claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.035
P3 upgrades, Venom code, Labyrinth shipping, production updates, market deals.
P3 has upgraded components with stronger materials due to wear-prone parts and added new plastic housing for upper flipper
high confidence · Don citing Naps Arcade and other outlets reporting on P3 improvements
P3 warehouse expansion will reduce 11-month wait time for machines
high confidence · Don reporting confirmed P3 announcement
Princess Bride is rumored as upcoming P3 module/game, likely to be revealed at TPF
medium confidence · Don: 'The rumor is Princess Bride is coming out for this machine' / 'They've confirmed new games coming out. They haven't said that it's Princess Bride, but they've kind of suggested fairly heavily'
Venom 0.97 code adds achievements, more voice callouts, and specific lane callouts for shots
high confidence · Don read through update details: 'adds a ton of achievements' and 'specific lane call outs for shots'
March production will include Jaws Pro, Godzilla Pro, Jaws Premium, Jaws LE (starting this week), Star Wars Premium, and Jurassic Park
high confidence · Don citing distributor emails from Mad Pinball Jeff with pre-order information
Labyrinth invoicing complete and shipping expected this week with bill of lading pending
high confidence · Don: 'I got invoiced in the last week for Labyrinth. Invoice is now paid, and I heard that shipping is supposed to happen for me like sometime like this week'
Labyrinth topper now has tons of dialogue and integrated gameplay interactions, with code drop expected this week
high confidence · From Barrels of Fun 80-minute livestream: 'they've got like tons of lines of dialogue for the topper specifically now' and 'that code drop is supposed to be happening like this week'
Labyrinth wizard mode (Jareth) will be playable from new game start with one ball, not requiring progression from beginning
high confidence · Don citing Eric from livestream: 'you will be able to start the mode you know from a new game you get yourself one ball'
“Two people came in there. Someone was like, actually, I do own two of these machines. And then some guy, Wes, was in there like, hey, actually, I have three of these because once you get to eight to ten modules, it's better to just have more than one standalone unit machine.”
Don @ P3 ownership discussion — Humorous interaction revealing actual P3 collectors with multiple units, contradicting Don's joke about single-machine ownership model
“It's nice to just hear that audio cue that, oh, I need to kind of focus on the right orbit without having to look up, look behind the sculpted badonkadonk of Doppelganger to see if that insert is lit at all.”
Don @ Venom code update discussion — Praising new lane callout feature as practical gameplay improvement for fast machines
“Insider Connected really is shaking and changing the whole industry. I love that because hopefully that's going to pull more people kind of into this thing.”
Don @ Insider Connected discussion — Indicates strong belief that Stern's online account system is transformative for location play engagement
“Where I'm at, I'm really looking, and this is sacrilegious for me to say, but I'm really looking for the Black Knight Pro. I do like that fast gameplay that it has...But you know, it's going to cost four to $5,000 more, sometimes six than what I can get the pro for.”
Don @ Black Knight discussion — Reveals collector price sensitivity and preference for Pro model despite acknowledging Premium/LE superiority
“I could probably cash this game in for something else and be even happier than I am today.”
Don @ Black Knight Pro search — Describing potential seller motivation for trading Black Knight Pro to fund new releases
“they've got like tons of lines of dialogue for the topper specifically now. Before when we saw this amazing topper, we saw the lights light up, we saw the two outer heads turn, and occasionally you could hear something coming from, but it wasn't a whole lot.”
