Joniano's ratings

Foo Fighters is darn near perfect. The flow is absolutely amazing, even for a bad player such as myself. The upper playfield is a blast if you can catch it in time. Certainly doesn't slow down play like most other uppers. Music is great and continues through the whole game even after a drain (unlike Metallica, which is why I sold it). Code is early, but the New Orleans callouts are a little off. The upper Area 51 plastic seems a bit cheaper than the rest of the toys as well. Other than that, perfect. Tons of shots. Excellent game. Since I love the theme, I'd put it #1 on my list.

I've owned TNA for a couple years now. It's probably not a pin I'd have in a 2-3 pin collection, but it's a must-have in a 5+ pin collection in my opinion. It's just not like anything else out there and is a great approachable pin for newbies with a simple ruleset. The awesome music/sound system, great light show, reactor explosions and coop modes keep them coming back. As a more experienced player, it's a total butt-kicker. Mine is set super steep and the speed of play in unrivaled. It's a real test of what you've got and makes me a better player. Because of that and the approachability, I doubt it'll leave my colleciton for a long time.

For whatever it's worth, I've played one on location before which wasn't set up correctly and played like crap. Many of the negative reviews look like they played a badly set up example. I definitely get airballs occasionally off the flippers, but it doesn't seem to affect play too much.

Fresh, interesting layout with smooth shots. Some have had issues with shots out of the box (loop, garage especially), where mine shoots smooth as butter. Loops are repeatable and the loop->garage combo is definitely fair but hard. The adventures are all very interesting and definitely vary the game between stop-go and flow. The pace is incredibly quick though, even with the stop-go parts. What really sets R&M apart as a groundbreaking game though is the theme integration. Take, for example, on the "Get Schwifty" adventure, if you watch the screen, the ball ejects right once Morty hits the first note on the piano. It doesn't sound like much, but in play it's just perfect. You feel like you're a part of it. Tons of little stuff like this that makes the whole pinball experience immersive like never before. Having friends/family around to watch the screen and call out shots makes it even better and pulls everyone in.

The only negative I can say right now is that I want more of it. More adventures, more dimensions, more callouts etc. All that will help lastability of it. From everything I've heard from the owner's club, all of that is incoming.

Overall, R&M is definitely a contender for the best pin ever. Even if you're not a fan of the content, it still should be one of the best playing experiences you'll have in a pinball game. It's a homerun for sure. Way to go team Spooky!

WHIRLPOOL!

The good: Incredibly fun! Variety of shots. Plays fast and the shots flow well. Unique layout. Theme is a classic and should attract pretty much everyone.

The bad: Callouts can get a bit repetitive, but that's kinda nitpicky. Cabinet art is good, but isn't the best.

Overall: Amazing game. Truly one of the best. You really can't go wrong with white water. I'm always happy to spend hours on a white water.

The good: Amazing artwork with probably my favorite backglass screen to date. Pop up bad guys are kinda fun. Sound is amazing. Tells a great story.

The bad: Floaty in every situation I've ever played it. Plays only a little faster than an old EM until you get a multiball. Shots are soo far off it feels and if you miss a couple of times, if feels almost like a chore to get back at it again.

The overall: Not sure what to make about it. Amazing looking, amazing sounds. Would serve great as the backbone to a video game. The play is slow, slow, slow on every setup I've played (probably 5). I've heard it can get faster with the correct setup, but there is a VAST open space before you hit a shot, so I can't really see how. Something I play on occasion on site and I may end up owning one just to try to beat it once, but it'd be a temporary thing almost certainly.

The good: Interesting somewhat challenging shots. The fan and spinner things are great. Plays fast if you want it to, less stop/go than other Lawlor stuff. Great, I mean great callouts.

The bad: Stock-ish lighting is poor. Cabinet art is uninteresting.

The overall: Why isn't this game higher? I guess some prefer the bells and whistles, but as of 11/2019, I'd prefer to play this over any of the new Sterns or any JJP outside of Dialed In (which would be a close call). Shots are satisfying, the theme is timeless and integration is WAAY better than almost all of the new pins (see Wonka for example). Need a big screen in a game, go play your playstation. This is a solid, solid pin. I'm looking for one for home and always seek it out on location.

The good: Great shots. I'd say easily top 5 layout/shots of all time. Can be fast, can be stop/go with interesting shots. Cool toys (although I hate the cell phone theme).

The bad: The theme. Initially just destroyed the pin for me. Sim card slot, really? After playing it a while, I realize it's more of a Sim City-esque theme, but focusing on the cell phone part of it is terribad IMO. Also, the selfie mode is crazy bad. I don't want to see crappy pictures of myself up on the screen.

The Overall: The new generation's Shadow. This game is awesome to play, but the theme is terrible. I seek it out on location every time though and may end up getting one at home because it's just so much fun to play. Wish they had just stuck with the more subtle Sim-City theme and scrapped all of the cell phone references. No doubt those will become dated in a short time.

The good: Fun. Easy multiball which makes it pretty approachable. You can clearly see why it's one of the classics. Shots flow well and there's a variety of them. All seems accessible from ball 1 which is nice for a party-style game. Pop out dracula is fun. Artwork on LE is top notch and really draws you in.

