thedefog's ratings

A really fun and fast classic. Hard not to enjoy. Simple rules and gameplay with plenty of "just one more game" factor going on. My fav early Williams game, next to BK. Only thing I am not crazy about is the art and theme.

Set the million ramp to 8 shots, score steal to 4, and play in a group and enjoy. Great art, sound, and lighting package. Underrated because of the odd theme and center ramp hate. The layout is typical of a Barry Ourseler pin in that it has that center ramp, it feels a little like Comet in that way. Python inspired art did it justice (even though he didn't directly create it), Chris Granner delivered on the music. It isn't a deep game at al. Ball times can be short, and there isn't much to do really, but is has that happy factor going for it with the package. This is a multiplayer game and works very well in a family setting. Solo, it is not the best game. It belongs in a larger collection, you wouldn't want this to be your only game.

This game gets beat up for being "boring" due to lack of targets, but it is a good feeling game with beautiful playfield art and has the fun factor going for it. The lights, bells, and sounds really bring it together as a package with the theme. The shots do leave you wanting more, and the window ramps don't feel great (would have been much better as a horseshoe with a bi-directional switch like in the back of SOF). This would not be good as the only game in your collection, but it is a lot of fun to post high scores on, has the one more game thing going for it, and it deserves more credit for a great art package.

Damn near perfect. Not much to nitpick other than the sound package/speech, but that is because everything else is 10/10. Flow + Strategy + fun rules and layout. It reminds me a bit of LotR, but with shorter ball times and riskier shots. Has the one more game thing going for it more than any recent Stern. My fav of all the 2010's games.

Terrible theme, but an awesome game with a really satisfying layout and good rules/lighting. They should just retheme this one and make it a 10/10.

I really really wanted to like this game, but it was a complete disappointment, just like the movies. After spending several hours playing one, then several hours again, I confirmed my suspicions about the layout. It is just too wide-open for a wide-body pin, and lends itself to lazy floaty play. Shooting those upper ramps feels so slow. The pop-ups are fun, but otherwise this game really suffers from a boring layout. This game probably would have worked better as a standard size pin.

Fun game. The fastest widebody I've ever played for sure. Tons of stuff to shoot for, and a very unique layout. Love the comic book artwork. Not a huge fan of the music, and lighting is a bit dim in places. Otherwise, my favorite wide-body pin.

Nothing to nitpick on this game. The lack of complexity actually makes it more enjoyable without being boring. It is just perfectly balanced for all players, all skill levels.

I don't understand the hate for this one so far. I got to play it for an hour (so not an in-depth review by any means), but my first impression is that it was a ton of fun to play, had me wanting to come back, and the layout is enjoyable. With further code updates and tweaks, this could be a top 10.
The package works great as a whole. Art is good and lighting is great as well. The only cons at the moment are the modes need to be fleshed out more, some of the animation/cutsceen stuff needs to be augmented, and sound need a little work (music and call outs). The shots and the gameplay are there, so hopefully Stern can tie it all together in future code releases.
Current rating is with anticipation of these issues being resolved.

Pros:
Amazing music, #2 after Pinbot for SYS11.
Excellent theme.
Fun shots, plenty to shoot for on this table.
Cool upper PF that isn't just a gimmick.
Great dorky fun call-outs.
Great art throughout.
Genuinely enjoyable to both look at and play.

Cons:
Can be a bit easy. Jackpot feels like a giveaway at times.
Scoring is weighted mainly on the jackpot.
Lots of stop and go. Horseshoes help a bit with the flow, but otherwise not flowy.
GI lighting is really poor in some areas.
Took quite a bit of work to get dialed in 100%. There are troublesome areas that unfortunately require disassembling the entire mini PF to access and tweak.

Despite cons, it is a keeper for me.

Fun as hell and lots of SDTM madness. If you're into pins that bite back, then this is a good one. Very challenging, even after several hours of playing, it still had elements of chaos (which means it is probably a good one to own). People complain about this aspect, but I like defensive-type games. Expect like 3-4 games with short ball times, then one that is like 15+ mins when you're in the zone.

