FIRST LOOK: Stern’s New Star Wars Pinball - Fall of the Empire!

RetroRalph·video·9m 24s·analyzed·Sep 13, 2025

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.029

TL;DR

RetroRalph reviews Stern's Star Wars: Fall of the Empire Spike 3 debut with praise for hardware and accessibility, mixed aesthetics.

Summary

RetroRalph provides a first-look hands-on review of Stern Pinball's Star Wars: Fall of the Empire, the flagship Spike 3 platform debut. The video covers hardware innovations (18.5-inch LCD screen, improved audio with tweeters, HDMI streaming output, Bluetooth headphones, sleep mode power management), gameplay accessibility features (easy multiball, Jedi ball saver mechanic), and aesthetic observations (mirrored back glass on LE, absence of foiled artwork, thin plastic toy sculpts). Ralph praises the approachable layout, abundant Star Wars movie assets, and code depth despite early version state, while expressing mixed feelings about cabinet artwork design.

Key Claims

Star Wars: Fall of the Empire features an 18-inch LCD screen in Spike 3 platform that does not change the traditional backbox form factor
high confidence · RetroRalph describing backbox design during Stern facility tour
Limited Edition will have 770 units produced, with mirrored back glass and foiled artwork
high confidence · RetroRalph noting 'They're going to only make 770 of these' and examining LE unit #1
Spike 3 adds HDMI output with both video and audio for streaming purposes
high confidence · RetroRalph explaining streaming setup improvements during hardware tour
The game code is currently at version 0.78 and has significant room to grow
high confidence · RetroRalph stating 'it's like 78 or something like that' and 'So there's a lot of room to grow'
Star Wars: Fall of the Empire does not feature foiled artwork on side panel due to snow artwork aesthetic conflict
high confidence · RetroRalph recounting conversation with Seth Davis: 'they tried to use the foiled artwork with but with this snow look. It made the snow look blue'
The game has an accessible layout with easy multiball modes and a Jedi-themed ball saver mechanism
high confidence · RetroRalph demonstrating gameplay features and comparing to Black Knight MagnaSave
Spike 3 includes Bluetooth headphone connectivity, eliminating the need for proprietary headphone kits with 3.5mm jacks
high confidence · RetroRalph explaining new Bluetooth audio feature for all Spike 3 games
Raymond Davidson (credited as 'raydaypinball') programmed the game code
high confidence · RetroRalph mentioning developer's previous Metallica work and crediting future code development
The playfield layout is intentionally approachable and designed to engage new pinball players
high confidence · RetroRalph noting game design allows 'people that have longer ball times' and discussing accessibility as possibly 'intentional'

Notable Quotes

“Spike 3 (Stern pinball hardware platform) adds an 18in screen, but what's cool about this is it does not change the form factor of the backbox.”
RetroRalph@ 0:47 — Key technical differentiator for Spike 3 platform—maintains aesthetics while adding screen real estate
“They're going to only make 770 of these. This is actually uh one of 770. So, this is the number one James Cameron's Avatar (Limited Edition).”
RetroRalph@ 2:36 — Confirms LE production run of 770 units; RetroRalph examining unit #1
“For the for those of you that are streaming pinball, you're going to really love that because not only is it going to give you the video out for the LCD, but you're going to give you audio out, too.”
RetroRalph@ 1:36 — HDMI streaming capability positioned as major upgrade for content creators
“I like that because I feel like some of the modern games are a little difficult for someone new. And I think this is going to be fun cuz not only is it a big license, like Star Wars, but you're going to get people that have longer ball times.”
RetroRalph@ 3:49 — Addresses intentional design accessibility as community growth strategy
“they tried to use the foiled artwork with but with this snow look. It made the snow look blue. So, they decided it would look better if they didn't do the foiled side artwork on this one.”
RetroRalph (quoting Seth Davis)@ 5:23 — Explains design trade-off decision affecting LE vs Premium/Pro editions
“It has this like weird cutout that's near the um the flipper buttons I'm not crazy about.”

Entities

Star Wars: Fall of the EmpiregameStern PinballcompanySpike 3productRetroRalphpersonZach Sharpeperson Raymond Davidsonperson John Borgperson

Signals

?
announcement: Official first-look reveal of Star Wars: Fall of the Empire at Stern Pinball facility; Spike 3 platform debut with 770 LE units confirmed
high · RetroRalph's hands-on facility tour and direct facility access granted by Stern
?
technology_signal: Spike 3 introduces HDMI streaming output (video + audio), Bluetooth headphone connectivity, sleep mode power management, and maintains traditional backbox form factor while upgrading to 18.5-inch LCD screen and enhanced audio system with tweeters
high · Detailed hardware walkthrough with component identification and technical specifications
?
design_innovation: Jedi ball saver mechanic with variable throw power based on charge state (similar to MagnaSave but with directional variability); intentionally approachable multiball modes designed to engage new players
high · RetroRalph's gameplay demonstration and design commentary comparing to Black Knight precedent
?
product_concern: Thin plastic toy sculpts (Vader head, Stormtrooper, Jabba) with suboptimal light diffusion; missing foiled artwork on LE despite Godzilla precedent; unexplained flipper button cutout design element
high · RetroRalph's detailed aesthetic critique noting specific visual dissatisfaction with sculpture quality and cabinet design choices
?
content_signal: RetroRalph provides first-look video review with exclusive hands-on facility access granted by Stern post-media-day; emphasizes streaming improvements and accessibility features for community growth
high · Video production at Stern facility; appreciation expressed for non-standard media access timing

