Longtime Stern fanboy and topper skeptic here. I just cancelled my Godzilla Premium order, and put down $1000 toward a CCSE+. Why did I break character for this game? Well, I just read the last 30 days of posts here (LegsLegsLegs), and I saw no complaints about playfield quality, or protectors getting hammered. Instead I see some minor/fixable switch issues and an ocean of leg posts. I speed-read those after the first 50.

I read the FAQ (all of it!) and I see that CGC is direct-silkscreening their playfields!! It just got better and better the more I read. And as much as I love Stern, their new playfield process is a big turn-off. I don’t know what they changed, but it’s no bueno. I’ve played Godzilla and CC side-by-side, and CC just kept pulling me back in. And 2 close friends just bought Godzilla, while nobody in our circle of friends has CC yet.

Okay, so why the topper? Well, just look at it. It’s beautifully sculpted, interactive, probably a bit overpriced but I couldn’t persuade myself to just get the SE.

I’ll order the Mantis leg protectors now, and hope for an early Christmas from CGC and ClassicGameRooms.

It does seem like you got a run of bad luck. I haven’t seen any other posts here about chipped clear (we get those all the time in the Stern threads, which I think is why they went to a much thinner clearcoat).

Yeah he’s a good dude, and has an actual warehouse unlike a lot of other distros. I bought my Stranger Things from him, great experience all around.

It makes sense to me. Look at all the second-guessing here from people without any information. Now imagine how much “coaching” they would get from guys like flynnibus here if they shared the intimate details of their operations. I think they’re being smart.

I have to admit, the wait will be easier for me because I only ordered my SE+ a few days ago. I do feel for the folks who ordered in 2021. And my buddy has a CCr on location, so I have one I can play while I wait.

Late response here from a newcomer. @polishedball, I think this sculpt looks awesome. Is this something you’d be willing to sell, either via mail or on ThingiVerse? I can have my artist friend paint it for me.

BTW I drank a beer that size (32 ounces) last night.
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I’ll be on the hunt for it then. It’s perfect for that spot IMHO

In non-leg news, I played a ton of Cactus Canyon last night at My Parent’s Basement in Decatur (thx @atlpb). I’m even more convinced that I made the right decision switching from Godzilla to CC SE+. The quality is just so good, and I think even my 82-year-old dad would enjoy it (he won’t play anything made after 1979 when he comes over). I’m going to put RFM and CC next to each other in the gameroom so I can tell the story of how everyone was pulled off of CC to go work on “the future of pinball”, RFM. It’s one of the greatest stories in pinball.

Looking forward to your friends and family’s reaction to both of these games. They’re both instant classics.

One thing I haven’t seen discussed much here is the hardware platform. I know CGC completely redid the operating system for CC, which is awesome. Is the hardware in-house, or PROC? Is it a CANBUS architecture, like Stern? Or something a little less distributed? Pardon me for nerding out.

Edit: the FAQ tells all. Control logic and power in the backbox, coils and LEDs under the playfield. So more of a classic pinball hardware architecture.
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Aren’t they just standard chrome legs? If you can’t spread the ones you got from CGC, try here:

https://www.pinballlife.com/search.html?Search=Legs

My 24-year-old doesn’t play any more, and my young nephews moved to Dallas TX. I definitely miss playing with family.

Me too, I’m like a pinball Bob the Builder. Can we fix it? Yes we can!

Lloyd, should I worry about this rash?

Wish we could have these subtopics on every Club topic:

- I have my game
- I don’t have my game

I’d love to hear more from the first group.

Toys don’t have an $8k+ price tag.

You’re seriously sounding like a broken record on this. But you’re not the only one.

There’s a reason this game sold for $15k and up even a decade ago.

Speaking as an engineer, the intermittent problems are the hardest ones to solve. If it were me, I’d be trying to get my hands on an audio board that has the problem.

Hey Wes! I made the same decision, canceled my GZ Pre order and put a deposit down on a CCR+. It’ll be worth the wait, I’m sure.

I have a $1k deposit with my local distributor for an SE+, but he has SEs in stock now. I’m seriously thinking of converting my order, if he allows it. I’d just be missing the topper and the modes related to it, right?

I just rolled my new CCSE into the basement, but I can’t play it because the legs aren’t anywhere near 90 degrees. How are you guys bending these? Mine won’t budge.

Never mind, I just noticed that mine has the really beefy cabinet protectors. Even with the legs bolted on tight, they all pass the credit card test. Now if only I could find the backbox key - it’s not on the coin mech hooks or in the coin box. Small problem for now.

Found them in the back of the cab - guess they fell off.

Man, I love this game. The playfield clearcoat is awesome, the way all new pins should be! I’m very happy with my decision to ditch my Godzilla order for CC.

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Aug 5, 2022
CC-2067

Game plays like a dream. I’ve bricked the drops a few times, but that’s to be expected. I need to aim slightly off-center.

