claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.038
King Kong reviews positive; Dune shipping; Stern Q3 roadmap detailed; code launch concerns resurface.
King Kong LEs are shipping at a brisk pace; rest of May focused on Pro and Premium models
high confidence · Zach discussing Stern production schedule: 'They've been shipping and building LEs at a very brisk pace. This week, they'll probably continue building King Kong LEs. and then the rest of May is full-blown King Kong Pro and premiums.'
King Kong early reviews are 'very positive' with no notable criticism beyond the log diverter issue (quickly fixed)
high confidence · Zach: 'Early reviews, Dennis, are in, and overall, very positive. People like the Kong... I did read a little bit about the log diverter issue, of course. Yeah, and that was a quick fix.'
Dune shipping is occurring with weekly production increases planned for next month or two; estimated delivery early fall for new orders
medium confidence · Zach: 'They are shipping. A couple of them are shipping... They're going to be increasing weekly production of the Dune pinball machine, the output over the next month or two... probably end of summer, maybe. You'd be looking to get one maybe early fall.'
Phil Grimaldi (not Colin McAlpine) designed Dune rules with Bowen and Eric Pripke
high confidence · Correction issued: 'I said in our last episode when previewing Dune... I said that Colin McAlpine was on the rules of that... it was actually Phil Grimaldi.'
King Kong launch code is at v0.81, described as early and sparse on rules content
high confidence · Zach: 'The launch games are coming in at v I think 0.81 code. That's pretty early... we need to get back into it. Because the cadence that they were on, people didn't mind when they had more consistency between code releases.'
Q3 Stern releases include James Bond Pro/Premiums, Jurassic Park Pro/Premium, Metallica Remastered Premiums, and Jaws Premium
high confidence · Zach: 'And then Q3 comes. James Bond Pro and Premiums are going to get made to begin. Jurassic Park Pro and Premium. Metallica Remastered Premiums. And Jaws Premium. All in Q3.'
A home version of King Kong is coming to Costco in fall 2025
medium confidence · Zach: 'Another home version is coming this fall to Costco. Might have been George Gomez in an interview... They're doing it again. What do you think it'll be? Star Wars.'
“It's a fucking blast to shoot. It's an Elwynn. Of course it's going to be. But it is different, though.”
Zach @ mid-episode — Core praise for King Kong's gameplay feel and Elwin's design signature
“The whole Quicksilver design nod... it's a fuck gunk and they he got cute put a little thin stand-up target there... it's very much a thunk area to me and i don't like it”
Zach @ mid-episode — Identifies specific mechanical design complaint about King Kong's mid-playfield target inspired by classic Quicksilver
“I want color, baby. I want it to look like a Crayola box in my collection when I look down that row.”
Zach @ late-episode — Collector philosophy: criticizes monotonous black LE trim packages; advocates for aesthetic variety in cabinet aesthetics
“It's a toy that gives the game actual character and personality. It's the Jurassic Park. It's the Rudy. It is that.”
Zach @ mid-episode — Praises King Kong's main toy as differentiating factor comparable to iconic game toys
“Whoever designed the acrylic design on the speaker itself, it's like Kong climbing the Empire State Building. It's bad. I don't know who thought of it. It's bad.”
Zach @ late-episode — Specific criticism of King Kong speaker acrylic aesthetic versus past Stern game designs
“My prediction overall on king kong it's a top five game by the end of 2025 that's a bold one”
Zach @ closing section — Strong performance prediction for King Kong in 2025 rankings
“We're almost at a year... on John Wick, Uncanny X-Men. We're back down to like... sparse launch code states”
Zach @ mid-episode — Identifies pattern of recent Stern games launching with minimal rules content
“I don't want black. Like when you texture your black pro and premium trim level, I don't want black.”
