STERN OF THE UNION ADDRESS – MAY 2023
The Stern of the Union Address, your monthly resource for news, information and highlights on all things Stern Pinball. Without further ado my fellow pinheads:
Foo Fighters:
Official Stern Army Foo Fighters Launch Parties are here!
Using Insider Connected, log in and find a location near you to earn a special profile badge!
Need help getting a high score or winning that next tournament? Dive right into the official rulesheet!
And in case you missed it live, check out a replay from the latest MarcoTV stream with Foo Fighters’ lead software engineer, Tanio Klyce!
James Bond 007:
Stern Pinball is proud that James Bond 007 has been nominated for Best Product in Electronics by Licensing International! “Let’s go, James!”
Step Inside The Stern Studio to get a behind the scenes look at the James Bond 007 60th Anniversary Limited Edition pinball machine. Honoring a retro-inspired pinball experience with mechanical scoring reels and nostalgic sounds, the Stern Design Team highlights what makes this machine so special.
Insider ConnectedTM:
Stern Pinball keeps expanding and improving its award-winning Insider Connected platform with new code updates across all LCD machines with platform improvements and bug fixes including new connection robustness, ability to recover player score and achievements, and updated node board firmware.
Mando Mania:
There’s no better way to celebrate the latest season of The Mandalorian than by playing it! Also it doesn’t hurt being highlighted as a key item every Mando fan needs in their life on StarWars.com. This is the way. https://www.starwars.com/news/mando-mania-week-7
University of Illinois NIL Program:
The auction of two highly collectible Godzilla Premium pinball machines took place in record breaking fashion as part of the inaugural group of NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) athletes from the 2022 Fighting Illini breakthrough season. In addition to this program’s success, Devon Witherspoon was drafted 5th overall in the NFL Draft! Looks like playing pinball has certainly paid off.
Gameroom of the Month:
Congrats to Benjamin Nathan for winning Gameroom of the Month! Do you have a special home gameroom you want to share with the world? Submit your incredible gameroom directly to Insider@sternpinball.com for your chance to win an exclusive Stern Swag Pack!
Stern Army Updates:
The Stern Army continues to grow with troops spreading the gospel of pinball across the globe. Here are our newest troops and the pinball locations they support:
- Private Amber Groghan of Ohio (Madcap)
- Private Dan Ranck of Oregon (The Flying Squirrel)
- Private Dylan Snow of Oregon (Bullwinkle’s Wilsonville)
- Private Matt Ernst of California (Fast Eddie’s Moab Meal On Bun)
- Private David Zuckerman of California (Arrow Lodge Brewing Company)
- Private Tomasz Pucynski of Poland (Game Room Retro Underground)
- Private Ryan Holman of South Carolina (Craft and Draft Irmo)
- Private Davie Pfeiffer of Michigan (Chilkoot Charlie’s)
- Private Matt Snow of Massachusetts (Hometown Arcade)
- Private Nick Kennedy of Ohio (Flippin on the Farm)
- Private Ryan Thompson of Michigan (Pinball Land)
- Private Kathy Camden of Kansas (Lucky’s Everyday)
- Private Tracy Abrahams of Texas (Epic Fun, Austin Cidercade, Bender Bar)
Congratulations to the following Stern Army members on their promotion from Sergeant to Staff Sergeant:
- Staff Sergeant Nathan Eppley of Pennsylvania (Champions Sports Bar)
- Staff Sergeant Joe Albertson of North Carolina (Paranoia Pinball and The Basement Arcade Bar)
Congratulations to the following Stern Army members on their promotion from Corporal to Sergeant:
- Sergeant Kurt van Zyl of Florida (The Pinball Lounge)
- Sergeant Justin Withnell of Australia (Tattersalls Hotel)
- Sergeant Ray Leitzke of Illinois (Enterrium)
Congratulations to the following Stern Army members on their promotion from Private First Class to Specialist:
- Specialist Chris O’Neill of Michigan (One Well Brewing)
- Specialist Craig Sengstock of Nevada (Pinball Hall of Fame)
- Specialist Mike Howard of Missouri (Up-Down)
Congratulations to the following Stern Army members on their promotion from Private to Private First Class:
- Private First Class Dean Huber of Missouri (West County Lanes)
- Private First Class Rob Faller of Ohio (Punch Bowl Social)
- Private First Class Daniel Hedblom of Norway (Kristiansand Arcade and Pinball Club)
- Private First Class Kurt Louwie of Belgium (La Luna)
- Private First Class Kaite Martin of New York (Buttermilk Bar)
For more information and to join the Stern Army, please reach out to SternArmy@sternpinball.com
Brewery of the Month:
Congrats to Windfall Brewing Co. of Westminster, Colorado for winning Brewery of the Month! Everyone knows that there’s no better combo than pinball and beer! Do you have a special brewery you want to share with the world? Submit your brewery pictures directly to Insider@sternpinball.com for your chance to be featured as our next winner!
Stern Pro Circuit:
Congrats to all competitors at this year’s Pinball at the ‘Zoo Stern Pro Circuit event. In the end, Shannon Stafford emerged victorious for his very first Circuit victory! For full details on the Stern Pro Circuit and to keep up with the current standings and schedule, please visit – https://sternpinball.com/stern-pro-circuit/
2023 Stern Pro Circuit Rankings – Top 10 | |||
1st | Escher Lefkoff | CO | |
2nd | Jared August | West Bloomfield Township, MI | |
3rd | Jason Zahler | NJ | |
4th | Travis Murie | Oklahoma City, OK | |
5th | Keith Elwin | Carlsbad, CA | |
6th | Neil Graf | Appleton, WI | |
7th | Steven Bowden | Palatine, IL | |
8th | Luke Nahorniak | Lonsdale, MN | |
9th | Zach McCarthy | Conifer, CO | |
10th | Josh Sharpe | Arlington Heights, IL |
Upcoming Stern Pro Circuit Events:
Stern Pro Circuit Event | Date | Tournament Details |
PinFest IFPA Pinball Tournament | 5/5-6 | https://www.pinfestival.com/ |
Cactus Jack’s Silverball Showdown | 6/16-18 | https://cactusjackssilverballshowdown.com/ |
YEGPIN Match Play Championship | 7/20-23 | https://www.yegpin.com/ |
Brisbane Masters | 7/22-23 | https://www.bnepac.org/ |
Status of Code:
We are continuously working to update and improve software for our machines. There are always code updates and bug fixes in various stages of development; we will release them upon update completion. If you would like to join our mailing list for code updates, please send an e-mail to Code.Updates@sternpinball.com. If you do encounter any bugs please feel free to provide information to bug.report@sternpinball.com. Get Connected and play! https://insider.sternpinball.com/
Code updates and read me files are available at https://sternpinball.com/support/game-code/
Keith Elwin Hall of Fame:
We hear that Keith Elwin is a pretty decent game designer… https://www.replaymag.com/keith-elwin-in-u-k-pinball-hall-of-fame/
Brewcade Hopping and Flippin’ Entertainment Centers with Stern Pinball:
Stay tuned for the next episodes!
Pinball + Beer:
Check out this featured article on how pinball is changing the game for Breweries across the country!
https://thebrewermagazine.com/how-pinball-is-changing-the-game-for-breweries-across-the-country/
Merch and Accessories:
Check out our Stern Shop for all accessories, collectibles, clothing and more!
Stern Pinball accessories are also available to purchase from your local authorized dealer – https://sternpinball.com/find-a-dealer/