There's an IM at Maria's on East Wash that you can play on route. According to pinball maps, there's an Xmen Pro you can play at Up North downtown. I haven't been to Up North yet, so i cant confirm that its there or that its well kept, but IM is for sure at Maria's. Whats your other pin and will it be similar to either of these?

both are great games, can't go wrong with either. IM is much more brutal and doesn't have the same flow as Xmen, but it is a great game. Xmen code is much deeper. I'd go with Xmen first and then get an IM down the road. I prefer Xmen pro because I don't like the moving ramp (blocks upper flipper and feels clunky to me) and I don't like the night crawler pop ups (they aren't like the trolls in MM). In a small collection, Xmen will be a better choice.

I have woz, IM and Xmen. Love them all. IM I love for short fast and hard! Xmen I love for depth and hardness. I've never reached Xmen wizard modes

IM is an awesome game but extremely difficult. Unless you and the wife are both great players it may be more frustrating than fun.

X-Men has a great rule set but that's about it. Could never get into the gameplay and I've owned it twice and given it plenty of chances.

Wouldn't recommend either for yall

Haven't played much XM but absolutely love IM. Just a mean game even with the outlanes set generously. As a game for the family it may be a bit too hard though.

I like iron Man in league and on location. Not sure I'd own one due to constant brutality. Especially if you want kids to enjoy it to.

The games you've owned sounds a lot like the games I've gone through. I have STTNG, have owned Stargate twice, bought IM NIB, and have X-Men pro. I sold IM earlier this year after owning it for 6 years because I was ready for a change, but kept X-Men because it's still a really fun game. I don't think you can really go wrong with either, but they're totally different games. Iron Man has very short games, X-Men is mode based and is pretty long.

Iron man for 3 minute games. Xmen for 30 minute games.

The hobbit also has seriously complex rules - we just got one this week. I am really enjoying it, as is my 7 year old. It doesn't take much to get going on a multiball and the video screen is really cool; they've done a great job making it a very different experience every time you play the game , the callouts are different, different music, etc. very cool.

It's so deep though, I think of it more like a role playing game vs an "arcade" type game like Iron Man which is faster, more flow

Hmm...that's a really tough one. I have a IM Vault and X-Men Wolverine sitting right next to each other. I'm not sure I could pick one over the other. They are very different games. As others have mentioned, IM is fast and brutal. The rules are very straight-forward and it is not very deep, but that fits the playfield very well. The layout and code mesh perfectly. It is one of the highest adrenaline, one more time games ever. X-Men is much deeper with more toys/gimmicks and many different ways to play. I find it to be a difficult game also...I've never had the 30 minute games mentioned here, but it is more forgiving than IM. For me the LE is a must...I love the Nightcrawlers, spinning disc, and color changing GI, and am fairly neutral on the moving ramp. I can see why some prefer the pro, but for me the extras really make the game shine.

So I guess I am really no help. Both are fantastic games and two of my all time favorites. If forced to choose, I would probably go with X-Men for the better art, more to do (code and layout), and fun toys. But it's very, very close.

Play them both, see which one grabs you hardest. If you ever make it up this way, you are welcome to play mine.

As for Hobbit...no. Just no. Terrible game in my opinion. Beautiful with impressive technology...but oh so boring. It's the polar opposite of IM and XM.

Good luck! Really at the end of the day, there is no wrong choice here...they are both awesome games.

U can disable the ramp and pop ups.....

IM is phenomenal. X-Men is horrible.

I think you answered this yourself. If you haven't played a pin firsthand, then there's no guarantee you will like it. Go play XMen & form your own opinion before making your decision.

For me it's a no brainer. IM all the way. I think it's a Top 5 all time pin. But I enjoy games that are brutally hard & keep me coming back for more. IM is lightning fast & fights back the whole time. The ruleset is simple yet difficult to master. It's a great multiplayer game due to short balltimes. Great callouts, great sounds. Borg design, Lyman code = winner every time.

Very addictive, very frustrating = hit the start button one more time. I love games like that. Then when you finally hit your goal after many attempts (like hitting the DOD hurryup), you feel like you really accomplished something!

I've owned XMEN LE, XMEN pro, IM original, and IM vault.

