# I'm Leaving...I'm Done...it's Over... Pinball Expo 2023!

**Source:** RetroRalph  
**Type:** video  
**Published:** 2023-10-17  
**Duration:** 23m 49s  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zam1ziyEYm4

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## Analysis

RetroRalph announces his attendance at Chicago Pinball Expo 2023, previewing major attractions including new games from Barrels of Fun (Labyrinth), Jersey Jack Pinball (rumored Elton John announcement), Stern releases, and various panels. He recaps previous Expo experiences and emphasizes the event's significance as a gathering for the pinball and arcade community, noting this will be the 39th annual show with the 40th anniversary coming next year.

### Key Claims

- [MEDIUM] Jersey Jack Pinball will announce a game at Expo, with rumors suggesting it's an Elton John-themed machine — _RetroRalph mentions 'Jersey Jack Pinball is going to announce a game, and everyone's saying it's Elton John' but expresses personal skepticism about the theme's appeal_
- [MEDIUM] Stern has surprises planned for Pinball Expo beyond known releases like Stranger Things re-release and Elvira's House of Horrors Premium Edition — _RetroRalph states 'Stern said on some podcast, I can't remember which one I was listening to, that Stern's gonna have some surprises up their sleeve too'_
- [HIGH] Barrels of Fun is showcasing Labyrinth with a pizza party event on Friday at Expo — _Direct statement: 'on Friday, Barrels of Fun Pinball, they're having a pizza party. We're going to be able to play the game'_
- [HIGH] Pinball Brothers is showing an updated Aliens game with new art and new code — _RetroRalph states 'Pinball Brothers is showing off their Aliens, um, Ellen Ripley version with new art and new code'_
- [HIGH] Chicago Pinball Expo 2023 is the 39th annual show, with the 40th anniversary coming next year — _RetroRalph confirms: 'This thing's been going for 40 years. Well, 39 years. This is the 39th. But next year will be 40 years'_

### Notable Quotes

> "I fooled you again! Two years in a row!"
> — **RetroRalph**, Opening
> _Reference to recurring clickbait format in his Expo coverage videos_

> "I was introduced to it through Arcade Hollywood, one of my buddies who also has a YouTube channel... I fell in love with it. I was like, how do I not know about all of this crazy stuff that's been going on for decades?"
> — **RetroRalph**, Early segment
> _Describes his entry into the pinball community and the Expo's significance in that journey_

> "I don't want an Elton John themed pinball machine. I mean, sure, I'd try it out and play it, but I don't get that one, so that one's kind of weird."
> — **RetroRalph**, Mid-video
> _Expresses skepticism about rumored Jersey Jack Pinball Elton John theme and its market appeal_

> "There's too much, there's too much, there's too much to even talk about. I have not been this excited for a show in a really long time"
> — **RetroRalph**, Mid-video
> _Conveys enthusiasm for the 2023 Expo compared to previous years_

> "My favorite show of the year, and it's the thing I look forward to every single year."
> — **RetroRalph**, Closing segment
> _Reinforces the Expo's importance in his annual content calendar_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Chicago Pinball Expo | event | Annual major pinball industry convention and community gathering held in Chicago, serving as premiere announcement venue for new games and industry news |
| Barrels of Fun Pinball | company | Pinball manufacturer showcasing Labyrinth game at Expo 2023 with pizza party event |
| Jersey Jack Pinball | company | Pinball manufacturer planning game announcement at Expo 2023, rumored to be Elton John-themed |
| Stern Pinball | company | Major pinball manufacturer with factory tours, Elvira's House of Horrors Premium Edition, Stranger Things re-release, and planned surprises at Expo 2023 |
| Pinball Brothers | company | Pinball manufacturer showcasing updated Aliens/Ellen Ripley game with new art and code at Expo 2023 |
| RetroRalph | person | YouTube content creator and arcade/pinball enthusiast from East Coast, attending Expo for third time; hosts Q&A and panel discussions at event |
| Todd Tuckey | person | Content creator and pinball personality appearing on panel with RetroRalph, Arcade Hollywood, and Frank from TNT to discuss content creation and hobby evolution |
| Jack Danger | person | Stern Pinball designer featured in RetroRalph's Expo interview segment discussing career transition from pinball player to machine designer |
| Mark Ritchie | person | Legendary pinball designer participating in 'Making of Pulp Fiction' speaking session at Expo 2023 |
| George Petro | person | Industry figure participating in 'Making of Pulp Fiction' speaking session at Expo 2023 |
| Arcade Hollywood | person | YouTube content creator and buddy of RetroRalph who introduced him to pinball; attending Expo and participating in content creation panel |
| Frank from TNT | person | TNT Amusements personality participating in content creation panel at Expo 2023 |
| Brian Colin | person | Arcade industry icon planning to present 'History of Arcade Gaming' panel at Expo, known for stories about Hulk and Rampage movie involvement |
| Galloping Ghosts Arcade | organization | Chicago arcade venue that hosts Expo attendees for off-site gaming sessions during the convention |
| Reverse Arcade | organization | Chicago pinball/arcade venue visited during RetroRalph's Expo coverage and content creation |
| Token Taverns | organization | Entity associated with Bob Axl Rose Q&A segment at Expo 2023 featuring RetroRalph as host |
| Turner Pinball | company | Pinball manufacturer with game 'Two Ninja Eclipse' or similar title showcasing at Expo 2023 |
| Labyrinth | game | New pinball game by Barrels of Fun based on classic 1986 David Bowie film, prominently featured at Expo 2023 |
| Elvira's House of Horrors | game | Stern Pinball game receiving Premium Edition release at Expo 2023 |
| Stranger Things | game | Stern Pinball game being re-released, expected to be showcased at Expo 2023 |
| Aliens | game | Pinball Brothers game featuring Ellen Ripley artwork with new art and code updates shown at Expo 2023 |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Pinball Expo 2023 preview and announcements, New game releases from major manufacturers, Content creator panel discussions and interviews
- **Secondary:** Community engagement and Expo experience, Arcade and pinball industry landscape, RetroRalph's personal Expo journey and enthusiasm

### Sentiment

**Positive** (0.85) — RetroRalph expresses high enthusiasm and excitement about Expo 2023, calling it his favorite show of the year and expressing eagerness for attendees to participate. Only minor skepticism appears regarding the rumored Elton John theme announcement from Jersey Jack. Overall tone is energetic, welcoming, and community-focused.

### Signals

- **[event_signal]** Chicago Pinball Expo 2023 is positioned as major industry gathering with significant new announcements from multiple manufacturers including Barrels of Fun, Jersey Jack Pinball, Stern, and Pinball Brothers (confidence: high) — RetroRalph details multiple scheduled announcements, speaking sessions, and manufacturer showcases at Expo 2023
- **[announcement]** Pinball Brothers showing updated Aliens game featuring Ellen Ripley artwork with new art and code at Expo 2023 (confidence: high) — RetroRalph states: 'Pinball Brothers is showing off their Aliens, um, Ellen Ripley version with new art and new code'
- **[announcement]** Stern Pinball releasing Premium Edition of Elvira's House of Horrors and re-releasing Stranger Things at Expo 2023 (confidence: high) — RetroRalph mentions 'Stern's got the new version of Elvira's House of Horrors (Premium Edition)' and 'the re-release of Stranger Things'
- **[announcement]** Barrels of Fun Pinball officially announces Labyrinth game based on 1986 David Bowie film with Expo 2023 debut and pizza party event (confidence: high) — RetroRalph states: 'First of all, you have Barrels of Fun Pinball with Labyrinth' and 'on Friday, Barrels of Fun Pinball, they're having a pizza party. We're going to be able to play the game'
- **[rumor_hype]** Jersey Jack Pinball planning major game announcement at Expo 2023, widely rumored to be Elton John-themed based on community speculation (confidence: medium) — RetroRalph states: 'Jersey Jack Pinball is going to announce a game, and everyone's saying it's Elton John' but indicates this is community speculation rather than confirmed
- **[sentiment_shift]** RetroRalph indicates elevated enthusiasm for Expo 2023 compared to previous years, describing unprecedented excitement level for the event (confidence: high) — RetroRalph states: 'I have not been this excited for a show in a really long time' and 'My favorite show of the year'

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## Transcript

 Hey guys, welcome back! Okay, I'm done. That's it. I'm finished. I'm leaving. I got you again! Two years in a row! Let me refresh your memory because I got you last year when I was going to Pinball Expo. I did the same video and you clicked on it then and you clicked on it now. So let me just give you a little bit of a trip down memory lane so you can see how you fell for it two years in a row. Hey guys, welcome back to the channel. It's true. I'm leaving. Fooled you. Okay, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. You fell for the oldest trick in the book, man. So anyways, Pinball Expo is where I'm going. I'm headed there in a couple days. And dude, This year's Pinball Expo is going to be freaking epic. So this will be my third time going. And it blew my mind the first time I went to Pinball Expo. Because honestly, if you rewind three years ago, I really wasn't much of a pinball fan. I was introduced to it through Arcade Hollywood, one of my buddies who also has a YouTube channel. Definitely go check him out. And he'll be at Pinball Expo as well. And I fell in love with it. I was like, how do I not know about all of this crazy stuff that's been going on for decades? well, forever, right? And yeah, it's just awesome. I was welcomed with open arms into the community and I met some really cool people along the way. But the reason why you need to go, if you're in the Chicagoland area, there is so much cool stuff going on. First of all, you have Barrels of Fun. Yeah, I think it's Barrels of Fun. Yeah, Barrels of Fun Pinball with Labyrinth. If you are my age, which I'm 44, then you definitely grew up with Labyrinth and David Bowie. And it's just an awesome movie. I used to watch it over and over again with my sister. So that game, I definitely want to check out. And on Friday, Barrels of Fun Pinball, they're having a pizza party. We're going to be able to play the game. They're going to have the game on the floor. So that's going to be really cool. There's the Stern Factory Tour on Thursday. I've done that before. That's also really cool. There's a bunch of awesome stuff. The making of Pulp Fiction. There's going to be a speaking session with Mark Ritchie, George Petro, and others. There's also an evening with Jersey Jack. So Jersey Jack is going to announce a game, and everyone's saying it's Elton John, and I don't know. Like, I don't know if I would want to play an Elton John game. Like, I don't know who, what the demographic is there for it, because it's not like I can't appreciate that Elton John is a good musical artist, but I don't want an Elton John themed pinball machine. I mean, sure, I'd try it out and play it, but I don't get that one, so that one's kind of weird. There's a bunch of other, like, notable things. Turner Pinball's gonna be there with their game called Two Ninja Eclipse or something like that. Pinball Brothers is showing off their Aliens, um, Ellen Ripley version with new art and new code. Stern's got the new version of Elvira's House of Horrors. I'm not sure exactly what's new on that, but, um, I don't know if it's just, like, a re-release or something, and then Stern said on some podcast, I can't remember which one I was listening to, that Stern's gonna have some surprises up their sleeve too. I would imagine with the re-release of Stranger Things, that's going to be there. There's so much crazy stuff happening at this Pinball Expo with special announcements and all sorts of stuff that you have to go. I have a Q&A session there with Bob Rose for Token Taverns, and then we're showcasing the movie. That's going to be on Saturday night at 7.15. I had to have notes because I can't remember all this stuff. There's so much stuff. Then I have a panel with myself, Todd Tuckey, Matt Frank from TNT, and my buddy Arcade Hollywood, so that's going to be a fun one. We're going to talk about content creation and kind of just how we view the hobby today and where it's going, both arcade and pinball. So I'm just telling you, like, there's too much, there's too much, there's too much to even talk about. I have not been this excited for a show in a really long time, so if you're in the Chicagoland area or you can get your ass there, This is gonna be one that you're not gonna want to miss it seems like right now the pinball universe is going absolutely insane And just so you know The show isn't just pinball. There's um, you know, they invite Galloping Ghosts there. So they bring some games there There's a bunch of stuff. There's consoles There's really everything and then just there's a bunch of quirky awesome stuff There's awesome panels that teach you how to repair your pinball machines Brian Colin's gonna be there I got to see this at Southern fried You have to go to this if you're an arcade fan. All right. He does this thing called the history It's like his history of arcade gaming and it's all in his involvement He's told us this awesome story about the rampage movie in the rock, which I'm sure he'll share again So you got to check him out too, and he's just an icon in the business So I'm telling you if you go you'll have a frickin blast I'll be there all the days one of the days we usually go off-site and hang out at Galloping Ghost for a little bit because why not? Why not? When in Rome, baby, we usually have Chicago pizza, even though, you know, I'm from the East Coast, so I appreciate Chicago pizza, but that ain't pizza, you know what I'm saying? That's more like pizza, it's like pie, it's like cake, it's pizza cake. It's not real pizza. I mean, it is, it's real pizza, just don't hate me for it, okay? It is what it is. I'm an East Coast guy, I like floppy, greasy pizza that flops off the plate with grease all over it. It's just, it's just what I like. But anyways, I don't usually do this, but this is a video within a video. I want to show you some of the shenanigans from last year. So if you happen to miss that video, this will give you a good recap of some of the shenanigans and nonsense you'll see at Pinball Expo 2023. We can go where we want to, the night is young and so am I We can dress real neat from a hasker of feet and surprise him with a victory cry We can act if we want to, if we don't nobody will We can act real rude and totally removed and I can act like an imbecile We can dance, we can dance, everything out of control We can dance, we can dance, we do it for a motive whole We can dance, we can dance, everybody look at our hands We can dance, we can dance, everybody's taking a chance It's safety dance, it's safety dance, it's safety dance We can dance if you want to We've got all your life in mind As long as we abuse You're never gonna lose it Everything will go to right We can dance if you want to We can leave your friends behind Cause your friends don't dance And they don't dance Well they're no friends of mine We can dance We can dance Everybody's taking a chance It's a safety dance It's safety dance It's safety dance It's safety dance It's safety dance It's safety dance It's safety dance All right, let's do this. All right, stream set for one minute. I think we should go. All right, are we in the right spot? All right. All right, let's see. We got 15 waiting. What time is it right now? You're live. What's up, Flippy? Let me put the camera around. We'll be right back. Thank you. Kind of nerd using a knife and a fork to cut pizza. All right, it's time to play the grid. How you doing, Nick? You doing okay? You're third place. Who's in first place? Fourth place. Who's in first place? Stringer must be in the zone. He's not talking much. Actually, Eric is in first place. You guys better come for him. How do I get a weapon? Come on, Stringer. Do it. Stringer's upset right now. Oh, Nick is not talking much, but it's because he's in front place! Thank you so much. Yeah, thanks, man. Thanks for supporting the channel. I appreciate that. I really love it. Thanks. I like $2 Super Chats, don't you? They add up. They add up. You know how to do it? You go to the bottom of your screen right there, and you click the button. You know what's sad to me now, though, is you get more $2 Super Chats now than I do. And you know my response to that? What? Is this. Another camera. Are you going to? I don't know. So many cameras. Okay. We need more cameras. Guys, this is Todd talking. We need more cameras. Ralph, are you unmuted? Yeah, I unmuted myself. So what I'm going to do, Todd, is you go 30 seconds. No idea. This is a great shot right here. Ralph, you can get it. How long do you want us to go? You guys interact, and Todd's going to introduce the time. Okay, cameras are rolling. Wait, hold on. One second. Now, yeah. I'll do that later. Guess what, pal? There's an awful lot of people in the car. Yeah, a lot of people. That's exciting, Todd. That's really it. You guys, I'm going to zoom out. Practice, Joe. And action. Perfect. Perfect. That's perfect. and then we'll go to the Stern area and I'll get a shot. Wait wait that the game Yeah Yeah Yeah Hi man Todd we introduce you a segment Ralph I want you to be the host for the Sturt segment right Or say, this is the Sturt area. This year we've got a fun game. And then tell them about what you're doing. Okay, great. Let me back it up here. Back it up. I'm tall. So I'm here at Pinball Expo with Jack Danger, and I'm really excited to have this moment with you because I feel like you've taken this amazing path and journey from like pinball player to you've designed pinball machines now. And you work for Stern. Like, how cool. Tell me just a little bit about like that has to be mind blowingly neat. This is one of the hardest jobs I've ever had. Guys, that was outstanding. I ain't seen nothing like him He did it this room all The depth of blanket Short place to meet him all Crazy flip of fingers Never seen him fall The depth of blanket Short place to meet him all you Yes, yes good friends good friends A troublemaker you gotta watch out for him. He's a good guy like this guy came up to me. He was a voice actor Does bob the builder? It's cool to meet you Over a year now because I I saw you That's a different channel. I'm watching you voice Baxter in Baxter's Life. Oh my goodness. That's crazy. The whole thing's crazy. I like the cast. I like Bebop and Fox. I'll get you a part of it. I didn't know. I legitimately, I actually legitimately didn't know that he voiced the Turtles, which is pretty freaking awesome. Todd Tuck, you told him that he would get more views if he was just for men black in that beard. What do you think? Should he do it? Not a chance. He said, honestly, my views would go up tenfold if I die in it. I would not do that. No, no, no, no. This is not going in the video. It does say it's going to take 48 minutes. Well, the ramp drive is going to take an hour. No worries, gentlemen. I got you. Well, that's good. Watch the text. Yeah, it's a drop. Man, I'm trying to play some music. Bondo, Bondo Man. I'm going to be a Bondo Man. Why are we not there yet? Because I took the wrong turn twice. And we almost got to an accident. Rob is a great driver. I just totally messed him up. Parking right here. I'm assuming this is the parking. Do you have a parallel park? We are at Prince Arcade in Chicago. and Ralph is here a Wreck-It Ralph fan or no, Retro Ralph Wreck-It Ralph, Retro Ralph it's the same it's right there Total Nuclear and Idleheader favorite game here's the deal I'm playing this for one game you want to practice Let's get ready to play pinball What happened? Oh Yes You win Oh, no, no. Matt Frank's disappointment. Matt Frank can't even take it anymore. Look at the score, Jerry. You need to choke on this ball. That's going so high ball. No! The reaction! What? What the hell? Look at that final score. He cheated! He cheated! You can't even top straight whenever I'm whispering in your ear, huh? When are we going to color his beard? I feel like I'm getting a tattoo or something. This stuff's permanent. Now we put it in the tray. We mix it and it changes the colors into pure dark black You did get black right John Youssi the problem with Ralph and his channel is that he becoming bold looking For him to appeal to the younger ladies and the players of today, they want to see a guy that does not have gray in and out and throughout. I don't think it's what's really impacting my viewership. You don't? What do you think? Come on. Clean the brush handle and repeat. You are a pro at this, right? Like, you promised me that this is something you used to do a lot of. I did because I was... Now we have to wait five minutes. Five minutes later. It's not permanent, right? If it wasn't great, would they sell it? I guess not. so todd's he is he has convinced me that this seems like a good idea and he does appear to know what he's doing you have a skin allergy warning that's why you have to wash your feet what i don't have a skin reaction imagine going out what you're going to do we're not going to follow you into the bathroom i don't know if that would be wise so we'll let you go in and wash okay i can i got this he's never had a man treatment before has he He's never been manscaped. No, no, no, no, Todd. Manscaped is something completely different. Shall we start with the chin? That's close to enough, Todd. I didn't get to the edible part, where it says it's poisonous and could kill instantly. Just imagine. It's called great. the gray's going baby it's filling in pretty good you're literally painting your hair have you ever applied it to another man never I gotta admit Todd you're very thorough because I feel like it's it feels thorough I don't know how this works. Isn't it impressive? He beat Glow in the dark. It's looking good. Holy s***! It's wicked dark! What? Okay, we're almost done. I don't want to tickle you. And now, five minutes later, let's rejoin Retro Ralph's face. oh my god what i look like i look like santa claus from the santa claus movies oh my god why does this say quirky It's so dark. It's not coming off. Why am I supposed to get locked up? It's not coming off. I haven't looked like this in forever. You look good. I don't know about that. You haven't looked like that since you had great YouTube numbers. Matt Frank. Matt Frank, look what Todd did to me. You should have left it low, man. I am forever indebted to Todd. This was amazing. And now you better get some more lady viewers. Yeah, and a pinball expo first. What the f***? Billy Mitchell? Whatever. All right, guys. Well, I hope you enjoyed that. That is it. It is over. I hope to see you at Pinball Expo. It is this week. You gotta make it there. Please come up, hang out. We'll talk about gaming. We'll talk about pinball. We'll play pinball. I love going to this show because this show always attracts super just hardcore pinheads, arcade guys and gals. It's just awesome. My favorite show of the year, and it's the thing I look forward to every single year. And I hope to be going next year, because next year is the 40th anniversary. This thing's been going for 40 years. Well, 39 years. This is the 39th. But next year will be 40 years. So anyways, that's freaking epic. But yeah, I hope to see you there. There's so... Look at this schedule. Look at this. There's so many things to do. I mean, anyway, guys, this is like the longest ending I've ever done. The longest outro. Please go. I'm so excited. I hope to see you there. and we will see you on the next one.

_(Acquisition: youtube_groq_whisper, Enrichment: v3)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 95778d16-b891-43c8-88e8-76c5425c2bc4*