The Pinball Show Episode 130 BONUS: Stern Pinball Toppers/Accessories Production Updates

Pinball Show Patreon Feed·podcast_episode·10m 39s·analyzed·Jun 20, 2023

Analysis

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TL;DR

Stern Pinball topper rerun schedule revealed; Expression Lighting Kits delayed indefinitely; multiple accessories officially discontinued.

Summary

The Pinball Show presents exclusive Stern Pinball accessory production updates: Rush toppers returning September 2024, Jurassic Park toppers in late June, Elvira toppers in late August, Iron Maiden Aces High topper in October, and Avengers Infinity Quest topper in October. However, Expression Lighting Kits have no timeline (only ~10 of distributor's order fulfilled), and several accessories are officially discontinued including Deadpool topper, Led Zeppelin topper/armor, TMNT topper/shooter knob, Guardians of the Galaxy topper/shooter knob/art blades, Black Knight art blades, and Sam Shaker motors. The host discusses how accessory pre-order logistics are forcing Flippin' Out Pinball to reconsider their sales model.

Key Claims

Rush toppers are being rerun and all existing pre-orders will be fulfilled in the September 2024 production run
high confidence · Dennis from The Pinball Show citing exclusive information from Stern Pinball directly
Expression Lighting Kits have no timeline for production and Stern has only produced approximately 10 units of the distributor's order
high confidence · Flippin' Out Pinball distributor stating they received fewer than 10 kits of their order
Jurassic Park toppers will return in late June 2024
high confidence · Dennis citing Stern Pinball update
Elvira toppers are returning in late August, suggesting Stern may still have plans to manufacture the Elvira game again
medium confidence · Dennis speculating based on accessory rerun decision
Iron Maiden topper (Aces High variant, not Egypt) will have a final encore run in October 2024, 14 months after originally announced
high confidence · Dennis citing Stern Pinball schedule
Deadpool topper is officially discontinued with no plans for future production, potentially signaling the game may not continue in Stern's lineup
medium confidence · Dennis noting discontinuation and speculating about game future given Marvel's upcoming Venom release
Flippin' Out Pinball is considering moving away from pre-order model for accessories, adopting a 'just stock them' approach similar to Marco Specialties
high confidence · Flippin' Out Pinball representative explaining operational inefficiency caused by pre-order fulfillment delays
Sam Shaker motors are officially discontinued with no future production plans
high confidence · Dennis citing Stern discontinuation list

Notable Quotes

“The release and announcement orders of that accessory alone has made my company more inefficient than anything else in this industry.”
Flippin' Out Pinball distributor @ ~5:30 — Illustrates the operational burden Expression Lighting Kit delays have created for major distributors
“I'm looking to do more of a Marco Specialties kind of thing. They just order some. No pre-orders. Put them on the site.”
Flippin' Out Pinball representative @ ~7:00 — Major distributor signaling shift away from pre-order model due to fulfillment problems
“They only missed it by 14 months.”
Dennis @ ~15:30 — Sarcastic commentary on Iron Maiden topper's extremely delayed production
“You can read through some of these things what they do with the accessories to figure out what they might do with the game.”
Dennis @ ~12:45 — Suggests accessory strategy reveals future game production plans
“No timeline. They have not given us a timeline, and they still have only produced not even 10 of our order.”
Flippin' Out Pinball distributor @ ~4:45 — Quantifies severe shortage of Expression Lighting Kits

Entities

Stern PinballcompanyDennispersonFlippin' Out PinballcompanyMarco SpecialtiescompanyNicolepersonRushgameExpression Lighting KitsproductJurassic Parkgame

Signals

?
product_strategy: Stern appears to be strategically rerunning popular toppers (Rush, Jurassic Park, Avengers Infinity Quest, Iron Maiden) while simultaneously discontinuing accessories for discontinued games and underperforming titles (Deadpool, Led Zeppelin, TMNT, Guardians of the Galaxy). Expression Lighting Kits remain in production limbo despite high demand.
high · Production schedule lists multiple reruns alongside official discontinuations; Deadpool discontinuation despite being 'really well' selling suggests strategic pivot toward newer Marvel IP (Venom)
?
product_concern: Major distributor reports severe fulfillment failures: Expression Lighting Kits have seen only ~10 units produced against large pre-orders with no timeline for additional production; Rush toppers second run still incomplete (only ~50 received by distributor).
high · Flippin' Out Pinball distributor explicitly states operational inefficiency from delays; describes making 10 of order; distributor considering abandoning pre-order model entirely
?
operational_signal: Pre-order fulfillment delays are forcing at least one major distributor (Flippin' Out Pinball) to abandon pre-order model and shift toward Marco Specialties-style stock-on-hand approach. This suggests systemic stress in accessory supply chain.
high · Distributor explicitly discusses moving away from pre-orders due to inefficiency; references frustration from customers seeing items on Marco Specialties while waiting on pre-orders
$
market_signal: Pre-order customers becoming frustrated when accessories appear on competitor (Marco Specialties) stock, creating customer service burden for distributors who cannot fulfill their own pre-orders.
medium · Distributor describes customers being 'pissy' when items appear on Marco site despite having deposits locked in; references company losing money buying from Marco to fulfill their own orders

