# Stern Pinball's Remastered Game for 2026 Will Be... **Source:** Knapp Arcade **Type:** article **Published:** 2026-01-08 **Beat:** Pinball **URL:** https://www.knapparcade.org/blog/stern-pinballs-remastered-game-for-2026-will-be --- ## Analysis Knapp Arcade reports that Stern Pinball's 2026 remastered game will be KISS, not AC/DC as previously rumored. The game will be designed by John Borg (who designed the original 2015 Stern KISS) and upgraded to Spike 3 with enhanced animations and a larger LCD display. The original 1979 Bally KISS sold 17,000 units and the 2015 Stern version had art by Kevin O'Connor, who also did art for the original Bally game. ### Key Claims - [HIGH] Stern Pinball's 2026 remastered game will be KISS — _Author states 'with a very high degree of certainty' after speaking with multiple sources_ - [HIGH] The original 1979 Bally KISS pinball sold 17,000 units — _Historical fact cited by knapparcade with specific unit count_ - [HIGH] KISS Remastered will be upgraded to Spike 3 system — _Author states with certainty based on Stern's pattern with remasters_ - [HIGH] The original KISS (2015) contained only 10 songs — _Author cites specific feature of original game_ - [HIGH] AC/DC was designed by Steve Ritchie, who is no longer with Stern Pinball — _Author provides this as explanation for why AC/DC was not chosen for remaster_ ### Notable Quotes > "After speaking with several sources, I can say with a very high degree of certainty that Stern Pinball's Remastered game for 2026 will be KISS!" > — **knapparcade**, article body > _Core announcement with claimed high-confidence sourcing_ > "Remastering KISS makes a lot more sense for Stern than AC/DC because KISS is a John Borg game. Both of the previous remasters were Borg games, Metallica and The Walking Dead." > — **knapparcade**, article body > _Explains the design philosophy behind Stern's remaster selection_ > "I assume that the original game's DMD animations will be enhanced and mixed with concert footage for Stern's new larger LCD display." > — **knapparcade**, article body > _Speculation on technical enhancements expected in KISS Remastered_ > "Die hard Kiss fans are looking for a Kiss Pinball machine themed around the 70s original band. Gene, Paul, Peter and Ace, that's it!" > — **SpaceAceKelley**, comments section > _Fan criticism of 2015 KISS design direction and expectation-setting for remaster_ > "I don't believe this is happening anyhow as my sources say it will be AC/DC." > — **SpaceAceKelley**, comments section > _Contradictory claim from another commenter with different sources_ ### Entities | Name | Type | Context | |------|------|---------| | Stern Pinball | company | Major pinball manufacturer; releasing KISS Remastered in 2026 as part of remaster series | | KISS Remastered | game | Upcoming 2026 Stern Pinball remaster of the 2015 KISS game; upgraded to Spike 3 platform | | John Borg | person | Legendary Stern designer; designed original 2015 KISS, Metallica, and The Walking Dead remaster | | Kevin O'Connor | person | Artist who did art for both the original 1979 Bally KISS and Stern's 2015 KISS | | Steve Ritchie | person | Pinball designer at Stern; designed AC/DC; no longer with Stern Pinball | | Metallica | game | Previous Stern remaster by John Borg (2021) | | The Walking Dead | game | Previous Stern remaster by John Borg (2025); author correctly predicted this in earlier speculation | | AC/DC | game | Original Stern game designed by Steve Ritchie; was author's initial incorrect prediction for 2026 remaster | | KISS (1979 Bally) | game | Original Bally KISS game from 1979; sold 17,000 units; had art by Kevin O'Connor | | KISS (2015 Stern) | game | Original Stern KISS released in 2015; designed by John Borg; featured 10 songs; being remastered for 2026 | | Lonnie Ropp | person | Code programmer for 2015 KISS pinball machine | | Tanio Klyce | person | Code programmer for 2015 KISS pinball machine | | Pop House | company | Entity mentioned in comments as having acquired KISS publishing rights | | Tommy Thayer | person | Current KISS guitarist (replacement for Ace Frehley); re-recorded music for 2015 Stern KISS | | Eric Singer | person | Current KISS drummer (replacement for Peter Criss); appeared in 2015 Stern KISS dot matrix | | Ace Frehley | person | Original KISS guitarist; fan commentary expresses desire for original 1970s-era representation | | Peter Criss | person | Original KISS drummer; fan commentary expresses desire for original 1970s-era representation | ### Topics - **Primary:** 2026 Game Roadmap, Stern Pinball Remaster Series Strategy - **Secondary:** Spike 3 Platform Adoption, Designer Selection Criteria (Borg focus), Fan Expectations and Licensing Concerns - **Mentioned:** Original KISS (1979) Legacy ### Sentiment **Mixed** (0.55) — Author is enthusiastic about the announcement and anticipates improvements. However, community comments show significant skepticism and concern about artistic direction—particularly regarding the 1970s-era KISS representation, band lineup composition, and artwork quality. Fan SpaceAceKelley explicitly questions whether the remaster will satisfy longtime KISS fans and expresses doubt about the announcement itself. ### Signals - **[announcement]** Official confirmation of KISS as Stern's 2026 remaster game (confidence: high) — Author claims 'very high degree of certainty' after speaking with multiple sources - **[community_signal]** Significant fan concern about artistic direction regarding original 1970s KISS vs. modern lineup representation (confidence: high) — SpaceAceKelley detailed critique of 2015 KISS art, makeup representation, and cartoonish art style; advocates for photo-realistic 1970s aesthetic - **[design_philosophy]** Stern appears to prioritize remastering John Borg-designed games; all three confirmed remasters are Borg designs (confidence: high) — Author notes Metallica, Walking