Yeah I am definitely looking forward to this game. Any time frame for its release?

Soon !

Happy new year SR

sr (resized).JPG

What will it be!!!

It will be good.
Very good!

Is this still a thing? I heard from a friend that his next game is no longer unlicensed. Superman 1978 / Steve Ritchie?

That would be great. Otisburgh, Still the best Superman and it always will be.

terrence-stamp-as-general-zod-in-superman-ii (resized).jpg

Just have to rename it Dark Warrior 3k then, and Fast Speeding 3 LOL

I thought that I read years ago that Game of Thrones was originally going to be a design for black knight 3000, but Steve liked the theme so much, that he used his design for bk3k on GoT. Furthermore I thought that it was mentioned that GoT was kinda his dream theme, his magnum opus.

If anyone sees him at an expo I’d love to ask him about bk3k

My favorite SR game as a total package is STLE. It’s stunning and fun to play. Although I’m not a big fan of the upper PF on GOT Prem/LE it’s a pretty cool game and I love the Pro.

I’m really looking forward to his next game and hope to see it soon! Without counting up all the releases etc, it seems like he should be up soon in the rotation.

Yeah I am really looking forward to see what he comes up with...I hope he is still working on this and hasn’t been redirected since nothing seems to be known about this lately. Usually info gets leaked a bit.

I’m hoping that Zombie Yeti’s latest work is for the next Steve Ritchie masterpiece.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BtEFpWfFiHi/?utm_source=ig_share_sheet&igshid=19f0ip8aig77v

If it was, he wouldn't be showing it off.

Actually I’d live to see a Dirty Donny take on BK 3K.

I’m guessing it could be a BK3, since this year marks the 30th anniversary of BK2000...

I believe this is the next Stern game in late March/early April.

If it’s BK3 I’m gonna have to sell some games.

With a Black Knight bash toy

No, a Beige Knight bash toy! This is one of BKs nemeses. He tries to make BK more nice, giving, humanitarian and healthy, but the BK just isn’t having it...

They'd have to license BK from Scientific Games (who owns Williams). And since this in an unlicensed game......

Black Knight isn’t trademarked and it seems a little too generic of a name to need a license for. I’m no lawyer, but as long as Stern doesn’t remake the originals they can probably slap a 3000 on there and be safe.

https://trademarks.justia.com/712/16/black-knight-71216078.html

Since Superman 78 is next i don't know when Black Knight is getting released. Guessing this summer

Doubtful.

Eh. Just a thought. One can dream.

Steve's next game - Non licensed theme is ' Play Better '

I'm really not so sure this would make a great pinball machine.

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Seriously? When will DC realize that DC superhero’s suck compared to Marvel superheroes. The comics are not as good, the cartoons are not as good, the movies are not as good, and I’m betting the pinballs also won’t be as good. Hahaha.

Batman is the best thing DC has going, and his super power is that he’s just a rich guy with toys. On his own Batman is awesome; but compared to most Marvel characters, he doesn’t hold a chance.

Oh the comics and cartoons are lacking so this will translate into a inferior game? Come on. and by that I also mean stop putting too much thought into comics and Marvel movies. Oh and Superman '78 kicks any of the other superman films ass.

Frankly all this comic book super hero crap is so overexposed at this point I wish it would go away and never come back. I prefer my heros to be real and the plot lines are pointless and ridiculous. But apparently it’s just me.

I like comic & super hero games if done right. Good variety.

We need someone to do an Avengers Endgame with real sounds, voices, and clips. No cheapen out - give it the full treatment. It's too epic of a franchise to only have the Stern Avengers 1 version out there. JJP go for it.

Comics if done right like Spiderman and I guess now with Batman66 can be a lot of fun. Just need to properly match things up.

DC comics are solid, like Justice League. Problem is the movie end of DC stinks it up.

A Black Knight bash toy on BK3K would not make sense to me. Why would you bash the main character?
3 playfields on BK3K would make sense to me. But it also made sense to me on Munsters and that didn't happen.

I am not a fan of toys on the playfield that interact with the ball. They break and get beat up. Tasteful, off-playfield props and animated features are cool, though.
A laser sword swinging Black Knight on a robotic horse would be awesome.

Marvel blows chunks of donkey dung.

If I want to read about whiny superheroes complaining about how they can't pay the rent or how the world is mean to them, I'll read Marvel.

If I want to watch gods battle, I read DC.

You bash the main character on several pins. It's rarely the bad guy you bash.

Enjoy your emo super-heroes.

I like it. I’d love him as a cybernetic knight atop a badass motorcycle, or a horse/motorcycle hybrid like the Centaur character. He’d wield a collapsible lightning sword and a shotgun like a medieval-ised/modern Terminator. But that’s just me.

