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Saturday Morning Spectacular!

Kaneda Pinball Podcasts YouTube Lives·video·1h 36m·analyzed·Apr 19, 2025
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Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.031

TL;DR

Kaneda praises Kong's gameplay but condemns playfield art, LE model, and Stern's creative fatigue.

Summary

Kaneda delivers a lengthy, passionate critique of Stern's King Kong pinball machine, praising its gameplay and shot design while heavily criticizing the playfield artwork as cluttered and inconsistent with the theme. He also expresses broader concerns about Stern's creative direction, the LE pricing model's viability, and fatigue with the consistent Zombie Yeti/Keith Elwin aesthetic across recent releases.

Key Claims

  • King Kong playfield artwork is poorly executed and cluttered, described as looking like 'clown vomit'

    high confidence · Kaneda's direct visual critique of the artwork multiple times throughout the episode

  • King Kong LE production number of 932 units is too high; should have been limited to 500 like Metallica

    high confidence · Kaneda explicitly states '932 is way too many. They should have made only 500 LEs of Kong.'

  • King Kong is Keith Elwin's easiest and most accessible game to date

    high confidence · Kaneda: 'seemingly is also...his easiest game to date, which by the way, I think will translate into being the most fun Keith Elwin game ever'

  • Stern is reusing the same cabinet artwork across all three Kong models (Pro/Premium/LE), which is lazy

    high confidence · Kaneda observes: 'Did you notice how Stern is using the same artwork on the cabinets for all three models?'

  • King Kong LE translite features a damsel who 'apparently Kong can't save her according to the licensers,' which Kaneda calls 'the dumbest thing I've ever heard'

    high confidence · Kaneda's direct quote about licensing constraints on the storyline

  • The LE model for pinball machines is dead; recent LE buyers are losing money as games no longer appreciate

    high confidence · Kaneda: 'I think the LE model only worked when your games went up in value. Now it just doesn't make any sense...everyone who's bought an LE recently just keeps losing money'

  • Keith Elwin's recent games (Jaws and Kong) lack the 'mechanical magic' present in his earlier work like Godzilla

    high confidence · Kaneda compares Kong's toys unfavorably to Godzilla, Jurassic Park T-Rex, X-Men Sentinel, and D&D dragon

  • King Kong's narrative is confusing and disjointed; unclear who the player is actually playing as

    high confidence · Kaneda questions: 'how does that even make sense? Like if you're playing as the female character in King Kong...how does that make sense?'

Notable Quotes

  • “I don't have to congratulate you for working hard. I should congratulate you for how you executed on your hard work.”

    Kaneda @ early segment — Sets his critical philosophy: judging results, not effort. Explains his approach to reviewing games and companies

  • “This playfield artwork looks like a clown vomited all over it. And I don't care if you're Kevin O'Connor, Greg Ferris, Jeremy Packer. Guys, look at this playfield.”

    Kaneda @ mid-Kong discussion — Harsh, memorable critique of Kong's artwork design; establishes his core complaint about the game

  • “How did you make Godzilla for 10.5k for an LE and you're making King Kong for 13k and you had a license, no assets.”

    Kaneda @ pricing critique segment — Questions the pricing logic: Kong costs $2,500 more than Godzilla despite having no original assets to pull from

  • “932 is way too many. They should have made only 500 LEs of Kong.”

    Kaneda @ LE production critique — Criticizes production numbers; references scarcity strategy used on Metallica LE

  • “The magic lies in the upper left region of the game...there's so much fun combos happening in this game.”

    Kaneda @ gameplay praise segment — Identifies specific positive aspect of game design; shows technical understanding of shot layout

  • “I think Jaws gave Jaws lovers everything and more what they wanted in a game...I think if you love King Kong, you're not getting everything you love about the franchise. You're just not.”

    Kaneda @ theme execution comparison — Core criticism: Kong fails to deliver on IP expectations unlike Godzilla and Jaws

  • “Stern is now like Marvel and they're just launching comic books and every comic book looks sort of similar.”

    Kaneda @ creative fatigue segment — Metaphor for creative staleness; suggests Stern is over-relying on formulaic approach

  • “A Keith Elwin game, not selling out the LE in in a week. That that's like it that's the state of modern pinball now, gang.”

Entities

KanedapersonStern PinballcompanyKing KonggameDune PinballgameKeith ElwinpersonZombie YetipersonBarrels of FuncompanyCarrie Hardyperson

Signals

  • ?

    business_signal: LE pricing model unsustainable; games no longer appreciate, recent LE buyers losing money, Kong LE did not sell out in first week

    high · Kaneda: 'I think the LE model only worked when your games went up in value. Now it just doesn't make any sense...everyone who's bought an LE recently just keeps losing money'

  • ?

    design_philosophy: King Kong playfield artwork heavily criticized as cluttered, busy, colorful, and thematically misaligned—doesn't convey jungle or 1930s New York City aesthetic

    high · Kaneda: 'This playfield artwork looks like a clown vomited all over it...explosion of all different colors fighting for your attention. It's terrible.'

