The Hardy Pinball Podcast: Episode 0 - The Pilot

Cary Hardy·video·8m 33s·analyzed·Aug 11, 2020

Analysis

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TL;DR

Cary Hardy launches pinball podcast filling void left by Kaneda's departure.

Summary

Cary Hardy launches The Hardy Pinball Podcast, a new audio series driven by the recent departure of Kaneda from the pinball podcast space. Hardy outlines his podcast philosophy: short, music-free intros, avoiding filler content, no lengthy product endorsements, and honest opinions on games and products. He hints at upcoming Deep Root Pinball announcements before summer.

Key Claims

Kaneda has bowed out of the pinball podcast scene, creating a void Hardy is stepping in to fill.
high confidence · Hardy explicitly states he was asked by many, including Kaneda himself, to step up after Kaneda's departure from podcasting.
Special When Lit and Slapsave podcasts have ceased production.
high confidence · Hardy mentions losing these shows and missing the hosts' voices as part of his rationale for starting his podcast.
This Week in Pinball (TWIP) is undergoing a platform transition but needs minor audio adjustments.
medium confidence · Hardy states TWIP is morphing into a new platform and likes where it's going but needs audio work.
Deep Root Pinball will release significant information and footage before end of summer.
medium confidence · Hardy teases: 'we should have a nice chunk of info and footage to chew on before the end of summer' regarding Deep Root.
Hardy joined Straight Down the Middle (largest pinball show on YouTube) seven months after starting YouTube content in mid-2018.
high confidence · Direct statement about his career progression joining the show and now providing content for two channels.

Notable Quotes

“For this niche hobby of pinball, that is pretty damn good.”
Cary Hardy@ 1:34 — Hardy contextualizing his 2,000 YouTube subscribers as impressive for pinball niche market.
“I don't lie because I don't want to have to remember.”
Cary Hardy@ 6:39 — Core philosophy statement about honesty and authenticity in his podcast approach.
“If I don't like it, I'm going to tell you why I don't like it. If it's something good and I do like it, it's going to get props.”
Cary Hardy@ 7:17 — Defining his editorial stance: unfiltered honest opinions without corporate bias.
“I'm not here to shit on a company, a product, or anything like that. I'm here to just basically state my opinion.”
Cary Hardy@ 7:24 — Clarifies he aims for honest critique, not negativity for its own sake.
“Due to all these recent events, and mainly due to Kaneda bowing out of the scene, I have been asked by many including Kaneda himself to step up to the plate.”
Cary Hardy@ 6:01 — Directly attributes podcast creation to filling Kaneda's departure void and personal request.

Entities

Cary Hardyperson Kanedaperson Straight Down the Middleorganization This Week in PinballorganizationSlapsaveorganizationSpecial When LitorganizationDeep Root Pinballcompany Texas Pinball Festivalevent

Signals

~
sentiment_shift: Kaneda's departure from podcasting is significant enough that community members are actively recruiting replacement voices.
high · Hardy states: 'I have been asked by many including Kaneda himself to step up to the plate' and notes this as the origin of his podcast.
$
market_signal: Pinball podcast landscape consolidation: recent departures of Kaneda, Slapsave, and Special When Lit create content void that Hardy is stepping in to fill, suggesting possible audience migration and creator turnover in pinball media.
high · Hardy explicitly cites recent losses of favorite podcasters and states he was asked by community and Kaneda himself to fill the gap, positioning his launch as response to ecosystem shift.
?
product_strategy: Deep Root Pinball has substantial content (info and footage) planned for release before end of summer.
medium · Hardy teases: 'we should have a nice chunk of info and footage to chew on before the end of summer' regarding Deep Root, suggesting upcoming announcements/reveals.

Transcript

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0:00

You're asking for it, and now you're going to get it. What's up everyone, and welcome to episode zero of the Hardy Pinball Podcast. I am Cary Hardy, and this is The Pilot. Now, for those of you that don't know me already, here is my brief history in the hobby. The year is 2012. I buy my first arcade and pinball machine, and the pinball machine only costed $25 at auction. I repaired said pinball machine, and what was only supposed to be me having a game in my home for nostalgia reasons turned into an addiction.

