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Avengers: Infinity Quest Pinball First Impressions & Gameplay (Stern Pinball, 2020)

Straight Down the Middle·video·31m 25s·analyzed·Sep 24, 2020
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Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.036

TL;DR

Avengers Infinity Quest hands-on first impressions: exceptional shooting game design with great art, but lacking character and story immersion.

Summary

Jon and Greg provide hands-on first impressions of Stern Pinball's Avengers: Infinity Quest (Premium), praising Keith Elwin's game design as his smoothest shooting title with excellent flow and combo potential, though noting the playfield feels back-heavy with sparse mid-field shots. They highlight Jeremy Packer's artwork as exceptional and George Gomez-like in execution, but criticize the game's lack of character in voice acting and call-outs compared to Deadpool, making it feel more tournament-focused than story-driven. The Pro Edition is positioned as surprisingly capable despite missing the Captain America ramp and subway feature of the Premium, and both hosts declare the game a "bona fide winner" despite reservations about asset integration.

Key Claims

  • Keith Elwin finally achieved smooth shooting gameplay on Avengers compared to his previous Iron Maiden and Jurassic Park titles which felt clunkier.

    high confidence · Jon and Greg playing the game and directly comparing to Elwin's prior work; hands-on testing

  • Jeremy Packer's Avengers playfield artwork is his best work to date, surpassing even Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles art.

    high confidence · Greg states directly: 'It is a fact that this play field art is better than Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles...I will agree. It's not even close' and Jon: 'I think this is probably my favorite play field art that Jeremy Packer's done'

  • The Avengers Premium Edition features a Captain America ramp and subway feature (visible ball staging via windows) not present on Pro Edition.

    high confidence · Hosts discuss Pro Edition missing these features; mention of Doctor Strange disc and subway visible in Premium

  • Avengers Infinity Quest plays as a points-focused tournament game rather than a story-driven journey despite its Marvel storyline.

    high confidence · Jon: 'I feel like this is a very tournament game. It's very a points-blowing-up kind of game. It's not really a journey at all' and 'doesn't feel like you're immersed in that story'

  • The game's voice acting and call-outs are lacking in character and dynamism compared to Deadpool.

    high confidence · Greg: 'I feel like that this pin sort of lacks that character' and Jon: 'Deadpool sounds are a lot better...The music...Deadpool's just a lot more spunk in life. Character.'

  • The playfield layout is sparse mid-field with most shots concentrated toward the back, creating empty space.

    high confidence · Jon: 'everything's in the back of the game...everything feels like it's towards the back...there so much dead space and everything so far away' and Greg: 'it felt bare felt bare'

  • Stern Pinball increased game pricing by $100 at the beginning of the year, with other titles catching up to Avengers pricing.

    high confidence · Greg: 'There was a price increase...Yes, of $100. $100 on the Avengers at the beginning of the year January all the other titles will catch up to Avengers with a hundred dollar price increase'

Notable Quotes

  • “I finally feel like he found his geometry. He's fallen into that John Borg, that Richie. I finally feel like he's a pinball designer, not just cool shots, good shots.”

    Greg@ 10:37 — Characterizes Keith Elwin's artistic growth and evolution as a designer with Avengers representing a maturation beyond his first two titles

  • “I love how orbits aren't always orbits...he does it here two or three different ways especially like the right orbit goes up the ramp but then the inner orbit right you're accustomed to a Keith Elwin inner orbits gonna keep on going”

    Jon@ 12:09 — Highlights specific innovative combo design that differs from traditional pinball architecture

  • “This is by far Elwin's smoothest shooting game, and it is riddled with combos.”

    Jon@ 11:50 — Key assessment of game's core playability strength

  • “It is a fact that this play field art is better than Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. And I thought for sure when I saw that that was going to be artwork of the year. I will agree. It's not even close.”

    Greg and Jon@ 21:55 — Establishes Avengers art as potentially artwork of the year, superseding prior expectations about TMNT

  • “Deadpool becomes a better game...And I think that's where Sam Stern has really start pulling their games together. They have start making more well-rounded packages.”

    Jon@ 26:18 — Positions Avengers in context of Stern's overall quality trajectory and identifies character/asset package as differentiator

  • “This is a bona fide winner. I'm finally happy that I have a Keith Elwin game that I'm stoked to get the James Camerons Avatar (Limited Edition), and I don't see it going anywhere for a long time.”

