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Today we can get you up to speed on those improvements thanks to the information passed along to me by Adam Wray of Glitchbit. This enhanced build will better fit into arcade (non-bar) locations, with a broader appeal, while still working for those venues that serve adult beverages. These improvements came along thanks to feedback that was heard at that show (as a note to any indie devs out there – that’s a great reason to attend an industry trade show with your product, as you’ll talk with potential buyers and might find out why they will – or will not – purchase your game) along with feedback obtained through location testing.
Let’s start with the animated gif that was sent my way, then I’ll break it down in case you don’t catch it all:
Here are all of those features in a handy bullet point list of this new cabinet design:
With all of that, the cabinet is still going to be “under $5k” on the price point and begins mass manufacturing for arcades to pick up soon. A precise date hasn’t been given, but I would venture to guess that Retro Raccoons will be available before the summer is over.
If you have played the game already, what did you think about it? If not, what do you find appealing?
(Shack News, August 26, 2021) Pinball has always been kind of a community game when you think about it. Sure, you can really only run the silver ball by yourself, but when you look up at the backboard and see the scores of the best players around, it gives you something to strive for. You and others push and figure out the technique to try to put your score up in that hollowed spot. You might even share tips and strategies on any given game with fellow players. Stern and its fans have cultivated that community passion and interaction over the years, and the company is about to try to give its fans more ways to do so with a new Insider Connected program.
Stern announced the Insider Connected program via an press release on its website on August 26, 2021. This is a program that will be standard on new machines and can be applied to previously released ones via a retrofit kit. There will also be a mobile app. Essentially, any Stern Pinball machine with Insider Connected set up will feature a QR code where users can log the machine via the app and engage in community interaction, Challenge Quests, and other promotions.
With Challenge Quests, Stern Pinball machine owners and operators can set up events and challenges that will allow players to earn loyalty points. Players can also track their progress and chase after game-specific achievements, as well as engaging with other players from the community.
Any Stern game utilizing the Spike 2 LCD system produced after the September launch will ship with the Insider Connected system installed. That means machines like the recent Led Zeppelin and Mandalorian releases can be set up with this program.
With pinball always having had some level of community interaction behind it, Insider Connected seems like a wonderful way to expand pinball past the player standing at the machine at any given time. Stay tuned for more news and updates regarding Stern Pinball as it becomes available, right here at Shacknews.
CHICAGO, IL – August 26, 2021 – Stern Pinball, Inc., announced today the launch of Insider Connected, a comprehensive technology initiative to connect the universe of Stern pinball machines. The platform is designed to enhance and extend player engagement with the games across both home and commercial environments. It also presents professional operators of the pinball machines with a robust set of tools to drive location play, build player loyalty, analyze performance, make adjustments remotely and maintain the machines.
Registration for Insider Connected is free; players can either scan a QR code at the games or go to the Stern Pinball website where they will need to enter an email address and create a password. Once players register for Insider Connected, they are issued a unique QR Code that can be used to identify that player at any connected Stern pinball machine, anywhere in the world. When a player logs into the machine, they can track their progress, earn new game specific achievements, engage with the player community and participate in promotions and Challenge Quests.
Challenge Quests can be issued by operators to drive play at their locations and build player loyalty or by Stern Pinball to highlight a game title or engage the community. When players complete quests, they receive loyalty rewards.
All Stern Spike® 2 LCD games produced after the September launch will ship with the Insider Connected system installed; this includes new runs of previously released titles. Any existing Stern LCD game can be added to Insider Connected by installing a simple, inexpensive retrofit kit available from Stern distributors, dealers and the Stern Store®.
By the end of the year, all 17 Stern Spike 2 LCD system titles will be added to Insider Connected. At launch seven titles will be supported. Over the next year the full system with added features will be rolled out.
“Insider Connected will transform how players interact with pinball machines, and operators will benefit greatly from new tools,” said Gary Stern, Chairman and CEO of Stern Pinball, Inc.
Stern Pinball machines and accessories are available through authorized Stern Pinball distributors like GAD and dealers around the world.
About Stern Pinball, Inc.
Stern Pinball, Inc. is a global lifestyle brand based on the iconic and outrageously fun modern American game of pinball. Headquartered minutes from Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport in the heart of North America, the company creates, designs, engineers, manufactures, markets, and distributes a full line of technologically advanced terrestrial and digital pinball games, parts, accessories, and merchandise. Stern Pinball serves digital, consumer, commercial, and corporate markets around the globe.
Recent Stern Pinball titles include The Mandalorian, Led Zeppelin, Avengers: Infinity Quest, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Stranger Things, Elvira’s House of Horrors, Jurassic Park, Black Knight: Sword of Rage, The Munsters, The Beatles, Deadpool, Iron Maiden, Guardians of the Galaxy, Star Wars, Aerosmith, Ghostbusters, KISS, Metallica, Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Star Trek, AC/DC, Batman, and Spider-Man. A broad range of players enjoy Stern Pinball’s games from professional pinball players who compete in high-stakes competitions around the globe to novice players who are discovering the allure of the silver ball for the first time. To join the fun and learn more, please visit www.sternpinball.com.
So many great articles have been written about Stern Pinball. And this article by Riot Fest is definitely in that category.
