this also eliminates the need to use fake halo bulbs which doesn't look as realistic.

 

 

 

...and it worked great! Now I can make that layer on top of the plastics turn on and off as needed.

 

 

I can also change the colours as needed. I would need to change the rest of the G.I bulbs to match, but for testing it shows that it works as intended.

 

 

Inserts

With many of my table updates, I like to add 3d models for the inserts combined with bump mapped jewel images, and new decals that go overtop of the inserts. All these combined and done right makes for a much nicer looking and convincing table.

For most tables I need to make custom sized insert models, as not every table uses standard insert shapes or sizes. Here are the inserts when they are first created and added.

 

 

Decals

For most tables, I need to remake the decals from scratch, but I was able to composite the original text fairly well. I then made new red outlines to work with the playfield image and shaped for the new inserts. The center portion of the black outline and text is used with an overlay layer that covers the entire table. I also made the text of the decals a little bit transparent to allow a bit of the insert lighting to show through it, just like it would with a real pin.

 

 

 

 

...and...

TA-DAH!

Everything combined together... and it turned out great!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The new lighting, inserts, shadows, plastics all combined looks stunning! I'm actually amazed how great this turned out in such a very short amount of time. It looks even better in gameplay!

Now it's time to add new lighting effects and some other things. This table is a fairly simple, and there are some fixes and changes that are needed...but I hope to add some new fun things, if they are feasible!

 

 

Edited September 8, 2023 by TerryRed

[PsychoKiller]

Can't wait for this one. He-man hasn't had any love in a long time. 

[TerryRed]

So now that PinEvent V2 tables are all updated for FizX v3.0... I'm back at working on MOTU.

Lots of very cool lighting updates... lots and lots of fixes... some new sounds, lots of new voiceovers, lots of new music is coming. It's very possible this table will end up on a similar path to Sonic Pinball Mania and become a very different game.


One thing I always wanted to do was update the models. Many years ago when Rom made this table, there probably weren't many model resources to use. Today with new 3D model scanners, and much better 3d modelling software... so much more can be done and used.... and there are lots of resources out there... but you need to know how to use them, convert them, modify them, and more.


Here is a very detailed He-Man model I wanted to use that was a scan from the original toy from the 80's. If I include the weapons and shield it has almost 1 million polygons (around 670,000 for just He-Man)! A typical FP table has up to 200,000 max for the entire table! So even though the model actually works fine in full detail on the table, that is crazy overkill for a model we won't see up close.

 

 

 

So after watching some Blender video tutorials, and some trial and error... I was able to reduce the model's polygons and use some baking to create some new textures and normal maps to recreate much of the original polygon detail. So we went from 670,000 polygons down to around 67,000 polygons (and I'll only use half of this model)! The result turned out great!

 

 

 

Here you can see the difference with the models side by side on the new table.

 

 

 

...and old He-Man looks like Lord Voldemort from the first Harry Potter movie

 

 

 

...and here is the new model using only the upper half and now placed where the old model is. Yes, I plan to have the sword and shield as well.

 

 

 

Some changes from the old table....


The He-Man model on the old table did move like some of the other models. The entire model would simply rotate left and right. With the new model, I wanted to try to see if I could do.... more.

After doing some creative model editing... He-Man wanted to show off his new..... articulation!

 

 

 

 

 

...he also wanted show up the old model and go full Exorcist!

 

 

 

Trying to do my usual character animations simply won't work well or look right with these kinds of models. I also wanted to try to make them move just like the original toys did. something I've never seen in a pinball game.

This was much trickier to make work than it seems. His arm sockets needed to be cut on an angle (instead of vertically). That means it's more difficult to make work with normal rotations using certain functions like a typical toy... and also FP takes forever to process more detailed FP "toy" models (when loading the table) compared to BAM which does it instantly.

Luckily BAM models allow you to change the size / position / rotation dynamically.... but... unlike a toy or BAM miniplayfield, you need to control that movement with timers and change each degree of movement over time. UGH. Whereas with a miniplayfield / toy you just choose the start / end and time and it would automatically work.

