It was !

I actually LOL'd here when I saw that.

This is far more appropriate if you want to make fun of me :

Badass.jpg

I did...see my sample size of (4) comparison avg price . I actually did that to get the results more exact. The $654 takes in accounting for JP, TFTC, Tommy, and GNR.

But.....why D: ?

Outstanding answers guys. I just have been watching a decent number of people rip on games "just because it says Data East on it", and man, I just had enough of it. Was this a rant or a "call out" ..? Both - more a rant I'd say. I just wanted to hear what everyone else had to say.

And I am DEFINITELY happy that most people are going after the B/W; it just does kind make me go "really...?" when those people also have to be a bit brash with DE while they're popping $4k+ on *insert your B/W game name here*. I am totally good with people buying B/W and leaving DE/Sega to me: my XF, JP, and TFTC ($4800 combined) cost me as much as a showroom TZ, a respectable TAF, or a 60% downpayment on a AFM. I'll take 3 B-title pins over 1 A-title pin any day of the week and twice on Sunday.

I'm glad this didn't turn into a flame-war; I honestly did not want it to nor did I originally make the OP to incite one. Just being new and seeing th amount of bashing DE games get with no clear reason to me - it got annoying.

Life is Good .

Watching this discussion explode like wildfire, I was going to sit back and watch, but as usual, when AFM comes up, I have to respond .

Ok, fair enough, I agree with you on this. I never stated that DE/Sega may be a better game than AFM. What I'm disputing is it is a bit - half-thought-out if you will - to pay $8k for ANY pinball machine. Am I saying that's "the law" - no. I'm saying, subjectively speaking, it is silly to spend that kind of money on a pin. That's just me, and other than TAF and RFM, I will not go above $2k for any pin for a very long time. Will I hold to my guns forever - probably not - but I will as long as I can. So far got 4 pins for about half the price of an AFM, and I'm not nuts nor rich enough to spend $8k on an AFM.

Short and to the point: AFM is worth the hype but not the price. There NO WAY there's enough game in AFM to justify $8k. People that can afford it - hey - God bless them. They have that kind of money, more power to them. But not all grandiose purchases can possibly be considered wise ones, and $8k on ANY pin - IMHO - is definitely not wise. Most people that pay that kind of money are paying with their hearts, and typically heart ----> wallet.

You are absolutely and totally correct on that. I wanted a WW so badly until I saw that JP basically completely mimicked WW's playfield. Since I had already bought JP, with a limited area to put pins, I told myself "Welp, guess I won't own WW." The thought of owning 2 games with nearly identical playfields make me sad .

Maybe my point got a bit misconstrued. My comparison and contrasts of DE/Segas and B/W was simply price-checking and maintenance. I'll admit, I'm sure a bit of personal opinion regarding fun factor was thrown in there too. Still, few B/W games will win me over when TFTC comes to life .

Life is Good .

Well, since I'm three months into the hobby, I honestly can't completely answer your first question with total certainty . Nothing sarcastic here, just simply can't answer it. To maybe expand on it though, two points I will offer.

One, nearly ANY pin can tell the same tale in terms of "lost a substantial amount" as pretty much anything from 1990+ on has increased in value. AFM is just one of those, as I affectionately tongue-in-cheek have labeled, crude oil pins.

Two, I buy to collect, enjoy, and repair - not to flip or sell for profit. Not saying you or anyone else does - I'm buying the pins I do for fun and not to sell down the road (for the foreseeable future, I could always get PCS'd and can't take all my pins with me, or I could sell one to get another - which I'm sure MANY people do). Sometimes, I think I tinker and watch the "attract mode" light show more than play honestly ...

As for your upcoming purchases, I gave you and others praise in terms of your abilities to make those purchases. I gave you the respect and "tip of the hat" to afford such things. Just to me, personally speaking, I won't ever pay that kind of money for any pin. That's all I was saying . I will say though, based on the emoticons used in your quote, I would infer you didn't buy MM back in the early 2000's when they actually were affordable... ?

Life is Good .

No argument there. My pay as a 2Lt for being an electrical engineer is - well - lacking in contrast to what I could make as a contractor .

My bad, I totally missed this one. I'll say this, no, I can't afford the big gun pins like AFM, MM, CV, CC, BBB, and others. But I also don't really want any of those I listed - AFM I did until I saw the "crude oil runup" on it and just burned out wanting it. Visual Pinball works great for me, and to there shall I stick with AFM and other expen$ive titles.

You're right though, my post did come off as a bit condescending in regards to "no need to tell others that they haven't made a wise decision." Totally correct, and for that, I apologize. I can see where that could be interpreted as what I said, and I offer my apology on that. What I meant was - based on my budget - any pin over $8k = not a wise investment. And I want to state, without pounding my chest and going all macho-crap, I can afford some games I want like TAF. No doubt, I can't afford AFM and the rest of that list, but I can get a TZ/TAF/TOM/WH2O if I desire. I'm just not willing to throw that kind of $$$ around - yet. If I leave the military and make nearly triple what I should be making as an electrical engineer, that could change .

Life is Good .

Hope I cleared that up, and I don't want to be making any enemies, especially for something like that.

I debate far better on a forum when I can really think things through. Growing up, I "ready fire aimed!" with my mouth, and yeah, that cost me my integrity and my pride quite a number of times . I learned what "not to do" now .

As for today, I think things VERY thoroughly through when talking to people and listen more than I hear. I think that's a big problem in today's world. It's not that we don't talk, it's just that no one really listens...

Life is Good

Totally agree with both of you !