# Cillian's Reaction to Pokemon Pinball **Source:** Kaneda Pinball Podcasts YouTube Lives **Type:** video **Published:** 2026-02-14 **Duration:** 10m 20s **Beat:** Pinball **URL:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmzTJuwNx70 --- ## Analysis Kaneda showcases Pokemon Pinball gameplay footage to his young son Cillian for the first time, featuring clips from official Stern marketing materials and a featurette explaining the three-tier pricing model (Pro $6,999, Premium $9,699, LE $12,999 capped at 750 units). The video focuses on the machine's Generation 1 Kanto-region theming, core mechanics across all three tiers, key toys like the animatronic Pikachu, and gameplay flow. Cillian expresses interest in the Limited Edition but humorously offers only $1, later negotiating to $100. ### Key Claims - [HIGH] Pokemon Pinball comes in three editions: Pro ($6,999), Premium ($9,699), Limited Edition ($12,999 capped at 750 units) — _Kaneda citing official Stern pricing from featurette video_ - [HIGH] All three tiers share identical core layout, cabinet size, and core mechanics with few exceptions — _Kaneda's explanation from official Stern featurette_ - [HIGH] Premium and Limited Edition versions include animatronic Pikachu that moves its head; Pro version has stationary Pikachu — _Kaneda explaining tier differences from Stern material_ - [HIGH] Limited Edition includes Expression Lighting system that lights up the entire playfield — _Kaneda describing LE-exclusive feature from Stern featurette_ - [HIGH] Game features Pokemon from multiple regions despite Generation 1 Kanto-region focus — _Kaneda's commentary on gameplay experience and theme representation_ - [HIGH] Game includes Giovanni and Team Rocket as antagonists in the story/gameplay — _Kaneda describing story elements from Stern featurette_ ### Notable Quotes > "Pinball fanatic and a Pokemon fan, it's kind of a dream crossover for me. And I genuinely think if you're either one of these, you're going to love what Stern has put together here." > — **Kaneda (from Stern featurette)**, ~3:45 > _Expresses genuine enthusiasm for the game as both pinball and Pokemon fan; positions it as appeal to dual audiences_ > "At its core, these games are nearly identical. Cabinets are the same size and the core mechanics are almost exactly the same across the three models with very few exceptions." > — **Kaneda (from Stern featurette)**, ~4:30 > _Addresses pricing tier transparency—clarifies that Pro model doesn't compromise core gameplay despite lower price_ > "This machine feels like a love letter to Generation 1 and the Kanto region." > — **Kaneda (from Stern featurette)**, ~5:20 > _Characterizes overall aesthetic and theme focus of the game_ > "Layout is the same. Set is the same. You're not missing out on the heart of gameplay." > — **Kaneda (from Stern featurette)**, ~4:50 > _Reiterates that Pro tier includes full gameplay experience despite cosmetic/feature differences in Premium/LE_ > "$1." > — **Cillian (Kaneda's son)**, ~9:30 > _Humorous moment: child's initial offer for LE machine; demonstrates family engagement with product_ > "Only $100." > — **Cillian (Kaneda's son)**, ~9:45 > _Cillian's negotiated price for LE after being told the $12,999 actual retail cost_ ### Entities | Name | Type | Context | |------|------|---------| | Pokemon Pinball | product | Stern Pinball flagship game with three-tier pricing model (Pro/Premium/LE), featuring Generation 1 Pokemon theme with multi-region Pokemon representation, animatronic Pikachu toy, and story-driven gameplay | | Stern Pinball | company | Manufacturer of Pokemon Pinball; appears to have provided exclusive first-play opportunity to Kaneda and official marketing materials/featurette | | Kaneda | person | Pinball content creator and podcaster; appears to have received early access to Pokemon Pinball at Stern HQ in Chicago; presenting game to his young son Cillian in this video | | George Gomez | person | Stern pinball designer; credited by Cillian in video as 'getting me a baby' (reference to creating/gifting the Pokemon Pinball game) | | Jack Danger | person | Co-designer of Pokemon Pinball (referenced in knowledge base); not directly mentioned in this video but implied as part of design team | | Tanya Kleiss | person | Code designer for Pokemon Pinball (referenced in knowledge base); not directly mentioned in this video | | Cillian | person | Kaneda's young son; viewing Pokemon Pinball for first time in video; expresses interest in Limited Edition but humorously negotiates price from $1 to $100 | | Insider Connected | product | Stern Pinball's digital ecosystem mentioned in opening gratitude segment; associated with Pokemon Pinball | | Pokemon League | game_element | Story element in Pokemon Pinball where player character battles their way through as up-and-coming trainer | | Team Rocket | game_element | Antagonist faction in Pokemon Pinball story | | Giovanni | game_element | Pokemon villain character appearing in Pokemon Pinball game | | Pikachu | game_element | Featured animatronic toy on Pokemon Pinball (moves head in Premium/LE, stationary in Pro) | | Pokedex | game_element | Shot target in Pokemon Pinball used to scan/discover Pokemon as part of core gameplay | ### Topics - **Primary:** Pokemon Pinball three-tier pricing and feature differentiation, Core gameplay experience consistency across Pro/Premium/LE tiers - **Secondary:** Game theme and Pokemon generation representation, Playfield toys and animatronics (Pikachu, Expression Lighting), Story elements and game narrative (Pokemon League, Team Rocket, Giovanni) - **Mentioned:** Family-friendly accessibility and crossover appeal ### Sentiment **Positive** (0.85) — Kaneda expresses genuine enthusiasm and positions Pokemon Pinball as dream crossover for pinball/Pokemon fans. His featurette commentary is celebratory and affirming of design decisions. Cillian's engagement and interest (despite humorous price negotiations) adds to overall positive tone. No critical concerns or negative sentiments expressed. ### Signals - **[community_signal]** Stern provided exclusive early access to Pokemon Pinball at Chicago headquarters to Kaneda, a major content creator, suggesting deliberate marketing partnership to reach enthusiast audiences before full public release (confidence: high) — Kaneda states: 'I was lucky enough to be invited out to Stern's headquarters in Chicago to be among the first to play it in person' - **[event_signal]** Stern has released official Pokemon Pinball featurette video and marketing materials explaining three-tier model, features, and story elements to public; full detailed review from Kaneda promised in coming weeks (confidence: high) — Kaneda references watching 'webinar' and states 'We're going to break all of that down when we have our full review dropping in just a few weeks' - **[licensing_signal]** Pokemon Pinball represents significant IP collaboration between Stern and The Pokemon Company, with emphasis on multi-generational appeal through Generation 1 Kanto focus with representation of Pokemon from multiple regions throughout game (confidence: high) — Game described as 'love letter to Generation 1 and the Kanto region' while also featuring 'Pokemon from multiple regions woven throughout the experience' - **[product_strategy]** Pokemon Pinball explicitly designed in three tiers (Pro/Premium/LE) with strategic feature distribution: animatronic Pikachu upgrade (moving head), Expression Lighting system, and cosmetic differences, while maintaining identical core layout and mechanics (confidence: high) — Kaneda: 'At its core, these games are nearly identical...with very few exceptions' and details specific LE/Premium features like 'animatronic Pikachu that moves its head' and 'Expression Lighting system' --- ## Transcript both got unicorn cards. No. [clears throat] Wow. Unicorn cards. Killing, we're going to um we're going to show you. Let's see. You come here. Come here. Okay, hold on. Pokemon. Okay, hold on. All right, we're going to get Let's get you in frame. Sit on my lap. [clears throat] Come here. Okay. All right. This is the first. Yes. Are we excited to see this? Okay. Hold on. Hold on. Don't Don't fight. Don't fight it. Don't fight it. Okay. Now, Now, before we get going, before we get going, who's your favorite Pokemon? Shai. Shai. Oh, you want to go get him? Yeah. Go get him. Go get him. Go get him. Okay. He has not seen this game yet. Okay. Come here. Come here. Okay. Okay. Bring him in. Bring him in. No, I'm going to bring the sword in. Not the sword. You bring this this. Cash is headed up the stairs. Why are we bringing a sword in? Why do we need this? I want to battle. Battle who? Battle. Oh, okay. All right. Well, let's but we I want to show you Pokemon Pinball and everyone wants to see your reaction to the first time. Okay, come here. Can we put the sword down? Okay, let's put the Okay, come in. Come in. All right, now first of all, I want you to say thank you. Thank you. Ready? Thank you. Say thank you. Thank you, Stern Pinball. Stern Pinball for making Pokemon pinball. for making Pokemon ball for for making insider connected. Okay. Ready? Let's do this. All right. All right. You ready? Okay. Hold on. Hold on. Hold on. Hold on. Let me get the volume up. Share screen. Okay. Okay. Hold on. Thank you. Okay. Ready? Yeah. You ready? Yeah. Our Who will be the champion of the arena battle? GOT TO CATCH THEM ALL. GOT TO catch them all. Got to catch them all. I want to know, have you made this mistake with your holster? And by mistake, what do you think? Can you show me? What do you mean? Another one. Do you like it? Yeah. Can you show me another one? Another what video? Yeah. Of Pokemon. Pokemon. Okay, hold on. But not the same one. Not the same one? No. Okay, hold on. Hold on. Different. A different one. Okay, hold on. Now, what do you think, though? Should we get one? I don't. Do you want one? You want a different video? Let's see what we got here. Where's the Where's the Where's the like um featurette video? Okay, here we go. Now, this one. Yeah. We have a full-sized honest to Pokemon pinball machine from the Wizards at Stern Pinball, and I was lucky enough to be invited out to Stern's headquarters in Chicago to be among the first played in person now. This is