Episode 776: "Scooby Foo Stream Thoughts"

Kaneda's Pinball Podcast (Patreon feed)·podcast_episode·17m 24s·analyzed·Mar 2, 2023

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.031

TL;DR

Kaneda withholds leaked Galactic Tank Force image; critiques Foo Fighters animations and callouts; warns of pricing crisis.

Summary

Kaneda discusses his ethical dilemma over releasing a leaked Galactic Tank Force playfield image from American Pinball, ultimately deciding to respect the company's launch plans and asking his Patreon community to vote against sharing it. He provides detailed impressions of the Foo Fighters stream, praising its animations but criticizing the lack of band member callouts, and expresses concern about escalating pinball prices ($13,000–$16,500 for LEs/CEs) pricing collectors out of the hobby and killing FOMO dynamics.

Key Claims

Galactic Tank Force will be officially revealed within a couple of weeks
high confidence · Kaneda states 'this game is going to be revealed to the world in just a couple weeks' and later mentions 'you get to see Galactic Tank Force at the end of March'
Foo Fighters Pinball stream featured the best animations Stern has ever produced
high confidence · Kaneda: 'these are the greatest animation Stern has ever done' and 'the animations were actually more impressive than the pinball'
Current Stern LE pricing ($13,000–$14,500) is unsustainable and pricing people out of the hobby
high confidence · Kaneda: 'I think $13,000 is too much for every single Stern LE moving forward' and 'they really are pricing a lot of people out of the hobby'
Foo Fighters LE did not actually sell out immediately despite claims
medium confidence · Kaneda: 'I don't believe the lies that Foo Fighters LE sold out already. It probably didn't. They're going to be available'
Toy Story Collectors Edition NIB units are being sold by distributors at $11,500, representing significant losses
high confidence · Kaneda: 'Toy Story Collectors editions, new in box, distributors are selling them for $11,500. Eleven five. That means people lost $3,500'
David Fix, Christopher Franchi, and Dennis Nordman at American Pinball are upset with Kaneda over image leaks
high confidence · Kaneda: 'I've been talking with David Fix and with Christopher Franchi and as you can imagine they are very upset with Kaneda'
Foo Fighters gameplay is comparable to 'Godzilla Lite' in terms of speed and ball flow
medium confidence · Kaneda: 'The game looks like Godzilla Lite...It reminds me of how fast Godzilla plays...It reminds me of how the ball goes in a lot of interesting directions'
Foo Fighters lacks sufficient callouts and band member voice work from Dave Grohl
high confidence · Kaneda: 'I just think the game needs more callouts' and 'I was sad to see that Dave Grohl did not do any callouts'

Notable Quotes

“The moment you share a picture of the playfield prior to a game getting launched, it is impossible to not feel like you are spoiling the hard work of everyone who slaved away on the project itself.”
Kaneda @ early — Explains Kaneda's reasoning for withholding the Galactic Tank Force leak despite having the image and other media outlets possessing it
“The best decision you can make in all of March is to wait and see all of these games before you buy anything. I mean it. I wouldn't even buy Foo Fighters yet.”
Kaneda @ mid — Direct advice to listeners to defer purchases pending full game reveals and to avoid FOMO-driven decisions
“I actually think this is the first pinball stream I've ever seen where the animations were actually more impressive than the pinball.”
Kaneda @ mid — Highest praise for Foo Fighters' visual design; highlights shift in Stern's animation approach
“I think $13,000 is too much for every single Stern LE moving forward. I just do. I just don't make enough money to write checks for 14.5 every time a new Stern LE comes out.”
Kaneda @ late — Candid acknowledgment of pricing crisis and personal financial limits; reflects broader industry pricing concerns
“There's no way they're gonna sell a thousand Godfather CEs at $15,000. There's absolutely no way. It's just impossible.”
Kaneda @ mid — Prediction that oversaturation and pricing will prevent sell-outs, contradicting traditional FOMO dynamics
“The main thing that makes you want to keep a pinball machine will always be the theme. A very second close to that will be gameplay.”
Kaneda @ late — Philosophy on what drives long-term pinball collecting and retention in a saturated market
“Foo Fighter Pinball is a better version of Scooby Doo than Scooby Doo Pinball even is.”
Kaneda @ mid — Compliment to Foo Fighters' thematic execution and comparison to classic licensed game

Entities

Kanedaperson American Pinballcompany Galactic Tank ForcegameFoo Fighters PinballgameJack Dangerperson David Fixperson Christopher Franchiperson