Art looks like someone puked Fruity Pebbles all over it in photos, but is amazing in person and is enjoyable and adds to the fun factor. It really ties together in person and feels like a real tight package. Lighting is tasteful, call outs are great, sounds are great, hearing the ghostbusters theme over and over gets grating though, but I can't think of another option that would work from the movie without getting annoying in repeat.

Only gripes are that I wish it had a little bit better flow (mostly stop and go action here) and that the linear progression of the modes does add a static feeling to the game. I wouldn't care if the modes ignored the progression of the movie. Next code update should allow non-linear mode progression. LOTR doesn't follow chronologically in modes. (just realized that would probably break the game if they changed it, I guess it is what it is).

Not even a Simpsons fan, but love this game. Tons crammed into this one, but it all works well. Very fun, has the one more game thing going for sure. Art package is solidly executed. Stern's best on all accounts probably. Sound is only weak point.

Really fun game, and the best of the 3 rollercoaster themed games. Awesome PF art and unique and fun layout. This game is all about the fun factor. I wouldn't want to own it in a smaller collection though, it might get tiring after a bit.

Iron Man is Dope on a rope. Finally got to play one, so this is a first impression review. But man, what an awesome, fun, and brutal game! I love brutal games like this, and if they're going to be fast & defensive, ultra deep rule sets aren't want you necessarily want to see. It is straight and to the point. I agree the rules are more akin to sys11 games from what I could tell, but that is my favorite era of games, so I am biased in that regard. You didn't have to play it a bazillion times to know what to do.

Game flows really well, and the layout is great, although not unique. The only thing that seems a little rinse-repeat is the bash toy. Not overly unique. But it makes sense to have it based on the theme and it was done well here.

I'm not sure I'd want to own one, given the current price of it. But I'll definitely play it if I see it. It reminded me a little of f-14 in its speed and defensiveness, only f-14 pisses me the hell off and doesn't make me want to keep playing it to come back and kick its ass.

Way ahead of its time. Think about the games that were coming out in 1980, then think of this game next to them. Hard to give this one a low score then considering that.

As for modern day comparisons, it still holds up today. it is very unique, still looks cool, and is still fun to play. The rules are lacking in that regard, as are the lack of shots to make, but at the time, complex rules were not the norm, nor were fancy ramps and whatnot. This would be a good one for a larger collection.

The layout on this game is what I like best about it. There seems to be no end to what you can shoot for in this game, and the rules work really well in conjunction with this. It is a great casual gamer game. It doesn't require a great deal of time with it to learn what you need to do. Another positive note is the excellent flow in this game. It just feels right and fluid. Not much to nit pick on this game for me, other than the sounds and music don't do anything for me. it is easy to see why it ranks so high. It is a busy layout done right.

Love this freaking game. I'm a fan of open middle PFs, so this one nails everything I like as far as layout is concerned for me. Deceivingly simple and bare, but not at all in reality. I'm a sucker for Oursler layouts. Tough shots from far away & some of the best rules in pinball, to add to that. Really cool music and sound effects.

Sample quality is a little rough, even for the time period, but the samples picked are great. Great animation. Nails the theme perfectly. It definitely immerses you in its world. And tough as hell too. What's not to like? I guess if you aren't very good at pinball, this one might not be much fun. So not a great game for casual players, but for ownership, kind of a no brainer. I'd grab one in a second if I had the $.

Fun and fast game play with a simple, but decent rule set. Overall, a great value. Not the best for a small collection though, gets old quickly.


Pros - Did I mention it's Fast? Even if you adjust the slope, it still plays real fast. It'll keep you on your toes with its defensive game play. The ricochets off the stand up targets can be brutal. It has the "Just one more game" factor going for it when it kicks your ass.

Amazing Artwork. One of the best pinball art packages. Plenty of interesting angles and shots to go for with a unique layout. Balanced scoring. Very approachable. Can be chaotic at times. A bit easy though too once you've spent some time with it. I put Lightening Flippers in mine to change that.


Cons - Call outs are good, but the droning "music" is grating after a while. The other sound effects are cool though. If this game came out a year later with a FM synthesis soundtrack, it would have solidified it higher in the rankings. So -1 for the "music".

