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Stranger Things Pinball - now with Video reveal

Vimtoman said:
The clear is thinner on the older pins compared to Sterns so no so deep.
Plus Like Phil said has flattened out.

Take a closer picture at an angle and you will see them.
Not a problem as every machine has them regardless of what people say.
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Only way I can see them is to zoom right in on a pic taken at the right angle, so I’m wrong they are there but only just even though I was looking very closely by eye and I used to do car panel work and normally see everything.
My TAF and TZ have had new thick clear coats and plenty of air balls but I’m not seeing anything like the above pic, must be the height the ball is dropping from as even the metal ramp flap is dented.
 
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If I was being generous I’d say that’s the extreme end of what you’d expect the room lighting to be. There’s not much in the way of shadows in those photos so the lighting must be pretty intense.

At the same time I wouldn’t be in the least bit surprised if that projector supplier was the lowest bidder on Alibaba.
 
M4carp said:
Only way I can see them is to zoom right in on a pic taken at the right angle, so I’m wrong they are there but only just even though I was looking very closely by eye and I used to do car panel work and normally see everything.
My TAF and TZ have had new thick clear coats and plenty of air balls but I’m not seeing anything like the above pic, must be the height the ball is dropping from as even the metal ramp flap is dented.
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Yep these Sterns have thick soft coats so dent really easy.
They also have really thin ramp flaps which dent really easy.
Not the blue steel versions were used to.
Stern really dont have a good enough quality control.
A machine they dont want or cant stop.
 
Neil McRae said:
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Thats a real shame.
Honestly Its going to let that whole pin down if they dont work that out.
Maybe even effect the last bit of credibility the company has left after the playfield issues.
 
Vimtoman said:
Yep these Sterns have thick soft coats so dent really easy.
They also have really thin ramp flaps which dent really easy.
Not the blue steel versions were used to.
Stern really dont have a good enough quality control.
A machine they dont want or cant stop.
Click to expand...
Like a lot of profit seeking entities they are trying to find the breaking point for consumers in terms of what they will put up with before they stop buying, in large enough numbers for them to actually give a s***.

People make a lot of noise about not buying Sterns based on this stuff, but every time a new pin is announced people are falling over themselves to get on the hype train. Has Stern actually ever struggled to sell any of the pins they've made recently? The LEs still seem to sell out, even stinkers like Munsters :p

The only thing that is likely to give Stern pause for thought is actual, perceptible effects on their bottom line. Not people saying they won't buy NIB, and then giving in because Stern are practically the only game in town when it comes to regular pin releases. Talk is cheap. They aren't going to start increasing the BOM costs when people are buying this stuff in spite of all the publicised issues and quality reductions. It also doesn't help that Stern basically have no competition in the "crank several new themes out per year" market.
 
There isn’t a company in the world that’s not trying to do things better and at a better cost.


The barcade industry that’s pretty big in the US now needs new games every few months to keep punters coming in. Stern gives them that and nobody else does, certainly nothing with any sort of certainty. Barcades know they have 8 or so big launch weekends plus the stern army stuff, without that all the barcades become video game based...

Stern have backtracked on some stupid decisions, rails on the games, code was getting better but appears to be heading in the wrong direction.

Key thing for the games isn’t about what the theme is or what’s in the play field. The key thing is that do people come back and put more money into it - is it fun to play or does it have that one more go feel. Sure themes might attract someone to a game, but if it’s a rubbish experience then they are off to the next one (see Munsters, ACNC and Houdini for examples that).


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That’s the small company intro event that CES run, stern will have a big stand that should open later this week.

How you stream this game is interesting given you typically want to add light behind the camera!


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Neil McRae said:
There isn’t a company in the world that’s not trying to do things better and at a better cost.


The barcade industry that’s pretty big in the US now needs new games every few months to keep punters coming in. Stern gives them that and nobody else does, certainly nothing with any sort of certainty. Barcades know they have 8 or so big launch weekends plus the stern army stuff, without that all the barcades become video game based...

Stern have backtracked on some stupid decisions, rails on the games, code was getting better but appears to be heading in the wrong direction.

Key thing for the games isn’t about what the theme is or what’s in the play field. The key thing is that do people come back and put more money into it - is it fun to play or does it have that one more go feel. Sure themes might attract someone to a game, but if it’s a rubbish experience then they are off to the next one (see Munsters, ACNC and Houdini for examples that).


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I was agreeing with everything you said until you said ‘Theme is not important’. That couldn’t be more wrong and is precisely why Stern pay licensing fees to get big themes.

You need a good theme to get customers to come and put money in. Otherwise why not just come up with original themes that play well?

Oh and neither Munsters nor Houdini are good themes!
 
Hmm really? - Themes attract people they don’t keep them coming back for more.

Iron maiden - the worst theme ever but I’ve got one in my house and they are everywhere in the Bay Area.

Star Wars not arguably the best theme ever, there is no bigger theme - but it’s a **** game. They are no where in any barcades where I am right now compared to Deadpool GOTG JP2 IMDN hell even Star Trek! And that’s not limited to just the Bay Area.


