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Part One:
2.0H CIRQUS VOLTAIRE REVIEW! ! !
Shhh... (...join the cirqus... )
Just when you thought it was safe to join
the Cirqus Voltaire, -someone- comes along
and throws us pinball dogs a bone. From the
old great tasting 1.4, we now get a new and
improved, with that awesome after-taste that
will keep you coming back for more...
VERSION 2.0H!
Now where this updated version came from,
well, who can say for sure ; ) but it has instantly
made a classic pinball game THAT MUCH MORE
of a CLASSIC and a MUST HAVE for every
pinball collectors collection!
A picture of the Ringmaster test mold .. kind .
of spooky with those vacant eye-sockets!(CJS)
THE NUMBERS
Art-Backglass (10) (Linda Deals best work ever!)
Art-Playfield/Cabinet (10) .(Super-colorful, beautiful artwork! Welcome to the Cirqus!)
Sound (10) ..(Shhhh....join the cirqus...Spectacular sounds all around! . . . . . . Especially during PATY MULTIBALL! ! !)
Rules (11) (Multiball stackability like pyramid!)
Playfield Design (10) ..(Ringmaster, boom balloon, 2 spinners, 3 magnets, 2 loops, . Dmd on the pf, narrow slings, flip-mode on the outlanes,
2 . ramp shots, 2 saucer holes for juggler effect, and neon tube in . various colors! Just try and tell me this playfield isn't crazy . . . and out-of-control like the Circus!)
Replayability/Longevity (11) (with version 2.0, it made the game twice as nice!)
RINGMASTER is one of the all time great toys. Multiple positions, modes, and a magnet that is the soul of the evil ringmaster!
BOOM BALOON is a great toy revisited. Try to start any multiball with the boom balloon raised for some real havoc!
DMD is placed perfectly for this game. It really adds to the overall experience and allows you to enjoy the animations.
NEON MULTIBALL is taking strobe multiball to the next level with a 2 neon light taunting you to blink!
THE MAJOR DIFFERENCES FOR PLAYERS FROM 1.4 TO 2.0H
The
adjustment to install manual eddy boards has proven very valuable. In
some CVs the ball wouldnt register at certain times making play super
annoying. An
adjustment was also added to allow all abort-friendly display effects to be
aborted right from the start of the game, which allows players familiar with
the animations to play at a quicker pace and keep the game moving along.
Acrobats
will only spot from made switch on the ramp (instead of enter), this is good
because sometimes strategy calls for the player to go for acrobats last
especially when you want to do the ringmaster battle (I almost always leave
acrobats for last. The added adjustment to enable the timed Ringmaster mode is a
fun change of pace if you want to make the game even more challenging. Another
awesome addition (especially for anal collectors) is the adjustment to stop the
Ringmaster magnet from catching the ball after WOW. What this allows is
faster play and will also stop your CV from destroying itself from wildly
thrown air balls. I will sometimes go back to this setting when playing a guest
at my home to add some luck to the contest and let them enjoy all the bells and
whistles. The addition of the copycat video mode is huge! It can award you an
extra ball! If you are really good, you will be able to finish the mode and
only the ringmaster knows what happens next! ? ((((((((((SEE VIDEO!)))))))))) Neon multiball
has a significantly reduced chance of running until one of the regular
multiballs has been played; I have rarely seen this mode since the introduction
of 2.0H. It pops up occasionally, but not to often in the same game with
copycat. You need to go deep! ! The sideshow will try not to give out
two video type modes in a row, and I can attest to this. I have never have seen
that. The addition of a juggler sneaky lock allows you to bypass loop shots and
go into directly locking balls. The Boom Balloon will attempt to lower
itself if it registers hits while it should be down, and the ball is hitting
other jets. This is a most excellent addition to the game. Many had the problem
with the boom balloon not lowering on the machines first attempt. All
multiballs can be restarted when quickly starting another multiball. I dont
suggest this if you are trying to maximize points and finish the game multiple
times, but it is good if you need a lot of points quick. Especially if you have
a guest over and want to send the game into a FRENZY! ! !
ALL,
I REPEAT ALL MULTIBALLS CAN BE STACKED! ! ! You got mad skills? TRY AND STACK
ALL 5 MULTIBALLS! ! !
