My girlfriend would buy a Golden Girls pin INSANTLY. Super LE even lol. If they make a Whiz-Bang Elvira game, it's purely for collectors. It's not a "cornerstone game", so the 10-30 demographic is irrelevant. They'll get them on Star Wars.

Lol you don't even know if there will be an LE tier and you're ready to throw extra money at Stern despite their code and QC issues? When will the madness end!?!?!?!?!

Impossible, it's a GB.

Look a few posts up. Still there as of this post.

If you were a kid in the 80’s, Turtles were the biggest thing ever. Plenty of us still have nostalgia for it, and aside from that - it’s an evergreen property. It’s never stopped. There have always been reboots of the series...it’s popular with each generation of kids. The original movie (not the Vanilla Ice one) still holds up remarkably well. One of best comic book/hero movies ever - especially considering it was a low budget indie movie.

Not that I want to buy a new pin ever again, but if they did 80’s TMNT & did it RIGHT - with all of the original voices (except Shredder, James Avery died) & original music - I would be interested.

Reminds me of BK3 in a few ways.

-It’s banking off of pinball nostalgia. Sure, Elvira has a brand outside of pinball - but it’s pretty niche. Stern is hoping pinball people will think “I loved those old Elvira games, I’ll get this one, too!” Didn’t work for Black Knight...fans/owners of classic games are happy with their classic games & have no interest in $10k Sterns. New pinball buyers don’t have nostalgia for the old games, so the themes have no sway with them.

-Art is worse than the beloved old versions. Weirdly busy & ugly color schemes on both. Strange character drawings that are flat & attempt perspective poorly. Even if you love the old versions, you can’t bring yourself to spend that much on a game that looks worse. It’s odd that the artist who did the first 2 Elviras did this and it ended up so wonky instead of outdoing the old ones in every way. Translite looks like a first pass that was thrown out, and someone fan-colored it.

What Elvira has that BK didn’t is Lyman. That alone will probably make this the best game in years.

As though any “babe” is impressed by any of your nerdy themed nerdy pin toys.

That qualifies as multiball.

It’ll probably just be cosmetic. Different art, topper, etc. Would be cool if Cassandra would do personalized callouts like Adam West did for Batman.

That's where I met you! I still have the Silhouette Mirage poster & pin you gave me!

Women should be able to wear what they want without having to worry about you harassing or abusing them.

Please post a picture of yourself if you're going to judge others on their looks.

"Distributor Streams" will NEVER say ANYTHING other than good things. They're businesses trying to sell games. They're not objective and never will be.

Sorry, I don't see that we're in a world where 400 Elvira fans all rise (heh) simultaneously to fork over $10k for a pinball machine. They're probably sell eventually...but not day 1 like Metallica. That's a theme that never had a game to satiate fans. There are 2 Elvira pins already most hardcore Elvira fans already have and are happy with.

50 Super LEs will prob all sell right away, though...always at least 50 speculators or mega-richies to sell 50 unplayed unfinished untested hype boxes.

Nope, it’s going to be original 80’s TV version. Nick is cool with that. Look at the Arcade 1up TMNT & other 80’s Turtles merch that’s out there.

Oh god....please please please no lock bar button rules like “slap the button to NOT eat the pizza”.

You clearly don’t know the longevity of the TMNT theme. 100% of college aged students know it.

The original show was on from 1987-1996. The Fox Kids show was on from 2003-2010. The Nick CG show was on from 2012-2017. The current show started in 2018 and is still on. Plus all the movies, video games, toys. Turtles has NEVER been out of the life of kids since the 80’s. It’s an evergreen property known by all, except maybe late-40’s+ pinball buyers.

Well, yeah....if you spend $10k-$15k on a pin and its playfield is made of mush....then yeah, bitching will commence & be warranted.

Nope. Last new Stern game I bought was STLE NIB...and that was after seeing my friend's get mushy craters after just a few games. I thought $7300 shipped for an LE was insane, but I got wrapped up in the pretty lights. No idea what I was thinking - although luckily mine had a decent playfield. At this point I'm fully out of "the cult"...just an outsider looking in at this point. It's bizarre to watch people keep throwing more and more money at unproven quality.

This is an Elvira drawing by Family Guy artist Wincat Alcala. They SHOULD have hired a Family Guy artist.

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Those games get away with that price because of the constant flow of dollars they bring in. Pinball, even in a good location, won’t bring in the money kiddie-gambling machines do. Also, no one is buying those games for home use.

It would be interesting to hear from operators if pinballs these days actually pay for themselves & profit prior to being sold. They definitely seem to function as part of a bigger concept like a barcade - get people in the door & make money off food & drinks....but do they bring in enough to be considered profitable on their own?

“Cartoony”? Every single Elvira game is cartoony AF. The newest one even moreso...like someone from Archer assembled it out of After Effects symbol parts. I think what you mean is that it’s stylized. Clearly, Cassandra likes Freres’ style....though I wonder why Cassandra approved such an oddly-posed big-headed drawing that doesn’t look as nice as her previous 2 games....they had time to do a few more passes.

