The Simpsons Pinball Party

1

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Stern Whitestar System

Main CPU : Motorola M6809 (@ 2 MHz)
Sound CPU : Motorola M6809 (@ 2 MHz)
Display CPU : Motorola M6809 (@ 4 MHz)
Sound chip : BSMT2000 (@ 24 MHz)

CPU RELEASE : 1.00
DISPLAY RELEASE : 1.00
SOUND RELEASE : 1.00
Date : January 8, 2003
- Initial release.

CPU RELEASE : 1.01
Date : January 9, 2003
- Some adjustment ranges corrected particularly for token settings.
- VUK to upper playfield now on learning firing table.

CPU RELEASE : 1.02
Date : January 10, 2003
- Potential error on TV effect requests trapped.
- Learning table for VUK altered.

CPU RELEASE : 1.03
Date : January 14, 2003
- More tweaking of firing times on upper right eject and VUK.
- Consolation extra ball added.
- Mystery percentages tweaked significantly.
- changed post settings for U.K. tournament enabled games.

DISPLAY RELEASE : 1.01
Date : January 15, 2003
- added french translations.
- added/fixed german words (some tournament related).

SOUND RELEASE : 1.01
- Rebalanced voice calls vs. bg music.

DISPLAY RELEASE : 1.02
Date : January 17, 2003
- fixed diagnostic menu text that was in the wrong order.

CPU RELEASE : 1.04
Date : January 24, 2003
- More choreography added and tweaked.
- Family lights now show Super Jackpot progress.
- Coil malfunction alerts added.
- Upper right eject firing logic altered.
- Put in real values for broken switch thresholds.
- Added logic for Get Duffed lamp.
- Added SDMEWM progress display effect.
- Added very basic SDMEWM start show.
- Balls kick out faster at start of multiballs now.
- Added replay-at display marquee call.
- Ensured SDMEWM drop targets always reset up.
- Fixed bully 3-bank light display during SDMEWM.
- Added TV and I&S mode select on right flipper.
- Competition mode added. The rules for competition mode are as follows :
Otto shots start in the following order :
Pop bumpers
Left orbit
Left ramp
Kwik-E-Mart
Garage
Right loop (Otto)
Right ramp
Right orbit
Itchy & Scratchy
Upper playfield

Hurryups started in the following order :
Left orbit
Left ramp
Kwik-E-Mart
Garage
Right ramp
Right orbit

Treehouse of Horror awards given in the following order :
10x Nuclear Plant
Nuclear Disaster
Apu's Giveaway
Krusty's Nightmare
Max Everything
Captain's Bounty
Crazy Extra Ball
Big Points

Kwik-E-Mart increased by 1,110 then 2,220, then 3,330, etc.
Digits in Krusty's Nightmare awarded in order 1-9.
Hold-value awards given in the following order :
Pop value
Nuclear value
Right ramp value
Left ramp value
Kwik-E-Mart value
Drop target value
Chalkboard value
Bonus value
Bonus multiplier

Max-value awards given in the following order :
Pop value
Nuclear value
Right ramp value
Left ramp value
Kwik-E-Mart value
Drop target value
Chalkboard value

Mystery awards are given according to the following logic :
If any timed mode is running, then...
If TV is unlit, light TV
If 20, award 2 kids
If Get Duffed is lit, award 1 duff
If no I&S multiball yet, advance I&S (but don't start it)
If no couch multiball yet, advance couch (but don't start it)
If none of the above can be given, then cycle through the following awards in order :
big points (500,000)
hold award (won't be given on last ball)
add 50,000 to bonus
little points (50,000)
add 3 bonus x
max award (won't be given on first ball)

DISPLAY RELEASE : 1.03
Date : January 27, 2003
- added Spanish translations.
- added/fixed several French/German translations.
- added 'replay at' messaging to player score screens.

DISPLAY RELEASE : 1.04
Date : January 29, 2003
- added Italian translations.
- fixed instant info display effects from not appearing.
- adult speech setting fixed.

