Big Things are Coming to Stern Pinball's Insider Connected

Knapp Arcade·article·analyzed·May 16, 2022

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.015

TL;DR

Stern planning major Insider Connected expansion with Home Team feature and operator tools

Summary

Knapp Arcade reports on George Gomez interview from Super Awesome Pinball Show, detailing upcoming Insider Connected features including Home Team login functionality, Operator Dashboard, monthly feature releases, and a new home game in development for 'The Pin' line. The author shares personal experience with Insider Connected adoption and enthusiasm for the platform's replayability features.

Key Claims

Stern Pinball is developing another home game for 'The Pin' line of machines
high confidence · Direct quote from George Gomez interview reported by Knapp Arcade
An Insider Connected 'Home Team' feature is coming soon, allowing game owners to log in and play on their Connected account at home without pulling out their phone
high confidence · George Gomez interview via Super Awesome Pinball Show
An Insider Connected Operator Dashboard is in development allowing locations to set up custom quests and view location trends
high confidence · George Gomez interview via Super Awesome Pinball Show
Stern programmers want to drop new Insider Connected features every month in an ideal world
high confidence · George Gomez interview via Super Awesome Pinball Show
Private label machines are taking a back seat at Stern despite being approached by companies regularly
medium confidence · George Gomez interview via Super Awesome Pinball Show, reported by Knapp Arcade

Notable Quotes

“An Insider Connected 'Home Team' feature coming soon. The feature allows game owners to log in and play on their Connected account at home without having to pull out their phone.”
George Gomez (reported by Knapp Arcade) — Key UX improvement for Insider Connected home adoption, reducing friction for casual players
“In an ideal world, Stern would like to drop new Insider Connected features every month. That's what the programmers are saying they would like to do.”
George Gomez (reported by Knapp Arcade) — Signals aggressive roadmap and commitment to platform evolution, though 'ideal world' qualifier suggests challenges
“Now that I have one, I'm absolutely addicted to getting achievements in games. It adds a whole new level of replayability.”
Knapp Arcade (author) — Direct user testimony on Insider Connected engagement and value proposition for home arcade owners

Entities

George GomezpersonStern PinballcompanyInsider ConnectedproductSuper Awesome Pinball ShoworganizationThe Pinproduct Knapp ArcadeorganizationChristian LinepersonChristopher Franchiperson

Signals

?
business_signal: Stern deprioritizing private label machine production despite ongoing commercial interest
medium · George Gomez stated 'Private label machines taking a back seat at Stern despite being approached by companies all the time'
?
community_signal: Insider Connected demonstrates engagement through achievement system driving replayability in home arcade setting
high · Knapp Arcade author reports being 'absolutely addicted to getting achievements' and citing new replayability level
?
announcement: Stern developing new home game for 'The Pin' line of machines
high · George Gomez directly mentioned in interview that 'Stern Pinball is developing another home game for The Pin line of machines'
?
product_strategy: Insider Connected UX improvement targeting frictionless home gameplay through account login instead of phone-based interaction
high · Home Team feature eliminates need to pull out phone for home play sessions, addressing adoption barrier
?
product_strategy: Insider Connected roadmap includes Home Team feature (login-based at-home play), Operator Dashboard with custom quests and location analytics, and monthly feature releases targeting ideal cadence
high · George Gomez interview detailing 'Home Team' feature, Operator Dashboard, and programmer goal of monthly releases

Topics

Insider Connected platform expansion and roadmapprimaryHome Team feature for at-home Insider Connected gameplayprimaryOperator Dashboard for location managementprimaryNew home game development for 'The Pin' linesecondaryPrivate label machine strategy at SternsecondaryInsider Connected adoption and engagement in home arcadessecondary

Sentiment

positive(0.85)— Author expresses enthusiasm for George Gomez, Insider Connected features, and Stern's roadmap. Positive personal experience with IC adoption and strong endorsement of the interview content. Tone is promotional but genuine.

Transcript

raw_text · $0.000

I finally had a chance to listen to the full George Gomez interview that the folks at The Super Awesome Pinball Show podcast dropped earlier today. The show's hosts, Christian Line, Christopher Franchi and new co-host Jeff Parson did a great job. I personally am a huge George Gomez fan. He's a really nice guy. I had a great phone conversation with him last year, after which he went out of his way to send my sons and I an autographed Deadpool translite, that I was able to put into my Gomez-designed Deadpool Pro that finally arrived at the Knapp Arcade last week. The interview contained a ton of great information about Stern Pinball and its game development process. Here's my notes on what I found particularly interesting from Part 1 of the interview: - Stern Pinball is developing another home game for "The Pin" line of machines. - Private label machines taking a back seat at Stern despite being approached by companies all the time to make them. - A big Insider Connected code drop with tons of new features is coming soon. - An Insider Connected "Home Team" feature coming soon. The feature allows game owners to log in and play on their Connected account at home without having to pull out their phone. - An Insider Connected Operator Dashboard is coming. It will allow locations to set up custom quests, see location trends, and many other things. - In an ideal world, Stern would like to drop new Insider Connected features every month. That's what the programmers are saying they would like to do. While I purchased an Insider Connected kit for my Stern Jurassic Park Premium a while ago, I admit that I haven't installed it yet. So, when my new Deadpool arrived, it was the first connected pin in my home arcade. Now that I have one, I'm absolutely addicted to getting achievements in games. It adds a whole new level of replayability. I'm definitely going to buy IC kits to install in my Guardians of the Galaxy and Jurassic in the near future. Again, if you haven't listened to it already, make sure to check out the latest episode of the Super Awesome Pinball Show (link below). The next episode of the Super Awesome podcast will include Part 2 of the George Gomez interview. https://superawesomepinballshow.libsyn.com