Taken from Pinside and I gotta agree :)
"As far as Stern code, I've come to terms with their system. It was really easy to blast them for taking a year or more on most titles, cause, after all...Uncle Willy almost NEVER released unfinished games.
But then you think about it...even an early code Stern is usually as deep as any of those Williams games. Even something like KISS as it is now. So I'll cut them some slack...games like Metallica and Walking Dead are just average releases until the code gets updated. They are working real miracles with the code and it takes time"
"The more I play Kiss, the more I enjoy it. The code can absolutely improve, but Jesus Christ, the game has 4 multiballs, a wizard mode, hurry-ups, super scoring, etc. Combined with some difficult shots, it's still a ton of fun. Kiss plays kind of like a jacked SS game, but I think we've come to expect more with modern games. Kiss isn't abandoned or forgotten... It's just taking longer than anticipated for a killer update"
Sarcasm ?
Williams finished the code all games except Cactus Canyon. DE, Sega, Gottlieb, Bally etc etc.. all shipped with finished code. The "unfinished code" is unique to Stern. JJP and Heighway ship completed code. Maybe enhancements are introduced later, but Stern are increasingly under pressure to release mature code AT LEAST.
I Love my KISS LE - but it is now unplayable. Multiball - yea the kids can get that easily. Multipliers, colossal bonus, cities, inlanes, some flashers, stuttering music - it is plagued with issues that have cost Stern sales and reputation. Each game they release gets worse. Hire more people, give the coders more freedom. As I explain to prospective buyers - Stern completes a game to the point is it AWESOME to look at and has an AWESOME attract mode. Just don't play it for 12 months while they finish the game.
Stern are lazy - because people (like me) buy games off the pictures / media releases. Operators are pulling KISS offsite as they are not making money any more due to code problems. HELLO STERN - do you listen to operators anymore ? The KISS removed from sites are being replaced with retro games. They USD TO BE replaced with the next model but operators are not investing in GoT = too expensive !
At each release you can be sure of two things ;
1 - Code is more and more basic
2 - Price increases from Stern
We have all seen how AWESOME the Ghostbusters art package and playfield innovation is. Hand drawn is hopefully the norm. The will sell on bells and whistles only - no one will know if anything works properly until it ships. Why do we keep paying for these games ? We should pay 50% now and the balance once Stern finish the game ?
My situation is typical. My wife even notices I don't play the game. It has not been played since Christmas. How does anyone justify spending $11,500 on a game that looks AWESOME, but is not finished ?
Again, this is NOT a Stern bashing post, so put away the gloves and propaganda. This needs to be fixed with our wallets until Stern provide completed games.
