(Topic ID: 298696)

What is on the line at Stern Pinball / Production Schedule

By beltking

2 years ago


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    #6 2 years ago

    I know JP Prems were on the line recently as people in the owners thread have been receiving them. BM66 was scheduled for Aug but got delayed.

    2 months later
    #23 2 years ago

    Heard from a distrib yesterday that the last BM66 run is still on schedule for Dec! He had just got an update from Stern.

    I assume GZ Prems will be on the line for most of this month.

    3 weeks later
    #65 2 years ago

    I’m just not believing the “500 pins per week” number.

    Something smells funny with the whole EHoH40, IM Vault, etc. It’s almost as if they don’t care about the backlog and just want to make new titles or high profit margin/low batch games only.

    #68 2 years ago
    Quoted from JackG:

    So this is what we know from Stern's production line at this time. Does anyone else have any dates?
    BM 66 - December 2021
    Stranger Things Pro - December 2021 (Thanks RC)
    Godzilla Premium - March 2022
    Mando Premium - June 2022
    Deadpool Pro - July 2022
    Elvira Premium - December 2022

    It seems like distribs have conflicting info or things are changing by the day.

    My info from today says BM66Prem, EHOH40 and MandoPrem for this month.

    1 week later
    #108 2 years ago
    Quoted from Darth_Chris:

    That is exactly what i'm waiting for. Why put a deposit for a nib stern which I have no clue when or if i'm going to get it when I could wait for people to get out of the hobby. If stern were reliable with their production I would have bought a few nib like I did many time the previous years. But wait for 1 year for a pinball is a joke. If stern doesnt want my money the secondary market will get me what i'm looking for at a discount. The more people will start leaving at the same time, the better deals will be for my wallet. Just my opinion.

    “Fire sales” where people sell off their entire collection at a discount are very rare events. More than likely a person getting out of the hobby is going to ask market price - which is currently above MSRP.

    Unfortunately (and oddly ironically), the best deal on a pin is NIB at MSRP - and the only way to get that is to make a deposit and get on a list. It sucks - but that’s where we are right now.

    #126 2 years ago
    Quoted from MasterBlaster:

    Anyone out there get their BM66 or hear of it being in transit? Just curious if things are rolling out as outlined earlier in this thread.

    Most people get them shipped from their distribs, so I would think later this week.

    #152 2 years ago
    Quoted from dpannell:

    Rush? Is this official? Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge Rush fan but I don't understand why they would release another new pin when they can't build a pin I ordered in July and the Godzilla build date is 2023?

    One reason is that they have 4 different teams working simultaneously on 4 different titles - all with contractual license windows that have been inked long ago. Assuming they want to continue to release 3 to 4 titles per year, the amount of older titles produced is throttled by parts and labor availability. If those aren’t plentiful, something has to give - and so far this year (and next it seems), what is suffering is previous title production.

    As production gets pushed, they could be potentially losing licenses on older titles and would have to decide if it’s worth it to renew.

    #164 2 years ago
    Quoted from MasterBlaster:

    Sorry to hear this, but I agree with you.
    If my ST doesn’t get built before the next price increase then I’ll likely follow suit. I had to do that with BM66. It just became way too much money for not enough content.
    At some point, we as consumers need to push back. We can’t push back to Stern’s suppliers, but we can push back to Stern…who in turn need to push back to their suppliers. There is far too much acceptance of rampant increases on everything right now.

    If anything, I think Stern is receiving the opposite message right now - GZLE NIB selling for $15k two months after release? NIB Prems being sold for over $1k markup by distribs as they roll off the line?

    Stern is making tough choices right now on multiple fronts.

    #179 2 years ago
    Quoted from WeirPinball:

    not losing money - just selling whatever comes off the line (easily)

    Yes - and they actually make the most money off large runs of 2000+ units of the same title - ie when a game is first released.

    I’m sure their highest profit margin is on the limited editions too, so it really is in their best interest to keep pumping out the new titles.

    #197 2 years ago

    Where are we for Dec?

    BM66 done
    EHoH40 done
    StrTh pro? Did this one happen?
    IM Vault postponed
    What’s on the line this week?

    #209 2 years ago
    Quoted from WeirPinball:

    Info I'm getting from multiple distros in nothing out until March/April except the Elvira 40ths

    Sounds like Stern is moving closer to the old BLY/WMS and Spooky model - just produce one title then immediately onto the next one. It’s way more efficient and cost-effective not having to retrain/retool the line and allows for ordering larger quantities of machine-specific parts. You can always throw some re-runs in if a title isn’t popular enough to make it to the next release.

