# Stern Pinball Godzilla Gameplay Thoughts

**Source:** Cary Hardy  
**Type:** video  
**Published:** 2021-09-20  
**Duration:** 8m 36s  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvF18h7BEQQ

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## Analysis

Cary Hardy provides enthusiastic commentary on Stern's Godzilla Premium Edition pinball machine following Jack Danger's Friday night stream with Keith Elwin. He praises the game's visuals, audio, shot layout, and mechanical features, predicting it will be Game of the Year, while his only significant criticism is the $1,200 MSRP price increase for Premium models. Hardy acknowledges the game's excellence but expresses concern about affordability impact on sales.

### Key Claims

- [MEDIUM] Godzilla will be Game of the Year for 2021 — _Cary states 'I'm going to go ahead and call it right now that this will be game of the year' and doubts Stern's other planned cornerstone title will exceed it_
- [HIGH] Godzilla Premium MSRP increased by $1,200 compared to previous Premium tier pricing — _Cary explicitly states 'the price for the premiums have gone up twelve hundred dollars msrp' and later references '$1,200, $1,300, and $700 increase for all these tiers'_
- [HIGH] The game's mechanical features (mechs) are the primary differentiator pushing it to excellence — _Cary notes 'the really nifty mechs that are involved' push the game over the mark and acknowledges Pro models strip these for location reliability_
- [HIGH] Stern set a new industry standard with Godzilla that will impact how future games are evaluated — _Cary states 'Stern has stepped up and set a new standard so they've kind of in a way hurt themselves because now going forward every new game that they produce will be compared to what was in Godzilla'_
- [MEDIUM] The price increase may negatively impact sales volume despite the game's quality — _Cary speculates 'the game is still going to sell amazingly well but I feel that it would have sold even more to those that just don't want to cop up the extra dough'_

### Notable Quotes

> "Stern has stepped up and set a new standard so they've kind of in a way hurt themselves because now going forward every new game that they produce will be compared to what was in Godzilla."
> — **Cary Hardy**, Early in video
> _Core thesis about Godzilla raising industry expectations and creating competitive pressure for future Stern releases_

> "I watched this stream in its entirety... the only time that i can like watch a new game stream like from start to finish is if i'm highly interested and entertained by what i'm seeing and honestly the last time i felt like that was whenever jurassic park was revealed"
> — **Cary Hardy**, Mid-video
> _Positions Godzilla alongside Jurassic Park as a landmark game reveal that commands complete attention_

> "If you watched this stream and you left it with the mindset of going, eh, or just not interested or just didn't like it, then I must question whether or not you actually enjoy pinball."
> — **Cary Hardy**, Mid-video
> _Rhetorical strong statement about game quality; implies universal appeal within pinball enthusiast circles_

> "That's big dick energy if I've ever seen it."
> — **Cary Hardy**, End of gameplay analysis
> _Describing Keith Elwin's departure after demonstrating the game's excellence without soliciting sales; cultural commentary on confidence/charisma_

> "My only negative about this game is obviously the price, and that's beyond any type of fixing at this point."
> — **Cary Hardy**, Late in video
> _Summarizes singular criticism of an otherwise excellent product; acknowledges price increase as fait accompli_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Cary Hardy | person | Content creator and pinball enthusiast; host/narrator of this video analysis; expresses strong opinions on game quality and industry standards |
| Jack Danger | person | Streamer who demonstrated Godzilla Premium Edition on Friday night with Keith Elwin; known for high-quality streaming production |
| Keith Elwin | person | Pinball designer; appeared on Jack Danger's stream; demonstrated building mechanism mechanics and achieved over 1 billion points during final gameplay |
| Chuck Ernst | person | Credited with screen visuals on Godzilla; Cary praises the campy and good visual design |
| Jerry Thompson | person | Audio/music designer for Godzilla; received praise for music composition and sound design |
| Godzilla Premium Edition | game | Premium-tier Stern pinball machine; subject of this entire analysis; praised for mechanics, visuals, audio, and shot layout; criticized for $1,200 price increase |
| Stern Pinball | company | Manufacturer of Godzilla; Cary notes they've set new industry standard with this release; mentioned as having another cornerstone title planned for year-end |
| Jurassic Park | game | Previous landmark pinball release that Cary compares Godzilla to; also won Game of the Year; used as comparison point for stream engagement and quality |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Game Quality and Mechanics, Pricing and Market Impact
- **Secondary:** Stream Coverage and Community Engagement, Premium vs Pro Tier Differentiation, Industry Standards and Competitive Positioning
- **Mentioned:** Audio and Visual Design

