Quoted from goatdan:

Some people wear by Metallica Premium, I personally like the Pro SOOOOO much more. In fact, in general that is where my tastes lay...

Quoted from rotordave:

Ladies and gentlemen, We have a new Panzer "toys mentioned in one post" record!!
rd

Quoted from jonesjb:

So there has been some criticism about the tiered structure of the modes. I've just done some quick calculations to see how extensively the 3 laddered tiers would result in mode fatigue and there is indeed room for concern.
I've assumed playing 4 games, in each of these four games you would play to an equal level across all 3 ladders, and progress incrementally upward in each successive game (e.g. Game 1, you would play 'Back off Man', 'We Got One', and 'Okay Who Brought the Dog', Game 2 you play up to 'Spooked Librarian', 'He Slimed Me', and 'Spook Central' and so forth). Here are the results:
You would play 26 modes. Of those modes:
1) 46% (almost half) of the time you would be playing the lowest on each ladder ('Back off Man', 'We Got One', and 'Okay Who Brought the Dog')
2) 35% (a third) of the time you would be playing Spooked Librarian', 'He Slimed Me', and 'Spook Central'
3) 15% of the time you would get to play 'The Ballroom' and 'Gozer the Gozerian'
4) And only 4% of the time (just once) you would get to play 'Stay Puft Marshmallow Man' (It'd be a special rare mode!)

Quoted from PanzerFreak:

Speaking of toys here's a couple pics of the rumored aftermarket proton pack toys. They look pretty cool. If Stern wasn't planning to sell them I doubt the plugs for them in the outlanes would be there.
proton_1_(resized).JPG
proton_2_(resized).JPG

Quoted from PanzerFreak:

I think GB pro will go down as one of the best pro's due to how much it offers, just like MET pro is regarded. I have a MET Pro LED, love it but of course would like to at least have the awesome hammer / ball lock toy on the premium.
With GB premium Stern appears to be offering more then any other premium they have made to date. There's a large steel subway ramp with signs that drops below the playfield and exits either above or goes into physical 3 ball lock to exit at a scoop on the top side of the playfield. Then there's the magnetic slings that open up a ton of new and exciting options for gameplay. You would think that would be it as far as premium offerings go compared to other recent Stern premiums but nope. There's also the Slimer toy that rotates / moves to probably 3-4 different shots on the playfield. To top it off there's an awesome peppers ghost effect toy that will result in "ghosts" appearing on the playfield itself that the ball interacts with Pinball 2K style. Holy sh*t that's a ton of stuff and I didn't mention the couple detailed molded toys on the premium / LE !
The best thing in my opinion about the extra offerings on GB premium / LE (the subway, magnetic slings, Ecto Goggles toy, the rotating Slimer) is that they all interact with the ball. So many premiums offer items that may move but don't interact with the ball such as a dragon that moves a bit more on GOT premium, a car that spins on Mustang premium, a TNT detonator that goes up and down on ACDC premium, a ship the moves a bit more on Star Trek premium, a grave marker that comes up out of the playfield on MET premium, etc. Those are cool extra's but you just can't be interactive toys, those are the type of extra's I want when dropping nearly $7k on a pinball machine of all things, and GB premium / LE appears to be offering more interactive toys then any other game Stern has built.

Quoted from rotordave:

Ladies and gentlemen, We have a new Panzer "toys mentioned in one post" record!!
rd

Quoted from JJHLH:

Hello all. I'm a newbie here, first post. I have always dreamed of owning my own pinball and am strongly considering making GB Premium my first choice. I was at the Texas Pinball Festival on Sunday and played 5 hours on a couple dozen machines. Although I'm not a good player it reminded me how much fun it is! I love the tactile sensation you get from playing, as well as the eye-candy and game sounds. It really is a feast for the senses. I'm enjoying reading through this thread. Thank you for the information.

Quoted from JJHLH:

Hello all. I'm a newbie here, first post. I have always dreamed of owning my own pinball and am strongly considering making GB Premium my first choice. I was at the Texas Pinball Festival on Sunday and played 5 hours on a couple dozen machines. Although I'm not a good player it reminded me how much fun it is! I love the tactile sensation you get from playing, as well as the eye-candy and game sounds. It really is a feast for the senses. I'm enjoying reading through this thread. Thank you for the information.

