# Rick & Morty Pinball First Look & Unboxing

**Source:** Straight Down the Middle  
**Type:** video  
**Published:** 2020-06-18  
**Duration:** 18m 50s  
**Beat:** Pinball

**URL:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJ962-TLrB8

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## Analysis

Zach Sharpe unboxes a limited-edition Rick and Morty pinball machine by Spooky Pinball (750 units, sold out in 4 hours). The video showcases the unboxing process, highlights premium features like the pre-installed topper and metallic purple finish, and includes extended gameplay footage demonstrating rules, modes, and callouts from the show.

### Key Claims

- [HIGH] Only 750 Rick and Morty pinball machines were made and they sold out in four hours — _Zach Sharpe, opening statement of video_
- [HIGH] Spooky Pinball ships machines with metal bands around the pallet that must be cut, unlike some Stern machines which use a single band without shrink wrap — _Zach Sharpe, during unboxing process explanation_
- [HIGH] The Rick and Morty machine comes with a pre-installed topper that includes motor and lighting elements — _Zach Sharpe, during unboxing_
- [HIGH] The game requires four balls in the main game and one ball in a second trough for staging — _Zach Sharpe, ball installation instructions_
- [MEDIUM] Play-testing has already been conducted on the shipped unit, as evidenced by balls remaining in the trough — _Zach Sharpe, inspection commentary thanking Lucas_

### Notable Quotes

> "there's only 750 made. Not even all of them are made quite yet and they sold out in four hours"
> — **Zach Sharpe**, 0:55
> _Establishes scarcity and FOMO value of the machine_

> "this pinball game was made by a group of incredibly dedicated pinball crazy people. Your support of this company means more to us than words can say"
> — **Spooky Pinball (printed message in box)**, 2:45
> _Shows manufacturer's direct connection to community and gratitude messaging_

> "What's even better than a topper is one that comes free with the machine. Now, I've not seen this done before, but the topper is already installed for you"
> — **Zach Sharpe**, 5:20
> _Highlights a novel value proposition differentiating Spooky's Rick and Morty from competitor offerings_

> "I uh, I received five balls, but thank you Lucas, because believe it or not there were still balls in the trough so I know that they've been play testing this"
> — **Zach Sharpe**, 7:35
> _Evidence of quality control and play-testing before shipping_

### Entities

| Name | Type | Context |
|------|------|---------|
| Zach Sharpe | person | Host of Straight Down the Middle: a Pinball Show, conducts the unboxing and gameplay demonstration |
| Spooky Pinball | company | Manufacturer of the Rick and Morty pinball machine being unboxed |
| Rick and Morty Pinball | game | Limited edition Spooky Pinball machine with 750 units produced, sold out in 4 hours |
| Stern Pinball | company | Mentioned in comparison regarding shipping practices and pallet band configurations |
| Straight Down the Middle: a Pinball Show | organization | YouTube/streaming show hosted by Zach Sharpe featuring pinball unboxings and gameplay |
| Pin Stadium Lights | product | Aftermarket LED lighting system advertised in the video as customizable full-spectrum lighting |
| Lucas | person | QA/inspection person at Spooky Pinball who inspected and signed off on the unit before shipping |
| Shane Black | person | Credited for various quality touches on the machine (leg levelers, keychain design, polish) |
| Greg | person | Co-host or collaborator on Straight Down the Middle who has participated in previous unboxings |
| Flippin Out Pinball | organization | Twitch streaming channel (twitch.tv/flippin out pinball) for live gameplay of Rick and Morty |
| Comet Pinball | company | LED products vendor featured in advertisement |
| PinGraphics | company | Pinball enhancement vendor (power blades, blade skins) featured in advertisement |
| Pinball Plating | company | Metal plating/finishing service for pinball parts referenced in advertisement |

### Topics

- **Primary:** Limited edition scarcity and FOMO, Unboxing and setup process, Spooky Pinball manufacturing quality and differentiation, Rick and Morty IP implementation and theme, Premium features and value-adds (pre-installed topper, keychains, cheese balls, signed inspection)
- **Secondary:** Gameplay rules, modes, and callouts, Comparison of shipping and packaging practices across manufacturers
- **Mentioned:** Content creation format and show differentiation

### Sentiment

**Positive** (0.88) — Zach expresses consistent enthusiasm throughout the unboxing and gameplay. Frequent praise for Spooky's attention to detail, quality finishes (metallic purple paint), thoughtful packaging touches (keychain, cheese balls, thank-you note), and the pre-installed topper feature. No criticisms or complaints identified. Gaming experience portrayed as fun and engaging.

