# DPP #237 "Dungeons and Karls"

**Source:** Don's Pinball Podcast (regular feed)  
**Type:** podcast_episode  
**Published:** 2026-04-23  
**Duration:** 28m 49s  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/donspinballpodcast/episodes/DPP-237-Dungeons-and-Karls-e3iclbj

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## Analysis

Don discusses upcoming pinball releases including rumored Dungeon Crawler Carl (likely Barrels of Fun or Multimorphic), confirmed Transformers Gen1 from Stern and Sonic the Hedgehog from Jersey Jack Pinball, plus Turner Pinball's Yukon Yetis launching soon. He speculates on licensing strategy, code completion philosophy between manufacturers, and explores potential family-friendly licenses (Smurfs, Bluey, DuckTales) for Turner. He also discusses rumors of He-Man from Barrels of Fun and reflects on Christopher Franchi artwork.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Dungeon Crawler Carl pinball machine exists and is coming from either Barrels of Fun or Multimorphic P3, announced by the DCC author at a public panel — _Don heard this from Eric Kineticism; author mentioned it at meet-and-greet panel discussion_
- [HIGH] Carl from Barrels of Fun (Winchester Mystery House designer) was working on a homebrew game before being recruited to make Winchester Mystery House — _Don states this as established fact based on industry knowledge_
- [MEDIUM] Jersey Jack Games launches with code that is 85-90% complete, while Stern typically launches with minimal launch code requiring extended updates — _Don's observation based on historical release patterns of both manufacturers_
- [HIGH] Sonic the Hedgehog is based on the 16-bit game, not the movie, and is Steve Ritchie's fastest game ever — _Steve Ritchie on record at Pintastic; Don citing multiple sources_
- [MEDIUM] Turner Pinball's next game after Yukon Yetis will be a licensed game arriving approximately two years out — _Don reporting industry rumor/gossip about Turner's pipeline_
- [LOW] Barrels of Fun may have acquired the He-Man license, separate from American Pinball's failed attempt — _Don speculating based on Christopher Franchi artwork treatment by Barrels of Fun_
- [LOW] Yukon Yetis has sold approximately 350 units, representing Turner's biggest launch to date — _Don states 'I have no idea in confirmation of numbers' but estimates based on availability_
- [MEDIUM] Jersey Jack's Sonic CE will feature new cabinet lighting effects not seen before from JJP and cost $15,000 — _Don reporting industry speculation/rumor about CE specifications_

### Notable Quotes

> "This is definitely built for boutique, baby."
> — **Don**, ~3:30
> _Don's assessment that Dungeon Crawler Carl is a boutique manufacturer title, ruling out Stern and Jersey Jack_

> "I love these licenses, guys. What the heck, man? I want to get in on some of this."
> — **Don**, ~6:45
> _Expressing enthusiasm for Multimorphic's license acquisitions (Weird Al, Princess Bride, Portal)_

> "The only impetus, the only FOMO-driven panic to get one of these games at launch is just that, just to be an early adopter and have it and get to play it in your home early, right?"
> — **Don**, ~18:30
> _Don's philosophy on purchasing urgency for new releases; advising against launch-day panic buying_

> "Jersey Jack Games, I have seen when they launch, they launch the closest to code complete that you can see from the major manufacturers"
> — **Don**, ~19:45
> _Key differentiator between JJP and Stern manufacturing philosophy regarding code completion at launch_

> "If this helps you, then hooray. So what I'm going to do, how I'm going to navigate this, probably getting neither of them."
> — **Don**, ~17:00
> _Don's decision-making on Sonic vs Transformers purchase given competing releases_

> "You know, let's make an animated short somewhere. I'm sure there's an animation studio online that could be hired... Get some fun voice actors in there."
> — **Don**, ~24:00
> _Don's suggestion for Turner to invest in animated backstory content for Yukon Yetis original IP_

> "The world needs a Bluey pinball machine, man. I love me some Bluey. I would take that home with me."
> — **Don**, ~30:15
> _Don suggesting modern family-friendly IP strategy for Turner Pinball_