-RINGMASTER,
HIGHWIRE, ARC, JUGGLER, AND
.NEON!!!
IT IS NEXT TO IMPOSSIBLE AND I HAVE ONLY DONE
IT TWICE IN ABOUT 1000+ GAMES ON CV 2.0H. (Note, when trying to do this, you
may have to play the game to only accomplish this one goal, it is THAT DAMN
HARD! But, well worth the effort! THE GAME GOES BEZERK!
The
ringmaster battle seems easier to beat which is good and bad, but probably
mostly good considering you may only see it once a game and you can never have
enough extra balls. (A SIDE NOTE
it was total point rape when you used to be
able to stack ringmaster with highwire and arc multiballs on early ROMs.
IMAGINE THAT! I had games exceeding 2B regularly.)
Extra
balls are all over the place! Go for them all!
RAZZ RINGMASTER
COPY-CAT
NEON MULTIBALL
BOOM BALLOON
RINGMASTER BATTLE
The second time a player reaches JOIN THE CIRQUS, there will be 2 new steps in the wizard mode waiting for them. Acrobats spin & roving hurry-ups are spectacular and add a lot of pressure to the player while trying to accomplish. The skill shot is lit at ball start, during Join The Cirqus to advance the mode. This is crucial especially when a successful skill shot at the start of acrobat spins is worth 15 spins! ! !
SOME SIMPLE STRATEGIES, MUST DOS, AND SUGGESTIONS
Only stack one multiball per ringmaster. While stacking multiple multiballs is fun, the idea is to maximize points and to get to the second set of wizard modes in the same game. When you do this, always have the ringmaster already for the kill shot (in the raised position ready to be defeated) so you can play the started multiball and get as many points as possible before defeating the ringmaster to lengthen the multiball experience and really be a point slut. I usually try to get arc as high as possible during the 2 ball multiball before stacking the ringmaster so I can max out the jackpot score at 2M and really start having some fun.
Pick your spots with the boom balloon. It only takes 15 hits to get that extra ball. No need to start the game off with the boom balloon to only have it snap the ball through an outlane for you. What you really want to do is get this thing raised during multiballs so you can rape it while the ball saver is on and you have 2 or more balls on the playfield.
Always be ready to collect the SUPER DUPER JACKPOT!
It can max out to be a shot worth well over 4M if you play your cards right.
Try and get good at copycat, if you finish it, you wont believe the reward! ? Hmmm ?
If your up for the ultimate VOLTAIRE CHALLENGE, try to be a hero and stack all 5 multiballs. It can be done. Ill leave it up to you to figure out how.
Pick sideshow as much as possible off the skill shot. If you have a good game, you will see copycat and neon multiball in the same game and will get that elusive 2nd extra ball via the sideshow.
Save the acrobats marvel for last, this way you can guarantee a shot at the ringmaster battle. When you are done smashing on the ringmaster, lock a ball or two if you dont want to mess with the acrobat shot, one of the skill shot options usually pops up where it will complete acrobats for you.
Spinners, spinners, spinners, rape them during arc multiball to raise the jackpot value the quickest.
If you are a sorry sight during multiballs, lengthen the ball saver. After you practice up and find your groove, turn it back down and play like a wizard!
Make sure that you make the skill shot to start acrobat spins wizard mode. 15 SPINS!
ITS PARTY TIME! ! ! GO BEZERK AND GET AS MANY JACKPOTS AS YOU CAN!
There are 2 ways to play this, keep balls on the upper half of the playfield and get a lot of boom balloon hits into the ringmaster while flailing trying to collect as many jackpots as quick as possible, or trap as many balls as you can on the left flipper and RAPE THE RAMP! I tend to combine both of these strategies and have scored over 100M during one wizard mode. Its party time, DO WHAT YOU LIKE, its YOUR party!
TO DOWNLOAD CV2.0H ROMS VISIT THE SITE OF Craig Hassell
http://www.mindspring.com/~cwaig/cirqustech.htm
PICTURES COURTESY OF CAMERON J. SILVER.
Cabinets await playfields on the production line in October 1997. If the
build-date of your game is around October 15th 1997, then your game could be in
this picture! A real good pinball eye will be able to recognize the playfield
in the rack near the center of this picture. (CJS)