Just played Spider-Man Ve at my local arcade and let me say I was blown away. Have had the opportunity to play maybe 20-30 games on the original recently, so was really excited to give the new vault ago.

Firstly I will just make some quick comments on the price, here in Australia the Spider Ve comes in at $2500 over a Stern pro. It's a big price difference and will defiantly hurt the overall sales. I would jump on one if it was the standard Pro price but at premium price it's going to take some serious consideration especially with GB around the corner. However Spider VE is that good that I will be taking serious look over my collection in the coming weeks to see what needs to go in order to make room and cash so I can fit it in. If this was a new release the toys, layout, build of materials etc... Would easily qualify Spider-Man as a Premium model build. Compared to say Ironman which feels much more like a Pro in terms of how much is on the playfield.

Compared to the original it almost feels like a totally new game. The lighting particularly really is a mile ahead of the original and makes the game pop. The cabinet and translite are beautiful as are all the new toy models. However the playfield artwork, particularly around the flippers with the spider logo etc... Feel a little bit cut and paste. Not terrible but still not quite as good as the rest of the package. Gameplay wise it's pure Steve Ritchie super fast and smooth with tons of flow. It defiantly felt quicker then the original I played which was HUO. However even though it played quicker, I was able to put up some better scores in less games then the original I played. I think this has a lot to do with how smooth everything rolled, it just felt easier to keep the ball under control and shots like the DR hole and Sandman stuck every time with no bounce outs or misfires. The lighting also made it easier to follow the modes and shots.

If you have a Spider-Man at home I don't think there is any reason to upgrade to the VE unless it is your grail pin and you want the best example out there. If you love the original Spider-Man and belive the table will be a long term keeper, then I would go the VE even if the difference is a couple of thousand dollars (HUO original Spider-Man in Australia is around $7500 so $3000 difference for us Aussies) I think the upgrades plus the opportunity to purchase NIB is worth the difference. However if you just like the idea of owning a Spider-Man and will probably move it on after year or two, then go the original and save your money. For me I will have too spend a little more time with the VE to decide wether it a long term game for me but for now it's ticking a lot of boxes