### Signals

- **[community_signal]** Spooky Pinball includes personalized thank-you message in packaging emphasizing connection to dedicated community and gratitude for support (confidence: high) — Printed message in box: 'this pinball game was made by a group of incredibly pinball crazy people. Your support of this company means more to us than words can say'
- **[market_signal]** Rick and Morty limited edition sold out in four hours with only 750 units produced, indicating strong demand and scarcity-driven value (confidence: high) — Direct statement: '750 pinball machines, so this is going to be a special one today' and 'they sold out in four hours'
- **[market_signal]** Spooky includes premium value-add items (Spooky keychains, cheese balls, signed inspection tag) designed to enhance unboxing experience and create social media/content moments (confidence: high) — Multiple premium packaging details highlighted: keychains, thank-you note, cheese balls gift, personalized Lucas inspection tag
- **[announcement]** Official unboxing and first look of Rick and Morty Pinball by Spooky, confirming it has shipped to at least one reviewer/influencer (confidence: high) — Zach unboxes and plays a production unit with signed inspection tag from Lucas
- **[product_strategy]** Spooky's Rick and Morty includes pre-installed topper with motor and lighting, a feature Zach notes as not previously seen in the industry (confidence: high) — Quote: 'What's even better than a topper is one that comes free with the machine. Now, I've not seen this done before, but the topper is already installed for you'
- **[product_concern]** Positive quality control signal: units being play-tested before shipping, evidence of dedicated QA process with signed inspection tags (confidence: high) — Balls remaining in trough after shipping indicates play-testing; Lucas inspection tag present; Shane Black credited for specific quality touches