Don @ Labyrinth topper dialogue update — Documents significant topper code development improvement since October Expo showing
business_signal: P3 expanding warehouse capacity to reduce 11-month wait times for new machines
high · Don: 'they are uh expanding their uh uh warehouse uh capacity so that wait time of 11 months is definitely going to come down'
community_signal: Barrels of Fun conducted major 80-minute livestream with 8 team members discussing Labyrinth development, addressing community questions about topper, gameplay, and design decisions
high · Don: 'Pdubs Arcadeloft...had on like eight people from Barrels of Fun, and they did an 80-minute live stream last night...david van S of course was there brian savage...phil blake trent bowen...The coders, the animators, the rules designers, the game testers, like everybody was there'
design_philosophy: Labyrinth design philosophy includes accessible wizard mode (startable from new game with one ball) to enable more players to experience endgame content without progression requirement
high · Don citing Eric: 'don't worry about that you will be able to start the mode you know from a new game you get yourself one ball and play all the play yourself through the jareth wizard mode'
event_signal: Five-way production race among major manufacturers: Jaws, Labyrinth, Spooky games, Pulp Fiction, and potentially more games competing for shipping timing
high · Don: 'we got a five-way race what game's gonna get here soon uh i know joss premium supposed to be in production in a couple of weeks labyrinth sounds like it's about to get on a truck...Spooky and Dead Heat with their two new games...Pulp Fiction'
groq_whisper · $0.079
Next Stern Cornerstone title expected by summer (May/June); rumors include Indiana Jones, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Pokemon
low confidence · Don: 'I think we'll see that sometime by the summer, maybe May, maybe May or June' and 'rumors on the next Stern Cornerstone...Indiana Jones...Raiders of the Lost Ark...Pokemon rumor will not die'
Rec Room World Ultra VP cabinet with 1,400 games available on used market for $6,000-$8,000, with haptic feedback and full-size cabinet feel
high confidence · Don: 'Somebody out in the East coast, mid Atlantic region had a fairly good price around $6,000, 6,500' and extensive discussion of Ultra VP features
“I would love for a company to get the muppet show and put stantler and waldorf up there you know the two old guys from the balcony that were always giving fozzie bear such a hard time how much fun would it be to play pinball with those guys ridiculing you”
Don @ Topper fantasy discussion — Speculative pitch to manufacturers for Muppets pinball with topper characters
“It's not just, you know, start from the beginning every single time. You know, this time, if you want, you can pivot and just play through the wizard modes.”
Don @ Labyrinth wizard mode discussion — Praising game design choice to allow wizard mode access without progression requirement
market_signal: Secondary market showing buyer's market conditions with recent Stern releases (Guardians, Foo Fighters, Elvira Premium, Iron Maiden Pro) available at MSRP or below new in box
high · Don: 'they aren't commanding, like, high flipper prices. Like, you can walk in the door, MSRP, maybe a little bit less, and get yourself one of these things'
announcement: P3 confirmed new games coming, likely Princess Bride module to be revealed at TPF
medium · Don: 'they've confirmed new games coming out. They haven't said that it's Princess Bride, but they've kind of suggested fairly heavily that a new game would be playable at TPF'
product_strategy: Black Knight Sword of Rage Pro significantly cheaper than Premium/LE ($4,000-$6,000 price difference) despite similar gameplay; Don actively seeking Pro model for temporary ownership/flip strategy
high · Don: 'it's going to cost four to $5,000 more, sometimes six than what I can get the pro for...I want to play through that code, play through the battles...for about eight to 12 months, and then you know, get it on to somebody else'
product_strategy: P3 machine receiving component upgrades (stronger materials for wear-prone parts) and new upper flipper housing with improved visibility
high · Don: 'they have upgraded several little bits of their machine. Sounds like they had some components that may have been prone to wear, and so they've been redone with stronger materials' and 'new plastic housing for the upper flipper so it's not completely hidden'
product_concern: Virtual pinball market expanding with multiple manufacturers competing; Ultra VP praised as superior haptic experience but alternatives emerging at lower price points ($4,000 range)
high · Don: 'I've come to find them...at first I jumped on Pinside and it really there was a dearth of these available but now...maybe we'll see the prices of these things start to go down, the quality continue to improve'
product_strategy: Labyrinth topper dialogue significantly expanded since October Expo showing; code drop with integration expected this week
high · Don: 'Before when we saw this amazing topper...occasionally you could hear something coming from, but it wasn't a whole lot. That was back in October at Expo. Now there's a ton more dialogue...that code drop is supposed to be happening like this week'
rumor_hype: Next Stern Cornerstone title expected May/June; rumors include Indiana Jones, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Pokemon
low · Don: 'I think we'll see that sometime by the summer, maybe May, maybe May or June...people that seem like they're fairly certain and they're still saying things like Indiana Jones. I'm hearing Raiders of the Lost Ark...Pokemon rumor will not die'
technology_signal: Venom 0.97 code adds dynamic lane callout audio feature to assist players in fast-paced multiball situations, reducing need for visual feedback on playfield inserts
high · Don: 'one other thing that they have added is actually some specific lane call outs for shots...it's nice to just hear that audio cue that, oh, I need to kind of focus on the right orbit without having to look up'