Mirco Playfields Announces Williams Tales of the Arabian Nights 2.0 Kits

Knapp Arcade·article·analyzed·Mar 14, 2022

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.018

TL;DR

Mirco announces TOTAN 2.0 kit amid quality concerns and market saturation debate

Summary

Mirco Playfields announced a Tales of the Arabian Nights 2.0 upgrade kit ("The Forgotten Tales") featuring new software and features, to be presented at Texas Pinball Festival with immediate availability for purchase. The announcement sparked community discussion about kit quality concerns and the emerging trend of multiple 2.0 kits for the same classic game, with the author expressing skepticism about Mirco's track record and the market sustainability of this approach.

Key Claims

Mirco manufactures playfields for Jersey Jack and the aftermarket
high confidence · Article states Mirco is 'the manufacturer of pinball playfields for Jersey Jack and the aftermarket'
TOTAN 2.0 kits will be available exclusively at Texas Pinball Festival and through Mirco's website, not through distributors
high confidence · Official statement: 'kits will be available for pick up or order at TPF and same time only on my website mircoplayfield.com. The kit will not be available through any distributors.'
Mirco has received negative publicity for quality issues with its playfields recently
high confidence · Article explicitly states 'Mirco has received quite a bit of negative publicity for quality issues with its playfields lately that the company has yet to address in public'
A code update called 'The Forgotten Tales' was started on Pinside three years ago
medium confidence · Reddit user Jakelshark noted 'three years ago someone started a threat on Pinside.com about a code update for TOTAL also called "The forgotten tales"' and the current product may commercialize that effort
Bally/Williams 2.0 kits have been well received by the public
high confidence · Article states 'For the most part, the Bally / Williams 2.0 kits have been very well received by the public'

Notable Quotes

“At Texas Pinball Festival we will present the brand new TOTAN 2.0 Kit "The forgotten Tales" with new Software and great features.”
Mirco (official statement) @ n/a — Official announcement of the product and its premiere venue
“The kit will not be available through any distributors.”
Mirco (official statement) @ n/a — Key distribution strategy: exclusive direct-to-consumer model
“I wish that Planetary Pinball was a little more discerning with who they allow to make 2.0 Kits. IMHO, they should only allow legit, proven companies like Chicago Gaming (Cactus Canyon) and Pedretti Gaming (FunHouse) make the 2.0s.”
Knapp Arcade (author) @ n/a — Criticism of Planetary Pinball's licensing approach and quality control standards
“The more I think about this, the more I think that having multiple 2.0 kits for the same classic Bally / Williams game would be a confusing mess and a big mistake.”
Knapp Arcade (author) @ n/a — Expresses concern about market fragmentation from multiple 2.0 kits for same game

Entities

Mirco PlayfieldscompanyTales of the Arabian Nights (TOTAN)gameTexas Pinball Festivalevent Planetary Pinballcompany Pedretti GamingcompanyChicago GamingcompanyDutch Pinballcompany Jersey Jack Pinballcompany

Signals

?
business_signal: Growing concern about market fragmentation from multiple 2.0 kits available for the same classic game, and sustainability of this model
medium · Author expresses: 'The more I think about this, the more I think that having multiple 2.0 kits for the same classic Bally / Williams game would be a confusing mess and a big mistake'
?
community_signal: Community engagement in tracking and identifying commercialization of homebrew code projects (The Forgotten Tales originated on Pinside three years prior)
medium · Jakelshark identified that code update 'The Forgotten Tales' was started on Pinside three years ago, suggesting Mirco is commercializing existing homebrew work
?
licensing_signal: Planetary Pinball's oversight of 2.0 kit manufacturers questioned; author suggests stricter quality control and selectivity needed
medium · Author states 'I wish that Planetary Pinball was a little more discerning with who they allow to make 2.0 Kits'
?
announcement: Mirco Playfields officially announced TOTAN 2.0 kit with new software and features, to debut at Texas Pinball Festival
high · Official statement from Mirco announcing 'brand new TOTAN 2.0 Kit "The forgotten Tales" with new Software and great features' with availability at TPF
?
product_concern: Mirco facing negative publicity for quality issues with playfields that remain unaddressed publicly
high · Article states 'Mirco has received quite a bit of negative publicity for quality issues with its playfields lately that the company has yet to address in public'

Topics

2.0 upgrade kits for classic Williams/Bally machinesprimaryMirco Playfields quality control and reputationprimaryLicensing and manufacturing partnerships (Planetary Pinball oversight)secondaryMarket fragmentation and standardization of classic game remakessecondaryCustom code projects and their commercializationsecondary

Sentiment

mixed(-0.3)— Announcement is newsworthy and the product itself represents innovation in the 2.0 kit category, but the author expresses significant skepticism and criticism regarding Mirco's track record with quality issues, the sustainability of multiple 2.0 kits for the same game, and questions about whether this represents a money grab. The tone is cautiously critical rather than enthusiastic.

Transcript

raw_text · $0.000

Wow this came completely out of left field. After teasing that a new product is coming for the past several days, the manufacturer of pinball playfields for Jersey Jack and the aftermarket, Mirco, minutes ago announced that they are going to manufacture and sell 2.0 upgrade kits for the super popular classic Williams pinball machine Tales of the Arabian Nights aka TOTAN. This kit continues the trend that was started by Dutch Pinball's Bride of Pinbot 2.0 kit and more recently Pedretti Gaming's FunHouse 2.0 kit. Here's the Mirco's official statement on the project: "At Texas Pinball Festival we will present the brand new TOTAN 2.0 Kit "The forgotten Tales" with new Software and great features. There will be two games in the game hall with our system installed to play. First kits will be available for pick up or order at TPF and same time only on my website mircoplayfield.com. The kit will not be available through any distributors. More details will be posted shortly before TPF. Regards, Mirco" If you're looking for Mirco's website, they misspelled the link to it in their initial post. The address is actually https://mircoplayfields.com/ . So far, there doesn't seem to be any mention of this product on the site. In the statement, they claim that kits will be available for purchase at the Texas Pinball Festival, likely in conjunction with Mirco's presentation at the event. Kits will also be available for order up on Mirco's site soon. For the most part, the Bally / Williams 2.0 kits have been very well received by the public. It will be very interesting to see what the reception will be like for the TOTAN 2.0 kits though given the fact that Mirco has received quite a bit of negative publicity for quality issues with its playfields lately that the company has yet to address in public. This news just broke. I will provide updates as more information starts to emerge, such as pictures and/or gameplay video. The more I think about this, the more I think that having multiple 2.0 kits for the same classic Bally / Williams game would be a confusing mess and a big mistake. Make one remake kit per game and make it right. Anything else seems like a money grab. I wish that Planetary Pinball was a little more discerning with who they allow to make 2.0 Kits. IMHO, they should only allow legit, proven companies like Chicago Gaming (Cactus Canyon) and Pedretti Gaming (FunHouse) make the 2.0s. An astute Reddit user named Jakelshark pointed out that three years ago someone started a threat on Pinside.com about a code update for TOTAL also called "The forgotten tales." This product may be the commercialization of that effort. Here is a recent YouTube video that shows this code in action: