Great post! From my perspective, this ^^^ is what effects me the most as a customer. Fortunately, Pat & Chas in Stern support are responsive/supportive. Without them at the helm of support, I'd be much more cautious about buying new games. Stern's games just aren't as reliable as the use to be (https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/kiss-lights-out-updating-node-board#post-4510198).

snaroff

No doubt Stern shouldn't blindly listen to Pinside, however most successful businesses try and listen to their loyal customers (and Stern has made changes over recent years that I'm certain were helped by Pinside chatter).

One of the biggest/smartest decisions Stern made is hiring new design talent. Without Keith Elwins contributions, Stern wouldn't be in the same place!

I only made 1 post 3 years ago and what I feared did pan out. With Pat & Chas gone and Stern's decision to force us to go through distributors for support/parts, support has suffered. When I hear about Rush boards frying and people having to wait weeks/months, it's a bummer. Sure, I guess part of the problem may be COVID hangover, but it still sucks that you can't get Stern support to deal with us on warranty issues directly. Fortunately, my games have been on good behavior lately