deeproot Pinball's Latest Update...

Cary Hardy·video·16m 47s·analyzed·Apr 2, 2021

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.019

TL;DR

Deep Root Pinball's Raza update signals production crisis with delayed certifications and likely customer refund requests.

Summary

Cary Hardy delivers a critical analysis of Deep Root Pinball's April Fool's update to Raza customers, highlighting major red flags including delayed UL/CE certifications, supply chain failures, inability to produce beyond current orders, and offering refunds/store credit. Hardy expresses deep skepticism about the company's viability, noting his prior factory visit revealed serious production concerns and questioning whether customers should demand refunds.

Key Claims

UL certification has not yet been obtained despite years of development; this is a major red flag and should have been completed long ago
high confidence · Cary Hardy directly citing Deep Root's statement that UL is still pending and CE is only 95% complete, emphasizing certification should be standard prerequisite
Deep Root has supply chain issues severe enough that they cannot produce machines beyond current orders
high confidence · Deep Root's official statement: 'it now doesn't make sense to make more Raza machines than orders' due to vendor issues and inability to source parts
Five months after opening orders with promised February-March delivery, Deep Root is now saying no significant updates for six weeks and may not ship imminently
high confidence · Deep Root's statement: 'As we are coming up on five months now since we opened up orders' with goal to update mid-May
Cary Hardy personally visited Deep Root's facility and observed multiple red flags suggesting the company cannot deliver on promises
high confidence · Hardy: 'while we were there, guys, I'm telling you, we saw all kinds of red flags' and 'I didn't go inside the building where they are playing with pinball parts'
Deep Root is now offering store credit, discounts, or refunds as 'financial relief' for delays, suggesting they expect customer dissatisfaction and potential cancellations
high confidence · Deep Root's statement offering 'return of store credit, discount of the Raza purchase or allow customers to resend Raza purchases for a refund with nominal interest'

Notable Quotes

“I mean we warned you guys. We literally did all that we could do to warn you.”
Cary Hardy@ 0:00 — Opening statement setting tone of 'I told you so' regarding Deep Root's failures
“And I hate to say it guys but I honestly question and I had this in my thought while I was there I almost felt like this was a giant scam”
Cary Hardy@ 8:09 — Direct accusation of potential fraud based on factory visit observations
“It's been nothing but talk. Nothing but talk. And I don't think that we're ever going to see the walk.”
Cary Hardy@ 8:58 — Core criticism of Deep Root's complete lack of execution despite years of development
“I would take... give me my money back i'm going to give it to a manufacturer that i guaranteed to get my product”
Cary Hardy@ 12:19 — Direct advice to customers to demand refunds rather than wait
“Reading this, fuck no, you're not. You will not be getting replacement parts because they're just going to get just enough to get these games out.”
Cary Hardy@ 14:09 — Critique of long-term product viability due to lack of spare parts inventory
“I think their reputation is going to be so tarnished that they will not be able to make it through this.”
Cary Hardy@ 15:51 — Prediction of Deep Root's business failure even if they eventually deliver Raza

Entities

Deep Root Pinballcompany Cary Hardyperson Razagame Barry OurslerpersonUL (Underwriters Laboratories)organizationCE (Conformité Européenne)organization

Signals

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business_signal: Deep Root Pinball facing existential supply chain and certification crisis; company now offering refunds and store credit, signaling imminent customer defections
high · Deep Root's offer of 'return of store credit, discount of the Raza purchase or allow customers to resend Raza purchases for a refund' indicates expected widespread cancellations
?
community_signal: Cary Hardy and others (mentioned as 'the deep six') observed serious red flags during factory visit suggesting production is not viable at promised scale
high · Hardy: 'while we were there, guys, I'm telling you, we saw all kinds of red flags' and 'I can tell you that definitely I was not the only one who felt very concerned'
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community_signal: Deep Root Pinball facing public accusations of scam-like behavior and complete project failure; community media figures calling for customer refunds
high · Hardy: 'I almost felt like this was a giant scam' and directly advises customers to demand money back
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market_signal: Narrative solidifying that Deep Root Pinball is fundamentally incapable of manufacturing and will not survive; boutique manufacturer as cautionary tale
high · Hardy's repeated theme: 'It's been nothing but talk' and 'I think their reputation is going to be so tarnished that they will not be able to make it through this'
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community_signal: Barry Oursler's reputation at risk of permanent damage despite personal integrity; association with failed Deep Root project threatening his industry standing

Topics

Deep Root Pinball production crisis and delaysprimaryProduct safety certifications (UL/CE) as production bottleneckprimarySupply chain and parts sourcing failuresprimaryCustomer refund strategy and loss of confidenceprimaryLong-term product support and spare parts availability concernssecondaryReputation damage and business viability of boutique manufacturerssecondaryFactory visit observations and red flagssecondary

Sentiment

negative(-0.92)— Cary Hardy is deeply critical and frustrated with Deep Root Pinball, expressing skepticism about the company's viability, integrity, and ability to deliver. Despite stating 'I hope they succeed,' his tone is overwhelmingly pessimistic with accusations of scam-like behavior. Frustration is directed at Deep Root's incompetence and customer's misplaced faith.

