I got my STLE yesterday. As a little background, I prefer the build quality and feel of Bally/Williams games, but LOTR has been my favorite pin in my collection because of the depth and theme, so I don't necessarily discriminate between Stern or B/W.
This is my first NIB pin. I had my distributor deliver it in the box, and did the unboxing at my house. Unfortunately, the side rail lights and the "punch it" button aren't working. This is kind of a bummer, but it's still playable and these will be fixed. Given the fact that a machine of this complexity rode in a truck from Chicago to Texas and then on another truck from my distributor to my house, I suppose I shouldn't be shocked that something isn't working out of the box. The machine is pristine, however, without a scratch on it.
Let me just say, wow! STLE is an impressive game. It is a thing of beauty and is so much brighter than anything in my collection, even with Cointaker LED's on my STTNG, STLE is an order of magnitude brighter than my STTNG and much brighter than my LOTR (which I've kept incandescent). STLE can be little blinding at times. It is the best looking Stern I've ever seen. (Haven't seen Metallica in person, but I'm not a Metallica fan) I don't like the way it uses the flashers in attract mode, kind of distracting when it's on and I'm doing other things, but during game play, the light show and color changing LEDs are amazing.
I've had to work this weekend and haven't been able to play it as much as I want, but so far, I love it.
Hitting the Vengance and seeing it shake while feeling the shaker motor rumble the machine is awesome! As others have said, the Vengance is bigger and more impressive in person than in the pictures.
To me, it seems like a deep game. Each of the 6 modes has three parts that have to be started separately (e.g. Save the Enterprise part I, II, and III). Each of the 3 parts for each of the 6 modes has different shots, different animations and different call-outs. To me, it really feels like 18 different modes. You can only "time out" part 1 of each mode, so you have to actually complete the shots on part II and III, making it pretty challenging. I can tell you it will be a long time, if ever, before I complete all 18 modes in one game.
I don't understand what people are talking about when the say the code "isn't complete". Yes, Steve says there are some more cool things coming, and the Karl Urban speech is coming, but it's great the way it is now. (I'm on code version 1.3) I also don't understand the criticism that all of the modes are just "shoot the flashing shots". Isn't that what all the modes are on all machines? STTNG is a very highly rated machine, but with the exception of the mode with the ball cannons, all of the modes boil down to "shoot the flashing lights", if you refuse to use your imagination.
The call-outs are great, most are from the movies, but some are custom. My favorite so far is in Klingon Battle II. I won't spoil it for you, but a Klingon insults your mother in a hilarious way.
This is by far the smoothest game I've ever played. The flow is amazing. The warp shot is hard, but a little easier than the Delta ramp shot on my STTNG. I haven't been able to shoot the warp ramp repeatedly yet. I did however, get a long string of back and forth between the alpha and beta ramps, at least 5 or 6 shots in a row. Incredibly smooth and very satisfying shots.
And by the way, I've had STTNG for years, and this game feels nothing like STTNG. Yes, the ramp layout is similar, and it's a cool "homage" to STTNG, but I'm definitely keeping both in my collection. Those who say they'll just get STTNG instead, are getting a very different game (albeit also a very good game).
I can't speak to the LE vs. Pro debate, as I haven't played a pro. I will say that the shaker is awesome, and if you have a pro (or if the premium doesn't come with a shaker), I'd definitely add one.
So that's my review for now. Will it overtake LOTR as my favorite? Only time will tell, but I'm very happy for now
UPDATE: So I called Stern technical support and the side rails weren't working because the connector had somehow been pulled out of the circuit board in the back box in transit. Plugged it in and it worked fine. I also have a bad inlane switch and they're sending me another one. I adjusted the kickback outlane switch and the kickback now works much more reliable.
A couple of more points about the machine.
The star field projector is pretty cool, but not a reason in and of itself to buy the machine. It's a nice extra and is unique. I'm not aware of any other machine that has something like that. I'm just waiting for someone to mod it with a green laser or maybe a violet laser.
The Vengance battle is also quite cool The magnet under the ship really rockets the ball back at you.
So I still give this machine an A+. We'll see how well it holds up.