Coverage of the First Public Appearance of Stern Pinball's Pokémon - The 2026 NY Toy Fair

Knapp Arcade·article·analyzed·Feb 19, 2026

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.021

TL;DR

Stern's Pokémon pinball debuts at NY Toy Fair; all 750 LEs sell out instantly.

Summary

Knapp Arcade reports on the first public appearance of Stern Pinball's Pokémon machine at the 2026 New York Toy Fair. The game features 200 monsters to catch, Insider Connected Pokédex integration with 182 characters at launch, and was demonstrated in both Limited Edition and Pro variants. All 750 Limited Edition units sold out immediately, and the author describes gameplay as comparable to Attack From Mars with enhanced monster-catching mechanics.

Key Claims

All 750 Limited Edition Pokémon machines sold out nearly instantly
high confidence · Direct eyewitness account from Knapp Arcade at the show; verified inventory claim
Pokémon pinball features 200 monsters to catch
high confidence · Author's direct experience playing both LE and Pro versions at the show
Insider Connected Pokédex contains 182 character slots at launch with more coming
high confidence · Author viewed the Pokédex feature on phone during booth visit; specific feature demonstration
Roger Sharpe achieved Grand Champion (top score) on Pokémon Pro on his first play
high confidence · Eyewitness account; video documentation referenced in article
Gameplay is comparable to Attack From Mars with added UFO mechanic and 200 monsters
medium confidence · Author's subjective assessment based on hands-on play experience
Limited Edition artwork is noticeably better than Pro and Premium versions
medium confidence · Author's direct visual comparison of LE vs Pro at the show
Arcade1Up is alive and well as a brand within Basic Fun
high confidence · Behind-the-scenes tour of Basic Fun booth; official confirmation from tour

Notable Quotes

“I've been describing it as playing Attack From Mars if it had a UFO that came down and hovered over the playfield that you can bash and 200 monsters to catch.”
Knapp Arcade (author) @ article body — Key gameplay description establishing mechanical and thematic comparison point
“This game is going to be a big hit, not only with pinball collectors, but on location as well. It's approachable with an important shot right up the middle and ramps that won't insta-drain if you don't make it all the way up, but deep in that there's a zillion different monsters to catch.”
Knapp Arcade (author) @ article body — Assessment of game's market appeal and accessibility design
“The Limited Edition version of the game looked fantastic in person. There's no doubt that the art on the LE is better than it is on the Pro and Premium. Having said that, I'm a Pro or Premium guy all day. The LE just isn't worth the additional cost to me personally.”
Knapp Arcade (author) @ article body — Pricing tier critique and perceived value assessment in three-tier model
“Clicking on the monster's image in the Pokédex brings up a sort of trading card on your phone. It's pretty neat and I can totally see myself getting addicted and trying to as the tagline says 'Catch 'Em All.'”
Knapp Arcade (author) @ article body — Insider Connected feature appeal and engagement potential

Entities

Pokémon PinballproductStern PinballcompanyZach Sharpeperson Seth Davisperson Roger SharpepersonNew York Toy FaireventJacob Javits Convention CentereventInsider Connectedproduct

Signals

?
business_signal: Arcade1Up brand ownership and strategy shift: confirmed alive within Basic Fun corporate structure; showing conservative product strategy (Sonic, Ms. Pac-Man) rather than innovative features
high · Author assessment: 'They weren't really for me...they have to be something with unique controls or some other feature that I can't just replicate in MAME'
?
community_signal: Stern executive presence and hands-on access (CEO Seth Davis, Senior Director of Marketing Zach Sharpe) at consumer-facing retail event signals commitment to direct collector/operator engagement
high · Both C-level and marketing leadership present at booth; provided behind-scenes access and gameplay instruction to press/influencers
?
competitive_signal: Pokémon positioned as accessible entry point with deep monster-catching meta, comparable to Attack From Mars success template but with enhanced engagement mechanics
high · Author assessment: 'approachable with important shot up middle...but deep in that there's a zillion different monsters to catch'; predicted 'big hit' with both collectors and location operators
?
licensing_signal: Pokémon licensor approval still pending at time of Toy Fair; photography restrictions indicate ongoing IP control and approval process
high · Author explicitly states: 'I wasn't allowed to take a picture of it because it was still pending licensor approval'
$
market_signal: Immediate sell-out of all 750 Limited Edition Pokémon units demonstrates strong pre-existing demand and FOMO-driven purchasing behavior despite pricing concerns

Topics

Pokémon Pinball public debut and first impressionsprimaryInsider Connected Pokédex feature and digital integrationprimaryThree-tier pricing model (Pro/Premium/LE) and collector value perceptionprimaryGame accessibility and location appealsecondaryArcade1Up brand status and home arcade cabinetssecondaryLimited Edition production and sell-out dynamicsprimaryRoger Sharpe's continued involvement and legacysecondary

Sentiment

positive(0.82)— Author expresses strong enthusiasm for Pokémon pinball gameplay, design, and market potential. Minor reservation about LE pricing tier value but overall tone is celebratory. Tone is professional, detailed, and appreciative of access provided by Stern executives.

Transcript

web_scrape · $0.000

Events Coverage of the First Public Appearance of Stern Pinball's Pokémon - The 2026 NY Toy Fair k knapparcade February 19, 2026 Let's kick things off today with a report from the first public appearance of Stern Pinball's brand new cornerstone pinball machine, Pokémon. Stern brought the game to the New York Toy Fair at the Jacob Javits convention center in Manhattan this past weekend. As a grizzled veteran of the auto industry, I personally have been going to the NY Auto Show industry days at the Javits for years, so I somewhat knew what to expect at my first Toy Show. My wife and I took the ferry over from Weehawken, New Jersey on Saturday morning. If you're ever going to the Convention Center, that's a super easy way to get there. The boat drops you off right across the street. We picked up our press badges and wandered around the show floor until we found the Stern Pinball booth where we met up with Stern's Senior Director of Marketing Zach Sharpe and CEO Seth Davis. They gave us the lowdown on Pokémon. Stern had two machines at the event, Limited Edition Game #3 and a Pro. My wife and I spent time on both getting our butts kicked by Zach. His father, the Man Who Saved Pinball - the legendary Roger Sharpe who was at the show for unrelated licensing purposes even stopped by the booth while I was there and proceeded to casually GC aka Grand Champion aka get the top score on the game the first time he played it. The Limited Edition version of the game looked fantastic in person. There's no doubt that the art on the LE is better than it is on the Pro and Premium. Having said that, I'm a Pro or Premium guy all day. The LE just isn't worth the additional cost to me personally. It's a moot point anyhow because all 750 Limited Editions sold out nearly instantly. So how did it play? Fantastic. I've been describing it as playing Attack From Mars if it had a UFO that came down and hovered over the playfield that you can bash and 200 monsters to catch. This game is going to be a big hit, not only with pinball collectors, but on location as well. It's approachable with an important shot right up the middle and ramps that won't insta-drain if you don't make it all the way up, but deep in that there's a zillion different monsters to catch. I wasn't allowed to take a picture of it because it was still pending licensor approval, but I did get to see what the Insider Connected Pokédex looks like. For those of you who aren't familiar with Pokémon, a Pokédex is a sort of list or book in which players store the various monsters that they catch in the game. The Insider Connected one contained spots for a whopping 182 characters at launch, with more coming. Clicking on the monster's image in the Pokédex brings up a sort of trading card on your phone. It's pretty neat and I can totally see myself getting addicted and trying to as the tagline says "Catch 'Em All." After we checked out the Stern Pinball booth, Megan and I walked the huge floor and checked out the rest of the show. We did manage to find a few other arcade-related booths. Quarter Arcades, which sells 1/4 scale playable arcade game replicas had a ton of mini-machines there. That was really neat. We also got a behind-the-scenes tour of the Basic Fun booth. I can confirm that Arcade1Up is indeed alive and well as a brand of that company now. They didn't have a whole lot new to show off. Their big Toy Fair reveal was a Sonic the Hedgehog home arcade cabinet, which plays what I believe are console Sonic games. They also had a larger Ms. Pac-Man cab. I was there before the official reveal of both games, so again I couldn't take pictures of them. Having said that, pics are out there now so if you're curious about them you can Google them. They weren't really for me. If I'm going to buy a 1Up, they have to be something with unique controls or some other feature that I can't just replicate in MAME, like the yoke on the Star Wars cabinet or the 4-player Pong / Warlords pub table. My wife, Megan, was a really good sport for going to a Toy Fair on Valentine's Day with me. I have to say that we ended up having a fantastic time, between checking out all the cool stuff at the show, getting to see Pokémon pinball and then going out to dinner by the water in Weehawken after. Thanks to Zach Sharpe and Seth Davis for showing me around the new game! Below are several videos and tons of pictures from this year's NY Toy Fair. EXCLUSIVE Footage of the new Pokémon Limited Edition pinball machine in action! - YouTube Knapp Arcade Knapp Arcade Search Info Shopping / •Live • Footage of Zach Sharpe, Megan and I playing the Pokémon LE The Man Who Saved the Game rocking the new Pokémon pinball machine. - YouTube Knapp Arcade A quick clip of the Legendary Roger Sharpe playing Pokémon Pro February 17, 2026 - YouTube Knapp Arcade February 17, 2026 the Quarter Arcades booth New sponsor slot Your sponsored ad here Be the first to claim this placement. Contact knapparcade@gmail.com today Posted about 19 hours ago k About knapparcade Site administrator Comments (0) Please sign in to join the conversation. No comments yet Be the first to share your thoughts on this post! 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