No way! Thats sweet Aurich! I must go look for a pic.
Keep up the awesomness!

Mystery solved!

People like to rag on The Shadow movie but I really enjoyed it when I was younger. After Tim Burton's Batman people thought superhero movies should be dark and I think were disappointed when this movie wasn't like that. It does have some darkness in it though as the beginning was weird with Cranston's long nails and genocidal tendencies. But I thought (and still think) the movie is fun and like that the hero is always fighting his dark and evil nature. The villain also had a bit of a dual nature where he came from a barbarian culture but his behavior was refined and civilized. It's not the greatest movie but it turned out to be one of the best superhero movies from the 90s (which isn't saying much).

I recall reading where the trolls on MM were originally conceptualized while Eddy was designing TS. It was supposed to be mongols popping out of the playfield on TS, but time and cost constrained them from being included. Does anyone have a link to that story or can verify that info?

I haven't played TS very much but I definitely prefer MM to AFM. I've had a borrowed AFM in my collection for the last 6 months and I haven't fallen in love it with it like I expected to given its critical acclaim. The wide open playfield and average artwork make it feel like there could have been so much more to it.

In the story linked previously he brings that up. Just a mention, that the trolls were meant for The Shadow originally.

MM is overrated. Needs a S/W reduction of castle points to balance out the PF.
TS is GREAT. There is an exploit, but damn, it's hard. Must work on Pin-fu!
AFM is an incredibly well balanced true player. The best out of the 3 for me. Wish I could find one for less than $6500!

His next one.

LTG : )

Is he currently working on another pin?

Man, I dunno, but people who know him keep making cryptic comments like that to me. Would be awesome if true.

JJP #4. LTG just let the cat of the bag.

Well if Pat Lawlor is designing game number 3, this seems entirely possible. Very exciting! Has the theme for 3 been announced?

Leaked. Not announced.

well, i must say that after selling my AFM and MM, that i really miss my AFM. not-so-much the MM. I still want to own a shadow but would probably way more pumped to get another Attack.

AFM is on my short list but too much $$ for one game. I enjoy long shots in pinball games.

I see, what is the alleged theme? Is it a license or a completely new IP?

I'll only repeat as much as Jack has said: It's an unlicensed theme. Other than that, I'm from Jersey, so I don't want to wind up buried in the Meadowlands.

AFM just got old to me after a couple plays. I like the humor, but it gets old after a while. I can get to the Wizard mode about every third play. I'm not even a great player so I'm put off by it for that reason. MM is great and if the prices were lower I'd own one. I think the trolls are my favorite part of the machine. I really love TS, though. It's affordable, challenging, has great modes and varied multiballs, diverters are very unique toys, music and sound are awesome, mini playfield is great. My only beefs with it are the original translate (which still isn't terrible, IMO) and for some reason, the lower right ramp switch and Battlefield VUK switch always need adjustment on mine. Maybe I just need to replace the switches, though.

I work with him. He's not working on a pin at this point in time. Silly rumors

All joking aside, you've got to be careful about starting rumors like that, even in jest.

If people really though that JJP #4 was the new Brian Eddy pin, it could ruin new pin sales for the next 10 years - while everyone waits for a unicorn.

Get that man to Jersey, STAT.

I don't think it would hurt sales. If the Lawlor pin is awesome, people will buy it. If they do another pin that's as incredible (IMHO) as WOZ, people will buy it. They can always sell to free up space and funds for something down the road.

Anybody that waits for a pin that MIGHT be coming because some dickhead named Beelzeboob joked that somebody said something that MIGHT be a hint that a future pin that MIGHT be made--and therefore refuses to enjoy what's out here NOW rather than wait for said mythical machine--is an absolute idiot and deserves to sit on their cash and be miserable.

Just sayin'.

If he's not currently working on one, he should be! I think it would be very well received. Did he ever say why he completely migrated away from pin development? I understand that Williams was on the decline, it wasn't a growth industry, and digital entertainment was the future. But was it he no longer enjoyed it, or just wasn't viable?

It's like saying what is the best movie:

Raiders of the Lost Ark
Star Wars: Empire Strikes Back
Terminator 2

There is no wrong answer. These are 3 of the best games ever made.

You almost make it sound like pinballers have willpower.

I am somewhat surprised that The Shadow is fairing so well in this poll!

I think a factor might be that shadow is more accessible.. MM and AFM have been stupid expensive since I got into the hobby.. I've never been around them enough to clock the kind of rounds I have on shadow... Played them, sure.. Know them inside and out.. Not so much.

The Shadow is a brilliant game that the average pinhead will never be able to master

It sucks when the only game in a bar is The Shadow, because no beginner is ever going fall in love with pinball from that game, lol

Best Brian Eddy's game?

Who knows?

HEHE ;D

Which exploit? Are you talking about left orbit-inner loop?

I'd have to say MM as his best but if AFM had the saucer with the target on the bottom and moved around the center of the playfield like he originally intended I think it would have been the best game ever!