> "Turner's got his own flavor. He's trying to find where he fits into this whole market, right?"
> — **Don**, ~26:00
> _Don analyzing Turner's market positioning and niche strategy vs other manufacturers_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Don | person | Host of Don's Pinball Podcast, episode 237; passionate collector and enthusiast discussing upcoming releases and industry speculation |
| Dungeon Crawler Carl | game | LitRPG web serial by Matt Dinniman; pinball machine adaptation rumored from Barrels of Fun or Multimorphic P3; author announced at public panel |
| Matt Dinniman | person | Author of Dungeon Crawler Carl; announced pinball machine adaptation at meet-and-greet panel discussion |
| Barrels of Fun | company | Boutique pinball manufacturer; produced Labyrinth and Dune; rumored to be developing Dungeon Crawler Carl, G.I. Joe, The Neverending Story, and possibly He-Man |
| Multimorphic | company | Manufacturer of modular P3 pinball platform; produced Weird Al, Princess Bride, Portal; rumored as potential developer of Dungeon Crawler Carl |
| Stern Pinball | company | Major manufacturer; confirmed to be releasing Transformers Generation 1 (Elliot Eismin designer); launches with minimal launch code requiring extended updates per Don |
| Jersey Jack Pinball | company | Manufacturer known for large screens and high price points; confirmed to be releasing Sonic the Hedgehog CE at $15,000; launches with 85-90% code complete per Don |
| Turner Pinball | company | Boutique manufacturer; releasing Yukon Yetis; pursuing family-friendly market niche; rumored to have licensed game in development 2 years out |
| Transformers Generation 1 | game | Upcoming Stern Pinball release; designer Elliot Eismin; based on original 1980s cartoon; rumored to be mech-loaded return to form; expected summer 2024 release |
| Sonic the Hedgehog | game | Upcoming Jersey Jack Pinball CE release; designer Steve Ritchie; based on 16-bit game; rumored price $15,000; features new cabinet lighting effects; expected summer 2024 |
| Yukon Yetis | game | Turner Pinball release; biggest launch to date for Turner; estimated ~350 units sold; music by Chris Granner and Adam Gumbin; original IP |
| Steve Ritchie | person | Pinball designer; designing Sonic the Hedgehog for Jersey Jack; stated at Pintastic it's his fastest game ever |
| Elliot Eismin | person | Stern Pinball designer; designing Transformers Gen 1; prior work includes John Wick; considered on 'redemption tour' after John Wick reception |
| Eric Kineticism | person | Industry figure; first person Don heard about Dungeon Crawler Carl pinball machine announcement from |
| Christopher Franchi | person | Pinball artist; created artwork treatment for potential He-Man game; created 25th anniversary Lebowski artwork |
| David | person | Owner/operator of Barrels of Fun; Did not confirm Dungeon Crawler Carl to Don despite hints; recipient of Don's friendly trolling messages |
| Carl | person | Pinball designer at Barrels of Fun; designer of Winchester Mystery House; rumored to have been working on Dungeon Crawler Carl homebrew before being recruited by Barrels |
| Chris Granner | person | Music composer for Yukon Yetis alongside Adam Gumbin; experienced with Bally/Williams and video game soundtracks |
| Adam Gumbin | person | Music composer for Yukon Yetis alongside Chris Granner; experienced with Bally/Williams and video game soundtracks |
| David Fix | person | American Pinball representative; personally told Don that American Pinball didn't lose He-Man license, but details remained unclear |
| American Pinball | company | Boutique manufacturer; previously associated with He-Man project rumors during Galactic Tank Force era; apparently did not secure He-Man license |

### Signals

- **[rumor_hype]** Dungeon Crawler Carl pinball machine announced by IP author; multiple manufacturers speculated as developer (Barrels of Fun, Multimorphic, Spooky); no official confirmation from any manufacturer despite direct inquiry (confidence: high) — Don heard from Eric Kineticism; author announced at public panel; Don has attempted to confirm with Barrels and Multimorphic without response
- **[machine_intel]** Turner Pinball confirmed to have licensed game in development approximately 2 years from Yukon Yetis release; family-friendly positioning (confidence: medium) — Don states 'I'm hearing license' regarding Turner's follow-up; confirmed ~2 year development timeline
- **[announcement]** Stern Pinball confirming Transformers Generation 1 as summer cornerstone release; Elliot Eismin designer; based on original cartoon; expected May or June 2024 (confidence: high) — Stern company sources; anonymous internet rumors from inside Stern; reports describe 'mech loaded, return to form' gameplay
- **[announcement]** Jersey Jack Pinball confirming Sonic the Hedgehog as summer release; Steve Ritchie designer; based on 16-bit game not movie; CE at $15,000 with new cabinet lighting effects (confidence: high) — Steve Ritchie on record at Pintastic; reported new cabinet lighting effects from JJP; reported $15,000 CE price point; reported Spike 3 screen inclusion
- **[product_strategy]** Jersey Jack Games launches with 85-90% code complete with full rules and substantial gameplay; Stern typically launches with minimal launch code requiring extended update cycle (confidence: medium) — Don's historical observation of launch patterns; JJP ships with physical rulesets/placemats; cites Avatar and Harry Potter as examples of feature-complete launches
- **[product_launch]** Summer 2024 showing dual major release window: Transformers (Stern) and Sonic (JJP) launching simultaneously or near-simultaneously; Yukon Yetis (Turner) also launching in same window (confidence: high) — Don reports both Stern and JJP releases expected May/June 2024; Yetis production ramping at same time from San Antonio facility
- **[market_signal]** Collector market facing FOMO decision between Transformers and Sonic simultaneous releases; Don advises Sonic as better value due to JJP code completion and faster availability for early adopters (confidence: medium) — Don's detailed analysis of purchase strategy; reasoning based on code completion at launch; predicted Harry Potter CE quick fulfillment pattern
- **[design_philosophy]** Turner Pinball positioning as family-friendly, inoffensive manufacturer targeting youth pastor/YMCA/arcade corner market; nostalgia and 80s cartoon IP suggested as strategic fit (confidence: medium) — Don's market analysis of Turner's positioning; examples suggested: Smurfs, Bluey, Disney Afternoon shows (Gummie Bears, Rescue Rangers, TaleSpin, Darkwing Duck)
- **[rumor_hype]** He-Man pinball machine rumored in development; Barrels of Fun speculated as developer; Christopher Franchi artwork treatment commissioned by Barrels; separate from American Pinball's prior failed attempt (confidence: low) — Christopher Franchi art treatment exists showing Prince Adam and Skeletor; David Fix indicated American Pinball story is more complex than 'lost license'; Franchi art featured on Knapp Arcade Facebook
- **[content_signal]** Don's Pinball Podcast episode 237 covers comprehensive summer 2024 release forecast, manufacturer strategy analysis, and industry speculation on unannounced titles (confidence: high) — Title 'Dungeons and Karls'; episode explicitly covers DCC, Sonic, Transformers, Yukon Yetis, Turner strategy, He-Man rumors
- **[community_signal]** Strong collector interest in Dungeon Crawler Carl IP conversion and pinball machine crossover; fanbase discovery of IP through pinball announcement driving downstream media consumption (confidence: medium) — Don personally attracted to DCC through pinball announcement; began reading book series; encountered DCC-wearing fan at Disney's Hollywood Studios; describes community excitement around licensing
- **[product_concern]** Don advocates for Turner Pinball investing in animated content and backstory for Yukon Yetis original IP, noting lack of supporting narrative content compared to Ninja Clips comic book approach (confidence: medium) — Don suggests animated short, voice actors, and attract mode storytelling; compares unfavorably to Ninja Clips color comic book included with game; notes absence of character/story context