Also, the game lacks any distinguishing functional object. Seems like it would have been easy to incorporate one, given the theme.

Looking at the other sys9s, Comet has the cycle jump & corkscrew ramp, Space Shuttle has the shuttle toy. But no gimmick/toy here.

This game is fun as hell. Great rules, has a lot of good replay value that doesn't loose its charm after completing the Metropolis robot. Say what you will about the Backglass, but I find it hilarious and awesome. Lack of speech is no issue for me in this game, as the music kicks some serious ass. This is one of those best bang for your buck kinda games solely because it isn't easy on the eyes.

Fun game, beautiful art. This is easily the nicest game DE made art-wise. Real mirror BG, PF is spectacular, cab is great, great fun.

The code is lacking a little, the rule set isn't the greatest, and some of the call-outs "wrong hat!" can get a little grating, but it is still a fun game. Layout is fairly unique as well, although a lot of stuff is kinda hard to see. Great theme though. And usually a great bang for your buck game.

Really fun and unique game. I was pleasantly surprised by it. Sound package is poor for the year of release, the sound quality is rough and the samples used aren't that good (screaming cat stock sample?), but the game is fun and tricky with the oddly shaped ramps. Rules are simple and straight forward for the most part. This game throws you for a loop when you are used to standard games. The machine playing you comment is spot on. I like chaotic games though, so it fits my personality. Not a good game for a small collection.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turdles.

Music is poor, sound effects become grating. Audio quality is rough. PF art is hideous. Not a fan at all. This game is like faux attack from mars.

Great theme.... And that is where it ends. If this said anything else other than "Star Wars" on it, it would be probably one of the less desirable games DE produced. Terrible PF art, layout isn't the greatest. Not a lot of positive things to say about it. JP is leaps and bounds better than this game. This one is in the top 100 for theme and theme alone. If the code hadn't been updated, the score would have been worse in the rule set and game play for me, otherwise it is just a 1 shot game and has no real lasting power. Could be fun to play occasionally to put a smile on your face as a SW fan, but not to own.

Fun game, great layout and rules with the latest updates. Way better now than first release code. Now has me coming back for more.

Artwork & sound kill it for me on this one though. Love the game, hate the theme. Such a shame, would be a 9/10 with a good theme and art/music package.

Slow game, not a whole lot of fun. Art is good, but is a blatant rip-off of H.R. Giger's Xenomorphs, used without his permission. Yes, Bally was sued for this. Regardless, the layout isn't all that unique, not a whole lot to shoot for, and plays a bit pokey being a wide-body. Cashing in on the Alien craze of the time, and that is about it. Not a fan.

This is a killer game. The king of flow and speed. You'll drain balls faster on this game than just about any other. Rules are great and keep you on your toes. It is a fast-paced flow-based game for sure. The theme is a little corny, cashing in on the Top Gun craze of the time, and the music isn't the greatest, but it is one of the best bang for your buck games there are. Only nitpicks are that there isn't a whole lot to shoot for/do, and it can get repetitive after a bit. I would/should own one and am surprised I don't.

This game is like Space Shuttle on steroids. The additional shots, unique layout, and added speed really makes Space Station a unique stand-out game. Only things I can nit-pick are that the PF artwork is so-so, and there is some repetition.

Great theme, great PF art and the backglass is great as well. Cool Shuttle toy, but the layout leaves a little something to be desired after playing a few games, especially in comparison to Comet. But it is still a fun game, considering the time period.

Fun game, great theme, awesome PF art and backglass. Kooky layout that isn't reminiscent of anything else in pinball. Plays fast for a widebody game. I prefer this to Black hole about 10x over, it is much more interesting layout, especially with the attic. For the time period, it is about as cool as it gets.

Not a fan. Don't really dig the theme much at all. Dislike the art. That being said, ignoring the theme and art, there are some fun shots, but all in all there isn't anything about this game that would make me want to own one. It is mediocre.

Bad ass game all around. Crazy unique backbox gameplay, great ruleset, great layout, and music that is reminiscent of Double Dragon. Not much to complain about here except lower quality sounds and speech. just a solid unique game that will keep you coming back.