  • ?

    licensing_signal: King Kong licensing restricts narrative execution; damsel character cannot be shown in distress per licenser approval, limiting storyline authenticity

    high · Kaneda: 'Kong can't save her according to the licensers. That is the dumbest thing I've ever heard.'

  • $

    market_signal: King Kong LE did not sell out within first week, unusual for Keith Elwin game; indicates reduced demand for premium pinball machines

    high · Kaneda: 'A Keith Elwin game, not selling out the LE in in a week. That that's like it that's the state of modern pinball now'

  • ?

    community_signal: Zombie Yeti, as Stern's art director, may be over-applying personal artistic style to games without allowing theme to dictate aesthetic direction

    medium · Kaneda: 'Zombie Yeti needs to go on a sabbatical...part of his job is to make sure you match up the right artist with the assignment and don't just make it your style on everything'

Transcript

youtube_auto_sub · $0.000

0:14
Oh, we're going to do this. We're going to do it right. We're going to effing do it right. We ain't taking no prisoners on this episode. It's
0:35
time. It's time. We're going to sit down and we're going to just talk pinball people. Let's get the link going. Let's do this. Copy link. Let's go to Facebook and get those clowns in here. Yeah. Who's doing a show right now? Who's bringing the heat? Canada. All the haters out there got nothing. Nothing. No views, no nothing. Let's talk pinball.
1:17
Oh. Ah. Yeah. Let's get in this seat. Can got some um Let's get this mic over here a little bit. Oh yeah. Who we got in the house here? Who we got here? Who wants to talk some pinball today? I'm fighting a cold. It doesn't stop Canada from doing. I think the most entertaining pinball podcast there is. Maybe there ever will be the only one who can like talk about these companies without his tail between his legs. I get it. We're going to talk about what we like about the games that came out this week. There were some winners, man. There were some losers. And there was like a lot of debate, a lot of conversation. But man, I'll tell you this. I'll tell you this. Nobody Nobody has the guts. The G they want to say stuff. We're going to talk about everybody on this episode. Nobody is immune to what we're going to do on this Saturday morning. I'm feeling good. Well, I'm not feeling good. I'm sick. But I'm feeling good because all you guys are here. Ah, you know, I don't know if it was Scotland, if it was all the whisies, the double jamos, but man, this is a this is going to be a fun show. Let will everybody rock in a little bit. I want to thank the crew over at Spooky Pinball for sending me this shirt. Not just not just a Spooky Shill shirt, but man, in my color. In my color. And you want to talk about how a company should handle Canada? Take a look over at Spooky Pinball. People, I'm not even shilling their product. They made a great game. You don't have to shill for Spooky. They're just in the driver's seat, man. They're running circles around some other company we're going to talk about. A lot of bad blood between, you know, the bad blood's only going one way. Trust me. Trust me. A lot of people want to get credit for stuff they didn't achieve yet. We're gonna talk all about it, people, because I'm I'm a little triggered. I'm a little triggered. I feel this pressure lately. You've got to say nice stuff about us because we worked hard. No, I don't. I don't. I don't have to congratulate you for working hard. I should congratulate you for how you executed on your hard work. And I I basically have lost some friends over this past week. I'm going to talk about it because I think the whole thing is just quite comical. Quite comical. So, we're going to talk all about it. And, you know, we're going to talk about the two games that came out. Obviously, big week for Stern and Barrels of Fun. Some news on uh Pinball Brothers, whatever. Whatever. Whatever. Right. It's like you hear the words pinball brothers and you could give two shits's until they prove themselves. I don't think anybody is uh you know clamoring to see what's next from Pinball Brothers. Even though they do have the best theme for the pinball buying demographic. Um it's been a um it's been a a rough six weeks for me, but I'm finally post hernia surgery recovery period where I can actually go back to the gym. So I went yesterday for the first time in six weeks. So, I've been a little cranky. I like to exercise. I lost some of my some of my guns, but I'll get them back. I'll get them back. But I don't like to go a week without exercise. You might hear me cough a little bit. It's just because I'm I've got a cold, but we're going to talk about everything. You didn't go to Stern and get on those banana flippers. Oh man. So, I was invited to Stern Pinball. I was invited to barrels of fun pinball. I could not go last week. something called work, real work. You know, both of these companies invited people in the middle of the work week and I I got to watch everybody's coverage of both games. I lived vicariously through all the individuals who went over there. We're going to do a little funny skit. I'm going to do a skit later today where I'm going to recreate her uh Carrie Hardy's review of Dune Pinball. I don't know if you watched Carrie's video on Dune. I don't know if you've seen it yet, but I maybe we got it early because we're Patreon subscribers, but I'm going to I'm going to give you guys a a parody, if you will, of Carrie Hardy's review of Dune Pinball, and it is absolutely spot-on what I'm going to do. It's like it's like it's like painting him to try to say stuff like with some energy and enthusiasm. And you could see like it's like that's the thing gang is when you go to these companies and you walk around the facilities, you definitely have a little bit of a a conscience that you want to be nicer about everything happening. I didn't go I didn't drink anybody's Kool-Aid. Uh I also don't care anymore. Like I I just I think people understand by now if you want to listen to the most entertaining pinball podcaster out there, you're gonna come to Canadas Pinball Podcast. I mean, it just is. It's like every week it's not like this negative place. Like it's so funny to me how like people don't understand. You don't do this for as many years as I've done this and have the most subscribers in the history of pinball podcasting because you're crapping on everything. So, let's start out, gang. Let's let you guys decide. Okay, we're let's let a few more minutes people come in, but let's let's uh What's up, Dana? How's everybody doing? Let's do this. I want to give a shout out to everybody who's here right now. Who do we got in the house right now? Let's do this. Let's spend the next couple minutes. You say hi, and I'm gonna say hi back and call out your name. Now, we've got like 80 people here, so I might not do all 80, but let's just say hi. Juicy time. What's up? What's up, Juicy Time Anthony? What's up, brother? Oh, we got uh Dave Sanders, what's up, brother? Prime League Vic is in the house. We got Gino. We got Who else we got here? Walter, what's up, brother? Chris Lou, yo, yo, call me. Chris, is this Chris Lou like down the block or is this a different like we got uh Brad, we got Drew, we got Brian JPL Connecticut in the house, Richard Pete Rosen. We got a good crew, baby. We got a good crew. Where's Retro Ralph? Where is he? I was talking to him all last week. We got to get Retro Ralph in the house. He'll join. And we got to get Carrie Carrie Hardy, Christopher Franchie, Keith is in the house. RK Villy, Nick, what's up? Tilt Pin. How you guys doing? You guys all subscribers? Kong over Kong Overload. Overload. We're going to talk all about King Kong. I got a lot of feelings about King Kong. I got a lot of feelings about Doom Pinball. Uh, that's going to be the main things we talk about on this show. What's up, Dennis? Where you guys at? You guys at Isn't there a show this weekend? It's like Pinball at the Zoo this weekend. Pinball at the Zoo. Big Gorilla. Heath Elwin's latest. All right, we'll let you guys decide. Do you want to talk about Dune or Kong first? I'll let you guys decide which way we go. Dune or King Kong. Where do you want Canada to start today? because I got a lot of feelings both of these games and we're going to do it at the 10 minute like the let's let's give it another

