# SDTM Episode 74: The Lord of the Rings Pinball Machine Review

**Source:** Straight Down the Middle  
**Type:** video  
**Published:** 2018-09-25  
**Duration:** 46m 57s  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5a5rP19XFGA

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## Analysis

Straight Down the Middle reviews Stern Pinball's Lord of the Rings, a 2003 George Gomez-designed game widely considered one of Stern's masterpieces. The hosts praise its deep ruleset, multiple multiballs (Fellowship, Two Towers, Return of the King), and innovative code by Keith Johnson, but criticize the washed-out Photoshop-style playfield and cabinet artwork. They discuss gameplay mechanics, wizard modes, toy integration, and theme execution in detail.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Lord of the Rings is Stern Pinball's masterpiece, particularly in terms of rules and code design — _Multiple hosts consistently affirm this throughout the review, calling it 'one of the best code sets in pinball' and rating rules A+_
- [HIGH] The game features three separate movie multiballs: Fellowship of the Ring, Two Towers, and Return of the King — _Detailed gameplay walkthrough showing how each multiball is qualified and what objectives must be met_
- [HIGH] The playfield artwork was created using Photoshop with minimal hand-drawn artistry, resulting in a washed-out appearance — _Hosts explicitly critique 'shitty Photoshop' artwork and lack of saturation compared to other Stern games like Star Wars_
- [HIGH] Keith Johnson (credited as 'Kiefer') is the code designer responsible for Lord of the Rings' ruleset — _Hosts directly credit Johnson with the code implementation and praise his work extensively_
- [HIGH] The game's Valinor wizard mode is achievable but extremely difficult, serving as a benchmark for good wizard mode design — _Hosts note it's achievable unlike The Simpsons wizard mode, making it the ideal difficulty balance_
- [MEDIUM] Bryce Dallas Howard's father (implied to be the voice actor) performs the Gandalf callouts and dwarf character voices — _Hosts mention voice actor from Indiana Jones playing dwarf and mimicking Gandalf callouts; name unclear due to transcription quality_
- [HIGH] The translite (backglass artwork) is rated A+, described as beautiful despite the Photoshop playfield approach — _Hosts agree the backglass composition and color are excellent, contrasting with their criticism of other artwork elements_

### Notable Quotes

> "Stern's masterpiece, The Lord of the Rings... one of the best pinball machines ever made"
> — **Hosts (Greg/Zach)**, Early in review
> _Establishes the game's legendary status in the community_

> "The art? Dare I say atrocious? Well, not the art. The art's not that bad. It's just the process of printing. This is how art's Papa Duke: shitty. To him, it's Photoshop. It's literal Photoshop."
> — **Host**, Art critique section
> _Core criticism of the game's visual execution despite excellent rules_

> "If you vault this machine and it ever starts to come to be Medieval Madness Heavy Metal Meltdown—please, please fix it. You don't have to redo the playfield, just fix the colors."
> — **Host (Greg)**, Artwork discussion
> _Specific proposal for potential remaster improvements_

> "I think that this is like George's best thing ever... I don't think the right ramp allows it to be in the category of Deadpool"
> — **Host**, Layout critique
> _Positions Lord of the Rings above other Gomez designs in rules quality despite layout concerns_

> "It's deep without being diluted... strategies to get from point A to point B... not just mode chasing"
> — **Host**, Rules discussion
> _Explains why the ruleset is considered masterful—complexity with clear progression_

> "The multiball itself is not a reward. You've got to get up to that super jackpot... one of the best code sets in the games ever"
> — **Host**, Code analysis
> _Emphasizes innovative approach to multiball design as distinguishing factor_

> "Everything is different. But you have to use the whole playfield"
> — **Host**, Playfield discussion
> _Highlights design quality—each objective uses different parts of the table_

> "I want another The Lord of the Rings give me a vault"
> — **Host**, Final thoughts
> _Expresses desire for potential remaster to address visual issues_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| George Gomez | person | Designer of Lord of the Rings; widely praised as legendary designer at Stern Pinball |
| Keith Johnson | person | Code/rules designer for Lord of the Rings; credited for masterpiece ruleset design |
| Lord of the Rings | game | 2003 Stern Pinball machine based on LOTR film franchise; widely considered Stern's masterpiece in rules/code |
| Stern Pinball | company | Manufacturer of Lord of the Rings and subject of praise/criticism throughout review |
| Jersey Jack Pinball | company | Mentioned as manufacturer of The Hobbit (Standard Edition) for comparison in art/quality |
| The Hobbit (Standard Edition) | game | Jersey Jack Pinball game used as comparison point for superior artwork quality vs Lord of the Rings |
| Medieval Madness | game | Referenced as potential vault/remaster candidate with similar theme; design comparison |
| Deadpool | game | Stern game mentioned as comparison for Gomez's design work; hosts suggest LOTR rules superior |
| The Simpsons | game | Referenced for wizard mode difficulty comparison; hosts note its nearly unobtainable endgame vs LOTR's achievable Valinor |
| Star Wars | game | Mentioned for comparison on Photoshop vs hand-drawn artwork approach |
| Flip N Out Pinball | company | Show sponsor; pinball distributor mentioned in opening |
| Pin Stadium | company | LED lighting system mentioned as upgrade installed on reviewed machine |
| Zach Sharp | person | Appears to be co-host/co-reviewer providing detailed gameplay explanation |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Rules and Code Design, Visual Artwork and Aesthetics, Playfield Mechanics and Innovation, Wizard Modes and Endgame Design, Multiball Implementation
- **Secondary:** Theme Integration and Immersion, Voice Acting and Sound Design, Comparison to Other Stern Games