That said.... using this method allows me to capture the torso, head, and arms (which can each move independently) with a BAM miniplayfield and move them all together as one item easily however I want, while also allowing the individual parts to rotate on their own.

It will be tricky to pull off... but if I can make it work the way I want... it will look VERY cool!

 

 

[TerryRed]

...of course he was going to have the sword and shield... only now he is right-handed again!

Future Pinball's dynamic lighting really shows these models off nicely during gameplay... especially with the new "funky" lighting I've added during some modes.

 

 

 

[TerryRed]

The real advantages of FP-BAM's realtime dynamic "per pixel" rendered lighting (compared to prebaked textured lighting). So pretty... and not a single Blender render was involved. Looks even crazier when it "moves". Really shows off model details and bump / normal maps really nicely.

 

 

 

[TerryRed]

He-Man-imation (Future Pinball - BAM)

 

So... I finally got my new He-Man model all working and fully animated. This is frikkin' cool. His head, arms, and torso all independently animate (had to create new code to make it all work right), and I used a BAM mini-playfield to move it all as one item.

 

It turned out awesome! You can really see the difference from the old model and the new one... and how the new lighting I added really shows it off! More to come!

 

(video is a bit big.. around 100 MB... so it may take a while to show up)

 

 

 

[drakkon]

This is looking fantastic. Your latest FizX table updates finally got me into Future Pinball.  I'm loving Blade Runner.

[TerryRed]

Castle MultiBall - Disco Lighting - wip

A video preview of some of the new lighting I've been adding to the table.

 

 

 

 

 

He-Man MultiBall - I HAVE THE POWER - WIP

A video preview of He-Man.... manning UP!

 

 

 

 

[TerryRed]

New Skeletor and animated models (work in progress)

 

A preview of the new animated Skeletor model... the new animation for the Roton (it hovers / flies now)... He-Man's new animation during Castle Multiball Disco jamming... now Zoar (the Sorceress falcon) flies around the table when hitting the ramp.... and lots more Skeletor voice overs.

 

More to come!

 

 

 

[drakkon]

It looks amazing 🤩

[HADES81]

Great work

[TerryRed]

Some more new additions.

A new "Fisto" autoplunger.

 

 

 

 

 

 

...and a new animated Orko model who's arms rotate. He'll float / fly and will most likely move around the table.

 

 

 

 

[Zuxiff]

Man terry this is shaping up to be a huge update and looks like a completely new table almost. The animations on the models all look fantastic and move very smooth. It rivals or exceeds the quality of a zen pinball original table in my opinion! I don't know what wizardy you do to make all of this happen, but I love it 😲

 

All of your newer PinEvent lite updates and now this has me very excited and curious for what silent Hill is looking like, and what the finished table will be like. Silent Hill IP in general is perfect for using a lot of the newer bam features. Especially these new animations, I can imagine a "living" type of story playing out while you progress through the game. Please post a video update soon for it! Even a 5 second teaser.. unless it's far from done I understand not wanting too. Either way you keep getting better and better terry, keep it up!

 

Zuxif

[TerryRed]

New Drain Bonus, Bonus multipliers, modes, decals, etc

 

The original table (like most of Rom's original tables) was very simple for gameplay rules. Only 4 multiball modes... not much more.

 

I always wanted to do similar to Sonic Pinball Mania, and add much more to this table and add typical features seen in most other pins, that this table was lacking.

 

Now there is a proper drain bonus sequence, bonus multipliers (with characters and maybe perks), and the main code and gameplay is all being redone. There are now A LOT more voiceovers, especially from Skeletor!

 

The new insert decals should give you an idea of where I'm going with all this... but there is a lot more coming than what you can see here.

 

There's no going back now.

 

 

[Gh0st]

this is looking awesome cant wait

[drakkon]

I'm eagerly awaiting this release.

[TerryRed]

RAM-MAN Ball Saver

 

I wanted to add in Ram-Man somehow into the game, but wasn't sure how. He was too big to use in the plunger lane. While redoing most of the main game code for the multiball modes and other new modes it came to me.

