I test played and helped tweak the next MMR LE test machine at Chicago Gaming yesterday. I am so stoked about this game. It plays just like the original. I was able to compare the new one next to an original. This one had all new production parts. 100% top to bottom. Honestly, the new one plays better, just like a new pinball should. I just can't say enough good things about this remake. Game play was tight, flippers felt strong and snappy. The flipper power is controllable and can be turned up stronger than original if desired. As a repairman, I love the new system. It will make repairs easier if needed. All the mechanical parts seem as well built as the original. I usually don't post any of the "things" I've seen that are still being worked on but they are getting so few, I'll list what I saw yesterday. The few things that were tweaked were minimal, thumper switch spoon adjustment, slingshot switch adjustment. Over all it was hard to find any issues with it. A couple of small issues being addressed are; one ball gate deflector's pilot holes might need to be moved a millimeter or so, one particular wire harness hangs a little low, the start up "bong" sound seems a little off. After an exciting afternoon, An exhausted Pinball Phil gives CGC and their crew another big thumbs up.

The delay is the UL testing, mostly with the transformer. My understanding is that big, heavy transformers are being built by less and less companies and are no longer needed for as many products as the used to be. This makes for a longer lead time, less suppliers, etc. The transformer in this machine had the wrong wire colors. The first one had a center tap incorrectly wired? Arghh, I can't imagine the headaches like this with so many different parts to deal with. The build sheet for this game was about an inch thick stack of 8/12 x 11 sheets of paper. Beside the build sheet, there are so many different stresses of a pinball building company that we as pinball players, collectors, hobbyist etc. can't even begin to understand. I commend CGC for their patience with all of us.
The lamps are surface mounted, good and bad. Probably more reliable. As far as changing them, my circuit board tech, said no problem, he can change them. I wouldn't attempt it but feel confident he could do it if I felt so inclined.
The display is color but will not be colorized at launch. The owner can choose an individual color. Green looks cool. I took a couple of pictures with my phone but they were too dark.