DPP #139 "Late summer vibes. Is Alice coming soon?"

Don's Pinball Podcast (regular feed)·podcast_episode·31m 4s·held·Aug 5, 2024

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.033

TL;DR

Expression Backbox Lights announced; Alice in Wonderland generates FOMO; John Wick code improvements needed.

Summary

Don discusses upcoming Stern Pinball Expression Backbox Lights accessory ($209 MSRP) arriving Monday for JAWS, John Wick, Godzilla, and James Bond; shares secondhand enthusiasm about DPX's Alice in Wonderland based on another YouTube commentator's preview; analyzes John Wick (Pro) audio/callout gaps and potential code updates; reflects on market cooling (Pulp Fiction delays, Godzilla 70th Anniversary pricing struggles); and showcases homebrew projects and WrestleMania modifications.

Key Claims

Expression Backbox Lights will be available Monday (Aug 5th) for $209 MSRP for JAWS, John Wick, Godzilla, and James Bond with interactive capability via node board
high confidence · Don citing distributor information from MadPinball.com; describes specific product specs and pricing
A YouTube pinball commentator previewed DPX's Alice in Wonderland and was enthusiastic about the playfield layout and interactive mechanism
medium confidence · Don referencing unspecified YouTube content and forum postings; lacks direct attribution to specific commentator name
John Wick is missing audio callouts and mission briefings during gameplay, particularly in multiball, which limits player guidance on faction/mission mechanics
high confidence · Don's firsthand gameplay observation with friend, direct quote: 'box of crickets' during multiball
Pulp Fiction has been delayed over 1.5 years since reveal and market enthusiasm has 'softened quite a bit'
high confidence · Don's direct observation and speculation from ~9 months prior, current status 'coming soon by end of year'
Godzilla 70th Anniversary should have been released as LE instead of premium due to past pushback on duplicate Jurassic Park editions
high confidence · Don's opinion based on Stern's stated policy shift and market reaction to Jurassic Park 30th Anniversary LE
A Godzilla 70th Anniversary black and white premium sold on Pinside for $8,800 with only 10 plays, suggesting possible open-box dealer stock
medium confidence · Don citing Pinside listing with speculation about legitimacy; seller stated needing room for incoming machine
Rumors suggest a boutique pinball company is developing cabinet art innovation 'never been seen before'
low confidence · Don vaguely referencing unspecified rumor source; no concrete details provided
Expression cabinet lights for JAWS/John Wick initially cost ~$400 for LED Zeppelin, now $499-$500 for cabinet kit

Notable Quotes

“Expression Backbox Lights... I think that's amazing. These things look cool and I'm glad that they're available.”
Don @ early segment — Positive endorsement of upcoming Stern accessory release addressing long-standing demand
“John Wick was a box of crickets, man. We weren't hearing anything at all... You'd hear the occasional jackpot callout, but the music was just kind of there.”
Don @ John Wick analysis segment — Critical observation of major gameplay gap—lack of audio guidance during multiball, indicating code incompleteness
“I'm intrigued. I'm intrigued... a little bit of me was like, you know, maybe I should carve a little room in the budget... But I talked myself right out of that.”
Don @ Alice in Wonderland discussion — Demonstrates FOMO effect of secondhand information about unreleased game, shows restraint in current market
“Maybe the light show is better than what I've just seen in quick little video clips... they were really acting like this is like the best thing to ever come out with pinball.”
Don @ Pulp Fiction LE discussion — Skepticism about hype cycles and delayed products; notes diminished enthusiasm after 18+ month wait
“This should have been another 500 run of like the 70th anniversary edition... instead it's just like I've got this black and white premium sitting over here... it's nothing really special.”
Don @ Godzilla 70th anniversary analysis — Critiques Stern's decision to release as premium instead of LE; suggests market expectations misaligned
“The game plays so fast your balls are just draining... tell me what to do, game.”
Don @ John Wick gameplay analysis — Highlights usability problem: mission system exists but visual/audio feedback insufficient for player navigation
“I pulled myself away for a little bit to go dog out at a cafe table in the hallway... it really was just what we felt like we wanted to talk about.”
Don @ Interview discussion — Describes casual, unscripted interview approach that resonated with audience (844 listens)

