Guns ‘n Roses CE

My wife is a huge GnR fan. When I told her that JJP was re-making the game that Data East had done years ago, she said “get one”, followed by “the best one they have”. Little did I know that the CE version I was chasing would sell out (500 units) in an hour. JJP sold over $6MM worth of CE games in 60 minutes. A hundred thousand a minute isn’t bad.

I emailed my favorite distributor and told him what I wanted. He told me how all of this would go down. I let him know I understood the program and joined the ranks of hopefuls as the clock ticked toward release day.

On that day, I was between meetings (thankfully) when at 1pm EST the floodgates opened. I was lucky. Not because I got a CE, but because my wife told me to get one. I did NOT have to wait to see gameplay. I simply had to buy it. So I did. about 40 seconds after it went on sale.

Fast forward a few months later and my distro said our game would be shipping in the first batch of CE’s. I received my tracking number from JJP soon afterward and then a notice that it had arrived at the shippers.

I checked Pinside. Nope, no one had received theirs yet and no one had opened one yet. Several folks had received shipping and tracking info but no game in hand. It was time to spring into action. I called the shipper (Estes) and arranged a pickup at their terminal. It’s not far away. I got there early, waited 20 mins for them to get it off a trailer and (in the sleet and rain) loaded it into my pickup to get it home. My game was the first in the nation to be posted as “received” on Pinside – mission accomplished. GnR CE #065 and serial #087530013.

Observations:

It’s hard to review a game that has no peer in pinball today. From the second you plunge the first ball, you are aware that this game in unique and special. When a song starts, you lose all sense of the game of “pinball” you knew and are transported directly to a Guns ‘n Roses concert.

The first time I had the chance to play the song “Live and Let Die”, I cried … yup, got goosebumps and teary eyed right there in middle of the game. Concert goers and music lovers know what I’m talking about. I’m reminded of the Rush concert in Rio de Jeneiro when (at the very beginning of the DVD) the band hits the opening power cords, Neil Peart’s drums explode with sound and they begin to tear into “Tom Sawyer” … the camera pans to the 40,000+ fans and you’ll see guys in the front row shedding tears of joy – THAT’S what I’m talking about. As I type this the memory of that moment is fresh and I “feel” it again. Let me tell you something unequivocally. I’ve never reviewed another pinball game and then so desperately felt that I needed to tell you how it made me feel. No other pinball machine has brought me to tears. I doubt that another every will.

What’s one thing I really enjoy about the game? Well, I play the game to get to hear a song. But get this, I want to hear a song from a band that for most of my life, I had no compelling interest in. Don’t get me wrong I ENJOY the music from GnR, but to put it in perspective, I owned 7,000 plus records (vinyl) and not ONE of them was GnR. I missed most of the 80’s and 90’s music because I was busy raising a young family. I could appreciate GnR, but never sought them out. This game makes all that instantly different. Why? Because these songs are absolutely perfect for a pinball game. These songs are “pure rock-n-roll”. The driving tempo, the bass line and the drums all create an atmosphere around the gameplay that makes me want to “play them”, turn it up as loud as the game can handle and finally play that song well enough to take it to the end. You know what else? I’m liking what I hear. I’m enjoying the songs for what they are – unbelievably good rock music from and unimaginably successful band.

The shots:

In many ways the game is not a “precision” shooter. That makes it a bit easier than others in my collection … and due to the fact that I’m chasing songs – more pleasurable to play. It feels more like if you get the ball in the general area, you’ll qualify the shot (Qualifying band members for example: Dizzy or Frank) BUT … it sometimes shows itself to be otherwise. For example, if you hit the left ramp shot hard but not in the right spot, you’ll likely make the ramp, but you might just barely make it to the small upper playfield flipper to finish the shot to Duff on the bass rails. On the other hand if you hit it exactly right and almost so soft you wonder if the darn thing will move at all … I’ve seen it go all the way to the guitar head lock as fast and smooth as butter. Both orbits behave the same way. Some of my best orbit shots were half flips that entered the orbits just right and made quick and smooth travel around the top of the game. Hit the sweet-spots on these shots and very little “oomph” is needed.

