# I Traded Cactus Canyon for...

**Source:** Cary Hardy  
**Type:** video  
**Published:** 2023-09-18  
**Duration:** 10m 13s  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-j9sLge5kbo

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## Analysis

Cary Hardy documents trading in his Cactus Canyon pinball machine for a Deadpool Pro from Fun Billiards and Game Room Superstore. He immediately upgrades the Deadpool with aftermarket modifications (Shaker Motor, Art Blades, Penn Stadium Neos, Red Ring kit, Pinball Monk fan) and reflects on Deadpool's journey from poorly-received launch due to incomplete code to becoming one of Stern's best games through subsequent code updates. He emphasizes the superior audio and callout quality he's now experiencing with home play versus previous limited location/show experiences.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Deadpool was poorly received at launch mainly due to incomplete code — _Cary Hardy directly states this as established community knowledge about Deadpool's launch reception_
- [HIGH] Through code improvements over time, Deadpool has risen to be one of Stern's best games — _Cary Hardy's assessment based on community sentiment shift and his own experience_
- [HIGH] The Deadpool at the family center location was broken (non-functional scoop) and staff were not fixing it — _Cary Hardy directly experienced this issue at his local arcade/family center_
- [HIGH] Deadpool's scoop malfunction significantly impacts game progression and playability — _Cary Hardy's direct experience: 'Try playing a Deadpool with the scoop not working. It's nowhere near as fun. You can't progress or anything.'_
- [HIGH] Zombie Yeti created the art package for Deadpool, which was their second game with Stern Pinball — _Cary Hardy attributes Deadpool's art to Zombie Yeti and contextualizes it as their second Stern project_

### Notable Quotes

> "Try playing a Deadpool with the scoop not working. Try it. It's nowhere near as fun. You can't progress or anything. It's just not it."
> — **Cary Hardy**, ~3:45
> _Directly explains impact of mechanical failure on gameplay experience and progression_

> "Deadpool is Stern's 2018 sleeper hit designed by the great George Gomez. The art package was Zombie Yeti's second game with Stern Pinball. The game was poorly received, mainly due to the code being incomplete. As time has passed and the code improved, this game has risen to be one of Stern's best games."
> — **Cary Hardy**, ~6:15
> _Comprehensive summary of Deadpool's market trajectory from poor launch reception to current status_

> "Honestly I have only played this game during shows or locations giving me poor experiences in regards to what the soundtrack and callouts are actually like. I knew I liked how it shot, but it isn't till now that I really understand the love behind the game."
> — **Cary Hardy**, ~6:45
> _Highlights how home ownership reveals qualities (audio, callouts) that location/show play obscured_

> "The audio package so far is superb, and callouts are hilarious."
> — **Cary Hardy**, ~7:00
> _Positive assessment of Deadpool's audio design quality after extended home play_

> "All of the good stuff that you guys make and produce, you've got this noisy little bitch right here in your power supplies...This is what I think about your little fan right here."
> — **Cary Hardy**, ~8:30
> _Criticism of Stern's stock power supply cooling fan as unnecessarily loud compared to alternatives_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Cary Hardy | person | Content creator and pinball enthusiast documenting his machine acquisition and modifications |
| George Gomez | person | Legendary Stern Pinball designer credited with designing Deadpool |
| Zombie Yeti | person | Stern Pinball artist who created the art package for Deadpool (their second Stern game) |
| Stern Pinball | company | Manufacturer of Deadpool Pro and other machines discussed |
| Fun Billiards and Game Room Superstore | company | Distributor/retailer where Cary Hardy completed the Cactus Canyon to Deadpool trade |
| Deadpool | game | 2018 Stern Pinball machine designed by George Gomez; subject of Cary Hardy's acquisition; initially poorly received due to incomplete code but improved significantly through updates |
| Cactus Canyon | game | Pinball machine that Cary Hardy traded for Deadpool Pro; determined to be lowest priority in his collection due to current code state |
| Pinball Monk | company | Manufacturer of aftermarket cooling fan upgrade for Stern pinball machines; alternative to stock power supply fan |
| Titan Pinball | company | Manufacturer of Red Ring kit mod for Deadpool |
| Penn Stadium Neos | product | LED lighting upgrade being installed on Deadpool Pro; includes UV option for disco multiball effect |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Machine acquisition and trading, Aftermarket modifications and upgrades, Deadpool's game evolution and reception arc, Code quality and its impact on gameplay experience
- **Secondary:** Location vs. home play experience differences, Stern manufacturing quality and design choices, Audio design and callouts in pinball machines

### Sentiment

**Positive** (0.78) — Cary Hardy expresses clear enthusiasm about acquiring Deadpool and discovering its qualities through home ownership. Positive about the game's evolution and audio. Tempered by criticisms of Stern's power supply fan quality and apparent playfield assembly quality control issue (car placement) observed at end of video.