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## Transcript

Yes, indeed. I'm back. I can't wait to talk about some pinball. Let's do this thing, man. Number 237, Dawes Pinball Podcast this year. I want to talk a lot, a lot of stuff. I want to talk about dungeon crawling. I want to talk about Sonic. I want to talk about Chris Turner. I want to talk about Yukon Yetis. I want to talk about pizza. Let's go. Never have to wait too long to have some fun with some pinball, man. I want to flip something. I've been stuck up here in the northern reaches of this country of ours, and there's not a pinball machine in sight up here, man. I'm going crazy. I'm looking at the bananas sitting here on my table wanting to get some banana flipper action going on, Or like some Kong premium action going on or some something. At least I'm here with a good book. Like many others, I am sucked into the dungeon crawler. Carl, Epoch, Eposphere, whatever, crawling around the dungeons. I'm in the first book. I'm doing it old school style where like I actually read the thing. I know the audio books are amazing and I'll probably get to them eventually. But I want to slog through this because it's been a while since I read something. And of course, the whole reason that this even exists within our sphere of influence within pinball was because the author was doing a meet and greet panel discussion something and said, oh, by the way, in addition to like probably a million Funko Pops coming from this property, there's also going to be a pinball machine, which now this is known to happen from people that aren't quite, you know, in the hobby enough to know how secretive pinball companies try to keep all their news and everything. And so people get excited. They're like, yeah, I got this property. People are digging it. I'm coming out with the eighth book soon. We're doing a pinball machine. We're doing this and that. I'm collaborating with the hologram of Ozzy Osbourne, a Coachella. All this stuff is going on, which immediately lit fire. Eric Kineticism is the first person I heard this from. And I, like a lot of other people, was like, what the hell is a Dungeon Crawler Carl? I'm sucked in now. I love this fantasy world. And it turns out that it's actually pretty sizable. Case in point, I was over at Disney's Hollywood Studios down in Florida a couple weeks ago. I saw a lady wearing a Dungeon Crawler Carl shirt, and it was just three obscure logos, some underpants, the cat's tiara, and some kind of Yoshi dinosaur monster thing. And I was like, you know, she's standing behind me. I'm like, it's that Dungeon Crawler Carl shirt. She like lit up. She's like, yes, absolutely. And then we went talking Carl and all this stuff. Basically, it's a fantasy property, right? Role playing elements. You know, we've seen these stuff before. But like this is this is like a brand new license that's topical right now. And there's a pinball machine coming. So like my mind is going crazy trying to figure this out. And like who would do this? Right. Who would do this? Would Stern Pinball do a Dungeon Crawler Carl? Does Jersey Jack know what a dungeon crawler Carl is? I don't think so. It doesn't seem like the license that they would take on. This is definitely built for boutique, baby. And so, of course, I'm thinking, like, you know, would Spooky do something like this? Barrels of Fun would probably do something like this. They brought us Labyrinth. They brought us Dune. They're bringing us, I don't know, what's next? I've heard everything from Neverending Story to G.I. Joe to all kinds of other stuff, which we'll get into. But it seemed like this was coming from a Texas company. I don't think Turner would do it. I don't think Chicago Gaming Company would do this. I don't think it's a European company. I don't think it's whoever's making those Alice in Wonderland games. So I was like, okay, cool. This is cool. This has got to be barrels, right? I've been trolling David and stuff and sending him like – as I read chapters and things, I send him little messages. And he's not confirming nothing to me. But I'm like, dude, I know it's coming. I want to jump on this thing, man. Like 1,200 Dungeon Crawler Carl's with the horizon lighting and the Evergloss panels and stuff and a cool topper and, you know, a game that I can play in this cool universe that I'm getting into. Like, that'd be super duper cool. Plus, I heard Carl liked it, and he's working for Barrels of Fun now, too. And then something happened, and we're going to segue into the Multimorphic Minute here. Probably it's my number one favorite pinball company of all time. I love the P3 system and everything. It's just I can't lift one up and bring it into my house. I'm so distraught. So then I thought, oh, wait a minute. I left out a contender. P3 Multimorphic. This is the kind of thing that they would do to me. They get they get licenses that I secretly even not even secretly, just outwardly really like. Right. When they got Weird Al, that was the first time I heard about the P3 system. And I saw that was it Don't Panic Flip or somebody was doing the media reveal for it. And all you saw for the teaser was these folks walking into the room, seeing the game for the first time, you know, behind the camera, camera viewer couldn't see it. And you just saw their faces light up like dream theme. I can't believe you're doing it. And then they revealed it. And it was like Weird Al. And like in high school, before I got into the Insane Clown Posse, Weird Al Yankovic was my jam. He's been a lifelong partner of me. I wore out a VHS tape of UHF. And like, I love this dude and what he does, his mirth and merriment, his whimsy. I think the world needs it. And I think we continue to mind that well. And he's like a super cool guy, too. It's been fantastic. You know, so they they, of course, had that license. And then I'm starting to think, like, how do I get one? It's thirteen thousand dollars for one of the bells and whistles. Look at the accordion topper. I've got to get that. And then it just all kind of spiraled. I was new into Pinball at that point. And then we know what happened. They had a Princess Bride to follow up that. They had Portal to follow up that. It's like, I love these licenses, guys. What the heck, man? I want to get in on some of this. Final Resistance is super fun. Like, damn it, I want one. You know, and I've always been asking, like, I wish they would just make, you know, one standalone that's maybe a little bit cheaper, a little bit lighter. I could bring it in or whatever. I just haven't pulled the trigger, although I've been close several times. There's just been things in my way. And I'm thinking, damn it. It makes perfect sense that Multimorphic P3 is the ones that are doing Dungeon Crawler Carl. They go after licenses. They go after licenses that I end up really enjoying. So, dag nubbit. I was even looking at getting a Princess Bride and dropping it in my own homebrew cabinet just to make it into a traditional game but like with all their hardware and stuff. I never found a way to get it to work. They didn't answer my emails, whatever. And so like I've been kind of bummed because I wanted like a $11,600 Dungeon Crawler Carl, Horizon Lighting, Evergloss Panels, Thunder from Down Under, Theme Shooter Ride. Like I wanted all that. You know, in the P3, you know, you push the button, the ball kind of dribbles out the top of the tank there in the back. It's not as thrilling as plunging in and starting an adventure. And so, like, I've been kind of bummed because that totally made sense for me. But then I remembered. I remember the first time when I was hearing about DCC before I even really knew what it was This was supposedly like a homebrew game that Carl was working on Carl from Barrels of Fun the guy that did Winchester Mysteries House And supposedly this man was a magnificent creature was working on a homebrew game at the time that he started working with Barrels of Fun And then they were like, hey, listen, we got this license. Do you want to do it? And then he kind of dropped everything, made Winchester's Mystery House, sold out in two days. Phenomenal. We're all waiting for it. A hundred of them. They're out in the wild. We're still waiting for another 435 of them to birth themselves into creation. And then I was like, okay, maybe this is still going to happen and it's on his game. Now, the rumors have come out recently. You know, Canada's been dropping them left and right. A lot of confirmation of things that we've been hearing. Some new stuff too. Always fun to hear that. I love new rumors in pinball. I love playing pinball. I love the old tiny games. And then I also like the brand new stuff. Just like I like going to new rides and things, man. I like the new, new. I like the classic. Like, I like them all, man. But it's super fun to speculate when a game's not even released yet. It could be anything, you know? And so when he was revealing what he had heard, Barrels of Fun is coming out with next. I'm like, here it is, man. Give me that confirmation. Just mention the Dungeon Crawler, Carl. I'm coming from Barrels of Fun, and I'm good, man. And I'll be super happy. I'll set the money aside, take your time whenever it comes out. Boom. Day one. I'm in on it. I'm in. Let's do it. And that's not what I heard. I heard G.I. Joe, which has been kicked around for a while. I guess Brian Savage used to work or did something with like the G.I. Joe fan club back in the day. So, of course, he's probably got some ins and intimate knowledge of that license. And, hey, as an aside, 80s TV show, not video game, but like action figure launching vehicles that we had, you know, when they deregulated where children's television did not have to be educational anymore in the 1980s, like 1985 or whatever. And then all of a sudden we got the real Ghostbusters and we got He-Man and we got G.I. Joe and the Visionaries and Mask and all those things. The best ones. I would love to relive those. And it looks like it's happening, right? Because we heard the rumors from Stern Pinball. Elliot Elliot Eismin's coming up with Transformers. Going to talk about that. It's going to be Generation 1, like the original cartoon show. Yes, thank you very much, Daddy. I'll take that. G.I. Joe, I was absolutely into when I was like an 8 or 9-year-old. I had that giant aircraft carrier. I had the Chinook helicopter, though, that giant playset. I didn't have the huge, huge one, but it was super fun. I love the characters. I've always loved Destro, kind of an anti-hero kind of guy. Baroness, all the characters, Shipwrecks with a freaking parrot on his shoulder, man. I had Lyft Ticket's little action figure. He came with the Chinook copter. I'm digging it, man. I'm in it. Hasbro me up. I'm into Transformers, the original cartoon. I'm into G.I. Joe. And so Barrels apparently has that somewhere in the queue. I know we've been hearing about the never ending story. I'm kind of coming around to it. It's kind of like kind of a softer hit like Labyrinth, like they mention it and you're like, OK, but and then, well, OK, yeah, it's a lot of Muppets in there. There's Dave Bowie in there. It's 80s nostalgia. OK, like I'll warm up to it, you know, so maybe those two are coming. But is Carl's game somewhere in the mix there, man? Somewhere in there? Is there a Dungeon Caller Carl coming out from Barrels of Fun? I know they won't confirm it to me. And P3 Multimorphic won't return my email. So I'm stuck here in limbo, man. What is this pinball machine coming out? And then I start thinking, well, you know, just because this guy says pinball doesn't mean it's like pinball pinball, right? Because, you know, you've got Zen Studios making those virtual games and stuff. Maybe they're putting together, you know, a virtual one to come out. I know there's a Kickstarter right now for a tabletop RPG for Dungeon Crawler Carl. There's a card deck building game, whatever the hell those are. So like maybe it's just, you know, an online, you know, some kind of arcadey virtual game to play or something. And it's not even like an actual pinball machine. And all this is for nothing. I won't say it's for nothing. I did find out about this franchise. I'm reading a book for the first time in 20 years. And it's like a whole series and I'm super into it. It's fun. It gives me something to read on the plane. So that's kind of where I'm at. Has anybody heard anything like the wisp of a rumor of like some confirmation that this is like like a ball and flipper physical pinball machine? Please let me know, because right now I'm thinking like, you know, any day now, Multimorphic is going to drop