I’m not saying the “game” is easy … the answer to that question will come over time as I better understand the rules and how they tie to each shot. I can tell you that you can’t just flail away while in a song. You’ll need to follow the call outs and make the lit shots as needed in order to not be “booed off the stage”. Some of those shot are harder than others and doing well in a song (while you are mentally jamming out!) is not easy at all. Time will tell where this game lands in the spectrum of “difficulty” – my early take is that the shots needed to have a boatload of fun are makeable and are not super hard. YMMV.

The left ramp is straightforward and scale of 1-10 is a 3 in ease of making it. The right ramp would be the same. The center scoop probably ranks at the same level and (thankfully) presents almost zero rejects. The spinner shot up the center maybe a notch tighter at a 4. Aiming for the post on the record spinner (Slash) is the same. From there the shots get more challenging with the left orbit and upper loop (upper right flipper) being the most difficult for me (probably both are a 9). The right orbit is a tad easier.

The upper playfield simply takes timing on your part. Flip naturally and you’ll be late every time. Almost feels like a slight delay between when you flip physically and when the flipper moves – probably all in my head but that’s what it feels like.

The ramp to the upper playfield can be backhanded rather easily. It also happens to the the side of the game that is easiest to trap up on in game play. That allows you run loops around that ramp by backhanding, trapping and repeating for as long as you are accurate.

The upper right flipper is a nice alternative way of popping the ball into the scoop when you need to start a song or collect a jackpot. Of course, the lower main flippers are more accurate, but I find I can hit the scoop 1 out of 5 tries from the upper flipper – success really depends on ball speed (with slower being better obviously).

Multi-balls are sometimes a little “thick” feeling … I’m not saying that there are too many of them, just that when you’re in some of the MB modes, there are a “lot of balls served at once”. Not too many games give me the feeling that I want to drain a ball so I can hit the remaining with more precision – but there are moments in GnR when that is the case. Overall, I’m pleased with the multi-balls because they add to the emotions and experience of the game and help you achieve objectives you might not otherwise accomplish.

Gameplay

When you get a new Pinball game, most people will ask “how does it play”? It’s an interesting question for GnR because gameplay is only a portion of the answer. For instance, gameplay for the new Stern Avengers is nearly 100% of the answer to that question (and it’s an awesome game). For GnR though you need to consider that the overall “experience” – no other way to say it … the concert experience is clearly a massive part. For me it’s all about the songs. I understand that this is also the honeymoon phase for me, but even when I learn more about the rules and develop my own “attack” strategy, I still think the strength in this game is the live concert experience created when you get to choose and play a song.

I love the addition of the tilt warnings to the playfield and the ability to see the number of tilt warnings you have as each song begins. Helpful stuff and important as your pushing this thing around to keep the ball alive

If you are going to trap up during multi-ball – do so on the left flipper. It’s pretty easy to understand why. All of the balls are served on the right and typically land on the right flipper during autoplunge. You can play for quite a long time just using the right flipper and trapping 2 balls on the left. You can watch my YouTube video below and fast forward to around the 50 second mark where I deployed this exact strategy

Theme Integration

There is probably nothing I can add to what countless others have said about GnR and the game’s ability to re-create a real rock concert. JJP and Slash nailed it. It doesnt matter what song is playing, because when it is, you feel like you’re there. Right at the concert and unbelievably right in the front row. Moving spotlights, RGB hexagon stage lights and the ability to control all 600 LEDs all help cement the feeling that you’re at a concert. The playfield also does a superb job with the lofty challenge of “concert under glass”. There is a stage screen, beautiful sculpts, the drums pops that have a moving cymbol, a real pair of drumsticks, wireforms that look like a bass guitar and the headstock to Slash’s guitar all work together to constantly remind you that you ARE at a concert. These visual cues are critically important to the entire experience and when married with the lights and sound – you’re there. You’re at the show. GnR has got you in their hands mentally, physically and emotionally.

Light Show

Best. Lightshow. Ever.