Transcript

youtube_groq_whisper · $0.050

I mean we warned you guys. We literally did all that we could do to warn you. What's up guys? Welcome back to my channel where I talk and do everything pinball. So if that sounds interesting to you then hit that subscribe button down below. So today is April Fool's and of course whenever this announcement comes from Deep Root, you almost hope that it is a joke, that it's not real. I legitimately hate this day because I almost just stay off of social media because there's so many false things that get posted to get a laugh or joke or get people riled up and I just can't stand it. So I kind of just stay away. But this is something that I feel like needs to be brought up. And the thing is, guys, I legitimately do not like talking about Deep Root. This is one of those things where I want to put it behind me. And, as much as I want to, I feel like maybe I still need to pass along more information to you to give you a better idea of how little faith I have for what especially I'm reading here in this statement that was released. Now, this statement that is put out obviously only gets sent to those that are purchasing or have put in, I guess, a pre-order to purchase a Raza game. This is not something that they post to everyone for everyone to see. So, obviously, someone who is purchasing a game keeps releasing these updates to the public. Lots of red flags are throughout this. And almost to a point where I suspect that they're starting to have little faith in their own product. Or it's like they are starting to see that it may not come to fruition. And they understand how a lot of people are having doubts and them being able to get this game out, let alone future products. So, for those who don't want to read this, I'm going to read it to you. I am not a big fan of watching videos for someone reading the news to me, but for whatever reason, those particular channels get a lot of views because I guess a lot of people don't like to read. So, by all means, here we go. Dear Raza customer, we hope all is well. As promised before, we want to provide a timely update about where things are now. The latest we have from the lab is that the UL for the USA and Canada reports are being prepared. We have passed the SAA requirements and 95% of the CE requirements. While product safety have passed, the emissions and interference test metrics for a few of the CE countries require additional modifications. We are still being told it will take 4-5 weeks for the final CE certification reports after our fixes pass the tests. The UL reports should be here in the next few weeks, which allow us to move forward on those machines. Now let me comment on what this is because I know there's probably a good amount of you out there that don't know what any of that was that is mentioned in here and what the UL is and stuff like that. So what this is, it is basically you getting your product certified to show that it is safe to put in people's homes. The UL is for the USA then you have the CE which is for like you know outside of the USA European countries and stuff like that. And here's the thing guys, to get your UL it legitimately takes thousands of dollars anywhere between like $5,000 and up to get a product UL certified. And it can take like six months, if not more, depending on if everything is good to go. If you have a product, you send it in, they run all their tests and have all these different metrics to make sure that it is safe for this product to go into the masses' homes. That's only if there are no issues. If there are issues found, like he states, then it's going to take longer because you have to take your product, make the adjustments in order for them to test it further and to make sure it passes. So this is something that should have been done a long time ago. This should have been done, but they weren't done with their product, even though they have supposedly been working on it for all this time. These years, it is still not done. They still do not have the US UL. So this is a big old, this whole paragraph is just red flags waving around. So on to the next paragraph. We continue to appreciate many of our vendors being able to timely get us quality parts to spec. Unfortunately, some vendors are still having issues with global and regional supply chain disruptions. We thank you again for your patience. Despite the past, we are working hard to be accountable for lead and timelines. As we are coming up on five months now since we opened up orders, when our teams were confident that we could deliver by February to March, we definitely are frustrated at our inability to follow through and overcome internal and external obstacles. While some things are outside of our control, we understand the importance of delivering on the promises made. As such, it now doesn't make sense to make more Raza machines than orders. So with that paragraph, that points out that they're going to be even surprised that they're able to get out the machines that are currently ordered, let alone any more than that, because they are supposedly unable to get all the parts they need from the suppliers. These are, once again, things that should have been lined out and accomplished months ago. You don't... This is starting to... I mean, because the more and more I read this stuff, guys, it's more eye-opening and I hope it's more eye-opening to those of you out there that put your money in that. Obviously people don't know what's going on over there or what needs to be done. This is very questionable guys. I mean to the point to where it's like what are they doing? This is, these are things that, it's almost mind boggling. It really is. This is something that I really question. And while we were there, guys, I'm telling you, we saw all kinds of red flags to the point to where we're like, there's no way this can happen. No, there's no way that they're going to be