In another episode of "There's an app with artificial intelligence for that," the corporate world seems obsessed with the idea of throwing algorithms in all directions. Add to that the subscription storm that affects software and hardware alike, and it's no surprise to see a jump in popularity of things like optical discs, cassettes, MP3 players... and pinball machines. The city of Chicago has become a vibrant exporting hub for new pinballs, backed by decades of experience, high-profile licenses... and customers who can buy these beasts.
Unfortunately, I can't remember when I last played a real pinball. Space Cadet is always a couple of clicks away, and retrogaming has some extraordinary titles like Epic Pinball and Pinball Dreams/Fantasies/Illusions... but it's not the same. The metal, the lights, the sounds... you don't just play on a machine, the machine itself becomes your opponent.
Now, many people think pinball is a classic, distant experience, but nothing could be further from the truth. In 2024, new pinballs are being made, they incorporate intellectual property from series, movies, and musical bands, they are assembled by hand, and of course, they cost a fortune.
Pinball Not Dead: Jaws, Star Wars, Stranger Things… and Taylor Swift?
Christopher Borrelli from the Chicago Tribune recently visited Stern, a company that controls 75 percent of the international pinball market. Demand has been so positive that Stern doubled its number of employees in the last five years and had to move operations to a larger factory. Believe it or not, the pandemic ended up helping Stern: The closure of bars and arcades caused 7 out of 10 pinballs to be sold directly to players, and with a base price of $7,000 per unit, those customers know exactly what they want.
So, what's the appeal of a pinball with the price of a motorcycle? Leaving aside manual assembly, attention to detail, and the ever-present factor of randomness (because despite the production line, no two pinballs are ever the same), the answer is... franchises. Intellectual property. Ghostbusters, Godzilla, Venom, Foo Fighters, Metallica, Lord of the Rings, Led Zeppelin, Stranger Things, Jurassic Park, The Simpsons, Harley-Davidson, Marvel, Star Wars, James Bond, Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead... if the public wants it, the pinball appears.
In fact, Borrelli asked about other franchises like Barbie and Taylor Swift herself, and CEO Seth Davis said that "absolutely being discussed." Of course, negotiations are never simple, and in some cases you have to accept certain compromises. For example, the Jaws pinball has images of Richard Dreyfuss and Robert Shaw, while Dreyfuss himself recorded additional voices, but it was impossible to include Roy Scheider's image: The actor died in 2008, and his estate never gave the necessary permission.
I definitely recommend reading the original article (in English), and visiting Stern's official page. Dreaming costs nothing...
Access the original article: Click here
Official Stern page: Click here