I say AFM.

All three are amazing but AFM is the best, imo.

Fun to play. Excellent theme. Fun modes.

AFM is always being played at party's I go to where MM often just sits there.

My 3 casual player kids all like MM better...

Shadow is bad ass though. I love it.

Tough choices as he hit home runs on all three. Afm for theme alone. Its my favorite pin but then again the two others are equaly unique.

I assume he is, check the PAPA video starting at ~ 12:40. If you've got Bowen's skills this is a legit threat, but not so much for the average player (a.k.a. me) that has trouble hitting that loop combo consistently.

I'm kind of glad it worked out that way, I'm sure Eddy would have done something cool with it but it's hard to imagine pop-up Mongols improving the gameplay on Shadow!

Yep, VERY few players can use this strategy effectively. For the average player, it's a useful add-on to a Super Loops strategy, nothing more.

I sure as hell can't. My record is hitting the loop 6 times in a row, and I doubt I could repeat that easily. It gets ripping around there fast once you get it going.

Yes, that's why I wouldn't call it an exploit. There's only a few people in the world that can actually really abuse it and get to that 255 million cap value per 2 way combo.
Dare to try it and you will see. Only someone who never played TS think this is an exploit.

If people call that an exploit, I doubt there is a game that for that person that isn't broken.

Even in the papa tournaments, no one is blowing out the game with this.

I agree....but its amazing how elements designed for TS were so many that they couldn't all fit, and had to be carried over into the #1 rated game of all time. Shows how good Shadow was, is, and ever shall be!

It would be good if the game had a two-way combo leaderboard so you could see what some players manage to raise the value to. That would be much more useful to know than the Shadow Loop champion.

I think each are winners in their own way. Here is the breakdown in my opinion:

Rules
1. AFM (So much to do here, rules encourage many different types of gameplay requirements preventing the central toy from dominating)
2. Shadow (Offers mode based scoring that offers much more to do, again lots outside of wizard mode requirements)
3. MM (Troll, extra ball, Merlin overlap complexity, castle seems to dominate a bit more)

Flow
1. Shadow (Diverters, extra flipper loop, clean orbits - AFM and MM will block the loop as part of the game).
2. AFM
3. MM

Wizard Mode
1. MM (Full on battle that is very difficult)
2. Shadow (Possible to win or lose on skill)
3. AFM: (Very difficult to lose, and fixed score amount: $5B)

Scoring Balance
1. Shadow (Very balanced scoring)
2. AFM (Many things to do here and ways to accrue points)
3. MM (The castle seems to dominate the focus)

Playfield Artwork
1. AFM (Stylish 1950s alien attack, just works with pinball)
2. Shadow (Design style with gold ramps properly embraces the art deco style of the period)
3. MM

Toys
1. Shadow (Diverters, magnet lock, battlefield)
2. MM (Very cool central toy)
3. AFM

Looks like it’s down to AFM for Shadow for me!

If I put jonesjb's breakdown into points (from 3 to 1):
Shadow came first with 15 points,
AFM second with 12 points,
MM third with 9 points.

I would rate the same.

The only thing that you didn't rated here was the cabinet artwork, translite and audio/callouts where MM wins and this is also what gives MM the top position on Pinside and well... pumped up price.
But overall - Shadow is the THE players' pin!

I'd have to go with Medieval Madness on this one, it's the most expensive, and the only one that has actually been remade.

Not after next year. And cost doesn't equal quality. By that standard, Big Bang Bar beats every other machine out there.

Is Shadow or AFM being remade this year? I agree, higher cost doesn't mean more quality. Part of MM's appeal was its easy to get rules that led to mass appeal. I'm sticking with my vote of Shadow on this one. Shadow has the most diverse gameplay and the longest replayability of the 3 listed. That alone makes it the winner.

For me it's AFM>MM>Shadow.

AFM is that rare game were the whole package just works in a way that just oozes fun.

MM can't be beat for it's humor.

The Shadow is probably the most underrated 90's game and is a tremendous value.

I have been getting the urge to pick up a Shadow just to put a Pinsound in it and take the experience to the next level.

The loudest rumor is AFM. TS will never happen because of licensing and the fact that it's not as highly rated or popular as MM or AFM.

I'm with you on all points. I love MM, but some of the callouts (the valley girl in particular) really get on my nerves. AFM is just funny.

I agree but both and all funny pins get old for me real fast, cheesey films have much more lastability than bad jokes and even gameplay wise I would take The Shadow over AFM or MM, very happy its a 1/3 the cost, looking for my second one.

For me, it's MM > AFM > TS. But for me, neither MM or AFM are worth more than twice what TS costs, so that's the one I own.

Also...call me weird, but I liked the movie. Poor acting by Tim Curry and Ian McKellan, but overall it's what you'd expect from a 90's adventure flick.

Agreed that TS will never be remade because you can pick up a nice one for $3k. But if that somehow ceased to be the case, something tells me that particular license could be had pretty cheaply. We're not exactly talking the Avengers here!