Topics

Spike 3 Hardware Platform FeaturesprimaryStar Wars: Fall of the Empire Game Design & AccessibilityprimaryCabinet Artwork & AestheticsprimaryStreaming Infrastructure & HDMI OutputsecondaryCode Development & Version StatussecondaryLimited Edition Production Numbers & MaterialssecondaryAudio System Upgrades & Bluetooth ConnectivitysecondaryCommunity Growth & New Player Accessibilitymentioned

Sentiment

mixed(0.62)— RetroRalph expresses strong enthusiasm for Spike 3 hardware innovations, gameplay accessibility, Star Wars IP integration, and code depth/potential. However, aesthetic critiques dominate post-visit reflection: mixed feelings on cabinet artwork across all editions, criticism of thin plastic toy sculpts, missing foiled artwork on LE (unlike Godzilla precedent), and specific dislike of flipper button cutout design. Strong personal purchase intent despite these reservations suggests gameplay and innovation value outweighs aesthetic concerns. Overall positive but tempered by design disappointments.

Transcript

youtube_auto_sub · $0.000

We're here at Stern Pinball for the launch of Star Wars Fall of the Empire. [Music] This is exciting for Stern cuz not only is this a new game, a new Star Wars game, but it is the introduction of their Spike 3 platform. So, I'm going to give you a little overview of the cabinet and you get to see all the ins and outs, and then we'll come back and talk about some of the things that are unique to the Spike 3 system. [Music] Okay, so I'm going to talk to you a little bit about some of the unique features of the cabinet. So, this LE does come with the cabinet expression light kits. They can be added to the premium, but they you cannot add them to the Pro. You can see a big difference in the backbox, and this is cool. So, Spike 3 adds an 18in screen, but what's cool about this is it does not change the form factor of the backbox. So you still have your traditional, you know, looking stern spike to back glass. And why that's cool is cuz it still looks really cool in your lineup, but now you get all of this new screen real estate. And then what they kind of did is they they engineered this in such a way that they sort of pushed the speakers out a little bit. They added a tweeter and then you have your normal mid-range. They're a bit smaller, but they sound really good. And then if you want to see just a peek inside real quick, you can kind of see the screen now takes up a large portion of um of the inside of here. And then you have your speaker and your tweeter right above it. And then if you look at the back glass, this is a mirrored back glass on the LE. You going to get a little bit of light here, but there is a it's going to be hard to see, but there is an HDMI out now. So for the for those of you that are streaming pinball, you're going to really love that because not only is it going to give you the video out for the LCD, but it's going to give you audio out, too. So, I know I'm particularly excited about that because right now it's kind of a pain to run the audio. So, basically I run a headphone kit and then I run that audio out to a mixer and it's it's kind of a mess. This is going to make it really easy to stream the games which I think is a good thing for Stern cuz it gives them more eyes on their games and then maybe people that were getting into streaming that thought it was too difficult can now do that. So, I think that's pretty cool. So, get a whole new generation into streaming. It does have their new power supply that's got the quiet fan and then there's also like a um there's like a sleep mode like you'd have in a computer where the game doesn't fully shut down. So, it's kind of has like minimal power and it'll come right back up. So, I think that's a cool feature for home users cuz maybe you don't want to just keep the games running all day long in the high power mode. So, it'll power itself low power down and kind of allow you to um just come back to it and it'll power right up. Sterns power up pretty quick to begin with, but this is kind of a cool feature. As you'd expect, you have the powder coated armor and things like that. They're going to only make 770 of these. This is actually uh one of 770. So, this is the number one LE. Uh when you look at the playfield, there's lots of cool things obviously here. It's a it's a fan layout. It's very approachable. So, I' I've had a lot of fun with it. I only got to play it a handful of times, but I'm I'm going to play it for as long as as I can until until Zach kicks me out of here. That looks This is the Jedi ball saver. This is really cool. So, imagine like uh you're playing Black Knight, you have like a Magna save or something like that. Depending on how charged up it is, it can take the ball and sort of throw it back up the playfield or it can like flip it around this way. So, it depends on um there's a there's going to be an indicator in the top right that's Jedi and then depending on if it's spelled all the way will be how this thing will act. So, to spell Jedi, it's it's one of these orbit shots either the right or left. Uh, it does have a pretty simple multiball. So, for someone that's just like new to pinball, you can shoot up this middle ramp. I can't remember how many times exactly, but you can start yourself a really quick multiball. And then the Death Star, you hit the Death Star, it'll open up, and then you can easily lock three balls in there and start a multiball, which I like that because I feel like some of the modern games are a little difficult for someone new. And I think this is going to be fun cuz not only is it a big license, like Star Wars, but you're going to get people that have longer ball times, they'll have a little bit more fun. So, we're always trying to grow pinball. So, I don't know if that was more of an intentional thing that Stern did, but I like that because