 

Instead of having a traditional Ball Save where to ball goes into the plunger lane... why not have Ram-Man "ram" the ball out from the drain back into the playfield. This makes for different gameplay and can make things more fun during multiball.

So of course I had to add a bunch of Ram-Man voice overs as well.

 

This video show you how he works. You can also see Orko hovering and following the ball on the playfield.

 

Much more to do.

 

 

 

 

 

[BallStuck]

this is awesome

[TerryRed]

Skeletor MB changes

 

Previously, to get Skeletor MB, you only had to hit Skeletor's targets then lock a ball, then hit the targets again to start Skeletor 9 ball MB.

 

After adding FizX physics, that became WAY too easy to do over and over again. So I changed it so you have to do the process and lock 3 balls first. Still not too hard to do.

 

Normally, when Skeletor MB starts, all the balls will spill out at one time as soon as the Roton targets lower. This tends to have a good chance of half the balls draining. So I decided to change things up a bit. I always like Megatron's MB in Transformer (how the balls would shoot out fast one after the other). So I did the same for this table. After the targets all lower Skeletor shoots out each ball rapidly one after the other with laser blasts. Way cooler I think.

 

I also have changed it so that if you hit each jackpot and get Super Jackpot, then that MB mode is cleared, and you can't play it again until all others are cleared, or the game is over. This allows for other modes to be easily accessible without having to be forced to do all the 4 MB modes over and over again.

 

A small video preview of Skeletor MB in progress.

 

 

 

[TerryRed]

She-Ra Sling SHOTS

 

I wasn't sure how exactly to add She-Ra into the game. Then I figured, why not make it so that each slingshot hit you get (when not in mb) counts as an End of Ball Bonus ("She-Ra Slings"). Then I figured... why not make that expend into a new Hurry Up mode! So when you get enough slingshot hits, then She-Ra Sling "Shots" mode starts.

 

I also added a new insert to show the mode has started, and I've also made jackpot inserts and the neon ramp colours change to match the mode / jackpot / event)

 

The orange flasher beacon light turns on, and you'll hear her yell "I am SHE-RA!!!!". You have around 1 minute to hit all Jackpot shots to complete the mode. If you fail, then Skeletor lets you know what he thinks of She-Ra in a way only an 80's Boomer Skeletor can. ("Ugh... just like a woman!")

 

 

 

 

 

[drakkon]

On 8/26/2023 at 3:24 AM, TerryRed said:

Skeletor MB changes

 

Previously, to get Skeletor MB, you only had to hit Skeletor's targets then lock a ball, then hit the targets again to start Skeletor 9 ball MB.

 

After adding FizX physics, that became WAY too easy to do over and over again. So I changed it so you have to do the process and lock 3 balls first. Still not too hard to do.

 

Normally, when Skeletor MB starts, all the balls will spill out at one time as soon as the Roton targets lower. This tends to have a good chance of half the balls draining. So I decided to change things up a bit. I always like Megatron's MB in Transformer (how the balls would shoot out fast one after the other). So I did the same for this table. After the targets all lower Skeletor shoots out each ball rapidly one after the other with laser blasts. Way cooler I think.

 

I also have changed it so that if you hit each jackpot and get Super Jackpot, then that MB mode is cleared, and you can't play it again until all others are cleared, or the game is over. This allows for other modes to be easily accessible without having to be forced to do all the 4 MB modes over and over again.

 

A small video preview of Skeletor MB in progress.

 

 

 

Oh, yeah. Awesome.

[TerryRed]

Another addition. Battle Cat Bumpers.... which is basically Super Pops. If you hit the bumpers enough, then this is enabled. You get more score, and also get more added to your End of Ball Bonus.

 

[TerryRed]

Masters of the Universe - Collector's Edition (WORK IN PROGRESS)

 

New name, new game, new almost everything.

 

Well it's official. The new name will be "Masters of the Universe - Collector's Edition". Why that name? Well, because that is your literal objective in the new game... to collect everything. Collect all the new action figures, vehicles, and playsets from the 80's toyline! To do so you will need to complete every mode in the game which will give you one of the collectibles.