Pre-installed. They’re much thicker than the metal ones I bought a few years back.

Sorry if this has been posted before, but here’s a comparison of the original and remake apron/pistols. The CGC artists are excellent! And of course the bad guy is also 500% better. I’ll also use this post to thank CGC for making this the first game that was perfect out of the box for me - I haven’t had to adjust anything, not a single switch. You guys rock!

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The most satisfying shot in this game: when the ball comes back down the left orbit, let it bounce off the left flipper and hit it on the fly with the right. About half the time it’ll go up the right orbit and come zinging back to the right flipper. Pure pinball genius.

I’m looking forward to everyone getting their games, so we can talk about something other than toppers

Yeah, that’s the math that made me very happy with the SE.

I was thinking the same thing. And like I always like to remind my wife, it’s the total cost of ownership that counts. If pinflation keeps going, it will be hard to lose $ with this game as long as you don’t mind holding it for a few years. I think this one will be sought after when production ends.

I’m usually not a fan of color GI, but it’s used very tastefully and sparingly in CC. I’ve gotten used to it being a little dimmer during Bionic Bart when the GI goes red. It’s not really a problem and definitely makes the game more fun.

Just wanted to add to this part of the FAQ:

“… Adjust the pops and/or the Bottom Jet Bumper (i.e a sling) with a leaf tool. (To adjust the bottom bumper from the top of the playfield you may have to remove the mine and VUK diverter).”

There are 2 switches for this slingshot, both register as switch 55 (5-5) when closed. From the factory, both of mine were closed. But instead of removing stuff from the top of the playfield, I removed the balls and did the adjustments from UNDER the playfield. In addition to the leaf tool, you’ll want your reading glasses and a good flashlight. But it’s not hard at all, doing it this way. Switch 55 should register open when it’s not active.

[EDIT:] PM_Jeremy made a nice video of this, starting at 1:30 here:

By the way, your FAQ rocks @jfh. I’ve referred back to it several times.

I think the rules for CC are great, but one gripe I have is scoring balance. There’s very little reward for completing the modes, other than the extra ball for completing the Railroad mode. Conversely, the points for Bionic Bart are enormous, and you can stack it with Gold Mine Multiball. That puts a lot of weight on just shooting Bart over and over, which isn’t all that fun to me (the characters and callouts are a little repetitive in a home environment).

If I’m just playing for fun, I always go for modes first, because Stampede is just so much fun. I pick off Bart, Bubba and Bandolero about every 4th shot. But for a league or tournament, I’m hitting the bad guy every chance I get. Bionic Bart is just too lucrative to not do that.

I agree with that. I’m usually trying for High Noon, so that forces me to “play balanced” even if that’s not best for scoring.

I’ve hit the part of the curve where the newness has worn off, and I can have an objective opinion of this game. It has more depth than about half the games I own, and I’m really starting to enjoy a casual game once or twice a day, even though I’ve pretty much seen everything. I’m starting to get an appreciation for how much value there is here. The mechs and sculpts are well into Stern Premium territory, but the game is $1700 less and the quality is better. It’s just a beautiful game that makes me happy every time I walk up to it. The speaker lights, the audio, everything is just top notch.

It has the same Goldwood speaker that I’ve upgraded most of my Sterns to. I’m getting to an age where half of my hearing range is gone, so I think PinWoofer would be wasted on me. That’s one of the perks of getting old: I don’t need 4k video or super high fidelity audio.

I don’t regret changing my order from SE+ to SE at all. But if I had an LE queued up I’d probably wait.

Exactly…Anything we add detracts from the awesome work done on the apron (guns), the bad guy, the gold mine and the train. All IMHO of course. I can see adding buildings at either side of the track to hide the mech, and the RR tracks themselves. But there’s such a thing as too much.

My local distributor, Classic Gamerooms, was awesome. He had no problem switching my SE+ order to an SE. The SE is a fantastic game. I seriously doubt that on my deathbed, I’ll say “wish I’d waited for that topper”. Ya’ll need perspective.

Well, I’ll say what’s everyone is thinking: it’s an embarrassingly bad copy. If you care that much about the topper, wait for the real one to come out. IDGAF about the topper now, so I have no skin in the game. CC is a great pin!

Sorry for my opinion. I’m not an artist, so no custom topper for me.

Sorry to sound dumb, but has the MSRP gone up in the past year for this game? I thought the SE has always been $8k.

Yes, that was my problem.

flynnibus there’s a lot of speculation in your longer post above. Why not stick to what we know, and not make things up?

Is this you?:

There’s a slingshot-type kicker just under the pop bumpers. You’ll want to tweak it for more action up there. I took out my plunger spring and stretched it to make it stronger (I think LTG gave that tip). Other than that, it’s solid and trouble-free.

OH, and don’t forget to cut off the zip tie holding the train in position. I made that mistake.

EDIT: pics are in the FAQ