This game is a lot of fun, extremely unique, lots of interesting features. Only drawback is that it can get repetitive. But it has a punch-out meets pinball mash-up feel to it that is really cool. The Jump-rope is pretty fun as well. This game wins for uniqueness and creativity. Just not so sure it would last in a collection and there is a bit of stop and go to it.

I love this game. I'm not even an Elvira fan, but this game has a lot going for it. Great layout and unique feel, rules, plenty to shoot for, fantastic artwork and theme. It nails all the areas I look for in pinball. I feel it is under-rated.

For South Park fans, this game is definitely a bit of a let down. If it didn't have the theme, it would have failed miserably in the arcade. I think that sums up my review.

A decent game. Artwork is a little rough. Good flow though and a cool layout. Can get boring in comparison to the fancier games released a decade later as it is an early SS and has EM elements, but holds its own within the era for sure.

Possibly the best artwork in all of pinball, awesome ahead of its time speech processing and delay, adding to the creepy aesthetic. Why is it that Centaur II, the same game as Centaur I in a different cabinet, ends up 20 or so spots behind? I don't really understand this. Regardless, for an early SS (no ramp) game, there isn't anything else out there that can compare.

Super fun game with one of the best layouts in the sys 11 series. It grows on you over time too. Keeper game. It always puts a smile on my face. The criss-cross Richie design is fantastic. The theme is quirky and loveable. The art is classic Python goofy, and the gameplay and rules are just fantastic. Everything just locks in and works as a package that feels funky and fun. Great music, best skill shot in pinball, great late sys 11 display work. The bell scares the shit out of me when it goes off still. I even muffled it a bit, but refuse to turn it off because it adds to the fun factor.

I love this game, and would probably own one if it weren't for the hideous music and choir "oooooooooooh, ooooooooooooh" samples. Yuck. Cheeseball city. Great art, layout, rules, enjoyable shots, an excellent revamp of the original.

This is a decent game, but you'd really have to like Family Guy to want to own it obviously. Can get a little boring and generic feeling in comparison to a number of other games (meaning it really doesn't innovate much, just kinda borrows from a lot of other games). Overall a solid game though.

This is a unique game and one of the better system 11 games made. The theme is a little cheesy, music is so-so, and the artwork isn't the greatest, but it has a great layout and the platters make for some unique gameplay with lots of variation. Innovative for sure.

Now this is definitely a top 5 game. Fun, great theme, unique toys, great layout and flow and feel. I'd compare it with Funhouse and Jurassic Park (JP is nearly the same game layout-wise). I own Funhouse, and Addams is a bit too similar to this game to warrant owning one. I think Funhouse is the better game, but this is a better theme with a deeper/better ruleset.

This is an all around likable good game. Can't really go wrong. But I don't think it is a top 10 of all time game. It is so-so. I think I'd get bored if I owned one. Good layout, just a little boring/lame in my opinion.

I love everything about this game except for the layout. I am more of a fan of open in the middle playfields. This game is all about packing as much into one machine as possible. They definitely nailed the everything but the kitchen sink feel it on this one, just not my style.

This game is addictive as all hell. Great detailed art. It made a lot of money for operators, not surprised. I ended up buying one cheap and restoring it. For what they are going for, you get a real fun game with a unique layout and lastability. Music is what is expected for the time period, lacking. In this case, it gets pretty annoying. But a great light show and plenty to do makes up for that. Easily as good a game as Space Shuttle, perhaps more fun. This one deserves a little more credit than it is given.

Truly a unique machine made in the golden age. It is unlikely we will ever see machines produced with such risky themes ever again. The highlight of this one is the artwork throughout. Regardless of whether you like cats or not, you have to admit that Python did a great job incorporating all of the elements into a quirky and unique experience. From the amazing backglass to the art and toys on the playfield, everything seems to be in its right place and it is pleasing to view. The layout is interesting enough and most shots have a decent flow to them, with only a few requiring stop-and-go to hit. Sound effects are fantastic, including the FM generated meows. Only negatives would be the ease of hitting the ramps, and the unbalanced scoring.

