From everything I've heard POTC is a special game, but I haven't played it. I will say that I had high hopes for BM66 and it has exceeded them. In theory the weakness of Batman is that the layout is considered clunky and while I can see where some may find it so, I personally think it actually can flow pretty good once you get the shots down. Still, it's not dialed in and I assume from watching streams that Pirates is a smooth shooter too.

What I love about BM66 is that I actually feel like I'm doing something besides shooting flashing lights during modes. Lyman has created a master piece of theme integration where I really feel like I am capturing villains instead of shooting ramps,orbits and stand up targets. The powers granted for completing the minor villains is genius too. To top it off, not only is the code deep it's non-linear so no two games have to be the same. It's also highly accessible for non-pinheads and is even fun to watch other people play because of the way the LCD is telling an actual story instead of random clips. If you like the theme, I really don't see how you won't like the game unless you really hate the layout for some reason. I honestly could see BM66 being the rare keeper game even in a small collection (famous last words of course).

Pirates also seems non-linear with tons of modes, my only concern about that game is that the modes don't come across as very distinct. Plus with all the stacking of modes it seems to meld together in a giant multiball of everything. These perceptions are based entirely on watching streams though, so owners of the game will have a lot more useful info. Pirates does look like a fantastic game.

Yeah, it seems like a different approach to depth, but still crazy depth. I"m not even saying BM66 is better as I haven't played Pirates -- just on the surface I like BM66's approach of knowing what I'm doing at any given time (basically capturing a particular villain) as opposed to controlling the orchestra. Again, this is all just a theory for me so I should probably stop talking about it BM66 is just a perfect marriage of theme and code greatness for me so I'm absurdly high on the game. I'm certainly jealous of everyone with a POTC though as it looks great and unique too.