Ever since I got into this hobby (around 2005), I've heard collectors say LED ZEPPELIN LED ZEPPELIN LED ZEPPELIN LED ZEPPELIN LED ZEPPELIN. The older collectors have always wanted this. Plus, it's Steve Ritchie & they love him. That being said, quite a few of the "old guard" aren't into NIB anymore due to price/quality. I get the feeling that the new NIBNEWB collectors won't be so into this title. I could be totally wrong. Anyway, while I love music games, I've never really cared about LZ...I'll be watching from the sidelines...curious to see how it shakes out.

Is that all that mech is? A spinner? Is it also a lock or magnet?

Steve Ritchie games tend to drop the ball on art.

The LE is the only one that’s cohesive. Pro & Prem look like homebrews.

So you changed your order to the blandest cabinet/translite package ever made? Weird.

Well, it’s the typical Ritchie reveal. Looks bare, art is horrible Photoshop drag & drop. Been there, done that, so not shocked. Elvis, 24, AC/DC (remember the FACE?), ST, GOT, SW....c’mon, that’s just how he rolls.

If I ever play it, I’ll prob think it’s super fun...maybe even great.

Who knows!

Enjoy Zep fans, hype-addict NIBNEWBS, & FOMO guinea pigs!!!

Potential $10k purchase. Potential buyers are allowed to express their first impressions and critique.

Sometimes true. I passed on AC/DC at reveal, but then bought a Prem after I played it. Even though Photoshop, there’s a level of visual cohesiveness to it. It’s inoffensive to the eyes. I enjoy GOT on location, but it’s got a visual level of lazy/ugly that makes me never want to buy or own it. Star Wars looks better now that there’s the comic book version, but I hate the rules. Complex math chess is the last thing I want on a fast Ritchie game.

Art on the Zep playfield isn’t bad. Inoffensive. However those Pro & Prem cabs. Woof. I’d never buy the games based on how lazy/ugly they look. Even if I think it’s fun, it won’t be LE-price fun. So, for me, this will purely be a location game...if locations still exist when we start going out again.

Ritchie rarely does much in the way of mechs/toys. His “toys” are ramps/speed/combos/flow.

Album covers don't always make good pin art...but it's also the absolute stark contrast in styles between the playfield & cab. Totally different style, totally different logo. As an art package, they just flat out don't match.

It's under his direction. You can "blame the licensor", but you can still have an eye for detail & guide your artists to do something nice within licensor guidelines.

I once heard a story about Ritchie telling Borg he was nuts for using Dirty Donny for Metallica...no one would want that type of art on a MANLY METAL game....and that's why they did the Photoshop "Roadcase" Premium. Met paved the way for a new and exciting pinball art era for Stern...not sure why Steve never got on board.

Does Scott Danesi count as a one-man band?

The Blue one looks better than any of those. Not sure why people don’t think it works. There’s some blue on the backbox, and blue works with yellow & red.

Absolutely. Even just Justin Roiland alone...he does tons of voices in the game: Rick, Morty, Meeseeks, Mr. Poopy Butthole...prob a bunch of others. Dan Harmon is Bird Person & the Flu Hatin' Rapper. Even the non-cast voices fit PERFECTLY. Not sure who's doing Scary Terry, but he nailed it. I think Jack Danger or a Podcaster is the voice of the Roy mode...he does a great job. The game is loaded with personality, which is usually what gets lost in Stern's games of recent years.

It’s inspired by the song “Toys in the Attic”

Just watched the Deadflip stream ....it’s uh, um....it’s a game.

For diehard Zep fans only, I think. It seems relatively soulless & bare without much in the way of satisfying interactions.

Just made me think of all the various satisfying things in AC/DC:
-Satisfying to lite the jukebox, whip the ball up the right side shot, slam the button to pick a new song.
-Satisfying to hit the train ramp & get a corresponding train sound...the bell for a “gong”, the explosion of the cannon and TNT, etc.
-Even tho hokey, the band dancing to the beat of whatever song your in makes the Multiball more alive and fun.
-Steve’s devil voice is funny & fits the game.
-The multiball start has a nice start up show (the crashing train) to get you pumped.

Zep seems like a satisfaction-free version of AC/DC. It doesn’t have any of that slick choreography synced to your play to make you feel good. Stern’s Rolling Stones seems to have more energy about it.

Lyman is the true king.

Of course I haven’t played it....but I know enough about pinball to know what I’m looking at when watching a stream, and of course I’m gonna compare it to other rock games. Should I just buy it I can play it & then tell your my impressions? I’m sure it’s fun to play. It just feels really sterile compared to another Ritchie rock game. It’s a fair point to make. It’s also fair to bring up that AC/DC had Lyman, this doesn’t. We don’t know if it’ll get better.

I’ve never understood the T2 comparison. They’re nothing alike in design, feel, play or rules.

This is a hobby, not a cult. If someone doesn’t like some games, they can still play pinball.

Iron Man was about $4k. People were more forgiving at a price like that. Plus Lyman on code. Plus a non-divisive theme that everyone loves & super exciting high energy addicting gameplay.

Different time, different price, different context.

LZ will sell to Zep fans & Steve Ritchie hardcores. Not sure it has legs outside of that zone.

Yes. I was one of the people telling people how crazy fun IM was despite the first impressions. I bought one in 2010 & the hobbyists at the time told me I was a piece of shit for enjoying/buying games like IM, Avatar & Tron.

It was a different time. Everyone wanted the next Bally/Williams, and games like IM are why Jack started JJP with a fully packed wide body.

It gained a following over time & actually led to the current tastes changing toward “less is Ok, less=faster”. Less can be more sometimes, but when the prices are so much higher, what’s in the game is as relevant as ever for a first impression.

I’m not saying it’ll be a flop - I’m predicting that it will sell “well enough” to its target audience, but it won’t be the phenomenon that AC/DC & Metallica were...and that’s fine. It keeps the factory churning until the next game hype.

Wasn’t talking about the vaults. Still, I bought a Vault - I think it was 5200 or 5300? When a $5k game looks like it has more cool stuff than a $9k LE, it’s not “bad” “mean” “toxic” or “negative” to make comparisons.

This is the brilliance of Stern’s marketing & ability to run a factory. It doesn’t matter if a new game is a massive hit or not anymore. Back in the day if CSI or 24 or NBA flopped, they’d teeter on closing shop. Now, they’re pretty much guaranteed an LE sellout up front. 500 LE sales is ~$4.5 Mil in sales...and - they always have a catalog of 6-8 titles for sale at any given time. Those titles all had their LE sellouts, so all Pros/Prems they’re making right now from those games is gravy.

I didn’t have that much to say. I watched the stream and gave my first impressions.

I wasn’t trying to be contradictory. I get your point that previous games that were judged harshly early on became big hits, and I should reserve that possibility for LZ.

1. The times of IM & AC/DC were different. Prices were lower...as prices rise, I think our expectations & first impressions are going to be more critical.

2. Coding of lights/sounds in AC/DC and IM were exciting and satisfying & choreographed to shots early on. It’s fair to say I don’t see that in LZ currently.

3. It’s fair to compare LZ to other rock games & other bare games.

4. AC/DC & IM are more mainstream themes than LZ, it’s my opinion that they have more appeal beyond superfans.

Hope that clears things up. Not trying to shit on the game. I’d happily play it on location if we were not in a pandemic....but all I have to go on for a potential purchase is a stream & my own pinball experience & tastes.

Hopefully one day I will have opinions & posting styles that meet with your specific wants and desires.

Is the hype thread only for non-critical conversation? I figured any and all “hey it’s a new game!” talk was OK.