Episode 22: Dungeons & Dragons Pinball - We Played it - Initial Thoughts w/ Ian from Nudge Magazine!
In this episode, we’re diving deep—how deep? A full 45 minutes! But with so much to cover, it’s worth it. I’ll introduce you to Ian from Nudge, share our behind-the-scenes experience at Stern Pinball’s media day, and give you our honest thoughts on Stern’s newest cornerstone release, Dungeons & Dragons: The Tyrant’s Eye. We’ll also discuss the game’s impact on the pinball community, our broader views on the hobby, and what the future might hold for pinball enthusiasts. If you’re into pinball news, reviews, and industry insights, this is an episode you won’t want to miss!
Kineticist’s take
D&D Pinball early hands-on: deep code, smart design, fun mechanics across all tiers.
Synopsis
Retro Ralph and Ian Jacobi from Nudge Magazine visit Stern Pinball to play and discuss Dungeons & Dragons: The Tyrant's Eye in early code form. They praise the game's thoughtful integration of D&D mechanics with pinball gameplay, highlight the deep ruleset and code work by designer Brian Eddy and programmer Dwight Sullivan, and discuss specific features like the dragon multiball mechanic, shield system, and gelatinous cube shot. Both hosts find the Pro model compelling and express excitement about future code updates.
Highlights
- Dungeons & Dragons will feature 38+ different monsters, with plans for even more post-launch
- The game scales difficulty as players level up: higher-level enemies have more health/quantity rather than becoming easier
- Dwight Sullivan was a Dungeons Master and started a D&D club, bringing personal expertise to the game's storytelling
- The dragon toy is significantly larger than the Jurassic Park toy mechanism
- The shield mechanic requires a quick button press and will likely be revised post-launch due to player confusion
- Brian Eddy returns to three-flipper fan layouts with this game, his second three-flipper title
- The game contains hundreds of lines of dialogue coded by multiple team members
- Stern invited media (YouTubers, podcasters, bloggers, streamers, magazine creators) for hands-on play before public release
Entities
- Stern Pinball· company
- Interium· event
- Attack on Mars· game
- Black Knight Sword of Rage· game
- Bond 60th· game
- Diamond Lady· game
- Dungeons & Dragons: The Tyrant's Eye· game
- Jurassic Park· game
- Medieval Madness· game
- The Shadow· game
- Venom· game
- X-Men· game
- Nudge Magazine· organization
- The Flipside Pinball Podcast· organization
- Brian Eddy· person
- Dwight Sullivan· person
- Elizabeth· person
- Ian Jacobi· person
- Retro Ralph· person
- Roger Sharp· person
- Tyler White· person