    I’m sure it’s just temporarily while there are parts/labor shortages. But it feels like that’s what’s happening.

    #215 2 years ago
    Quoted from MasterBlaster:

    Copied from Pot8er’s post in the StrTh club thread:
    Just talked to my distro. Said ST is shipping next week. He said he couldn’t get a straight answer whether they had insider connected or not. I DMed stern on Instagram asking and will update if they reply.

    The recent BM66 Prem run had Insider Connected installed.

    #251 2 years ago
    Quoted from thekaiser82:

    I believe they all did. Mine does. There is a C at the end of the serial number on the box now to indicate connected.

    Pretty sure all the BM66s were Insider Connected.

    411CD8CB-C989-4876-A81C-7D6BB60B8BA6 (resized).jpeg411CD8CB-C989-4876-A81C-7D6BB60B8BA6 (resized).jpeg

    #308 2 years ago

    Just heard from distrib that Dec DP Prem run was cancelled today.

    1 week later
    #361 2 years ago
    Quoted from TommyMc:

    Stern shuts down the line for 2 weeks in January for inventory

    That would be an odd move right after announcing a new title.

    I think they may have done inventory early this cycle as some distribs received Demo games at the end of the year.

    #370 2 years ago

    Cancellations don’t affect Stern at all actually. You are cancelling a spot with your distributor, not Stern. Your distributor keeps the order with Stern and just sells it to the next person in line.

    #380 2 years ago
    Quoted from JodyG:

    No, the just got the Deadpool. Their older Spike2 games don't have the bar, and they just announced the new Deadpool coming in.

    Stern sold off their demo games from Expo a couple of weeks ago. They all had insider connected installed.

    1 week later
    #441 2 years ago
    Quoted from pch3727:

    What's the consensus for the next game to permanently cease production? Elvira? Maiden?

    I would guess Str Things, Star Wars, Guardians and Beatles.

    Elvira is the big question mark. Stern hates making them because they are not easy to build (similar to StrTh Prem) and unfortunately their workforce has a high turnover rate.

    #470 2 years ago
    Quoted from NoSkills:

    Is that an old stock DP though? it doesnt have IC

    It’s probably old stock / and no, those prices aren’t a joke. They quoted me $20k on a GZLE.

    #493 2 years ago
    Quoted from unlockpinball:

    When do the Strange Things Premiums go back in production?

    Retired. Done.

    1 week later
    #600 2 years ago
    Quoted from Jackalwere:

    Game Exchange is showing Iron Maiden premium as able to put a deposit down and ships in 6-12 weeks.

    IMDN Pro and Prem are greyed out on the latest build sheet so I’d give it a 50/50 chance of any more being built.

    2 weeks later
    #733 2 years ago
    Quoted from TheGunnett:

    [quoted image]
    From the Kaneda Patreon club!

    So to paraphrase: Star Wars, GotG, Iron Maiden, Elvira, Beatles, Jurassic Park, Stranger Things, TMNT, AIQ and LZ are all retired (for 2022 at least).

    #737 2 years ago
    Quoted from radium:

    Uh now hold on there pal, the email just said “especially concentrating on” rush, gz, mando, dp. It doesn’t say others are shelved.

    Yea - I saw the “especially concentrating on” wiggle factor. That could certainly mean small 2 week runs of the other titles as factors allow. But certainly not enough to meet the backlog of orders for JP, Elvira, etc.

    #738 2 years ago
    Quoted from mbl1116:

    No i think this just explains why an unexpected run of GZ premiums popped up for May in addition to march and august. Aiq should still be march, JP should still be April…elvira and tmnt end of year. Stranger things is done, period and i don’t believe there was a planned IM run for 2022.

    What’s odd is that they moved BM66 to the retired list but not Stranger Things.

    I question another run of Elvira - it’s simply harder to make than a GZ or DP. Couple that with the surprise end of year EHoH40 release and it raises questions. Don’t get me wrong - I hope they make one more run of prems. It’s absolutely a fantastic game - one of their best ever IMO.

    #746 2 years ago
    Quoted from CashMoney:

    Thats an easy one to answer: Cause they would need to renew the license.

    …and source more projectors.

    They also don’t like building them as the prems are much harder to build than a GZ or DP.

    12
    #776 2 years ago
    Quoted from Fussa71:

    I own a Deadpool Pro. I told my wife that the only thing that would make me get rid of it was if Stern came out with a rush machine.
    But I can’t let Deadpool go!
    So I ordered a Rush and I’m keeping Deadpool
    (she’s not happy)

    I don’t make any promises to the wife other than I won’t put pinball machines in the bedroom or bathroom.

