2023 VGS NES Weekly Contest - Pinball

[Bearcat-Doug | 5,105]

Just now, G-type said:

Are you holding back a good score because you think someone might use it as motivation to try and beat you? no balls.

I honestly don't get it. My best effort may not be good enough even if I know what to shoot for. If that was the case, Twin Galaxies records would be broken everytime a new one was posted.

[docile tapeworm | 4,198]

14 minutes ago, G-type said:

Are you holding back a good score because you think someone might use it as motivation to try and beat you? no balls.

Absolutely. This is exactly why I hold my scores. And I’m a 3 1/2 time shooter genre champeeeeeeeen!!!!

[docile tapeworm | 4,198]

12 minutes ago, Bearcat-Doug said:

I honestly don't get it. My best effort may not be good enough even if I know what to shoot for. If that was the case, Twin Galaxies records would be broken everytime a new one was posted.

Twin galaxies records can be broken at any time. This here is a contest with limited time to put in a score.

[Bearcat-Doug | 5,105]

Just now, docile tapeworm said:

Twin galaxies records can be broken at any time. This here is a contest with limited time to put in a score.

I'm just saying if posted scores could be broken at will, I wouldn't be able to post a score on a Sunday and have it hold up all week. A winning score isn't getting beaten by posting it early. 

[docile tapeworm | 4,198]

1 minute ago, Bearcat-Doug said:

I'm just saying if posted scores could be broken at will, I wouldn't be able to post a score on a Sunday and have it hold up all week. A winning score isn't getting beaten by posting it early. 

Ya if you post an all time world record score it might not get beat in a week. But if you left points on the board. That just motivates me to go after your score. Where if you hold I’m unaware that my score is not enough.

[Bearcat-Doug | 5,105]

7 minutes ago, docile tapeworm said:

Absolutely. This is exactly why I hold my scores. And I’m a 3 1/2 time shooter genre champeeeeeeeen!!!!

I like showing what I've got and daring anyone to beat it, but that's just me.

[Bearcat-Doug | 5,105]

1 minute ago, docile tapeworm said:

Ya if you post an all time world record score it might not get beat in a week. But if you left points on the board. That just motivates me to go after your score. Where if you hold I’m unaware that my score is not enough.

I've left points on the board and still won. It's not like people can just put up a higher score because they know where the bar is set.

[docile tapeworm | 4,198]

3 minutes ago, Bearcat-Doug said:

I like showing what I've got and daring anyone to beat it, but that's just me.

Hey that’s cool bro  

1 minute ago, Bearcat-Doug said:

I've left points on the board and still won. It's not like people can just put up a higher score because they know where the bar is set.

True. But I calculated your interest into the equation of you don’t even know where the bar is.

[docile tapeworm | 4,198]

6 minutes ago, Bearcat-Doug said:

I like showing what I've got and daring anyone to beat it, but that's just me.

And I like the sneak game, waiting till Sunday to show your beat.

[G-type | 2,482]

I’ve still got the top score in pinball number count https://interactive.sesamestreet.org/games/prod/269-pinball-number-count/e27f661f75eea10b7059a748494a44c9abeeb71e/run/index.html

[docile tapeworm | 4,198]

@Bearcat-Doug for me, it really doesn’t matter how good of a score you post. Playing against some insane good nes players in here has taught me that you might as well shoot for a perfect game. 
 

I loved the snipe game me and @Dr. Morbis played during stinger. That was epic.

[Gloves | 11,782]

1 hour ago, docile tapeworm said:

But!……I think share bear is lame so to each his own

We can agree to disagree lol. 

My mindset is that if you have to hide your score to win, it wasn't your best score, so you're really just cheating yourself.

[mbd39 | 2,024]

Do you think this game is fair or are the physics manipulated to make it harder? Like if you have all the cards flipped but one, is the rng adjusted so that you're more likely to bounce away from that one last card rather than go through and hit it?

