Episode 985: "How I Would Handle Stern's LE Problem"

Kaneda's Pinball Podcast (Patreon feed)·podcast_episode·17m 30s·held·Aug 15, 2024

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.032

TL;DR

Stern's Aug Marvel game + Metallica Remastered confirmed; Kaneda proposes split LE strategy.

Summary

Kaneda discusses an upcoming Marvel-themed pinball game from Stern coming in August (hinting it's a previously-made Marvel IP, likely with Jack Danger design and Zombie Yeti artwork), followed by confirmation of Metallica Remastered on Spike 3 launching before Expo in September/October. He critiques Stern's Limited Edition strategy and proposes splitting LE art packages to create perceived exclusivity, while also speculating on upcoming releases from Jersey Jack (likely Matrix over Margaritaville), Spooky, and Chicago Gaming Company (Medieval Medieval Madness (Remake), Twilight Zone, and Gremlins in development).

Key Claims

A Marvel-themed pinball game is launching in August; Stern has already made this game (so it's a previously-done Marvel IP, not a new one)
high confidence · Kaneda speaking directly, near beginning of episode; he positions himself as insider with advance knowledge
The August Marvel game will feature Jack Danger design and Zombie Yeti (Jeremy Packer) artwork
high confidence · Kaneda's direct statement with strong conviction; reflects pattern from recent Stern Marvel releases
Metallica Remastered is the next Stern game, launching on Spike 3 in late September or October, before Expo, with same playfield layout but new art, lighting, and speakers
high confidence · Kaneda explicitly states 'I'm here to confirm for you 100%' and calls it a birthday gift revelation; positions as insider knowledge
Metallica Remastered will likely only come in Premium format (not Pro/LE split)
medium confidence · Kaneda's speculation: 'probably just premium. I think they're just gonna call it one thing'
Jersey Jack Pinball next game has ~90% chance of being Matrix, not Margaritaville
medium confidence · Kaneda's opinion based on designer philosophy; cites Lawrence Fishburne likeness issue as Matrix blocker
Chicago Gaming Company is developing Medieval Medieval Madness (Remake) (500 units), Twilight Zone, and Mark Ritchie
high confidence · Kaneda states 'That is 100% confirmed' and presents as insider knowledge of CGC pipeline
Stern's current LE pricing strategy (~$13,000) alienates longtime collectors while appealing only to newcomers, threatening long-term business sustainability
medium confidence · Kaneda's opinion/analysis of market dynamics; frames as concern for industry health
Metallica was originally $5,500 (LE ~$6,500) twelve years ago; current LE prices are at least double that and nearly triple with topper
medium confidence · Kaneda's recollection of historical pricing; used to contrast value proposition

Notable Quotes

“Stern has already made this game. So if you are wondering what it's going to be, it's not going to be some Marvel theme we have not seen before.”
Kaneda @ ~3:20 — Direct hint that August Marvel game is a revisit of previously-released Marvel IP, not entirely new theme
“I think 100% you're going to see Jeremy Packer (Zombie Yeti)'s Zombietti on the art package on this game... I still think Deadpool is the nicest pinball machine he's ever done.”
Kaneda @ ~4:10 — Prediction of design team and praise for artist's work quality; positions Deadpool as benchmark
“They found a way to make money that makes everybody unhappy except for the newbies. And that is not how you're going to future proof the business.”
Kaneda @ ~8:40 — Core criticism of Stern's LE strategy impact on longtime customer base; frames as business sustainability issue
“It's going to be called Metallica Remastered... I kind of like that titling. I like that marketing and that branding from Stern Pinball because now it opens the door for a whole line of the old stuff. Remastered.”
Kaneda @ ~11:20 — Confirms Metallica Remastered name and approves of branding strategy; suggests precedent for future remasters
“This game is coming out sooner than you think. This Metallica game is coming out sometime in end of September, October. It's going to be out before Expo.”
Kaneda @ ~12:40 — Specific timeline for Metallica Remastered launch; creates purchasing timing pressure vs. August Marvel release
“Now, I still think there's a 90% chance it's going to be Matrix. And there's people out there that are like, Kaneda's an idiot. He said it was going to be a banger and it's Margaritaville.”
Kaneda @ ~14:30 — Quantified prediction on Jersey Jack's next title with acknowledgment of alternative outcome
“If J.J.P. does the Matrix and does it right, I have to own that machine. It's going to happen.”
Kaneda @ ~16:50 — Personal investment thesis; positions Matrix as dream game title

