81 also has many problems from keepers in a collection. I think right now I have Centaur , EBD, Fathom, Embryon, Flash Gordon, Medusa, Embryon. For my 80's I have Skateball, NGS, Mystic, Frontier, Viking, Stones. I would take the 1980 classic sterns and my 1980 Bally over my 81's but I am lucky to been able to own many of them. The 81's have some funky rules that just didn't get them quite there. The personalities of the games are amazing. Centaur - The whole lock ball and inlanes make the game a snore fest for anyone slightly good at pinball Too much multiball, just too much. Thanks god someone produced new ROMS. Fathom and the relock of the multiball. What were they thinkin'?. Horrible rules. Embryon is seriously cool. I like the game and still play it alot. EBD is a great game but geez thank god you can shut off Extra Ball. If I here shoot the "C" or "D" one more time I am going to break the backglass. At least you can spot both and shut up "Chet". Still hitting 70k over and over gets old. We still play it quite a bit though. Loved by all. Medusa is such a cool game and alot to shoot for. But "Klunky"/ All of them were much enjoyed back in the day but for the critical pinball player there is no better games then Mystic and Frontier. The most difficult and balanced games. I am fotunate to have owned my Bally's for many, many years so I am very familiar with the games, rules and how they last in a collection.
I realized over time "Sometimes I think NOT owning the 1981 Bally games actually make them a better game then owning them".
But hey these were some fantastic years to be in the arcade and I was fotunate to work for an op and open many of them NIB back in the day. Those were awesome days!!! We thought they were just amazing machines......and they were.