 

[docile tapeworm | 4,198]

12 minutes ago, Gloves said:

 

My mindset is that if you have to hide your score to win, it wasn't your best score, so you're really just cheating yourself.

Nah, I’ve been beating myself all week….it really is my best score at the end of the week

[docile tapeworm | 4,198]

I respect you guys for putting up your real best score during the week. I just respect waiting until Sunday night to post your best more

Edited August 1, 2023 by docile tapeworm

[mbd39 | 2,024]

There have been contest weeks where I probably cost myself the victory by not waiting to post my score until Sunday (Kung Fu), but I'd still rather post scores as I get them.

 

 

[Bearcat-Doug | 5,105]

50 minutes ago, docile tapeworm said:

@Bearcat-Doug for me, it really doesn’t matter how good of a score you post. Playing against some insane good nes players in here has taught me that you might as well shoot for a perfect game. 
 

I loved the snipe game me and @Dr. Morbis played during stinger. That was epic.

My best score on a Tuesday might be my best score on a Sunday so I'm okay with posting it and letting it fall wherever it ends up.

[Bearcat-Doug | 5,105]

40 minutes ago, Gloves said:

We can agree to disagree lol. 

My mindset is that if you have to hide your score to win, it wasn't your best score, so you're really just cheating yourself.

Good point.

[mbd39 | 2,024]

Pinball is more fun than I remember, but runs can take so long even with one life rules. I'm glad it's one life rules.

 

[docile tapeworm | 4,198]

So, honest question. @mbd39 @Bearcat-Doug @Gloves what’s the point of posting your score early?

[Gloves | 11,782]

1 minute ago, docile tapeworm said:

So, honest question. @mbd39 @Bearcat-Doug @Gloves what’s the point of posting your score early?

Driving each other to work harder as a community, for one. Friendly competition, pushing to be our best together, and creating camaraderie and rivalries. 

If everyone posted their scores as they got better and better we'd be able to see each other improve and grow, we'd create mini-competitions amongst ourselves, the thread would be vibrant and alive, especially if people openly discussed strategies. It'd still be a competition and skill/implementation would be the deciding factor in any case.

Contrasted with if everyone just posted 5 minutes to the deadline, where we'd honestly likely see the whole contest just die.

[docile tapeworm | 4,198]

7 minutes ago, Gloves said:

Driving each other to work harder as a community, for one. Friendly competition, pushing to be our best together, and creating camaraderie and rivalries. 

If everyone posted their scores as they got better and better we'd be able to see each other improve and grow, we'd create mini-competitions amongst ourselves, the thread would be vibrant and alive, especially if people openly discussed strategies. It'd still be a competition and skill/implementation would be the deciding factor in any case.

Contrasted with if everyone just posted 5 minutes to the deadline, where we'd honestly likely see the whole contest just die.

So do we not have all of those things you mentioned in the first paragraph already? You and others have certainly driven me to play well beyond what I thought was good and what I thought I could do.

pushing each other
Friendly competition

Camaraderie and rivalries

The only way the contest would die if we all posted our scores last minute is if the players weren’t interested in playing for competition in the first place.

I can see your angle though. Especially you being the creator of the forum.

[docile tapeworm | 4,198]

Bert used to post last minute all the time and it never pushed me away. I respected it and it made me want to be better in order to have something for him on the last day.

[docile tapeworm | 4,198]

55 minutes ago, Bearcat-Doug said:

Good point.

But that’s like saying there is no way you can post your best score on the first day…..

[Gloves | 11,782]

8 minutes ago, docile tapeworm said:

But that’s like saying there is no way you can post your best score on the first day…..

I have faith that barring a perfect score and/or an incredibly RNG-based scoring system (which would be awful for a competition), everyone has it in them to improve over the week. I wouldn't say there's NO way it could happen cuz there's gotchas to doing so, but I disagree with your statement completely. 

I just see nothing positive at all about sniping, personally. It's boring to me.