### Sentiment

**Mixed** (0.72) — Hosts have extremely positive sentiment toward rules, code, and gameplay depth (consistently A+ ratings), but significantly critical of visual presentation (washed-out artwork, Photoshop-heavy design). Theme and voice acting also receive strong praise. The mixed score reflects the contradiction: they call it a 'masterpiece' but acknowledge visual shortcomings would prevent them from purchasing it without reservation.

### Signals

- **[community_signal]** Game receives strong community recognition as Stern's greatest rules achievement; hosts reference it as benchmark that subsequent Stern designers should emulate. (confidence: high) — Statements like 'it's Stern's masterpiece' and comparison to other Gomez/Johnson work positions it as reference point for quality standards
- **[competitive_signal]** Valinor wizard mode serves as benchmark for achievable-but-difficult endgame design, contrasting with The Simpsons' nearly unobtainable wizard mode. Achievability with sustained challenge is considered ideal. (confidence: high) — Extended discussion contrasting LOTR's achievable Valinor against Simpsons' overly complex endgame; hosts praise LOTR's difficulty-to-achievability ratio
- **[design_philosophy]** Playfield layout criticism: right ramp mechanics described as 'oddly smooth' but somewhat disconnected from overall flow; left orbit hitting scoop creates continuity issues. Despite this, layout praised for multiball design. (confidence: medium) — Hosts discuss oddities like left orbit hitting scoop and right ramp mechanics, though ultimately accept design as successful despite layout quirks
- **[design_philosophy]** Playfield and cabinet artwork critically underdeveloped due to Photoshop-based design with low saturation; lacks richness despite good composition. Translite backglass significantly superior to playfield art. (confidence: high) — Extended critique of 'shitty Photoshop' art, washed-out colors, comparison to films' sepia tone, and explicit suggestion to either have artist Christopher Franchi redesign or simply boost color saturation
- **[design_philosophy]** Lord of the Rings exemplifies accessible complexity: deep ruleset that requires the whole playfield without being diluted or overly mode-heavy. Rules guide players through a linear journey matching the film narrative. (confidence: high) — Hosts repeatedly praise how modes aren't just about mode chasing, require completion of tasks, and gift collection gates progression to Wizard mode
- **[market_signal]** Community desire for Lord of the Rings vault/remaster to fix visual presentation while maintaining superior ruleset. 'Medieval Madness Heavy Metal Meltdown' referenced as hypothetical vault successor. (confidence: medium) — Hosts explicitly request Stern vault the game with color/art fixes; comparison to Medieval Madness remaster by Chicago Gaming Company suggests precedent
- **[product_strategy]** Custom sound system upgrade ($600-700 per hosts' estimate) dramatically improves experience; hosts note pinball sound quality with new speakers 'blows them out of the water' compared to stock audio. (confidence: medium) — Discussion of sound system upgrades and acknowledgment that despite not wanting to spend on upgrades, the audio improvement is worth it
- **[licensing_signal]** Lord of the Rings features voice performance by dwarf character actor who mimics Gandalf; voice work cited as major strength complementing thematic integration. (confidence: medium) — Discussion of voice actor from Indiana Jones performing dwarf and Gandalf callouts; recognition of voice quality as 'tremendous' element