Entities

DonpersonStern PinballcompanyDPXcompanyCare BearpersonLiorpersonCengizpersonJeffpersonBrianperson Jamesperson

Signals

?
product_launch: Expression Backbox Lights officially announced for Monday, Aug 5th launch at $209 MSRP; available for JAWS, John Wick, Godzilla, James Bond with 'other machines to be announced'
high · Don citing distributor intel and specific MSRP; detailed technical specs (node board integration)
$
market_signal: Long wait for interactive lighting accessories; previous Rush Expression lights and Foo Fighters lights had delayed/sporadic availability; this release addresses chronic supply gap
high · Don: 'when it comes to anything that lights up, we've really been waiting a ton of time'; notes accessory availability as 'benchmark for success'
?
rumor_hype: DPX's Alice in Wonderland game previewed by unnamed YouTube commentator; playfield layout and interactive mechanism described positively; no release date announced
medium · Don: 'heard a certain pinball commentator... got a peek... apparently this Alice in Wonderland game will be coming out'; references video but acknowledges hearsay nature
?
collector_signal: Market shifting away from immediate FOMO purchases and deposit rushing; Pulp Fiction LE enthusiasm cooled significantly after 18+ month delay; Godzilla 70th Anniversary 'deals' appearing (Pinside $8.8K sale)
high · Don: 'there's definitely more deals to be had and not as much rushing out to get that deposit'; notes Pulp Fiction fervor has 'softened quite a bit'
?
code_update: John Wick identified as critically lacking audio callouts and mission briefing dialogue during gameplay; multiball described as 'box of crickets'; faction system exists but poorly communicated to players

Transcript

groq_whisper · $0.093

0:00

let's slide into an easy sunday afternoon to some pinball commentary with your homie don let's do number 139 right now i'm kind of feeling it i'm at home i was up late last night just playing in the arcade having fun with pinball getting reacquainted with the hobby let's go