Entities

Keith ElwinpersonJeremy PackerpersonJon HeypersonGregpersonAvengers: Infinity QuestgameStern PinballcompanyFlip N Out Pinballcompany

Signals

  • ~

    sentiment_shift: Hosts suggest cautious/fence-sitting community members should not be disappointed by game; direct messaging to address pre-release skepticism

    medium · Greg: 'For any of you guys that were kind of excited about it, then went onto the fence, I don't think you're going to be disappointed. Not at all.'

  • ?

    design_philosophy: Avengers Infinity Quest designed as points-focused tournament game rather than story-driven journey; despite having Marvel storyline, game lacks immersive narrative elements

    high · Jon: 'I feel like this is a very tournament game. It's very a points-blowing-up kind of game. It's not really a journey at all...it's not...It doesn't feel like you're immersed in that story'

  • ?

    design_philosophy: Keith Elwin's design approach shifted toward smoother, more refined shooting mechanics reminiscent of John Borg and Richie Knapp rather than maintaining his characteristic clunkiness and packed playfield style from Iron Maiden and Jurassic Park

    high · Jon: 'I don't want him getting away from that and going and moving into where he feels like other designers...I want to see his uniqueness continue' and Greg: 'This feels more like a George Gomez than anything to me...It doesn't even feel like a Keith Elwin'

  • ?

    licensing_signal: Marvel IP licensing constraints appear to limit voice actor participation and animation asset integration; hosts note inability to get original film cast but acknowledge licensing restrictions on AAA actor availability

    medium · Jon: 'You can't get Robert Downey Jr. Chris Pratt. Together for a movie was phenomenal. You can't get that' and discussion of Marvel providing voice actors rather than original film footage

  • $

Transcript

youtube_groq_whisper · $0.094

0:00
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0:28
Let's kick this shit. hey what's going on everybody straight down the middle of pinball show we got greg back he's back yeah how's everybody doing what are we doing today greg these people haven't seen you in while I know sorry hi you don't know how your life's going yeah it's going good this work kids life and the way of pinball last night I unboxed one of the first in the world stern pinball Avengers Pro infinity quest I'm gonna snap you get you were you sad when you were watching that film and like did you Did you feel that when he did the half of them? Yeah, it was kind of devastating. I was fine with it until Quill went down. So brutal. Spoiler alert. Once Quill went down, I was done. It was just brutal. I was done. So I unboxed that last night at like 1 in the morning so that you could play it today. Thank you. And then I put a couple games on it. And then today we've put a lot of games on it. Yes. So we have not been able to do a first impressions yet of the Avengers. No. Usually we do it just looking at the promo videos. But now we've got a hands-on, one of the first people in the world to have a hands-on setup and a hands-on experience with this thing. But first, before we do that, we've got a little present.
2:00
You remember a present? You're staring at Avengers. I'm still thinking about it. I'm going through my head of what I want to say and what I'm thinking about it. You've got it right there for reference. This is from Scott Foreman, good friend of Straight Down the Middle and Greg and I. We don't know what it is, but he sent us a gift. I guess Zach was like oh you know I got this gift that I forgot about I was like oh what is it oh yeah I don't know so he did give me some really cool Beatles stuff oh you know what I don't want to get excited I thought I knew what it was for a minute but I didn't get too excited I think you know what I think he was wanting to think he's wanting to give this away Oh something I don't think this is for us I think it's giveaway okay this is more oh there's lots of O's Wow dude we're not giving all this away oh oh very cool oh oh I remember you talking about this so this is all Brian Allen artwork one of our favorite artists ever oh I want this one you want that one it's more arcadey okay go that one okay I'm gonna show you guys this check that out I wonder I think you could still buy that from Brian Allen's oh look at that you got the mushroom and then down here you got Pacman oh that is really nice this one is this tape or is this just on a son by Brian yeah 59 of 100 and he actually signed that's freaking sweet and gold so this is the Midwest gaming classic commemorative artwork piece oh that is nice man oh look it's got robotnik on there I think that centipede a version of Bowser yeah rampage dude this is your arcade one that's pretty damn awesome you hang them both up in your place oh look at all the iconic figures in there reworked oh robotniks awesome I know robotic is good oh that is sick and then this is the I don't know if this limited edition but it's the Bally Williams classics all done I don't know how well it's gonna show in here but all done by Brian Allen you tell me if I'm on the screen on him no I actually think that that is one of my like more favorite pieces of his like with everybody Rudy got you have a magic you got fish tails he got yeah attack from Mars pin bot Twilight Zone cactus Canyon monster bash yeah that's cool whirlwind circus Voltaire yeah big foot yeah and then cactus cam 8-ball deluxe it's the way that he pees some of the stuff together that's freaking amazing like the eight ball coming out of Rudy's mouth. And just like the cloud blowing the wind. And he did sign it. All right, so we got to figure out. Stay tuned for another future video to see if we give this away or if it gets hung up at our place. We might be greedy for once. Yeah, we might. These are kind of cool.