Entities

Kanedaperson Jack Dangerperson Jeremy Packerperson George Gomezperson John Borgperson Jack GuarnieripersonLawrence Fishburneperson

Signals

?
announcement: Metallica Remastered officially named and confirmed as next Stern release on Spike 3 (Sept/Oct, before Expo)
high · Kaneda explicitly states 'I'm going to tell you what the name is right now. It's going to be called Metallica Remastered' and frames as birthday gift reveal/insider knowledge
?
machine_intel: August Marvel game teased; Stern has already made this IP; Jack Danger design + Zombie Yeti art predicted; not a remake/vault edition
high · Kaneda positions as insider: 'I will give you the best hint anyone's ever given' and 'Stern has already made this game'; specifically rules out new IP, remakes, vaults
?
product_strategy: Kaneda critiques Stern's LE strategy ($13k pricing) as alienating longtime collectors while chasing newbies; proposes split art packages (500+500) to create perceived scarcity within LE tier
high · Extended critique section where Kaneda outlines alternative strategy: 'If you really want to sell a thousand games at $13,000 a pop, I would make two different art packages for two different LEs'
$
market_signal: Metallica original pricing (~$5.5k LE, ~$6.5k) vs. current Stern LE pricing (~$13k); represents 100-200% price increase over 12 years despite reduced mechanical content per unit
medium · Kaneda: 'Metallica was like 5,500 bucks. Maybe the LE was 6,500... almost three times the price... It's at least double the price of what you get now in an LE'
?
rumor_hype: Jersey Jack Pinball next game predicted as Matrix (90% confidence) over Margaritaville; timing uncertain but overdue (~1 year since Elton John)

