Wanted to take some time to post my review of the game now that I've put roughly 100 games on my machine, this review will be based on how things stand today and are completely my opinions only. This review will cover everything I can think of and will be as honest as anyone reading it would want, warts and all.
Overall Impressions/Feedback:
I wanted to start here because I really feel like every review should start with a summary so that if you don't want to read the novel that is the rest of this, you don't have to. Okay so to start, Spooky has done something really awesome here. Now that I have my machine I really cannot, for the life of me, figure out where ANY of the negativity has come from for this title (cannot speak on Ultraman, this is entirely about Halloween). Once some of the warts have been removed, more on that below, this pin is going to be absolutely outstanding. The game is challenging but straight forward, the art package is second to none, and the "bang for the buck" is unparalleled in the market today. Overall grade, A+++++++.
Shipping/Receiving:
Honestly, and this may be just me, I really do not like how Spooky packaged my machine. To date I've received NIB from Dutch, Stern, and JJP but none of them box like Spooky does. The machine itself was strapped to the pallet which I wasn't expecting and to get it off you have to cut those straps which of course is no big deal but because the machine is essentially sandwiched between a top piece and a bottom piece once we cut those straps, getting it off the pallet was difficult and unexpectedly challenging. I had an oversized pallet on mine (which was requested) which added a bit of extra difficulty. Once you get it off the pallet though, it wasn't any different than any other machine. Overall shipping grade C.
Build Quality:
Overall my machine is top notch here, no issues with the head being out of square (like one person showed), decals were applied properly with no bubbles or peeling edges. Really like the fact Spooky ships the felt leg covers with their machines. Wires were reasonably well bundled and organized although I have serious OCD here so my standards are a bit high but overall I'd say B+. Game worked out of the box but I did have to tighten the spring on the center drop target which seems to be common. I also had to redo the pumpkin mount as after about 50 games mine began to bend down and sag a bit. A well placed zip tie around the light socket and back of the bracket solved that problem. Otherwise, mechanically the game was top notch. The main screen isn't very good but enabling the "gamma" setting as recommended by another poster worked pretty well. Still will probably do the IPS screen upgrade at some point. My main issue with build quality was the playfield, whoever is making these needs to SAND EVERY OPENING BEFORE THEY CLEAR IT... Never have I had to clean out a game so frequently out of the box. We've, and this is no joke, had to clean it up at least a dozen times in 100 games just from saw dust debris that the balls knock off the drop openings until it's all "knocked off". Don't get me wrong, the playfield is beautiful and crisp and solid, just need to sand those openings before it's cleared. The coin box also surprised me in that there is no attachment loop on the back so it just "sits" in the spot. Overall build quality A-.
Gameplay:
One of the other things that really surprised me is the code, and by surprised I mean (again this is my opinion) I'm quite happy with where Spooky is at on this and don't see the reasons for the negativity. Even in the current version the game is plenty deep enough and will be exceptionally deep once Spooky gets everything in there they want. Animations are fine, modes are plenty, shots are challenging. However, the bugs are crippling... Every so often the game will eject 3 balls into the lane and then lock up, or you'll find yourself "stuck" with no idea what shot is the next one. The modes have got to have a timer... ALL of them. Also, having to restart everything on every ball is extremely frustrating. There has to be some sort of "carry over" from one ball to the next. Every new ball essentially is a completely new game and while the layout is awesome, it gets a bit disheartening to always have to start over every ball. There is no "mystery" light so telling me "mystery is lit" was extremely confusing at first, I get this is a carryover from Ultraman but please fix this. It should say "shoot the pumpkin" or something that doesn't call out a light that doesn't exist. I know all of this can be fixed and that's what's so exciting about this game, when they are fixed, this pin is going to be next level awesome. I look forward to having more settings like ball timers and such but I get their point. People freaked out so much in the beginning they had no choice but to start pumping in assets and callouts but I can't help but think that impacted the basics a bit. Currently, and currently is the main point here as I know it'll get better, C.
Other Thoughts:
Powder coating is amazing, really what you get for your money is simply not available from anywhere else. I know I already made that point but look at the price and then look at what you get... It's a complete steal in todays market. An equivalent JJP/Stern would run at least $12K NIB. Audio is out. freaking. standing. Getting used to how the game plays with the balls coming out of the sling is pretty neat. I don't think balls need to be staged there, it gives me a moment to breath and "reset" a bit as the game progresses. Out of my collection, no other pin plays like this one which I really, and I mean really, enjoy. Personally I think Spooky has a complete Grand Slam here with this pin and once some of the rougher edges are corrected (code and continuing manufacturing improvements) those who have gotten out are going to really regret that decision. The heat Spooky has taken to date is quite frankly, ridiculous. Their service and support is top notch, SpookyLuke is absolutely amazing. Those of you who are still on the fence, don't be, get excited about your place in line as seeing is believing with this pin. I'm so happy I jumped in on this pin when I did and have absolutely zero regrets and am super excited as to what's coming on the horizon with future code updates. Thank you to everyone at Spooky who has worked on this pin, built this pin, and made this pin come to life. I'll keep saying it, you really do have something special here.
Thanks,
Jeff