  • Premium Edition sales are outselling Pro Edition at a 5-to-1 ratio at Flip N Out Pinball.

    high confidence · Jon: 'Premium Editions are selling five to one...to Stern AC/DC (Pro Vault Edition) for us at flipping out'

  • Keith Elwin is already working on his fourth game while Avengers is his third release.

    high confidence · Greg: 'Keith Elwin, this is his third game, y'all. He's already on his fourth in the can'

  • Limited/Elite Edition machines were set to release at end of September, with Pro Edition in early October and Premium Edition mid-to-late October.

    high confidence · Greg: 'Limited Edition...machines or Elite editions are going to be coming out next here very soon at the end of September. And then at the beginning of October, you'll get some more Pro Edition as well as mid-late October for Premium Edition'

    • Jon@ 27:30 — Strong closing endorsement declaring Avengers a keeper title for his collection

  • “I don't think the stream and stuff did it justice. So I was actually extremely confused. I was pleasantly surprised coming into it and playing it.”

    Greg@ 28:42 — Indicates promotional videos understated the game's quality in person

  • “You can't get Robert Downey Jr. Chris Pratt. Together for a movie was phenomenal. You can't get that.”

    Jon@ 28:23 — Acknowledges licensing constraints as explanation for static voice acting despite all being AAA actors

  • “There's not a lot going on. This is out of the box version .90. We have a little bit away. It's very far, but we still get...And usually that's where they start cleaning up and making things more dynamic.”

    Jon@ 18:41 — Notes animation quality can improve in future code updates, suggesting reserve judgment pending patches

  • “I would without a doubt. I just prefer Tee'd Off have more time. Where I'm at right now, this over Deadpool all day long.”

    Greg@ 26:01 — Positions Avengers above Deadpool in personal preference hierarchy despite both being strong games

    • John Borg
    person
    George Gomezperson
    Zach Sharpeperson
    Mat Scott Foremanperson
    Brian Harry Allenperson
    Deadpoolgame
    Iron Maidengame
    Jurassic Parkgame
    Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtlesgame
    Stranger Thingsgame
    Medsinyl Modscompany
    Judge Dreddgame
    X-Filesgame
    AC/DCgame
    Circus Voltairegame
    Pin Stadium Lightsproduct
    Marvelcompany
    Richie Knappperson
    Straight Down the Middleorganization

    market_signal: Avengers Premium Edition outselling Pro Edition at 5-to-1 ratio at major distributor Flip N Out Pinball; strong commercial demand despite premium pricing

    high · Jon: 'Premium Editions are selling five to one...to Stern AC/DC (Pro Vault Edition) for us at flipping out' and 'This thing has been selling nuts for Sam Stern Pinball'

  • ?

    personnel_signal: Keith Elwin already working on fourth game while Avengers is only his third major Stern release; rapid progression indicating strong designer productivity and demand

    high · Greg: 'Keith Elwin, this is his third game, y'all. He's already on his fourth in the can'

  • $

    market_signal: Stern Pinball implemented $100 price increase across all models at beginning of year, with all titles converging toward Avengers pricing tier

    high · Greg: 'There was a price increase...Yes, of $100. $100 on the Avengers at the beginning of the year January all the other titles will catch up to Avengers with a hundred dollar price increase'

  • ?

    announcement: Production timeline established: Limited/Elite Edition late September, Pro Edition early October, Premium Edition mid-to-late October; indicates steady supply chain progression

    high · Greg: 'Limited Edition...machines or Elite editions are going to be coming out next here very soon at the end of September. And then at the beginning of October, you'll get some more Pro Edition as well as mid-late October for Premium Edition'

  • ?

    product_strategy: Pro Edition positioned as surprisingly capable alternative despite missing Premium's Captain America ramp and subway feature; visible windows and lighting effects provide adequate substitute experience

    high · Jon: 'I didn't think you would have any of that in the Stern AC/DC (Pro Vault Edition), but you do, Greg. You still have windows in there...lighting effects. So that was a happy surprise' and Greg: 'if if you only have funds for a Stern AC/DC (Pro Vault Edition) do not feel bad at all'

  • ?

    product_concern: Voice acting and call-outs lack character and dynamism; missing the personality and colorful expression found in other titles like Deadpool; animations appear static with limited dynamic movement

    high · Greg: 'I feel like that this pin sort of lacks that character' and Jon: 'Deadpool sounds are a lot better...The music...Deadpool's just a lot more spunk in life. Character.' and 'Some people were saying that they're beautiful, but they are pretty static. Yes. There's not a lot going on.'

