Stern Pinball

"There is going to be no market share lost to Stern at all by the end of this year. In fact, I think their market share will continue to grow even more because they're going to keep coming out with the juggernaut themes."

Stern will dominate and grow market share over next 12 months, no competition will take share

"I think Stern is going to really blow people away over the next 12 months. You heard it here first. Well, you didn't hear it here first. I mean, I've been saying, Stern is going to continue to dominate."

Prediction: Stern is going to really blow people away over the next 12 months and continue to dominate.

"Stern pinball is Stern pinball is Stern pinball because they have 50 years people. 50 years of making these things. And everyone else runs in and thinks they deserve to be part of Stern pinball's glory."

Stern Pinball deserves more respect - they have 50 years of manufacturing experience while boutique companies are drama factories

"Stern Pinball is the greatest Pinball company of all time and and I mean that when I say that"

Stern Pinball is the greatest pinball company of all time

"within the first few minutes, you're hearing the Batman theme. You're hearing the Star Wars theme... It's just home run after home run after home run when it comes to theme. And that is why they do so well."

Stern Pinball dominates the market because of their excellent theme selection

"The mistake they made with black knight... They basically put what should have been a more niche specialty game down the same journey as like a Batman or a Star Wars... They should have done... We're making Steve Ritchie's like, you know, the third installment in the Steve Ritchie trilogy. And we're only going to make whatever like 300 and charge 10,000 each"

Stern made a strategic mistake with Black Knight's pricing and marketing approach

"How about you just give everyone all the enhancements from the factory from day one? How about you ship people games that are done? How about a $9,000 LE actually comes with the topper?"

Stern should ship complete games from day one instead of charging for additional enhancements

"this katana, I have to say, this is by far the coolest surprising delight items Stern has ever given any pinball buyer I've ever seen. So well done. I think this is the kind of stuff we want to see more of these manufacturers do."

George Gomez sending Deadpool buyers signed katana blades is the coolest surprising delight item Stern has ever given

"I think Stern pinball games are fine I think they're five to six thousand dollar machines that's it that's what they are there are five to six thousand dollar pinball machines they just know that the collectors out there are a bunch of suckers"

Stern games are overpriced $5-6k machines sold for $9k

"that's fine for Stern that's not good for all these other people with pinball dreams who want to create more themes and create more choices"

Stern's success is sustainable but bad for industry variety

"Stern, if you go into Stern's factory today, I guarantee you it looks a lot more productive and a lot more activity is going on than if you went into any other pinball manufacturer's factory right now."

Prediction: Stern's factory currently looks more productive and has more activity than any other pinball manufacturer's factory.

"Stern has the best artists in the game. Nobody has better art packages right now than Stern pinball. They're better than Jersey Jack. They're better than American pinball."

Stern has the best art packages in pinball, better than all competitors

"I think Stern is in one of its most vulnerable positions right now in the entire industry... I mean, think about it. Deadpool, Beatles, Monsters and Black Knight. I mean, those are not like juggernaut hits for the company."

Stern's recent releases are mediocre B-level sellers putting company in vulnerable position

"Does that ring true now? Do we feel like Stern is stuck? Right. John Borg's dream theme is the monsters. You released the monsters in 2019 and you expect it to be a sales home run... Doesn't it seem comical? The monsters is a show that isn't even on TV."

Stern designers are stuck in the past making themes from when they were kids, holding company back

"We're at this point now. We're every single Stern like toy that you're supposed to be able to bash. They just put a target in front of it and you're not really bashing anything."

Stern Pinball can't make proper bash toys anymore

"Stern pinball is super successful. They show everyone how to do it. And yet everyone finds different ways to try to ignore all of the free information Stern is giving them on a daily basis"

Stern Pinball shows everyone how to be successful but other companies ignore the formula

"You pay $9,000 for a Stern game that costs them $3,000 to make. You pay $7,500 for a $3,000 Stern machine. Again, totally believe that so many of you are getting totally ripped off."