the follow up to Portal. It's going to be Dungeon Crawler Carl. I'm going to have a deposit in there. I'm going to get this module in my house and I have no idea what I'm going to do with it. Right. So if you hear anything, please, God, let me know something. Let me know something. I'm going to keep reading this book series, though. It's super duper fun, man. I dig it. And I'm sure we're going to get a TV show at some point or a film or Netflix. I'll grab it. There'll be a breakfast cereal like this. Things got the potential to be huge. And I'm here for it, man. I love I want to play in the dungeon. I want to play in the dungeon. Guys, we're coming up to the end of spring. It's happening very quickly. And we know that there's another cornerstone release like nipping at the heels of the end of spring. Right. We're going to get a summer drop. I was thinking June, but now it's sounding like it may be May. We're going to get a new game from Stern Pinball, the follow-up to Pokemon, the second cornerstone of the year, right? Highly rumored to be Transformers. Elliot Elliot Eismin's return to form, his redemption tour from the lackluster reveal of John Wick. I do like John Wick. I had to grow to like it. The Ellie looked amazing, but I want something that just punches my teeth out as soon as I see it right off the bat, like Godzilla did the first time I played it. And reports are, as far as anonymous internet whisperings coming of news from the Stern company or people that are intimately aware of whatever, this thing's going to be mech loaded, return to form, what we want to see from Pinball. I love it. Okay. It's Transformers Generation 1 cartoons. I love it. It's got the Spike 3, the giant screen. Show those graphics. You don't have to make cell phone type animatics. You can use the stuff from the show. Put Megatron up there. Like, I dig it, man. I dig it. I'm super hype on this. At the same time, Sonic the Hedgehog, the blue hedgehog, right? The blue bomber? Is that Mega Man? That's coming out. Steve Ritchie's game. He's on record at Pintastic talking about it's the fastest game he's ever made. And bro has made a lot of fast games, right? The jump ramp on No Fear, the Raptor pin from Star Wars, like all that business, right? So if it's Sonic, it's got to be fast. There's got to be loops. There's got to be magnets, fast pathways, fast paced stuff. It's based on the 16-bit game, not the movie. So we're going to have that nostalgia, those member berries. You ever play Stage 1 from Sonic and the music kicks in, right, and the sound effects and grabbing rings and stuff? I love it, man. And supposedly the CE version of this game is going to have some cabinet lighting effects that we haven't seen before from Jersey Jack. Jack, it's going to have that huge screen. It's going to come with a topper. It's going to be $15,000. It's probably going to be unlimited. Like this is gonzo that we're going into. So how does a guy like me right that sitting on some Dungeon Crawler Carl money that I probably never end up using if this game doesn actually come out navigate these two releases And I know I not alone I know there other people that are looking at that one spot left in their lineup or you know they looking to sell their Elton John CE to go in on one of these But like, which one do you get? Is this going to be another, you know, run up the price of $24,000 Stern LE Transformers? Probably not. Okay, probably not. And, you know, so how am I going to navigate this, right? Am I going to somehow take out loans to get myself a new JJP top-of-the-line game that's amazing and the Transformers at the same time? No. For sure not. If this helps you, then hooray. So what I'm going to do, how I'm going to navigate this, probably getting neither of them. Probably getting neither of them. And this is why. Listen, if I was going to get one of these games, right? We're talking about thinking four-dimensionally here, right? You got the XYZ axis of these games. You also have that fourth axis of time, right? So the only impetus, the only FOMO-driven panic to get one of these games at launch is just that, just to be an early adopter and have it and get to play it in your home early, right? So likely, if you can afford a pinball machine, probably one at a time is plenty for anybody. So which one should you get? What's the smart buy right now? And I'm eyeing Sonic the Hedgehog as the game to buy if these two were to drop pretty simultaneously, which I think they're going to. And here's the reason. If you get in on a list or drop a deposit as soon as it's released, you're going to get your game pretty quickly. OK, as we've seen with Harry Potter CEs, if you were like ready to go day one, had it in with your distributor, were on a list, you could get one pretty quickly. And then the rest of them would just trickle out slowly over the next four months or so. So if you jump real quick, you can get it. Now, here's the other reason. The big reason. Jersey Jack Games, I have seen when they launch, they launch the closest to code complete that you can see from the major manufacturers, right? You know, code's not, of course, totally complete, but it's like 0.85, 0.9. Like there's a, there's pretty much a whole game in there. You know, there's some wizard modes to come, some bug fixes, but for the most part, it's not just a bare bones release. You know, they come with those placemats for your four-year-old to sit there so they don't get their chicken nuggets all over the dining room table that has like all the rules and everything. That ships with the game. Like the rules are done. The rules are in there. And a lot of that gameplay is in there as well. Avatar, man. I think if you just played the launch code of Avatar, most people would never even see anything that was added later anyway. Guys, there's so much in there. Harry Potter, come on, man. Every time you play that game, you're in a different movie, a different set, different things are going on, I'm playing different multiballs. Like there's a lot of code that comes hard baked in there. Meanwhile, this Stern game, for all I know, may end up being game of the year and Elliot Eismin gets the Elliot Eismin trophy. But it's not going to launch like that. It's going to launch with some launch code like we've seen with every other Stern release that's been