# Episode 1112: "Should Connected Pins Be a Thing?"

**Source:** Kaneda's Pinball Podcast (Patreon feed)  
**Type:** podcast_episode  
**Published:** 2025-07-10  
**Duration:** 21m 38s  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.patreon.com/posts/episode-1112-be-133839749

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## Analysis

Kaneda discusses connected pinball features, the Jaws 50th release and its market performance, upcoming Stern releases (Star Wars, Tron, Pokémon), X-Men's troubled launch, John Wick code updates, and criticisms of game complexity. He explores missed opportunities for multi-machine online connectivity and cooperative gameplay, argues manufacturers prioritize game quantity over depth to drive sales, and comments on summer market slowdown and production timelines across manufacturers.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Jaws LE machines are holding value above $14k and retaining value better than Metallica Remastered over 1.5 years — _Kaneda, direct observation of secondary market_
- [MEDIUM] Star Wars Episode 4-6 remake by John Borg is expected to launch in late August or early September on Spike 3 — _Kaneda citing industry rumors: 'I'm hearing more and more people say that it's most likely gonna be Star Wars Episode 4, 5, and 6'_
- [HIGH] X-Men suffered from geometry/mechanical tolerances issues and incomplete software at launch, and Jack Danger felt creatively constrained — _Kaneda: 'Getting screwed over on the X-Men code—I know that was really tough for Jack to see his creative game not get the time it needed'_
- [HIGH] Stern is refusing to distribute older John Wick code versions to players who prefer the previous version — _Kaneda: 'Now Stern is telling people, we won't give you the old software. We're not going to distribute it.'_
- [HIGH] John Wick's new code made the game easier and added too many multiballs, reducing enjoyment — _Kaneda: 'I think they added too many multiballs and I think they made the game too easy'_
- [HIGH] No mass-produced pinball machine has true cooperative or versus multi-machine online connectivity in 2025 — _Kaneda: 'it is crazy that it is 2025 and we don't even have like any pinball, like any mass-produced pinball machine that's really fully connected to the internet and connecting two games to each other'_
- [MEDIUM] Dune has not sold out despite significant engineering and licensing investment — _Kaneda: 'Dune's getting a lot of good word of mouth, but it definitely didn't sell out and they're making what, a thousand Dunes?'_
- [MEDIUM] CGC's Medieval Madness delivery timelines are opaque and unpredictable — _Kaneda: 'The one company nobody knows what the wait time is, is CGC. I mean, people have no idea when they're getting their Merlin's Edition of Medieval Madness.'_

### Notable Quotes

> "I think for a lot of people out there, Jaws is a dream theme. I think it's a keeper and I think it's bolted to a lot of people's floors."
> — **Kaneda**, early in episode
> _Characterizes Jaws 50th as a culturally significant release with strong emotional attachment and retention value_

> "I'm still on the fence about Jaws 50th. I don't hate it. I just don't love it. It's just kind of a little plain Jane looking."
> — **Kaneda**, early in episode
> _Kaneda expresses reserved personal opinion on a commercially successful game, showing critical distance from hype_

> "Getting screwed over on the X-Men code—I know that was really tough for Jack to see his creative game not get the time it needed."
> — **Kaneda**, mid-episode
> _Acknowledges designer frustration with incomplete product launch and time constraints on X-Men_

> "the fact that you can't co-op play any pinball machine is ridiculous. The fact that you couldn't have special versus modes."
> — **Kaneda**, mid-episode
> _Identifies fundamental gap in modern pinball technology despite internet connectivity availability_

> "I think if you owned a pinball machine and that single machine was so much fun because every night you and your friends go online and do different fun quests in your games together on the same game, you might not want to buy three to four games a year like they want you to."
> — **Kaneda**, mid-episode
> _Articulates business model theory: manufacturers may avoid deep connectivity to drive annual purchase volumes_

> "the reason why they don't really want to connect games and have like fun player versus player stuff happening is because I think that would add a lot of replay value and a lot of fun. And I don't think they want that."
> — **Kaneda**, mid-episode
> _Expresses skepticism about manufacturer motivations regarding connected features_