Transcript

groq_whisper · $0.052

0:00

Oh, don't you dare look back. Just keep your eyes on me. I said you're holding back. She said shut up and dance with me. This woman is my destiny. She said, ooh, ooh, shut up and dance with me. Welcome everybody to Canadas Pinball Podcast. It's a Thursday, the sun is shining, and it is Brenda's birthday. I'm really, really happy to be alive and to have married this Galwegian princess who has decided that I'm good enough for her. And I think many of us out there can relate that the wives are definitely the better halves, And they're the ones that are not collecting pinball machines or spending this much money on now the most depreciating asset maybe in the entire hobbyist world. All right. So let's talk about what's around the corner. What's about to happen in this Marvel month, right? It's coming. You know, we've heard the rumors for so many months. We've heard X-Men 97. You know, I blew up that whole thing that it's not going to be X-Men 97. You're not going to see X-Men 97 on a trans light. I know people are speculating like, well, the show's not really X-Men 97. It's a continuation of a show from back in the 90s, and that's why it's called X-Men 97. But no, the show is called X-Men 97. I don't understand what people are saying. Like, nobody talks about it like that. It is labeled something. So we know that Stern has billed this as the month of Marvel, and we know that something is coming out in August. Now, there's only two more weeks to go. So I can't tell you exactly what it is, but let me just say this. And I know everyone's been guessing. I will give you the best hint anyone's ever given, and here it is. Stern has already made this game. So if you are wondering what it's going to be, it's not going to be some Marvel theme we have not seen before. Now look, within the themes they've made in the Marvel Universe, there might be some expanded elements of those themes that we haven't seen yet. So is it going to be something like that? I can see people guessing about Into the Spider-Verse, stuff like that. We've seen the Avengers, right? Is it going to be some new Avenger game? Is it going to be another X-Men game? Is it going to be another Spider-Man game? Is it going to be another Deadpool game? I see people speculating maybe it's Deadpool and Wolverine. Maybe it's a new version of that game. I will say this. It is not a remake. It is not a vault. It is going to be an all original new game. Now, if it's based on Marvel, I am going to tell you right now, I think 100% you're going to see Jeremy Packer's Zombietti on the art package on this game. And his art style is absolutely phenomenal. I still think Deadpool is the nicest pinball machine he's ever done. And I think the second on his repertoire might be Ghostbusters, but I really do think that Deadpool, that whole game, like the cabinet, the playfield artwork, it's just perfectly laid out. And I love that it's just got that big Deadpool smack dab in the middle. So I am really looking forward to a Jack Danger Marvel game with Zombie Eddie on artwork. Look, and I think the reaction to this game is going to be very interesting because I do hear people be like, you know, they just keep making Marvel. They keep making Marvel games. And the truth is, yeah, they've made a decent amount of Marvel games, but not that many. I would say like 80% of what Stern puts out there is not Marvel. The other thing is this. If you want to make AAA themes that are culturally relevant, that are out there in the world, I mean, Marvel is Marvel, right? It's huge. Like, Marvel's been doing much more than DC. I think the Marvel stuff has been much better than the stuff happening in the Star Wars universe. So, you know, it's not surprising that if Stern's going to pick something, they're going to pick a Marvel theme. Now, here's the problem. And there is a problem. The problem is simply this. I just think a lot of people have a Marvel Stern game And they also really good games I mean the original Spider is phenomenal The old X not the greatest but it also like a really fun game with a lot of toys If you've played it, it's really fun. There's also like an original Avengers game, which is not the best. It's crazy when you go look at the original Avengers game with like the Hulk smash and all those drop targets. It's really interesting because if you put that next to John Wick, that game looks loaded. so I really do think if Stern's going to attract customers to another Marvel theme that they've already done they're gonna have to load it up like this can't be a game where the artwork is disguising a lack of mechanisms so if this game isn't loaded with mechanisms I'm gonna be disappointed I think this game needs to come with the expression lighting kit and you know I'm really curious to see what Stern's going to do to make an LE worth $13,000. I mean, that's the big question too. It's like, and I'm curious to see if they make a thousand LEs and if they're going to make Marvel again and they're going to make LEs, if it is a Marvel game, like maybe, and I think Stern needs to think about this. If they're going to make a thousand LEs, I think they need to split it. I think they need to have 500 with one art package and 500 with another. That way you've got a thousand total LEs, but 500 of them are unique to themselves. And I think that would really be an interesting way to go. And look, Zombie Yeti is the artist to do this with. The guy's so prolific. He makes stuff amazing. Like look at Deadpool. You