Quoted from Rokablly:

Curious if anyone else likes the artwork on the Pro more than the Premium?
It would be nice if we had a choice when purchasing.

Quoted from bigd1979:

Every model has awesome art for sure. Some parts some people may like better on certain models but in no way can anyone say anything is bad about any of it. Just personal preferences

Quoted from Eskaybee:

I haven't seen this mentioned, but one complaint i heard about GB PRO is its very right flipper heavy. Meaning, most the play is done by the right flipper.

Quoted from Allibaster:

Nothing will fill the Iron Man void. Get Iron Man, too.

Quoted from Schwaggs:

There may be a reason to preorder a pro or premium. They are only making a limited number of Pros in the first batch, then LEs. Then maybe a batch of premiums then more pros.
In any event, there will only be so many pros built in the first batch and so many premuims built until mid to late summer. Based on demand, if you are not in on the first batch of Pros or first batch of premiums and they sell out, you may be waiting until July or later to get one.
Just sayin' we could have a shortage of pros and/or premiums initially. So if you want one in the quickest timeframe, might be a reasonable idea to pre-order.
However, if you are in no rush to have the best title in years in your gameroom, no reason to preorder.

Quoted from MustangPaul:

I was going to get a Premium but couldn't afford the extra bread so I changed my order to a Pro. I'm disappointed to be sure but I just love how the the plastic ramps just seem to disappear into the pf art and toys. Looks like I'm gonna change mine into a Promium.

Quoted from Rokablly:

Curious if anyone else likes the artwork on the Pro more than the Premium?
It would be nice if we had a choice when purchasing.

Quoted from tiltmonster:

I may be in that spot too... I have the cash for a Pro but that last 2k for a Premium is killing me, maybe I sell my Getaway and stick with just 2 pins but somehow that seems like it defeats the purpose of 3 pins in my collection (space and wife issues).

Quoted from MustangPaul:

Such first world problems we have.

Quoted from Pinfactory2000:

I agree. Wish you could custom order the cab/trans. Would be cool to pick and choose. Would also be a nice revenue stream for stern.
my preferences in order:
1) Pro
2) Premium
3-5) Portraits of Rosie O'Donnell
6) Slimer LE

Quoted from tiltmonster:

lol, yeah, since you put it that way I feel sort of piggish...

Quoted from MustangPaul:

Your not the only one, we all have felt that way many times in this hobby.

Quoted from MustangPaul:

Such first world problems we have.

Quoted from Pinfactory2000:

That's an interesting statement. The coffin ball lock and hammer are so cool (as is the cross). You're saying if the premium was less (suspend reality for a moment) than the pro you'd pay more for the pro?

Quoted from Concretehardt:

Ok so you don't like kick ass light shows, spinners ect ect... Gotcha

Quoted from frolic:

To help me decide I go downtown and kick a homeless guy in the balls and tell him I can't decide between buying a Pro or Premium pinball machine.

Quoted from goatdan:

I know of at least two bigger collectors where money isn't an issue who bought the pro over the premium, yes.

Don't know why you're trying to be sarcastic. I think that having differing opinions is a great thing for the hobby.
As for me, I play my games and don't really care about the light shows. It's why I can claim VND is one of my favorite games of all time - the art is horrendous, but once I figured out the gameplay I love it. Your mileage may vary, but that doesn't mean because you think that VND looks stupid I'm going to suddenly hate it too.
To me, Metallica Pro is the better game and I also do own it over the premium. Why? Two reasons:
1) I like keeping my games stock. The captive ball where the hammer is on the premium being the block is not as interesting of a shot to try to bank things off.
2) I like my games fast as can be. The hammer in Metallica slows it down. In fact, due to this, a lot of the Pros I like over the Premiums because they are made faster. Although I wouldn't own one, I actually like ACDC Pro over the Premium because of how much the mini playfield slows things down.
If either of the above statements worry someone who owns a Metallica Premium and makes them want to rethink their decision, sorry. I am just saying what my personal tastes are, and that's okay. From what I see of Ghostbusters, barring something with the right ramp, I kind of think that I'll like the Pro more than the Premium.

Quoted from goatdan:

I know of at least two bigger collectors where money isn't an issue who bought the pro over the premium, yes.