Signals

?
leak_detection: Galactic Tank Force playfield image leaked from internal American Pinball source (friend of Mukesh); image in circulation among pinball media outlets; Kaneda withheld release pending company authorization
high · Kaneda: 'What happened over at American Pinball' and 'And so why don't we let Dennis Nordman and Christopher Franchi and David Fix have their moment'; 'The way this photo happened, it was a friend of Mukesh's over at American Pinball'
?
announcement: Galactic Tank Force officially revealing end of March 2024; Godfather Pinball also revealing end of March; Foo Fighters streaming now with order banks open
high · Kaneda: 'this game is going to be revealed to the world in just a couple weeks' and 'you get to see Galactic Tank Force at the end of March'; 'You get to see Godfather'
?
product_strategy: Stern LE pricing elevated to $13,000–$14,500; Jersey Jack CE at $16,500; intentional market segmentation away from price-conscious buyers
high · Kaneda: 'I don't think anyone wants to be writing checks for $11,000, $12,000, $14,500, $13,000' and '$13,000 is too much for every single Stern LE moving forward'
$
market_signal: Toy Story LE NIB units selling at $11,500 via distributors (down from ~$15,000 retail); distributors offering cash deals to clear inventory; secondary market experiencing significant depreciation
high · Kaneda: 'Toy Story Collectors editions, new in box, distributors are selling them for $11,500...That means people lost $3,500' and 'distributors I'm hearing are taking cash deals, 11 five, just throw the thing in the back of the truck'
~

Topics

Galactic Tank Force leak and ethicsprimaryFoo Fighters stream impressions and design critiqueprimaryPinball pricing crisis and market oversaturationprimaryFOMO dynamics and collector behaviorsecondaryStern animation and narrative approachsecondaryGame design philosophy: theme vs. gameplaysecondaryKaneda Club membership and podcast economicsmentionedMarch 2024 game release schedule and reveal timelinesecondary

Sentiment

mixed(0.45)— Kaneda is deeply conflicted: enthusiastic and impressed by Foo Fighters' animations and design (positive), but frustrated and concerned about pricing, market saturation, and industry dynamics (negative). He expresses ethical discomfort over the leak situation and personal exhaustion with drama. His advice to wait and not rush purchases reflects pragmatic pessimism about market viability.

