Pro vs. Premium on a few pins

[Smokezz]

I'm expanding the collection... and adding a few Stern machines. The spec sheets list the differences between the Pro and Premium... and to me, it doesn't seem like it's all that worthwhile to pay the extra $1500-2000 for the Premium. Do that, and I can have 9 machines in the games room instead of 8 right now.

The three I'm looking to get are:

Deadpool
Iron Maiden
Jurrasic Park

So... looking for opinions from those that have them or played BOTH. I've only played the Pro's on each of them. What are you thoughts?

 

[MrMikeman]

This question gets asked probably daily on Pinside. Unfortunately there's very few folks that actually have extensive play time on both versions of a game. The old "I played a few games on it in a bar" doesn't really count for much if they played the other version in a home environment.

If getting 9 games instead of 8 is what's important to you then forget about the premium. If getting a complete game as it was intended by the designer is important to you then forget about the pro!!!

Pro owners will tell you the premium isn't worth it. Prem owners will tell you that you will miss out by buying the pro. Same 'ol same 'ol.. If you buy a pro and really like it then you can always upgrade to a premium later.

I've only played the prem (LE) of JP and I believe it is worth the difference. Pro owners dismiss the trex as "just a moving head". It's interactive and affects gameplay - TREX will fling the ball anywhere on the pf. Introduces an aspect of randomness. The biggest impact though is the raptor pit. The ball lock/newton ball is great, as well as awesome in later parts of the games when you can lock balls in both the control room and raptor pit posts. In any version you get the shaker is key to immersion.

 

[roar]

I've owned the Premium/LE DP and IMDN and a Pro JP.

This all comes down to personal taste in my opinion but I'll share mine.

Deadpool - Haven't spent enough time on the Pro, but I really like the lift ramp and extra drop targets on the Prem/LE. The disco ball integration is superior to the mod on the Pro so those are all pluses for me that if I had to make the purchase again I'd take the Prem over the Pro when it comes to DP. I'll take a full set of drops over targets any day of the week... as a plus... I much prefer the cab artwork on the Premium than the Pro.

IMDN - I've put my two cents in on this on Pinside more than once and I stand by it... I like the game to keep moving, I don't like breaks in play while animations and things go off and move around... for this reason... I think if I had to do it again I'd go with the Pro. The sarcophagus is a super cool mech... I love it... and I loved it the first 3 or 4 times I locked a ball in it... now I just wish I could get on with the game every time the ball goes up that ramp... so I'd be fine without it. Same thing with the lift ramp... really cool... but after a while and playing a ton of games, I don't need it. I forget what they call the newton ball target, but whatever, it's neat, once it is dialled in it is fun to hit as opposed to a standard target, but at the end of the day I'd be fine with the Standard target. One negative on the pro for me is the Artwork, I really do prefer that of the Premium.

JP - I've played the premium for a bit and I think the part I missed the most on my pro turned out to be the raptor pen as opposed to the ball eating t-rex. For the same reason as IMDN above, I want the game to keep moving, as it is the Pro used to drive me nuts every time you'd start T-Rex multiple, no way to break the animation and just keep playing... it is an awesome mech, I love it, but I can live without it. The raptor pen on the other hand does give the game a different feel altogether, I'd miss that if I was a premium owner... if I had to make this purchase over again, I'd probably go premium just to put more miles on it and I gave the Pro a pretty good go... so change would be nice.

If you are trying to "justify" the additional cost of the premium it will always be challenging... so if you can spend some time on any of them do so, that is the only way to really tell, YMMV of course.

 

[MrMikeman]

JP - I've played the premium for a bit and I think the part I missed the most on my pro turned out to be the raptor pen as opposed to the ball eating t-rex. For the same reason as IMDN above, I want the game to keep moving, as it is the Pro used to drive me nuts every time you'd start T-Rex multiple, no way to break the animation and just keep playing... it is an awesome mech, I love it, but I can live without it. The raptor pen on the other hand does give the game a different feel altogether, I'd miss that if I was a premium owner... if I had to make this purchase over again, I'd probably go premium just to put more miles on it and I gave the Pro a pretty good go... so change would be nice.