Don't know why you're trying to be sarcastic. I think that having differing opinions is a great thing for the hobby.
As for me, I play my games and don't really care about the light shows. It's why I can claim VND is one of my favorite games of all time - the art is horrendous, but once I figured out the gameplay I love it. Your mileage may vary, but that doesn't mean because you think that VND looks stupid I'm going to suddenly hate it too.
To me, Metallica Pro is the better game and I also do own it over the premium. Why? Two reasons:
1) I like keeping my games stock. The captive ball where the hammer is on the premium being the block is not as interesting of a shot to try to bank things off.
2) I like my games fast as can be. The hammer in Metallica slows it down. In fact, due to this, a lot of the Pros I like over the Premiums because they are made faster. Although I wouldn't own one, I actually like ACDC Pro over the Premium because of how much the mini playfield slows things down.
If either of the above statements worry someone who owns a Metallica Premium and makes them want to rethink their decision, sorry. I am just saying what my personal tastes are, and that's okay. From what I see of Ghostbusters, barring something with the right ramp, I kind of think that I'll like the Pro more than the Premium.

Quoted from goatdan:

I know of at least two bigger collectors where money isn't an issue who bought the pro over the premium, yes.

Don't know why you're trying to be sarcastic. I think that having differing opinions is a great thing for the hobby.
As for me, I play my games and don't really care about the light shows. It's why I can claim VND is one of my favorite games of all time - the art is horrendous, but once I figured out the gameplay I love it. Your mileage may vary, but that doesn't mean because you think that VND looks stupid I'm going to suddenly hate it too.
To me, Metallica Pro is the better game and I also do own it over the premium. Why? Two reasons:
1) I like keeping my games stock. The captive ball where the hammer is on the premium being the block is not as interesting of a shot to try to bank things off.
2) I like my games fast as can be. The hammer in Metallica slows it down. In fact, due to this, a lot of the Pros I like over the Premiums because they are made faster. Although I wouldn't own one, I actually like ACDC Pro over the Premium because of how much the mini playfield slows things down.
If either of the above statements worry someone who owns a Metallica Premium and makes them want to rethink their decision, sorry. I am just saying what my personal tastes are, and that's okay. From what I see of Ghostbusters, barring something with the right ramp, I kind of think that I'll like the Pro more than the Premium.

Quoted from mbaumle:

Here's a thing
» YouTube video

Quoted from Pinfactory2000:

I agree. Wish you could custom order the cab/trans. Would be cool to pick and choose. Would also be a nice revenue stream for stern.
my preferences in order:
1) Pro
2) Premium
3-5) Portraits of Rosie O'Donnell
6) Slimer LE

Quoted from tiltmonster:

I continue to tell myself that I've worked all my life to be in this spot and I'm not wasting my money. I guess the good news is that I don't really spend money on anything else (just in case my wife is reading!)

Quoted from PanzerFreak:

I never understood the desire for less toys because they "slow" the ball down. At some point these crazy NIB price tags need to be backed up by items that interact with the ball. Speed / flow is only worth so much when the price tag is $5k- $8k. Toys that slow down the ball like the hammer in MET, the gumball machine in TZ, the spinning magnet in XMEN, etc are the types of items I expect in modern pins. Those types of toys make pinball fun and I've never considered them a negative for a game. Physical ball locks, items that grab the ball, mini playfields and other interactive toys only increase the fun factor in my eyes.
Thankfully GB premium / LE is loaded up with a ton of interactive features to back up it's high price tag, that's how it should be.

Quoted from Gov:

I do. The pro is really good looking in person.

Quoted from MustangPaul:

Now you did it....she's gonna hit you up for a new kitchen now.

Quoted from frolic:

To help me decide I go downtown and kick a homeless guy in the balls and tell him I can't decide between buying a Pro or Premium pinball machine.

Quoted from Mudflaps:

I do the same thing. I was eating a cookie, thinking about when to order my GB Premium, and I saw a homeless man with a sign. It really put things into perspective.
So I rolled down my window and threw the cookie at him.

Quoted from kpg:

Wow you guys are dicks!

Personally, I have plans to donate my GB LE box to a homeless person. If you ever see a homeless person with a Stern Pinball box that has a Slimer LE stamp on it, just remember, that was me, one damn fine Good Samaritan !! lol