I like the song selections. Great songs for their earlier work.
Looking at the rules card, it looks pretty fun:

Drop Target - Increase Bonus, complete all targets in a bank to increase bonus mult. complete all 3 sets of drops to light EXTRA BALL.
Drop 1964 - in order for bonus points
John/Paul/George/Ringo - increase spinner value
Spell FABFOUR to qualify a song. Shoot top loop to start song (that's why there is a magnet!)
Songs: All my loving (2 ball MB),Drive my car (left/right loops), I should have known better(drops),Ticket to ride(spinners), It wont be long (pops)
Finish all 5 songs: Hard days night (4ballMB)

So 6 feature songs and 2 other songs (Can't buy me love and Help not sure what they do...maybe hurryups?)

So at least we know there is a 2 ball and 4 ball MB.

Looks great to me pretty killer to me. Looking forward to seeing the other art packages.

Any ideas yet on what differentiates gold from the others?

Hopefully they have were able to get full or most of each song, I think this thing is looking good!

Yes you are missing something, just like the 30 other people who asked that exact rhetorical question.

If you want a Beatles pinball machine - instead of the approximately 9 million other things on the planet you can spend $6k on - you’ll consider buying this Beatles pinball machine, even though - perhaps even BECAUSE - it’s not monster bash.

Looks amazing for 3500 bucks!

Ridiculous!!!

For 3500 bucks I can buy a beat up transformers or a super nice Centaur!!

Am I missing something??????

If you buy this pin, you'll be missing about 5000 extra dollars.....

This pin should cost $6k. It would sell in volume at that.

It will sell at $10k no problem.

If Beatles fans will buy an $80 toilet seat, a $100 blanket or a $50 set of shot glasses, they'll buy anything (especially with no coin door).

So the diamond edition will be 10k?

Does the gold version have a coin door with coin mechs?

I take back what I said about the colors. In full view it looks bitchin'. I just don't care for the blades, is all. I'd like to play an amped up Seawitch.

I'd like to buy that entry ramp to retro fit on my Seawitch. The Stern parts guy tells me that if it is NOT considered a Limited Edition then parts will be available to buy.

Do 1964 units qualify as regular production? How does Stern determine this?

This is the first modern Stern where the total production run is known.

All versions will have a standard coindoor. The press release photo was taken before the finalized product was approved.

Maybe when all the Beatles fans start dying off you could find one that low

Ha that’s true!

So...happy everybody?

Good point. Fast forward 20 years from now....

Never played sw. What do you use the upper left flipper for that can't be hit with the lower ones?

Treat this one like owning a boat. It is fun to use your buddy's that you didn't pay anything toward, but not worth the headache and depreciation hit of owning yourself.

So, exactly the same as every other NIB pinball machine on the market.

It does help to look at it that way!

Nothing really. It's just fun to bash those center drops from close range, with a (usually) safer carom after the shot.

I guess in theory you can shoot through the pops to the upper right target area.

YOu can also just hold that flipper up on a full plunge and take out some drops.

And, you can use the top left flipper to shoot through the pops and knock down some of the top right drops.

I did it yesterday! Super fun.

It might be theory with this new pin with this spinner that is new. But on Seawitch I shoot into the pops area all of the time for those upper targets. That upper left flipper gets used---a lot.

If this machine was a Seawitch "remix" with the new added mechanisms, LCD screen, new code, updated artwork, etc, at $6500 it would be flying off the shelves in a "take my money now" fashion. The license is driving up the cost on this, we all know that. It would be interesting to see what the reaction would be to this approach to a "throwback" hybrid sort of game from stern WITHOUT the baggage and added cost of the Beatles license.

Frankly I think they killed it with the "remix" element to this machine. Take art and license off the table completely, this reimagining of Seawitch is going to be a blast to play and likely a hell of an evolution over the original. I love what they did here.

However I am not a Beatles guy, wont spend this kind of money and this is just not for me....

I will be awaiting the next Stern classic reimagining that hopefully remains faithful to the original theme.

youd pay more for a seawitch like that than a stern pro?

I mean...it's not all or nothing.

You could just wait to play game on location, a show, or at a friend's place. The game doesn't have to be dead to you, like a cousin who welched on a loan!