Kaneda @ closing remarks — Market signal: Kong LE didn't sell out quickly, indicating reduced demand for premium models

Christopher Franchi
person
Spooky Pinballcompany
Pinball Brotherscompany
Kevin O'Connorperson
Greg Ferrisperson
Godzillagame
Jawsgame
Data East King Konggame
Metallica LEgame
Pinball at the Zooevent
  • $

    market_signal: King Kong priced $2,500 higher than Godzilla LE despite lacking original assets and delivering less thematic content; pricing disconnect from value

    high · Kaneda: 'How did you make Godzilla for 10.5k for an LE and you're making King Kong for 13k and you had a license, no assets. So like I that's it. Like in a lot of ways it's like a hard stop.'

  • ?

    product_strategy: King Kong three-tier model (Pro/Premium/LE) lacking meaningful differentiation; same cabinet artwork across all models, minimal unique features on LE

    high · Kaneda: 'Stern is using the same artwork on the cabinets for all three models...you're not missing much with the moving Kong and everything else...there's not enough to warrant the LE of this game'

  • ?

    product_concern: King Kong's mechanical toys and mechs described as unremarkable; lacks 'mechanical magic' compared to Godzilla, lacking standout interactive features

    high · Kaneda: 'I don't think there's a toy or mech in this game that's that interesting...from a toy standpoint, I think this game is a little bit of a miss'

  • ?

    product_concern: Inconsistency in animation style across King Kong; some sequences are illustrated/cartoonish, others are CGI/90s video game style, suggesting possible AI-generated graphics

    medium · Kaneda: 'There's some moments in the animations where Kong looks much more illustrated and cartoonish and then others where he looks more like CGI looking uh more kind of like 90s video game looking'

  • ~

    sentiment_shift: Growing community fatigue with Stern's creative direction; Zombie Yeti's consistent artistic style applied across all recent releases creates formulaic appearance

    high · Kaneda: 'I think real fatigue is starting to set in...Stern is now like Marvel and they're just launching comic books and every comic book looks sort of similar'

  • ?

    business_signal: Stern constraining LE production numbers; Kong produced 932 units vs. strategic 500 for Metallica, diluting scarcity narrative

    high · Kaneda: '932 is way too many. They should have made only 500 LEs of Kong.'

