I have owned many used pins over the years. I could only dream of opening a new in box, gleaming perfect example of newness. Until now. My wife gave me the OK to buy a theme she and my family loves... Stranger things!

So I headed down to the local distributor to put my hands on it. I told her I had to really like it as an all around pin before we dropped that much $$ on it.

It was the first pin in the line, and the first thing I noticed was the muted back glass. Not a biggie, as I don't play the art anyway. Looking at the playfield for the first time, there was one VERY noticeable thing that caught my eye immediately. The metal entrance for the left ramp had 6 or 7 dings in it. Not little ones either, as it looked like someone took an icepick and went Basic Instinct on that sucker. Kinda like looking at a new car on the showroom floor and it's all dented with door dings.

Game play was underwhelming because it didn't feel like I was part of the Stranger Things world. The call outs were awful if not almost embarrassing. As I went through modes, there was more integration with speech, but it was so hit and miss. There were times that lasted minutes with no clips/voices from the show. Some modes were not bad. Just very inconsistent.

Game play wasn't bad, but beating the Demogorgan was.. well... underwhelming. There was no cool moment in the whole game. All in all, underwhelming.

So I came home a little dejected I didn't get my new in box. But after reading all the problems with gates and posts and ramps with this pin, I know I did the right thing.

It feels like Stern has really turned a corner with this one as far as quality and lack of code at release. I have never seen a pin with dimpled metal ramp like I saw on that one month old machine. And it just wasn't fun. (not $5800 worth anyway)

I guess I just wait for our next great theme and hope whoever makes it, actually does it justice with quality build, materials, and decent code.

Refer to my original post... Stranger Things was the theme my wife and family all wanted. I like Jurassic Park, but they don't really (and it's not really Jurassic Park so I don't either) Elvira.. nah. Deadpool?? Maybe if it was really like the movies. Wife loves that but she doesn't like comic dwarves pretending to be Ryan Reynolds lol.

We wanted Stranger Things so badly to be a bullseye

If it was just code.. yes. But all the dimples in metal and breaking parts... ugh.

I wanted this so bad.

I can understand how many can enjoy the theme as they integrated it into the pin.

I, However, really wanted the original movie and the call outs, assets, etc. Just a personal preference (nostalgia).

It is a great pin to play, no doubt.