# Rare Photos of Prototype Mad Magazine Pinball Machine

**Source:** Knapp Arcade  
**Type:** article  
**Published:** 2022-07-23  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.knapparcade.org/rare-photos-of-prototype-mad-magazine-pinball-machine

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## Analysis

Joe Kaminkow shared prototype photos of an unreleased Mad Magazine pinball machine designed for Stern. The game was completed and playtested successfully, but Gary Stern shelved it due to concerns about European market viability. This represents a rare look at an abandoned Stern title from the pinball vault.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Mad Magazine pinball machine was designed for Stern and nearly completed — _Joe Kaminkow shared pictures of prototype; described as 'basically complete'_
- [MEDIUM] The game 'shot very well' in playtesting — _Article states 'supposedly shot very well' — qualifier 'supposedly' introduces some uncertainty_
- [MEDIUM] Gary Stern declined to produce the game over European market viability concerns — _Article attributes decision to Gary Stern's concern 'that it wouldn't sell well in Europe'_

### Notable Quotes

> "The game was basically complete and supposedly shot very well, but Gary Stern was concerned that it wouldn't sell well in Europe so it never made it into production."
> — **Knapp Arcade (article text)**
> _Core claim explaining why a completed, functional prototype was never released to market_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Joe Kaminkow | person | Pinball industry legend; shared prototype photos of unreleased Mad Magazine machine |
| Gary Stern | person | Decision-maker at Stern Pinball who shelved Mad Magazine title over European market concerns |
| Stern Pinball | company | Manufacturer of the shelved Mad Magazine prototype |
| Mad Magazine | product | IP theme for unreleased Stern pinball machine |
| Knapp Arcade | organization | Source reporting on prototype discovery |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Unreleased/prototype pinball machines, Stern Pinball game vault and shelved titles
- **Secondary:** International market considerations in game production decisions, Joe Kaminkow and designer contributions

### Sentiment

**Neutral** (0) — Tone is informational/curious about a historical artifact. No criticism or praise — straightforward reporting of a discovery.

### Signals

- **[business_signal]** Gary Stern's decision to shelve a completed, playtest-successful game based on regional market viability analysis; suggests international market segmentation strategy (confidence: medium) — Gary Stern concerned game 'wouldn't sell well in Europe' despite strong prototype performance
- **[leak_detection]** Prototype photos of an unreleased Stern title (Mad Magazine) surfacing through Joe Kaminkow's sharing, revealing previously unknown shelved project (confidence: high) — Joe Kaminkow 'recently shared pictures' of a prototype that never entered production

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## Transcript

Here’s something really neat. The pinball industry legend, Joe Kaminkow recently shared pictures of a never produced Mad Magazine pinball machine. The game was basically complete and supposedly shot very well, but Gary Stern was concerned that it wouldn’t sell well in Europe so it never made it into production.

_(Acquisition: raw_text, Enrichment: v1)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: a4db6a98-2cac-47b9-9811-4c9dd4ce472d*