    #781 2 years ago
    Quoted from chad:

    And make sure it is a Demolition Man pinball. That game has -extra grips -

    Mental note: bring UV light if I ever go look at a DemoMan for sale.

    2 months later
    #2416 1 year ago
    Quoted from SLCpunk2113:

    Yeah I've been waiting on a game breaking plastic part for my Mando for over a month. They've always been really quick with parts in the past.

    I've been waiting over 6 months on 3 different parts - all were in stock when ordered (and that's through two different distributors). The distributors have sent numerous status request emails and so far - nothing.

    I miss Joe Blackwell.

    3 months later
    #3755 1 year ago
    Quoted from big-c66:

    No it wasn’t definitely a disappointment as far as sales go. Distributors had people wanting them left n right even after the last run that they didn’t finish to fulfill all the orders people had waited a year for n hung them out to dry but it’s the same thing Stern is doing now nothing with change oh well be good PinMonk n love my mods I got off u for my Munster premium n tmnt.

    I'm still bummed about Munsters - with all of the episodes to work with, they could have coded 30+ modes with interactive video clips.

    1 month later
    #4149 1 year ago
    Quoted from Yoko2una:

    My local distro 11 months ago only had one LZ Pro in stock. That was it. I had to convince him to sell me a floor model from his showroom. That's how tight things were last year. As of his website this morning he has 8 different models in stock of Stern alone, multiples of some of them, plus a few other games/titles from non-Stern companies.
    Automated this time last year was similar, almost no new Sterns in stock. As of this morning they have 22 different pinball models in stock, 16 of which are Sterns! Most of these titles have been sitting for weeks.
    If they aren't selling now, a January price increase isn't going to help. If you don't want a Pro for $6700 (street price) now, $7K (firm floor price) in a few months isn't going to sweeten the deal.
    Then you have to look at what Stern ran this year and break them up into groups. The runs in the first half of 2022 of the more "A-tier" titles were all quickly scooped up - Deadpool, JP, Godzilla. Then you have the titles which were popular in their day, but the 1000th run of them at higher prices mean many already have the game by now or have mentally moved on - SW, Mando, AIQ. Lastly you have the games (I don't care how much any one person likes a particular title, sales are sales) where they just weren't received overly well and the runs just use up existing parts, kept the lines running, and built inventory back up - LZ, TMNT, Mando.
    Just so happens that the more desirable titles were built earlier in the year and the less popular titles were being run from August - present. Now those are sitting at a ton of distro's and many buyers are simply waiting for Bond, the next Stern, CCrLE, or the next AP. If not, each distro wouldn't have Pros and Prems of Mando, LZ, SW, TMNT, GOTG and Rush in stock (plus 2-3 models of SW/JP home editions!). These getting jacked up in price will just add to the dust layers on the boxes.

    Prior to COVID, most distributors had pro/prem games in stock and you could find the same gently used titles for $500-$1k under MSRP.

    My guess is the price increases will return the market to the pre-COVID model where most people buy used unless a new title is a dream theme.

    2 weeks later
    #4336 1 year ago
    Quoted from hiker2099:

    If I was Stern my line per year would be....1 music pin, 1 vault pin, + 1 cornerstone.

    There's too many teams to move that slow - Gomez, Eddie, Elwin, Borg & Kapow.

    Up until this year, Elwin's team had been churning out 1 per year by themselves.

    #4343 1 year ago
    Quoted from Grantman:

    Gomez is a VP. He only stepped in on Bond to take over for the departing Ritchie. He's not in the rotation normally. Also, Kapow is not every year, and a game can take more than a year to develop. Based on the lack of software shipping with games now, they should be spending more than a year on each one.

    Gomez works on what he wants to work on - perks of being a VP. He did the Star Wars home edition between Deadpool and Bond. From my conversations with him, I think he will continue to design but not at the same pace as Elwin. My guess is we'll see 3 titles in 2023, but I seriously doubt one will be a vault. The only vault that makes sense to me is LOTR as it has a deeper ruleset like modern games, but would look fantastic with LCD footage and updated sound.

    1 week later
    #4381 1 year ago
    Quoted from Grantman:

    The early reviews of STh were not good. By the time the code was mature and people were saying it was good, it was out of production. I'd like to get a premium but the prices went up 50%+ in 2 years which is nuts. If they are selling on the secondary market for around $12k, then Stern could certainly sell more at the current NIB premium price.

