I think your poll needs more options on the low end.

Given how many collectors seem to seek out a game, set it up, mod the crap out of it, but only put 50 odd plays on the thing over 6 months to a year or more. Then they sell it.

Completely depends on the pin. You could play Iron Man 2000 times or you could play Spider-Man 400 times, and be done with SM but keep IM.

I played Dialed In 30 times at home and had enough.

Once you notice she stopped wearing makeup

Over 5,000 needs to be added.

I find the poll way too objective. It depends on the game, how many other games one has, number if plays over a time span, and lots of other things. Better as discussion than a poll. I don’t switch out games often. I take long breaks from pinball and when I come back the games are fresh again. So you could say I have repeated honeymoons over the years.

I've got 2000 plays on Houdini and I'm still going strong. Maybe it's because I'm not a great player so I don't blow through the modes quickly. I've also got plenty of other pins to mix in with it so that definitely helps to keep it fresh. Just having one pin would lower the " honeymoon" number. That's for sure.

Hell, I still don't feel I've "settled in" with all my games. I couldn't tell u how to do half the stuff on Metallica and we've had it since new.

Is "never" a viable response?

Holy... I’ve been married twice for a total of 17 years and this has NEVER happened to me. Of course, I don’t really take baths..

I’m gonna echo that “it depends”. I’ve bought games thinking OMG THE GRAIL!! And it’s a dud. Never “loved” LOTR like I expected to, so it probably got 200 plays. Houdini also going strong on thousands of plays. Same TZ.

But I do need to take a break for a while - sometimes when a machine has a problem or I need to shop it, I’ll just let it sit for a while and not play it for a few months, then when I get to it I’m really loving it again.

Except TAF. Should never have sold that or CFTBL

All depends on the game..........

I would say when a node board fails and its not covered under warranty.

Is she on the toilet or in the tub with you???

Under 300 for sure; by then I know.
Even GB took around 116

I've found that the only time the bloom really falls off the rose is when a machine has persistent issues that I don't have the time or energy to fix. I've put thousands of plays into my Gorgar, the first pin I ever bought, but I still come back to it all the time and I occasionally have a great game that gets my heart pounding just like when I first bought it.

when I get the next pin.

When it's not the first machine you go to.

Can we get one for Zero plays?

Hear me out. There are some games that seem great on paper but the more you look the less you care. For me that would be p3. It seemed like a great idea, but the closer i look the more it seems like a test bed best suited for those who want to tinker.

I guess I have a different perspective. I expected to see how much time had passed on the poll. I probably play my machine 10 times a day. If something does not function properly, I fix it and keep on playing. I just don't understand why people will pay so much for a machine and only play it like 100 times. Almost like they don't really like playing their brand new machine after paying a mountain of cash for it. So, if you have a machine for about a year, it will probably get pretty easy to know the rules and all the details and it becomes less challenging to blow it up. From my perspective, that is when the honeymoon is over. Playing the game 100 times will probably happen in the 1st week in my case.

if in the 1st 100+ games i play i can't enjoy at least one game its history.

Sometimes after Code update, honeymoon starts all over. Then when you think it's over. Code update is released again. Then you find new things to do and realize she's a keeper.

I agree. Often, when people say that they want a complete code early, I disagree. As long as the company is committed to update it later on, I like the excitement to revisit and fall in love with it all over again. Take Game Of Thrones, I love the theme but gameplay was just OK. Now with the latest code update years later, waaay better and wants me to get one sooner than later. Or Ghostbusters, it still kicks my ass with the "Trudeau Gap," but better overall a lot better now

For me i take the "honeymoon phase" involves ownership; so your example doesn't really work.

When I beat a game a couple times, I lose interest and move on.
I dont have a single game Ive beat at home, except for Whoa Nellie..no modes, really.
Longest now is 26 years, TZ.

I suck.

If that’s the case a few hundred is good for me.

That's a good point. I lost some enthusiasm for Swords of Fury when I rolled the score after about two months of ownership.

When you come home and she is draped in this...
snuggie (resized).jpg

Sorry, meant draped in this.

pin cover (resized).jpg

That's when you put lightning flippers on it, remove the center post and tighten the tilt.

I don't keep track of how many times I play a game any more. I did up until a few years ago. I obsess over playing a "new to me" game at least 40-50 times before moving on to something else. I try to dissect the safest way for my style of play to consistently achieve a score. That allows me to feel like I completely understand how to play a game. I think that's it for me. Has nothing to do with "number of plays".

50 max. 100 plays almost done 150 to 200 shes on her way out. This applies to more than just pinball.

two weeks of playing every night is normally my honeymoon phase

No more than 50 games....

This is so true. I remember my NIB WOZ ECLE had a number of issues: loose flippers, monkey magnet not working, a few other things. All managed to get resolved. It did change my view of this game: there was no honeymoon. It was as if I had a mail order bride that was twenty years older, fatter and not looking like her pictures.

On the other hand, I acquired a much used FH a few years ago that had seen much better days. I never quite took to it. I was going to sell the machine after a big fix up: rebuilt flippers with new coils, resleeved all coils, replaced broken plastics, Cliffy's on the holes and ramps, new white rubbers, cabinet touch ups, full LEDS including flashers and a good carnuba waxing. The honeymoon began and seems to be ongoing. This was like going to your high school reunion and having a torrid affair with the ugly duckling in the class who grew up
into one hot woman.

That all depends on how deep the rule set is, or how much you enjoy playing a particular machine.

I play less games now but It’s mostly because my ball time got much longer. For the same reason I dont turn my games on as often as before because I don’t feel like I have 20mn to spare to play pinball.

So my honeymoon lasted a year with WOZ but it evolved in a different kind of relationship.

Might be if you got a faster game like TNA you'd play more. I love LotR but had to sell it because it was such a chore to get deep into the game. TNA is the exact opposite there is not much to see but lots of fast paced action.

Yeah that’s the trick. Deep rules seems like a good fit for a small collection at home but it can create the opposite effect being too long for what a pinball should be.

On the other hand how long would I enjoy playing TNA at home ? Probably not long either, the game is fast and fun but in the end there isn’t much to do.

I guess if there was more than me playing pinball at home, things would be different with some kind of competition.