Says who?
Wheel of Fortune is the most watched TV show on the planet "Fans" doesn't always equal pinball buyers. Marvel fans didn't try to kill each other to buy X-Men or Avengers...but Metallica fans did. There are different types of fans who are willing to spend money on fan-type products. If Star Trek fans had any bearing on pinball, the original 3 ST pins would be priced WAY higher than they are. Star Trek fans don't have passion for the new movies to the point where they'd spend $8k on an LE pinball. They could have Bally ST, DE ST, and STTNG for that price and prob have money left over.
Pinball people know this, but this has little bearing on most people who buy pinball machines.
Quoted from Eryeal: - I think that justifies a 60% increase in LE production. I could have easily seen them going crazy and doing 1000, 1500, etc. The price increase is another story, but the quantity of LE's I think was the right number to make from a business perspective.
No, making Premiums is the smartest business decision they've made since doing the multi-tier thing. Too many LEs and it's not longer LIMITED. It loses it's edge as a must-have and must-buy-before-everyone-else item. The great thing about the Premium is if you just want the game with all the features but don't give a sh*t about collectibility and hype - the GAME is available for everyone! There's no reason to make 800 LEs if you're making Premiums.
Now, they may in fact sell all 800 LEs...but it won't be instantaneous like Metallica. If they have patience to move units...then I guess it worked out for everyone.