Why is there no “The Beatles” pinball listed on Pinside machines list?

I need to borrow your pic. Thanks.

The Rules:

1st Rule) Drop Targets are Seawitch.

Last Rule) Light John, George,Paul and Ringo to increase spinner value. This is Seawitch.

All of the other rules are of this new pin. You are going to have to shoot things when you are told to shoot those things.

Rule) Drop 1-9-6-4 in order. Seawitch you just drop them. To drop those long shots in order will be a monster task.

Rule spell Fab Four) Those are the bottom drops and the 4 in the middle. Not too hard to hit on Seawitch, but if you have to hit something in order for Fab Four to lite up, the magnitude of difficulty greatly increase.

Those of you who think there is nothing here will be surprised. There are some hard things to shoot for on this pin.

I'll keep my Seawitch but I would like to play one of these on Free Play. I think this one will pick your pockets.

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I just threw that number there really because I don't believe for a second that if Stern did something "special" like this - reimagine an old pin and reissue, they wouldn't sell it for a pro price.

everyone loves to talk about BOM and cost, etc but I don't think the fact that this is single level means much of anything to them on their internal costs...sure it doesn't have any wireform or vacuum form ramps but its got 4 flippers, multiple drop target banks, multiple magnets, a spinning disk, spinners, etc...it probably cost every bit to make this as a Deadpool or Iron Maiden.

Or not.

As long as you **think** that the Beatles is an expensive license, you will pay $$$$$$ for the pin.

But the reality is, the Beatles have sold their license to Toilet Seats, Pantyhose, Candles, Candy, Shot Glasses, Bedsheets, Throw Pillows, Coffee Mugs, Baby Bibs, Juice Boxes (get it, Beatle Juice ??)

Literally just garbage has the Beatles logo on it.

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Is it possible by "in order" they mean that they will reset individual targets that are knocked down unless they are the next one that needs to be hit.
With drop targets you often hit more than one at a time anyway, so it would seem nearly impossible to hit each of the four targets individually and in order. In other words, as an example, if the 1 target is knocked down and then the 64 were knocked down then the 64 would be reset because the 9 is what needs to be hit next.

Yep and this logic has been used for a long time. Williams did it in multiple games of the 80s. Worked fine.

Stern too. Flight 2000 comes to mind.

Bally had the same thing where you had to drop the targets in order, like in Vector

Wonder why they went for the standard cabinet and not the more retro-style one on Pabst Can Crusher. For a flat game I'd prefer the "glass close to the playfield" style of the retro cab, like Pabst and TNA. I guess they went with the modern cab because the retro-style cabinet wouldn't look good with the LCD screen?

I dunno I prefer a matching cabinet to other modern games to make the lineup look perfect. I have game from lots of eras and it’s always a struggle to make them look good next to each other. I have been grouping similar lately.

I don't think anybody really wants to revisit anything about that project, which was not a success.

Maybe the contract job was for Pabst. Who knows if Pabst got rid of all of them.

It's not for sale on Pabst's website anymore.

I had a lead on a NIB one for 3500 bucks at one point...was *almost* tempted. I like the art, but the problem was at the end of the day it's still "Woah Definitely-Not-An-EM"

Initially Stern had said that PBR would only be available direct from PBR. But when it didn't sell, Stern offered them to distributors. There were many discounts to be had after that. Not sure if Stern just closed out the inventory at a reduced price or not.

Time to review Dewey Cox's (Walk Hard) meeting with the Beatles. "You guys are almost as good as the Monkeys!"

Featuring the Mooj from Office Space, one of my fav actors

"Seems like there's a rift among the Beatles"

Game looks fun. I’ll play it. I think they grossly overestimated what a Beatles fan will pay for a pinball machine. It’s forced scarcity and doesn’t always work.

They are trying to milk a cash cow with no tit.

You gotta love this place with all the Monday Morning Quarterbacks. Gottlieb disappeared years ago. Same for Bally, Williams. Here we are years later and the only old timer to survive is Stern. Good times. Bad times. Stern has been through it all.

And you think you have the chops to tell the man how to run his business?

Exactly. But Pinsiders like to think THEY know how to run the pinball business!

How DARE you mock them, sir? How DARE you?