The game rules and the scoring element are odd. Some bonuses and shots make sense, others don't. The fishbowl ramp is too easy to repeat hit. The last ball 20 million shot is interesting, but makes the first few balls seem less meaningful. Spelling BADCATS is difficult and not worth the risk/reward. Changing the spell-out to score 20 million and turning the 3rd ball bonus into 5 million instead would instantly improve the game. The music, although it is catchy, is a bit repetitive and could have used more variation.

This is a fun game to play, cool layout and great flow with interesting stuff to do. But the theme and the coloring completely kill it for me. It is way too busy and is not easy on the eyes at all. It looks like someone vomited pea soup all over the playfield and back-glass, then threw a PB&J at it for good measure. Circus Volatile.

The theme is interesting but the interpretation seems to be lacking something. The trunk toy as a focal point is just so-so. I feel they could have done some more interesting unique things with this theme. It is a pretty fun game to play overall though, and it did have me coming back to play several games on it. Playfield art is done well, as is the translite. Music is okay. Not a fan of the sound effects and call-outs. I don't think I'd want to own one, even if the price was great. You can get an idea for it on the Pinball Arcade.

I love this game. I am not really even an Elvira fan, but this game is very like-able for its ingenuity and flow. Fun sounds, cool game modes with plenty to do, great playfield art and layout, fun toys, and it keeps you coming back for more. I'd own one if I could afford one. I have to settle for Pinball Arcade when I can't play the real thing.

I love this game and wish I owned one. This is the one that you and the friends will crowd around all night playing, it is a great party game. I can see how you wouldn't want it to be the only one in a collection as it may get a little repetitive at times playing on your own. Amazing artwork by Python, great theme, great rules, great flow. Just an all around enjoyable game with nothing I can nitpick really, minus music after a while and sound quality.

I loved playing this game in the arcade as a kid. This one was one of my top 3 favorites. What kid could resist T-Rex eating a pinball? I wasn't always crazy about pinball machines when I was little, but this one pulled me in and had me playing several games in a row at least at the local arcades. If I saw it, I HAD to play it. I got the chance to play one again somewhat recently, and it lived up to all of the fond memories I had of it, unlike may other pins I played as a kid, so I bought one!

Not the best music (the non-John Williams stuff), playfield art is so-so, but the game play is fun as hell, as long as T-Rex behaves.

This game is...my precious... Really though, If I had the $ to shell out on a pinball machine, this would be this one. I love LOtR and when I have played the machine on location, it has always been amazing to have a game that lasts longer than 3 minutes. I know some people hate the fact that games can last a very long time once you get the hang of it, but this is Lord of the Rings. It is an epic tale, and therefore, each game should be epic. It suits it. To date, I've probably logged more time on this pin than any other, and I don't even own it.

The pac maze being the focal point is extremely unique, and making shots to add moves is also interesting, but it does add some stop-go nature. Aside from the Pac-Maze, it is a pretty basic machine, but there is still decent amount of stuff to shoot for considering the time period. Drop targets and stand-ups behind them and spelling PAC-MAN for added bonuses is fun. Sounds are great, as is the voice, but the background "music" sound is pretty annoying.

Upper flipper is a little disappointing and clunky, as it doesn't do much other than allow the three upper drop targets to be hit and occasionally you can keep banking shots off the rebound and even shoot the ball up into the Pac-Maze saucer. Linear flipper design makes for poor flipper action.

Playfield art and backglass is fun, and the theme is great. I restored one of these, and if you can find one for $400 or less, it is totally worth owning. Under appreciated and under rated in my opinion. And the toughest skill shot in all of pinball! It is unique.

Cool idea that fell flat on its face. It seemed like when I was little, almost every arcade had this hunk of junk. Unfortunately it probably holds the record for both worst pac-man game and worst pinball machine simultaneously.

Python seemed to have nailed it 1/2 the time. The other 1/2 tend to be pretty epic failures though. However, I have to commend him for taking the risks that he did with art and design, as a lot of machines during the 80's & 90's just played it too safe, were cookie-cutter designs of other successful pins, and didn't really push the boundaries of art and design.

As for this game, the cannon gimmick gets old quick, the shoot up the middle strategy gets boring, the wild west gun ricochet sound makes no sense, and the layout is just generally uninteresting. The art is cool, but nothing spectacular when compared to other stuff he did like Joust and Pinbot. I'd stay away from owning this one, even if the price seems good. It just isn't worth owning.