Transcript

groq_whisper · $0.052

And you call me up again just to break me like a promise So casually cruel in the name of being honest I said I said I said I said I said I said I said I said I said I Oh we got to see Foo Fighters gameplay, we're gonna talk about that and we're also gonna talk about in the name of being honest I said if you continue your Kaneda Club subscription, I will share with you March 1st The Galactic Tank Force image I have and I just want to give you guys the full candid background on this image What happened over at American Pinball and why you know I put up a poll on the Patreon page About whether or not I should release this image and I also want to give you the full context that I've been talking with David Fix and with Christopher Franchi and as you can imagine they are very upset with Kaneda I'm Ken Aida, because this is what Ken Aida does. He spoils the launch plans of pinball companies. Now look, what I normally do, and the reason why you listen to this show is I will normally just tell you what the themes are. But the moment you share a picture of the playfield prior to a game getting launched, It is impossible to not feel like you are spoiling the hard work of everyone who slaved away on the project itself. It's why I never shared the image of Guns N' Roses and it's also why I'm really conflicted here. I've shared blurry images of it. I gave you some images of the Trans Light. I gave you some images of the Tank Treads, which they are, by the way, Hey, they're mad at me saying that I showed the game in the worst possible light and that when people see these tank treads attached to the game it's gonna look really cool. And so look, this game is going to be revealed to the world in just a couple weeks. And so I really don't feel like spoiling their plans right now. I also don't want to go to TPF where people are hating me. I've been through enough drama in my personal life, so I'm hoping that the Kaneda army that is out there, that's a Patreon member, I'm hoping that most people vote to not share the image. And I'm also hoping if you voted to share the image, that you don't leave the Kaneda Club and try to indict me as a liar, because you were here before this photo landed in my email inbox. And even though I know other pinball media have the image, nobody has really released it. Nobody's leaked it out into the world. And so, so why don't we let Dennis Nordman and Christopher Franchi and David Fix have their moment and create their first impression the right way. And the way this photo happened, it was a friend of Mukesh's over at American Pinball, and he asked to take a photo of his kid playing the game. Laurie Census I'm your host, David David Van Es, and I'll see you next time on Foo Fighters. But also we not bad people And I don think any of us have bad hearts or want to hurt these companies And this would hurt their launch of the game And I think I done enough Again I think I given you enough People already hate me Do they need to hate me even more is the question that on your plate right now as you vote on my Patreon page But trust me I not going to stop telling you guys what the next themes are I not going to stop telling you guys what the rumors news and speculation is in the pinball hobby because I the only pinball podcaster that not trying to really sell you games or sponsored by people trying to sell you stuff. I'm just trying to give you all the information you need to make a good decision. And here's what I'm going to tell you right now, and I mean it. The best decision you can make in all of March is to wait and see all of these games before you buy anything. I mean it. I wouldn't even buy Foo Fighters yet. You get to see Godfather. You get to see Galactic Tank Force at the end of March. And I mean this. On April 1st, April Fool's Day, is when you should make up your mind on which game to order. And you have to be a fool to buy pinball machines at these prices. I can feel it already, right? Pinball FOMO now, like even Foo Fighters, as much as I love the game and I love what they did with the game, Pinball FOMO now, man, it's like gone in less than 24 hours simply because the prices are so high. I don't think anyone wants to be writing checks for $11,000, $12,000, $14,500, $13,000, whatever it is. I think pinball now is so expensive and I think that's just rubbing off on everybody. And as fun as these games are, everybody remembers when these games were just as loaded, they had just as cool artwork, they had just as many if not more mechanisms in the games, and we remember when these games cost $6,500 or $7,500 for an LE. And I think only newbies are looking at these games being like, yeah, where do I send my check for $14,500 for a Stern LE? Or where do I buy a Jersey Jack CE for $16,500 with taxes, right? Nobody's excited for this stuff at these prices and that's the thing you almost have to turn off the price tag if you really want your FOMO to last for more than 24 hours. And so I think that's the best advice I can give each and every one of you is I would wait to see every single company's offering, get to see the gameplay, and here's the greatest part, you're going to be able to jump on every single machine and still get any machine you want. You will be able to get a Foo Fighters LE in like three weeks. You will. You will be able to get a Godfather. You absolutely will be able to get that game. I mean there's no way they're gonna sell a thousand Godfather CEs at $15,000. There's absolutely no way. It's just impossible. It is absolutely impossible. Even if they unbox Godfather and there was freaking Pirates of the Caribbean Playfield in the game and they just reskinned it to Godfather, there's no way, there is no way they're gonna sell out of these machines. I mean, I am seeing now, Toy Story Collectors editions, new in box, distributors are selling them for $11,500. Eleven five. That means people lost $3,500, more than that because you paid tax. I mean, these distributors I'm hearing are taking cash deals, 11 five, just throw the thing in the back of the truck, forget about taxes, just pay me cash and get this thing out of here because we gotta make room for Godfather. There's a lot of exciting things happening in the month of March. None of us need to feel bad. I don't think any of us need to spoil the plans of these companies. We will see everything within three weeks. And I think everybody has enough patience to see these games the right way. Speaking of seeing games the right way, it was great that we got to see Foo Fighters yesterday. I watched about 20 minutes of the stream and I skipped to like the 30 minute mark because I read on Pinside that Raymond Davidson is so annoying when he talks about the rule set of the game that the only way you can really enjoy it is if you tune him out. And I just want to tell Stern this, stop having your coders and your rule set guys Spoil the stream of the game. We just want to get into the game for a half hour. We want to feel the vibe of the game. And so here's my early take on the game and seeing the gameplay and seeing the animations. First and foremost, I actually think this is the first pinball stream I've ever seen where the animations were actually more impressive than the pinball. And I don't mean the pinball wasn't impressive, but man, these are the greatest animation Stern has ever done. It like you watching a Saturday morning cartoon and I was so impressed by what on the screen and the amount of effort that went into the game and I think this is going to be what Stern does moving forward with these animators and illustrators because think about it if they do Jaws Pinball I think they might animate it like this because Stern is smart They don have to spend the money to get the actual clips or