  • ?

    product_concern: Avengers playfield layout criticized as sparse with excessive dead space mid-field and shot concentration toward back of machine; perceived as bare compared to prior Stern games like Iron Maiden and Jurassic Park

    high · Jon: 'everything feels like it's towards the back...there so much dead space' and Greg: 'it felt bare felt bare when i just first saw it...there's that very open middle thing most of the shots are towards the back'

  • ~

    sentiment_shift: Hosts experienced dramatic positive sentiment shift from promotional materials to hands-on experience; game exceeded expectations set by streaming/video coverage

    high · Greg: 'I don't think the stream and stuff did it justice. So I was actually extremely confused. I was pleasantly surprised coming into it and playing it' and Jon's progression from 'felt bare' initial impression to 'bona fide winner' after gameplay

    • 5:15
    We've given away some really good shit. Scott ended up giving me the Beatles. I'll maybe cut to a picture. But a Beatles cup holder and a Beatles shooter rod. So I'm gonna let you you can have those two and then we'll figure out what to do with the translate We got some really fun and exciting stuff coming up for the rest of the year really fun and exciting We've also a shout out to medicinal mods who created some Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles mods. Yes for us We're gonna see a video on that very soon We're gonna see some upcoming games very a lot of a lot of cool stuff Let's get into the nitty-gritty of stern pinballs Avengers Infinity Quest
    5:56
    you've seen this game the first thing you thought when you walked into my door and you the way you're like he's late okay but the first thing you thought when you seen this game okay this is the pro so we're not getting the the the captain america ramp we're not getting the subway we're not getting i'm gonna give you the rundown so i walked in this is a longer version of what it should be so I walked in because there's a couple games that come to buy from Flippin' Out today I'm coming home with a really freaking spectacular Judge Dredd and there was a badass X-Files here that I probably shouldn't say that because I haven't made up my mind yet so I went around I played that, I was looking for the X-Files and I passed up Avengers and then I was like oh shit there's Avengers I turn around at it first looks like a stern very beautiful zombie yeti's artwork very beautiful but i'll tell you to be honest this is first impressions it felt bare felt bare when i just first saw it i was like you're looking at play field or art play field on the side no no no artwork artwork's good it's solid it's very solid um and so when i saw the the play field i was like oh this looks very bare it's that very open middle thing most of the shots are towards the back so it took me a minute That one's not really like that. Usually you get yeah play field shots on that one game Yeah, and you know even I mean honestly, you know dress at Park was was packed full obviously and then you take you know Iron Maiden, it still felt pretty full with everything. So this just it took me back a little bit, you know It reminded me of you know, something maybe like Star Wars or something this and okay
    7:42
    stranger things You got a big bank in the middle maybe but the banks in the middle So it just there so much dead space and everything so far away So that kind of took me by surprise at first That was the very first initial impression stepping up to the pin Okay. What was you when you pulled it out of the box? When I pulled it out of the box, this is the very few times do I pull out my phone to take pictures of games. That's a really good indicator for me. I couldn't put this whole game together without taking pictures. so that tells me that that artwork is phenomenal on the side of the cabinet that's what really stuck out to me it was just glaring beautiful handcrafted very colorful artwork so it stopped me and i'm usually you know me i'm opening them up i open them blindfold i don't care too much but this one i was like holy shit yeah like this one this game really really looks nice um and then i thought the same thing whenever i saw it we get the playfield art from zombie Yeti that I knew was going to be great. We'll talk about that here in a minute. But I thought, everything's in the back of the game. Yeah. On the streams and the promos, it didn't really feel that way. No, not at all. But everything feels like it's towards the back. I wonder if I'm going to like that because we're so accustomed to Keith Elwin's third flipper right in the middle of the play field. He gives you a side ramp. You get a lot of stuff throughout the whole game, but this is more towards the back. Now, that being said, I don't know if the Premium LE will feel different than that because it's got the extra stuff or not um that one ramp is is closer yeah well it's right where the spinner's exactly it comes up and it goes around so maybe that will feel your spinning disc comes up and you hit it like it will eat up a lot more of that that real estate you know towards the back the biggest surprise for me greg and we won't go into categories we'll just shoot off the hip here the biggest surprise for me was playing