Not sure about the Pro but on the Prem/LE you can skip the animations by hitting both flippers. I do it all the time. Keeps the flow going.

 

[roar]

Not sure about the Pro but on the Prem/LE you can skip the animations by hitting both flippers. I do it all the time. Keeps the flow going.

Mike, on the pro I owned the T-Rex MB start animation was not skipable through any process with the latest code I had on it at the time... trust me... I wailed on the flipper buttons enough to skip it as it is a very easy MB to start... and as fun as it was watching the first couple of times it is just tedious after that.

 

[MrMikeman]

Mike, on the pro I owned the T-Rex MB start animation was not skipable through any process with the latest code I had on it at the time... trust me... I wailed on the flipper buttons enough to skip it as it is a very easy MB to start... and as fun as it was watching the first couple of times it is just tedious after that.

Hmmm. Now I am second guessing myself. I can definitely skip the other TREX mode animations. No longer sure on the initial TREX MB though. On the prem the TREX doesn't have to catch it to start the first mode (MB). The ramp entry opto starts it (Pro doesn't have this opto). So a lot of times it starts accidentally when the ball rattles into the ramp or on a sloppy rattling shot to the trex. So the MB starts with 1 ball already in play while the animations run. That could be it. Will have to try it out tonight.

 

[MrMikeman]

Hmmm. Now I am second guessing myself. I can definitely skip the other TREX mode animations. No longer sure on the initial TREX MB though. On the prem the TREX doesn't have to catch it to start the first mode (MB). The ramp entry opto starts it (Pro doesn't have this opto). So a lot of times it starts accidentally when the ball rattles into the ramp or on a sloppy rattling shot to the trex. So the MB starts with 1 ball already in play while the animations run. That could be it. Will have to try it out tonight.

Just confirmed. Prem lets you skip TREX MB animation (after 3-5 seconds).

 

[roar]

On the Pro, when you make the ramp, the ball comes around to the magnet in the left in lane and sits there, for, I'd say a good 5 seconds so that sounds about right, but in game play it feels like an eternity... and since the pro owner's don't get the benefit of seeing the T-Rex eat the ball and throw it around, just let me skip the darn animation That was always my thought.

 

[BMHouze]

I personally went pro on Aerosmith because all the flying balls are already going to eventually damage something.
Plus the lack of the upper playfield makes cleaning that area easier.
Iron Maiden has the same basic layout as Elvis (IMO)
Go Deadpool premium.
Great side art, tons of cool mods.
Totally hot, hot, hot on the aftermarket.

 

[Chris Bardon]

I'll usually decide on a case by case basis, and it'll usually depend on whether the pro removals make a huge change in gameplay.

Maiden: I own a pro, but have played a few premium/LEs. In this case, I bought the pro because I thought the art package was better than the Premium, and that you weren't really missing that much. The scoop doesn't add a whole lot, and the orbs are basically the same as the standups. The only real major difference was the sarcophagus lock (which changes the ways you can play Mummy MB), and the fact that the lock shot on the ramp changes the required shots for a few things (locks and tomb treasures). Some nice to have stuff, sure, but I don't know if it was $2k better.

JP: I haven't gotten as much time on these (maybe 10 games on each), but I've played both the pro and LE in private collections. In this case, I think the premium is the way to go. The TRex is a really cool addition, even if it is just a scoop that moves. The raptor pen change is also pretty substantial.

Deadpool: This seemed like a perfectly serviceable pro to me, but I haven't actually had much time on a premium/LE.

 

[pinballjah]

Kind of on topic, I personally have downgraded from the AC/DC Premium and Kiss Limited to the Pro versions. Especially on the Kiss, don't see the added value. I do prefer the Metallica Premium, more for the better lighting.