> "It's such a competitive space now where if you don't have a great launch, I mean this, a great launch, it's going to be rough unless your theme is a take my money now theme."
> — **Kaneda**, late in episode
> _Describes market pressure and launch importance in crowded manufacturer landscape_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Kaneda | person | Host of Kaneda's Pinball Podcast, provides market analysis and commentary on pinball games, secondary market pricing, and industry trends |
| John Borg | person | Legendary Stern Pinball designer, expected to design Star Wars Episode 4-6 remake on Spike 3 platform |
| Jack Danger | person | Pinball designer credited with X-Men; Kaneda suggests he felt creatively constrained by incomplete development and time pressure |
| Keith Elwin | person | Designer of upcoming Pokémon pinball game, expected January-February release |
| Jaws 50th | game | Stern Pinball 2025 release celebrating 50th anniversary of Jaws film; strong secondary market performance with LE machines holding value above $14k; divisive art package with red armor |
| X-Men | game | Stern Pinball game by Jack Danger with quality control issues (geometry, plunger reliability, incomplete code at launch); experiencing secondary market depreciation |
| John Wick | game | Stern Pinball game receiving new code that players dislike; Stern refusing to distribute previous code versions; new version criticized for added multiballs and reduced difficulty |
| Star Wars (Stern rumor) | game | Rumored Stern remake of Episodes 4-6 by John Borg, expected late August/early September launch on Spike 3 |
| Tron Remastered | game | Rumored Stern remaster aligned with Tron movie release, expected after Star Wars in release schedule |
| Pokémon | game | Upcoming Stern Pinball by Keith Elwin, expected January-February release |
| Dune | game | Barrels of Fun pinball machine with mechanical features; not sold out despite significant engineering and licensing investment; production around 1000 units |
| Predator | game | Stern Pinball game; production line not starting until August-September; Kaneda expresses declining enthusiasm upon seeing more content |
| Medieval Madness (CGC Merlin's Edition) | game | Chicago Gaming Company remaster; delivery timelines described as opaque and unpredictable |
| Stern Pinball | company | Major manufacturer releasing Jaws 50th, Star Wars, Predator; implementing Insider Connected features; refusing to distribute old code versions |
| Barrels of Fun | company | Manufacturer of Dune; slower production pace; noted for steady weekly line movement |
| Chicago Gaming Company (CGC) | company | Manufacturer of Medieval Madness Merlin's Edition; criticized for opaque delivery timelines |
| Jersey Jack Pinball | company | Mentioned as potential manufacturer for Batman 89 remaster (speculation) |
| Spooky Pinball | company | Mentioned as potential manufacturer for Batman 89 remaster; known for consistent wait time communication |
| Insider Connected | product | Stern's internet-connected service with achievement/badge system; criticized for limited creative implementation and lack of real-time features or inter-machine connectivity |
| Spike 3 | product | Stern's latest pinball platform expected for Star Wars rumored release |
| Great American Pinball | company | Content creator producing pinball machine unboxing videos |
| Metallica Remastered | game | Stern remaster; 500 limited edition units; referenced for secondary market value comparison to Jaws |
| Alienware (Alien Ripley edition) | game | Referenced as precedent for delayed collector edition release (Ripley edition came years later) |
| David Van Esk | person | Barrels of Fun founder; told Kaneda he doesn't want day-one sellouts (statement Kaneda expresses skepticism about) |
| Peter | person | Listener/email contributor who suggested creative Insider Connected features like rewards for play time and inter-machine versus modes |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Connected/Online Pinball Features, Game Quality Control and Launch Readiness, Secondary Market Pricing and Value Retention, Upcoming Game Releases and Production Timelines, Code Updates and Player Satisfaction
- **Secondary:** Game Complexity vs. Accessibility, Manufacturer Business Models and Sales Strategies, Summer Market Slowdown

### Sentiment

**Mixed** (0.45) — Kaneda is cautiously optimistic about industry direction but critical of specific execution. He praises Jaws 50th value retention and upcoming titles but expresses frustration with X-Men's troubled launch, John Wick code changes, and perceived manufacturer unwillingness to implement true connectivity. Skeptical about manufacturer motivations but engaged and enthusiastic about pinball's future.