0:30

As I take a look around you, tell me what you see. I see tons of pinball. Then there's me. I'm sitting here looking around this empire that's kind of sprung up around me. Man, the game room downstairs. Like, how fun is this? how fun is this that two and some odd years ago from the first machine we've now blossomed into a robust downstairs arcade but not only that i was hanging out with my buddy brian last night thanks for coming by brother um just you know having a good time playing all these games uh that i have showing off the modifications that i've made and then in addition to just playing the games i was also working on this homebrew project of screwing together It's got boards in it now It's ready for wiring And like I keep gaining New information new insight And seeing what's possible And it's really everybody else that's inspired me To go and do this Also inspirational Is James a new Patreon member What's up buddy thanks for joining At the prestige partner level We got a brand new trans light going out To a winner that was picked this morning On the Facebook live Thanks for everybody that joined in there And you know reflecting on the position that the hobby's in here, listen to everybody's opinions, of which there are many and they are varied. You know, I like the idea of having this virtual tip jar that's out there, and I'm just humbled by the fact that we have like 88 or so people contributing every month back into, you know, good job, buddy, or whatever it is. You know, a lot of work does go into prepping and making all these things and putting the mods together and doing the video, and I wish I had more time for live streaming, but life does step in the way. But it is nice to know that I'm not alone out here. We've built this awesome community of people that all like flipping silver balls around. And not only that, but talking about it. And not only that, arguing about it, which is just the essence of any hobby, like take anything, you know. You know, it's always fun. And something like pinball, right? Where, you know, each game will appeal to someone different. And like, that's okay. We all have our own tastes. And that's okay. You know, some people might hate the game that you really dig and like that's okay yet we can still argue endlessly about it and go nowhere and just go around in circles but at the end we're it's just all it's all fun you know root for your game that you love if jurassic park is peak elwynn to you and you look at these new jaws people and you're looking down at them and it's like okay dude like you do you like i dig jurassic park i super dig jaws and avengers fun to play still in elwynn but you know it would have you but you don't know hate if that's what you like so james welcome to the party that's been news to drop and i tease this a little bit on the live stream today um here in word that we're gonna have as of monday august what fourth fifth uh there's gonna be a news drop a reveal from stern pinball uh accessory related this isn't the uh this this uh surprise august cornerstone that we're supposed to have dropped on us which i don't know may come tuesday for all i know What I have heard about tomorrow, Monday, is that these expression back box lights that tie into the expression lights on the play field, or in the case of JAWS, just kind of tie into the theme and everything. When the sonar mode is going off, like the green is swirling around, like these interactive speaker lights that Stern released with JAWS, now with John Wick as well, these are finally going to be available as an aftermarket purchase for your pro and premium machines that did not come with them. I think that's amazing. All right. Now, before you guys get after me, well, of course, Don, you're one of these cheerleader shills. It has a cheerleader every decision that comes out. No, no, no, no, no. These things look cool and I'm glad that they're available. Now, you may say, yeah, I'm not really interested. I don't want to pay the price for them. And that's OK. Don't buy them if you don't want to buy them. But for the people that want them, it's awesome that these things are available. I'm trying to like that's the mark, the benchmark for success to be enthusiastic is not just having something to purchase, but like having it available. right you know not like this is good this is bad this is worth it this is not can we just get to the point that like the accessories are at least available and when and stick it with certain pinball as far as certain pinball machines and a great deal of other manufacturers the machines themselves widely available go out and get a john wick le right now like you will not have to wait in line in fact they may give you a two-for-one deal um but the accessories man that seems to be the issue trying to get these things when they do come out though at least in terms of toppers they seem to be readily available. But when it comes to anything that lights up, we've really been waiting a ton of time for a certain to come out with these. Look how long it took for Rush Expression lights to finally come out. Foo Fighter once, they come in little spits and bursts, and then they're gone again. The John Wick lights, we haven't seen the hind tail or anything of them. So it sounds like on Monday, let's get back to the announcement, Monday tomorrow, for $209 MSRP, you can purchase yourself, I don't know what they're calling them, Expression Backbox Lights. those are supposed to be available so distributors stock up reached out to my distributor Jeff at MadPinball.com and said dude get a bunch of these in stock because I think they're going to be crazy popular a couple other little tidbits about this they'll be available for Jaws, they'll be available for John Wick, that's what we've seen so far but apparently these will also be available for Godzilla and they'll be available for James Bond, the Cornerstone release how about that? So that means that either in the background there's been some rudimentary code inputted in the machine for