THANK YOU.

I thought I was the only one. I'm not a Stern person at all and it's primarily for this reason. These guys have good heads on their shoulders, why not use them?

Go back to 1995. After David Copperfield dropped out of Theatre of Magic (which was to be a license until that happened), the team at Bally had to think on their feet, within a deadline, how to make it work out with an original idea. Well, it more than worked out. It's a classic and a favorite of many, including myself!

Fast-forward to now. Big Buck Hunter...whaaaaaat??? I didn't even hear of that until reading this thread. Oh, boy. Can you say "desperate?" If Stern made halfway decent machines with their licenses, I wouldn't mind, but it seems to be all about cashing in now, with few exceptions (I enjoyed LoTR and PoTC.)

The problem is the demographic. Today's generation needs something they can relate to. If they see a franchise they know and are familiar with, they'll play it regardless of quality and mechanics. But if it's completely alien to them, then they'll probably leave it and go and play Guitar Hero or something. I was just in Florida and every single arcade at Disney World either contained no pinball at all or licensed Stern - prime example. I'm a teenager, and probably one of the few that recognizes this decline; unlike other people my age, it actually saddens me.

We can't change society, but since Stern's personnel seem to have working brains, I (and probably many others) would love to see them show that that they are capable of thinking for themselves.