### Signals

- **[market_signal]** Jaws LE machines holding value above $14k after 1.5 years; outperforming Metallica Remastered (500 unit LE) in value retention (confidence: high) — Kaneda direct observation: 'I'm looking at the Jaws LEs and they really sort of not selling anywhere south of 14k'
- **[product_concern]** John Wick code update reduced player satisfaction; Stern refusing to distribute prior code versions to dissatisfied customers (confidence: high) — Kaneda: 'People with John Wick don't like the new code that they want to go back and get the old code. Now Stern is telling people, we won't give you the old software.'
- **[product_concern]** X-Men experienced significant quality control issues including geometry/mechanical tolerance problems and incomplete software at launch (confidence: high) — Kaneda: 'the software, which just wasn't ready for prime time' and 'perfecting the geometry a little bit'
- **[sentiment_shift]** Kaneda's enthusiasm for Predator game declining with increased visibility; skepticism about theme execution without Arnold Schwarzenegger (confidence: high) — Kaneda: 'every time I see the video content of it, every time I see more of it on Facebook, I get less excited'
- **[design_philosophy]** Kaneda advocates for simplified game rules and clear player communication over complexity; criticizes excessive rule depth and multiple multiballs (confidence: high) — Kaneda: 'I think the games that do really well are the ones where you have simplicity... I think more simplicity is a good thing'
- **[technology_signal]** No mass-produced pinball machine in 2025 offers true cooperative play, versus modes, or meaningful inter-machine online connectivity despite internet connectivity availability (confidence: high) — Kaneda: 'it is crazy that it is 2025 and we don't even have like any pinball machine that's really fully connected to the internet and connecting two games to each other'
- **[business_signal]** Kaneda theorizes manufacturers intentionally avoid deep connectivity features to maintain demand for new annual game purchases rather than maximizing single-game replay value (confidence: medium) — Kaneda: 'I think if you owned a pinball machine... you might not want to buy three to four games a year like they want you to'
- **[market_signal]** Dune by Barrels of Fun has not sold out despite significant engineering and licensing investment; production expected around 1000 units with steady weekly manufacturing pace (confidence: high) — Kaneda: 'Dune's getting a lot of good word of mouth, but it definitely didn't sell out and they're making what, a thousand Dunes?'
- **[operational_signal]** Chicago Gaming Company delivery timelines for Medieval Madness Merlin's Edition are opaque and unpredictable; contrasts with Barrels of Fun and Spooky's known wait times (confidence: high) — Kaneda: 'The one company nobody knows what the wait time is, is CGC. I mean, people have no idea when they're getting their Merlin's Edition'
- **[rumor_hype]** Star Wars Episodes 4-6 remake by John Borg expected late August/early September on Spike 3; Kaneda characterizes as likely based on industry chatter (confidence: medium) — Kaneda: 'I'm hearing more and more people say that it's most likely gonna be Star Wars Episode 4, 5, and 6'
- **[content_signal]** Kaneda planning to increase interview content and revisit Facebook discussion series on potential pinball themes with realistic licensing prospects (confidence: high) — Kaneda: 'I also wanna get a new MacBook Air so I can do some more interviews' and discussion of planned Facebook content series
- **[community_signal]** Kaneda's podcast subscriber base dipped but is recovering; interpersonal tension with group chat participant Ralph who removed himself from communication (confidence: high) — Kaneda: 'We dipped a little bit. We're heading in the right direction now' and 'Ralph, for some reason, won't talk to me anymore... he removed himself from the chat'

