STERN OF THE UNION ADDRESS – NOVEMBER 2025

The Stern of the Union Address, your monthly resource for news, information and highlights on all things Stern Pinball. Without further ado my fellow pinheads: The Walking Dead Remastered: There’s a Horde coming with a technologically advanced version of one of the most beloved pinball games of all time… The Walking Dead Remastered! Stay tuned…

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Tavern Keeper’s early access is already a crunchy management sim, a cosy blanket, an interior decor game, and a furniture designer all at once

Tavern Keeper’s a game with a bit of a history—taking Greenheart Games a whopping 11 years to make, it finally released into Early Access earlier this month after a series of solid, but limited demos, expanding the scope of what we could mess around with from one tavern to three. And despite not being in…

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Cities: Skylines 2’s bicycle update adds a lot more than just bikes, as Colossal Order prepares to hand over development to a new studio

Colossal Order will soon part ways with its difficult second child, Cities: Skylines 2, but at least the developer got to teach the sequel to ride a bike before sending it to live with adoptive parent Iceflake Studios. The newly released bike patch actually adds bicycles and electric scooters into Skylines 2, along with all…

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5 months after launch, cooperative shooter FBC Firebreak finally has integrated voice chat, but its Vampire Survivors-style wave mode is delayed until next year

While a lack of voice chat wasn’t the biggest problem with FBC: Firebreak when it released in June, it was certainly one of the issues that led it to fall flat with myself and players in general. Given Firebreak is a cooperative shooter where teamwork is crucial to survival, being able to communicate with friends…

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Review: PB Tails Crush 550 TMR Controller For Switch 1 & 2 – A Gorgeous, Fair-Weather Pad With Classic Car Stylings

Chromesome. Earlier this year, PB Tails’ Metal Crush Defender TMR controller caught my eye, with its Fallout-inspired, distressed yellow stylings and glistening chrome sticks. I don’t usually go in for ‘relic’ effects on anything, but this looked a bit special. It felt artful and novel in a market where neon gamer gear dominates, screaming for…

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This mech themed XCOM-like just got a gargantuan update that overhauls its campaign, redesigns its overworld, and adds personalities to pilots with ‘over 100’ unique traits

In the deep, dark mists of 2023, Crypt of the Necrodancer developer Brace Yourself Games released a mech-themed, simultaneous turn-based tactics game called Phantom Brigade. It sounded like an instant winner, and it certainly had potential. “There’s so many little aspects that Phantom Brigade gets right,” Dominic Tarason wrote in his Phantom Brigade review, praising…

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Doom: The Dark Ages’ latest update overhauls its customisable arena mode, and id Software wants to add the best player-made slaughter-fests as selectable presets

Doom: The Dark Ages received a whole new mode back in August—the wave-based “Ripatorium” that allows players to build their own demonic encounters. But it seems id Software has had a rethink about the Ripatorium, as The Dark Ages’ latest update substantially overhauls how it works. While update 2.3 is mainly Ripatorium focussed, it’s worth…

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