# Mirco Playfields Announces Williams Tales of the Arabian Nights 2.0 Kits **Source:** Knapp Arcade **Type:** article **Published:** 2022-03-14 **Beat:** Pinball **URL:** https://www.knapparcade.org/mirco-playfields-announces-williams-tales-of-the-arabian-nights-2-0-kits --- ## Analysis Mirco Playfields announced a Tales of the Arabian Nights 2.0 upgrade kit ("The Forgotten Tales") featuring new software and features, to be presented at Texas Pinball Festival with immediate availability for purchase. The announcement sparked community discussion about kit quality concerns and the emerging trend of multiple 2.0 kits for the same classic game, with the author expressing skepticism about Mirco's track record and the market sustainability of this approach. ### Key Claims - [HIGH] Mirco manufactures playfields for Jersey Jack and the aftermarket — _Article states Mirco is 'the manufacturer of pinball playfields for Jersey Jack and the aftermarket'_ - [HIGH] TOTAN 2.0 kits will be available exclusively at Texas Pinball Festival and through Mirco's website, not through distributors — _Official statement: 'kits will be available for pick up or order at TPF and same time only on my website mircoplayfield.com. The kit will not be available through any distributors.'_ - [HIGH] Mirco has received negative publicity for quality issues with its playfields recently — _Article explicitly states 'Mirco has received quite a bit of negative publicity for quality issues with its playfields lately that the company has yet to address in public'_ - [MEDIUM] A code update called 'The Forgotten Tales' was started on Pinside three years ago — _Reddit user Jakelshark noted 'three years ago someone started a threat on Pinside.com about a code update for TOTAL also called "The forgotten tales"' and the current product may commercialize that effort_ - [HIGH] Bally/Williams 2.0 kits have been well received by the public — _Article states 'For the most part, the Bally / Williams 2.0 kits have been very well received by the public'_ ### Notable Quotes > "At Texas Pinball Festival we will present the brand new TOTAN 2.0 Kit "The forgotten Tales" with new Software and great features." > — **Mirco (official statement)**, n/a > _Official announcement of the product and its premiere venue_ > "The kit will not be available through any distributors." > — **Mirco (official statement)**, n/a > _Key distribution strategy: exclusive direct-to-consumer model_ > "I wish that Planetary Pinball was a little more discerning with who they allow to make 2.0 Kits. IMHO, they should only allow legit, proven companies like Chicago Gaming (Cactus Canyon) and Pedretti Gaming (FunHouse) make the 2.0s." > — **Knapp Arcade (author)**, n/a > _Criticism of Planetary Pinball's licensing approach and quality control standards_ > "The more I think about this, the more I think that having multiple 2.0 kits for the same classic Bally / Williams game would be a confusing mess and a big mistake." > — **Knapp Arcade (author)**, n/a > _Expresses concern about market fragmentation from multiple 2.0 kits for same game_ ### Entities | Name | Type | Context | |------|------|---------| | Mirco Playfields | company | Manufacturer of pinball playfields for Jersey Jack and aftermarket; announcing TOTAN 2.0 kit | | Tales of the Arabian Nights (TOTAN) | game | Classic Williams pinball machine receiving 2.0 upgrade kit from Mirco | | Texas Pinball Festival | event | Venue where TOTAN 2.0 kit will be presented and first made available for purchase | | Planetary Pinball | company | Controls Bally/Williams license; criticized for insufficient quality control over 2.0 kit manufacturers | | Pedretti Gaming | company | Manufacturer of FunHouse 2.0 kit; cited as example of legit, proven 2.0 kit producer | | Chicago Gaming | company | Manufacturer of Cactus Canyon; cited as example of legit, proven 2.0 kit producer | | Dutch Pinball | company | Manufacturer of Bride of Pinbot 2.0 kit; started the 2.0 upgrade kit trend | | Jersey Jack Pinball | company | Pinball manufacturer for whom Mirco manufactures playfields | | Knapp Arcade | organization | Source of article; critical analysis of TOTAN 2.0 announcement and Mirco's quality issues | | Jakelshark | person | Reddit user who identified the original Pinside thread about 'The Forgotten Tales' code from three years ago | ### Topics - **Primary:** 2.0 upgrade kits for classic Williams/Bally machines, Mirco Playfields quality control and reputation - **Secondary:** Licensing and manufacturing partnerships (Planetary Pinball oversight), Market fragmentation and standardization of classic game remakes, Custom code projects and their commercialization ### Sentiment **Mixed** (-0.3) — Announcement is newsworthy and the product itself represents innovation in the 2.0 kit category, but the author expresses significant skepticism and criticism regarding Mirco's track record with quality issues, the sustainability of multiple 