the game now i've told you and i've told you guys before if you listen to the podcast or watch these shows, that the first two Keith Elwin games, Iron Maiden came out, right? Was I bandwagon? No. I was like, the theme sucks. It's a great game. I get it, but it doesn't click. I don't own it currently. Jurassic Park came out. I said, this is your baby. This is going to be phenomenal. The artwork didn't click as much for me. It felt good. The rules were good, but it didn't pull me in. so I thought Keith Elwin was going to do the same thing on the third title I was fucking wrong this thing, I love love the way this thing shoots I love the way this thing shoots better than the other two Keith Elwin games I would have never guessed that in a million years well maybe I would have, it looked good I agree with you on it when I flipped it, it's probably Elwin finally, I feel like not that there was anything wrong, obviously his other games are fantastic, I still want another Iron Maiden, honestly. I do too. Yeah, but I almost feel like he found his geometry. He's fallen into that Borg, that Richie. I finally feel like he's a pinball designer, not just cool shots, good shots. I feel like he honed, because this game, and maybe it was just because he was going for something totally different with this game than his other ones, but this one has the flow. It has the good shots. And he finally has a third flipper shot that shoots smooth. there is really no clunk in this no it always felt that i i think you agree with me i love gomez but gomez games are inherently clunky they they're the materials yeah use a lot of metal so you get a lot of tinks and a lot of the shots yeah it's not necessarily smooth you get a lot of i don't know and that's the way all elwyn's games have felt and george gomez you get a lot of uh character in the shots but yes when you hit them they are bullets yes they're they're like a severed knife Yeah, and it's not that they're tight. It's just getting them perfect to get a good smooth shot. Borg uses a lot of plastics. You get a lot more traditional fan kind of stuff, so you get a smoother feeling. You don't get as much chatter, if you will. Yeah, and I think this is by far Elwyn's smoothest shooting game, and it is riddled with combos. Oh, my. Riddled with combos. I love how orbits aren't always orbits. I love that on games. dialed in right when you hit the orbit it goes into a ramp stranger things left orbit to the I'm a sucker for that and he does it here two or three different ways especially like the the right orbit goes up the ramp but then the inner orbit right you're accustomed to a Keith L when inner orbits gonna keep on going yes you can continue it yes but it's gonna go up a ramp as well yes then that banana ramp yeah how it's shaped like that so you can hit it from all three flippers The fact that you can hit that shot just looking at it, that you can hit that off of that third flipper, is just so amazing when you look at it. So, yeah, that's sick. This is the part, though, that people are going to say, this guy's a dealer right there. He's a dealer. He's trying to sell you a game. Why? That's just what they're going to say.
    12:49
    I have no need. This game is selling. Whatever. It's delayed, actually. I feel bad when people are ordering because it's delayed on the premiums pros reveal. but um i feel like you have more room on this one keep that one's first two games i felt a little i like them but it felt a little cramped you get a multi-ball going you get the third and fourth flipper getting in the way it feels a little cramped on this one i feel like i have room to breathe room to move around a lot that third flipper doesn't feel like your traditional third flipper it feels like an extension of your regular flipper yes i i agree it oh feels so damn good the thing i mean there's just so many aspects that you can go into with this oh first of all we got to mention the the tower shot the shot because that no matter how many times you hit that with the magnet on top feels amazing it is stellar and that damn thing comes down off of there so quick and they have the modes integrated yes like that one hawkeye mode you get it up there the first time it's going to give you a countdown but if you succeed in hitting the orbit or the ramp the next time you get up there it's going to do it random yeah you got to be ready for it yes it's it's a it it's it's a cool shot man it's innovative it's actually it is really neat it's not just a gimmick it is just really neat and it adds a lot to the game it stops yeah it makes you pay attention. The pulse comes up. I like that staging. I do too. It has a lot of aspects. Just don't... The drawback that I see so far and I'll have to open it up because the first couple games I put on there, obviously it was just like, I don't really know what I'm doing. But it does. I will say that it does and I'm never mad at this. I've never really... It sounds like you're about to be getting a little shitty about it. The few that defends it, I feel. But it does. It's kind of... It's another stern. It's that another feeling of that stern. And I feel like... Where does that come from?
    14:49
