Yeah, and 6 months after releasing Stranger Things LE was selling for 7500. DP LE has been selling for low 8s for 2 years. The pinball market fluctuates too much based on location and timing to say something definitive. It's more often than not below street price.

There's no Tron Premium so it doesn't matter.

Since TMNT I believe they have been making very small runs of Pros for demo and bars (some make it to consumers). If you miss the first decent run of Pros you can be waiting a long time, same for Premiums.

Kaneda has been saying this for quite some time and has been repeating it for a week now. Combine that with likely low cost voice acting rate and it has to be true.

Edit:
Why are people assuming this means I don’t love Carl Weathers? For the record I want him to do the call outs.

It is the same because scalpers are making the money flipping them. Why shouldn’t Best Buy be making the money?

I would keep asking around as that's higher than I got quoted at every dealer I asked.

Even in what you describe you get a consumer advocate from Stern's real customers, distributors. If you have an issue you bought one machine but a distributor buys many and has a vested partner interest from Stern. Stern Pinball gets a huge global network of advocates/sales/support to deal with customers.

Do you think anyone would be able to talk to Stern on the phone with their current employment numbers if all sales were direct?

Correct, Stern has no incentive as it currently doesn't have to pay anyone or manage them. They also get all their money upfront and sell through everything to distributors. Every pin is sold out to Stern, it's distributors jobs to rotate their own stock.

Edit: This doesn't factor all the other things into account like free travel and advertising of distributors going to shows, doing podcasts, or sponsoring streams. Zach Meny may as well be a Stern Employee yet they don't have to pay for his 401k or health insurance.

He talks about it on Super Awesome. You all have a Beskar Pool and anyone can spend it and only they get the reward. Meaning people need to cooperate to plan out how to use Beskar.

I think they’ve been $250 but Stern is always one release away from raising the price on anything.

I can say definitively I do not like upper or lower play fields with 2 flippers, especially full sized. Dwight talking about varying the power to one flipper sounds immensely more enjoyable to me.

That said I think it’s great there are options and different games with different mechanics. Something for everyone.

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Edit: to be clear I think (I'm not an SW expert anymore) darth maul is dead at this point in the timeline but darth is just a title.

He means ramp returns.

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It just looks like an addition to a drop in wireform.

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I actually just missed a space for wire form. Habitrail is a brand of hamster tubing if you want to get pedantic.

How do you feel about Jurassic Park with OEM Code?

1:07:05 mando says “looks that way”. It’s just early code.

We are definitely paying more but I realized a little while ago that I love GoT Pro and wouldn't put .50 in a WoZ. Personal preference is huge but just toys alone don't do it for me anymore. I like Tron and way too many barren games with bad art but everyone is looking for a different experience and that's ok.

Currently, I am not believing any dates until I see Stern act the way they always have before. Every release they flaunt photos and videos of them manufacturing dozens of games and boxing them up. I haven't seen a single photo of a Mando being built and my only assumption is supply chain difficulties have derailed all current production. I'm not doom and gloom just studying the Stern playbook and they are completely off book right now.

I would also love to be wrong and for some reason they have just decided to stop promoting their superior manufacturing for the first time.

Stern will send me a Mando after they make them. I am just stating I'm used to seeing photos of production and they are surprisingly quiet.

I’m expecting to see a lot of Pros with metal ramp returns.

Pro looking great. Already enough call outs to require people to find something new to complain about.

Price is not a factor for me but I'm going Pro. Magnet is not interesting and I don't like mini playfields with two standard flippers.

Diverter scoop is cool but it's similar to Marvel ramp on AIQ and the pro played great without that.

I have just figured out for me personally that I generally like the way Pros play more add that they cost less and it's usually a win-win for me.

I agree completely and the same is true for most Pro and Prem/LE. I like a moving TRex head as much as the next guy but the Pro plays smoother and I actually prefer it that way.

There is no way to stream the Pro upper flipper losing and gaining power to increase difficulty. I'm interested to see how that feels.

Well, I'm excited to play all the versions and see more streams. Game looks good.

It isn't an upper playfield. It's part of the playfield that is unused on the Premium. Who cares, I hate upper and lower playfields for the most part so I view this as nothing but a complete win.

It turns out not everyone is the same and there are multiple options.

I got a similar report from a friend who is a good player. He said he thinks it’s easier but fun and the upper is very satisfying.

Whenever someone complains about a new pin it's always about how it should have a bash target. If it had a bash target people would complain about why you are bashing (insert protagonist). It's a vicious cycle and I enjoy the move away from bash targets lately.

Everyone complained, trust me. It helps integrate the objective of the game if the bash target makes sense. Think about the best integrated bash toys, the castle in MM for example. If the toy fits the narrative it reinforces it and you play as The Mandalorian so it doesn't make contextual sense.

I like GotG way more than most people but it has no story or cinematic moments and is just a game that plays clips from the movie.

You just 100% described the glove in JM and it works every time.

I believe it's still just a small Pro run mostly for location but some always end up in homes. It depends on your disti and how many locations there are in your area I would assume.

Stern is getting full assets. This isn’t JJP Pirates, this has everything Disney would sell them. This is a far cry from GotG.

That said full assets don’t make a game fun.

It seems strange he would have 1st run Pros in stock. I'm a little surprised when most people aren't getting them.

RipleYYY I’m almost positive Dwight answered this and said the code is finished and there are no plans to go back.