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## Transcript

are you ready for your next pinball machine call flipping out now and choose from the newest and hottest pinball machines from jersey jack pinball stern pinball chicago gaming company and american pinball flipping out also offers the Escalera stair climbing hand truck visite now it flip in a pinball calm the wait is over a revolution in an LED lighting for your pinball is finally here fully customizable full spectrum lighting from Penn Stadium life order yours now at King stadium calm checkout pin graphics for the latest and greatest in pinball enhancements power blades blade skins pin blades and even more visit ping graphics calm now to see what's available for your pinball machine let's take this [ __ ] [Music] [Applause] redbone is a stupid Hobbit fly you fools yes I am you're hairy like Oliver doesn't feed we get to review Lord of the Rings another pin that was long-awaited people have been talking about us when you guys even review Stearns masterpiece Lord of the Rings and that it is what is this now you just found the Shia from the Shia if you were in that world what would you be would you be a hobbit would you be a man would you be an orc would you be what would you be you think else it wouldn't be an alpha male there they're a little to you you know might be tittle oh I think you'd be the elf I think I'd have to go Hobbit I'm a little more laid back really yeah I think you'd be more a dwarf yeah cuz I'm so grumpy yeah kind of grumpy hairy you know what I gotta go thing I honestly I could kind of go with it you know must be bother don't know me like what really I'm like no I'm pretty damn grumpy yeah I think that would be snark ish like an elf yeah nice of you you have a little polish do you like to wait yeah Orlando Bloom I like to wear my hello little pins yeah I can see that that's pretty good now this game was designed by Jorge Gomez your boys love GG our homie go me Jorge Gomez back in the early Stern days yeah well not really Stern electronics days but yeah mm yeah coated by our buddy Keith P. Johnson yes Kiefer keep barrier keeping renewed yes okay who did the art I think it was a PC the did the art because it's all a vivid photo show PC yeah it's just PC possibly Mac I probably could have done that art um but we'll get into that but first let's go to you want to do the overview of Lord Sergi well it's all you sir I better did so let's go to the Lord of the Rings over viewing gameplay click you remember that cuz I would've forgot that where do you think I was just rolling Oh alright guys we're gonna go over Lord of the Rings Lord of the Rings a lot of good tutorials can be found online but for just that quick rundown for our review purposes I will walk you through this thing alright from left to right left you have that kind of medieval madness shot that goes to the catapult but for this it's the Shire Shire kicks it right back up onto the wire form and comes down to your left Lipper left orbit left orbit goes up and around and either it is diverted into the tower there and up to the paths of the Dead or it goes around into that scoop all right scoop drops it down into the rollovers left ramp doesn't look like a ramp but it's the Legolas ramp he goes up slingshots back and if it doesn't fly off the wire form here it comes back down to your left flipper inner orbit shot for Gandalf loops around and comes back down your right orbit it also has a diverter there that can open it up to that Tower and up kick into this guy right here that looks like Greg is Balrog he's a bash toy he contended and then he also moves out of the way to show the ring with a spinner on it you try to jump in there to start moods does have a magnet in that hole that will hold the pole and throw it behind it it'll go behind the backboard there and come out through here all the way around winding and either a lock here or come down to that right flipper alright Palantir stand up target there then you've got the Gimli shot the Gimli shot can either go through into the pops or you can arrest it right there and it'll up kick around safely to your right flipper up top here you do have your auric rollovers I was coming to the pops and they usually kick out to the side and roll down your right orbit okay right ramp ramp goes up 90 degrees comes back down in your lock or your right flipper ride orbit same thing you get your stayin up target to spot your ring right there and you know your traditional flipper and sling lay out here okay so what are we doing this game there is a lot to do so one of the deepest games thus Turner's ever made and it's a masterpiece all right Zach what do you want to tell the people okay so down here here's our objectives our objectives ultimately in my opinion is to play all three movie multi balls to light destroy the ring alright so how do we get to all the movie multi balls first one the Fellowship of the Ring the Fellowship of the Ring is qualified by those shots right there all of those shots are different characters in the film and each character has a corresponding shot mode wool okay so each one of those characters has a corresponding shot for example Pippen is the left orbit see Picton Samwise is the Shire Pippin Pippin Legolas left ring Gandalf in her orbit Frodo ring you shot Gimli that shot here are gone you're gone merry boromir's back here in the Pops etc so you hit the shot it stays lit you light all of them up hit the left orbit it'll go right back there into the scoop and that's gonna start your fellowship at the rig and a fellowship of the ring is pretty cool it's gonna give you some wits to save each one of these characters to cross the bridge when Balrog is battling them so hit Balrog then you hit a little row you hit a little shot and every little shot you hit allows one of the members back over the bridge all right all right the two towers the two towers is qualified by locking balls here lock balls up the ramp back down and it will hold them right there okay so to lock balls okay e e P there all right there for you so you have to make sure they're not lit when they go through the roll over that will wipe in if you light all four to spell keep that lock will light and keep in mind whenever you play that if the lock is lit you cannot receive any more keeps