these lights to be interactive, or that will be forthcoming. So maybe we'll have new code drop. Maybe they were holding on to it because they wanted to kind of tease this a little bit or keep it a little secret for the people that like to dive deep in those code notes and try to get some insider information on what's coming. But, hey, that's cool. Not only that, Godzilla, Bond, Wick, Jaws, but also other machines as well to be announced. So does this mean they're going to go back into the well all through the Spike 2 line and put programming in there for these lights? If they do that, homies better have them available. Because $200, which is probably twice the cost of what you can get, you know, a set of Kenwood speakers with just regular speaker lights. So for $200, but they're interactive, that is going to be the selling point for these things. So look for that. You know, looking through my John Wick that does have these in there, It appears that there is a little node board that comes with this component to tie into everything. So there's a little bit of tech in there instead of just lights that just plug in or react with sound. So I'm enthusiastic about that because I think this is a cool product. And I think I nailed the price. When I was forecasting, and this is what helped me decide to go for the LE John Wick instead of the premium, which I was originally planning on going on, was that when available, I was expecting the full complement of expression light package for the back box to be around $700 to $750, right? You know, so if you look at, you know, getting a premium and then putting in, you know, a shaker motor, a shooter rod or whatever, and then kind of, you know, some art blades and make yourself a little LE, it's only a couple hundred dollars of upgrades you have to put into that. But when it came to, like, going from John Wick Pro to premium, you add on the light kit that you would have to have as well and you near like once you add in a shaker motor some Invisiglass and an art blade So you know for the price eh it still steep but that made it a little easier to make that decision And so with the Expression Light kits for the cabinets running, you know, they initially they were like $400 when they first came out for Led Zeppelin. Now they're up to $499. So $500 for the cabinet plus $209 for the back box, you're in $700. I think that's right where I was speculating. Seems to be where Stern thinks the market's at. What say you? Are you interested in these? I know you Bond lovers out there, you're going to want to get a set of these in your machine. And the interactivity is really what sells it. More so than lighting on a topper because the speaker lights are kind of right in the player's line of sight. And with the integration of the speaker lights and the shaker motor on John Wick, oh, it's a good feeling when it kicks in, like you really feel it. So happy to see that. We'll see more information coming out. Maybe NAP Arcade will have a rundown early in the morning. But yeah, if this bears fruit, this would be interesting. Yeah, yeah, I can't wait. Would like to get that. Also, some news on the horizon that just dropped. I heard a certain pinball commentator, extraordinaire, does a ton of YouTube, currently dragging haggis through the coals. Apparently this guy's got a peek, a little bit of a gander, at the forthcoming Alice's Adventures in Wonderland from DPX, this new seminal release from this boutique of a boutique company. What do you call that, like a sub-boutique? But apparently this Alice in Wonderland game will be coming out. And apparently, a lot of apparently's here because I haven't heard it firsthand, but saw some postings. But apparently he was able to see from video. Didn't really hear the audio. Couldn't really tell a bunch about the gameplay. But looking over what's on the play field itself, he seems pretty enthusiastic about it. You know, this is a guy that would tell you exactly how he feels about it. So, like, I'm intrigued now. I'm intrigued. Apparently the sculpts that Lior was developing are on point. integrated with the gameplay, and he was teasing something about a mechanism that really tied in and was interactive and pretty fun. So I am all of a sudden more interested than I was in the beginning of the day, now that I've heard this. Can't wait to see more. I don't know when we're going to see it. I haven't seen a release date. Nothing's been teased. All we've seen officially is a picture of the underneath of a play field and the back of the trans light, from what we could tell. And then we've seen some of the concept art, like in a one-shot flyer. But that's about it. So waiting to see more. I wonder how much of the original artwork is still on the machine how much had to be reworked what the gameplay is like is it going to stick to that foam core layout do they alter things all of that completely unknown but I have to say listening to Care Bear talk about what he liked and what he saw about it I was feeling a little tinge of the FOMO juices starting to rise up a little bit now I'm restrained I have plenty of games enjoying what I have not rushing out to get this even if it sells out day one I'll go play it somewhere I'll look for one down the road, maybe do a trade deal if I really have to have it. But I'm not going to feel like I'm missing out with 500 of these things that are going to be coming out there. But I'm intrigued to see more about it, see how it shoots and things. But, yeah, a little bit of me was like, you know, maybe I should carve a little room in the budget. Maybe I should carve a little space in the room to put this game. Maybe I should move some games over to the other house and then, you know, free a space. And then I talked myself right out of that. But it was interesting to have that feeling coming back for FOMO. Are you guys excited about Alice in Wonderland? I was talking to another friend of mine today. He said the theme really doesn't do anything for him. So even if it was fantastically integrated