Hhm, makes sense to me, but I always play BK and BK2K as though I'm battling him: that's how I've instinctively seen it since a kid. Is this not the common viewpoint? I thought it was...

Always thought this also. Fighting against the black knight.

“You’ve got the power, you’ve got to might, get ready for battle.... beat the black knight!”

Also, “Stand up and fight!!!”

You are absolutely battling against the Black Knight.

You are correct, it doesn’t make sense. What about putting the main character on a spring or on a stick? Would that make sense?

All this talk of BK3000 is killing me. I miss my BK2000

30 year anniversary for BK2000, Congrats Steve Ritchie !

One of the coolest pinball tracks

He killed Superman.

You got to give him credit for getting rid of that idiot.

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Title is bit of a mouthful. Thanks to frankmac for the image.

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Thanks Steve Ritchie and team Stern for
Black Knight SoR.

The game looks sensational and I believe it will fun and challenging. Go well with code Tim and team, sounds detailed and exciting.

Don't forget to give IMDN the final polish when you can please Tim.

Glad you are staying in the scene Steve and working on your next game while doing what you can to develop the upcoming talent.

I am always hungry for new pinball and looking forward to your next game late next year perhaps ?

Rock on always SR The King.

FTW

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/iron-maiden-100-bugs-and-features

Very cool modern throwback game

My usually reliable "insider" info. was a tad off with this one. Here's a post I made on RGP back in 2011:

"Black Knight 2012 - Armagedden" (The Final Battle) will complete the
trilogy and have a feature never seen before. Save your pennies for
BK3."

SoR 10/10

Kills Wonka 9/10

PL "The Master" has smooth layout, pity pats amazing efforts spoiled by lame theme

SR "The King" has the action and excitement !

BK SoR FTW !

It's been a while since there's been a post on this topic but I thought I would chime in with an observation from (perhaps) a "unique" perspective. I am a SR fan! I played the h*ll out of High Speed, Black Knight, Firepower etc... back when they first came out and, like many of you, I have fond memories of them! Unlike most of you, here on the forum, I took a hiatus from pinball (I got married and the local bars and arcades quit carrying pinball) for about 20+ years.
To say I missed playing was an understatement! My parents had a Harley Davidson that I played on holidays and I would see an occasional machine at a truck stop arcade but that was essentially it. I decided to change all that in 2017 by picking up a High Speed in decent condition.

Why HS? Simple, it was the game I fell in love with and remembered the best! Quite frankly, I didn't have a clue who Steve Ritchie was (nor did I care at the time.) I enjoyed the game and herein may lie an uncomfortable truth: these "classic" SR designs were innovative, interesting and enjoyable to the point of me plunking down quarters without even thinking about it! The same was true of the Black Knight when I played it (and F-14, Firepower, etc...) The point I'm making is that, for me, these machines were the pinacle of pinball!

Now, fast-forward to 2020 and pinball has completely changed! Everything is themed and gimmicks and toys abound! I read your comments about what you want (or don't want) in a game and I find myself feeling "old fashioned" with my simplistic view of pinball! Perhaps this is because there aren't five different manufacturers pumping out a plethora of machines each year that we can go to the neighborhood store and play. With prices for machines continuing to climb, the need for a "home run" is greater than ever! Each machine seems packed to the gills with "stuff!!" I was (quite honestly) somewhat overwhelmed!

It wasn't until I joined Pinside that I realized that most of my favorite designs were "classic" SR's! His designs "flow" quite well (as many of you have observed.) I have researched his newer designs and I am trying them out. It may be the times I grew up in (EM and early SS machines) but I feel more comfortable with the "classic" designs. What I WOULD be interested in is one that combined the best of the classic features with upgraded sound, lighting and graphics. Go "old school" with a modern twist! I'm partial to automobiles and I like spy themes! You can do all sorts of interesting things in this genre without being Bond, Bourne, or Wick! The trick is to make it engrossing while keeping the playfield "uncluttered." Gimmicks and toys have their place but I really do think that a new design with a "classic" (I hesitate to use the word "retro" ) feel would play well with the public!

While not a Steve Ritchie machine, check out The Beatles. Stern took one of their well loved classic designs, Seawitch, and upgraded it much like you describe. Unfortunately the price, due to crazy license fees, have kept it's popularity low, but it seems most people agree it is a blast to play. It would be interesting to see what would happen if they released it as an unlicensed theme...even just as Seawitch again, at a much lower price point.

There have been a couple other attempts at a retro style with Woah Nellie and it's reskins, Pabst Can Crusher and Primus, but again they failed to become very popular.