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## Transcript

 The wait is over. A revolution in LED lighting for your pinball is finally here. Fully customizable, full spectrum lighting from PinStadium Lights. Order yours now at PennStadium.com. Let's kick this shit. TV from other dimensions has a somewhat looser feel to it. Yeah, it's got an almost improvisational tone. Welcome back to Straight Down the Middle of Pinball Show. I'm Zach and we are here for another pinball unboxing. This time it's going to be super special because this pinball machine, there's only 750 made. Not even all of them are made quite yet and they sold out in four hours. 750 pinball machines, so this is going to be a special one today. I was thinking to myself though, here at Straight Down the Middle of Pinball Show, we don't just do a pinball unboxing. we do something a little special. I've done speed runs. Hell, Greg and I have done Jurassic Park unboxings. We've even miniaturized ourselves on a racing track. We've done that. And then I thought, you know what? Remember that time I got really plastered drunk unboxing a Pirates of the Caribbean by drinking pirate rum? Remember that? That was a lot of fun. So how do we take that, and how do we bump it up a couple notches? Like 10 notches. and I thought to myself, there's only one true way in Rick and Morty fashion to do that. Hey, why do you have Future's self-titled album on vinyl? Look closer. Oh, s***, he signed it. Closer. He signed it in Molly and Percocet? I could spend all night down here. Percocet. Molly Percocet. Percocet. Percocet. Molly Percocet. Percocet. Percocet. Percocet. Percocet. I'm being summoned by Morty. Oh yeah, he's texting me. How are you responding? I tend not to, or maybe I'll send like a popular animated gif that could be interpreted in almost any way. Brilliant. Perkis. My little Perkis. Perkis. Perkis. My little Perkis. Perkis. Man scum. Man scum. Ha ha ha. What's the saying? Oaks work to live, dwarves live to work. What do you guys think? No, we're not going to do that. No. So Spooky does it a little bit different. On their pins, whenever they ship them, there are two metal bands that go right around the pallet. You cut those off and then your lid can just come right off. But inside, the pinball machine is also wrapped with some straps down to the pallet. So we're gonna have to get the top off all of the sides before we can get to the rest of the machine Let's do it. Oh Shit I'm pickle Rick That's really nice It says, this pinball game was made by a small group of incredibly dedicated pinball crazy people. Your support of this company means more to us than words can say. We hope you enjoy the game for years to come, and thank you for the faith. You son of a bitch. I'm in. Really cool. Alright, the next thing we're going to do is cut these bands off. Now it is important to know that the shrink wrap is what holds that head into place. You don't want to cut the shrink wrap or the head will fall. Now on other manufactured games like Stern, they will have one band on there, no shrink wrap. So when you're cutting that band, you are cutting loose that head. On this game, you will cut these, free it from the pallet, I can pull it off, and then And once we cut the shrink wrap, then it will be free. Let take a look at the legs and all the hardware We have the head bolt that keeps the head secured Power cord. I really like this setup as well. Leg levelers, all black. Nice touch. Really cool spooky keychains that's nice I do like that all right that looks nice it is a metallic purple paint you can get a little factory dust on it I like it look at that yep and that looks really nice Alright, the next part we're going to have to take our time because we need to expose these bolts so that we can place our front legs on. Once we get that done we can fold the game down, prop up the back and then put up the back two legs on there. So you do not want to scratch your cabinet. There's probably a better way to do this. This is the way I know. started and then start pulling with your hand I like the bolts that they use. The metallic purple is really stunning. I love to play. What's even better than a topper is one that comes free with the machine. Now, I've not seen this done before, but the topper is already installed for you. It does have a motor element and some lighting elements as well, but it's already installed, so that's really cool. Next thing we're going to do, I'm going to have to cut the shrink wrap off now that we're on all four legs, take off and discard all of the trash, and then I can lift that head up to see all of its glory. Show me what you got! Show me what you got! No, I'll show you what I got. Oh man, look at that. Wow! Get riggity riggity riggity rekt son! of my favorite parts of unboxing a pinball machine. Not rubbing it, but I do like to rub it a little bit. Yeah, that's right. Here we go. The reveal. Ta-da. Now these games have a latch in the back which will hold the head but there's also a bolt that goes behind there into the cabinet to secure it even more. Alright now they do have an adhesive to keep pads from rubbing the rails Look at it. Oh, we're so close to playing this thing. All I've got to do now is take the glass out. I see there's some shipping foam to hold that ship in place. I'm going to take that out, inspect all the pieces, make sure everything is tight. Then I'm going to lift the playfield up. I'm going to make sure that there's nothing that I need to detach down there. Inspect that, and then we'll turn it on, put the balls in, and press start. Now the game comes with five balls, and I did notice that the right side says install four balls in the main game, but right here it says install one ball in the second trough. That second trough is back in here, I believe. It stages the ball. So we're going to install one ball back there and then one four balls and the rest of it. Look at that Now this is really cool. I uh, I received five balls, but thank you. Let's see who inspected this Lucas, thank you lucas because believe it or not there were still Balls in the trough so I know that they've been play testing this so I really appreciate that Uh, and now I got another extra set of balls, but here's the even cooler part as if this wasn't enough of a treat. I got more treats. Cheese balls. You know what? Who doesn't like cheese balls? Thank you. There we go. Grass it, black nickel it, candy chrome it, powder coat it. The possibilities are endless at pinballplating.com. Your pinball machine deserves the best. At Comet Pinball, you'll find the best variety of LED products with the best quality LEDs. And most importantly, at the best price. Your collection is begging for an upgrade. Order yours now at cometpinball.com. Check out PinGraphics for the latest and greatest in pinball enhancements, power blades, blade skins, pin blades and even more. Visit PinGraphics.com now to see what's available for your pinball machine. Hey thanks again for watching everybody. Tune in to more Straight Down the Middle of Pinball Show videos so that you can see more gameplay of Rick and Morty Pinball by Spooky Pinball. You can also check out live streams of this actual game at twitch.tv slash flip in out pinball. That's flip the letter in out pinball. There we go. I got to turn the lights off. All right. Thank you Oxygen rich atmosphere Giant testicle monsters We'll be fine, let's party That's awesome I'm sorry Summer, your opinion means very little to me Come on Morty, shoot the ball into action! Launch this adventure already! Get off the sex robot, Morty. We've got s*** to do. You're wasting my time, you f***ing face! One f***ing more to you. Alright, good start. I'm just giving you seats. Look at me. We're charged up. It can jump to another dimension. Shoot for what's purple. Those are the important bits right now. God damn, Morty. Hey there, I'm Mr. Macy. Nice, we've got the juice to jump to dimensions Oh, I'm Mr. Meeseeks, look at me No! Shoot, now look, it's like a Where's Waldo page Oh, wee! Dang! I like that immortality feel! Ha ha ha! Ooh! I'm Mr. Meaty! Look at me! Hi there! I'm actually a little impressed on your four adventure feet here, Morty. Run Morty Run Morty We got one screw turn And two screw turns And Thanks for your money loser Yeah, bitch Yo Fuck shit My little perky shit Woo, woo, fuck shit My little perky shit Represent, yeah, gotta represent Chase a chick, never chase a bitch Mask on, fuck it, mask off Mask on, fuck it, mask off Perky shit, my little perky shit Chase a chick, never chase a bitch Outro Music

_(Acquisition: youtube_groq_whisper, Enrichment: v3)_

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*Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: f2292133-b744-4e9b-b382-d5eed3a2eef0*