with amazing mechanisms and sculptures, it still seems like that would be a barrier. So it's just this new world that we're in in 2024 going into 2025 where the market is completely on its head from where it was before. I think it's still robust, but there's definitely more deals to be had and not as much rushing out to get that deposit on something that's immediately going to sell out. Speaking of which, I think people are still waiting for their Pulp Fiction LEs. Haven't heard much about those coming out or people getting those. But I was speculating, God, it must have been like nine months ago, that by the time the LEs finally come out, I think a lot of the fervor surrounding this game will probably have softened quite a bit. And I think that's kind of where we're at. Remember how excited people were that they got that LE deposit, that $1,000 down for the Pulp Fiction LE with the dancing topper? The topper looks cool. I didn't think it was anything revolutionary, but it seemed like at the time people were just losing their minds over this thing with the little dancing sculpts up there. And I get it. It's cool. Maybe the light show is better than what I've just seen in quick little video clips. You know, I would want one, but like they were really acting like this is like the best thing to ever come out with pinball. I will say for the price, you know, a thousand bucks over the base model. Yeah, yeah, that was attractive. That was attractive. But look at where we are now. over a year and a half since that reveal, maybe a little bit more, and still no hide or hair of these things, although allegedly they're in the works. They are coming soon. It isn't going to be a haggis situation or anything. But probably by the end of the year we may start seeing those come out. I still haven't seen a topper in person. I would like to see that. But, man, there was so much enthusiasm a year ago for this that it just seems like it's all but dried up. We get a huge banger release of Godzilla 70th Edition, black and white. It should have been an LE, but it wasn't. And then now there just doesn't seem to be much enthusiasm for it at all. Speaking of pin side deals. Pin side deals. There was a 70th anniversary Godzilla that just sold. It was just listed. I just saw it today. A friend of mine sent it to me. $8,800 and 10 plays on this Godzilla 70th. Let's look into that a little bit. Now the story was from this little blurb of the person selling it was, and he doesn't have to give a reason to sell it. He wants money more than he wants the game. That's all the reason you have to justify to sell it. But he was saying, you know, got this game, have another one coming in, need to free up room, need some space, whatever, blah, blah, blah. Ten plays, here it is. How do you order a Godzilla 70th that just got revealed and then all of a sudden you've got another game coming in? A little bit sus, a little bit sus. So I'm wondering with the market where it is, is this one of those open box buys? Like, oh, look what happened. We have a used machine here for just about dealer invoice. Maybe we'll go ahead and get it out because I got something else coming in. Maybe this guy, maybe he's totally legit. maybe he's got his Pulp Fiction LE all of a sudden about to be delivered next week and he's got to make the room for it benefit of the doubt game looks good, I liked playing it it's still Godzilla this game should have been an LE the whole reason the Stern pulled back was because after the Jurassic Park 500 limited edition 30th anniversary or whatever it was came out and all the original LE owners were like hey man, what the heck this was the limited version Now you have more limited versions. And it's like, no, no, we changed the powder coat to a doo-doo brown color, and we redid the art with some dinosaurs that aren't actually in that film, and we put it back out there. What's the problem? It's a completely different edition, completely different. And it seems like when it comes to Elvira where everything was premium and everything was these small little releases, 99, 40th anniversary editions, like 100 or so limited editions, 200 signatures or whatever it was, like there never were like a lot of them. It wasn't like they came out with their thousand, they sold through, and then decided to make another 500. But with Jurassic Park, that kind of stung, especially because that Jurassic Park LE, that 30th anniversary edition, eh? I mean, Invisiglass, Art Blades, mirrored back glass, you know, it's pretty. But, like, it didn't feel like the huge step up. And I would say the original LE, I think, looks better than this version of it. But whatever. But I could see how there was some pushback and everything. So Stern took this LE Godzilla, the 70th anniversary black and white edition. It was going to be the top shelf thing. and they promised not to do the LE thing again, so they stripped it down and released a premium And it just kind of like it out there It cool right It fun It pink whatever But I really feel like this should have been an LE man This should have been another 500 run of like the 70th anniversary edition, maybe 570 they would make, you know, just to put it out there as something like cool. If you had one, it was like, look, I got that black and white LE. Isn't it pretty? Now instead of just like I've got this black and white premium sitting over here, it's going for the same price as a regular Godzilla premium, it's nothing really special you know, it seems like there was all that blowback but like this one kind of needed to be that LE, or at least have all the LE accoutrement on there, so like it needed to have foil airplanes in it and I don't know it's a fun game, it's a fun game, but that was interesting for a pin side deal, now it's already marked pending so somebody went ahead and scooped them you know, basically a thousand dollars off a brand new game, and the game looks great that foil art on the side is fantastic I want to see that be the benchmark, that be the base level to enter.