Full Beatles Press Release from Stern:

The Beatles and Stern Pinball Announce the First and Only Beatles Pinball Machine Ever Made!

Only 100 Diamond Edition Games Only 250 Platinum Edition Games Only 1614 Gold Edition Games Only 1964 Games in Total

ELK GROVE VILLAGE, IL – October 29, 2018 – Stern Pinball, Inc., a global lifestyle brand based on the iconic and outrageously fun modern American game of pinball, in collaboration with Ka-Pow Pinball, proudly announced today the availability of the one- of-a-kind Beatles pinball machine. Only 1964 units will be produced in recognition of the year in which the world forever changed when Ed Sullivan introduced America to four young mop-topped musicians from Liverpool, England. The deal was brokered by Bravado Merchandising, the Beatles North American licensing agent.
The game is available in three models named for the recording industry’s sales award levels. The Diamond Edition, the highest level and most difficult to attain, is limited to only 100 units. The Platinum Edition is limited to only 250 units. The Gold Edition is limited to 1614 units.
The Beatles pinball machine will immerse players in 1960’s Beatlemania and feature eight timeless hit songs from that era:

A Hard Day’s Night
Can’t Buy Me Love
Ticket to Ride
All My Loving
Help
Drive My Car
It Won’t Be Long
I Should Have Known Better

The game also features iconic introductions by Ed Sullivan along with custom speech and callouts by Hall of Fame disk jockey, Cousin Brucie. Cousin Brucie introduced The Beatles at New York’s Shea Stadium in 1964.

The retro-themed playfield features four flippers, eleven drop targets, eight stand-up targets, multiple skill shots, two opto-spinners, a ball-catching magnet and a magnetic spinning record disc in the center of the playfield. Players, friends and family will enjoy full screen animations as well as simulated reel scoring on the game’s high definition video screen.

All models feature unique art packages and custom powder-coated armor. The 100 Diamond Editions are numbered, certified collectible and include a mirrored backglass. The 250 Platinum Editions are numbered and certified collectible.

Complementing the immersive Beatlemania theme and exciting gameplay experience, Stern Pinball’s powerful SPIKETM electronics hardware system enables high-definition graphics and innovative animations on the high-definition video display. SPIKETM reduces system complexity and energy usage resulting in enhanced reliability and simplified servicing. The state-of-the-art electronic system also powers a high-fidelity 3- channel audio system that is three times more powerful than audio systems of previous generations.

“We are very proud of this Beatles pinball machine that was produced in collaboration with our good friend, Joe Kaminkow,” said Gary Stern, Chairman and CEO of Stern Pinball, Inc. “We can’t wait for players to experience Beatlemania when they play this game.”

Pricing and Availability:
Please contact your local Stern Pinball distributor or dealer for availability and pricing. To find an authorized Stern Pinball distributor or dealer in your area, please visit: www.sternpinball.com/buy

About Stern Pinball, Inc.

Stern Pinball, Inc. is a global lifestyle brand based on the iconic and outrageously fun modern American game of pinball. Headquartered minutes from Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport in the heart of North America, the company creates, designs, engineers, manufactures, markets, and distributes a full line of technologically advanced terrestrial and digital pinball games, parts, accessories, and merchandise. Stern Pinball serves digital, consumer, commercial, and corporate markets around the globe.

Recent Stern Pinball titles include Deadpool, Iron Maiden, Guardians of the Galaxy, Star Wars, Aerosmith, Ghostbusters, KISS, Metallica, Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Star Trek, AC/DC, Batman, and Spider-Man. A broad range of players enjoy Stern Pinball’s games from professional pinball players who compete in high-stakes international competitions around the globe to novice players who are discovering the allure of the silver ball for the first time. To join the fun and learn more, please visit www.sternpinball.com.

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All trademarks and product names are the property of their respective companies.

They got Cousin Brucie? That's pretty awesome.

Much like Adam West, I sure hope they don't wait too long to get all those calls recorded!

"Certified Collectible". Yup, they jumped the shark with that one, lol.

Global Lifestyle Brand? Boy, doing Supreme really went to their head.

The Seawitch playfield is classic. If they have incorporated some of the new features with rules. Again it still have more individual shots then any WPC game of the 90's.