CPU RELEASE : 2.00
DISPLAY RELEASE : 2.00
Date : February 10, 2003
- Display-side support for all new CPU features.
- More translations added.
- Renamed Horrifically Big Points.
- Fixed some bogus sound calls during HSTD.
- Fixed Monorail Mode shot award display.
- Instant Info fully implemented.
- Added better explanations to some secret award display effects.
- More speech/choreography.
- Tried to trap a situation where CBG Hurryup goes into Never-Never Land.
- Made Nuclear Value Award screen more informative (no one knew you could get extra balls from it).
- Extended Springfield Mystery Spot jackpot display effect times.
- All audits should be chalking properly now.
- Implemented Garage Door Difficulty adjustment. This allows the Garage Door to reopen automatically under certain circumstances as follows :
Extra Easy : Until Couch Multiball is started.
Easy : Until any couch lock is made.
Moderate : Until any couch lock or tv mode started.
Hard : Until any couch lock, tv mode started, or mystery lit.
Extra Hard : Never reopens
The default setting for this adjustment from Extra Easy install to Extra Hard install is as follows : Extra Easy; Extra Easy, Easy, Moderate, Hard.
- Implemented Hold Couch Locks adjustment. This allows the couch to hold onto balls between games and between players. The settings are :
Never : Couch always empties at game over, no locks are ever held.
1 Player Games : Couch doesn't empty at game over and anyone playing a 1-player game can steal any locked balls.
Always : Couch doesn't empty at game over, AND players can steal other players' locks.
This adjustment will be treated as Never if Competition Mode is on. During tournament games, balls will stay physically locked, but players must still make 3 locks in order to start Couch Multiball. The default setting for this adjustment from Extra Easy install to Extra Hard install is as follows : 1 Player Games, 1 Player Games, 1 Player Games, Never, Never.
- Implemented Adult Content adjustment. When off, the following phrases are removed from the game :
Kick ass, man!
Holy crap!
Somebody check the men's room for a Hugh Jass.
Cheating makes Baby Jesus cry.
- Fixed no-memory specials and extra balls staying lit even though they would correctly not award anything if they were achieved on a subsequent ball.

CPU RELEASE : 2.01
Date : February 17, 2003
- Sound ROM test now correctly identifies which sound calls come from which physical ROM.
- Fixed memory extra balls and specials staying lit between games.
- Increased ballsaver time for Pretzel Multiball.
- Invasion Total deff stays up much longer now.
- Upper Bart made switch will now also do normal captive ball work. This causes the following to occur : When the mechanism is normally-working, very hard shots will basically give 2 awards. When Bart is stuck along the way, a solid hit to the captive ball should send Bart back far enough to score one award, keeping the feature alive.

CPU RELEASE : 2.02
Date : February 19, 2003
- Sound test fixed for real now. Really.
- Hurryup value bug fixed.

CPU RELEASE : 2.03
Date : February 26, 2003
- Fixed a problem with going to the wrong menu for Dr. Pinball.
- Fixed a nasty problem with the HOLD COUCH LOCKS adjustment. If balls were in the couch at the start of a multiplayer game and this adjustment was set for 1-PLAYER GAMES, player 1 would get screwed with never being able to start Couch Multiball.
- Fixed Scratchy's Revenge being able to start during Alien Invasion. Now it is properly unable to start until after Invasion is over.
- Added 'Chaos Mode' for helping clear balls out of the VUK in very early production games.
- Fixed Alien Invasion not resetting its total.
- Fixed a problem in Alien Invasion where if a ball was locked before all the balls were autolaunched from the trough, it would not get the proper number of balls into play.
- Fixed an obscure problem in Alien Invasion where if you started it with 2 balls locked in the couch, locked one of the balls, then drained the other, it would just sit there until the mode ended.
- Added a bunch of switch compensation, more to come.

DISPLAY RELEASE : 2.01
Date : February 26, 2003
- Dr. Pinball switch test now displayed correctly

CPU RELEASE : 2.04
Date : February 28, 2003
- Tech Alert removed. Now your game just magically works all the time.

CPU RELEASE : 2.05
Date : March 22, 2003
- THIS ROM HAS NOT BEEN RELEASED. IT IS BEING BROUGHT TO ASI 2003.
- Fixed issues related to restarting a game in progress (endless tilt, free ball save).
- Fixed Show Upper Flippers adjustment (it works now).
- Tilting before valid playfield on ball 1 now won't say The Simpsons again.
- Tilt won't reserve and plunge a drained ball if valid playfield didn't occur.
- Drop Target Hurryup now killed at Invasion start.
- Issues with Invasion stage getting confused shouldn't occur now.
- Invasion should now score correctly (1M x balls locked, not always 2M).
- Bug that prevented bonus speech from happening fixed.
- SMS flippers now work correctly if it is restarted.
- Added deff for Couch Lock Lit.
- Nuclear Disaster won/lost effects now work correctly.
- Mystery lock award labels fixed.
- Nuclear Disaster background now goes away properly when you win it.
- Lots of light shows added for SMS and Revenge.

CPU RELEASE : 2.06
Date : March 27, 2003
- default French replay level now 12M
- added replay logic to evaluate recent games to determine if the replay level should be raised/lowered or remain the same

CPU RELEASE : 2.07
Date : March 27, 2003
- removed DEVELOPMENT settings from previous release.