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I think a screen in the back panel and toy rising like CV would have worked better. Although I like the idea of launching over the big ramp.
Lighting that for a stream is going to be difficult, even lit from the back/side will still mess with the ramps. Dimmed lighting maybe.
 
Neil McRae said:
There isn’t a company in the world that’s not trying to do things better and at a better cost.


The barcade industry that’s pretty big in the US now needs new games every few months to keep punters coming in. Stern gives them that and nobody else does, certainly nothing with any sort of certainty. Barcades know they have 8 or so big launch weekends plus the stern army stuff, without that all the barcades become video game based...

Stern have backtracked on some stupid decisions, rails on the games, code was getting better but appears to be heading in the wrong direction.

Key thing for the games isn’t about what the theme is or what’s in the play field. The key thing is that do people come back and put more money into it - is it fun to play or does it have that one more go feel. Sure themes might attract someone to a game, but if it’s a rubbish experience then they are off to the next one (see Munsters, ACNC and Houdini for examples that).


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I just think they are pushing the home sales too hard.
I would prefer another company pushing in than more Stern pro's
 
Front projections only work well in a dark or dimly lit space - the reason why the lights go off in the cinema before the film starts.

I worked at CES a couple of years ago, and I’m surprised there’s any visible image on the game under the bright condition in the Vegas convention centre.

So Stern are clearly not using the cheapest pico projector.

As Neil correctly points out, Stern are not designing new games for the old boys who have been in the scene longer than the length of the bible and have every playfield layout ever created memorised. They are designed for location play to be enjoyed and earn money for the operator.
ST in particular is aiming at tapping into the new generation of pinball players who are interested in current themes.

It’s true, Brian Eddys two masterpieces AFM and MM have very similar pf layouts which are loved by most. For a reason - they work extremely well.
 
Stern aren’t hugely interested in the home market. It’s not as big as everyone thinks and has a huge reliance on disposable income, not that other markets they sell into don’t but it’s much less affected.

I agree on having more competitors but pinball is hard!


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Neil McRae said:
Stern aren’t hugely interested in the home market. It’s not as big as everyone thinks and has a huge reliance on disposable income, not that other markets they sell into don’t but it’s much less affected.

I agree on having more competitors but pinball is hard!


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Yep another UK pinball company :)
Shame that Heighway pinball went down.
Alien was a great franchise and looked like a decent pin.

Theres plenty of talent here in the UK
 
Brilliant theme it’ll do well in Tilt and that’s what it’s all about now for Stern! They cater for the American market which is massively weighted towards Operators...

Looking forward to Playing in a couple days
 
Tilt_Birmingham said:
Brilliant theme it’ll do well in Tilt and that’s what it’s all about now for Stern! They cater for the American market which is massively weighted towards Operators...

Looking forward to Playing in a couple days
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Yep the gameplay looked Ok.
I was hoping for that little extra sparkle the projector was going to give.
If it's washed out even in low light then It will be a shame.
 
Neil McRae said:
Hmm really? - Themes attract people they don’t keep them coming back for more.

Iron maiden - the worst theme ever but I’ve got one in my house and they are everywhere in the Bay Area.

Star Wars not arguably the best theme ever, there is no bigger theme - but it’s a **** game. They are no where in any barcades where I am right now compared to Deadpool GOTG JP2 IMDN hell even Star Trek! And that’s not limited to just the Bay Area.


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You forgot to add 'in my humble opinion' at the begining of the sentence when you called Star Wars a **** game!

Nearly every barcade with pinballs I ve been to (granted not in the 'Bay Area') in the states has had a Star Wars, because its killer theme and a good game (believe it or not some people enjoy it).

Its funny though, as all the games you mentioned above as good games are great themes!
 
I go all over the US and rarely find a Star Wars on location. I see waaay more Dialed in and Black knights than Star Wars. No sane person uses it in competitions because it’s just not very good. Three votes on game of the decade on pinside - suspect that one of the was you LOl.


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Neil McRae said:
I go all over the US and rarely find a Star Wars on location. I see waaay more Dialed in and Black knights than Star Wars. No sane person uses it in competitions because it’s just not very good. Three votes on game of the decade on pinside - suspect that one of the was you LOl.


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I actually wasn't, but it will soon be 4 votes...………………...

If didn't do well, they wouldn't be rebranding as the comic art version.
 
Sven Normansson said:
It is over here. Tilt, chief etc are only getting ONE machine, no different to if you or I bought it. Not a chain of locations taking 10 games, is it?
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The UK market I’d guess is less than .1% of sterns total market. We are irrelevant to them, we have no volume that’s why we pay 10% more than the rest of Europe. Home users create work for stern with issues and complaints and support queries they really aren’t that focused on it.


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JAG555 said:
I actually wasn't, but it will soon be 4 votes...………………...

If didn't do well, they wouldn't be rebranding as the comic art version.
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LOL no if it did do well they wouldn’t need too. Money for old rope. Munsters the same with the colour premium.


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