    Like when you're playing, what are you like, this is very typical stern. This is very, I'm feeling this on a lot of people. You know, I don't know. That's why I'm always hesitant to express it in that aspect. Art, materials, code, sound, animation. That's what I'm saying. I think it's multifaceted. It's like psychology. It's like you're trying to decipher what screwed somebody up. Wasn't their childhood. Was it really their dad? It wasn't their dad. What portion of it really did it? I don't know because I think we all love the snappy flippers. We love the quickness. We love the power of a stern. I do think the call-outs are lacking for some reason. I just don't know. That's your poor boy, Jerry. It's nothing. It's Jerry. Jerry, look at him.
    15:34
    I sure that Jerry didn pick the damn voice actors Jerry if he did I apologize I love you Marvel they provided the the actors see and it weird to me because there just there a Ken Hale to the music there's not a lot of dynamic Ness in their voices you told me when you were playing it feels similar to Deadpool the sights and sounds yeah it does well I think Deadpool sounds are a lot better okay the call-outs everything are a lot better. The music. Well, the music is good in this, though. The music is really good in this. The music keeps you in train. But Deadpool's just a lot more spunk in life. Character. Character. We were talking about it. I feel like that this pen sort of lacks that character. And I don't know if it is the cause. I don't know what it is. You want a character to stand out. Somebody's going to be goofy. Somebody's going to be super evil. You've got to need, kind of like Krang on TMNT. He's there for comic effect, but also to ridicule. Thanos is pretty good in this. Obviously, he's going to separate himself from the other people. He could be meaner. He could. I need a little more originality. When you look at just normal actors in a movie, what really makes that actor stand out? Sometimes it's not necessarily that they're the best actor. It's components of their look or their sound. Like The Rock. Who the hell ever said The Rock... He's actually a pretty good actor now. But you go back, he's not. But he's very dynamic the way he expresses himself the way his voice colorful yeah even mark walberg like his unique weird voice roland josh brolin yeah with the thanos yes film yes like everyone has robert downey jr the way that he he talks like that's what makes an actor well that's what makes a triple a actor versus a voice over actor too but you should be able to as actors you know you should be able to put your own spin and really whether it's a comic book or not this is based on more the comic book series than the film yeah it just falls a little flat i think i can i know where you're coming from actually i know what you i need something somebody to stand out in this game yes because i think that that adds to it again i've harped on on spider-man vault that was the thing is it just felt like a flat good hello yes yay and i almost feel like that that's what this falls into it's already better than that but oh yeah yeah definitely um i know what you're talking about i can't disagree with that actually what about the animation oh animations are good
    18:11
    welcome i offer to free you from existence let's get these stones somewhere safe I like them. Some people were saying that they're beautiful, but they are pretty static. Yes. There's not a lot going on. This is out of the box version .90. We got a little bit away. It's very far, but we still get... And usually that's where they start cleaning up and making things more dynamic. So we'll see what that does. But I think that criticism, I can see it. And that kind of puts me into another aspect of this game from when I first saw the stream and I was looking at it. And I don't play a lot of tournaments, so I could be speaking out of line on this. But I feel like this is a very tournament game.
    19:08
    It's very a points-blowing-up kind of game. It's not really a journey at all. And I know there's a lot of games that it's not really meant to be a journey-based game. But it's not really a story-line game. Yeah, the modes you're setting up more battles, kind of like Deadpool again. You're trying to get the different stones to stop the Black Order from returning the stones to Thanos. So you're trying to battle those kids. But it doesn't feel like, even though you have that backstory, it's not... Yeah, it doesn't feel... It doesn't feel like you're immersed in that story or that you're doing anything with it. And I think that those animations and stuff lend to that, of where it's just very, hey, you know what? This is about playing this game. It's about getting the points. It's about running through it. It's not really about the story. Animations look good, but it feels like it's pulled right from the comic book. Whoever's doing the animations on here, it might have been from Marvel. Those might have been Marvel assets, but they look damn good. I like them better than the 3D renderings of other games, Jurassic Park, TMNT. I like that 2D look better if you're not going to have the film assets. other than that the artwork man I can't look at you know what's fantastic and I've learned to appreciate and actually really love it with Jeremy's stuff grown to love me it's always an inquiring taste not an inquired inquiring chrome it, brass it, black nickel it candy chrome it, powder coat it the possibilities are endless