### Signals

- **[sentiment_shift]** Location play vs. home ownership reveals significant differences in game appreciation; audio quality and callout humor discovered primarily through extended home play (confidence: high) — Cary Hardy: 'I have only played this game during shows or locations giving me poor experiences...it isn't till now that I really understand the love behind the game. The audio package so far is superb, and callouts are hilarious.'
- **[community_signal]** George Gomez confirmed as designer of Deadpool; Zombie Yeti confirmed as artist for Deadpool and this was their second game with Stern (confidence: high) — Direct attribution by Cary Hardy
- **[product_concern]** Stern stock power supply cooling fan is excessively loud and unnecessary; community solution via Pinball Monk fan exists as common upgrade across Stern machines (confidence: high) — Cary Hardy: 'All of the good stuff that you guys make and produce, you've got this noisy little bitch right here in your power supplies...Every one of my Stern pinball machines gets the pinball monk fan treatment'
- **[product_concern]** Manufacturing quality control issue observed with Deadpool Pro: playfield car element (Deadpool character) positioned incorrectly out of box, suggesting QC lapse (confidence: medium) — End of video: 'so out of the box you can see this car is supposed to be over here pointing at the insider connected and this car is supposed to be over here at the box turn where's the quality control'
- **[sentiment_shift]** Deadpool's community reputation significantly improved from poor launch reception (incomplete code) to current status as one of Stern's best games through code updates (confidence: high) — Cary Hardy: 'The game was poorly received, mainly due to the code being incomplete. As time has passed and the code improved, this game has risen to be one of Stern's best games.'
- **[licensing_signal]** Stern successfully licensed and implemented Deadpool Marvel IP for pinball game; art package created by Zombie Yeti (confidence: high) — Cary Hardy confirms: 'Deadpool is Stern's 2018 sleeper hit designed by the great George Gomez. The art package was Zombie Yeti's second game with Stern Pinball.'

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## Transcript

 I always find myself playing this game when I go to... In 1,000 feet, turn right onto Texas 12 Loop West. I don't even have GPS going! What are you doing? Where are you trying to take me? I don't know where my phone was trying to take me. Anyways. I've got... So... I don't even know what the hell I was talking about. Lost my train of thought. Cactus Canyon is in tow. I am loaded up and I'm headed that way to the distributor to get Deadpool. Let's do this. All right, guys, here we are. I am en route back home. I have got Deadpool Pro in tow. If you watched my Cactus Canyon review video, which released merely a couple of hours ago, then you are in the know on why I decided to trade in my Cactus Canyon for Deadpool. And in a nutshell, Cactus Canyon is a great game. I would love to hold on to it, but I've been wanting a Deadpool for a long time. And Cactus Canyon currently with its code is just not where I would like it to be. But I'm limited on room. A game has to go to bring in another game. So at this point in time, Cactus Canyon was the bottom rung of the ladder. So I've also got a couple of additions to this game that I will be immediately putting on the game. I've got the Shaker Motor. I've got the Art Blades. And so yeah, I'm going to be sprucing this game up right out of the box, essentially. And of course I've got PinStadiums that I will be putting on there as well. So it's going to be a well-lit game. Pretty excited about it. And partly the reason why I got this game is because I could no longer play it at the family center on the location because it was broken And they just not fixing the damn thing You try playing a Deadpool with the scoop not working Try it. It's nowhere near as fun. You can't progress or anything. It's just not it. So, I was the only one playing Cactus Canyon. I asked the kids if they would prefer to keep Cactus Canyon or get Deadpool. and they were excited about Deadpool. We'll see. I don't know. You're selling it? Oh! Yay! I didn't know it. From this point, I didn't even see the top. It looked like it was Captain's Canon. We'll see you next time. This game was obtained from Fun Billiards and Game Room Superstore. Special thanks to them for making this trade possible. I was literally in and out in 15 minutes and didn't have to lift a thing. They sell new and used machines. I will put a link in the video description for you to check out what all they have to offer. Deadpool is Stern's 2018 sleeper hit. designed by the great George Gomez. The art package was Zombie Yeti's second game with Stern Pinball. The game was poorly received, mainly due to the code being incomplete. As time has passed and the code improved, this game has risen to be one of Stern's best games. Honestly I have only played this game during shows or locations giving me poor experiences in regards to what the soundtrack and callouts are actually like I knew I liked how it shot, but it isn't till now that I really understand the love behind the game. The audio package so far is superb, and callouts are hilarious. I will be installing the Stern Arc Blades, Shaker Motor, Penn Stadium Neos, and a Red Ring kit from Titan Pinball. More mods to come, I'm sure. And there it is, guys. Deadpool is officially in the... Nope. Nope. Thank you. And of all the good stuff that you guys make and produce, you've got this noisy little bitch right here in your power supplies. All the great things that you create, but you leave this noisy cricket in here. This is what I think about your little fan right here. Fatality. Every one of my Stern pinball machines gets the pinball monk fan treatment I will put links in the video description on how to purchase your own as well as a link to my video on how to install it and this is how you test to make sure the pin monk fan is working because it so quiet you're not gonna know it's working see how I just go over it it just levitates. It is moving air quietly. I love it. And if your argument is you like this fan to be noisy that way you know it's working, that's ridiculous. You know how I know my machine is working? Whenever it's turned on. That's when I know it's working. If this thing for whatever reason fails, including the stern fan if it fails, it's got built-in parameters in place to shut down the machine if it reaches a certain temperature guys so whatever but it was your warranty no does it does it does it alright let's wrap this video up by showing you what the Penn Stadium Neos do to it I have the UV attached to the dazzler flasher and I believe it gives a really nice show especially during disco multiball Once again, a special thank you to Fun, Billiards, and More Superstore for the trade. And an even more special thank you to my Patreon supporters. With their help, I was able to buy the camera for which this video was filmed with. all right guys so let me know down below good trade bad trade what do you think and until next time peace out so out of the box you can see this car is supposed to be over here pointing at the insider connected and this car is supposed to be over here at the box turn where's the quality control what the

_(Acquisition: youtube_groq_whisper, Enrichment: v3)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: d418dcac-2bde-4cf7-aff4-f44898ac8b79*