out there. And if you run out to be the early adopter for this new Stern game, you're going to have the cool mechanisms. You're going to have the cool shots and layout. You're going to have a couple of multiballs and a few modes and everything. But then, you know, it may be a long slog and wait to get those code updates to make this game more complete. And if it's a game that's going to be made in perpetuity, there's really no reason to jump out there and grab one right away. So I would say if you need to buy one of these two things and you're interested in both of them, if you have to have it now, I think Sonic may be the way to go with it if you want it now. Now, later on down the road, these games are becoming more code complete. I think you could then pick one up, either one at any point. At some point, they're going to swing back around. They're going to be making more Harry Potters again and getting caught up with that. So there's no panic to get out there like you're going to miss out. I personally am going to try my hardest to hold back. Let these games come out. Let these games breathe. I want to play them. If you've got a media day, man, I'll show up. If it's at a show, I'll fly out and play it at a show. I'll head over to Interium and play them on location. And then as they come out, you know, I'll find somebody that has one. We'll go hang out. I'll bro down at your house. So I'm not just stuck at home, you know, playing a brand new game with no other friends that want to come over. So that's how I'm thinking of navigating the waters between the blue hedgehog and the transforming amazing things. I can't wait to see these games. I want to see the layouts. I want to hear the call outs. I want to see how the game plays. I want to watch the gameplay videos. I'm hyped for another release. And this is like a double release, man. This summer is going to be lit. But speaking of the summer, let's jump over to Turner Pinball who's going to be rolling out the Yukon Yetis. Clearly his most successful game, biggest launch to date, biggest run, even if it's only the 350 or so that have sold so far. I have no idea in confirmation of numbers. I know they're still available, so I know it's less than the 500. But this is like definitely more sales than Merlin's or Ninja Clips got probably combined. So there's some hype around this. And he heard the criticism, as it were, from Texas Pinball Festival. Like, yeah, but the music, right? And then he got Chris Granner and Adam Goober. What the heck did I write down here? I mean, I didn't want to mess up these guys' names. Adam Gumbin. Like, he's got a duo here that has done games before, like Bally Williams days stuff, video game stuff. I love that, man. The layout is fine. And the art looks fine to me. You know, the topper, I wish the acrylics were thicker. I wish they were molded. Maybe there's something I can do with that. But for the most part, this looks like a fun game to throw in the lineup. Now, if you can make it sing well and have great call outs, I think it'll be there. The one other thing, and this was actually something Monica was recommending. This is an original IP license, right? For the most part, there's no cartoon show or anything that's out there that can be brought in. You know, so you've got to do some heavy lifting here to make some magic on the screen. And there's all these fun little characters that look, these little townsfolk, right? These minor people, the gold painters, the Yukon Ytoruses. I don't know what they're going to call them. You know, but what's the backstory for this? When Ninja Clips came out, there was like a full color page comic book explaining like the backstory and everything. Where is that with Yeti? I would love it if Yeti had that. And rather than just have animated still images, you know, like a cell phone game or something, I'd like it if they'd invest in, You know, let's make an animated short somewhere. I'm sure there's an animation studio online that could be hired. Doesn't have to be Disney quality, but, you know, get some fun voice actors in there. Get some animations and like play a little cartoon. Maybe when you're in attract mode, it's like playing the backstory of like, who are these characters? Who is the Yeti? Is he a benevolent snow beast? Is he like, you know, the Passover killer of firstborn children? Like, what are we talking about here? I know you got a snow monster here. Give me some backstory. So my hope is that when this game gets shipping and when they doing code updates not only we having good music good callouts great voices but also like a cast and some animations on the screen I would love to see that for Yeti I all in on Yeti I can wait for it And it sounds like at the same time that we battling between Sonic and Transformers the Yeti should start marching out of San Antonio So I think that's super fun. I'm hoping I do get an invite down there. I want to go check out the production when it kicks off. I think that would be super fun. Who wants to go down with me? We'll go to SeaWorld. We'll go to Six Flags Fiesta, Texas. We'll go to Riverwalk. We'll get some Mexican food. It's going to be amazing. What else are we talking about? Man, I Yukon'd my Yeti. Oh, yeah, I was going to talk more about Turner. I was going to talk more about Turner because even though the Yeti has just foisted its blue paws upon us, right, there's already talk about what Turner's follow-up is going to be. Listen, it's going to be two years away is what it's going to be, but I'm hearing license. So, heck, that's awesome, man. License game from Turner. I want to see what he does with it. Now, Turner's got his own flavor. He's trying to find where he fits into this whole market, right? Jersey Jack has the big screens. Spooky Pinball is taking you on amazing adventures. Barrels of Fun has given you thunder from down under. Stern Pinball is cranking out as many machines as humanly possible. Chicago Gaming Company supposedly is somewhere, supposedly making something. Halo, okay, supposed to be out there somewhere. But where does Turner fit? And he's finding this nice little niche in the very family-friendly, unoffensive to anybody, A little slover of the market, right? You know, the youth pastor market, the YMCA market, you know, people that want something cool in the corner of their