### Sentiment

**Positive** (0.85) — Cary is enthusiastically positive about Godzilla's quality, gameplay, mechanics, visuals, and audio design. His only significant criticism is the price increase, which he acknowledges as immovable but not game-breaking. He predicts Game of the Year status and expresses genuine desire to own the machine. Tone is conversational, energetic, and heavily favorable.

### Signals

- **[event_signal]** Jack Danger's Friday night stream with Keith Elwin and team serves as major community engagement event demonstrating game capabilities (confidence: high) — Friday night Jack Danger streamed the game Godzilla Premium Edition with Keith Elwin and team. As per usual Jack put on a great high quality stream
- **[competitive_signal]** Godzilla positioned as industry standard-setter; future Stern games will be measured against this baseline (confidence: high) — Stern has stepped up and set a new standard so they've kind of in a way hurt themselves because now going forward every new game that they produce will be compared to what was in Godzilla
- **[design_philosophy]** Keith Elwin demonstrates confidence in game quality through mic-drop exit after billion-point showcase; no need for hard sell or additional commentary (confidence: high) — He didn't even bother playing his last ball. He didn't say bye or thanks for showing up guys, please buy my game. No, because he knew you guys would want it.
- **[market_signal]** Stern pricing increases across all tiers (mentioned as $1,200, $1,300, and $700) attributed speculatively to COVID-19 supply chain impacts, but actual cause unclear (confidence: medium) — We don't know the actual extent and damage for what COVID-19 is doing to parts suppliers and shipping and everything... there's always a question of whether or not the $1,200, $1,300, and $700 increase... are actual truly due to COVID-19
- **[market_signal]** $1,200 Premium tier price increase raises affordability concerns despite game quality remaining excellent (confidence: high) — the price for the premiums have gone up twelve hundred dollars msrp and that really sucks... the game is still going to sell amazingly well but I feel that it would have sold even more
- **[product_concern]** Location operators require fewer moving parts/mechs to reduce maintenance burden; Pro tier strips these features for operational reliability (confidence: medium) — obviously they have to strip out all the cool mechs and moving parts and everything for the pro because those typically go on location... less moving parts because that usually requires maintenance
- **[sentiment_shift]** Stream gameplay successfully converted viewer skepticism to purchase intent; Jack's coverage was decisive in changing Cary's perception from interested to sold (confidence: high) — I wouldn't have bought it on the minute video that stern released but the stream definitely sold me to where i was very interested

