I don't even know what to say about this unfortunate news. What a blow.

Condolences to his family.

Another incredible irreplaceable loss to the pinball world. Condolences to all his family, friends, and co-workers...

Speechless. He was a great, amazing, kind, ultra-talented person. RIP.

I met Lyman once at Pinburgh, shortly after I bought Metallica. He was indeed one of the friendliest giants there ever was in pinball.

WTF , like everyone else , my thoughts and prayers to his family and friends , what a loss . What a legend .

IMG_20220122_025622 (resized).jpg

Man… what a huge loss… fuck.

Unreal, a great guy and personality that went well beyond pinball. I am glad to have called him a friend. He has left the community with a lot he can be remembered by. RIP

Terrible news. My condolences to his friends and family.

Such sad and terrible news. RIP to a true pinball legend who has designed the rules for some of my favorite games. His legacy will live on in his games as he has brought much joy to us all. Prayers to his family and close friends.

NO. I don't believe this.

So sad. Thoughts and prayers to his family and friends.

Well this ruined my weekend. Condolences to his family.

literally just sat down after playing Spider-Man and thinking about how much I love Lyman's code in it and in general, then see this at the top of the forum. Surreal.

He belongs on the Mt Rushmore of pinball, and after listening to all his interviews that I could find, I felt like I knew the guy.

Condolences to any who actually did know him that may read this thread to see the massive impact he made on the people of this hobby.

Great guy and a pinball legend.Way to young and will be missed.So sad to see you go, way to soon. Thanks Lyman for all the greatness you brought to pinball.

so sad.

Anyone know what happened? Was young and looks healthy. Guess you never know. Horrible

Absolutely devastating news, lost for words on this one, truly a great guy in every sense of the word!

Ughh wtf rip legend

Such a tragic loss.

Rest in peace, Master of Code.

Some perspective from IPDb search:

A4C98BF7-CE9F-44E5-B174-0631083A4801 (resized).png

RIP Lyman Sheet. Remembering you always when flipping on your code and games.

Absolutely gutted... 2022 can pack it up and go home now. From outward appearances, he looked to be in good health so that makes the news even that much more surprising.

Thank you Lyman for everything you brought to this wonder hobby/industry. You will be missed.

Hope this is not true. If so his work will live on as a memorial to all of the enjoyment he has provided and continues to provide the masses.

Wow, I'm shocked.

Add the upcoming Cactus Canyon code to the list as well.

In other words, multiple generations of
IN LYMAN WE TRUST!!
Incredible body of work.

Sad day for the hobby, and even more so for his family and friends. RIP.

Shocking news. Way too young. Maybe he had something he kept to himself like Norm McDonald.

Such an influence in pinball. I mean look at Metallica, goes from a disappointing game when it was released to one of the greats. All because of his brilliance.

RIP Lyman when it comes to pinball code and passion for it Jack Danger quoted it best no body does it better!

I felt lucky to meet Lyman a few times at some shows as if it was the thing that stood out from the trip. Great polished games he made!

Wow, I am totally blown away by this news. Beyond anything pinball related I really feel for his family and loved ones. My heart goes out to them.

I’m in shock. He was young, what a loss for the community

Wow....just wow. No one should ever go that soon. He will be missed and biggest blow to pinball community in a LONG time.

I’m in shock…we were talking just the other day. I don’t even know what to say. He was a legend in this business & hobby. Ultra nice guy & a good friend. My heart breaks for Penni.

Everyone here appreciates what an amazing contribution Lyman made to our activity. What a shock and sad news. Rest in peace. The legend himself -- I am going to get an Attack from Mars soon in tribute I hope.

Rip greatest code developer of all time!! my condolences to his family and friends pinball legend

Exactly. First thing I did was look up his credentials. His games were amazing and I didn’t want to believe it!! We’ll never get another MM, or TWD or AFM. Lyman was a GOAT from the start. What a talented guy.
An awful terrible loss for pinball, the hobby, and all those who worked with him.

What will happen with CCr now?? His code was a massive selling point.

One of my favorite TOPCast episodes is with Lyman. Highly recommend sitting down and listening to this one in full.

Rest In Peace Lyman! Thanks for all the hard work!

http://www.pinrepair.com/topcast/topcast_50.mp3

Imagine how many folks in the hobby were convinced to dive deeper after a great experience playing a Lyman coded game. Between that and the list of titles to his credit, what an amazing legacy.

Rest in Pinball, Lyman!