to like lock ball two or three without securing that lock ball one etc so to start that if you see the lock being lit you want to pay attention to that so that you can get it out of the way and get your rollovers and get lock to lock three okay The Return of the King this is the toughest one in my opinion and the toughest to qualify so Return of the King is very simple you get it back in that Tower and up kicks' there's four all over it one two why it's three four but you go over the rollovers it'll trickle down here and you'll hit two switches those two switches are either going to qualify for 100 soles 250 cells or 500 cells you have to collect 5,000 to start and qualify Return of the King multiball and there is some there's some skill up very bouncing and nudging and around but but the tough part is that you don't get in there too often because it's not really a direct shot unless there's a certain mode that you're in that diverts that let's see which one wore the ants war the ants is a mode we'll talk about that in a minute but you can it'll open that diverter and you should collect as many souls as you can the other good way is a skill shop and it's good time to show your skill shot right now skill shot on this game okay see where it says lanes tower flipper so whenever you're plunging the bowl if it's over lanes you're trying to hit a lip lane on new york things worth like five times multiplier tower that's where you need to be that's where I easily aim so Tower is a half plunge up over the orc but not so much where it goes through the aura we're at land somewhere around this region trickles in there boom you get I think 250,000 points plus you get to the path of the Dead so to get to return the king I'm always plunging for that or the last one is flipper can't get it there you go anyway you pull plunge it it'll come around there's gonna be one litte shot then you hit that four points all right so that's your basic multi balls so what else do you do that well there are awesome modes in this game escape the ring wraiths Gandalf or Saruman morg battle worthy it's attacked up show up and destroy the witch-king they're all unique they're all different they're all very very fun to play and you guys can watch it tutorials for each of those what else do we need okay light all rings four ring frenzy so I don't never pay attention to the ring frenzy but what I do is each shot has a qualifying elf dwarf or man target as you see here man dwarf elf man dwarf elf and so on and so forth so whenever you first start your game the ring will be lit to start a mode to start one of those six months right and you'll see it live mode start okay so let's say you start a mode and you're done with the mode to light another mode it's not just gonna be lit for you you're gonna have to qualify and you qualify it by collecting three L frames so when that is lit you hit that shot and you get an L frame now the good thing is for a couple seconds after you hit that shot another shot will be open for an elf ring and you can add two to get your three so comboing those helps alright so those are the three elf rings the seven dwarf rings alright so dwarf rings same spots but if those are lit and you collect all seven you get a mystery Palantir is also responsible for mysteries as well to get that you collect those like going into the Shire all right what's our last one man baby so man has what nine nine man rings man ring same spot if those are lit and you start collecting them and if you get all nine then you qualify Gollum multiple that's also where your extra ball or it is and your special all right so that's that so anytime you're trying to get through this game you're trying to get through those modes try to collect those elf rings it's a thing that I messed up for awhile I didn't know how to sleight the unloads all right another important part if you think you're gonna get anywhere near Balinor is to collect the gift of the elves the gifts of the elves light extra ball ring multiball big points light special super ring frenzy and two times scoring alright these are achieved in many different ways think kind of walking dead kind of stuff where it's not just modes they get them but all kinds of other tasks and you guys can check out in a hapa tutorial anyway the easiest way to get a gift of the elf is to complete one of those modes you complete a mode which are very tough actually you make eligible gift from the ABS and then you shoot the left orbit get it up in that saucer to collect it all right what else other tips whenever you are going into one of the multi bolts try to start a mode before that to get that going what else am I missing mr. fantastic game so this game has some mods on it's got all the plastic protectors it has half of the dead it's got the pin stadium lights it's got the Palantir mod which is a must in my opinion colored post cliffie's over were beautiful beautiful example of this game there's a couple wizard modes ballon ballon ort is the ultimate wizard mode but damn near impossible to get to to get to it I don't even know how do you get to that other thing so I think you have to get through all the modes you actually have to defeat the multi modes and I just play them and they are grueling then you have to collect all the gifts of the elves six there might even be seven then you have to get through there and back again then after all of that then you have to qualify destroy the ring in and destroy the ring there back again is a mini wizard mode that's completed once you destroy the Ring get through so many modes and then get so many gifts of the elves I believe so alright so that my friends is Lord of the Rings one of the best pinball machines ever made marco specialties same-day shipping accessible website exceptional customer service and with over 50,000 different and all parts in stock marco specialties is a must for every pin low enthusiast and operator creature pinball machine right by visiting marco speck calm now chromic brass at black nickel at kingly chrome at powder-coated the possibilities are endless at pinball play Dave dot-com your pinball machine deserves the best at comet pinball you'll find the best variety of LED products with the best quality LEDs and most importantly at the best price your collection is begging for an upgrade order yours now at Comic involve calm alright Greg I hate to start with art on this pin because it's kind of it gets better your folks just bear with us the art dare I say atrocious well not the art the arts not that bad it's just the process of printing this is how arts pretty shitty to him it's Photoshop its literal Photoshop yeah there's no art yeah Star Wars is kind of Photoshop II yeah but it was actually drawn what that when that still actually yeah artists created at least the photos I mean but the richness is where my beef is mine too like we have talked numerous times that if like I just want a play field I don't see PR I want somebody to do just a playful with more saturated colors i reimagine it yes and you know what though if you look at the films the films have that kind of sepia yes for some look to him in a way but the playfield awesome over does it it's just not right there's just some wish that a little more sepia in this camera because I am looking I'm looking elfish in the Lord I'm a little white my little son yeah we'll fix that no I think it's just me Greg was testing the white balance on our new camera here by just pointing on my face on the on the screen and it it was like okay so you're using those kinda lights I have to go to a little softer light for Zach the vampire here but yeah like I hate looking at it like it killed like the very first time I saw Lord of the Rings like oh yeah it's like what the hell's wrong with this who left this on the side what happened to it looks like that washed out but uh enough with skin jokes we talked about before but what about the other components to the bed okay so we have cabinet art that's washed out - no I don't think it's that wash down is like your Simpsons if I rub my hand over enough where L know it'll wear off but I don't think it's I don't think it has that faded look like Simpsons does it's not interesting at all it's it's dark but it's faded I think it's okay this shows a red side and a new side of the statues and I'm okay with it it's poorly well you've obviously her to be - but is there a good portion the bad glass the trans light I think it's the composition and the color of that trains lies beautiful isn't a plus form I agree even with the Photoshop I'm fine with it I can agree I think that is beautiful yeah but the cabinet art and the playfield are ya know I'm burned I'm gonna see and I'm being nice but it's deep but I'm gonna see because of that trans like if you vault this machine if that is a possibility and it ever starts to come to be mm-hmm please please fix you don't you don't have to redo the playfield just fix the colors do you agree no I disagree I don't want the hopefully field redone but I've seen a minimum I'm fine with the composition to play field where everything's at yes kind of I don't like golem just sitting there no redo it redo it no I would prefer to be redone but I would don't here's what I would love him to do I would love them to make Francie do it because he hates this theme really yeah because I asked him once I was like what can you not just maybe do a play field like just reimagine those characters with your artwork and he was like I would hate that I would turn it down because I hate that theme see III think that you're reaching for the stars there because I don't think they'd ever pay an artist to draw those characters and even put it in the same position I think and then you had to go through license yes exactly I think just if they just redid the colors and boosted the color they will ignore my role I don't like the cabinet give me a new cabinet made me do a new cabinet that wouldn't be too tough I wouldn't think but I know I thought about the last Lord of the Rings I bought I was a little ambitious and I forgot that I have a full-time job a big family a podcast a YouTube show editing and everything but I wanted to strip down the playfield of Lord of the Rings and the cabinet and compose my own artwork and redo it I wanted to do that is because I do love this pin I do too but as you guys will see it my total score is not as good as it could be because of the art this is one of those things and I haven't owned the Lord of the Rings I got very close before I picked up Simpsons mhm of getting on Lord of the Rings but I will I will want to ever to be honest you in and we've had people argue with us that this stuff does not matter it should be not it should not matter our grades and everything else but I will tell you what made me go with Simpsons / Lord of the Rings the determining factor - price was the look of the pin mm honestly and in that situation between Simpsons and Lord of the Rings he was just stupid and wrong but that's grateful that's our buddy yes stupid wrong a lot of time did average but I know I hear what you're saying yeah did it's not the most visually stunning looking no pinball superb player I think it's way better than plastics great like I don't want the girls down there on the sling yeah wait or not Thrun on the swings are they no they're not sleeves are on the apron yes cuz the ball if they vault that and they redo some of that art and everything that pin has the potential to be one of the greatest of all it already is player one yeah but I'm just talking in general as a whole pin it could be well look at masterpiece was it the hobbit yes same intellectual property but that is a richness and like even them on the side of the cabinet on the hobbit dispute if you take what jjp did with the hobbit and you do that oh my god hands down there and I don't hey with the dots the DMD dot oh yeah you don't have to go back I would love shots from the film which is one of my favorite movies but agreed I'm gonna see your lunchtime aren't there let's get on we are the art people so true we love our Art Matters or shots and layout ok is this George Gomez I always make fun of the right ramp on Lord of the Rings yeah how's my time to grade it yeah I always hail the left ramp the slingshot rainbow ball orbits are not really orbitty because the left orbit hits Scoob you're hitting a the Golem shot is a weird yeah clunky clunk up kick yeah so were you I'm gonna frickin a I love it I think it is like hey I love Johnny pneumonic but I think that this like George's best thing ever people can talk about Deadpool ah yep those cool a I don't