Written by a true pinball enthusiast, Bailey Davis, you can just feel the passion for pinball. And the review of the Stern Pinball manufacturing line is impressive.
Check out the article at https://riotfest.org/2021/07/stern-pinball-photo-tour/.
GAD Vending has a long standing reputation of providing top of the line vending equipment, ATM, claw machines and more to our customers who own vending routes in the Midwest.
Coming out of COVID, if you are interested in starting a new vending business, we are happy to meet with you and help.
Been in the vending business awhile and looking for a new equipment partner? Need to learn how to defend your base locations? Looking to expand to new vending opportunities? GAD can help with training, quality equipment and service to back you up.
GAD has an incredible inventory of machines ready to deploy. Need an ATM for the weekend? New vending machines for an opening up location? Coffee service machines for breakrooms? GAD has that.
On our website, we update our equipment inventory so you know too. While this list is only updated once a month, it will give you an idea of the scope of machines we inventory in Omaha, Des Moines and Kansas City.
GAD has helped design many types of services. From specifying the deployment of vending machines with a mix of drinks and snacks to an entire micro market, GAD assists our vending route customers with expertise.
GAD trains our customers how to use the automated features with cashless vending and inventory reporting.
And, we can complete the breakroom. From coffee vending machines to condiment stations. Freezers to microwaves. GAD can procure an entire commercial breakroom.
GAD had complete parts and service departments in each of our locations – Omaha, Des Moines and Kansas City.
Need to reconfigure a vending machine? We have parts for that. Want to just get the parts mailed to you? We do that. Need to fix a pinball machine, vending machine and ATM? Call GAD.
What else is there to say? Star Wars started a completely different force of pop culture when the movies started coming out in May 1977. Everything has sprung from the original IV – including this new generation of The Mandalorian.
Stern Pinball is the one to accept the challenge. Having innovated pinball for Star Wars multiple times, The Mandalorian just gave the designers so much more to work with. And the results are amazing.
From the July Stern of the Union:
The Mandalorian:
Mandalorian mania continues across the globe as games make their way on location (check out your local Stern Army location to play) with a continual onslaught of press and media exposure! Check out these exclusive Mandalorian features from Yahoo!, Old School Gamer Magazine, AusRetroGamer, and Shacknews featuring Gary Stern and Jack Danger. The Mandalorian pinball was also featured as GQ’s top picks of summer and was a spotlight in the official Star Wars Father’s Day Gift Guide!
GAD is an official distributor of Jersey Jack Pinball – and with their newest Guns ‘n Roses Not In This Lifetime game there is just pure fun.
Check out a few of the reviews:
After much trailing over the past few weeks Jersey Jack Pinball revealed their sixth title, Guns N’ Roses, based on their Not In This Lifetime… world tour which ran from 2016-2019.
The company had avoided revealing the title of their new release although it was widely known to be a music based on the popular band featuring Axl Rose, Slash, Duff McKagan, Dizzy Reed, Richard Fortus, Frank Ferrer and Melissa Reese.
As shown in the tease images, the game is designed by Eric Meunier with assistance from GnR guitarist Slash who is a well-known pinball fan and collaborated on the original Data East Guns N’ Roses game.
As with previous JJP titles, there are three models of the new title – Standard, Limited Edition and Collectors Edition. There will be a maximum of 500 Collectors Edition machines produced while the Limited Edition is limited to 5,000 units. There’s no limit on the Standard Edition.
The Standard edition features cartoon-style cabinet artwork, while the Premium shows arrangements of tour posters. The Collectors Edition, meanwhile, returns to a cartoon design. The Limited Edition includes red cabinet trim while the Collectors Edition has a purple finish. read more
Extremely impressed at overall execution. JJP has redefined the rock pin.
This game has really impressed me! I thought how much more can pinball have added to it that seem doesn’t seem like a gimmick or something bolted on for the sake of claiming an industry first. The introduction of Hot Rails, and seeing them implemented was amazing.
Eric Meunier has out done himself with his second game! What the entire team has put together is one of the most theme integrated games I have seen! Having a licensor that is passionate about the product has really made a difference. I really like the wire forms looking like bass strings or the drum sticks being implemented as a ramp!! There was a lot of creativity that went into this design.
Keefer and team, as always, has provided a deep rule set that will give players from all backgrounds enjoyment!
GnR has gone beyond my expectations! This is innovation done right! Congrats to all involved!
Big Buck World Review! Check out what @cooltoy has to say about Big Buck World Arcade Game.
Greater America Distributing is a Betson Authorized Dealer for the Midwest. Big Buck World is available for commercial arcades and home use.
The last of the great pinball manufacturers, Stern makes machines with modern themes like last year’s Stranger Things and old-school classics like that campy Batman show. But the company’s real forte is music machines. Whether it’s the Beatles or Iron Maiden, each machine is chock-full of meticulous details that’ll make any fan swoon.
Stern’s latest entry is a triple threat of Led Zeppelin nostalgia. There are three editions, each complete with real concert clips and all the glamor and bombastic lighting of a live show. Rock along to classics like “Immigrant Song” and “Kashmir” as you roll through replicas of the band’s iconography, including a prominent winged Icarus logo and the legendary Zeppelin itself.
—Boone Ashworth
