We don’t tend to cover pinball or arcade machines here at Gaming-Age, but Pinball Arcade and Zen Pinball have certainly revived my interest in that particular genre as of late, and considering Stern Pinball is still alive and kicking, and making new units for the past couple of years, I figured it was high time we show them a little love.
And what better way to start than with some shots and of the recently released X-Men Pro and X-Men LE pinball tables from Stern. We’ve got the full press release below, along with a video featured at www.sternpinball.com, with table designer John Borg detailing the layout and gameplay of the X-Men LE table.
As expected, you’ll be shelling out some serious cash for these releases. The X-Men LE comes in two forms, one Magneto themed and the other revolving around Wolverine. These are priced at $7999, while the pro model comes in at $5699.
John Borg is one of the current top designers over at Stern, and is the man behind the popular Tron Legacy table from last year, and was also listed as lead design on Stern’s Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull, and the recent Iron Man and Avatar tables as well. He’s been designing pinball tables for quite some time though, and can be traced back to Data East’s Star Wars, and Tales from the Crypt tables, along with many more.
But enough of the mini history lesson, feast your eyes on this new table, and read the official press release below.
[youtube_sc url=”http://youtu.be/kCTm2IMceZ4″ width=”550″]
MELROSE PARK, Ill., June 7, 2012 — Stern Pinball, Inc., the world’s only maker of real pinball games, announced today the availability of the X-Men pinball machine based on the Marvel comic book series.The newest addition to the Stern collection celebrates X-Men, one of the most popular comic book series to date. X-Men will join Stern’s revolutionary line-up of comic inspired machines including Spiderman, Iron Man and Batman.
Since the first appearance of X-Men in 1963, the characters in the Stan Lee series have resonated with millions of comic lovers. Now X-Men fans can experience the adventure first hand with a first of its kind pinball display. In this game, players can help gather their favorite X-Men to battle and defeat their villainous enemies. The game features seven main villains including Juggernaut, The Brotherhood of Mutants, The Hellfire Club, Shadow King, Sabertooth, Sentinels and Omega Red. The machine also features a Blackbird launcher and special game modes that touch on the most exciting events in the X-Men Universe.
“Stan Lee’s compelling storytelling combined with his dynamic cast of X-Men have captured the hearts and imaginations of fans of all ages for almost 40 years,” said Gary Stern, founder, CEO and chairman of Stern Pinball. “The X-Men pinball machine celebrates Stan’s much loved series and brings fans a whole new adventure right at their fingertips.”
The X-Men game continues both the Stern Pinball and the Stern family tradition of producing quality pinball machines for young and old. The company traces its lineage to Philadelphia in the 1930s when Sam Stern entered the business of operating pinball games. Stern passed his lifelong enthusiasm for the game and the business of pinball to his son Gary Stern who founded Stern Pinball. Today pinball remains one of America’s favorite pastimes.
To learn more about the X-Men pinball machine and Stern Pinball, visit www.sternpinball.com.