The only two band pins I've owned are Metallica (still have my LE, great game) and ACDC (had a Premium, enjoyed it, let it go as I downsized my collection to focus on other arcade hobbies).
There's a little of each game's DNA in GNR, but also just miles more stuff. I feel like comparing them not to play Stern vs JJP, but just to look at how things have changed and grown and influenced each other.
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Clearly the pick a song, play its mode, cash out or keep building it up risk/reward owes a lot to ACDC. But I love that you don't just pick a song and play it and that's the game on GNR. In ACDC you're basically always in a song, GNR has a non-song structure around it, which I really like.
ACDC is also a very ... unlovely game. It's fun as hell, and has great attitude, but visually I don't think anyone thinks it's that killer of a package. GNR has the best art and total look of any JJP to me. I like the LE the best of the three.
The lower playfield on ACDC is eh, GNR's upper doesn't seem that amazing in and of itself as far as flipper action, but it's got so much more going on. The locks and ball paths make it much more interesting. Both are mini-playfields, for better or for worse, they slow the main action down, but at least with GNR you can play the main playfield simultaneously. With all the multi-balls that should happen a lot.
Where ACDC has a little of an edge is the bell and cannon are good interactive bits, GNR could have used just one more thing that interacted with the ball better. The spinning disc coming out at the same time as Avengers is an unfortunate coincidence.
Until I play GNR it's hard to compare, but the risk/reward thing seems less tense with all the ball saving multiballs, and the fact that the 'risk' option adds a ball. Seems a lot more safe, and probably won't have quite the tension ACDC has. But I think it makes up for it with the depth and other things to focus on.
ACDC has shit-all for actual band participation. It's got the songs and some Photoshop, that's it. Clear loser there.
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Metallica is one of my all time favorite Sterns. It started the new era of hand-drawn art returning. It was the closest thing to an original theme Stern had done in ages. Fan layout, but lots of toys. Sparky having so much personality made him more than just a bash toy, but he's a great bash toy. The hammer is such a killer idea, love it still. Was a little big, but 30 of us have a mod to fix that ... The return of inline drops! The cross rising is whatever, but it's neat. The snake is a scoop, and a switch, at the same time. Love shots that change, the open or closed mouth really makes it cool.
Song integration is ... okay. You pick a song, but it doesn't mean much. The catalog is cool, it leans old school, which I appreciate, but it's kinda small. GNR just murders it with selection. I wish Metallica had 21 songs!
The band does callouts. Uh. It kinds sounds like GNR and Metallica are in the same boat with this one. Look, you're known for your music, not your voice acting, I get it.
Slash recording new music for GNR is amazing. Top tier band integration, hat(s) off.
The music in Metallica plays for certain modes, and that's cool, but again, mostly doesn't mean much most of the time. I like how GNR has the ability to pick new songs purposefully, and the way you can go after albums is really clever.
I see a big win for each game still on the board: For GNR it's just such an immersive package. My Metallica is nice, color DMD, LE backglass, all the stuff, but ... well it looks bare next to GNR's lightshow and big screens. It's a fun game that has a music theme, GNR is the full concert.
Metallica though has what I haven't seen yet on on GNR, and maybe it's hidden there, I haven't seen it all. Crank It Up. Just super creative single ball play. A killer playfield with great code modes and the tension is all one ball progression. It's surgical. Yeah, the game is wood choppy, and has it's own multiballs to grind, but Crank It Up is special. Code like that really makes it. If GNR can get some more taste of that I think it would go a long way.