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## Transcript

 No, I won't be afraid Oh I won't be afraid Just as long as you stand Stand by me I might go see it tomorrow. Where is a Superman pinball machine? I think everybody would love to see the Man of Steel in a pinball game, right? It's a great theme for pinball. Now, would you base it on one of the movies? Would you base it on the comic book? I think any Superman pin, unless it was made by like Home Pin, would do really, really well. I would love to see a little bit more Batman back in pinball. I know everybody Out Pinball, Franchiontecore, If Spooky Pinball or Stern or Jersey jack made a new version with modern technology, Batman 89, the Tim Burton Classic with Michael Keenan and Jack Nicholson, how awesome would that be? I know there already is a pinball machine based on that movie, but man, it's right there. 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I love their unboxing video because it like speeds up the unboxing. It is not fun watching someone over C Bar), pinball machine out of a box. But when they speed it up and they set up the armor and they put on the red legs and we got to see what the game looks like, I'm still on the fence about Jaws 50th. I don't hate it. I just don't love it. It's just kind of a little plain Jane looking. It's definitely a divisive art package with that red armor. I'm hearing people say they love it and they hate it. Now look good art gets a reaction so it definitely gonna stand out amongst the lineup of pinball machines In general Jaws continues to hold value nicely I looking at the Jaws LEs and they really sort of not selling anywhere south of 14 So if you bought a Jaws LE your game has held value over a year and a half which doesn happen very often It holding better value than even Metallica remastered and there were only 500 of those I think for a lot of people out there Jaws is a dream theme I think it a keeper and I think it bolted to a lot of people floors Stern should sell an SLE that they actually do bolt to your floor and you can never sell it Out Pinball, Franchi),a ramp shot type in pinball So then we're looking at Star Wars next from John Borg. Then I think we're gonna get a Tron remastered to go with the Tron movie and then Keith Elwin's Pokemon Which should come out sometime in January February and who's up after that is Brian Eddy next or Jack danger I think X-Men came out before Dungeons and Dragons. I want to say it was before so that means Brian Eddy would be up next who knows who knows I definitely feel like Jack Danger is really probably feeling like you guys better give me everything on the next game. Getting screwed over on the X-Men code, I know that was really tough for Jack to see his creative game not get the time it needed. And the time worked against that game on perfecting the geometry a little bit and also the software which just wasn't ready for prime time. And hopefully that game continues to get better and better. This is funny. People with John Wick don't like the new code that they want to go back and get the old code. Now Stern is telling people, we won't give you the old software. We're not going to distribute it. So is that fair? Like, why shouldn't you? If I bought a $13,000 pinball machine, why am I not allowed if I liked the previous code? Why am I not allowed to get that from the manufacturer? I mean, that's kind of crazy. I understand why Stern doesn't want people to have older code because with insiderconnected and other things happening on the latest code, they want every game to universally be the same with the most updated code. A little weird that they made this game less enjoyable for people. I think they added too many multiballs and I think they made the game too easy, which is not something we say very often. In fact, I would argue that too many pinball machines are way too complex. Like people just don't know what's going on. 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I think it's too games I missed the most, would like the rain and Batman sixty ketchup hah şimdi an Update Revealed Alphastrail App Wattpect Out Pinball Franchi Picasastere overdo it and I think this 27 inch screen has invited him to put in so much insanity into these games that they just lose their enjoyment Okay, so speaking of like enjoyment I got a great email from Peter Peter wanted me to talk a little bit about Insider connected and what I would love to see happen on insider connected in 2025 2026 and I have to be honest. I haven't had much time with insider connected I don't own a Stern machine. I'm not even registered with the QR code because I don't care about collecting any of those badges. I just don't. What was interesting about what Peter was saying though is if you think about it, Stern knows everything about how you play each of your games. And they could do more with Insider Connected to reward you. Right now it's mostly about these achievements and there's a certain number of achievements with each game and you're trying to collect all the badges. So there might be something like 68 or 69 achievements in Elvira and you're trying to get them all. But once you get them, there's really nothing else to do. And they haven't really done more. They haven't been more creative with it. They haven't done stuff like measuring how long you've played your game. And what if you've played your game a thousand hours, does that unlock something? Have they connected it to the bars, right, on location? So if you do this, you could trade it in for a drink ticket. I don't know, I don't think Stern's done this stuff yet. You know, and also when you think about it, because it's connected to the internet, wouldn't they be able to sort of make code adjustable in real time? So for example, Peter had a good idea, like if it knows you've never been to the final wizard mode, do you get invited? Maybe some midnight madness, we're at midnight tonight, if you play your game, we're gonna unlock the final wizard mode for you so you can finally experience it. Like that would be fun. You know the one thing they've never really done and nobody's done this and it is crazy that it is 2025 and we don't even have like any pinball like any mass-produced pinball machine that's really fully connected to the internet and connecting two games to each other. The fact that you can't co-op play any pinball machine is ridiculous. The fact that you couldn't have special versus modes. So for example, if you have Ninja turtles, I could be playing as the turtles and you could be playing as the foot clan and your two machines are synced up or you could both be playing as turtles. Like I'm Raphael, you're Donatello and we're both playing the game at the same time in fun modes that are designed for two machines at the same time. I know that would require some more software but that would be a lot of fun and here's the reason why I think they don't want to do it. I think the reason why they don't really want to connect games and have like fun player versus player stuff happening, because I think that would add a lot of replay value and a lot of fun. And I don't think they want that. Because when you think about video games and a game like Halo, how many of you play through the storyline? No, you go online and you play with friends. And because you enjoy Halo, you're not buying every first person shooter that comes out. C Bar Oklahpane, vertical upkickbrance shot type in pinball And I think if you owned a pinball machine and that single machine was so much fun because every night you and your friends go online and Do different fun quests in your games together on the same game You might not want to buy three to four games a year like they want you to you know what I'm saying like that game might now Satiate and give you so much connected fun with your friends that also own it Request to build Franchiassic and mineichtlich access prison Toy Game Non payment for all the money they have, you think they could do something a little bit more interesting with their online connectivity. As were in the middle of Summer. I think Summers period were a lot of people out and about. You probably not pulling the trigger on pinball machines. You probably are waiting for something you ordered. A lot of people are going to be waiting for Dune. I heard someone ordered it day one. October is when they're expected to get the game. Harry Potter are not flying out the door Stern the only one who when they reveal a game like Jaws 50th it already on the line Hundreds will be made a week You be able to get one They wanna get you those games as fast as they can Look at Predator look at Predator It not even gonna be on the line until August September which means if you ordered one now man you know your money locked in nonrefundable not a smart move I'm trying to warm up to that game. I just, every time I see the video content of it, every time I see more of it on Facebook, I get less excited. It's just something about Arnold carries that movie on his shoulders, his humongous shoulders, on his huge biceps. And when you remove him, I just don't think it works. I don't. And I still like that leak with him in it. That wasn't a leak. They sent it out. Out Pinball, Franchi Picasa ramp shot type in pinball I really do think they wanted people to see the potential of what the game could be because they're like, oh yeah, everyone's just going to remember the Ripley edition and how people waited years for that, but it eventually came. So if you buy this, that also might happen with our Predator game. I don't think it's going to happen. And it's such a competitive space now where if you don't have a great launch, I mean this, a great launch, it's going to be rough unless your theme is a take my money now theme. Dunes getting a lot of good word of mouth, but it definitely didn't sell out and they're making what a thousand dunes and It's not a cheap property and they got all those assets and they did a lot of engineering It's got some mechanical magic in it. It's not the cheapest game to make still not sold out It's gonna be a long burn now The good news is is barrels of fun doesn't make games that quickly So it's okay for them if they have let's say three four hundred sold Out Pinball acute Out Pinball Out Pinball Liner Fast To fazem the next game is ready and sell enough so that the line is moving every week that's it David Van Esk, he once told me and I was like, come on David, that's BS. He once told me, he's like, Chris, I don't want a day one sellout. Really David? Really. That is BS. Everybody wants a day one sellout. I mean it's easy to say that when you don't have a day one sellout but who wouldn't want a day one sellout? That's a thousand non-refundable deposits that you're getting. How to build waive pokerIsn bored Voice A customers waiting X out of anxiety for company knowing those customers out there waiting But when you order a game from a company like barrels or spooky You know what the typical wait time is going to be the one company nobody knows what the wait time is is CG see I mean people have no idea when they're getting their merlin's edition of medieval madness Absolutely ridiculous, so I think we're gonna see a pause in the summer. I'm still gonna be doing my show two to three days a week I'm gonna come up with more show topics. Don't worry. I will keep you entertained. I want to start revisiting what I'm doing on Facebook Like what are some themes that I think should be made into pinball machines that we haven't seen and I want to also do it In a way where we're being somewhat realistic About what could be made you can't get Tom Antonio Cruz. So I'm not gonna say Top Gun Statham, North Carolina, You're not going to get Bruce Willis. With where he's at, his family is not going to sign off on something like this. So you're not going to get Fifth Element or Die Hard. It's just the way it is. But there are plenty of themes out there that are gettable, that have nostalgia, that these companies should be exploring. So I'm gonna start incorporating that into more future shows. I also wanna get a new MacBook Air so I can do some more interviews. I know you guys have been waiting on some interviews. It's just a lot more time to do interviews but now might be a good time to incorporate more of that into the show. So keep a lookout for that. But, thank you everybody for subscribing to Cinnatus Pinball Podcast. We're coming back a little bit. We got more people joining. It's good. More people are signing up. We dipped a little bit. We're heading in the right direction now. We're heading in the right direction. I really do appreciate And I do want to thank Apollon for raising his donation, because he saw that some of my old friends canceled their subscriptions. They're back though. I definitely think Kale is back on. Ralph for some reason won't talk to me anymore. I don't know what happened. I don't know what I did. I don't know. He removed himself from... We had a group chat me, Jamie, and Ralph, and he removed himself from the chat. Ralph, come on. We're just having fun. Gotta learn how to take the piss out of all of this. Treggie Winner intania Paralyzer at 32percent cashled gfilee bet on a forest card for uptext P manager fellow P cuz the

_(Acquisition: groq_whisper, Enrichment: v3)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 3aa66618-3fc7-49fb-91be-e6cf5ad4e779*