footage anymore if they do it this way But I also just think this 80s like Saturday morning cartoon vibe works so well with this game and wasn't it funny that they actually paid homage to The game is a vintage to Scooby Doo in the Area 51 sort of mode of the game. The Foo Fighter gang is going back and forth just like in a Scooby Doo cartoon series. It's like Foo Fighter Pinball is a better version of Scooby Doo than Scooby Doo Pinball even is. I mean it's just so weird to say that but I don't know. Like look at what's on this screen and I think everyone else's games. Like if you put Spooky Pinball's animations in their game versus this, it's embarrassing how much better the Stern game is. But the spooky machine is basically the same amount of money and there's more stuff in this Stern machine And there's just more talent over at Stern pinball and I think that's gonna be the big thing with galactic tank force is I don't think their coding and Their animations are gonna be anywhere near as good as this Foo Fighter game And so I think look that's what jumped out at me first and foremost was how awesome the animations were in the stream itself as Far as the gameplay goes the game looks great. I mean it looks really fast. It looks really fun There's great flow in the game. There's great combos. I'm not surprised. It was designed by a guy that plays nothing but pinball all day long. I'm just gonna say it like this. The game looks like Godzilla Lite and I mean it when I say it. It looks a little bit like Godzilla Lite. It reminds me of how fast Godzilla plays. It reminds me of how the ball goes in a lot of interesting directions. There's a lot of great combos. The game doesn't have any of the wow Wow! Mechanisms Godzilla has with the bridge and the building and the Mechagodzilla and like the Godzilla magnet that throws the ball. Like there's a lot more in Godzilla that I think creates a mechanical wow than is in Foo Fighters. But that being said, as Jack Danger's inaugural game, I think everyone is very impressed. I think he should do a victory lap and I think it's a great game. And the main question now is this for everybody. It's not that Foo Fighters Pinball isn't super fun, because it is. I do think the game needs more callouts. That's the other thing I was going to say, because the Zombietti artwork is absolutely incredible. I love the way the game looks. I love the way the game shoots. I love the animations. I just think the game needs more callouts. And I was sad to see that Dave Grohl did not do any callouts. There's no band members doing callouts in the machine itself. And Dave Grohl is a very animated person. So people who say like, well, band member call outs are always lame. His would not be lame. And I think this game really needs more call outs because as I was watching the stream, the one thing I didn't feel, I didn't feel like there was any call outs telling the player what to do. I didn't feel like there was any call outs like driving the narrative of the game. You know, it's like you've got Jack and the team over there telling you what's going on, but you should be telling the player what's going on with your call out. And because it's at .80 code, I hope they realize that and put a lot more callouts into the game that guide the player through this whole sort of alien invasion, you know, sort of thing happening. Because as of right now, it's like the storyboarding is there with the animations, the scenes are there, the modes are there, but you need someone emceeing this entire narrative through callouts that I think engages the player more. And I just didn't see that with the stream yet. All right, so we got Foo Fighters though, man, and the order banks are open. And now the big question becomes, do we, as a community, do we have what it takes in our checking accounts to support this hobby at these prices? With so many games coming out on top of each other, there's no way they're all gonna get the orders they think they're gonna get. And at this price point, I mean it when I say it, I think $13,000 is too much for every single Stern LE moving forward. I just do. I just don't make enough money to write checks for 14.5 every time a new Stern LE comes out that I want to get. And I don know about some of you but like they really are pricing a lot of people out of the hobby And I see people being like I just glad I secured a premium I mean that a weird state of pinball where people are now sort of proud to secure a premium which they are going to make for years and a premium is unlimited. And that's the hard part about buying a premium right away, because if you buy a brand new premium and now you're spending over $10,000, you know you're going to be able to get that All of these price increases is the market is now flooded with so many games, so many more L.E.s, so many more C.E.s, so many more premiums that once we get to this point of oversaturation, then you're going to see everybody, and I mean this, everybody is going to lose money on every single game they buy. And when that starts happening, it's going to become real clear. You're only going to buy stuff where you love the theme, where you don't want to get rid of it because of the theme. The main thing that makes you want to keep a pinball machine will always be the theme. A very second close to that will be gameplay. But man, like, you know, you could buy Iron Maiden and you could enjoy it for a few years, but if you don't love the theme, chances are you'll move on to the next if you like the theme more, right? If you like Godzilla more than Iron Maiden, why would you have both? Like you probably would get rid of your Iron Maiden and keep Godzilla bolted to the floor because you love the theme. Everybody, thank you so much for being a member of the Kaneda Club. Every month now, we are losing less people at the end of the month and we now have 562 club members, which is crazy. It's blowing my mind. I did have a goal to try to get to 600 by TPF, but trust me, it took everything in me I'm not going to spoil a company's plans to keep you here. You are not going to get a show this good anywhere else on the Pinball Podcasting Airwaves, so thank you for being a club member and the show is just going to keep getting better and this month is going to be bonkers as we talk about all these games coming out. Everybody have a great day, enjoy your lives and don't let pinball drama get you down and trust me, wait and see. Play all of these games, make sure it's the game you want and you will not be told the game is sold out. I don't believe the lies that Foo Fighters LE sold out already. It probably didn't. They're going to be available. Now look, do I think they're going to sell all of these games? I do. I do think all thousand will probably go by the end of the month, but the day one sell out days are over. And that's not a bad thing. I know that Jack Danger wants you to jump on his game, fall in love with it, and then buy it. And it's a good day in pinball now that all of us can do this. I know that when you see this game and the zombie yeti artwork and you stand over it at Texas Pinball Festival, then you're probably going to want one. And that's how it should be. We should stop buying these games because of four minute sizzle reel videos and distributors just like spamming Facebook with their first sale ads and then telling us, I've got one more left. Do you want one? I got one more left. All of that FOMO is gone and it's gone because these prices are way too high and the only bargain left in pinball is Kaneda's Pinball Podcast for $5 a month. Thank you for being a member. We'll talk to you soon. I've been closer in age, maybe it would've been fine. That baby wants to die, the idea you had of me, who was she? A never-needing ever-lovely jewel...