    20:45
    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 cometpinball.com. Check out Pin Graphics for the latest and greatest in pinball enhancements, power blades, blade skins, pin blades, and even more. Visit pin graphics.com now to see what's available for your pinball machine. This isn't as like, I always feel that, that, that Jeremy, like, you know, with something like Deadpool and everything, he, he feels, it fills every space with everything. I feel like he did a very good job of coming back from that, doing that really beautiful centerpiece and then allowing, you know, it's not, it's not too busy. No. On this at all. This is, I'm trying to think. And like I said, it's nothing against, cause dude, Deadpool has become one of my favorite art packages ever on a pinball machine. So good. TMNT is fantastic. Oh. But this was a nice relief and a little step back from what his normal. I'm going to tell you this right now. It is a fact that this play field art is better than Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. And I thought for sure when I saw that that was going to be artwork of the year. I will agree. It's not even close. The artwork on this, great. Look in the mid play field. I know. Usually when people use dark colors like blues, that thing looks like deep space. Yes. Oh. I do like it. It's gorgeous. I think this is probably my favorite play field art that Don Bietti's done. It's nice. It's so, so good. And it's not as vibrant in person. I was talking to Zach like that when we first saw the high res. I mean, it's vibrant, but it's not in your face. Like this? Yeah, always.
    22:36
    It's the last time you'll show up here. other things I want to cover how do you feel about the spinner on the pro because you're not getting that ramp oh I thought that felt good I like it it does feel good that worried me I would obviously rather have a ramp but the spinner feels good it's a good clean shot too it is it feeds perfectly right back to your right flipper those are the things I want the listener the viewer to hear because they're trying to figure out am I going to go pro because right now sales wise premiums are selling five to one yeah to pros for us at flipping out so i was very surprised by how well-rounded the pro is yeah if if you only have funds for a pro do not feel bad at all i would own this pro yeah and i a snooty little le buyer yeah i would own this pro without a doubt yeah because i was very on the fence with that seeing what you were missing with that ramp and people talked about talked about the subway On the Premium LE for those of you who don know the Doctor Strange disc comes up Like Circus Voltaire you hit it into a subway and that subway is visible So you can see the ball being staged. I didn't think you would have any of that in the Pro, but you do, Greg. You still have windows in there. It's just more shallow. You're not locking your balls. There's lighting effects. So that was a happy surprise whenever I opened that up. I'm ready to put a shaker motor on it. I think overall first impression, it's a solid, it's a solid game. It's fucking good. I can tell it's going to be a good game, man. Honestly, I'm, I'm excited to put some more plays on it. Like I'm ready for a review. Like I'm ready. I'm just excited because I finally clicked with Keith Elwin game. I finally, I know, but I finally did where out of the box, I'm like, this is what I'm talking about. This is what I like to shoot. Like the difficulty of that tower shot. I thought that thing was going to be easy. It's not. I love hard shots. Now, I will say this, one more thing. So this is one thing about Elwin, though, going off of that, is I don't really know if I want him to continue this trend. Like, his first two games, there was an aspect to them, like what we talked about, with a little bit of that clunkiness, with the packed full shots. Iron Maiden and Jurassic Park felt, you could see the pedigree there. Yes, and I don't want him getting away from that and going and moving into where he feels like other designers. because, and even if he doesn't get as much work, I know he doesn't want to hear that, and there's another designer thrown in or something to do a smooth game. Like, I just, I want to see his uniqueness continue. Okay. And not go to something that feels more like a Borger or Richie or something. You know what I'm saying? This doesn't feel like any of that. No, I want him, because I always still felt Gomez stayed true through all the years that Gomez was in. This feels more like a Gomez than anything to me. Yeah, because Gomez has a little more flow with his stuff, a lot of his stuff. I mean, look at Johnny and look at a lot of his games that he's played. But yeah. This doesn't feel anything like Maiden or Jurassic Park. No, it doesn't. It doesn't even feel like a Keith Elwin. To me, it still shoots.
    25:38
    There's a little bit more smoothness, but it shoots a lot like Deadpool. I think that this would have to replace Deadpool. It would be the only way I'd get rid of Deadpool. I don't know if I would want both of these. Yeah, I don't know if I'd want both. Could you imagine them as zombie yeti sitting beside each other? Oh, I'm not saying that. I'm talking about clear ability. I know.