something I've personally been looking forward to for a long time. Pinball fanatic and a Pokémon fan, it's kind of a dream crossover for me. And I genuinely think if you're either one of these, you're going to love what Stern has put together here. Now, one of the first things you're going to notice is that there isn't just one machine. There's actually three. There's a pro edition, which is the cheapest barrier of entry, and that retails for $6,999. A premium edition with some additional bells and whistles for $9,699. At the very top, there's the limited edition that's capped at 750 units. that retails for $12,999. Now, I'm not gonna go super indepth on the differences between these machines just yet. This is just a preview. We're going to break all of that down when we have our full review dropping in just a few weeks. But the big things that you should know is that at its core, these games are nearly identical. Cabinets are the same size and the core mechanics are almost exactly the same across the three models with very few exceptions. Are you ready? There's some certain things though on the premium and the limited editions that you're going to get like an animatroic Pikachu that moves its head gameplay. The Pro has the Pikachu 2, but it stays stationary. And on the limited edition, there's an expression lighting system that lights up the entire playfield in a really dramatic way. But no matter what version that you're going to play, you're getting essentially the same core experience. Layout is the same set is the same. You're not missing out on the heart gameplay. So, with that out of the way, let's talk theme. Right off the bat, this machine feels like a love letter to Generation 1 and the Kanto region. There's definitely a lot of Kanto representation here. John Youssi it in the artwork on the side of the machine and on the playfield itself, but once you get started playing, you quickly realize this isn't just a generation one table. Pokémon from multiple regions are woven throughout the experience. Oh, and yeah, there is a story to this game, too. Pokemon Pinball. You're an upand cominging Pokemon trainer trying to catch them all and battle your way through the Pokemon League. As you play, you'll encounter Pokémon. Need to hit specific shots to scan them with your Pokédex. Then eventually, you catch them. Along the way, you might even run into Team Rocket, who's the bad guy of this game. And even Giovani shows up trying to steal your Pokemon or just cause chaos. Now, as far as the physical toys on the Playfield go, there are two big standouts. Like I mentioned before, if you're playing premium or the limited edition, you get the animatronic Pikachu at the top right corner of the cabinet. That This guy's video is so boring. This kill. Uh, let's see. No, here. Here we go. Ready? What if you could clean your retainer at the touch of a button? No more brushing or tablets. Over four years ago, Hit the town targets to light the outline ball save. Pokemon discovery. Shoot Pokédex to scan Pokemon. See that's the same. Well, now now we're going to talk to the audience here. So they want to know from you. Unicorn time. Unicorn time. Okay. No, I want Can I have candy? Candy? No. Uhuh. What do you want? Candy. Huh? Candy. What's candy? Candy. Can What's that? That's That's Hold on. We Before we go, Before Candy, I want you to ask answer a FEW QUESTIONS. OKAY. [gasps] THANK you for GETTING ME A PINBALL MACHINE. And Wait, hold on. Hold on. Thank you, George, for getting me a baby. George Gomez. Hold on. Hold on. Okay. Now, do are we getting this machine? Are we getting it? Do you want one? Do you want one? Yeah. Do you want the LE? Yeah. How much do you want to spend on the Ellie? Um, what's the Ellie? How much do you want to How much do you have for it? How much money? Huh? What's the Ellie? Limited edition. Um, what how much would you spend on it? $1. $1. Only $100. Okay. Okay. Only $100? Yep. $100. Okay. So, can you give us $100? Yeah. Are you asking? Please. Please give him 100. Okay. And now see daddy. Okay. Now you can look at Charizard. Yeah. Show them Charizard. Show him Charizard. And Roar them. Right then. Yes. Okay. He wants me to roar you guys. All right. So there you have it. Killian's in on Pokemon Ellie for 100 bucks. First his first offer was a dollar. Um I tried to break the box and try to eat. Okay. You know, I I still think he's a little young for for all of it in general, but um All right. Well, there we go. There we have it. Like I Is the Is the featurette out yet? Because I want to see the featurette. I'm still seeing just the trailer stuff. Where's the Stern feature? Um I think we're getting a good sense of everything that's in the game, though. Like, I don't think there's going to be anything like confusing. I I watched the webinar. Watch out. Uh oh. Uh oh. oh. Later. Okay. [screaming] Okay. We're We're gonna go because I got to get this guy guys settled for bed. This is going to wake him up. All right. Later, guys. _(Acquisition: youtube_auto_sub, Enrichment: v3)_ --- *Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 24234c08-b49d-4046-9267-94a5f68db455*