Players are getting totally ripped off by Stern's pricing vs manufacturing costs

"Normally we've got two ramps, three pop bumpers, two slingshots, and two flippers, and then a bunch of targets and switches. That's pretty much the formula for most Stern games."

Stern Pinball uses a repetitive formula but it's successful

"Here's what's going to happen is games like this. If they make what 600 L's, who thought that was a good idea? They're not going to sell 600 of these in early format. Those games are going to sit and they're going to sit for months and they're going to sit for years at distributors."

Stern's one-size-fits-all pricing will fail and distributors will have to discount games

"I don't think anyone who buys a $9,000 Stern machine feels like they're getting their money's worth"

Stern Pinball makes fun games but they're overpriced at $9,000 and most buyers don't feel they're getting their money's worth

"when you see the black knight next to willy-wonka and you put $9,000 price tag on each of them, you're going to know what I know. That it's a joke. The comparison of the two is a joke"

Comparing Stern games to Jersey Jack games at the same price point is a joke - they're not even playing the same game

"I do wish Stern would find a better place to show these games and like the kitchen. I mean, really, Stern, you're the biggest pinball company in the world. And the only place you can like showcase your games isn't a freaking kitchen."

Stern needs to build a proper showroom instead of streaming from kitchen

"Are you getting your money's worth for those pinball machines? Absolutely not. I think the majority of you out there who have kept buying these premium and LE machines from you know who for the most part you're paying way more than is going into these games"

Stern premiums and LEs are overpriced for what you get, customers aren't getting value

"Putting this game next to a 12,500 dollars Beatles platinum. Putting this game next to a 15,000 dollar Batman S. L. E. It's just it's just not even in the same league of those games"

Willy Wonka makes Stern LE games look inferior and overpriced

"Stern's got the talent but they don't have the passion to push this product... everyone at Stern has to design a game with profit as the finish line this game here's the best part about it it was designed with passion as the finish line"

Jersey Jack Pinball operates with passion while Stern is driven primarily by profit

"The biggest pinball company in the world. What a funny April fools joke. I mean, I have a sense of humor. I do. But I just found that to be pretty lame."

Stern Pinball's April Fools joke about revealing Black Knight at Burger King was lame and shows their arrogance

"We know these games aren't worth anywhere close to $9,000 or $7,500. But we still buy them because you do put out a fun Pinball product. We know we're getting ripped off, but we support you, Stern"

Stern games aren't worth $9000 or $7500 but people still buy them - customers know they're getting ripped off

"I'm starting to feel a little bit like it might be Stern Pinball that they might be, you know, the Sauron and the evil empire a little bit."

Stern Pinball is becoming like the evil empire/Sauron in pinball - arrogant and avoiding community shows

"It's like a movie studio putting out one movie a week and you can't even figure out when you're going to go see the first one, let alone the fact that the second one's already out. And that's what it feels like. They're just dropping stuff on top of stuff and nothing's starting to feel special anymore."

Stern releases too many titles too quickly - nothing feels special anymore, like a movie studio releasing one movie a week

"But we do know that Stern has a little bit of a formula. That a Stern game is always a Stern game is always a Stern game. And while they'll do different things here and there, for the most part, are you ever really blown away by that thing that Stern puts into the game? Are you? No."

Stern has a predictable formula and rarely delivers truly surprising innovations

"How is that not idiotic? How is that not ludicrous that Stern Pinball has Steve Ritchie"

Stern revealing Black Knight right after TPF was idiotic

"They're winning this battle. Don't be fooled. Yes, there are some companies chipping away. Primarily, the only one really chipping away at Stern is Chicago gaming company. Everybody else is not. Nobody else is really making a dent on Stern's black castle."

