# Rumors About the Upcoming Stern Pinball James Bond Machine

**Source:** Knapp Arcade  
**Type:** article  
**Published:** 2022-09-06  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.knapparcade.org/rumors-about-the-upcoming-stern-pinball-james-bond-machine

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## Analysis

Article reports unverified rumors from a Pinside forum post claiming Stern's upcoming James Bond pinball will focus on Sean Connery-era films, possibly Goldfinger specifically, with price increases across all trim levels and an official dealer reveal scheduled for a specific Tuesday morning.

### Key Claims

- [LOW] New Stern James Bond game will be based upon the Sean Connery era of Bond movies — _Anonymous Pinside forum post cited by Knapp Arcade; no official confirmation_
- [MEDIUM] An artist submitted a Goldfinger-based Bond pinball art package to Stern in 2019 that was rejected — _Knapp Arcade states this was brought to their attention; provides contextual support for Goldfinger rumor but source unnamed_
- [LOW] Stern will raise prices on all three trim levels (Pro, Premium, LE) of the new Bond game — _Anonymous Pinside post; unverified by official Stern channels_
- [LOW] Stern is scheduled to officially reveal the game to dealers at 8:00 AM Central on a specific Tuesday — _Anonymous Pinside post; timing claimed to be two hours before LE sales to All-Access members_

### Notable Quotes

> "an individual stated that a distributor told them that the new Stern Pinball James Bond game will be based upon the Sean Connery era of the movies"
> — **Knapp Arcade (reporting anonymous Pinside post)**, not specified
> _Primary source of the central rumor; chain of hearsay (distributor → individual → forum post → article)_

> "an artist submitted an art package to Stern for a pinball machine based solely on the Bond movie Goldfinger back in 2019. Ultimately that package was rejected by either Stern or the licensor, but it lends some credence to the rumor that the game is only based upon one Sean Connery Bond film, Goldfinger"
> — **Knapp Arcade**, not specified
> _Provides circumstantial evidence for Goldfinger focus; acknowledges information is several years old and may be outdated_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Stern Pinball | company | Manufacturer of the upcoming James Bond pinball machine being discussed in rumors |
| James Bond (game) | game | Upcoming Stern Pinball machine; subject of pricing and theme rumors |
| Sean Connery | person | Actor who played James Bond in six official films (1962-1971) and one later film (1983); rumored focus of upcoming game |
| Goldfinger | game | Specific Bond film (1964) rumored to be the focus of the new pinball machine; previous art package submission in 2019 |
| Pinside | organization | Pinball community forum where original rumor was posted |
| Knapp Arcade | organization | Source reporting and analyzing the rumors; appears to be a pinball content/news outlet |
| All-Access members | organization | Stern Pinball customer group scheduled to receive LE sales access according to rumor |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Upcoming game theme and scope, Pricing strategy and increases
- **Secondary:** Official reveal timing and distribution strategy, Licensing and IP constraints, Rumor sourcing and credibility

### Sentiment

**Neutral** (0.5) — Article reports rumors without editorial bias; author maintains skeptical distance by emphasizing unconfirmed nature and time-gap concerns ('that was several years ago and things may have changed')

### Signals

- **[licensing_signal]** Historical context suggesting potential licensing constraints around Bond film selection (2019 Goldfinger package rejected) (confidence: medium) — Artist-submitted Goldfinger art package rejected by Stern or licensor in 2019; suggests licensor approval requirements
- **[market_signal]** Rumored price increases across all three trim levels (Pro, Premium, LE) for new Bond machine (confidence: low) — Anonymous Pinside post claims price increases but provides no specific amounts or rationale
- **[announcement]** Stern reportedly scheduling official dealer reveal of new James Bond game at specific date/time (confidence: low) — Rumored 8:00 AM Central Tuesday reveal to dealers, two hours before LE sales to All-Access members
- **[rumor_hype]** Unconfirmed rumors circulating on Pinside about Sean Connery-focused James Bond pinball game with possible Goldfinger single-film focus (confidence: low) — Anonymous forum post on Pinside cited by Knapp Arcade; hearsay chain (distributor → individual → post)

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## Transcript

In a recent post on Pinside, an individual stated that a distributor told them that the new Stern Pinball James Bond game will be based upon the Sean Connery era of the movies.

Sean Connery played 007 in the following movies:

Dr. No (1962)

From Russia With Love (1963)

Goldfinger (1964)

Thunderball {1965)

You Only Live Twice (1967)

Diamonds are Forever (1971)

Never Say Never Again (1983)

It is not currently known which of these movies will be featured in the game, BUT...it has been brought to my attention that an artist submitted an art package to Stern for a pinball machine based solely on the Bond movie Goldfinger back in 2019. Ultimately that package was rejected by either Stern or the licensor, but it lends some credence to the rumor that the game is only based upon one Sean Connery Bond film, Goldfinger. Of course, even if this was the case at one time, that was several years ago and things may have changed.

The post went on to say that Stern is going to raise prices on all three trim levels of the game, Pro, Premium and LE.

Lastly, Stern is supposedly going to officially reveal the game to dealers at 8:00 AM Central next Tuesday, two hours before it is scheduled to list some of the Limited Edition machines for sale to All-Access members on its website.

https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/bond-james-bond-stern-007-hype-club/page/2#post-7122152

_(Acquisition: raw_text, Enrichment: v1)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 1d50544e-6281-4d9e-9a23-511059a8370e*