    But all of these prems sell for more than MSRP:
    Batman66
    GotG Prem
    EHoH Prem
    IMDN Prem
    Munsters Prem
    and sometimes GZ Prem if it's out of rotation for a while

    STh prem is a difficult build at the factory, has a hard to source component (projector) and is 2 seasons out of date. It's highly unlikely we'll see them again.

    #4463 1 year ago
    Quoted from bigguybbr:

    Is it last call, or was it that they just ran them?

    6C93E9D9-D58B-495F-BB31-632F907DD897 (resized).jpeg6C93E9D9-D58B-495F-BB31-632F907DD897 (resized).jpeg

    #4523 1 year ago
    Quoted from JBtheAVguy:

    Isn't TZ a wide body? Seems to be a highly regarded machine. Also, it may not be as popular but I really enjoy my RS.

    TZ is a great example of what KozMckPinball just stated. The extra room on the left is used for the Gumball, Upper PF, Hitchhiker, Camera and Pops. The center right of the playfield is probably similar in dimensions to a standard body. TZ is a super game - I hope it gets the CGC treatment at some point.

    #4533 1 year ago
    Quoted from KozMckPinball:

    I'd be more concerned with fitting a wide body through a standard size door. Any issues with that from experience?

    The main concern is that of your lower back after lifting them.

    1 week later
    #4641 1 year ago
    Quoted from Happy81724:

    A lot of LEs on the market. My buddy hasn’t received his yet so assuming they will be on the line for a couple weeks. People are loosing money on the toy story CEs. I wonder if they will lose on bond at sterns new price?

    Just like most Stern LEs pre-Covid (ie the normal pinball market), you will likely take a small hit in the short term if you sell. When the code matures into awesomeness, the price will go up.

    1 month later
    #4864 1 year ago
    Quoted from unlockpinball:

    When will Stranger Things Premium be on the line again? 2024?

    It's in the Archive section of Stern's website, so probably never. George Gomez mentioned that it potentially could be made again (hypothetically) in an interview, so there's been some chatter about a vault edition at some point in the future.

    #4868 1 year ago
    Quoted from Knxwledge:

    Im sure this isnt stunning and brave to say, but Stern needs to get their heads out of their asses when it comes to selling parts. For example, I ordered a replacement Deadpool bash toy back in May through Betson, and there's no word on the status. Have to order some plastics for Mando that broke on location... who knows how long that's gonna take. Patheticly bad

    I have 2 parts orders that are about 14 months old

    #4911 1 year ago
    Quoted from gandamack:

    So true! Love how ACDC magically jumped 20 plus spots in 24 hours.

    AC/DC jumped because we are in the process of separating the games that were listed as (Prem/LE) into separate Prem and LE records. The LE ratings for AC/DC were higher than the Prem, so it is now using the LE rating to determine the rank.

    https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/operation-premium-le

    #4915 1 year ago
    Quoted from Betelgeuse:

    I have seen that thread. I don't see where it answers the question that I asked.

    I just answered your question over in that thread:

    https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/operation-premium-le#post-7385044

    #4925 1 year ago
    Quoted from Capn12:

    Refuse to buy? HAH!
    You've got folks willingly throwing 20 THOUSAND at Stern, for a 1 level game with no video assets at all. Sadly, nothing will change, and Stern will keep doing what Stern does.
    I don't buy NIB Sterns either for these same reasons, but sadly, we're in the minority.

    I see the tides shifting after TS4CE and BondLE - those sold decently based on theme alone, but all the upcoming rumored Stern titles are going to take a big dookie @ $13k for 1000 LEs.

    Yea - they sold some JB60s - but I don't think they sold all 500.

    #4940 1 year ago
    Quoted from Capn12:

    As for on the line (back to the subject), I think GZ like was mentioned, with EHoH and some more Bond set to run this month I believe?

    I thought Bond was done until April?

    #4944 1 year ago
    Quoted from gandamack:

    I can't imagine any distributors pleading with Stern to allocate more Bond games to them.

    There's 8 Bond prems and 8 pros on the market, so that's not a ton - I would guess the supply on those will dry up by EOM.

    If however you are looking for a BondLE - there's 21 of those in the market.

    2 weeks later
    #5279 1 year ago
    Quoted from rai:

    A lot of other pins that would be better to remake starting with GB, Got, Tron, SM etc.

    Agree with GB and Tron, but I would want to see them on Spike with LCDs instead of DMDs.

    Secondary market value would probably disqualify GoT and SM?

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