Never bought nib but for me, I'd rather wait and get a good player than what I'm hearing. A bit like buying a star wars 1000 piece jig saw puzzle and missing the middle 100 pieces. I'm a star wars fan but that'd be pushing the friendship
It's not that bad mate lol it's actually not to bad out of the box :) I mean I haven't got to the wizard mode yet lol there's super modes multiballs I think combos :) I agree there's inserts not coded but that'll happen but no where near as bad as Met & TWD and they are both two of the best games around. Having said that a big update will be nice. My advice just wait and when codes finished then buy it's no secret that Stern are slow coding lol
Add the fact that they have moved factory on the run and have added a lot of staff and have had two fulltime production lines up and running with about 6 different titles still being produced daily at the factory, and they still can't keep up with the orders and they are running flat out at capacity with a world wide boom, and it's probably easy to see why Stern are running flat chat & have probably been surprised at the demand they are experiencing, and the icing of the cake being final code updates is behind.
Ian like you Pete, I am happy for the 80 or 90 percent out of 100 I get from Stern upfront & am cool to wait for the final icing. I focus on the majority of the good/great I get as a Stern frequent consumer.
Nino made a point about Star Trek Next Gen but it also had at least one or two code updates after sale and it was when the pinball industry was at its biggest with many more staff and customers pro rata.
Comparing the industry then and the industry now isn't comparing apples to apples.
The industry is on its way up from oblivion versus at its peak in a different era.
Let's see how long the Kiss code update takes.
I am hearing that it's due very soon after sending a email to the factory.
Either way, the Kiss pinball is stunning to see in person.
That's one thing I am sure we all agree on. Lol
We were told it would definitely be "around Christmas". That post, and several others have been selectively removed from the Stern Facebook page.
Your other point regarding industry comparison further proves my point. Back when ST TNG was released, there was no home market. Operators bought whatever the manufacturer produced. It was harder to update code due to the fact operators would rely on a distributor to provide them with the rare updates (on ROMs). Machine code was done at the point of manufacturing. The ratio of home owners vs operators is heavily tipping towards home owners. The fact is that several KISS fans passed on the Premiums due to warranty support (poor playfield clears on previous releases) and the lack of code development. But they keep updating GOT !
Why is code updates even being discussed?
Stern has been doing it this way for years
It took 2-3 years for them to finish the code for TDK, and that is an eight year old game
Because consumers accept it ? Because KISS buyers were told there would be updates so we can enjoy our $11,500 ornaments ?
My NIB experience was an extremely positive one (initially). I was told not to turn the game on and immediately update the shipping code. so I swapped out the memory card. The first game had the sound cutting out, which Stern knew about at the time of shipping. Here we are, 6 months later, with the sound problems not fixed. Many playfield features are simply not included (Cities, Colossal Bonus, no sounds on inlanes etc etc). So this is "normal" for Stern buyers ?
Using that analogy, I'll go out and buy a new Holden. Indicators are installed, but not working. The headlights are installed but not working. The CD / Radio has no volume and the windows should be able to go down by Christmas ! This will all be addressed after we finish marketing the next model.
Stern should charge accordingly. The finished game is worth $11,500. My LE has incomplete code, so I'll pay 50% now, and 50% when they complete the game. Of course this is unrealistic, but this is what NIB buyer SHOULD expect ? I thought is was far fetched until I experienced it.
code updates as "enhancements" - like what Stern have done with TWD = Fantastic. I love the idea. Updates resulting from fan feedback = awesome.But code updates 6 months late (to fix shipping code issues) because Stern are too "busy" with code updates for NEW games so they can increase lagging sales ? what about CURRENT customers with games that need code to make the game playable ? Every single person that has played my LE has noticed the sound issue. That's FANTASTIC advertising. "Oh, that will be fixed one day when Stern complete the code"
If Stern or anyone else things this is not adversely affecting sales, then think again. It is not acceptable for a new product.
