Stern's new Transformers pinball machine shoots the ball back at you

Stern Pinball has announced "Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye," a new pinball machine celebrating the 40th anniversary of the 1984 animated series and the 1986 movie. The table is available in Pro, Premium, and Limited Edition models.

Lead game designer Elliot Eisman uses the video to highlight several mechanical additions that make this table stand out. "This game pushes mechanical innovation to new heights as a fully animatronic Megatron is ready for battle," Eisman explains. The most aggressive mechanism is that fully animatronic Megatron toy positioned on the playfield. It has an articulated fusion cannon that actually rotates and fires pinballs directly back at the player.

There is also a Soundwave toy that functions as a physical cassette deck. It locks pinballs inside the deck before launching them back into the action. To back up the physical toys, Stern brought in Peter Cullen and Frank Welker to record custom voice lines. Cullen reprises his role as Optimus Prime. Welker provides the voices for both Megatron and Soundwave. Hearing the original 1984 actors react to your drains adds a lot of charm to the table.

A fusion cannon aimed at your flippers

The core gameplay loop involves collecting Energon Cubes to power up your flippers and teaming up with the Dinobots. Players also collect Transformers Tech Spec cards throughout a run. A custom sculpted Optimus Prime bash toy sits on the playfield, waiting for players to hit it to trigger events and start multiball modes.

The missions pull directly from major story arcs in the original television series. The machine integrates authentic video clips from the cartoon on the backglass display to match the physical targets you hit.

Stern included a special mode dedicated entirely to the 1986 animated movie. Yes, the mode includes "The Touch" by Stan Bush.

Digital coins for physical tables

Stern is introducing a new addition to the Stern Insider Connected platform called the Cybercoin wallet system. Players earn these digital Cybercoins during regular gameplay. They can then spend that currency to unlock exclusive challenge modes on the physical machine.

Stern has pushed its Insider Connected system hard over the last few years. The platform lets players scan a QR code with their phones to track scores, earn achievements, and view global leaderboards. Adding an in-game currency to unlock physical machine modes is a new step for the ecosystem. It bridges the gap between digital progression and arcade hardware. Home machine owners and arcade operators both get access to these connected features.

Stern actually released a Transformers pinball machine back in 2011. That older table was designed by George Gomez and used the Michael Bay live-action movie designs. It had a lot of dense, hyper-detailed CGI art that sometimes made the playfield hard to read. Players had to choose their allegiance to either the Autobots or Decepticons before plunging the ball.

This new release is a complete pivot back to the original Generation 1 aesthetic. The classic blocky robot designs and bright primary colors translate much better to pinball playfield art. The 1984 cartoon style gives the whole machine a clean, readable look that the 2011 version lacked. It is a welcome return to form for the franchise in the arcade space.