Topics

Stern Pinball Accessory Production & DistributionprimaryTopper Production Schedule & Rerun TimelineprimaryExpression Lighting Kits Delays & Fulfillment CrisisprimaryDistributor Business Model ChallengesprimaryOfficial Discontinuations & Game Line SignalingprimaryPre-Order vs. Stock-On-Hand Sales ModelsecondaryMarvel IP & Game Portfolio Strategysecondary

Sentiment

mixed(0.35)— Positive news about topper reruns and new production dates, but heavily tempered by frustration over Expression Lighting Kit delays, distributor inefficiency, and multiple discontinuations. Tone shifts from excitement to resignation and mild sarcasm (e.g., '14 months late' comment). The host and distributor express both appreciation for the updates and deep frustration with unfulfilled orders and lack of communication.

Transcript

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Warning, the following episode contains adult language and screaming goats. Listener discretion is advised. The Pinball Network is online. Launching The Pinball Show. Thanks again for the ongoing support as a Pinball Show Club member. Enjoy this exclusive TPS content and make sure to visit the Pinball Show Club Discord to chat about the bonus material. Right Dennis, all these people are wanting to know what do they get exclusive information wise here at The Pinball Show? We've got some good updates about Stern Pinball accessories. Oh, so much so. What do you want to say? Yeah, Dennis, you know, because I care so much about this, but I'll say look, as a non-dealer, the two things I hear the most questions about are Expression Lighting kits and the Rush toppers. Well, and I've got an answer for half of it. Okay, we'll take it. We got an update from Stern Pinball on where in the hell some of these accessories are, when they're going to be produced again, if they're going to be produced again. I'm here to tell you some exclusive information here. They're looking to run the Rush toppers again. Right. A lot of you have orders for them. They're running them again. They're aiming for September. For September. So we get a couple months. That's not too far out. Not too far out, further than I'd like to be, but those went over very well the first time around. So much so that their orders bled into a second run. But keep in mind that I don't know if they're doing this for everything moving forward, but they did say that all of the orders—these are kind of made to order, kind of thing—so the second run of Rush toppers in September, all of the orders should be fulfilled during this run, which tells me that's interesting. Yeah, it tells me they don't really have a big plan not to—not that they won't rerun them again, but not in the near future. So they're going to be building toppers for a while in September for Rush because I know that we weren't fulfilled. We got barely 50 as of right now of toppers. Okay, but what about the Expression Lane? Because I think most distros got way less than even half of that order, if I remember right. The release and announcement orders of that accessory alone has made my company more inefficient than anything else in this industry. That's because I get asked all the time where these lighting kits are at. And I'm asking now. What's going on? You said we only got half our answer, so I'm afraid I'm not going to like what you're going to say. No timeline. They have not given us a timeline and they still have only produced not even 10 of our order. So I look like a fool. I don't know. You don't have control over that. I know, but it sucks. I don't have answers, but I have to reply to every email with no information, which sucks for people. So I don't... You know what? That accessory alone is making us second guess the way we're doing accessories in the future. I can tell you, not that it helps exclusively, I need to get this out to everybody. But I think moving forward, ourselves for Flippin' Out Pinball, probably one of the industry leaders in accessory sales at this point, I believe we're looking to do more of a Marco Specialties kind of thing. They just order some. No pre-orders. Put them on the site. No pre-orders. You just, whenever you get them, you put them on the website and it's, there's no loyalty to that. There's no, like, it sucks for consumers. Yeah, I know, but it's the amount of time you must spend answering people. And then, of course, the frustrations of people who see them on Marco, and they're like, but I already pre-ordered, and I've got a deposit locked in. I mean, they're going to be pissy about it, and I understand why. So much so that last week when they had some in stock, I picked up a couple and pissed off Nicole because she's like, we're losing money now just to fulfill our customers? No, stop. And she did this, if you can hear this. That was my hand. She gave it a little. Stop. Stop it. Don't do that. It sucks that we don't have any from Stern to send to our existing customers, but don't lose money for us by buying from Marco and resending them out. So, no timeline. Don't know those Expression Lighting Kits. I wonder if they second-guessed that whole idea of the Expression Lighting Kits on things. Foo Fighters—they still haven't announced any accessories for Foo Fighters. That's true. Nothing. No timeline for the next run of Godzilla toppers either. Oh, that's what I was going to ask about. The Plume. The Plume will make its return. They did build a lot. We got a nice big chunk of our order but not all of them, so people are still waiting. I would anticipate this year seeing another run, honestly, but I just don't know when yet. I do have an update on when we're going to see Jurassic Park toppers again. Yes, they are making them again at Stern Pinball, and that should be late June. So coming out the next couple weeks here, we should see some Jurassic Park toppers leave the