Stern’s Transformers pinball makes G1 nostalgia easy, with Premium and Pro for two budgets

Stern Pinball Inc. already had the spotlight with a Pokemon pinball, and now it is doing it again with Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye. IGN got to play a lot of it at IGN Live and at Summer Games Fest, and the headline detail is simple: this new Stern machine is built to be approachable, fast to understand, and packed with retro ‘80s Transformers fun from the Generation 1 cartoon and toys.

The clearest proof is what you can do almost immediately. IGN’s playthrough describes two main “from coin-up” starting points: an obvious multiball path and an easy entrance into modes. In Transformers, the multiball centers on a shot up the middle that loads up Soundwave’s cassette deck belly with pinballs in the Premium mode, then dumps them out when you lock three balls and start the multiball. The modes are similarly designed to avoid pinball gatekeeping. The example IGN calls out is hitting down three drop targets at the back of the machine, then hitting a large hole to start a mode, with no tiny scoop or ramps required to qualify.

That accessibility is doing real work for Stern, and it shows up in how the machine is structured across its two product tiers. IGN played both the Premium and the Pro models, noting that they differ in price and features. The Premium model has a few more plastic-molded toys and interactive shots not in the Pro version, and those differences are also visible in IGN’s video preview. Still, Stern did not lock the soul of the experience behind the higher tier. “All machines” include original voice talent from the classic series delivering newly recorded callouts, classic clips from the cartoon on an HD monitor, sculpted toys, and 80s art throughout.

If you are an operator or investor thinking about why a branded pinball machine lives or dies, voice, clips, and visuals are not fluff. They reduce friction for players who want the familiar “I know this” feeling quickly, and they help the machine read clearly even for first-time audiences. This is especially important because the play experience IGN reports is not just about theme. It also focuses on a “fantastic, easy-to-understand ruleset and shots,” which is exactly what keeps branded games from feeling like museum pieces. You get the vibe, but you also get momentum.

IGN also calls out how the modes translate the cartoon’s story energy into game structure. The modes are described as “funny story episodes of the cartoon series,” with Transformers acting out made-for-kids drama. One specific mode IGN activated requires players to hit red or purple flashing shots, but only one color and avoiding the other. The resulting effect is framed as either the Autobots or Decepticons “won,” and those wins appear to create persistent effects. That kind of mechanism matters because it gives the player a short loop (observe the flashing cues, commit to a color, avoid the other) and then pays them off with longer-term consequences.

Beyond the core multiball and mode-start simplicity, the machine also offers the sort of ramp and upper-flipper geometry that can keep an experienced player coming back. IGN notes an upper right flipper that many shots take you to, including the center spinner shot. It also mentions a far left ramp that drops you there. The upper flip may not be “where the game is doing everything” at the moment, but IGN highlights that they got an unusual number of chances to use it. For an executive audience, that is a small but meaningful signal: Stern is not just reskinning an old template, it is building shot pathways that can support deeper rule evolution.

And that leads to the most operationally relevant caveat in the hands-on report: IGN played pre-release code. Pinball is famously updated over months and years with new code, and IGN compares the current experience to early access in video games, saying you can “definitely get a good sense” of where the machine is going. That matters for buyers because software maturity can change how operators present the game, how venues manage downtime for updates, and how collectors evaluate longevity.

As Transformers rolls out to arcades, Stern has already given players a direct lane to evaluate the machine: watch the video IGN made and look for it in the wild soon. IGN says you can preorder Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye now, which usually means weeks away from public visibility. In a market where branded pinball competes both for attention and for floor space, the strategic stakes are straightforward: Stern is selling a two-tier product (Premium and Pro) while keeping the core brand satisfaction and onboarding experience consistent. That is a smart balance for decision-makers trying to maximize both player adoption and upgrade value, without forcing the audience to “learn the hard way.”