The Pinball Show Ep 40: Get It Off Your Chest

TL;DR

TPN collapse backstory, Stern code updates, Deep Root subscription controversy

Summary

Key Claims

• TPN was initially conceived as a three-person show between Greg Bone, Ken Cromwell, and Dennis Creasel wanting to do something different from Straight Down the Middle

  high confidence · Greg Bone describes the genesis of TPN in detail, explaining how three friends wanted to create a different show together before it snowballed into a network

• Someone purchased the TPN domain/IP specifically to obstruct the network launch

  high confidence · Host states: 'somebody went in and they stole, they bought up all the IP' with Greg confirming it was 'our fault for not doing that' but noting someone did it 'just to be an asshole about something and go in and just do that just to hinder someone in the community'

• Sexism accusations against TPN founders were false and weaponized to damage the group

  high confidence · Greg Bone states: 'we get hit with the whole sexism bullshit' and 'That was the nail in the coffin' and 'it was a blatant way to try to discredit us there was no way in hell that we had were sexist in any damn way at all' with documentation of false accusations

• Deep Root's leaked Root Access subscription model costs $49.99/month or $549/year with DLC/update access as primary concern

  high confidence · Craig Chandler segment details leaked Deep Root staging server content showing subscription service structure and pricing discovered via Google CacheView by Pinside user Blueberry Johnson

• Stranger Things code reached V1.00 completion, Black Knight Rage got V1.02 with DJ mixer, Avengers Infinity Quest received major V.94 update

  high confidence · Craig Bobby's Stern News Correspondent segment reporting three new code updates for Thanksgiving

• TPN reached out to female podcasters like Crystal Gimnick for inclusion based on merit, not quota

  high confidence · Greg clarifies: 'we had Crystal Gimnick was kind enough to start the plum, which we loved' and 'we always look at well where are we going to get criticism' and emphasizes they 'asked them because of their merit'

• Stern potentially planning a Steve Ritchie music pinball release before end of 2020

Notable Quotes

• “I've had enough. I want something different... I'm no longer going to tiptoe, walk on eggshells. Life is short, man. It's just too short.”

  Host (unnamed) @ ~19:00 — Frames the episode's new editorial stance and the host's frustration with industry misinformation and politics

• “That was the nail in the coffin. That was a stomach punch. We have documentation showing it. Using social justice to harm other people.”

  Greg Bone @ ~35:00 — Describes the sexism accusations against TPN as weaponized and deliberately false, citing documentation

• “It was a blatant way to try to discredit us there was no way in hell that we had were sexist in any damn way at all none of us has ever portrayed any sense of being sexist”

  Greg Bone @ ~34:00 — Direct refutation of sexism accusations with emotional weight and personal defense

• “Somebody went in and they stole, they bought up all the IP. Yeah, our fault for not doing that. To just be an asshole about something and go in and just do that just to hinder someone in the community.”

  Greg Bone / Host @ ~30:00 — Describes deliberate IP domain squatting to sabotage TPN launch

• “I do not like spending my fucking time on the internet having to defend myself. That's why I don't post bullshit. That's why I don't get involved in a lot of stuff.”

  Greg Bone @ ~38:00 — Explains personal motivation for withdrawing from social media and defending TPN against accusations

• “It's still pinball. I still miss it. I still missed all of it. You were my friend. You wanted everything to continue. So a lot of it I do for you. But a lot of it's just, I don't know. I still like to give my opinion on games.”

  Greg Bone @ ~42:00 — Explains why he continued in pinball community despite TPN burnout

• “To ship a pin crippled out of the box? That would just kill Deep Root before they even start. My take is this program will be analogous to Microsoft's Game Pass or Sony's PlayStation Now.”

  Craig Chandler (Deep Root correspondent) — Provides analysis of Deep Root subscription model as analogous to gaming subscription services rather than pay-to-unlock features

Entities

Signals

• ?

  business_signal: Deep Root's leaked Root Access subscription model ($49.99/month or $549/year) raises concerns about DLC/shareware model where owners might receive incomplete code and need to pay for updates

  high · Craig Chandler reports leaked pricing and structure from Deep Root staging server; notes community concern about crippled-out-of-box software, though analyst suggests Game Pass analogy more likely

• ?

  community_signal: The Pinball Network collapsed after IP domain squatting and weaponized sexism accusations. Founders (Greg Bone, Ken Cromwell, Dennis Creasel) received false accusations despite reaching out to female content creators based on merit.

  high · Greg Bone detailed account of TPN genesis, domain squatting attack, and sexism accusations he claims were deliberately false with documentation available

• ?

  community_signal: Media conflict at Twippies awards and between competing pinball podcasts/streamers prompted TPN founders to create unified network to reduce competition and conflict

  medium · Greg Bone: 'With the creation of the Twippies for the last couple of years, there started to be some conflict between media providers and pinball that we ultimately as a group, I think I can say this, we were kind of sick of all of that'

• ?

  design_philosophy: Ninja Turtles pinball has tight shots and fast gameplay requiring learning curve similar to Walking Dead but with unique shot design; initial resistance gives way to appreciation

  medium · Greg Bone describes initial difficulty with Ninja Turtles, drawing comparisons to Star Wars and Walking Dead code learning curves before developing appreciation

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