know it does not come close to the Lord of the Rings I don't think the right ramp allows it to be in the a category I'm gonna be I can take it and I'm being nice because I like a slingshot I like the slingshot I like the ring show with the magnet this is a slingshot never get old doesn't know it's fantastic well they either get stuck or flies off yeah fantastic I'm the Shire shot I like math of the Dead all right Greg rules and code now to me this thing is a masterpiece I can agree this is Stern's pinball's masterpiece yes that's Keith P. Johnson but I think it's his masterpiece Oh his masterpiece do you not I think so I do too because it's deep without being diluted yes yeah 100 person Oh what you're doing at all times but you gotta do in a certain order yes their strategies to get from point A to point B yes I really like it I'm at an A+ I bet a plus I think it's one of the greatest code sets rules and pinball I do too it's what makes this pinball machine I think it pulls you in mm-hmm and it does not let go Kiefer nice job but a you know next game the you codes got to be similar to this come on pull it back just a little bit I love what you do but but pull it back to this I like how the especially on the kodan rules get the mini wizard modes that are very satisfying almost to the point that people saying they're the greatest wizard modes and their mini wizard oh yeah I like that you have to get so many different things it's not just modes not just motor chasing you're trying to complete the modes Kiki for I love this that you make people complete modes in order to get a gift from the elf and then you have to get so many of those gifts from the elves you qualify your big boy yes and you're rewarded very well for those gifts too yes your extra balls you're getting two times scoring you're getting a lot of different things and agree so I can't think of anything better you know this it takes me back to some of the old Bally Williams where it's not just modes it's different tasks yeah but he can temporized it is that word contemporize sounds good to me contemporaries but huh he can tamper a dumb contemporize got him oh I love it I'm trying to think what else do we want to know about rules and code Multi balls are really fun too it is yeah and one of them you can defeat them you can defeat the multi balls not just jackpot the whole time which I like I like to get in for jackpot during the multi balls and he is set like the benchmark for like the wizard mode like Valinor to me it's what that's what people's and ultimate was it is that that's what people that's what people talk about you know what I'm saying because it's achievable but it's so difficult yeah and that's what makes it so fantastic you know like Simpsons is so almost unobtainable like you you've got to be less complicated element or gagner cent like there's so much to it and it's already a long game true so you I think that Valinor is that achievable thing but that has that difficult what I love about Kieffer code sets is that it's not he's not a one-trick pony he's got all different types of codes now what I would like to him to do I'd like to see him go back to this type of code that he did yeah where has some linear function but it's so well placed that it's not just a multiball heavy game you're multi balls in this are rewarded I mean there aren't and you have to do something in them yeah the multiball itself is not a reward it's well that's great but you got a hat here that jackpot one jackpot - you got to get up to that super jackpot yes I like I still think it's one of the best coder games ever it's an A+ and the the intensity that you have getting to destroy the ring oh yeah it is no and then they're back again how you go back to the different modes that you completed yeah the journey that you've been on thus far yeah and then just the little trolling that says you know great I'm glad you destroy the ring but next is valinor yeah you gotta get the Fellowship of the Ring it helped it tied into the movie very well like everything he the way he code it it's it you'd on that journey absolutely that little hoppy and I do like how each of the shots you have to qualify each of the shots for fellowship you have to get the three locks for return to the king you got to get an orange thak or that tree thing whatever the tower for you to two hours or vice versa but everything is different but you have to use the whole play field yeah Kiefer nice job all right let's go to toys and innovation the early stern they used to put a little bit more mechanics wise and toys gimmicks wise quite a bit more we're both a days very much so there's a lot of stuff going on in this game there is there is you got up kicks yes you got wire forms yeah you got magnet in the ring yes you've got the tower - yeah I don't know the name to do something just the ramps that like you said that kid that it the way that then bins and goes up its okay its oddly smooth and wicked like you just it almost it when you're watching it it almost feels like it defies physics yeah that's honestly it does every time you get it you're like how the hell did that happen it's really smooth because yeah you don't it just never seems like that you're gonna have that that velocity to get up it and you do every time every time are you making fun of my love to have a booger just laughing about you talking about this room and then we get love goes mess around we get the at least somebody does we got the figurines on the playfield yeah those are toys yeah I don't think they're needed per se no but there's adds a little bit to it they're still in there I even like the the back drop of the pin has a little spot that's hollowed out for an LED bulb flash and you see the little sour on oh all right yeah the Eye of Sauron I think it's cool I even like the lighting effects on this bore or no it's about the GI goes dead yeah okay no it does there's a lot of things after the Dead take it or leave it one person agrees I like the functionality other how you're trying to build the souls yeah it's that multiball but there's just not really do I want it tilting I agree like like a tea and Jones with the Caribbean yeah you very much so it's been that little extra added feature that would have gonna be in the vault help push it more I doubt it so both of us are