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## Transcript

All right guys we're gonna make this short and sweet because what else is there to freaking say that you don't already know? What's up guys and welcome back to my channel where I talk and do everything pinball. So if that sounds interesting to you then hit that subscribe button down below. Friday night Jack Danger streamed the game Godzilla Premium Edition with Keith Elwin and team. As per usual Jack put on a great high quality stream to show all of us out there what this game is capable of this includes him focusing on the building whenever multiball was initiated as well as keith showing us the building mechanism that is in the center of the play field on how it looks whenever it's stripped complete of all the aesthetics and everything so at the beginning of this video i state what else is there to friggin say because if you watch the same stream i did you saw the greatness that I saw. Stern has stepped up and set a new standard so they've kind of in a way hurt themselves because now going forward every new game that they produce will be compared to what was in Godzilla. I'm going to go ahead and call it right now that this will be game of the year. Now obviously Stern's got one more cornerstone title to bring us before the end of the year and I just doubt that it's going to have more and be better than what we are seeing now and if I'm wrong then that's also a great thing i watched this stream in its entirety i couldn't watch it live with all of you out there that's why i was not in the chat but i did watch the full two hours and the only time that i can like watch a new game stream like from start to finish is if i'm highly interested and entertained by what i'm seeing and honestly the last time i felt like that was whenever jurassic park was revealed which by the way went on to being game of the year the visuals on the screen were campy and good. There was no issues with that either, so Chuck Ernst and your team did great with those. When it comes to the audio for the game like the sounds the music I enjoyed everything The music it was enough Interchange throughout different types of tones and instruments Jerry Thompson did a great job for what I was hearing I'm hearing some kind of grunge guitar at certain points. The theme, nothing stood out that really hurt my ears or just was annoying. Everything sounded really good when it comes to the audio. And I especially enjoyed the fact that Jack Danger chose to use the Japanese voiceover for his game. You have that option when you start a game if you want to have the English or Japanese voiceover. So he chose Japanese. I feel like if slash when I get this game, I will definitely be choosing the Japanese as well. It just kind of adds to the theme, and it's just made it a little bit more interesting, honestly. When it comes to the shot and layout, I'm sure all of you can agree that the game shot amazingly, and it looks to be a blast to play. If you watched this stream and you left it with the mindset of going, eh, or just not interested or just didn't like it, then I must question whether or not you actually enjoy pinball. And I know what the majority of you who do have something negative to say about this game will be. And the thing is, I already know what it's going to be and I will be sure to mention it right now. I enjoy everything about this game, too, guys, except for one thing. that's right and that is obviously the fact that the price for the premiums have gone up twelve hundred dollars msrp and that really sucks because i feel that aside from that price increase the game is is great and i and then the thing is i feel that with the price increase the game is still going to sell amazingly well but I feel that it would have sold even more to those that just don't want to cop up the extra dough the extra $1,200 might add to get the premium because if you get the pro that fine you still get a great shooting game but I think what really pushing this game over the mark is the fact of the really nifty mechs that are involved Now obviously they have to strip out all the cool mechs and moving parts and everything for the pro because those typically go on location. And you want less moving parts because that usually requires maintenance or if it goes down then it's basically a machine down that's not able to collect money. And the point of machines being on location is obviously so they can collect money. I want this game guys. I really do. it's just a matter of me getting my ducks in a row to see if i can get it i've already inquired about getting a premium i'm not putting in uh for the order just yet uh as per usual things never tend to go my way so i'm dealing with a plumbing issue in my house that may resort and me having to do a remodel and i'm waiting to see what the end result of that is going to be but there is someone that lives somewhat near me that is going to be getting a limited edition and I have been cordially invited to come play that when it arrives. I have yet to purchase a game without playing it first and I will hopefully continue to do that but honestly I feel that if there were no other like concerns financially and I had the money to just throw without you know care in the world like obviously some of you out there then i'm pretty sure i would have bought this after watching the stream i wouldn't have bought it on the minute video that stern released but the stream definitely sold me to where i was very interested and the thing is everything that i mentioned everything i'm talking about you already know guys you didn't watch this video just to go oh let's see carry tear this game up like no you already know how you feel you know the game looks and shoots amazing you just wanted to see if i agreed with you and the thing is i do agree with you i agree that this game does shoot and look amazing if you got your premium or le on the way congratulations i obviously feel envious of you and if you're going for the pro by all means i still feel that you going to enjoy the game something that i really also liked about the stream is that keith l1 final game that he played to show off what this game can do he got over a billion points he was on there tearing this game up making the game look even better by my ad and he he didn't even play his last ball he got a ball save and everything he kind of just held his flipper up and just drained it. He didn't even bother playing his last ball. And then you know what he did? He literally just left. He left the room and everything. He didn't say bye or thanks for showing up guys, please buy my game. No, because he knew you guys would want it. He knew he did well. There was no question in his mind that he has done great and the game is going to sell. He just did a mic drop and then walked the hell out of the room. That's big dick energy if I've ever seen it. My only negative about this game is obviously the price, and that's beyond any type of fixing at this point. We don't know the actual extent and damage for what COVID-19 is doing to parts suppliers and shipping and everything, because that's obviously confidential information that they're not going to divulge. So there's always a question of whether or not the $1,200, $1,300, and $700 increase for all these tiers are actual truly due to COVID-19. But who knows? So obviously no one's going to like the price. That's a given. But take price out of the equation. How do you feel about the Godzilla game? Give me the thumbs up, guys. It helps out the channel. Hit that subscribe button. Ding my dong. That way you can be notified of whenever I upload something for your viewing pleasure. And until next time, guys, peace out. you

_(Acquisition: youtube_groq_whisper, Enrichment: v3)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 6678908c-410e-42f8-b0c5-e16738f65f4f*