factory. Can you believe this one? I didn't know this, but they plan to make Elvira toppers again. I forgot about the Elvira topper. It's amazing to me. I'm surprised that they're going to spend the effort and time to make Elvira toppers again. That does kind of tell me and hint to me that they still have intention on making that game again. You can read through some of these things—what they do with the accessories to figure out what they might do with the game. And Elvira toppers are going to be returning in late August. Not a huge huge demand, but there still is demand. We still have some in order, but that's withering down a little bit. But Elvira toppers returning in late August. I think those were like $1,200 or something. Iron Maiden topper. Remember the one that they announced was going to happen last summer and never did? Yeah, that one. They're calling it the final encore run of the Iron Maiden topper. Now, to be specific, I don't believe that's the Egypt topper. I think it's the Aces High topper. I don't know that they're going to make the Egypt topper again. So it's just the Aces High topper for the final encore run. It's going to be in October now, Dennis. In the fall, October. Anything else in October? They only missed it by 14 months. Yeah, actually, they're going to be running another topper as well, rerunning the Avengers Infinity Quest topper, the flat plastic topper that everybody loves. They do. Yes, they like it more. I like it more than the Hamburger Helper mitt. Yeah, you're a little gym mania about it. So there's all the insider connected people too. But that's coming in October as well. Now I'm going to read off—that's a lot of topper news and it's probably a pleasant surprise to many accessories and topper lovers out there who are exclusive fans of The Pinball Show here, that they're going to be running these again. So that's awesome. But with birth comes death, and the last update did list some official discontinuations of some accessories. Now that I'm calling them officially discontinued, I don't know what else to call them because it says no future runs or builds. Okay, so they could—so while conceptually they could re-up and change their mind whenever they want, this is the official stance currently. Yes, and compared to the scheduling they have of other accessories that they don't know if they're going to make or when they'll put TBA. So they're actually saying no future builds. Yes, there's a distinction. So I'm calling them officially discontinued, and that is the Led Zeppelin topper and armor, which to me makes sense because they discontinued that game along with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles topper, now officially discontinued, along with the shooter knob, the Katana shooter knob of TMNT, which also makes sense. Makes sense. They're not making that game. Same for Black Knight. They're still, believe it or not, they were producing some art blades for that game. I'm surprised. I think they just had extra inventory that nobody bought, to be honest. Officially discontinued, but I bought some up, so we have some at FlippinOutPinball.com. And another discontinued game, Guardians of the Galaxy. They officially discontinued the shooter knob and the art blades. They discontinued the topper a while back. No plans, I guess, to build that again. But the shooter knob and art blades are now done. No future plans to build them. And this next one is what makes me scratch my head. All of the toppers I listed being rerun, or even if they're not TBA, except for Deadpool. The Deadpool topper now says no plans for a future build. Oh. So now the ones I listed here, officially discontinued, Guardians of the Galaxy stuff, Black Knight, TMNT, Led Zeppelin—these are all discontinued games. Oh, discontinued games. Might that be some writing on the wall for Deadpool? It wouldn't surprise me. Which they bumped back to October. Sure. It's been in the catalog quite a while now. Quite a while. Sells really well, though. Yeah. Marvel's always a hot property. They want to move on. I mean, they've got Venom coming. So Deadpool Topper—no more plans to ever build that. Also of note, the Sam Shaker motors. No plans to make those ever again. That's odd. Why, why not? It's not like you have to license those. Yeah, but I'm just—I get it. It probably uses a different board or something, or it has a different wiring connection, if I recall. Something's different. I, you know, and maybe their parts manufacturer, like their parts vendors, make their own similar type of shaker motor. I wouldn't, like, if you want to get a shaker, there are options. So I don't think buyers are going to be overly concerned. I bet they're just not selling enough that they even want to bother keeping parts in with whatever it takes to, you know, whatever the wiring is or whatever. I don't know. It's still very interesting. So you heard it exclusively here on The Pinball Show. Thanks for being a member and a supporter of TPS. It looks like we've got some Rush toppers coming in September. No word on Rush Expression Lights or Godzilla toppers. A lot of other toppers being remade here in the summer and fall, as well as a lot of official discontinuations of some of the best-selling accessories that Stern Pinball has produced. Sam Shaker motor. Your poor Walking Dead. Never going to be the same. This trimmer motor—I got an OEM or something. I got whatever Pinball Life sells for my Walking Dead. I have a spare Sam in a box in my garage. I hold a spare as well. I got to hoard this weekend again. It's becoming pretty regular for me to be able to get there. I just, I can't get to Last Man Standing and I'll get to Siege every once in a while. Or was it, what's the one you get all the modes? I'll get to that every once in a while, but Last Man Standing, I'm not even close. Oh, bother. Yeah.