Dead, and now KISS are all Borg games; AC/DC (Ritchie) was not chosen despite earlier speculation - **[licensing_signal]** KISS publishing acquisition by Pop House may open new opportunities for thematic direction in future pinball remaster (confidence: medium) — SpaceAceKelley notes KISS has sold publishing to Pop House and expresses hope this enables original 1970s band focus - **[personnel_signal]** Steve Ritchie is no longer with Stern Pinball, affecting future remaster selections (confidence: high) — Author explicitly states Ritchie is no longer at Stern, explaining why AC/DC (Ritchie design) was not selected - **[announcement]** KISS Remastered will upgrade to Spike 3 with enhanced LCD display and expanded soundtrack (confidence: high) — Author states with certainty based on Stern's pattern with previous remasters --- ## Transcript News Stern Pinball's Remastered Game for 2026 Will Be... k knapparcade January 8, 2026 Late last year I wrote an series of articles here, speculating about what pinball titles we would see in 2026. At the time, I guessed that Stern Pinball's next game in its Remastered series would be AD/DC. I nailed the rumor that The Walking Dead was going to be remastered in 2025, but I missed this one. After speaking with several sources, I can say with a very high degree of certainty that Stern Pinball's Remastered game for 2026 will be KISS! Stern originally released KISS in 2015. It was designed by John Borg with art by Kevin O'Connor and code by Lonnie D. Ropp, Tanio Klyce and others. The fact that Kevin O'Connor did the art for Stern's KISS is so cool because he actually did the art for the original KISS pin, Bally's wildly successful 1979 game that sold 17,000 units back in the day. Remastering KISS makes a lot more sense for Stern than AC/DC because KISS is a John Borg game. Both of the previous remasters were Borg games, Metallica and The Walking Dead. AC/DC was designed by Steve Ritchie, who is no longer with Stern Pinball. I don't have any additional details on KISS Remastered yet, but we can say with certainty that it will be upgraded to the Company's new SPIKE 3 system. I assume that the original game's DMD animations will be enhanced and mixed with concert footage for Stern's new larger LCD display. The original KISS pin contained only 10 songs, so I expect that list to grow on the Remastered version as well. Below is the original flyer for Stern's KISS Limited Edition and a bunch of pictures that I have taken of the game over the years. So what do you think? Would you buy a KISS Remastered? I really like the original game and am looking forward to seeing the enhancements. Posted about 1 month ago k About knapparcade Site administrator Comments (3) Please sign in to join the conversation. N NW pingeek about 1 month ago Kiss remastered just seems pretty niche market. I would like to see stern remaster Led Zep and do it all from scratch. Or, LOTR would be magnificent 1 L Leon about 1 month ago Now this is the best Xmas and New Years surprise anyone could have since those great years of 2015 and before that 1979. Bring it on!!!!!!! Cheers 1 S SpaceAceKelley about 1 month ago Edited This would be amazing, but here is the problem. Die hard Kiss fans are looking for a Kiss Pinball machine themed around the 70s original band. Gene, Paul, Peter and Ace, that’s it! You could do amazing art packages. One could be the Rock and Roll Over art. The premium and LE’s could be the Love Gun art package or Destroyer, or even Alive! The list goes on and on. Now that Kiss has sold their publishing to Pop House, with the right direction this could be possible for once. The last Kiss Pinball machine by Stern had music that was re-recorded in the studio with Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer. Even though you had Ace Frehley and Peter Criss representation on the machine, the dot matrix showed Tommy Thayer with his costume. And even what should’ve been Peter Criss on the backbox translite or artwork, had a stronger resemblance to Eric Singer in Peter‘s make up. I don’t have any problem with all the eras of Kiss. I love the non-makeup era too. But where a lot of people and I have a problem with Kiss was the fact that Gene and Paul put Tommy and Eric in Ace and Peter‘s makeup. I understand why they did it, but when it comes to celebrating Kiss in a pinball machine, stick to the iconic original Kiss from the 70’s. I don’t see Stern doing this because any input by Gene and Paul is going to lean more towards what KISS has done in the last 20 or 30 years. You’re not gonna have a Kiss Pinball machine without “Lick It Up” in it or I was made for loving you or God gave rock ‘n’ roll to you or something of that nature. So I just hope if this theme gets redone again in the future that it is done properly. I mean, this could be one amazing pin if you just took to the original KISS in make up. Just imagine that destroyer album artwork as your back glass. It would be beautiful! The last artwork was too cartoonish and way to colorful. The faces and bodies of the band members were drawn much better on the Bally 79’ machine. Needs to be be more photo realistic or more like the original art. Just look at the artwork Beetlejuice. It is perfect. I don’t believe this is happening anyhow as my sources say it will be AC/DC. But if it is KISS, please don’t mess this one up. I am not holding my breath though. 1 Related Articles Stern Officially Reveals New Pokémon Pinball Machine 3 days ago Dutch Pinball is NOT Working with Stern to Release Back to the Future 3 days ago Pokémon Reveal Tomorrow?; Beetlejuice Pinball on Location 5 days ago Subscribe to Updates Get the latest pinball news, blog posts, and event announcements delivered to your inbox Subscribe StripeM-Inner _(Acquisition: raw_text, Enrichment: v1)_ --- *Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 6325bc44-a4aa-4257-b969-893537af8719*