Flow, shots (layout), sound, call outs (humor), simple rules but enough depth. Has been my favorite since I got my first one early 2000.

To some degree it is the way the top 100 works. The game has broad appeal and therefore ranks higher. It is not in my top 3 but I have fun with it. I like the call outs. The rules are a bit simple for my tastes as I like deep rulesets and more mode based games.

It is just a classic, fun, simple game that just about everyone enjoys the theme, the sounds, the shots, etc. Show me another game that is family friendly, the theme can fit anywhere, and has no major weak points and you look forward to the call outs and the experience each time.

In no order.

1. Easy to understand the game, but tough to do it all.
2. Obvious center shot that doesn't take much to make the saucer dance early on.
3. Funny Martians.
4. Wide open shots.
5. Strobe multiball is very unique and sticks out when you see it.

Great code that makes it simple for a beginner yet deep enough to be challenging for a seasoned player. Theme is awesome. The shots are really satisfying with the open playfield not cluttered and ramps and orbits set up right. Sounds are great. It has a cool video mode. DMD animations are good too.

Repeat playability... and the memory of doing well. Getting to Rule the Universe was one of the hardest wizard modes to get to after Lost in the Zone at the time. It was very satisfying because it meant you had accomplished a lot of things which even good players struggled with. 1 out of 6 challenges to lite RTU are probably not your forte, so you get close to RTU a lot, but you actually complete it a lot less. It’s that continuous challenge, the amusing callouts, the campy sci-fi B-movie kitsch, it just makes you push the start button over and over and over....

All the usual things that make a great pinball machine are present

-Artwork, Call outs, sound effects, DMD video is all top notch (no flaws).
-great shooting, ramps, orbits, flow, just enough toys with the Martians and the diverter and center drop bank

I think the absence of any major flaws is what makes it great

————

What makes it number 1 is the rules (easy to understand but difficult to master)

-Easy multi-ball to start but challenging to get the super skill shot
-Easy to battle cities but hard to complete all
-5-way combo I’m not saying it’s easy to get for me but it does leave enough time that you can get a run going
-Nice hurry up implementation when you make 3 shots then build all the way to total annihilation.
- Martian Attack mode

fun super high scoring pin (some say this shouldn’t matt if you make 10K or 100M points for a shot but it’s just crazy fun to get hundreds of millions of points in bonus or mode competition

*** my favorite mode is Martian attack It’s fun to qualify (two stages to qualify the multiball) and then to play battle great call outs

I think it’s simplistic layout and rules are what has found success in other pins like Tron and IM. AFM seems just a tad better.

Fun, fast , fairly easy gameplay, seems simple but it can bite you, plus center drains from the saucer can happen keeping it from being too easy.

Great sci fi theming and art.

Awesome call outs and music. The perfect blend of 50s sci fi and funny, as well as juuuust a little cultural insensitivity?

Deep enough rule set. Killing a couple saucers is simple, Total Annihilation isn't hard... but Rule The Universe? That takes a little work.

MARTIANS!! ATAAAAAACK!! Really wish they could somehow bring those guys back in an AFM3 somehow.

ANYways, IMO MM is still better but AFM is the older brother and deserves it's day.

I'm biased (I own one) but the machine really does have a lot going for it. Destroying the saucer is one of the most satisfying shops in pinball. I'd put it as #2 right behind the hyperspace loop in Star Wars. This game is loaded to the top with toys. 4 bouncy martians, 6 little UFOs, and 1 big UFO... and every toy does something. The game is easy for a non-pinhead visitor to walk up to and play... just destroying the saucer can feel like beating the game to a newbie. There are so many multiballs in this; total annihilation, rule the universe, strobe multiball, martian multiball, and regular multiball. The order in which the cities are attacked is always different, so you get different animations. The object is to light the 6 jewels at the bottom to get to rule the universe. I've never gotten more than 5, and I tend to light different ones in different games. There is just enough randomness in stroke of luck to give you that feeling of not knowing what is coming next.

The longer I think about it the better it gets.

I’ll contrast with LotR which is also excellent in most every thing. But LotR was not as fun to me, I didn’t have as much fun playing LotR and was almost like work and not as satisfying to play over and over.