    25:55
    I don't know if they play too similar to me. I would without a doubt. I just got to have more time. That's why it's first impressions. Without a doubt. You got to have more time. Where I'm at right now, this over Deadpool all day long. I love Deadpool. I know people love Deadpool. Because Deadpool's just fun. It's a thing. It's a thing to keep doing stuff. Listen, I'm not saying that Deadpool necessarily shoots better than this. That's what I'm saying. I'm not saying it does. Deadpool is a full package with the call-outs, with everything. Yes, yes, yes. Deadpool becomes a better game. And I think that's where Stern has got to really start pulling their games together. They have got to start making more well-rounded packages.
    26:29
    I feel like Jurassic Park is phenomenal as it is. Missed out on the art. Fuck! That happened. Stranger Things. As much as I love Stranger Things, I still felt like there needed to be a little more assets. Things needed to be tied in a little more at first. I haven't got to put a lot on the new code. But they've just been lacking a few minor little Jurassic Park with the call-outs. Just terrible. Like, give me it all. You want your assets. That's what I want, too. I know you say you don't care about them, but... I do. When I updated, what was that, Deltz or whoever's code on Jurassic Park where you get video and audio from the film... It made a world of difference. It does. I want to trade out my backlash. I want it to be more cohesive now with those film shows. Well, we'll talk about that. And I think Avengers, you might see a hobbyist jump in here. Yeah. That's got to be safe for a review because I've got a lot to say about getting into that shit. All right, so first impressions for me. This is a bona fide winner. I'm finally happy that I have a Keith Elwin game that I'm stoked to get the LE, and I don't see it going anywhere for a long time. The downsides, it's my favorite shooting probably, Keith Elwin. Favorite play field art by Zombie Yeti that he has done yet. I haven't seen the premium la cabinet, but the pro cabinet stands out This is just so much fun to shoot and it's still testing still hard to shoot. This isn't a easy pen But it's very approachable The downsides for me the spinning disc. I wouldn't mind if that's fun Easier yeah, if it was on a different I caught it off that third flipper one time and it was awesome Yes, but where the post it was more down and I was able to hit it I would like to see it crank out a little more too. Yeah, so maybe that The assets package, you guys know me. I'd rather have the film. I don't care. I would just rather have the film. But I understand they're all AAA actors. You can't get Robert Downey Jr.
    28:26
    Chris Pratt. To come together for a movie was phenomenal. You can't get that. So that's my first impressions.
    28:32
    I'm cheesing on this one. My first impression wrap-up, it's better than what I thought it would be. I agree. I don't think the stream and stuff did it justice. So I was actually Extremely confusing I was pleasantly surprised coming into it and playing it Coach still a little bit I've got to figure out what's going on But again, first impressions You've got to get in there So for any of you guys that were kind of excited about it Then went onto the fence I don't think you're going to be disappointed Not at all It's not that at all This thing has been selling nuts for Stern Pinball Pleasantly surprised Nuts. And Keith Ellens, this is his third game, y'all. He's already got his fourth in the can. Yep.
    29:16
    So go to your favorite dealer to play this or on location if your area is open and willing. So go find a pro, play that. I think Ellie's are going to be coming out next here very soon at the end of September. And then at the beginning of October, you'll get some more pros as well as mid-late October for premiums. And there was a price increase, Greg. Yes, of $100. $100 on the Avengers at the beginning of the year January all the other titles will catch up to Avengers with a hundred dollar price increase What else do people need to know? They should follow and subscribe. Yeah, oh, yes some big stuff coming. That's some really
    29:57
    Probably a few more first impressions some just magical stuff meds magical all right uh chuck work streaming for us carrie hardy i think it's still doing video he's always redoing cabinets here somewhere oh some of the controversy of carrie hardy's videos i'm glad on this channel to be quite honest with you love you carrie uh and then i don't know what we're doing i'm just surrounded by controversy i'm just over here just living my simple life You hit it off with a bumper, now you're straight down the middle again. Middle again. You had a fling with a slingshot, you're rolling out the alley in a jay.
    30:37
    I tried to cradle you with my... You're going to say gauntlet. Infinity quest. I always think gauntlet, too. I do. That's the gauntlet. The galore is a gauntlet.
    30:46
    What are you doing there, Fester? Call me Thanos. We're back. Call me Anos. that made me tear up a little bit good thing your hands are small that would be hurting alright hot damn we're back
    31:19
    but I can hardly keep up you guys are making my head spin you