16:26

I'm hearing rumors that we might be seeing some more innovation in the cabinet art space going forward. Was it teased somewhere that a certain boutique pinball company that probably is too big to be boutique anymore is supposed to be doing something that's never been seen in cabinet art before? Very interesting stuff. Can't wait to hear more about that. Speaking of which, the last episode with the interview with Bug, 844 listens as of today. Hey, man, you guys found it. You guys found it. You enjoyed it. Thank you for sticking through and listening to more of this. Yeah, that was just fun. We were hanging out at the show. We were having a good time. I brought my recording equipment, and I was just like, let's go talk for a little bit. And I'm getting fantastic feedback about that. I love these kind of conversational, real interviews with people. I didn't prepare a lot of questions and send them to them beforehand, and we weren't really pushing an agenda or anything. It really was we were just at the event, hanging out, having a good time, and pulled ourselves away for a little bit to go dog out at a cafe. table in the hallway. So it was fun. So everything there was just what we felt like we wanted to talk about, what we thought was important. And I'm glad you all enjoyed it. So more of that to come when I can get it. I know I don't do interviews every week. This is an interview driven podcast by any means, but it's really an interest driven podcast. I like talking about and it's much more enjoyable for me and a lot easier, to be honest, to talk about things that are interesting to me. And if they're interesting to me, my supposition is that they're interesting to other folks, too. So that's kind of the way that I reach out. So if an interview tends to line up and it's not forced, it seems to come across a whole lot better. And so that's more my style that I want to do. If you'd like to be featured on the program, go ahead and email me, donspinballpodcastgmail.com. We'll set something up. It helps if it's something else that is of interest. So reach out. We'll go back and forth and then see what we can do as time allows. So moving along, John Wick, man, was playing it again last night, showing off my friend. It was his first time playing it. So what a way to play it. Start with the LE. The lights are great. He really liked the shots and layout. It's kind of fun to see somebody's first impression. And then he's not tainted by Pinside. He's not one of these guys that's deep into the forums, listening to every podcast. Very much just likes pinball, owns some machines, knows some of the big names, but probably couldn't pick out a designer out of a lineup, but just enjoys the game. So I got his opinion. What do you think? And he said there's actually a lot of shots out here. And he said, this is no joke, no cap. He said that this game reminded him a lot of Foo Fighters. Can you imagine? Now, John Wick does not have those cross-field shots that Foo Fighters has. It doesn't have the zany attitude to it. It doesn't have the animations and, you know, the kind of mission-based fun, like let's travel the country and play Foo Fighters, like at all. And I think that's the thing that's missing with John Wick. and this really came to a head when we got into a multi-ball, right? I was doing pretty good. I got a multi-ball and then added one as well. I think it was the main multi-ball where you lock the balls behind the little spa lagoon area up there. I think it's a nightclub. Reminds me of a hot tub. But anyway, I had four balls going at once. We're hitting all the shots. The lights are blinking and everything. But the thing that we noticed was what we were hearing, and what we were hearing was crickets. John Wick was a box of crickets, man. we weren't hearing anything at all. I'm in this multi-ball mode. I'm having a really good session going. I'm hitting ramps, comboing shots left and right, keeping four balls juggling in play. Like, we're getting jackpots. We're getting super jackpots. And it's like we're not really hearing much at all. You'd hear the occasional jackpot callout, but, like, the music was just kind of there, and there weren't any callouts, or, you know, the game wasn't telling me what I should focus on next. It wasn't saying, like, you know, enemies at the left ramp, John, go get them or something, or well done for hitting that orbit. Like, nothing, nothing. And I think that's the piece that's missing. And I don't think this is created this way on purpose. I think that's all in progress, and that's the part about John Wick that I'm most excited about, is to see what's coming in the future via code updates. Because when this game came out, we said very light on code, right? Now that I've been playing through it, there's three full multiballs in the game. There is a nuanced combat system, although it doesn't do a very good job about telling you about it. the modes in the game function such that you are picking or randomly assigned a different faction for a different mission there's assassination missions, there's other kinds of missions but you can play those missions as different factions but so far the only way that that's relayed to the player is just by, okay, shoot the purple inserts or now the inserts are red, or now the inserts are gold, or now they're blue and it's like, okay, but so what? what am I