toys and innovation ease music and call outs we're not gonna stop the hype train now nope music and call outs you're it an a - yeah you love it I do okay definitely you know I love the call out she's like is it the color that you love call out music music is good too the theming is really good it is very much is it's not I love that there and back again themed yeah it's a whimsical light whimsical you don't get that in pinball walk no I'm in an 8 plus because the callouts or phenomena it was the guy too did the same guy that the Indiana Jones the sidekick on Indiana counties Oh Bryce John Hurt yeah they're ice James Rees James Rees yeah they visit rece Davis I don't know we look like idiots Davis or say it's like a three-name thing he plays the dwarf and yeah and Lord of the Rings yeah so he does the call-outs and he even can mimic Gandalf as well yeah so the call-outs are tremendous when they're yelling jackpoet and then I love the movie a make it him down line you nervous nine eight seven I love that voice yeah because you wouldn't think it'd be an intimidating voice but it is really funny baby yeah Frodo call it counting down and get him counting down it's a nerve right man when you put a new set of speakers in there and you update that thing and you put the pin sound and the sound is phenomenal it blows them and out of the water like that's not part of this room no sound but just saying yeah if you pick one up like what's a whole system cause I think I saw somebody said they had six seven hundred bucks into redoing the sound systems in the movie yeah mmm and man you know me I don't want to part with money and I hate spending on upgrades but damn that guy okay and then so mutant call us I'm an a-plus your name - oh god oh boy I'm in lies three straight days here well let's not stop now let's talk about theme a plus yeah so you are no I'm not but I like films I like Lord of the Rings I like The Hobbit I like all that but I'm a big Lord of the Rings nerd like I've never read them I never elegy is up there with Star Wars for me I promise yeah absolutely I can't get I like The Hobbit to but there's nothing like these I can watch them over and over I end up falling asleep on top of or are no longer the movie the better for me it really made me on I know it like bacon through noon he's written an app theme is an A+ I want I want another Lord of the Rings give me a vault okay into ability a plus go what is this am i calling in hello no go ahead I give you a pin I'm gonna I'm gonna say I'm likely to vote yes somewhat likely I think this is a pin side pull this battery hole already confused picture older people doing this now what's that option okay all right I'll vote and then I edited that out you don't even know yeah it's like hey you know cz used to confusing people and leaders confused her and she's like what the hell that was really it was a confusing question it was just not what we're trying to do those lucky yeah well that was just for the fun of it why are they calling me live in Kentucky that's that's a whole point I'm trying to make enjoyability that call wasn't very enjoyable no D F for the collab in over the helm is awesome I give it an effort and awesome you're an A+ for enjoyable yeah I love it like I've been waiting to to review this pin just because next Indian if you had the beauty that is antigen it might surpass Indiana Jones for me on on on the pin itself on code and shots if you looked better if it looked better you but I think that it should I think it is one of the best shooting best coded it's that the best shot code pair of any pen almost ever made not a disagree Indiana Jones shoots a hell of a lot better than this but I'll this themes right up there with Indiana Jones for me Andy be this is this is a dream team if they didn't make Lord of the Rings I'd be like where's God Lord of the Rings where's my Frodo it's a little run needed thank you so I'm at an a yeah and I'm not an A+ because I enjoy it is a you have a great game on it you don't want to go back to it for a while this is true but the caveat I will say is if you're gonna have that timing type of game this is the game for that I agree this is the game for that long ball Tom yeah every other long ball time playing game pales in comparison to this I will agree so this gets the crown it's fine being that way I agree because it's the best one like I agree okay so that's why minute a instead of a plus it's still an adventure GPA was it doesn't affect it so boy oh boy AJ's everywhere yep dude you just gave this thing composite and a - and I'm one you don't give a lot of A's no I don't you don't give any C's no you just give beams ought to be so this says a lot for you it does I told you like it's it is one of the pins that I love the most to go shoot on a - three point seven seven I am at a b-plus three point five seven nine many times if you've owned this game and as much as you rave about it to me I cannot believe you're not higher I know I know I know the radiuses I know how it is because you gave everything look but instant you're always an innovation a musical arts a plus theme a plus enjoyability a it's it's the art yeah but and it's the cool over the the shots and like but both of your things my that right there your art it does hinder it it hurts I think that it's a good reflection of everything it doesn't make it I love looking at the the whole things like I said I I I'm gonna try to work on I might have to make exact I don't like making Zack do things as his plates already so fooled with what he does for the show I'm along Greedo maybe he can teach me the report card thing because I'd like to post on are like do stickies or do something in our Facebook so that all these are there because if you people will go back and they pull the the composites we're working on the web website to do that we are yeah we are okay sorry but in the meantime it's gonna take us a while to get that system running yeah but somewhere we're gonna have this so you can go back because you know lord knows they've shot them up on pin side and started bashed yeah what sort of say everybody gets upset about these composites but no you can't look at the composites go go through it like I would love you to list off our top 20 games reviewed based on gameplay or top 20 games based on rules oh