TWD was the first game that came to mind when I read your post. The genius of Lyman’s code is that someone who doesn’t know the rules can just walk up to it and enjoy it. Complete the drops to qualify modes. Hit the prison and well walker to start multiballs. Make shots to kill walkers.

I like games where I can set up multiple stacks and bring them together for a score explosion. Example: set up Bloodbath and 2X, but don’t start them until I’ve started another multiball. I love stacks like that, where I can get 100M points in 15 seconds. Especially in a league or tournament, where I’m going into ball 3 with 10M points. Nothing like looking up at the DMD and being happily surprised.

It’s very title-dependent for me. AMH and RZ are great shooters, and I find them very fun to play. ACNC and R&M are closer to what you describe. I could create similar groupings for Stern and JJP. I like simple layouts because they tend to be less clunky. Upper playfields don’t do anything for me, unless they have 2 flippers. I don’t like flailing away with one flipper.