know, those Deadpool cabinets are amazing. I think they should just start doing it like that. And then the premium and the pro should have the same cabinet. And then the premium should just have the fully loaded playfield like the LE. That's what I would do. If you really want to sell a thousand games at $13,000 a pop, I would make two different art packages for two different LEs. And then each owner feels special. Like they got one of 500. You're not going to see it. Like it's not everywhere the way the LEs are now. They don't feel special. And I'm sorry, but like if you want a premium, you know, for 10 grand, you know, you just make the premium and pro cabinet really nice. Remember the good old days when Christopher Franchi used to make the pro cabinet the nicest cabinet because he was like, well, that's the one you're going to see on location. And that's the one most people are going to see. So they get the nicest. I mean, it doesn't make sense. The LE should be the nicest, but you can make a damn nice premium and pro cabinet, you know, but they don't listen to Canada. I had a great conversation with George Gomez. I wish I worked at the marketing department over at Stern. I could walk in there and in just a week really make impactful changes that all of you would be celebrating and they would be celebrating because there's a way to make money and also make people happy. And I think what Stern's done is they found a way to make money that makes everybody unhappy except for the newbies. And that is not how you're going to future proof the business. If you turn off all the people that have been celebrating your brand for the last 10, 15 years just to attract the new guys who are clueless and are just excited to have a new version of a game, you're not going to survive very long. All right. So that's what's going to happen first in August. And then after that, we're going to get Metallica. Now, the Metallica rumor has been floating around, but I'm here to confirm for you 100%. It's going to be Metallica. Now, we've all known this. It's going to be the first game on Spike 3. That's another thing that's going to work against this Marvel game is if you know that the new Stern platform is right around the corner, are you going to go in on the last game on the old platform? It's weird. They did this with Ghostbusters. Weird that Ghostbusters should have been the first LCD game. And now we're going to get it here. Now, I'm curious with this Spike 3 if Stern makes the screen a little bit larger. I don't think they're going to. I think they still want to have that lineup of games look really good. And if they go to like a 27-inch screen like JJP, I just don't see them doing it. I also don't see them doing it because we all know Stern is pretty cheap. Like I don think they going to really increase their bomb that much So I think we going to see Metallica on Spike 3 Now this is going to be a 100 remake of the John Borg game Now, when I say remake, I say it with an asterisk because it's going to be the same layout, but I don't think it's going to be the same art package. I think we're going to see Zombie Eddie on this game as well. I also think it's going to have all new lighting. I think it's going to have new speakers. I think it's going to have new everything other than the layout. Now, will they add any new toys to the game? They don't need to because Metallica was a game in which they actually put toys into it back in the day. Twelve years ago, a Stern machine had more in it than it does today. And now the machine is almost, I mean, this is crazy, people. A Stern Ali fully loaded with a topper is almost three times the price. that Metallica was when it came out. Metallica was like 5,500 bucks. Maybe the LE was 6,500. It's at least double the price of what you get now in an LE. And we know that this game is only gonna come in like premium and LE format, probably just premium. I think they're just gonna call it one thing, and that's that. Now, what you don't know, and I told you I was gonna give you a gift on Brenda's birthday. You don't know the name of the game. I'm going to tell you what the name is right now. It's going to be called Metallica Remastered, okay? Remastered. And I kind of like that titling. I like that marketing and that branding from Stern Pinball because now it opens the door for a whole line of the old stuff. Remastered. Tron Remastered sounds cool. Lord of the Rings Remastered doesn't sound great. And now that I think about it, maybe remastered is a term used in the music industry. So they probably won't use it for other themes where that doesn't make sense. But Metallica Remastered, John Borg, Spike 3 coming out. Now, here's the thing. Here's the thing. This game is coming out sooner than you think. This Metallica game is coming out sometime in end of September, October. It's going to be out before Expo. So that's another thing when you think about it. are you going to rush and go buy this Marvel game in August when you know in just six weeks to eight weeks there's going to be another game that comes out? So you know me, you might as well just wait and see. Because if you wait and see, by then you're also going to be able to see Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. There's only going to be 500 of those. We also know Spooky Pinball has its next game coming out very soon. You know, we're going to get new games from Jersey Jack Pinball probably before Expo. It's been a year since Elton John. And so is it going to be