Since 2020, each year at the end or beginning of the next year, I’ve been listing my favorite gaming-related hardware purchase. Here’s a recap of past years along with a link to the article at the end of 2023 (My 2023 Favorite Gaming-related Hardware Purchase Is …)
- 2024 – ???? (keep reading)
- 2023 – 55″ Sony Bravia XR A80K 4K 120hz OLED 4K (~$1,300 USD) – my primary 4K gaming monitor in 2024, also used for all virtual pinball cabinet play on the Humpday Wednesday pinball streams
- 2022 – Steam Deck – this has been and remains smy regular go-to for portable gaming in 2024
- 2021 – Atgames Legends Pinball HD – not much play in 2024 and played only slightly more in 2023. A part of me wants to return to the community tournaments, so maybe this will get some action in 2025
- 2020 – Atgames Legends Ultimate 1.1 – still playing in 2024, but more infrequently in 2024. It’s still my go-to for multicade arcade gameplay, using OTG, just using the controls. Part of the reason I didn’t play as much in 2024 was so much time spent playing unplayed PC games (see: 2024 Resolution: Play ALL My Unplayed PC Games + How To Create Dynamic Unplayed Steam Collection)
The year started out with my son being the first in the family to purchase a modern pinball — Stern Jaws Premium.
He ordered it as soon as it was announced, and it was delivered to his house March 13, 2024. If you’re interested in that experience, I covered this with the longest PGM article write-up, nearly 10,000 words here: Our Son Bought a New In Box Jaws Stern Premium – The First 40 Days of Ownership – What’s the Experience Really Like? I’ve continued to update in the PGM Discord a daily diary on the ownership experience. We have keys to my son’s house, so we can play any time — and I have — amassing over 1,200 lifetime plays on this game, the most of any pinball machine ever.
Up until the end of the summer it was looking like I wasn’t going to purchase any gaming hardware in 2024, and then I bought the IGT G20 multigame video keno, poker and slot machine (used).
Bought this from a place that buys these machines from casinos, refurbishes and resells. It’s a type of game machine we’ve wanted to buy for years.
Then, close to my birthday in September, with the really positive ownership experience my son had with Jaws, I decided to buy myself a modern pinball present: My Best Birthday Present in 56 Years: Iron Maiden: Legacy of the Beast Premium NIB
Our original plan had been to buy two pins: Iron Maiden pro and my son wanted to get a pro, but that plan fell through. And then a few weeks later my wife said, “Just go ahead and get the James Bond.” She knew our son really wanted that, so James Bond 007 became our family’s third new in box pinball purchase of 2024.
Yes, my son and I picked that one up in my truck over 2 hours away and brought it home to setup ourselves. It was cloudy and it sprinkled in one area, but never full-on rained.
I setup James Bond 007 myself. The easiest setup, really. And so, here became the 2024 pin lineup:
It’s time to choose. Which of the above is this year’s pick? Actually, it’s an easy choice. It’s the one modern Stern pinball machine my son and I first started playing and enjoyed together:
2024 – Iron Maiden: Legacy of the Beast (Stern 2018)
Although it’s one of the oldest Spike 2 pins, we bought it new in box and it had a little bit of a rocky start when the cabinet speaker went bad and we spent over a month with a misdiagnosis (thought it was a bad CPU, when it wasn’t). After putting in a new speaker, it’s been smooth sailing maintenance-wise.
Will be another exciting moment when I bring home, but in the meantime, it’s happy next to its brother pins: Jaws & James Bond 007.
What was your favorite hardware games-related purchase in 2024? Share in the comments.