0:44

I couldn't get enough. I mean, over time I began getting more and more games. I mean, I would be visiting Texas pinball festivals yearly to really see what this hobby would provide. I would dabble in the media side of pinball for a time or two by uploading videos of my projects. But it wouldn't be until like the mid-year of 2018 when cancer claimed my mother would I really get deep into this hobby. At that time, I really needed the distraction, so I decided to document and produce videos of my work and put them on YouTube for others to enjoy. Now, seven months later, I would be asked to join the largest pinball show on YouTube, straight down the middle. Now, I graciously accepted, and now I provide content for two channels. As of right now, I have over 2,000 subscribers. For this niche hobby of pinball, that is pretty damn good. And now, I will be providing content in audio form. The thing is, guys, I've heard many different podcasters state that podcasting isn't easy. Now, of course, that really depends on if you are comparing it to video production. For me, this is what I would say is going to be a piece of cake, because I'm comparing it to what I already do, and that is producing video content. Now with a brief backstory out of the way let go over what this channel will not have this channel will not have long musical intros and that just basically for me when i hear these on other podcasts i just kind of have to just sit there and hit the skip skip skip skip because the thing is you've already heard this intro they know what podcast they're listening to there's no sense of having to wait an extra two minutes.

4:06

You know who I'm talking about. I'm not gonna be doing it. No one wants to hear me do it, so therefore I definitely not gonna be doing it either So moving on My episodes are not to be overly long because of the reasons I just listed I don plan on having an episode that goes on for an hour or even two or even three or anything like that. I don't know how long my episodes will be. I don't have that in stone. It's going to be basically the amount of content that I have to talk about. I'm not going to have segments. I'm not going to have things to fill time to make this a certain length of an episode. I'm going to be giving you content in the time frame that I'm able to. I'm not going to be like, this episode is going to be an hour. I'm going to cut it down to that much. No, it's going to be how much we had to talk about. And currently at this amount, like in this time in pinball, there's not a lot to talk about. There will be very shortly though, but as of right now, there's not a lot to talk about. So therefore, I'm not going to try to make news. I'm not going to manufacture stuff just to fill dead air. That's not going to happen. So for the amount of time I've been involved in this hobby in a personality role, I've never wanted to do a podcast. I've been on a few of them as a guest, but I have never wanted to have my own. And that was because I felt that I had nothing to offer. The others had everything already covered, but over the last year, we've lost some of my favorites, and that would be Slapsave. I mean, I miss hearing Jason Fowler's voice, Special When Lit. I miss hearing those guys' voices, and most recently, we have lost Kaneda. Now, Twip is still here, but it's still in the process of morphing into a new platform, and honestly, I like where it's going. It just needs a few little audio adjustments, and I think it'll be great. Due to all these recent events, and mainly due to Kaneda bowing out of the scene I have been asked by many including Kaneda himself to step up to the plate that right the the origin of this podcast is due to Kaneda podcast now what does that mean it means that his platform and mine will be very similar Now why is that It because I liked it And obviously thousands of others did too Who knows, maybe one day I can persuade him to be a guest on here with me. I don't know, we'll see. Now I have said this plenty of times in my YouTube content, and that is I don't lie because I don't want to have to remember. I have plenty of other things going on in my life that I can worry about or stress over than whether or not I said or didn't say something about a certain product or machine. I'm going to basically regurgitate how I feel about a machine or product, how it is in my head at that time. Now, that's not to say that things may change over time, because yes, obviously, more information or more news can come out that can change my mind. But at that point in time, when I speak about it, that's how I feel. That's how you're going to get it. If I don't like it, I'm going to tell you why I don't like it. If it's something good and I do like it, it's going to get props. I'm not here to shit on a company, a product, or anything like that. I'm here to just basically state my opinion. This podcast is strictly for entertainment, and it's your choice to listen to it or not. It's as simple as that. So I believe this episode is going to wrap up here. I wanted to give you just enough information about me. give you an idea of what I will sound like, my format, and my just personality in general to see if this is something that you want to continue listening for. Now, I'm going to leave you with a little bit of information here, guys. Now, until we meet again, let's talk about Deep Root. What I can tell you is that we should have a nice chunk of info and footage to chew on before the end of summer. There you go. That's what I have for you at this time. Until next time, guys. Peace out. Outro Music