arcade. You know, for the folks that can't bring home an Elvira house of horrors for cleavage reasons, here you go. Here you go. And so I'm trying to think of what family-friendly licenses this guy could pick up that it would genuinely be very excited about. And I think this guy's got to do a couple of things. I think you got to look at what's selling, which is nostalgia. Like, look, Whitewater came out and well-respected within the pinball diaspora. And then you bring out Whitewater 2, boom, like I'm in. I like I already have a connection with that game. I've never even seen it. So, yeah, of course. So nostalgia is going to sell. So he wants to be family friendly. He wants nostalgia. I think 80s cartoon TV shows are the way to go, baby. So what about what about Smurfs? Right. I know. Don, turn in your man card. What are you talking about, some Smurfs? I'm talking about some Azriel. I'm talking about some Gargamel. I'm talking about saving Johan and Sebastian. I'm talking about running around and getting Smurfette through the maze and hitting the modes and stuff. All with that music that I recognize, with the fun backgrounds and the characters. I think that would be super fun. It fits the criteria of being unoffensive to anybody, and it's fun, right? It's fun. And Smurfs was so popular. It's Belgian in origin, all over the world. And it was so popular to spawn Snorks, right? I don't know if Snorks is the license that I would necessarily go with, but come on, man. I would go and play some Smurfs, man. I think Smurfs would be fun. I don't know that that's like if I was trying to be as financially successful as the companies I could be that I would necessarily pick that one, but like something along those lines. You want to go modern but stick with cartoon shows? The world needs a Bluey pinball machine, man. I love me some Bluey. I would take that home with me. So, you know, these are the kind of like this is where I'm thinking would work with him, you know, some Bluey. I would like some Disney gummy bears. I love that damn show when I was a kid. Like I would go on some gummy berry adventures. I would love like a whole Disney afternoon. You know, throw some rescue rangers in there, man. Let's go nuts. Throw some tailspin in there and let's make it happen. And I think that's probably a bridge too far. I don't know if Disney's looking to license that kind of stuff. But man, tell me some Darkwing Duck wouldn't slap. Honestly, honestly, Megavolt. Come on. DuckTales. Ah, dude, if you did DuckTales, the NES game, man, homebrewers, somebody get on it, man. That would be awesome. Speaking of homebrew, we'll end with this. There was the rumor that He-Man was coming around again. We had heard we were promised back in the Galactic Tank Force days that like He-Man was going to be the next thing from American Pinball. And then we heard like, you know, they did something and bungled the license or maybe they didn't have it. And then David Fix personally told me himself that like people don't know the real story of what's going on, man. We didn't lose anything. And who knows, man, who knows? I know this. I don't think that Barrels of Fun stole the license or negotiated the license from American Pinball, Because if you want to get a license that another company has, you go to the license holder and you make a deal. It has nothing to do with that third-party company. So apparently Barrels may have this He-Man game. And then, of course, Christopher Franchi did this whole treatment of art. Not a great financial decision for a game that you aren't going to make, but whatever. But he got paid. And the art looks phenomenal, man. Prince Adam on the side and the Franchi style. Dude, I love it. Skeletor on the other side, man. You've seen that mock-up. Knapp has it right now on Knapp Arcade. It's on his Facebook page. It's on his main page. Go check it out if you haven't seen the Christopher Franchi art for He-Man. Speaking of Christopher Franchi art that hasn't shown up on a game yet, the 25th anniversary version of Lebowski already did. Looks absolutely phenomenal, man. I tried to get him to send it to me just so I could print it out and have a banner or like, you know, Photoshop my own face on the dude just chilling back there in his robe with his white Russian in his hand. The back of the limo, man, looked fan-freaking-tastic. So here's what I'm thinking. Somebody do He-Man. But if He-Man comes out, as cool as it could be, you know, with Evergloss decals on it, if it is barrels of fun, I'm sure it'll be mech heavy and, you know, a worm or a snake or something damn thing somewhere. Because, you know, snakes and worms seem to be the trend in pinball now. It's not going to have that Christopher Franchi art. He's out on record. He came out right away and said, listen, nobody else has this. I own this now. Forget it. So it's not going to have that. So I'm thinking like for my own homebrew project, why don't I pivot to Masters of the Universe, make my own Masters of the Universe game, and then see if I can make that art that he did, like live to see the light of day on some kind of machine. I think that'd be super fun to do. Let me know what you think. Homebrew is such an amazing thing, man. I'm having so much fun in Pinball. I can't wait to see what happens over the next couple of weeks. I know there's got to be Pokemon code dropping. I know there's going to be a Pokemon topper home version of Pokemon dropping too. And it's just going to keep going, man. Which way to go next? Keep your eyes on the prize, and I'm going to be watching that damn horizon. Oh, we did another podcast. That was fun, man. That was fun. Hey, donspinballpodcast at gmail.com. If you want to email me, support on Patreon at patreon.com backslash donspinballpodcast and get in on some sweet giveaways that are happening this damn month. Finally, we're going to make it happen. I sold one of my houses. A little giant weight is off the shoulders. I'm finishing up this job. Everything's going to be amazing. Be cool to yourself. Email info at madpinball.com. Get yourself a game. And let's hang out. Be cool. Have fun at MGC this weekend, everybody. And we'll talk. Peace out.

_(Acquisition: groq_whisper, Enrichment: v5)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-06-06 | Item ID: c5ca533e-e3c0-425c-8c4a-2d1287593133*