Back when i owned Reciprocal Skateshop in the E.village of Manhattan, I used to run a tournament called Pinferno. We did it every year or so. So in, or around 2011, His wonderful girlfriend Penni, whom many of you probably know, was still living in NYC and was a regular face there, playing almost daily. Lyman flew in for one of the tournaments, both to compete and to spend time with her. So, rewind maybe 3 months or so before, I had just bought a NIB LOTR LE, which came with the authenticity certificate unsigned by Gary Stern. That's right, the signature line was left blank. As well, there was no goodie bag! I was like WTF?!? So i jokingly wrote an RGP Post reviewing the machine and insisting that Gary owes me his signature. In one line I asked "do you realize how many parent-less skate rats, asking for free-s&^t all day long, i have to put up with to earn $5000??". It never occurred to me that anyone at Stern would ever actually see it. Fast forward back to the day of the tournament, and Lyman walks into the shop. We're all mesmerized. We were looking at, and about the play against THE LYMAN SHEATS!!! The guy who did the code on Spider-Man!! So first he hands me a Spidey translight, because he knew it was one of my favorite games. It included a very nice message written on it, which i proudly still have today. Then he pulls out a LOTR goodie bag, and a new certificate with Gary's signature on it, and says "Gary says this is for you, and he wants to know.. exactly how many skate-rats DO you have to put up with to earn $5000?!?"

RIP Lyman. And we love you Penni, and are here for you in any and every way.

Here's the original RGP post from 11 years ago:-------------------------------------------------------

so it's been a good few weeks since i purchased a nib lotr le, and
tore it open like it contained the answers to life and beyond. i
figured i'd wait to judge how i felt about the purchase, and see,
after it all settled in, if i got what i paid for...

i know this topic has been poured over by several emotional buyers
already, but i'm not angry, and i'm not excited, i'm just going to
call it like i see it.

pros:
- the seller was awesome, and great to deal with (not stern's doing)
- the cardboard box it came in, seemed custom tailored, in size, to
the machine.
- it has a lotr playfield.
- it came with pinballs, so you can use the product.
- my cats love to lay on the backbox, just like every other machine
(also, not stern's doing).
- i truly respect stern, and the fact that they still make machines.
someone's gotta do it, so it's really better than nothing.

cons:
- it cost 5g's
- the ring magnet coil fuse was either blown, from factory, or blew
the moment i turned the game on.
- the side art is so pixelated, you have to either stand 25 ft back,
or squint really hard to make it out.
- the gold side rails are screaming, 'please don't touch me if you
want me stay looking this way!!'
- penis on the backglass? eh, i can live with that.
- stern ran out of figurines. let me repeat that, stern.. ran.. out..
of.. figurines! what?? if the halal cart outside my shop ran out of
lamb, they would stop selling gyros. they wouldn't hand me a pita and
tomatoes, and tell me to go to a farm and slaughter my own.
- the goodie bag was, wait... what goodie bag?
- the manual looked photocopied. i guess the company that made the
figurines, also made the manuals.
- and the real kick in the hairdick!?? the certificate that came with
it, was not signed by you gary. it was a blank signature line. i mean,
c'mon! seriously?? i forked over all this hard earned cash to buy this
collector edition item, and you forgot to sign the one piece of paper
that can salvage all the cost-cutting this thing underwent? this thing
isn't going on location gary, so i'm not going to make this money
back. this is a present to myself. and yes, despite my ranting and
raving, i really appreciate what you and your company does, so i want
your autograph!

see, gary, i own a skateboard shop in nyc. do you realize how many
parent-less skate rats, asking for free-s&^t all day long, i have to
put up with to earn $5000?? trust me, it's alot! so when i make a
decision to drop serious coin on anything, i simply want what i paid
for. i don't have your private number or email, so i have to post
publicly.

so, gary stern, you owe me your signature....

let's do this... you have an open invite to come to the 'pinferno VI'
pinball tournament, which takes place all-day on saturday, feb. 12th,
2011 at reciprocal skateshop. there are 32 total spots going up for
grabs on monday, jan 12th at noon, and it usually fills in less than 2
days, so contact me ASAP. if you like, you can compete, or if you
prefer, just come have a few beers, hang out, and talk to some good
folks who truly love pinball. i'll have the certificate here, along
with a brand new fine tip pen waiting for your arrival. i'll even give
you a brand new, complete skateboard for the road. i'm sure you have
kids, nephews/nieces, or just know someone who loves skateboarding.
it's a win-win!

email me, and i'll let you know flight options.

p.s. bring lyman

thanks for keeping it alive, and listening to criticism.

-jon - reciprocal nyc

Terrible news. He will be missed.

All that game-specific code doesn't even convey the significance of his coding the fundamental operating system software for Stern!
.................David Marston

My jaw dropped after seeing this thread title. Couldn't believe it.

Truly a legend. RIP.

I've been friends with Penni for decades and there isn't a sweeter, nicer human on the planet. I am totally gutted for her in this, they really were soulmates. What a tragic loss.

RiP Lyman.
They go in threes. Meat Loaf, Louie Anderson and now Lyman....

Shocked. Wow, just wow. RIP to one of the most influential people in the industry. This is a sad day.

The most shocking news I've heard in pinball. Probably the most mentioned industry professional on this site. Always delivered the best he could offer. RIP to a legendary codemaster.

not sure it was done or started yet

THAT SUCKS.

Fuck. :/