On Tommy if you hold in the extra ball button and then start, every player in the game has to play with the blinders out for the whole game, not just player 1.
I guess it’s not technically a rule change but it definitely affects game play.
Ruling: Player-Selectable Whole-Game Modes
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Haha. Did not know that.
“Install Competition” sets multiple Adjustments, one of which is “Competition Mode”. Competition Mode will remove any use of randomness in the game logic. For example, serializing the “Stroke of Luck” style awards to be in the same order for all players.
Holding in the Left Flipper Button to enable “Player Competition Mode” will activate the “Competition Mode” setting for the next game. This does not alter any of the other Adjustments which “Install Competition” would set.
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My comment was solely regarding the new “Mode of Play” selection menu in JP. There are Adjustments for the operator to enable/disable the items which are selectable in the menu. The Challenge mode can be disable from the menu and is by default when “Install Competition” is used.
Just about all games from 90’s up have that
Enabling competition mode by holding in the left flipper button on Sterns is the only way we do it in our league. So much so that we often joke when we walk up to a game like Aztec or Wizard, “Make sure you put it in competition mode”. 
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Curious, for those who lean towards only allowing “normal” games and would forbid things like spanish settings and JD supergame, what is your opinion on someone starting Secret Mania during their ball on HS3 and likely messing up the game state for all players? I can’t imagine forbidding players from starting it since it’s a legit rule, but it can affect other players’ games pretty badly…
This is a far one, but on Indiana Jones, if player 1 holds both flipper buttons as they press start, that activates the Frog bonus in Mine Cart. If a player crashes on the 4th right barrier, they get a bonus. Would something like this be a allowed? Not really a big deal, but it does something.
Isn’t everything “allowed” unless there’s a clear rule written about it and a listed consequence?
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The implications of the ability for a player to select Escape Nublar in best game qualifying is interesting because you are practically guaranteed a very good score but you give up the ability to have a great score because the game ends after completing the mode. It’s worth considering the possibility of allowing players to choose in this scenario
Look. To me it is very simple. Players are not allowed to make changes to the games. Period. That goes for jacking up the front legs. That goes for flipper codes. Whether it is the super secret ones or the more common hold-and-press-start. Hands off.
And the IFPAPA might as well put this in the verbal under player conduct. Stuff is forbidden unless otherwise determined by the tournament.
This imples, that for the (rare) special cases, like Pool Sharks, the players have to require an instruction on what to do.
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Definitely don’t use this in a big time tournament if you can help it.
Not sure if Soren has updated code for that, but I would make sure the game has Soren code before using it.
This has happened maybe twice at Pinburgh. The ruling is that the game was not started properly, and is a full restart.
The Pool Sharks situation is interesting – I think P1 should get the choice. A player could choose to be P1 to get that ability if it is important enough.
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It is removed from the L-5 patch. As safety. Reports are a bit vague on whether it is still a problem in L-5. Not to mention solid facts on what is going on. Ideally it should be fixed, not removed. Some day.
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What does playing Secret Mania do to the other players?
Others can chime in but my understanding is the game gets confused and completely breaks the game. Not sure if it’s guaranteed to happen when you get there, but seems common enough that lots of matches have been affected by it.
Pretty much this - playing Secret Mania is akin to signing a dark pact with Azathoth. You’ll get points in the moment, but subject your game to the potential for catastrophic level chaos in the long run.
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More like forcing all players to sign that pact, since whatever happens tends to affect all games in progress.
If I’m on ball 3 and have an upcoming opponent who is close behind and only a couple shots from RLM or multiball, I’d be tempted to start SM in the hopes it crashes their setup (assuming I got the three police cars). Dirty pool, but that is why we need rules for this stuff 
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