LOL but weirdly posed, poorly colored, giant head Elvira will part people from $10k?

Once again - outside the pinball cult looking in. Fascinating.

I'm literally saying the same exact thing.

Artwork isn't as good as the first 2 Elviras & that matters. It's not horrible...could be better, though. For pinball people, it's good enough. Kiss artwork was pretty bad, pinball people loved it. BK3 artwork was wonky as well...pinball people loved it. Standards are low for $10k games now, it is what it is.

Like most games, it probably looks much better when lit by it's own GI & inserts...art always pops more with real light and shadows. I even thought Elvis looked good in person with its own lighting, even though it's a truly horrible art package....then again, I think I picked up that game for $1700 ...my standards for art drop when the price is lower.

Nah, the "cult" still buys every new game & dismisses rational critique of extremely expensive product as "negativity". The "cult" thinks nothing of these prices even when quality is questionable, units aren't field tested & code is unfinished. The "cult" thinks "influencers" like Jack Danger & Zach Meny are objective fans and not businessmen trying to sell product. I love pinball, but sorry, the current state of the hobby is the NIB Cult, and I'm not part of that.

Their salesmen talking points get into the hobbyist lingo, though. Watching Zach and Greg shit all over Addams Family while blowing their load for every unfinished mediocre new game was all I needed to see to know that nothing they say is relevant to reality....but because of people like them, you now you have people saying stuff like "B/W games are too shallow for a home game" when we all know that the REASON "home games" are even a thing is because B/W games are so F'ing good that they've stood the test of time & so fun and replayable that people want these clunky coin-op machines in their house!

Agreed. Lyman makes the best games, so I'll be happy to take it for a test spin when it comes out...and if my wife (a huge Elvira fan) and I like it - maybe pick up a used one down the road.

I did. Very fun game. Sold it a while ago, though - can’t keep them all!

Impressions after watching the video:

-Is that a blacklight trick on the ramp in front of the house? There's a ghostly face that sometimes appears on it...I'm guessing there's a blacklight LED hidden above the front door? ...that's really cool.

-I like the trunk lid on the ramp...that's very "Nordman" to have something different on a ramp than the usual return.

-The Deadhead shot/mech is cool. I dig any change-state shot...dig that sometimes it's a bash toy, sometimes it's a scoop.

This is a very B/W-esque game from Stern, with all of its well thought out and functional toys & features. Looking forward to playing this, actually....last few games I haven't even bothered to go try.

Maybe they're lady gargoyles? Ya know, like how they said "girl" in old movies? Goil.

Not really...Pros always have features removed. There's no Pro here in any form. Prem & LE are more or less in line with normal Prem & LE pricing....Signature is just the LE with different bling.

Art differences aside,
Pro has always been = Features removed
Premium has always been = Full featured
LE has always been = Full featured + extra bling like shaker motors, backglass, color armor, etc.

This fits the normal parameters of Premium & LE. There's no features-removed version...no Pro.

Not trying to change your mind. I'm trying to give you facts. The labels on this game are literally the same as always...no Pro exists this time. Fact = Pro is a cheaper, feature-stripped model. There's no Pro.

Why ouch? Your job is to sell games. Good for you. Whenever Gary Stern was asked what his favorite game was, he answered with whichever one was the newest on the line. Does anyone expect Gary to be an objective game reviewer? Of course not. Same with you. Jack Danger’s newest video about GB referred to the game as “beloved” He’s a Stern employee. You’re a Stern distributor. You’ll never be honest about games from a player or buyers perspective. And that’s fine...as long as everyone understands it is what it is.

Of course it's not malice...but it's similar to what's going on in all hobbies & pop culture interests - fans of a thing like to watch "influencers" in Youtube & Twitch, because they present themselves as "hey, we're just regular people just like you!" when the reality is that they're sales people specifically trying to come off as regular people. I feel like many people don't quite get that, and consider "influencers" to be some kind of hobby experts.

You can still get the boney finger flippers that were originally for Scared Stiff. I put them on my Monster Bash...if I got this game, I'd put them on it!

B/W games with moderate dimpling even out. Not modern mushy soft crater playfields. Those will look like ass forever. Good luck, $10k-$15k buyers!

I’ve seen TWD’s with lumpy clay playfields, but also ones with mirror perfect ones. If I loved a game, I’d care & want the one that doesn’t look defective.

I’m sure gargoyles hitting the glass was intentional. Nordman designed Whitewater’s left ramp return specifically so the ball would hit the glass.

Obvious distributor is obvious.

Monster Bash is a bonafide classic, designed by a legend, coded by Lyman Sheats, that plays smooth as butter & is a perfect example of a perfect game.

Goatf*****s has the worst physical design ever seen in a pinball machine, designed by a convicted pedophile, just got a band-aid update after 3 years to try to make it slightly less horrible, and will always play like absolute trash. TOP 5!?!?!? OMFG.

