"Yellow" LOTR arrives (Review)
Maybe I'm the only person in the world that hasn't seen any of the "Lord of the Rings" flicks. I've seen my kids watching them... and stopped for a few minutes to peek. But other than that, I've not seen them at all. Heck, I didn't even read the book.
I think that ignorance helped me a bit... otherwise I probably would have been one of those that jumped on the LOTR pachinko around Christmas. But I held off... waiting for prices to fall. Around Christmas, these were going for nearly $1000. Way too rich for my blood. And even after Christmas, the price settled into the $450 and higher range... and often still hovers there, at least for the "purple" version.
So when I saw this "Yellow" version of the machine come up on eBay... and everyone else passing on it, I watched it closely. The pic shown by SlotUSA on the auction looked a little "greenish"... not really yellow like the yellow I was used to on my Maturi Giant 7 or Penguin. Maybe that's why people passed on this one... and I finally made the plunge for $330. (Note: Of course, I was "beat" on the next week's auction of a Yellow... by another $50.)
Something about that machine always caught my eye... and I'm sure many pachinkoholics eyes, too. I started researching the machine a little more... signed up for the Sankyo Fever Club (thank you Google translators!), and gained access to the videos. Needless to say, I was HOOKED!!! It quickly went from "will have" to "GOTTA have" in my head.
Well... my "Yellow" LOTR pachinko arrived today. OK, so it's not purple cased... but you know what? It's not yellow either. It's a golden color! Pretty much the same coloring as the Ring on the playfield! Yes, there's more yellow trim on it than the other version, but overall not a bad looking machine at all. Certainly not the greenish-yellow in the pic on the auction... I think that might have been fluorsecent lighting playing with the camera.
Now, I've got to tell you that when I unpacked this machine and set it up on my bench to try out, I was REALLY impressed with the depth of the playfield trim. The three dimensional depth of this thing is something they aren't able to catch in photos. From the ornate chrome swirls, the 3-D ring with a very nice fire simulation inside of it... to the totally cool sword... it's simply the most intricate design I've yet to see on a pachinko. I was already impressed, and hadn't even turned it on yet.
So, I had to see this puppy lit up. I didn't even bother loading any balls into it... just plugged it in (after a good check), and sat down in front of it.
What I saw made my jaw drop!!! The top lights in a sequence, the multi-color LEDs fading in and out behind the 3-D trimmings (one set making the fire in the ring look like embers glowing), and the sword having a light blue glow, then fading. Suddenly, the LCD kicked in... and this thing GRABBED me by the shorthairs, and FORCED me to watch it!!! The sound was set on high, but I didn't mind. The video sequence it played, along with INTENSE music honestly brought a shiver down my spine, and the hair on my arms stand up with goosebumps! It was a RUSH... no lie. So much of an adreniline high, that I had to repeat it several times... then call my daughters to see it for themselves! If I looked and acted anything like them the first time I saw it, you could have knocked me over with a pin. They too, were awestruck!
After loading the hopper and top tray with balls, and carefully placing the return tray in place... I started out on a solid two and a half hour journey. NO machine has ever held me captive for that long. The animated video "symbols"... the reach sequences... and THAT MUSIC!!! The "reaches" tease you mercilessly with eye AND ear candy, and the cut scenes were fabulously edited throughout. And THIS is from someone that has never seen the movies... remember?
Then it happened... THREE FRODO's (7's)... and it was like the thing reached out and grabbed my head... and drew me inside! The thrill of the music had started to release me just before that... even making me sigh at times with it's repetition. But in the BONUS... O...M...G...!!!! The videos syncronized with the music perfectly, the lights and LEDs started their hypnotic effects, and I was treated to the most awesome bonus that I have ever experienced!!!
It wasn't until Round 5 that I saw the shooter was no longer working... but realized it was because the bottom (overflow) tray was full, and it was keeping me from shooting so I didn't overflow the overflow.
I hated to take my eyes off the thing to refill the hopper, but I didn't want to take a chance on losing any of the bonus treats. INTENSE is the only way I can describe it, with the soundtrack moving you through various emotions while treating you to video cuts and still "slide shows" from the movies.
And after 15 rounds... and many "goosebumples"... the "final" screen appeared as the music faded. I had been given a new experience, and was somewhat sad to see it coming to an end... until I saw that final screen closely.
It said "To Be Continued" :smirk:
The machine was still lit up, lights dancing and swirling... and from previous pachinko experience, I KNEW it wanted to keep rewarding me with many more magical orbs. I allowed it to play out it's desires upon me.
Three Bonus rounds in a row... three sets of 15 rounds... came within moments of play... until I realized that yet another 45 minutes had passed with my head inside this electronic wizardry. And then... only to tease me some more, it seems... a "Chance" mode... with a counter running down from 100 for each subsequent spin. Nothing there. But it was a nice way for this cutie to slowly let me down from my high... the "journey" that it had led me through with not only balls as rewards, but with adreniline rushes as well.
There's a new favorite in the LogicProbe house... the girls won't leave it alone now either (that's the ONLY reason I'm writing this review right now, or I'd be on it... LOL!)
And I GOTTA see these movies!
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"This is My Personal Opinion and no others"
Re: "Yellow" LOTR arrives (Review)
幸運わんわん Luckydog or Yukiwanwan in Japanese 
Originally Posted by arbycoffee