2.0 kits for the same game, and questions about whether this represents a money grab. The tone is cautiously critical rather than enthusiastic. ### Signals - **[business_signal]** Growing concern about market fragmentation from multiple 2.0 kits available for the same classic game, and sustainability of this model (confidence: medium) — Author expresses: 'The more I think about this, the more I think that having multiple 2.0 kits for the same classic Bally / Williams game would be a confusing mess and a big mistake' - **[community_signal]** Community engagement in tracking and identifying commercialization of homebrew code projects (The Forgotten Tales originated on Pinside three years prior) (confidence: medium) — Jakelshark identified that code update 'The Forgotten Tales' was started on Pinside three years ago, suggesting Mirco is commercializing existing homebrew work - **[licensing_signal]** Planetary Pinball's oversight of 2.0 kit manufacturers questioned; author suggests stricter quality control and selectivity needed (confidence: medium) — Author states 'I wish that Planetary Pinball was a little more discerning with who they allow to make 2.0 Kits' - **[announcement]** Mirco Playfields officially announced TOTAN 2.0 kit with new software and features, to debut at Texas Pinball Festival (confidence: high) — Official statement from Mirco announcing 'brand new TOTAN 2.0 Kit "The forgotten Tales" with new Software and great features' with availability at TPF - **[product_concern]** Mirco facing negative publicity for quality issues with playfields that remain unaddressed publicly (confidence: high) — Article states 'Mirco has received quite a bit of negative publicity for quality issues with its playfields lately that the company has yet to address in public' - **[technology_signal]** Emergence of 2.0 upgrade kit trend for classic Williams/Bally machines, with multiple manufacturers now entering market (confidence: high) — Article notes trend started by Dutch Pinball's Bride of Pinbot 2.0, followed by Pedretti Gaming's FunHouse 2.0, now Mirco's TOTAN 2.0 --- ## Transcript Wow this came completely out of left field. After teasing that a new product is coming for the past several days, the manufacturer of pinball playfields for Jersey Jack and the aftermarket, Mirco, minutes ago announced that they are going to manufacture and sell 2.0 upgrade kits for the super popular classic Williams pinball machine Tales of the Arabian Nights aka TOTAN. This kit continues the trend that was started by Dutch Pinball's Bride of Pinbot 2.0 kit and more recently Pedretti Gaming's FunHouse 2.0 kit. Here's the Mirco's official statement on the project: "At Texas Pinball Festival we will present the brand new TOTAN 2.0 Kit "The forgotten Tales" with new Software and great features. There will be two games in the game hall with our system installed to play. First kits will be available for pick up or order at TPF and same time only on my website mircoplayfield.com. The kit will not be available through any distributors. More details will be posted shortly before TPF. Regards, Mirco" If you're looking for Mirco's website, they misspelled the link to it in their initial post. The address is actually https://mircoplayfields.com/ . So far, there doesn't seem to be any mention of this product on the site. In the statement, they claim that kits will be available for purchase at the Texas Pinball Festival, likely in conjunction with Mirco's presentation at the event. Kits will also be available for order up on Mirco's site soon. For the most part, the Bally / Williams 2.0 kits have been very well received by the public. It will be very interesting to see what the reception will be like for the TOTAN 2.0 kits though given the fact that Mirco has received quite a bit of negative publicity for quality issues with its playfields lately that the company has yet to address in public. This news just broke. I will provide updates as more information starts to emerge, such as pictures and/or gameplay video. The more I think about this, the more I think that having multiple 2.0 kits for the same classic Bally / Williams game would be a confusing mess and a big mistake. Make one remake kit per game and make it right. Anything else seems like a money grab. I wish that Planetary Pinball was a little more discerning with who they allow to make 2.0 Kits. IMHO, they should only allow legit, proven companies like Chicago Gaming (Cactus Canyon) and Pedretti Gaming (FunHouse) make the 2.0s. An astute Reddit user named Jakelshark pointed out that three years ago someone started a threat on Pinside.com about a code update for TOTAL also called "The forgotten tales." This product may be the commercialization of that effort. Here is a recent YouTube video that shows this code in action: _(Acquisition: raw_text, Enrichment: v1)_ --- *Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 2ac0d46e-5ba6-447f-9caf-f294ba8de88a*