Margaritaville or is it going to be Matrix? Now, look, I still think there's a 90% chance it's going to be Matrix. And there's people out there that are like, Kaneda's an idiot. He said it was going to be a banger and it's Margaritaville. Of course, I don't think Margaritaville is a banger, people. Come on. How stupid do you think I am? I'm pretty dumb to do a pinball podcast for 10 years But the thing is, I know that Margaritaville and a Jimmy Buffett theme is not a banger. But if there's any guy who I think thinks it's a banger, it's Jack Guarnari, the guy that thought Toy Story 4 was good, the guy that thought The Godfather would sell. So it doesn't surprise me, right? All of you, when you hear Margaritaville from Jack Guarnari, a lot of you are like, I could see it. I could actually see Jack thinking that's a good theme. Now, I think it's Matrix. The problem I hear with Matrix is that Lawrence Fishburne won't give his likeness. How can you make a Matrix game without Morpheus? Like that is essential to this game being done the right way. You know, Brenda's birthday was in 1986 and she just read for me like the top movies of 1986. And I kept thinking to myself, man, there's a lot that needs to be done in pinball. It's like Top Gun, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, like just right there. Those are two themes we need in pinball. And it was aliens. We've got that. I would love someone to do aliens right. I mean it Like aliens is all right but I want to see alien done by like imagine Jersey Jack making Alien I wonder how long a license can be held exclusively by a manufacturer Can Stern even make Toy Story 1? Why isn't Jersey Jack just freaking make Toy Story 1? Like, hey guys, we made Toy Story 4. Can we now make Toy Story 1? That seems like a really smart move. Why doesn't anybody make Up? How awesome would Up be with the balloons attached to the topper? People, there's so many amazing themes we want. Now look, wait and see. Back to the Future is also coming next year. For me, that's the big one, right? Out of all the ones I'm waiting for, I'm not a diehard Harry Potter fan. I am a diehard Matrix fan. I love that movie. If J.J.P. does the Matrix and does it right, I have to own that machine. It's going to happen. Where I put it, that's another question. But man, Top Gun, Karate Kid, Transformers, Akira, you know me. You know the ones I want. Big Trouble in Little China and Fifth Element. There's like this handful of games where if they were made and not made by Homepin and some of the other companies out there that I don't love their product or their platform, I'm not going to name names because then they get mad at me. You know who they are. I'm just going to say this. I hope my dream theme is made by Jersey Jack or Stern Pinball or Dutch Pinball. Right now, those are the three companies that I want to make my dream themes because they'll do it right. I think Spooky can get there. You know, they can get there. You know, I would just be nervous right now with Spooky that the mechanisms wouldn't do the theme justice. I hope on their next games, we see more mechanical. Wow. I also think Barrels of Fun is another company that can get there. They haven't wowed me with Labyrinth simply because the theme doesn't speak to me, but I want to see what they do with a theme that really pops. Before I end this show, because I hear Cassian starting to stir, I want to tell you what's next from CGC. It's going to be Medieval Madness Remake. 500 of them are coming back, and then they're making The Twilight Zone. That is 100% confirmed. I'm not sure why some content creators like dance around this. Just say it. It's the Twilight Zone. All right. We all know it's coming and it's coming from CGC. Nobody's going to get any money back from Haggis. I think that's what's going to happen over there. And I think all the momentum is gone from these Pulp Fiction LEs because here's the thing. I also hear that Mark Ritchie is working on Gremlins as his game coming out after Pulp Fiction and after all these remakes. I don't even know where you slot in the next Mark Ritchie licensed game when it takes this company forever. Because if they announce Twilight Zone, we're going to wait three years before it actually comes out. I'm so over CGC. I don't really care anymore about them. I think their quality has also slipped. It doesn't seem fun to be into Chicago Gaming Company. And they've done it to themselves. They've absolutely allowed that brand to be rudderless for so many years. I mean, they're the company I should knock on Doug's door and say, hey, you need a marketing guy. You need a communications guy. How about I help you out? Because I'm still shocked like Mr. Sharp doesn't really talk much. None of them do. There's absolutely no communication over there. I'm not surprised like Butch Peel left because there's just no communication. There's like nothing to do on a daily basis in a company that just goes dark. It's not the way you're supposed to run a pinball company. Everybody have a great day. I love that you're a member of the show. And hey, if you know anybody that wants to be a member who has an Apple product, they should sign up now in like just a week. Patreon is going to make me charge more than $5 for anyone on an Apple device because Apple is going to take a cut now, those greedy bastards. So just tell your friends, hey, if you canceled Kaneda or you know someone who wants to join, they should join now. Later, everybody. 700 people. Can't be wrong. Kinada out.