 

New modes.

 

The original game only had 4 multiball modes. Now the two ramps and the He-Man kicker has multiple modes. Each has a multiball mode, and a "collect action figure / vehicle / playset" mode. The ramps have a hurry up mode (Zoar and Horde), and the kicker has Man-E modes which will let you pick from multiple modes to play from... similar to Mania Modes on Sonic Pinball Mania. Each shot will also give you Bonus Scores such as Zoar Zooms, Hordak Hoardings, He-Man hits, Castle Crashes. Each shot's modes has their own separate progression inidicated by 3 small round insert lights located at the entrance to each shot. These will change colour (and stay lit to show progress) to match the mode the shot is currently set to.

 

Toggle modes.

 

Each of the shots can have their active mode changed in two ways. Either by hitting the upper loops / ramp target (which affects only the matching shot).... or you can manually toggle the active mode for all 3 shots with the action / plunger button. One you hit an active shot, it won't change its mode (the loops / target will stay lit) until you complete the mode.... or you force all shot to change their mode with the action / plunger button. This allows you to change up how you want to play at anytime, but also keeps you on your toes as your shots can be changed at anytime. Each shot's progress / light changes to show you what is active, so you don't have to worry about memorizing progress. I had to pretty much reprogram most the table for all this new gameplay to work, but it's all coming together really nicely.

 

New art, inserts, decals, Havoc Staff and Axe

 

Before, each shot only gave you a multiball and scores. Now each insert is a new mode, and also has new decals for each mode. I also added Skeletor's Havoc Staff, which may play a part in a game mode later on. I added He-Man's axe behind him as well with a light on top. I also added new sideblade art with bump maps which looks really nice with the lighting, and I have each side match for Snake Mountain and Castle Greyskull's colours.

 

Updated layout

 

The original layout (loosely based on Tron Legacy) was a bit of a pain because the castle would rise up and block some of the shots. I moved the ramp and castle back to give lots of clearancek, but it was a pain as I had to remodel parts of the ramp and the neon lights on the ramps. Now you can make the upper right inner loop easily with the castle raised.

 

Lots more to do!

 

 

 

 

 

 

[TerryRed]

New backbox, new apron, new Toggle Modes, new Magic Shots

 

It took a while for me to figure out exactly how I wanted to handle progression in the game (and a crap load of code changes). I eventually settled on an idea similar to "Indiana Jones - Fortune and Glory / Ultimate Pro". During regular gameplay, you can choose to toggle what each main shot's active mode will be with the action / plunger button. A new light on the apron will show you when you are allowed to do this.

 

During any of the new hurry up modes, or Man-E modes (but not a multiball mode), you can use a "Magic Shot" if you have one available. What this does, is allows Orko to literally use his magic to transport the ball from wherever it is, and he will make one of the shots for you! (I was tempted to make his magic act similar to the show... in that it's not reliable... but probably not ). A new light on the apron will show when you have a Magic Shot available.

 

The backbox has all new artwork, and Stern Style speaker grill. I don't know if I will integrate videos into the table directly like I did before, but if I do they will appear on the new FullDMD area instead of on the backbox... and maybe on the playfield mini display. I will most likely keep the videos to a minimum for the actual table integration, as the PinEvent V2 pup-pack will have all the nicer videos anyways.

 

 

 

 

 

[TerryRed]

New VR Room!

 

Here's a peak at the new VR Room. Added a full size Castle Greyskull (both sections, scanned from the 80s playset), new artwork, and new Battlecat and Stridor, also scanned from their 80's toys. These models were crazy detailed with millions of polygons, so I had to converted them, and remesh them, remap them, and fix them up so they would be more efficient. Even then, the models in the VR room alone are over 700,000 polygons, and combined with the table, is easily well over 1 million!

 

What I was surprised at... considering how crazy detailed these models are (and the new detailed playfield models I added)... this table still runs great for me in VR and looks really cool! If you have a very fast PC capable of running FP in VR smoothly, you are in for a real treat!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited September 8, 2023 by TerryRed