doing? tell me what to do, game and you look up at the play field or something and then the game plays so fast, or you look up at the screen, the game's playing so fast your balls are just draining. So that's not a good strategy. So that missing bit of this game that's going to take it from a 65% release up to an 85% or maybe higher B-level game, we need the call-outs, we need the code, we need the speech, we need the dialogue. Because it seems like the gameplay elements, they actually are there, but they're just not conveyed to the player in a way that's compelling or interesting It really puts you in the John Wick kind of mood. I would like to see some more diversity in the music, too. I feel like I keep hearing the same kind of sound, the same song over and over again. And they had the dude from Pantera do some of this music, right? So, like, when's that coming? I want to see that hit. If this game can become, like, just a sick atmospheric music game, and we get a ton of the Keanu call-outs, and we get, you know, more verbal information about what I'm supposed to be doing in the game, I think that's what's going to elevate this thing to, like, all right, I think John Wick has finally arrived. So I'm waiting for that moment. I'm waiting for that moment that should be coming at some point down there in the future. A couple of other thoughts I've been having. Things happen to me when I'm down here in the arcade playing around. I'm playing WrestleMania. WWE WrestleMania by Stern Pinball, Spike One Machine, came out in 2015. I've got the LE version. You all know I'm a fan of it, right? This was a game that I kind of warmed up to. I had played it before in the arcades, the pro version. It didn't do a whole lot for me, and the general consensus is it's not doing a whole lot for anybody else either. And then I saw the game through Genghis's eyes when he did this video talking about how much he loved the wrestling and loved the music. I can't talk about the guy without doing the voice. But he was so enthusiastic about it, and he got a pin sound board in there, changed the speakers out. because I'll tell you, even the LE version on the Spike 1 machine still has the same tinny little speakers that the Stern Pros come with, right? It was not robust at all. So I put a boom-boom in the floor I put the Kenwood speakers in the cabinet I haven upgraded an amplifier yet I waiting to get one of those pin sound boards to amp it to really bring the heat But I will say just putting the new speakers in has caused a noticeable increase in the audio fidelity But moreover than that, take a look at the LE version if you haven't played one. I know there's not a lot out there. They only made 400 of these things total, even if they even made them all. I know there's one at Wizard's World. There's probably some more around the country. But if you can find one of these gold ones, it's got the mirrored back glass. It's got the gold wire forms. It's got a couple of extra wire forms. It's got an extra flipper. It's got the spinning disc up there. There's just more in it. Plus, there's more characters, too. So there's, like, more gameplay. It's not just the same four wrestlers to pick, right? So, like, the sum of all its parts and the fact that this is all wrapped in a 6K or sub-6K package, dude, the game is super fun. My friend and I were having a blast, like, challenging each other on it, trying to build up a score, especially because of this modification that I made to it, which just made me so happy. I think I've talked about this on the other channels, maybe on Facebook Live or something. But here's the long and short of what I did. I took this WWE WrestleMania wrestling-themed game, and I wanted to really elevate it. So I went online and I bought myself one of those brass bells that they use for boxing and wrestling matches, right? like the actual one to signal the start, the end of the matches, the signal, the pin, the ding, ding, ding. I went and got myself a real one, mounted it inside the cabinet, and then I installed a knocker, and I had the knocker go into the bell. So when you get a replay or you match, you get the actual brass bell ring. Ding! Like, you won. You pinned the opponent. You won the match. Like, go you. Not just that, you know, thunk of the knocker, but, like, the brass bell, man. It's awesome. I mounted it down at the back of the cabinet, and it's got one of those pull chains on it to activate it, like you would normally mount it to a wall or something and pull the chain, and it would activate the clapper. So I have that chain going down through one of the ventilation holes in the bottom of the cabinet, so you can actually reach under the cabinet and pull the chain and actuate it yourself. It's so freaking awesome, man. I think the only thing that would have been better is if I could turn it into a topper, mount it on top of the machine, and run some extra wires and put the knocker up there so you really can just hear that bell resonate. Oh, but man, just so tickled. It was an idea that I had, and it actually worked, and I just thought I'd love it. I love that thing. So that was super fun. I'm having a lot of fun with this game. This is a game that can be had for not a whole lot of money. This is a game that's not currently being championed, really. It's not like trying to find a medieval madness or something from back in the