Played this game a few times at an arcade in Lake George. It was a well-maintained game, it just lacked flow and fun factor. This is based on a first-impression opinion. Not a memorable game. And the translite is pretty terrible.

Great theme that suffers from a poor layout, bad rule set, poor lighting, and missing fun factor. Played this one a dozen or so times, never got into it, seems to be the general consensus with it everywhere. The one I played was well-maintained (Arcade on Lake George).

More like Dr. Dud or Dr. Derp. What were they thinking when they made this game? The theme is hard to get past to play the game, which actually is fun. This is the only pinball machine ever made that would benefit from the sound malfunctioning on it. The speech and music make it painful to play. Played it twice, will never play it again. I don't like to rate games based off such little experience, but in this case the truth hurts.

The machine probably isn't as bad as the movie, but that isn't saying much. Pretty mediocre machine. Not much to get you to come back and play again. Just is missing that fun factor and addictive play vibe. Lacks flow. Even a John Williams soundtrack can't save it.

Love this game. And although I still prefer the original to the Bride, I have to give her credit for changing things up.

Pros: Great Speech on the Bride (except the stupid singing), Cool ramps and shots, cool idea with the rotating visor, awesome artwork and theme (Python), fun and funky layout with decent flow.

Cons: The male sound effect "My God, She's Alive!" is stupid. The music is not so good, and the original had some of the best, so this is a major letdown. Game play becomes a bit monotonous after a few games with the left ramp shots. I wouldn't want this one to be the only game I owned. Lacks lastability.

Got to play this game at an indoor mini golf arena in NJ. First impression was that I could care less about the theme, but there were toys to draw my attention. So I played a few games. Very fun game, the rule set is difficult to figure out right away with so much going on, but it was still clear what the objective was (SINK THE SHIP!). Very polished and tight feeling game, lots of interesting and unique shots. In some ways, it seems ridiculous having so many shots and targets available, and it feels cramped and lacks flow because of it. I'd imagine it would be a decent pin to own though because of the complexity.

This was a game I enjoyed playing a lot as a kid. When revisiting it as an adult, it wasn't as fun as I had remembered. Although it has a few cool ramps and toys, and the cool Terminator theme, the rule set and fun factor seemed to be lacking. I didn't feel as though I needed to come back for more after each game. I kept playing, hoping it would, but it never happened. Fun to play at the arcade, wouldn't want to own one.

This is the apex Pinball Machine. No doubt about it, it nailed every single category. It has flow, the fun factor, excellent rules, awesome artwork, great sounds, is funny, and keeps you coming back. It is no wonder it fetches the prices it does these days, everyone is pretty much in agreement. Although Twilight Zone goes head to head with this game, I think this one has the edge for being slightly less claustrophobic feeling. Perfect 10. Not a single thing to nitpick about it.

The theme scares people off. That translite is one of the worst in all of pinball, but it has grown on me.

Playfield layout is very fun and friendly. Good multiplayer/party game because avg game is < 3 mins and rules are simple. It is a fairly easy game, but balls do drain easily to balance that out. Playfield art is decent for the time, done by Mary Hudson. Art is disjointed, cab, bg, and pf art are in their own isolated world.

Gameplay - Simple and Addictive. You've got to hit each "team" 3 times by lock shot or stand-up targets. Then lock a ball, lock a 2nd ball in time to achieve 3 ball multiball and a chance to "shoot the Ion Cannon!" ramp for jackpot and one of the best light shows in pinball.

First Pinball with Stereo Sound, 2.1. Voice sounds are cheesy, but fit the theme. The music is decent but the main theme is repetitive.

Lighting is incredible on this pin, and LEDs work well in it. TNT amusements has a youtube video of it in action that I based my LED lighting off of. One of the best light shows of any machine in that era, or any machine for that matter. No exaggeration.

In the end, an under-rated game due to theme, with a low enough production number to keep people from having the opportunity to play it.