Stern Pinball is dominating the market and competitors aren't making a real dent

"the cadence and the volume and the frequency and efficiency of this company puts every other pinball company to shame"

Stern Pinball's production efficiency puts all other pinball companies to shame

"I don't see myself buying any Stern Pinball machines anytime soon until I see the mechanical innovation there. I just don't see myself doing it."

Won't buy any Stern machines until they add more mechanical innovation

"Without Stern, how boring would this hobby be? You have to admit without Stern releasing a new game every three to four months, we would literally be bored to death waiting for the other manufacturers to deliver something."

Stern does amazing job keeping hobby exciting with regular releases

"the final thing that they need to do to justify where the prices of their games are currently at... is to include a lot more mechanical innovations in their games. And they've gotten away over the last few years with stuff that isn't really pushing the boundaries of what they can do."

Stern's mechanical innovation is lacking but they excel at art, themes, and shipping more complete code

"They don't need to make magic. You don't need to conjure up magic when you can fool everybody with tricks. You see them saying real magic goes beyond just being like hoodwinking people. And I think Stern has done a great job in giving you just enough to get your money out of your wallet."

Stern doesn't create magic, just tricks people into buying with 'good enough' games

"here's the thing I think you very much enjoy the Stern games but those Stern games they don't have a soul. They really don't have a soul right now"

Stern games lack soul and innovation compared to Jersey Jack

"Look, it is what it is. We've set our piece on this Stern Insider program. I do think it's a cash grab. I think it's silly... But don't be fooled. They're gonna use this as a way to just get you to buy more merchandise that you don't need and t-shirts that you don't really want."

Stern Insider program is a cash grab that doesn't provide real value to the community

"this company just has everybody buy the balls and moves like this just reek reek of a spoiled sort of super successful category market leader"

Stern Insider program is a greedy cash grab for basic information

"when someone spends nine thousand dollars on the limited edition game can we actually give them something that the different experience so it justifies the cost"

Stern should give LE owners exclusive gameplay features, not just cosmetics

"we know that you will design the game to a bomb, to a price. And that is what is most important to you. And we also know that the more expensive the license, the less that will go into the machine"

Stern designs games to a price point and sacrifices quality for expensive licenses

"Stern Pimberg gets people their games faster than any other manufacturer. Like way faster than any other manufacturer... They revealed this game when. I think it was January. Here we are end of February... and people have the game in their homes. I mean, that's incredible."

Stern Pinball delivers games faster than any other manufacturer

"please let the Harry Potter license go. Please let Jersey Jack make it... I know and you know in your heart of hearts that you will not do this license justice"

Stern should give up Harry Potter license to Jersey Jack Pinball

"The assets from the shows from the 60s are plentiful when you let licensed those IPs because the actors back then did not have the rights. You didn't have to sign the rights for each individual actor."

Stern focuses on 60s themes due to easier licensing

"These guys, these marketing guys, man. They're really good. I mean, they're finding new ways to take your money and do stuff that they think. They think is good marketing but they're really not thinking a lot of this stuff through."

Stern Pinball's new Insider program is misguided marketing

"I'm here to tell you right now on Kaneda's pinball podcast, we're going to start with a, we're going to, we're going to confirm a title that's not coming out in 2019. You will not see in 2019 a James Bond pinball machine."

James Bond pinball will not be released in 2019

"it does look like shit. Regardless of the cause, when I played the Beatles for the first time at a modern pinball in New York City, the first thing I did was I did notice an extreme amount of dimpling on the game."

Stern playfield dimpling is getting worse and looks terrible, especially on Beatles and Batman

"if you think stern pinballs about money and not pinball I think you're 100% wrong. They are a manufacturing company that makes pinball and they want to manufacture pinball to make a profit but I guarantee you if you went into stern pinball and you talked to people there what they're passionate about and what drives them is pinball"

Stern is passionate about pinball, not just money

"I've had a Stern spike two system on my Batman for an entire year. I play the game frequently and I've had no issues. And they make thousands of games."

Stern node board system is reliable despite controversy