That is the way I feel about acdc,it plays good but I could not have it in the house!

I understand the objection to WOZ a lot more than I understand the objection to ACDC...

WOZ seems kinda sissy as a theme - though I think we can at least rest assured that they won't be putting the unaltered sound track into the pin. I suspect they're going to try to be more grown up about the theme than the movie was.

ACDC though - sure, not everyone likes ACDC*, but every pin has to have a sound track, and it's well established that you need music with a fast tempo and energy, hence we're talking rock, techno, or purpose-made videogame music (usually based on rock or techno). It's not like the ACDC music track doesn't mix well with pinball. The subject matter of ACDC is appropriately aggressive and manly for pinball, too - Hell this, hell that, explosions, cannons. AFAICT, this is a lot more like what people said they wanted when WOZ was announced and people were criticizing the theme. That said, the huge face on the center of the Pro playfield is pretty ugly.

I can't really think of any other bands that would work as well as ACDC for a pinball theme. I could imagine Iron Maiden, but many of their biggest hits wouldn't really work as pinball music, and they're not as well known. Tbh, I'd prefer a good music theme to "latest superhero movie" as a theme.

* (I'd say I disliked their music, except that they're better than about 90% of what I hear on the radio, on the least-undesirable stations, so I guess I don't dislike it that much in the scheme of things. This area is a desert w/regards to the radio dial, as far as I can tell.

You have played Rolling Stones right?

I kind of agree with this; I'll always want to own or play a great pin, regardless of theme. I'm not a fan of LOTR, but I loved the game when I played it and my LE was the first full-price NIB game I ever bought. No regrets; still a great game. Not a big fan of the Cirqus Voltaire theme (OK, it's pretty quirky and colorful)but I loved the gameplay. That was the first NIB that I ever purchased. OTOH, I really like STTNG (the show) but really dislike the pin, and wouldn't own one based on theme.

Which brings me to AC/DC. I really like AC/DC (prefer the Bon Scott tunes, but still...) That's a game I could consider owning based on theme, but... the gameplay is totally blah to me. Played a bunch of games on the Pro and was completely unimpressed. Standard shot array, rules seemed pedestrian, some bad drain shots (bell, top set of standups). Even the music was a turn-off: great tunes, but audio was muffled, zero clarity on the mids/highs. I found that to be sad. And I also hate having the outlane obscured (by the cannon)--that really takes away from ability to nudge effectively. So, I'm surprised to see someone who would buy AC/DC based on the game itself. I could understand going for it if they were huge fans of the band, but not the other way around. The game is totally meh to me. And the Premium/LE isn't worth the jacked-up price IMO, even if gameplay is a bit better.

Yes. Fun is more important. However, the theme will affect your perception of fun to some degree. If you love the theme, it may make up for some shortcomings.

The Shadow is a great example of fun over theme. However, great themes don't often make the best pins. Look at South Park and BBBB.

Fun is King, forget the theme!

I'll go with the theme/art combo for home use/ownership. For location play, sure I'll take gameplay. But frankly, I find most all pinball to be fun, but to be a fully engaging and immersive experience, it needs to have an appealing and well-integrated theme. Also, I spend more time looking at my games than playing them. So, they could have the best gameplay ever, but I would never have a Hardbody, Shaq Attaq, or Dale Jr. in my house.

My criteria for home ownership goes like this...

Layout > Theme > Rules > Fun > Flow > Sound/Music > Lighting > Maker.

In the wild it changes drastically.
Working > Fun > Working... Yep, that pretty much sums it up!

If I have two pins that are similar (layout-wise) in my collection then theme becomes the deciding factor. Deep rules and flow are always welcome, but layout for me is king with such a tiny space for pins.
It might change my stance on things if I could squeeze 20 pins into my house, but it would take the lottery to make that a reality.