Great thread. My personal ratings follow the Pinside 100.
#1 GZ - best pin ever made IMHO. Fantastic theme, shots, layout, unique toys, and balance. Flows like no other. Shot combos upon combos. My only complaint is the damn Heat Ray. Pressing that button for an extended push has caused me more ball drains… I know, that’s by design. Brilliant, really. If I could only keep a single pin, this is it. The only pin I’ve rated a perfect 10. My extended review has many more comments on this title.
#2 JP - utter masterpiece. More deliberate than GZ, and requires more exacting shots and strategy. Not quite as approachable as GZ, but once you learn the rules, highly addictive. The paddock modes are fun chasing the moving shots, and the wizard modes are really unique and different than the mainline game play. Movie code really completes the package. I get more frustrated with JP than the others, but that’s ok. The tower, control room, and helipad shots are just tough. My reflexes aren’t as young as they used to be; this one takes lots of practice. When I first got JP, it was a clunkfest. I didn’t get it at all. I almost traded it away. Glad I stuck with it. All that said, I now love it.
#3 IM - Amazing layout and theme integration. Was not a fan of the music, more my own ignorance than anything. I grew up on 70s rock, and the music in this pin fits right in with my tastes. Less complex rules than GZ or JP, but has that “just one more” vibe that’s fairly rare in tables. I love the art package on the Premium; I’m a sucker for the Egyptian theme (also loved Stargate for this reason).
#4 AIQ. The only one I don’t currently own. It looks amazing, and the ramps are enticing. I still don’t have enough time on this machine to really rate it. My first impressions were a bit of the opposite of JP; it was pretty easy and you just shot lots of ramps and try to get power gems or whatever. Some of my respected pinhead friends recommend this one, so I’m sure it will join my lineup eventually.
978CAD55-4BD7-42BD-8A07-0D6EB661B5CE (resized).jpeg