day. This is a game that you could probably find, maybe work a trade deal with someone, and then have a dang blast on it. And to that end, as I was playing it in the realm of today, in 2024, when we're surrounded by Insider Connected and everything that brings, is there a way, Stern Pinball, to backwards compatibilize or otherwise install Insider Connected into the Spike 1 generation of machines? I get not going back to Solid State or going back to SAM system or White Star, White Fish, whatever came out before. But the Spike system, Spike 1, has to be similar enough to Spike 2 that it's at least plausible. Now, is it worth the time investment of coding teams and things to come up with? I can't answer that. But I will say, if there was an upgrade kit available for my Spike 1 machine back here, I totally would get one, put it in there, throw it in the coin door or something, and be able to not only chase those achievements, but the online leaderboards and keeping track of your scores and the limited time. Okay, WrestleMania is going on this month. Play as John Cena and get 70 million points and get yourself a badge. Like, I would go crazy for that, and that would drive people to go and try to find this machine. What if there was a Hulk Hogan challenge, and you had to find an LE to go play to get that? I think that would be fun. So in terms of, you know, pushing that integration, especially if this is to turn into a paid subscription model at some point, something to think about, right? There's got to be at least a reason why it wouldn't be done, because if it works on Spike 2, chances are you could come up with something to work Spike 1 as well. Huh? Huh? What do you think? or are we going to have to wait for the whole Spike 1 systems and all the Spike 1 games, how about this, to all be redone as Spike 3s? Like this rumored Metallica game, from what I've heard, this X-Men title is next, whether it's another Deadpool versus Wolverine or it's X-Men 97 or just generic X-Men or a redo from the OG Wolverine machine, Magneto machine that they did back in the day and redo another one. And then Metallica is supposed to come out after that and it's supposed to be the Metallica... Was Metallica Spike 1 or was it before that? but Redone as a Spike 3 cabinet, that'll for sure have Insider connected. Would they go back to the well and redo WrestleMania and Spike 3? I don't think they would do that. But it would be nice to see if they could backwards compatibilize and put some QR readers in there. Just for the leaderboards alone and, like, online challenge modes and things, I think that would be fun. I wouldn't mind seeing Walking Dead Redone as a Spike 3 and maybe even KISS, to be honest. Well, we'll put that out there and see if I can manifest that into existence What else do we have to say? I think that's about everything that I wanted to cover in this episode I've been having a ton of fun It is important to step back every now and then From a hobby that you're so absorbed in And go do other things So I've been going out and about It's summertime We're coming up to the turn of the seasons Fall will be here before we know it And for all we know We're going to have another Stern Cornerstone dropped on us this month Alice in Wonderland is probably around the corner And then the floodgates are going to be open I've got a feeling that a lot of the other companies Spooky Pinball, American Pinball, Jersey Jack Pinball, all have games fairly ready to go and just waiting for that right marketing moment to decide, okay, let's go. In terms of a company like Spooky, they're building Scooby-Doos. I'm sure those sales are probably kind of caught up with demand now. Maybe one or two a week are getting built and put out there. I haven't heard any official numbers from them, or at least none that I can recall off the top of my head. Looney Tunes is really hitting its stride from what I understand. TCM is not far behind. and I've been playing a lot of TCM and just getting, falling back in love with that game. What a freaking game. You know, so do they want to go ahead and release another game so there's now four on the line, especially when they're just hitting their stride with Looney Tunes and everything, getting into the new factory? But I imagine, like, they've got it ready, but probably for December is what I'm thinking. So is somebody else going to try to run in there and snipe those dollars? Are there dollars to snipe? You know, if Alice in Wonderland was released right now, right now, It'd probably get some people to jump in on it. But if we wait until after Metallica's out and X-Men's out and Spooky's next one is out and maybe Avatar's out from Jersey Jack and Cuphead enters the chat and then Alice in Wonderland's released, I would think that sales would probably be harmed just a slight tad bit there, especially because everybody's finally getting their ABBAs. Maybe that's why that guy's selling his Godzilla 70th, because he just got confirmation that his ABBA is shipping and he needs to make the final payment for it. Who knows, man? We call that a callback in the industry. Anyway, I'm going to still get out there and touch grass, go swim in lakes, and have fun baking in the sunshine. I'm going to play pinball. We're going to let the summer dwindle down, and then we're going to get ready for spooky season to be here in the fall, man, in the fall.