Wow, lazy coding? Seeing as you don’t know who’s decision it was to make it a simple game this seems ridiculous. Stern wanted it simple, end of story. It’s also not the nicest thing to call someone out by name when calling them lazy. Just say you don’t like Munsters and understand it’s not for you and move on.

Not every game is for everyone but personally I think this is the most fun I have had on a new pin in years. Mechs don't equal fun for me and the complete package of Mando is stellar, Mechs get old after the 10th time I see it. If mechs equalled fun I would only own 90s pins yet my favorite pins are usually kind of empty like GoT or DP.

If Mechs equalled fun for Pinside it wouldn't have a love affair with IMDN.

You are right about playing a game before buying it though. It's good advice for anyone who doesn't know what they like to at least some degree by looking at it.

Invisiglass is the best mod you can buy for any pin and it moves to the next game you buy.

Specifically, KFC-1366s which can be bought for about $40.

Although just buying an external subwoofer is the largest sound quality improvement you can make.

I like the encounters and just finished stage 1 and got 132M from that alone. I imagine it depends how much you can trap up and like nudging with a single flipper. But I am interested to play a Premium.

I’ve switched to Dayton Audio subs from Parts Express but I don’t think it matter much as it’s for pinball and whatever you buy will be the biggest difference.

Disappointing and based on the location there’s really not much you could do… besides lower the flipper power I guess?

Did you open a support ticket?

Well the Pro always gets ratings like, “great game, lots of fun: 6.8”. The LE just gets a 10 from every owner.

The top 100 is meaningless, especially with how great the art, sound, lights, and theme are now.

That’s actually my point, new people to the hobby are anchored by it. Wanting to only own games in the top 20 and not understanding how games got their rating and there could be something they may enjoy more, that’s not even in the top 100.

The Top 100 is a fun curiosity with a series of design flaws in weighting, eras, model division, etc. I really enjoy NASCAR and I don’t think it’s in the top 200 but I like it more than pins in the top 20.

Oh man, sucks

Makes sense as it will make me try equipment I wouldn't buy normally as I have engrained myself into holding out for Extra Ball unless I have 2x going into a multiball I buy the multiplier to get 5x. I don't know if that's the best strategy but I have been reluctant to change.

Try the electrical tape fix:

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/fixing-led-bulbs-flashers-that-fall-out-of-spotlights

Yeah, this is what I’ve been saying as I used Dynamat Xtreme. Any sound deadener used for car audio will work, the one benefit is that it has adhesive built in but your find looks great.

Doesn't adjusting the weights in the shaker change the intensity? I haven't done that in forever but I remember it working that way or maybe it was just smoother. Either way, it may help.

I'm pretty sure they are running Iron Maiden on a line right now.

I’ve been saying this as well. I think just removing the “victory laps” bonus and going to the next level would help. I’m not sure what else I want because I enjoy the upper but would like a little less.

Shadow upper is more fun than any upper or lower ever.

It’s short and sweet and doesn’t have flippers.

I removed the rubbers on the two middle ones. This makes it not come down the middle.

I had 5x during it this morning and I think my shots were around 50M.

Nope, the rubbers in the middle bounce it towards the middle. So I removed one and it bounced less.

Yes, the way it drops in from the top it always bounces off the rubbers and towards the crest. Casuals would plunge three times straight down the middle and walk away unhappy.

The razor crest return is completely smooth on mine and I don't find Eddy's new stuff clunky. Gomez is one of my favorite designers but his games are rarely the smoothest. BM66 may be the clunkiest game I've ever owned. The right ramp on LOTR could be the least satisfying ramp ever made.

That sucks, how many plays?

damn…

This with removing the bonus levels may improve the feeling of mode prison that can happen. If you could fail an encounter and then move on, that is an interesting idea.

Interesting, I backhand the left ramp all the time. Is there a reason?

Left ramp backhand is makable all the time without any difficulty. Right backhand is like 10% for me, so I don’t try.

Vertical up kicker, the one we turn down is the one that launches the ball from the trough into the shooter lane. It max launches it in there and chews up the wood for no reason.

I use Cliffy’s too but still turn down the trough eject. It is just unnecessarily high from the factory.

They will almost assuredly fit as it’s a very simple mounting system but it will have the extra right return. I would be surprised if they would sell them but it doesn’t hurt to try.

Check this first and I think you will be fine. No need for carrot flipper.

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/this-is-the-way-the-mandalorian-owners-club/page/31#post-6486047

Ha, couldn’t remember who suggested that first. It’s a solid solution but man you are doubling down now. By the way, I don’t understand why people won’t try removing the plastic, it works very well.

Happens every time, this appears worse because the LE are flipping so high above retail and they made 750. Look at how many GNR are always for sale, it’s just people are buying the FOMO and then wanting the new toy because they can make money. Lots of factors to it all but if Rush is after Godzilla no one will care.

Off-topic but the composer for Mandalorian is a really interesting guy who did Tenet, Creed, and Black Panther.

I love the MBs and the upper PF on the Pro is great.

I haven't dug into the code extensively yet but my suspicion of higher scores seems correct. A couple multipliers during RC hurry up is very big points if you still have everything running from the first MB as an example.

I’m not a fan of the Stern art blades, the uninspired heads ina front of a generic background is boring. I’ve been meaning to order the wiz blades as I think they integrate better.

Removing the playfield is the easiest way.

Here’s a good video instruction: