# New Game Round-up

**Source:** Pinball News Website  
**Type:** article  
**Published:** 2011-06-01  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.pinballnews.com/news/newgameroundup.html

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## Analysis

Pinball News reports on new manufacturers entering the market as of June 2014. Skit-B announces their second game, Experts of Dangerous (featuring Mythbusters personalities), to be manufactured by Jersey Jack Pinball. Vonnie D Pinball launches a Kickstarter campaign for Pinball Gremlins, successfully funding $104,050. Dutch Pinball continues progress on The Big Lebowski with anticipated Q2 2015 release. The article highlights an emerging wave of boutique manufacturers attempting to establish production capacity.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Stern Pinball and Jersey Jack Pinball are the only companies making machines in any quantities at the moment — _Opening statement establishes market landscape as of June 2014_
- [HIGH] Skit-B's Predator game, first announced in June 2011, had completed manufacturing ('mission complete') four months prior but none of the 250 machines had shipped yet — _Direct reporting on production status and timeline_
- [HIGH] Skit-B contracted manufacturing of Experts of Dangerous to Jersey Jack Pinball to accelerate production — _Explicit business partnership detail reported_
- [HIGH] Barry Oursler has eighteen years of experience making pinballs for Williams — _Direct attribution in article about Vonnie D partnership_
- [HIGH] Vonnie D Pinball's Kickstarter campaign set a $100,000 target and raised $104,050 total — _Specific funding numbers reported_
- [HIGH] Dutch Pinball anticipated The Big Lebowski would be available in Q2 2015 — _Explicit timeline stated in article_

### Notable Quotes

> "Stern Pinball and Jersey Jack Pinball are the only companies actually making machines in any quantities at the moment"
> — **Pinball News (Editorial)**, Opening paragraph
> _Establishes market concentration and defines the competitive landscape of June 2014_

> "in an apparent bid to get the ball rolling faster once the design and coding is complete, Skit-B has contracted manufacturing of the game to Jersey Jack Pinball in Lakewood, New Jersey"
> — **Pinball News (Editorial)**, Skit-B section
> _Reveals manufacturing partnership strategy to accelerate production_

> "To help them bring the game to market they have teamed up with game designer Barry Oursler to lend his know-how and eighteen years of experience making pinballs for Williams"
> — **Pinball News (Editorial)**, Vonnie D section
> _Highlights industry veterans supporting new entrants and validates Vonnie D's credibility_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Stern Pinball | company | Market leader, only company with Stern and JJP making machines in quantity as of June 2014 |
| Jersey Jack Pinball | company | Market leader and contract manufacturer; contracted to build Skit-B's Experts of Dangerous |
| Skit-B | company | New manufacturer announcing second game after Predator delays; Predator announced June 2011, no shipments by June 2014 |
| Kevin Kulek | person | Skit-B founder/spokesperson; revealed Experts of Dangerous announcement |
| Vonnie D Pinball | company | New startup based in Colombia, Missouri; launched Kickstarter for Pinball Gremlins |
| Barry Oursler | person | Game designer with 18 years of Williams experience; partnered with Vonnie D Pinball |
| Dutch Pinball | company | European manufacturer; developing The Big Lebowski for Q2 2015 release |
| Predator | game | Skit-B's first game announced June 2011; 250 units with no shipments reported by June 2014 |
| Experts of Dangerous | game | Skit-B's second game featuring Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman; manufactured by Jersey Jack Pinball |
| Pinball Gremlins | game | Vonnie D Pinball's debut title; unlicensed game funded via Kickstarter at $104,050 |
| The Big Lebowski | game | Dutch Pinball's title in development; features custom mechanisms including mini-playfield and under-playfield bowling lane; Q2 2015 anticipated release |
| Adam Savage | person | Mythbusters personality; featured in Experts of Dangerous game concept |
| Jamie Hyneman | person | Mythbusters personality; featured in Experts of Dangerous game concept |
| Mythbusters | media_property | Discovery Channel show; Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman's venture Experts of Dangerous forms basis for Skit-B's game |
| Kickstarter | platform | Crowdfunding platform used by Vonnie D Pinball for Pinball Gremlins campaign |
| Pinball Expo | event | October event where Vonnie D pledged to bring Pinball Gremlins prototype |
| California Extreme | event | Show where Skit-B announced Experts of Dangerous |
| Williams | company | Historical pinball manufacturer; Barry Oursler worked there for 18 years |
| Brunswick | company | Licensed partnership for mini-bowling lane feature in The Big Lebowski |
| Pinball News | media | Independent pinball industry news outlet publishing this article |

### Topics

- **Primary:** New manufacturers entering market, Production delays and manufacturing challenges, Crowdfunding as market entry strategy, Game announcements and IP licensing
- **Secondary:** Manufacturing partnerships and outsourcing, Market consolidation around Stern and JJP, Custom playfield mechanisms and design innovation, Pricing strategies for boutique manufacturers

### Sentiment

**Positive** (0.72) — Article is optimistic about new entrants and market expansion, though it acknowledges challenges like Skit-B's delays and funding skepticism. Tone is neutral reporting with underlying enthusiasm for emerging manufacturers.

### Signals

- **[business_signal]** Vonnie D Pinball uses Kickstarter crowdfunding as primary capitalization strategy for new startup with no manufacturing track record; targets $100k with pricing range $6,500-$10,000 (confidence: high) — their choice of Kickstarter project as a means to fund the company and sell their games attracted a lot of attention. Setting an ambitious target for a start-up company with no track record of pinball manufacturing of $100,000, they were offering a range of machine variants from $6,500 for a standard up to gold accented model at $10,000.
- **[business_signal]** Market structure consolidation: only Stern and JJP producing in quantity; new entrants using external manufacturing partnerships to reduce capital barriers (confidence: high) — Stern Pinball and Jersey Jack Pinball are the only companies actually making machines in any quantities at the moment, but there are several others on the brink of producing their first game
- **[event_signal]** Vonnie D Pinball pledges to deliver Pinball Gremlins prototype to Pinball Expo October 2014 (confidence: high) — Regardless of whether the target would be reached or not, Vonnie D have pledged to bring a prototype Pinball Gremlins machine to Pinball Expo in October.
- **[licensing_signal]** Experts of Dangerous promotional video removed pending licensor approval for promotional strategy (confidence: high) — The title was announced in a video on YouTube which has since been taken offline pending a decision by the licence holders on how they are going to promote the game.
- **[announcement]** Dutch Pinball announces progress on The Big Lebowski with features including mini-playfield, under-playfield bowling lane, color display, and custom cabinet art (confidence: high) — Over in Europe, Dutch Pinball have been showing the progress they have been making with their The Big Lebowski pinball. Their latest videos reveal the cabinet, backbox and translite artwork, along with the size of their colour display
- **[announcement]** Skit-B announces Experts of Dangerous (Mythbusters-themed) as second game at California Extreme, manufactured by Jersey Jack Pinball (confidence: high) — Skit-B's Kevin Kulek revealed that their next title would be Experts of Dangerous, featuring Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman from the Discovery Channel's show Mythbusters. Skit-B has contracted manufacturing of the game to Jersey Jack Pinball in Lakewood, New Jersey.
- **[product_strategy]** Skit-B's Predator announced June 2011, claimed 'mission complete' 4 months before article (February 2014), but zero machines shipped as of June 2014 — three-year delay on 250-unit run (confidence: high) — Although a sample game has been shown at many pinball shows, and despite stating four months ago that it was 'mission complete', none of the 250 machines appears to have shipped yet.
- **[product_strategy]** Dutch Pinball targets Q2 2015 release for The Big Lebowski (confidence: high) — Pre-orders for The Big Lebowski are currently open, and the Dutch Pinball team anticipate it will be available in the second quarter of 2015.

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## Transcript

Date: 15th June, 2014

Stern Pinball and Jersey Jack Pinball are the only companies actually making machines in any quantities at the moment, but there are several others on the brink of producing their first game who have made recent announcements.

One of the earliest to show their hand at short-run pinball manufacturing was Skit-B with their Predator game, first announced in June 2011. Although a sample game has been shown at many pinball shows, and despite stating four months ago that it was "mission complete", none of the 250 machines appears to have shipped yet.

But that didn't stop Skit-B announcing their second game last weekend at the California Extreme show, and shortly after with a promotional video on YouTube.

Skit-B's Kevin Kulek revealed that their next title would be Experts of Dangerous, featuring Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman from the Discovery Channel's show Mythbusters.

Skit-B's second title, Experts of Dangerous

Experts of Dangerous translite

Although not an officially-branded Mythbusters game, Experts of Dangerous is the name given to the pair's offshoot venture, and the theme is bound to be heavily based on their on-screen exploits.

The title was announced in a video on YouTube which has since been taken offline pending a decision by the licence holders on how they are going to promote the game.

No pricing or predicted availability has been announced yet, but in an apparent bid to get the ball rolling faster once the design and coding is complete, Skit-B has contracted manufacturing of the game to Jersey Jack Pinball in Lakewood, New Jersey.

Meanwhile, a new pinball start-up based in Colombia, Missouri, Vonnie D Pinball, announced at the end of June their intention to build pinballs, starting with their unlicenced Pinball Gremlins title.

Vonnie D's Pinball Gremlins logo

The game design is mostly complete and the team released a simplified playfield layout which shows it is a three-flipper widebody game with some interesting features and shots.

Pinball Gremlins' widebody playfield layout

To help them bring the game to market they have teamed up with game designer Barry Oursler to lend his know-how and eighteen years of experience making pinballs for Williams.

A prototype Pinball Gremlins playfield being populated with inserts

As interesting as the game and the team is, their choice of Kickstarter project as a means to fund the company and sell their games attracted a lot of attention.

Setting an ambitious target for a start-up company with no track record of pinball manufacturing of $100,000, they were offering a range of machine variants from $6,500 for a standard up to gold accented model at $10,000.

After a slow start and doubts about whether the target could be reached, a number of purchases of the $10,000 gold edition and the $9,000 limited edition models during the last few days saw the total reach $104,050 when the fundraiser ended.

Regardless of whether the target would be reached or not, Vonnie D have pledged to bring a prototype Pinball Gremlins machine to Pinball Expo in October.

Over in Europe, Dutch Pinball have been showing the progress they have been making with their The Big Lebowski pinball.

The Big Lebowski translite image

Their latest videos reveal the cabinet, backbox and translite artwork, along with the size of their colour display to go with their earlier reveals of the playfield layout.

The colour display

Cabinet side art

Backbox side art

The playfield has a number of custom mechanisms, including an upper mini-playfield and an under-playfield bowling lane viewed through a clear window.

The mail playfield

The Brunswick-licensed mini bowling lane

Pre-orders for The Big Lebowski are currently open, and the Dutch Pinball team anticipate it will be available in the second quarter of 2015.

We'll keep you up-to-date with all the developments from Skit-B, Vonnie D, Dutch Pinball, and the other new pinball manufacturers right here at Pinball News.

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: ac78a546-01d0-42d7-9dcd-4566c2f5e6a2*