In a small collection (2-3 pins); I'd go XMEN easily. IM is just too shallow for a small collection. Great game and I love it, but if you play a lot of pinball, you will get bored fast.

XMEN has its issues, most of which are minor and personal preference. But one things for sure, the shots feel great (beast loop, Xavier dunk shot, cyclops, storm, dark Phoenix loop, gambit hurryup flipper trick...all great shots). Rules are awesome and have lots to do for a small collection. The only con on the layout is wolverine bash toy is way oversized, magneto toy is oversized and looks funky as well, and the magneto captive lock could have been programmed better. The shots are tight, so if you're not a good player or don't like learning curves, it could get frustrating. But holy hell the shots are satisfying to hit. Storm is probably the second best upper flipper shot in all of pinball (with ST warp ramp being #1) IMO...

I've owned all 4. If I were to own again, I'd start with XMEN pro, then go LE (wolverine preferably - I really don't like the magneto red, again preference). LE had a fabulous light show, but the pro shoots better without night crawler bashing and Icemans oversized under utilized clunky ramp return. The spinning disk is awesome on the LE and the magnet effect sucks on the pro without the spinner. So either pin is great to have - pro for gameplay, LE for aesthetics.

Have owned IM and own Wolverine currently. Both are fun and I find both difficult. I think you have to be pretty good to have a 30minute game on xmen. Neither is a bad choice really. As far as other fast games have your considered a Tron? Very fun. Personally, my. Ext fast game will be TNA when it is released. Could also consider AFM remake but hat is getting much higher priced than the pins you're asking about. Come to think about it so is Tron and presumably TNA.

Don't think I'm much help honestly.

One other thing...I just saw that your other game is Metallica. That makes me hesitant to recommend IM as the playfields have many similarities. Do not get me wrong...they play very differently, but the geometry is very close. X-Men is quite different, so may be a better choice in your 2 pin collection. Otherwise have you thought about Spiderman? It has a lot of similarities to ST, which you enjoyed, but with a theme that might be more towards your family interests since you are looking at other superhero pins. Just a thought!

In your case I would go with xmen.

More diversity with 3rd flipper. I would choose ST or SM over either since you own Met.

I would also suggest going with a three flipper game. I think it would be a nice change of pace from what you have already and what you said you liked. Iron Man is great but a lot of my friends do not like playing it with me since it is so brutal.

IM is closer to MET than XM. IM is BRUTAL, but the rules are simple and the game becomes more about skill with speed.

XM is much deeper, but as someone pointed out, the games are longer.

I own both, and play them, depending on what I am in the mood for at the time.

Of course....you could get both and call it a day... :p

Funny...the posts are leaning towards X-Men but the voting is heavily in favor of IM.

I voted IM...one of my all time favorites and I've had mine for two years now.

IM is a one ball game. Once you've done everything but Do or Die MB it's hard to go back. Still a great game in a larger collection.

Had both xmen is long gone... actually sold my original IM and upgraded to a VE, great fun game.

Iron Man is the best Stern. Xmen is not in the same ballpark.

IM speaks for itself. X-Men needs fluffing.

No doubt IM is great, but for 2 pins, you better be a damn good player. It'll make you want to throw it out the window sometimes. (personally, I think a solid I500 is tougher, faster and more fun & frustrating (frunstrating?).)

I wouldn't pair IM and MET though. I think those are valid points.

That's because us IM owners are busy playing our games, the XM owners are busy talking about them (ducks...)

This!

And this!

I won't beat the dead horse since I said my peace in another recent thread, Why is X-Men so Bad, or something like that. IM rocks! Now, I suppose if you're a very, very good player you could tire of IM since it's not a particularly deep game. Put a Polk subwoofer under the game and add the alternate code with AC/DC music and updated call outs. I can't remember who did that magnificent update back in 2015 timeframe, I think, but it's awesome.

I adore Iron Man, and I'm going to say X-Men in this case. IM sort of needs variety around it. It is a wonderfully brutal game that gives huge satisfaction when you hit your shots. Bit that brutality needs something to offset it. Without that, it might get old quick. X-Men has much deeper rules. It is more involved. Personally, I don't like the game (I've never enjoyed playing it), but in a 2 pin collection, I'd get to know it a lot better.