Zach — Collector frustration with Stern's repeated use of matte black LE trim
business_signal: Stern's code team productivity decline attributed to normalization of supply chain (loss of extended development time during COVID-era slowdown) and possible staffing changes; Tim Sexton departure noted
medium · Zach: 'I do think that they also benefited during when production just had to be slower because all the supply chain issues... And now that Tim Sexton's gone, who knows? Maybe they're shorter staffed.'
sentiment_shift: Early King Kong reception focuses on positive gameplay, toy design, and theming; community increasingly accepts muted art package in person versus promotional renders
high · Zach: 'people more accepting of the art package in person... they say well it looked loud in the pictures... but in person it's much more subdued... the colors don't pop pop in person.'
design_philosophy: King Kong art direction successfully merges 1930s New York and jungle island theming through color palette and lighting; theming execution exceeds expectations despite seemingly incompatible themes
high · Zach: 'The theming is exceptional... You would think 1930s New York and jungle. How in the world do you mesh those? But they do here... the lighting works, the coloring kind of lends itself to that theming too.'
design_philosophy: Keith Elwin incorporates classic Williams design references (Quicksilver mid-playfield target) into King Kong, creating flow-oriented gameplay but also including mechanical elements Zach dislikes as 'thunk' areas
high · Zach: 'The whole Quicksilver design nod... it's a fuck gunk... it's very much a thunk area to me and i don't like it but design wise i understand why it's there'
groq_whisper · $0.269
Stern's code team productivity has declined due to supply chain normalization and possible staff changes (Tim Sexton departure mentioned)
medium confidence · Zach: 'I do think that they also benefited during when production just had to be slower because all the supply chain issues... And we just aren't in that state anymore... And now that Tim Sexton's gone, who knows? Maybe they're shorter staffed.'
market_signal: Dune production ramping with weekly increases planned; estimated new order fulfillment early fall 2025; indicates Barrels of Fun capacity building and demand confirmation
medium · Zach: 'They're going to be increasing weekly production of the Dune pinball machine... people are like, well, if I ordered one today, when would I get it? Not as bad as you may think. I think probably end of summer, maybe... early fall.'
personnel_signal: Phil Grimaldi confirmed as Dune rules designer (not Colin McAlpine); public correction issued to address confusion between P3/Multimorphic and Barrels of Fun personnel
high · Correction: 'it was actually Phil Grimaldi. Phil Grimaldi. He was Phil all along... Phil Grimaldi is with Barrels of Fun.'
announcement: Stern confirms home version of King Kong coming to Costco fall 2025; speculation King Kong home will include Insider Connected features like Star Wars home version
medium · Zach: 'Another home version is coming this fall to Costco... What do you think it'll be? Star Wars. They already did Star Wars. So you think they'll just do that again, but add Insider Connected? Yep. They might.'
product_strategy: King Kong LE criticized for insufficient differentiation from Pro/Premium packages; matte black trim seen as insufficient differentiator alongside mirror backglass and dedicated LE backglass art
high · Zach: 'some voicing that they're a little bit let down by the whole matte black trim package on the LE... I'm kind of an LE whore here... We like our mirror back glasses... but we want something a little different on the side.'
product_concern: Log diverter mechanical issue on King Kong resolved via coil hold power adjustment; quick community-identified fix applied to factory default settings moving forward
high · Zach: 'I bumped that up to like 20 or 25 from what it was. Fix. Done... Keith Elwin... formally, posted on Pinside, hey, it's just the diverter hold power... all games moving forward from the factory will have that as default.'
product_concern: King Kong speaker acrylic insert design criticized as poor execution compared to Jaws, D&D, X-Men precedents; theme (Kong climbing Empire State Building) unclear and unconvincing
high · Zach: 'Whoever designed the acrylic design on the speaker itself, it's like Kong climbing the Empire State Building. It's bad... This one, I can't remember a time that is that bad.'
technology_signal: King Kong launches with early v0.81 code state; sparse rules content and early animation placeholders indicate compressed development timeline comparable to John Wick and X-Men launch states
high · Zach: 'The launch games are coming in at v I think 0.81 code. That's pretty early... it looks like there's a placeholder on the LCD screen... we need to get back into it.'