Pin arrived in excellent condition (didn't notice any of the issues I've read about on Pinside). Powered up and seems to be playing 100%. Very happy with the build quality...it's my first "Spike" system. My last NIB Stern was Metallica.

Since the rules/dots are early, I'm not going to comment on them. I've played a dozen or so games and I have no clue what the objectives are. That said, here are some quick/random thoughts on things that won't be changing...

- The back box LED lighting coming from the CPU board is very bright and creates a lot of glare. I like to play in the dark, so glare is an issue for me. The software has a setting to dim the BB lights but didn't seem to do much (I set it from 100%->50% and didn't get much relief). Since the software is early, maybe the setting still needs to be implemented? Would love a "Dim on Start" setting that would dim the LED's when starting a new game.

- I was surprised they omitted GI spots in the front of the PF (typically located on the slings). More of an issue for playing in the dark. All my other Sterns have GI spots, so it was something I immediately noticed.

- In general, very happy with the art package. The metal apron with illumination looks great. The only real disappointment wrt art is the back panel is really stark/boring. Especially when sitting next to AC/DC Premium

- Minor nit/weirdness: My labeled PF inserts are all prefixed with "The " (The Starchild, The Spaceman, The Demon, The Catman). I thought this looked cramped/silly. When I googled Stern KISS PF, I find photos with the "The " prefix removed, which is how I thought it should have been labeled (see attached photo). Wonder why they decided to add the prefix? Do other folks have the prefix?

- The "K" target is an extremely tight/hard shot. "I" is tight but possible. "K" seems almost impossible to make. In my 12 games, was usually hit indirectly from bouncing off the right sling.

- The star child arena is a cool/tight shot. Made it many times, but nothing very interesting ever happened (e.g. never activated the Starchild pinball levitation). Guess that's because I never achieved Love Gun MB. The target in front of the arena had odd behavior. Hopefully the software will make this target/area more interesting...at the moment, it's not very fun.

- The huge amount of space dedicated to Gene seems under utilized. Most of the time the spinning disk simply dribbled out the ball. I didn't have problems with center drains. Every once in a while a ball would shoot out of Gene's mouth...definitely more fun than the dribble. The right lock is a tough shot and can't easily be made from the right flipper. I know some folks have complained about Gene's paint job...didn't offend me

- The pops, ramps and orbits all feel great. Flippers felt fine, but not exceptional when compared with my other pins.

- The simplicity of the Spike system is impressive. The number of components/connectors/etc. are down considerably.

- The Spike power supply has a very noisy fan that comes on fairly frequently.

- Overall, audio sounds good. Don't know if it's the samples, Spike, or both. No upgrade to the back box speakers...they are still very lame $2 buck speakers from China...upgrading them should payoff with Spike's improved audio.

- Stern moved the location of the on/off to the bottom of the back box. If your lineup is tightly packed and you are less than 5'9" tall, chances are you won't be able to reach it. I think it was a poor decision to move it. My workaround is to simply add 6" of space between KISS and the pin to the right of it. This allows me to squeeze in-between to reach. If I end up adding more Spike pins over time, might need a more scalable solution.

Assuming the rules come together and the two main attractions (Starchild and Gene) can be improved with software tweaks, the game could be great. At the moment, it's definitely mediocre...but I'm familiar with "the drill" (of waiting for the software to mature). Another thing that makes the game "flat" is lack of combo shots...hopefully the software will add some.

I have the pitch set @ 7 and the right outlane was brutal. Will likely move it down one peg and see if it's less frustrating.

That's it for now...

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Will definitely be playing it more! Again, these were "first impressions" after 12 games or so. fwiw, I hated TRON initially and now it's one of my all time favorites.

My games have been pretty short so far, so I haven't been able to explore much. Did you move any of the posts? Curious.

My wiring was perfect. I think the wiring problem may not be pervasive.

Thanks for the tip on the BB brightness!

Hey, are you able to hit the "K" in KISS? Seems like a near impossible shot to make?

Thanks! Not a great shot given the proximity to the wall, nevertheless...Paragon/WH20/AFM/TOTAN/TZ/STTNG/GNR.

One side largely Sterns (with Centaur), one side largely B/W (with Paragon, GNR).

Recently let RFM and MB go. My Fathom is having fun @ Aurich's place...

Highly recommend KISS Premium...good luck if you decide to move forward.

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10% works great! Was surprised to see a setting for diming the BB LED's when the coin door is open (actually set to 10% out of the box). Odd. Would love to see this repurposed for "Dimming during gameplay" In any event, works great for now!

Just played my 70th game...you were right, the game is far from mediocre! After doing a final level @ 7 and moving the right outlane peg down one, it's starting to shine!

Shooting the right orbit with the right flipper and left orbit with the left flipper is a lot of fun! Demon disk/spinner seems like it's loosening up and throwing the ball around pretty fast/randomly. Haven't mastered the Star Child shot, but it's also more fun than I initially thought. Pin seems to have a nice balance of flow, feel good shots, and tough shots.

The SPIKE audio is a huge improvement...wish my MET and AC/DC sounded like KISS (and they both have speaker upgrades). Definite proof that you can get away with cheap speakers if the source/samples are high quality.

Some of mechs occasionally misbehave (ball lock, demon post, star child levitation), however I'm hopeful software tweaks will fix these issues. KISS is definitely exceeding my expectations. I know a game has promise when I'm yelling at it...

I have a MET pro...fairly stock. The KISS layout is more interesting. For alpha/beta software, it seems more fun than MET initially. KISS audio much better. In terms of "richness" (i.e. what's included in the BOM), I think KISS Premium is in the middle of MET Pro and AC/DC Premium. As Premiums go, I think AC/DC was pretty packed with goodies.

Looks like KISS is going to be winner...fast, fun, & loud!

Well the pins are all leveled, but you need to visit. Would love to take you out for dinner and play some pinball!