there's there's depth to the code, even in its infancy right now, but there's things that someone brand new to pinball can have a good time with. Okay, if I open the coin door up, you're and you look inside, you're going to notice that the same Goldwood subwoofer is there, except it sounds a lot better now because of the upgraded amplifier. So, like I said before, you may find it um a less of a reason to upgrade the audio cuz it sounds really good now. And that's really a testament to the upgraded amplifier that they added to the Spike 3 system. So, another thing they added to Spike 3 is Bluetooth audio. So, a lot of people have said, "Man, it'd be really cool if I could play with headphones." I personally do play with headphones a lot, but you had to buy the Stern headphone kit to plug in like a 3.5 mm jack, but it didn't have Bluetooth. So, now if you have Bluetooth headphones, you could connect to your game and listen to it that way. I really like that cuz sometimes if it's night time, you know, obviously you can eliminate the sounds of a the clinging and clanking of a pinball machine, but if you want to crank up the audio and play it at night, maybe not disturb as many people, I find that a pretty cool feature and that is now added to um all Spike 3 games. So, something that's kind of been standard on all LE is foiled artwork on the side. I was talking to Seth Davis and I said, "Hey, does it have foiled artwork?" And he said, "It doesn't." Because they tried to use the foiled artwork with but with this snow look. It made the snow look blue. So, they decided it would look better if they didn't do the foiled side artwork on this one. So, it doesn't have that. So, you're going to get something that you know and love about LE. You're going to get your mirrored back glass. This looks awesome, but if you decide to go with the premium or the Pro trim, you're going to get a standard translate as you would expect, but uh they did keep the standard mirrored back glass. And it is actually glass on the LE. Thank you, Zach Sharp, for letting us come in and play it. It was It wasn't even media day. It was the day after. So, I really appreciate that. But there's so many people here that we got to go. I can't wait to get more time on it. The question you're all wondering is, am I going to buy it? I'm not even going to tell you. You already know the answer to that. Okay, so after Stern, Imagine P. Get away from him. Don't hurt him. We're We really need to head back to the airport, but we're both really hungry. So, we stopped by this pizza place. It was good pizza, by the way. Was it Marietti? Morettes. It was pretty good. So, there's a couple things like as I was sitting there at dinner, I'm thinking about it talking with Mason and I was like, I don't know that I love the art. Like, I don't love the art on almost any of them, but there's elements of each one I do like. Like, I like the LE back glass and I like the LE side art that's on the backbox. I don't love any of the cabinets really, the artwork. I mean, again, like I don't know, some people really care about that, especially if it's the only game you have and that's all you're going to see. Mine ends up getting shoved in a lineup, so I don't really see it. But when I saw something like Godzilla 70th, I was like, "Oh my gosh, like Godzilla is an awesome game and the artwork was amazing with the foiled art package on the LE." This does not have foiled artwork. That's kind of a bummer because I do like that about the LE artwork. The side armor is I I don't mind the color. The blue looks cool in contrast with the way they did the art. So, I'm I'm okay with that. But, it has this like weird cutout that's by the um the flipper buttons I'm not crazy about. So, that's one other thing. And then the there's one other aesthetic thing that I think could be done a little bit a little bit better, and I know modders are going to totally be all over this is there's a sculpt of Vader's head, uh, Stormtrooper, and Job of the Hut. It looks like the plastic's a little bit thin. So, the way the light um, sort of diffuses out of them. I don't love the look that it that it gives, but the game overall was was a fun game, and it's a fan layout, so it's pretty approachable. holds two flippers. So, for someone new, it's it's it's pretty like easy. I think the one thing that I will say they really beefed up is the movie assets are all there and there's tons of them and with the way that 18.5 in screen displays them, it looks really awesome. And then uh C3PO is the doing the call outs. So, I thought that was a nice touch. So, if you're a Star Wars fan, like there's a lot to love here, but you know, the art packages I don't I'm not like flipping out over them. So, that's kind of a bummer. flipping out pinball. You can buy your pinball machines there, Zach Manny. But um so I don't know, that was just some additional thoughts I wanted to add, but overall fun game. I think it's a little safe because it's very approachable and the shots are easy, but the but Ray's code already seems to have depth to it. So I don't think it's going to be something that someone's going to get bored with and it's not even close to version one yet. I think it's like 78 or something like that. 78. So there's a lot of room to grow. and Ray Day um you know did such an awesome job on Metallica that I'm sure he'll continue to do a kick-ass job with this. So that's it. I want to leave you with that because I just felt like I didn't give you enough when we were there. But it was because we had to go kind of fast. So hopefully that's helpful. Um yeah, if you want to know anything else, let me know in the comments below and and we'll talk about it and thanks for watching and we will see you. Oh, do that. We have like three. See you on the next one. So I don't know where you want to make that. Heat. Heat. [Music]