that was nice pausing it like that like it is different yeah happy noise is that what you do at the climax of an event for you I like it I'm trying to figure out whether it's derogatory I'm not thinking it is because it could be more like a Mexican thing it's Mario hey you make anything bad but that was just a happy noise that just come out harpy noise is good on me I'm unbridled unbridled things that just happen I'm filtered more than anything he don't know what unbridled is I don't picture bride look it up and you unbridle her it's like a horse thing I think I might be speaking up my ass so the pros and cons this game the pros are it's one of the greatest pinball machines ever made go out and get one the cons they still hold a pretty hefty price yeah but in there coming up when you think of some of the pins that are setting in that price range even though new ones you're you won't for six thousand a nice one for six thousand it's sort of all worth it gotta get the color DMV for this got to yeah I can go to yes okay what are the any other cons this the art ugly yes I'll hurt is it like everything else man like dude I think it's a freaking superb page you can't really put a lot of brass on this because it's still ugly right now I saw so now you say that but I Lee has oh I need to talk about that say the Le I saw with the the etch the engraved armor or whatever where does that come from well that comes from now that brass thing it comes from back le okay that breast well no back Ely's is hand-painted the elvish letters that's what this looks like I thought but I thought that it was a great I know what you're talking about yeah but it's it that can make brass that can take that is nice but the le there is an le that we're just we're rating it for both but the le package comes with factory brass which tarnishes and looks like crap and it also comes with a mirrored bag glass yeah a gold edged mirror back that makes a little bit of a difference it does it's really pretty this those things are rare though and they they command too high of a price I think I agree for the Le I would rather just do up my own regular one I agree the other Colin if you guys find a heavily rounded one that can be loose that it really can be looking that's the thing about that pin it feels cheap when is there actually hard to find I think to find one in really good condition mostly routed there are what I've seen it's it a lot of those pins it's one of those pins that you come across on a lot of Marberry beep so in this one we're saying pay the premium price for a nice home use only one yeah you can afford it get it whatever they need to know about flippers a lot of great for coils a lot of people upgrade the flipper coils because it's a long playing game and as you're getting through the journey yeah to make those ramps sometimes your your coils and your flippers overheat yep and it's hard for them to have that strength a lot of people upgrade here's that here's a pro tip for you broke tip of the day ATM amateur tip a lot of people upgrade with the pinball life high or the bigger coil mm-hmm try to find the medium coils yes our medium coils are better than the high code because the high ones you're gonna break stuff they're flying around I had one with a clear coat of plate fill in those huh it's unplayable yeah they were flown around too much if you rebuild the flippers even rebuilding the flippers is gonna help a lot watch out with that white star board because they got they got diodes on those coils and then your transistors like to go out on those white star boards and get into a bit of a pickle there but rebuilding flippers bit of a holiday party in that should you know not reuse I'm a purse which in your coils I'll be careful okay be careful with that it's a life start why stars are rough do they make replacements now yeah alright well they need to know before they go check out us on Facebook check us out on obviously YouTube here subscribe to us check check out on twitch um come to Expo yes we're doing alright we're doing our seminar at Expo with Jeff from this weekend pinball we're gonna be hanging out all week too so come say hi to us yeah we'd love to put a put a game down with you guys yeah Greg might have a drink with you yeah maybe yeah I'm drinking to eat and the whole time Greg's gonna have a backpack cooler on him who are you joking does that allow you'll have it I'm gonna try we'll talk to Burt but it's gonna be new this is a revamped refreshed new management and we really really want to see you guys about to support these just Chicago it's the hometown of pinball I'm telling you what last year was born in Chicago if my wife can have fun at a pinball event pinheads can have fun at a penalty good point and it blew her out of the water she absolutely loved it she's actually looking forward to going to expose locations good you got food right around there if you want to go hotel close enough nice hotel very nice hotel yeah I enjoyed it and there's some nice parting there's after-hours I think that's what swayed the wife yeah some good partying after-hours very much so so check out that anything else check out our sponsors as well we love them we love them for a reason because we love their product so check them out too what do we do next week I am just to sort of plug a sponsor but not plug a sponsor okay there's a pin that I will I will be picking up okay that I do believe I'm going to pull the trigger on for some black nickel why you just something just screams that Inbal plating dot-com something just screams it for that pay like nickels price see and I know you guys like I've got too many friends mm-hmm that do dumb [ __ ] to their pins and it's starting to rub off on me so where I'm wanting to do more stuff on you're over the top I'm being pulled over to the dark side of doing things to my pins that I normally wouldn't here's what you do you buy a brand new pinball machine through Larry and Donna at flipping out pinball yes then after that you buy Marcos supplies to keep it going well and then you buy ping graphics side blades yeah and then you buy pinball plating yeah and all these people there's some pin stadium's on there too yeah see you go think of Evan [Music]

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: bd69800b-d3c5-402f-9d78-7fd4c464833a*