Do you know what Abraham Lincoln and the guy sitting in front of Pee Wee Herman in the movie theater have in common?
Both were shot in the back of the head.

I'd say history is important here which also proves your personal preference to be severely different than most. There's a reason TAF is still one of the most highly sought after (A) list games that continues to grow in value even though it had high production numbers.
The fact that the magnets changes the game from being static to dynamic is fantastic.

As a former/current owner of both titles, I don't think LAH even holds a candle to TAF - also likely why it's a 1/3rd of the price and doesn;t even ,make the TOP 100 on either site. Not saying that LAH isn't an enjoyable game, but stating it has more than TAF for less money - well I'll have to firmly disagree with you there.

Working from memory FWIW: LAH is 19? items while on TAF it's 26?
The code and available sound clips and light shows on TAF are also above and beyond LAH.

Anyway - sorry guys bringing it back to being on topic of Sterns next game - There's literally nothing popular right now I can think of so it would make sense for Stern to either do another music pin (YUCK) or a stranger things pin because all other popular series are over and the only Marvel movie coming out that I'm aware of is Black Widow and I highly doubt they'd make a pin based on that.

Never said it's because of the magnets. You misunderstood. Saying that it does have magnets and being one of the most popular titles out there shows people don't dislike magnets.

Marvel has Black Widow and DC another Wonder Woman coming out. A new Matrix movie is coming and a Tolkien TV series based off the Similarion. Just a thought.

Imagine this (for better or for worse) if a stranger things pin were to be made, in corporate the technology already available. Motion detection tied in to magnets. Ella mode would allow you to throw balls by commanding magnets. No one has done this before in the pin industry. Hell, for that matter since another Matrix is on the way that would be the PERFECT game to use that with.

Talk about a stressful job! Imagine you're the schlep that has to pick the next theme. Pinball is like a house, has to have curb appeal. I have zero interest in a Pikachu pin. I would likely put my 9mm in my mouth if I had to hear that voice over and over. Lol in all fairness I do believe this title would kill it at a Dave and Busters type business.
But curb appeal is only half the battle. Do you choose flow or stop and go? Let's face it, flow makes for shorter ball times as chances to screw up increase and as they say tme is money. Kids will dump quarters (nickles) into a machine if they feel "good" about themselves so flow is a super bad idea for a pin redemption format.
TMNT, no thanks. Loved the cartoon series but I just dont see the point. Already exists and same old tired story line.
I'd love a Muppers pin. I believe the key would be the judges heckling... this is what made the show in the first place. Not sure how one would make a rule set based off of skits though?
Stranger things is the safe route to take.

Come to think about it, I don't believe I have ever seen ANYONE mention a Slenderman pin. The post above mine made me realize the only modern day bad guy (not Marvel or DC) within the last ~5 years is slenderman? How long has it been since a bad guy specific pin had been made anyway?

Am I the only one who feels there's just no innovation left in pinball? Go ahead and rage - I put my internet flame suit on lol
Adding an LCD or internet connectivity/interactive game play ... how is that innovation? It's literally regurgitated technology from the 90's and 2000's incorporated into 2020? Egads! I haven't followed the wireless progress but have they even implemented having the machine auto backup and update the firmware yet? Yep, still early 2000's tech there too if so. But then what?

I love pinball I really do. But it just feels like we've "more or less" reached a point of rethemed machines. I look at the P3 systems and I applaud them for their efforts. But the bottom half of the pf is always the same and the top half is generally pretty lackluster as well excluding their latest "Heist" is really a good effort!

I understand it's all about money, but what would you be willing to pay for a machine that is dynamic in play instead of static?
Taking a widebody and setting it up as a standard body. Maybe the playfield would be on a motorized rotisserie. Another playfield/world on the bottom side that flips over. Almost everything could be modular so rarely ever a need to work from the bottom side. Yes, weighing in at more than a JJP widebody by a lot.
OR:
Maybe the playfield toy sinks, flips over and a new toy appears? (Might require a deeper cabinet bottom but so what?)
OR:
Subways with diverters that have the ability to randomize play?
OR:
Ramps attached to coils or motors that can randomize play?

And on a different tangeant - why not offer new code for classics such as LOTR (or insert whatever title here)? If we're willing to dump $400 into a color screen would you not spend another $400 to add modes to your already beloved pin? Yes, people think that's BS that the updates should be free - but view it like a vehicle. You get a warranty and after the warranty is over you own it. You can still buy OEM parts to fix/improve your vehicle.

It's fun going back and reading through the history here. Some people called the "next" Stern years ahead of actual release! *golf clap*

Trying to guess now is not easy. I think people are getting fairly burned out on Marvel/DC stuff. I think people are also getting burned out on music pins as well. So look at what's "popular" ... or maybe popular isn't the right term .... maybe ... relevant is more accurate? New seasons of House of the Dragon, The Rings of Power, and of course the new Harry Potter animated series on the horizon. (ducks to avoid rocks being thrown). I know speculation is HP license is already in JJP hands ... but /shrug. The hard part about TV series is the code will always feel unfinished so unless Stern keeps adding code as the seasons go on (not likely) those don't seem like feasible options either.

It just might be the proper time to do a vault release and hope something else pops up that is worthy of being pinned. That's what I'd do.

New movie is coming out - I would highly expect this to be a Stern release

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