AFM is simple and fun, even a bad game on AFM will have a moment where you were in Multiball or in a hurry up or in a combo run. Just great fun, while LotR seems like I need to get a bit farther in to see the great stuff, AFM has a lot more close to the beginning of the game.

LOTR plays like the trilogy on purpose. It’s a quest. You need to think. Stack MB with proper modes. Complete tasks and have them stages for the right time.

AFM is meant to be lighthearted 90s B/W fun. I like AFM a lot but would rather own LOTR (again, that is).

As others have said, flow and multi all for me.

I have a remake LE and love it!!

I've always loved the art on the backglass/translite.

This plus, CGC had tastefully modernized an already amazing game, with the color changing saucer light show, shaker, improved audio, and one of the best interactive toppers ever. That's what really put this game on top.

After 18 months, I still haven't reached rule the universe, much less defeat it. So there is still plenty of meat on this bone for me.

I like the game it's not a game I ever considered buying but some of the things that make it great are
1 cool saucer toy, 2 good callouts and music, 3 fun game to shoot, 4 good rules, 5 and a good competition game especially if it's set up tough.

I've only played this game a handful of times in the wild. I too look forward to owning one someday. But, what I like about the game is the code is easy to understand. You don't need to know the ins and outs of it. It's pretty intuitive.
I like the flow and the combo rules and also the rules about hitting each shot 3-4 times that starts a hurry up. When you hit all the main shots the 3-4 times you get a special mb.
Great animations, great monster theme, great sense of humor. Lots of different mb... And the stacking of the mb's actually make sense. I really enjoy when I stack Martian MB with other mb's. As that's a great way for points.
To me the layout and playfield is wide open. But, has really cool toys and just the right art to make the game pop and work. Same with the shaking martian toys.
The big mothership ufo is also one of the coolest toys in all of pinball history.
I know I said I liked the code... But, I really think its a well coded machine. There doesn't seem to be any useless things. The lower inlanes you want to light to get stroke of luck, which can give you cool rewards. And spelling martian is something that I never really focus on... But, I sure do focus on hitting them during an martian attack and as stated you get one heck of a reward.
The only gripe I do have is the music to me. While fitting is only good. Its not great. As stated it fits the game, and so doesn't get old.
It might be too easy for some people... But, I think if you have a multi-pin collection who cares about difficulty.
Oh and it has a video mode that both is fun and fits the game. And it really doesn't take you out of the game long enough to detract from the pin.

#1. It’s fun to play.

That’s the only info you really need to judge it. Lots of things go into that. The callouts are campy and fun. The shots are fairly forgiving and fun. Destroying saucers is always fun, and a bit dangerous of a shot right in the center. I just enjoy playing it. And Total Annihilation is reasonable to achieve, and again tons of fun. The game is just immersive, and fun to shoot. That’s what you want from a game.

I played an orituears ago and hates it until I played the remake and loved it .... sold my MM years ago and would like to get that replaced but I think afm would be better to get that u guys think

Played an original sorry

It's loaded, I always laugh when people say the game is empty. Don't forget it has 3 ramps (one of which diverts to a lock), a strobe light, motorized target bank, etc.

I think the main reason is it's fun for all skill levels like some have said. Newbies get the big dumb saucer shot they can focus on, which feels awesome. Intermediate players can reasonably achieve Total Annihilation, which feels awesome. Expert players can rule the universe, which feels awesome.

There might be those that argue AFM was so good a title that with its appeal to the casual player, the challenge to the skilled player, and the continued earnings with minimum repairs for operators, it was the pinacle of the Fan layout and influenced future pinball design in a way like no pin has. I think the fact that all the great fan layouts came out around the same time and from the same company, where the designers were seeing and playing each others work, had a big influence on what we saw come out of B/W around that time.

I have yet to get to the total annihilation multiball yet.

I think some people would say it’s empty because it doesn’t have a lot of moving parts or magnets or upper/lower PF or extra flippers. Comparing it to TZ or JD it’s kind of just basic 2 flipper what you see is what you get.

-Campy 50's sci-fi theme
-Hilarious callouts and animations
-Simple but difficult gameplay
-Awesome multiball modes
-I own one...