I don’t believe you’ve ever owned or played “almost every game” if you think Goatf*****s “feels” better than any game made in the history of pinball. The airballs, the lane hops, the rattley shots that go stdm, the saucer that kicks stdm, the right ramp that never makes the curve on the Prem, the stupid manga slings that drop the ball down the middle, the flipper gap from hell....no other game feels like that. Monster Bash feels perfect when played. And that ruleset? Can’t hold a candle to anything made from the 90’s-2014.

Dude says it should be Top 5 and I’M the troll? I didn’t bring it up. Trolling starts with the Top 5 guy’s post.

Gaslighter. I am good. Good play isn’t relevant on a horribly designed game.

False Equivalency. Hitting a moving target that sometimes sends the ball to a drain is normal.

Not normal:
Loops rattle to a drain.
Drop target airball over flippers to a drain.
Saucer lockout to a drain.
Inlane hops over to outlane for a drain.
Slings to a center drain (magna sling).
Pops exit to a drain 80% of the time.

That literally never happened. The B/W snobs at the time complained about the usual Stern things: low res cabinet & plastic art, the sound quality compared to WPC + WPC95, the loudness & feel of the flippers, and off the shelf toys....but as a game - design & code, it always had massive respect. The snobs loved it (and LOTR) despite their distaste of Stern.

Im not a snob. I was hyping & loving Stern games when the B/W snobs hated them. I was singing the praises of Iron Man when the collectors loathed it and marked it as the end off Stern. I’ve owned almost every Stern game, and still have 7. GB by the measure of the standards of design has issues. Even fans will acknowledge it, and they are valid reasons it’ll never be a Top 5 game.

Also Beatles sucks.

TNA is one of my favorite games.

Your talent at insults is equal to to your taste in pins.

I'd have to play it first, but on principal I don't believe in buying unfinished games, especially at $10k-$15k.

Based on the stream, it needs more Elvira callouts during gameplay...I'm sure those exist and just weren't implemented yet. Lyman always does phenomenal work, so I'm sure that it'll eventually be a very good game. I just wouldn't buy one until it gets to a more complete point.

Always having fun!!! So happy!!! All the time!!!!

Also it’s “drivel” not “dribble”.

That's been a problem with Stern's LCDs since their inception...lack of a cohesive style, various generic non-matching fonts, and just a general outdated 90's PC CD-ROM look. This started happening on some DMD games like Star Trek and GB as they led up to the changeover to LCD - they have a mix of pre-rendered CG & traditional dots animation....and even different styles within the dots animation, clearly showing that different people were creating different assets.

Some games have drop targets, some don't...seems to be more of a design decision than a money decision (unless a Prem/LE has drops and the Pro doesn't). Standups play differently than drops...maybe this is what Dennis wanted? Forgive me if he said somewhere that he had planned drops & they were costed out.

Hey I hear ya on the enough is enough. Stern NIB prices reached peak stupidity in 2014 IMO & and flat out evil with B66 in 2016.

That being said, games have always sometimes had plastic ramps, sometimes metal. I see that more as a game to game and designer preference thing vs. a cost issue.

At the end of the day, you’re not paying per part. You’re buying a product that’s price is dictated by the cost of running the business. These prices are paying for all the employees, the factory, the marketing, the licensing, the travel, etc. If Stern still only had 1 designer, 1 dots artist, and 1 programmer like they did in 2010, prices could probably be lower...but that’s just not the reality of how the joint is run. So - when looking at a new pin & price, you have to look at one simple thing: DO I NEED THIS? If you love the theme & the game is super fun, buy it. If anything about the purchase will bother you, pass. Stern is gonna Stern. This will not change.

Elvira's schtick is LITERALLY feminism. I guess you never turned on the volume?

Yeah, women have more power now. You're old and bitter about it. It worked. Sorry that you see equality as oppression.

Projection much? Pics of your glistening beautiful face before you randomly insult the women of the world.

It’s a forum about toys for rich old white guys. Unfortunately but predictably, many haven’t mentally evolved from their teenage years....they consider themselves in like company & freely spew their bigotry and ignorance. It’s gross, but definitely let’s me know who not to do business with.

You literally know nothing about women or feminism.

She's the one making the innuendo...not men at her expense.
She's the one calling out creepers and putting them in their place.
She's the one who looks and dresses how she wants...no man is going to tell her to be modest or get away with slut shaming her.
She's one of the OG Girl Bosses.
She's in charge of her world...she's letting you enjoy it.

Elvira = feminism.

Rolled what way? Explain your insult for the class.

Cool so we’ve learned people don’t understand what sexism is & now they don’t understand what racism is, but they’ll quickly jump to use the terms to smear people if it fits their desire to attack and belittle. I never said “ONLY” about anything. Don’t fucking put words in my mouth. Shame on you.

Quick look at this guy’s FB page. Nonstop alt-right insanity & Trumpy white supremecsim. And he calls ME a racist!!!? Figures. Projection projection projection.

Pinsiders, avoid this disingenuous racist at all costs.