# Stern Pinball Reveals New Official "The Spirit of Radio" Topper & Other Accessories for Rush Pinball

**Source:** Knapp Arcade  
**Type:** article  
**Published:** 2023-03-28  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.knapparcade.org/stern-pinball-reveals-new-official-the-spirit-of-radio-topper-other-accessories-for-rush-pinball

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## Analysis

Stern Pinball officially revealed a 'The Spirit of Radio' topper for Rush pinball featuring moving gears and a clock with exclusive rewards, alongside Expression Lighting kits, side armor, and an illuminated shooter rod. A new code update (v1.10) adds Concert Mode gameplay and full accessory support. The timing follows Rush's recent Game of the Year win at the TWIPYs.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Rush pinball won multiple awards at TWIPYs including Game of the Year — _Article opening statement referencing recent award results_
- [HIGH] The Spirit of Radio topper includes moving gears and a clock mechanism — _Official Stern reveal described in article with feature specifications_
- [HIGH] Frenzy is a new scoring mode available exclusively on games with the topper — _Topper feature list from official Stern announcement_
- [HIGH] Rush code v1.10 includes Concert Mode gameplay — _Official code release notes quoted in article_
- [HIGH] Topper MSRP is $1,699.00 — _Distributor Flip N Out pricing listed with Spring ship estimate_

### Notable Quotes

> "The topper includes moving gears and a clock that awards one of four items in the game 'Extra Ball,' 'Advance Time Machine,' 'Millions or a new scoring mode called 'Frenzy,' which is available exclusively on games with toppers."
> — **Knapp Arcade (summarizing Stern announcement)**, N/A
> _Details the exclusive topper rewards mechanism and introduces Frenzy mode_

> "NEW CODE! Stern Pinball has posted new RUSH code v1.10.0 for the Pro, Premium, and Limited Edition models. This code contains numerous game enhancements including a new 'Concert Mode' gameplay mode as well as full support for all official RUSH Accessories."
> — **Stern Pinball (official code release notes)**, N/A
> _Official confirmation of code release scope and Concert Mode addition_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Stern Pinball | company | Manufacturer releasing Rush accessories and code update |
| Rush | game | Stern pinball machine that won Game of the Year at TWIPYs; subject of topper and accessory releases |
| John Borg | person | Designer of Rush pinball, shared accessory prototype pictures on Facebook |
| Flip N Out Pinball | company | Stern distributor listing official accessory pricing and ship dates |
| TWIPYs | event | Awards event where Rush won Game of the Year and multiple other awards |
| The Spirit of Radio | product | Official Stern topper for Rush pinball featuring moving gears and clock mechanism |
| Concert Mode | product | New gameplay mode introduced in Rush code v1.10 |
| Frenzy | product | New exclusive scoring mode available only with Rush topper |
| Expression Lighting Side Blades | product | Lighting accessory for Rush released alongside topper at $499.99 |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Product Announcements & Releases, Code Updates & Game Features, Aftermarket Accessories & Mods
- **Secondary:** Award Recognition, Pricing & Availability

### Sentiment

**Positive** (0.85) — Announcement is celebratory, highlighting Rush's award success and introducing desirable new official accessories. No criticism or concerns raised. Tone is enthusiastic about product reveals.

### Signals

- **[design_philosophy]** Exclusive gameplay mode (Frenzy) tied to topper purchase incentivizes accessory adoption beyond cosmetics (confidence: high) — Frenzy scoring mode described as 'available exclusively on games with toppers' in both topper description and code release notes
- **[event_signal]** Rush pinball's recent Game of the Year win at TWIPYs validates market reception and drives accessory monetization timing (confidence: high) — Article opens with Rush winning 'multiple awards at this past weekend's TWIPYs, including the coveted Game of the Year award'
- **[announcement]** Official reveal of Rush accessories with exclusive gameplay features tied to hardware purchases (confidence: high) — Stern released topper, Expression Lighting kits, side armor, and illuminated shooter rod with official pricing and ship dates
- **[product_strategy]** Stern releasing official topper and accessories suite for Rush, indicating strong post-launch support and monetization of existing installed base (confidence: high) — Multiple official accessory releases (topper, lighting, side armor, shooter rod) announced simultaneously with code update

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## Transcript

Fresh on the heels of winning multiple awards at this past weekend's TWIPYs, including the coveted Game of the Year award, Stern Pinball's Rush pinball machine finally has an official topper. Minutes ago, Stern revealed its new Rush "The Spirit of Radio" topper for the game in videos on YouTube and its social media channels.

The topper includes moving gears and a clock that awards one of four items in the game "Extra Ball," "Advance Time Machine," "Millions or a new scoring mode called "Frenzy," which is available exclusively on games with toppers.

In addition to the topper, Stern showed off several other mods for the game, including a new "2012" illumined shooter knob, new "Rush Starman" Side Armor and add-on Expression Lighting Kits.

UPDATE: While I have not seen official pricing for these options from Stern Pinball yet, the distributor Flip N Out now has the following prices listed on its website with an estimated ship date of sometime this "Spring" (https://www.flipnoutpinball.com/stern-games-copy-1):

$1,699.00 for the Topper

$499.99 for the Expression Lighting Side Blades

$139.99 for the Shooter Rod

$249.99 for the Side Armor

Stern also released new code for Rush today, Version 1.10. The update includes brand new "Concert Mode" gameplay.

"NEW CODE! Stern Pinball has posted new RUSH code v1.10.0 for the Pro, Premium, and Limited Edition models. This code contains numerous game enhancements including a new "Concert Mode" gameplay mode as well as full support for all official RUSH Accessories. The Topper accessory includes 4 features (Extra Ball, Advance Time Machine, Millions, and Frenzy, a new scoring mode available exclusively with the topper). This code also contains additional polish, game adjustments, and bug fixes."

UPDATE 2: Rush's designer John Borg, just shared these pictures of the prototypes for the accessories on Facebook:

Below are the stern Rush accessory teaser video and pictures:

_(Acquisition: raw_text, Enrichment: v1)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 02633399-0161-4e43-b4dd-3332a122e956*