Why not both ?

IMGP0553 (resized).JPG

I've owned both and liked them both. I've also owned Metallica Pro, your other game. I'd say Metallica is in the middle of the two in terms of gameplay style and ball times. I say if you are looking for longer games with deeper code go X-Men, if you are looking for something a little faster and straight forward than Metallica go with Iron Man.

Own IMVE, have played Xmen several times on location.....

IM just is what it is....a very brutal and " straight ahead" game. Flows amazing, but long games just don't happen. Don't confuse this to translate to " boring" however....those that say that are simply not being truthful. NO ONE dominates this game on a regular basis. Fits my lineup perfectly...might be a bit viscous in a 2 pin setup, however.

Enjoy whichever one you choose.....IM ultimate winner for me....

This is spot on. It is a game that is better suited to a larger collection.

There are plenty of other pins out there. Have you thought about some different ones besides Xmen and IM?

Owned XMLE since new 4 years (traded for TWD ) still own IMVE since new around 3.5 years.

IM hands down over XMLE just imo

XM has a lot more rules but IM has more fun rules.

XMLE has much better dots but IM has better call outs and to me more adrenaline action.

I've owned 5 Borg pins

I'll rate them

4 way tie but if I had to rank them
TWD pro
Met pro
Tron pro
IM VE
XMLE

XMLE is good but the other four are great, still think XMLE is good I really loved the Gambit hurry up shot, that is super cool. Xavier mode and all the villians are fun.

For a small collection XMLE might be better because there is a lot to do. With my collection I have a lot of deep pins so I like IM and Tron for simple but fun games.

With IM or Tron I have lots of fun even with a bad game with XMLE I felt like if I didn't get far in, I was disappointing to play.

Old picture before TWD pro swap for XMLE IMG_1773 (resized).JPG

IM is not hard all the shots are easy two ramps and two loops easy, center shot not hard, war machine is probably the toughest one but not hard at all imo.

IM can put the pressure on you but it's *very* approachable and even young kids love it. Had a party with non pinball people my friend loved IM it's easy to play hard to master.

Now TWD is a mother with lots of dangerous shots and hard to explain rules, IM is a teddy bear in comparison.

They are two totally different games.

Both have their place.

As for XMen having 30 minute long games, my video on YouTube is 35 mins long and I beat Dark Phoenix and almost get to Danger Room as well ... so the average game is going to be nowhere near 30 minutes. More like 5-15.

The games complement each other. Buy both.

rd

IMG_6589 (resized).JPG

yeah that wouldn't jive well with me. If I was the only one playing it, I'd keep it anyway unless space was an issue.
told myself I would only sell a game when I beat the wizard mode with factory settings/regular tilt. so far only the easier titles MM, TOM and CP. gotten really close a few times on GOT. If you consider do or die multiball a wizard mode on IM, I'll probably never accomplish it. which will mean it will stay with me forever The same with WOZ, I don't see completing wizard on that anytime soon.

Iron Man no doubt about it. Amazing game

I've played a lot of both on location, and I would choose Iron Man. Iron Man will make you a better pinball player. It's approachable and easy to understand for anyone who comes over, but difficult to master. The shots are not terribly difficult to make, but you learn serious ball control skills and recovery skills. It has enough difficult objectives to keep a novice player going for a long time.

X-Men is underrated and a fun game too. But, it's not for me. I don't find any of the shots particularly satisfying to make. The shots are tighter and more difficult to make consistently. The sound on X-Men is also a constant let down. However, if you're a house full of highly skilled players, the code is more complex. However, while I enjoy X-Men on location, I never think about it outside of when I'm there.

Iron Man keeps me thinking about playing it again and if I had only hit that ONE shot...

Of course, you've already proven that you can swap out games, so this clearly isn't a forever decision. I'd buy Iron Man, and if the fam hates it, you'll be able to switch to XMen or something else pretty easily.

That's a freaking lineup! Nice set of games!

you've replied to your own ask...
even if i would go for xmen as i prefer something more "consistent" in the rules (while not being TSPP or LOTR), and also it should last longer in a small collection