This game was the ultimate gimmick game. It is a wide open widebody without much to do, pretty boring other than locking balls and getting the ball to the lower playfield, which although innovative, is also lackluster. The extra flippers are odd. Looking at other games from the period like Centaur, it really brings into question what Gottlieb was thinking (not a quarter pumper i'm assuming, but a one game and walk away game). Fun to play for a bit, but probably not worth owning in a small collection, especially because of the weight. Haunted House is a better game by far with much more to do, but not everyone can stomach moving one.

This game has the flow that everyone wants in a keeper pinball machine. I can imagine they are a pain to maintain though because of all the ramps. Really fun game though with great feeling shots. I love games that allow a lot to happen with a single flick of a flipper, you get that cool rube goldberg effect like when you busted out the board game mouse-trap just to set the trap off and never to play the actual game. Only negative is the poor sound quality.

This is a decent game. I'm not quite sure how it ended up so high on the list. I feel like it seriously lacks good flow. The stubby playfield is mostly to blame. Love the pan-handler plunger, that was a neat idea even though it had be done previously in Taxi, otherwise this one didn't really grab my attention.

One word: Flow. TNG has it. Solid gameplay that just FEELS great and fun as hell. Top widebody.

Great looking game, cool toys, but slow playing and stuffy layout. Very poor quality sound effects & music that hurt the game a great deal, specifically the music quality (general MIDI sounding).

I don't see what the big deal is with this game other than the theme. Slap some generic theme on this one and nobody would care about it.

This game was one of the most risky ever produced, and not risky like playboy was risky, but risky in the fact that it could have totally been rejected by both arcades and bars in fear the dark and ominous theme would draw negative attention. And for that, Bally deserves a lot of credit for having the balls to release a pretty much satanic looking dark and evil game like this. The artwork is incredible (sans the back glass), the creepy voice and audio delay just adds to the feeling and theme. It is a totally killer game that immerses you in its world. I owned one for a bit, only sold it because I enjoy ramps too much.

Well, I got to play this one finally the other day. I have to say that as much as it was awesome to see a new company producing pinballs, this one has some issues unfortunately. Maybe they should have had some regular players come in during production to play around and test these out, they may have been stuck in their own microcosm and were unable to see some of the initial reactionary things new players would have to it, like the distraction of the LCD display, the terribly repetitive music, the annoying twinkling sound that repeats over and over, and some of the issues with flow and not having any real inherent understanding of the ruleset, even after playing several games on it. I understand they are still doing updates and whatnot to it, but this machine did not click with me. BTW, I'm 32 and grew up playing late 80's & 90's machines. I have played some of the newer Stern games and like them a lot, so I'm not biased to older games. I find that the whole POINT and the escape of pinball is that it is a mechanical experience based in the REAL world, and that the display and "digital" aspects of video games should be a minimal point of attention. Little animations are okay, but it should not distract you from focusing in on the playfield in the way WOZ does. Have to say that for as polished looking the machine was, it wasn't entirely enjoyable to play unfortunately. Hopefully their next machine takes these comments as critique in a good way. I wish them the best, and they definitely can churn out a polished and beautiful looking machine. I edited this rating as I got another chance to play a machine with more updated code and can see they are working hard to fix some of the kinks.

Update: Got to play this again recently with newer code. Game is better, but still too complicated for its own good. Just does not match my taste. It is awfully impressive to look at, the RGB lighting is awesome, but the LCD is useless, you can't pay attention to it while playing without loosing track of the ball.

Best original theme, period. Responsible for saving Pinball with Space Shuttle, amazing art package with arguably the best translite of the SS era, the best music and speech of the SS era, and just a pleasure to stand in front of it. Playfield layout is where it looses points. It is stuffy feeling and it is a notorious evil son of a bitch drains monster, eyes don't lock well. But skill shot ramp is arguably one of the best. Otherwise this machine is a top 20 contender in my eyes.

Probably my favorite childhood game next to Pinbot. Can't beat smashing Rudy in the face and making him puke! Everything gels perfectly in this machine. I really can't find a single thing to nitpick about it to be honest, other than creepy theme. Replay value is fantastic, it has just the right amount of chance and skill balanced, and it has wonderful flow, despite the very tight and obstructed off-center playfield, which is saying something about the time and thought that went into designing it.