The bad: I've heard it can get repetitive, which I can see. Shots seem kinda vanilla occasionally.

The overall: Lots of fun. Great party game with it being pretty accessible. The LE is just plain gorgeous as well. I would own one in a smaller collection if given the opportunity at a reasonable price.

The good: Very, very approachable. Quick and easy to learn rules with obvious clues to where you need to go next. Some gimme shots, but also some tougher shots that challenge better players. Who doesn't like destroying flying saucers? Cheesy, fun animations on the DMD.

The bad: Repetitive. You want to destroy the flying saucer? Great. Now do it again.

The overall: Just plain fun. If you want a pin for parties or for kids to pick up on occasionally, I'm not sure you can do better. Some challenging shots if you want to go that route, but you really don't have to. This should absolutely kill on location, especially with the non-pinhead folks.

The good: Shots are good. Layout is great! Flowy, good mix of tough/easier shots. The in playfield monitor and shots related are neat.

The bad: The sound, the look, the monitor. This is clearly designed to attract people in from across the room, which makes it painful to be directly in front of for an extended period of time. Maybe this is geared for kids (although my kids aren't really fans)? Everything is bubbly, the sound is literally a slot machine and the art matches that. The backglass monitor is too busy. The Gobstopper thing doesn't really feel much like a toy, feels more just like another hard lock mechanism (which I guess it is). I'd say the monitor is the real toy, which is a bit awkward in real life.

The overall: I'm a huge Wonka fan, loved the movie and this really doesn't match the movie which may reflect some of my concerns with the pin. I know this has been said a billion times, but it sounds and looks like a slot machine. This is made for location IMO, not home. That all being said, the layout and shots are fun and I'll play it occasionally on location but would never own one.

I actually like the game, despite a the hate. The flippers are super wide and SDTM drains happen relatively often, but is always something I look forward to when I play on location.

Lots of fun, but would've preferred for it to be movie based. Deadpool is a bit of a deeper reach comic-wise. The cartoony parts take a bit away IMO and the attempts at PG humor really aren't all that great. Again, this is just my opinion. The play is great though and definitely brought me back to play many times over. Flow is great, worse than IM, but better than Batman 66 which they were played alongside on location. I would still say spider-man would be the best superhero pin, but this is a solid choice nonetheless if the theme is up your alley.

Really an awesome pin. I'm not really an Iron Maiden fan and honestly only really like "The Trooper" out of all of the songs when not playing pinball, but all seem to lend themselves to play very well. The flow is incredible and has a very interesting and unique layout. I chose to buy a Metallica over the IM because I like the music better, but I think this is a better pin. If you're an IM fan, you're in luck. This should be your favorite game.

Great flow, but very quiet game and not very engaging. Big turntable toy gets old quick for me. If I have to answer the phone one more time... Penguin crane was fun with the moving target. Played alongside Iron Maiden and Deadpool which were much more fun in my opinion. Code updates could certainly improve and make it more exciting.

Great game for families as it's pretty forgiving with the center pin. Take that out and open up the outlanes and it could be very challenging. Super deep on strategy. Good luck getting superhero mode. Doc Ock shot is awesome. Busting out combos between the ramps and is equally awesome. Excellent flow, but can be start/stop if you're looking to go deep in the game. If you're a spider-man fan, you really can't go wrong here.

Update after a year and a half of ownership: My favorite pin. It really has everything. I've bought, sold and traded a bunch more pins since I've got my Spider-man but never even thought about selling it. It's forgiving to beginners, but deep for the experienced and has tons of flow. Rules are approachable. New players like it, kids like it. The callouts and music never get old. It's a shame it's not in the top 10 anymore on pinside. I really just think it's because people are following the new shiny object (of which I have a few). It's perfect. Whenever I want a true "pinball experience" I set aside an hour and play Spider-man.

The good: Fast, furious with lots to aim at. Relatively deep on strategy (stack the lanes but stay out of Seek and Destroy). Tons of multiballs, very easy and forgiving with extra ball as well. I own one, but still end up playing a bunch on location over other pins because it's my style of game. My favorite pinball moment I've yet to find in any pin is the start of the Fade to Black crank it up in a quiet environment. Gives me chills...

The bad: Can feel like chopping wood as many have mentioned, but that's broken up well with the multiballs. I wish it would just play a song all the way through instead of the start/stop thing that it does when you drain or whatever.

The overall: I've owned a premium for about a year now and it's fantastic. It's still my kid's favorite game (over the spider-man I got them specifically because they don't like Metallica music). As I mentioned above, I still migrate back to it quite a bit on location when I find one just due because it's fast and fun. I may trade it for variety sake, but only because it's on location everywhere and I can go play one to get my fix. It's just straight up better than and has similar playstyle to higher ranked pins such as MM and AFM.

**Also of note, as a premium owner who's played a lot of pros, I'd take the stock pro personally over the stock premium only because of the captive ball vs the block. The block just kills the flow. I changed out my block for a captive ball which makes a huge difference. The hammer on the premium is cool.