I like many Stern pins but the build quality is whats keeping me from buying more. Just take a look at the Clearcoat on a IM & compare it to that of a Bally/Williams from over 15 years ago & its amazing how poor it looks.

There is a IM on location at a local bowling alley & the playfield around the Monger magnet has sunken in all around the edges. I mean does it really cost that much more to apply a few extra coats of clear to a playfield??

I very much love my SM & there are a few other pretty good Stern title's (LOTR, FG, IM) to name a few but from a pure longevity standpoint I'm sticking to what I know will stand up for the long haul.

Im glad Stern is still in business & has kept the hobby alive for over a decade since B/W's closed their pinball division but I think we can all agree they can do better. And i'm not talking about making games as toy filled as the past cause i'm sure we all know that may cost too much but how about some better flippers, more clearcoat, a tad better artwork (enough with the photoshop crap).

These things shouldnt drive up the cost of the games that much & since they are already charging over a grand more then what games used to cost (sometimes 2k more if you consider the costs of these new LE's) these changes should be quite possible.