CPU RELEASE : 3.00
DISPLAY RELEASE : 3.00
Date : April 29, 2003
- Properly chalk wins in all tv modes now.
- Altered difficulty of Scratchy's Revenge. In order to light the first super jackpot, you now need to make 15 jackpots MINUS the number of Itchy & Scratchy multiball super jackpots earned in that cycle (the minimum number of jackpots is 5). For subsequent super jackpots in the same Revenge multiball, 15 jackpots are needed to light.
- The number of ratings points for Krusty's Last Stand that you get for shooting the right orbit has been doubled to 20. With a good spinner, this should cause the mode to be finishable in 3 shots, with a maximum of 5 shots.
- Altered difficulty of Alien Invasion. Now the time you get for completing AI is based on the number of TV modes you have WON in that cycle. The time is 45 seconds, plus 5 seconds for every mode won. If all 7 modes were won, then AI's timer starts at the maximum of 99 seconds.
- Added player-abort feature for Alien Invasion. If a ball becomes hopelessly stuck (e.g. 2 balls sneak behind the I&S drop targets), then the player may hold in the start button for 1 second. This will kick out ALL currently locked balls with no effect on the stage or the ballsaver. The player may then try again to lock all of the balls for that stage. It is recommended to abort the current stage as soon as a ball is trapped because no ballsaver will come on when kicking out the balls.
- Victory Laps now cash-in correctly when Alien Invasion starts.
- Fixed a nasty bug that would carry over the Victory Lap value across Invasion, possibly inflating Victory Laps for TV modes won on the same ball after Invasion finished.
- It is now impossible to change the Adult Content adjustment when the game is dipped for Chuck E. Cheese.
- Added Standard Adjustment 47 - Ticket Dispenser Installed. Default is NO. When set to YES, the game will attempt to give tickets when they are set as an award type. This also disables any flipper stack switches that may be in a game (upper right flippers in the case of TSPP).
- Added Standard Adjustment 48 - Allow Player Competition. Default is YES. When set to YES, players may activate competition-mode games by holding in the left flipper for a second. If a game can be started (i.e. there are credits on it), a countdown will show up on the display. Hitting the start button during this countdown puts the game into competition mode for that game only (but for all players of that game). See notes below for details on Competition Mode rules.
- Added Standard Adjustment 49 - Show Tech Alert. Default for now is NEVER. This adjustment controls where/when the Tech Alert message will pop up : POWERUP shows the message after booting and before games can be started; COIN DOOR OPEN shows the message when the coin door opens up; POWERUP AND COIN DOOR for both of the above; NEVER will never show Tech Alert Alert.
- Improved some choreography for Pretzel Multiball.
- Added Pretzel Multiball Total page.

CPU Release : 4.00
Display Release : 4.00
Date : July 14, 2003
- Now properly light special during SDMEWM.
- Fixed a bug in switch dispatching that would sometimes cause a switch to either double-register or register on powerup.
- Fixed a nasty bug with Mystery awarding LIGHT LOCK in higher difficulty couch locks. If you were on a multiball that required LIGHT LOCK to be hit in order and had already completed the LIGHT portion, then got LIGHT LOCK from Mystery, you would not be able to progress towards Couch Multiball anymore. Being awarded LIGHT LOCK from Mystery will now turn off the LIGHT LOCK targets if locks are not allowed to be stacked.
- Fixed a bug where display effects would be aborted with just the right flipper instead of both flippers at the same time.
- Added a timeout for the transition of shooter groove to mainplay if for some reason the cpu is not getting the signal from the sound section.
- Added 2 display effect calls for CBG Secret Stash : CBG Secret Stash Start and the notice that all shots are relit.
- Added Feature Adjustment 36 - Allow Volume Effects. Default is YES. When set to YES, the game will increase the volume during certain events (typically multiballs). When set to NO, the volume will not be messed with. If the game volume is set to 0 (OFF), then this adjustment will be treated as set to NO.
- Fixes made to help stop Itchy & Scratchy kickout from ejecting a ball when the drop targets are raised.

CPU Release: 5.00
Display Release: 5.00
Date: July 2, 2007
- Mystery award no longer gives the same award back-to-back in competition mode.
- Mystery award no longer lights extra ball if one was already lit.
- Mystery award no longer lights special if one was already lit.
- Kwik-E-Mart standup now changes digits correctly in competition mode.
- HSTD Reset now also resets Grand Champion (there is now no way to manually erase the non-grand-champion scores, they will reset themselves only on the HSTD Reset Count adjustment). This is to address not being able to change the default grand champion score.
- If an Otto award gets stacked in the display queue, it will now show the correct shot that was doubled (previously it would generally always show upper playfield at 2x scoring if it was queued).
- Homer's TV-lit speech now takes priority over Krusty's quotes again, and will also be heard if the display effect doesn't get to run.
- TV start effects now stack after combo and other awards.
- Couch lock and multiball start animations now stack after combo and other awards.
- Major award events (e.g. TV mode start, Otto award, Treehouse awards) now only hold up the device they are associated with, not all kicking devices.
- Combo awards now awarded before anything else on a given shot.
- Itchy and Scratchy eject now double-checks to make sure the targets are actually down before trying to eject the ball. It also waits until any drop target reset process is complete before kicking.
- Otto eject now has more low-power kick table entries.
- Couch multiball start lamp effect now called from the display effect.
- Couch multiball start lamp effect now goes away properly if the start display effect is blown off.
- New U.S. default pricing, 1/.75, 3/$2.00
- Display-side support for .75 pricing.

1. The Simpsons (1990)
2. The Simpsons Pinball Party (2003)

Game's ROM.
Machine's picture (bossyman15)