able to get it out in time. There's no way that this is the product that they supposedly going to be able to mass produce and get out to people. And I hate to say it guys but I honestly question and I had this in my thought while I was there. I almost felt like this was a giant scam. And I hate to say that, I do, and I've said it before, and I guess I'm going to continue to say it. I want them to succeed. But with what we are being shown and told, this brings in a large amount of questions of their ability to be able to produce a product. It's upsetting because it's been nothing but talk. Nothing but talk. And I don't think that we're ever going to see the walk. On to the next paragraph. With current lead times on the certifications and parts, there will not be any significant updates in the next six weeks. Our goal is to update in mid-May and at that time, if games are not imminently ready to start shipping, to offer some financial relief for the delays in the form of a return of store credit, discount of the Raza purchase or allow customers to rescind Raza purchases for a refund with nominal interest. What the fuck? So, we want to be able to return for store credit. For what? What else are you selling? What are they going to be... For food truck? Do you think people are going to want to put in an order for food truck whenever you can't even get your first fucking game out? No! With every delay, with every message sent out, with every excuse that continuously gets thrown out, you are losing potential buyers. And I feel so sad for Barry Oursler up there who has been waiting so long to get his game out to people and the chances are when it finally does get made no one's going to have faith in you and so no one's going to buy his game. There's going to be some but nowhere near as much as people should. It's sad. It really is. All right, so last paragraph. To those on this mail list that are not Raza customers but are waiting for surplus machines, we are so sorry that there will be no longer a surplus of machines. However, if some Raza customers do decide to rescind their contracts, we will offer those first-come, first-served machines to the list for the original prices. Please do not contact us about this yet. We will only be able to provide an idea of availability closer to end of May once purchasers decide if they want to rescind their purchase. I'm almost willing to guarantee you a majority of these people will, and if they won't, they should. I would. I mean, I wouldn't have put it in order. But let's say, for instance, I didn't go inside the factory. I don't want to call it a factory. I didn't go inside the building where they are playing with pinball parts. If I was on the outside looking in and I had faith in this company to make me a machine that I paid for, seeing this stuff right here, I would take it. I would like, no, no, give me my money back. I'm going to give it to a manufacturer that I'm guaranteed to get my product from. And I played this game guys enough to where I like it. Not worth it. It's not worth it. Not. This is crazy. It's saddening. And the last word, of course, after that paragraph is best exclamation point. So I believe with reading this, they are aware that people are going to start wanting their money back. They're like, okay, there's no way we can pull people's chains for this much longer and not get orders out. This is crazy. I seriously would like to talk to some of you out there that have legitimately put in your order for Raza. Contact me and we need to have a conversation and I would love to hear your reasoning behind your continued faith in this because I really question those that are like just hanging in there just like I'm gonna get it. We're finally going to get it. Because at this rate, guys, with what they're saying, what is the main concern whenever you purchase a pinball machine? Think about it. Are you going to be able to get replacement parts? Reading this, fuck no, you're not. You will not be getting replacement parts because they're just going to get just enough to get these games out. They've already stated they're not going to have excess amount of parts because they're already having trouble getting the amount of parts they need to even make the games, let alone have a back stock for those of you out there that want to replace a broken part, which is bound to happen. Bound to happen. So you're going to spend all this time waiting for a game and, of course, the amount of money to get a product that eventually is going to break down because all machines do and you are not going to be able to bring it back to life. I really don't know what else I need to say to you guys about this company because like I said I don't like talking about them. I was hoping that I was done. I wanted to basically give you guys a warning that there was no production line. It was all talk and the red flags involved that we all saw. The deep six and I, including myself, rather, whatever what we saw and we all had concerns. I can't speak for the other five. I don't want to drag them into this with me. But I can tell you that definitely I was not the only one who felt very concerned about what we saw and what the future is for this company. And like I state every single time I talk about them, I hope they succeed, but with continued delays and for what we're reading, it seems like they have little faith in themselves now as well. I think their reputation is going to be so tarnished that they will not be able to make it through this. Alright, so guys, what do you think about all this? How do you feel about it? Let me know in the comment section down below. If you like what you've seen here, or heard rather, then give me the thumbs up, and if you haven't already, don't forget to hit the subscribe button down below. That way you can be notified whenever I upload something for your viewing pleasure. Until next time, guys. Viva la Raza.