How do I know? During some of the songs, the RGBW lights are moving/strobing so wildly I lose track of the ball and … I don’t care. I want more. The “show” is way more important than the game. If you enjoy how the game makes you “feel” (and this entire review is about that fact) then you MUST congratulate the following group of fine folks. They coded all those LED’s, they made the game work, they took Slash’s and Eric’s vision and choreographed it into the game that gives you goosebumps. What a job they did. Thanks to the software team of Bill Grupp, Duncan Brown, Joe Katz, JT Harkey, Keith Johnson and Ted Estes. We need to add the Animation team of Jean-Paul de Win and Mark Moliter because it only works as a whole.

RGBW LED color strobing and light patterns coded into the game are stunning to see in person. Literally a concert light show in a box. Understand though, that at times those patterns are created at the expense of white light (especially when red and blue are used during songs)

Those specific colors and patterns can make it challenging to see the ball – especially if you play in dim light as I do. There are also moments when the game gets dark for dramatic effect – not long moments. 5 seconds maybe? Trust me, you’ll hardly notice. You’ll be too busy enjoying the “light show”.

Yea – but what about the sound? Read on because it’s the icing that makes this cake soooooo good.

Sound

What can I say here. It’s phenomenal and I’m understating that by 10 fold. What Vikas Deo and team did on this game to bring the concert experience to life is nothing short of miraculous. It DOES sound like you’re at the concert. It’s plenty loud enough and clean sounding enough to leave me with my ears ringing after a longer game – nuff said

The call outs are great period. How can they not be, the band did them! And they WANTED to do them! Understanding that the code is not yet complete makes them even more amazing. The adult mode is a must (if you wish to hear it) but be prepared for what you will hear. This is not “gently adult” like some other pinball games. This is “in-your-face” non-stop assault of adult language with plenty of MF’s and “F” words salted through every call out. Listen, most of the time when I hear those words used in discourse I think a little less of the person using them. I try (and fail miserably) to not use those words. So what about my game? In my home? I’ve got it turned ON. To be honest, it somehow fits the game, the theme, the concert emotion. I’m not only glad they coded it with this option, I’m using it and enjoying it. You’ve been warned!

Some of the simple things that the team has coded into the game are just cool every time you hear them. One of those is the “mic drop” off the upper playfield. Took me a minute to understand what it was but … very cool.

Artwork

Dayne Henry is an amazingly talented artist. And a brave man. My college education was as an artist – fine arts to be specific. I’m not sure I would have wanted to tackle artwork for a brand and property as iconic as GnR. Dayne stepped up and simply killed it. There is a LOT of art on the playfield, but at no time does it appear busy or cluttered. It all fits together nicely and in a cohesive way. There is plenty of room made available for inserts and game information and they all fit comfortably into Dayne’s design. Take a moment to look closely at any hand sized section the the CE playfield and you’ll likely see art so finely detailed that it could stand alone as a poster or design element. It’s that good. The middle of the PF shows continents of the world suggestive of the world tour and, of course the worldwide impact that GnR has had on music. Dayne wisely chose to simplify the outlane plastics and apron area (purple and green shapes only) to allow that beautiful playfield art to shine

Arian Buhler re-imagined the Appetite for Destruction album artwork for the CE cabinet art and hit the same home run that Dayne did. It’s amazing in person. The rad-cal shine on top of the brilliant reds and oranges laid out on purple are a feast for the eyes. The standout impact of the rad-cals is the silver foil that peaks through the artwork and makes it come alive. JJP added laser cut armor to for rails and it really compliments the art package well.

Conclusion

It’s draining me. I’m playing it a lot. It’s crazy fun. Every game is an emotional experience. After an hour session I feel like I HAVE been to a concert. I need a bottle of water and a chair.

Reference what I shared throughout this review. This game is like no other. You will FEEL emotions playing this game like no other game you’ve played. You will probably play this game in ways you have not played other games. You’ll have more fun than you’ve had on your other games.

You may not enjoy your other games quite as much as you used to …

A new bar has been set

Congrats and thank you to JJP, Eric and Slash