  • ?

    licensing_signal: King Kong game lacks original movie assets, requiring Stern to generate custom animations and artwork; contrasts sharply with Godzilla and Jaws

    high · Kaneda: 'How did you make Godzilla for 10.5k for an LE and you're making King Kong for 13k and you had a license, no assets.'

    • 9:26
    minute. All right, pretty split here. Day one sub we're getting more for King Kong. We got one I love when someone's like Kong or Dune and they're like not not Dune. Um okay, you guys want to talk about King Kong? All right, Kong. It is It's gonna be Kong. So, let me just collect my thoughts on on King Kong because I've wa I just watched the whole stream again. I um it's interesting when you're watching a stream. I think I want to start out by saying this. When you watch a stream of a pinball machine, it is it is not a natural way to really uh feel what it's like obviously to play the game, right? It's a physical game. It's also like I think what's interesting about watching streams because you've got all the windows up at the same time is you're you're able to like you're able to like take in game play and what's on the screen and like a mech and the people playing all at once. And that's really like kind of fun but also really not authentic to what the experience of playing the game is like. So when you you know so like so like for example when you're watching a stream I do think a stream has a tendency to make the clips seem a lot more disjointed than it probably feels like when you're playing the game. So here's my feelings on Kong. And I have a lot of feelings on this game. I think first and foremost I want to go down what I like and love about King Kong. Okay. I want to start out with the things that I really like about this game. And I think there's been a lot of conversation around this game. But I think first and foremost, the thing I like about King Kong is game play, right? Game play, gameplay, game play. This seems to be quite possibly maybe Keith Elwin's best shooting game to date. Uh, it seemingly is also, and I think this is accurate, I think it's going to be his easiest game to date, which by the way, I think will translate into being the most fun Keith Elwin game ever for the pinball buying demographic. I think some of his other games, if you're honest with yourselves, are somewhat difficult. And I think Kong is going to be a lot easier, a lot easier for a lot of you to play. Is my audio clipping? Someone said the audio is clipping. Let me know because some people sometimes say this and it's not me, it's it's you. So, how does the audio sound right now?
    12:34
    fine. Okay, so I think this is going to be one of the the best shooting Keith Ellwin games to date. And I also when I looked at the gameplay and I've been studying it and I'm like, man, everyone's on the wrong side of the game. To me, where the magic lies in this game, it are the shots in the upper left. Like when that ball is going in the upper left area of the game and it's got the wire form shot that simulates a airplane propeller going around like that is the greatest I think shot I'm seeing in this game. And I think there's so much I think it's just me hitting my table here. I think there's so much fun combos happening in this game and I think there's just so much rewarding uh shot geometry happening and especially happening in the upper left region of the game. And I think there's a lot of focus on the gorilla and the train and the gong, but I don't think that's where the magic lies in this game. I think the magic lies uh in the other shots happening moving towards the upper left. Now, that being said, the uh the shots in this game, uh I don't I I you know, you know what's hard? It's hard to like completely separate what I love and what I don't love because also I think what's somewhat somewhat difficult is to see the shot geometry, you know, with the
    14:13
    what you you're interrupting me. What's up? Um can you cast while we away? Yeah. Yeah. Hold on. Kill. Come in. Kill. Say hi. Lean in. Hi. Hi. You want me to mine Cassie while you're away? Where you guys going? Okay. Yeah, I'll hear. I'll listen for him. All right. All right, buddy. How do you move it? I I moved it. I moved it. Daddy duty. That was cute. Um, okay. So, the the the artwork makes it really hard to look down at the playfield and see the shot layout. I'm going to get to the artwork, people. Don't worry. I'm going to get to the artwork. It It really makes it hard to sort of see where the balls are going. Okay. But I think with especially with the center post, I mean, they put a center post into a Keith Owen game that doesn't even have a flipper gap. And the reason it's there is this game is paying homage to the Data East game, right? Same artist that did the playfield on the Data East was brought over here. Um, is it Kevin Connor? I I don't know. Is it Connor O' Conor? Like who who you guys help me out here. Who's the artist from the Data East game? But the Data East King Kong had a center post. So that is like Kevin O' Conor. Okay. So that is why it is there. Now that's absolutely going to make the ball times a a little bit longer. So I think you know the game is definitely going to have uh some some long ball times for people. Again I think it's a good thing. I think Elwin's games in the past, especially Godzilla, like it's hard. I think some of his games are too hard. And I think you're never going to get through them. And I think this is going to be probably most of the pinball buying demographics most friendly Elwin game to date. Okay. And it's and it's like packed, right? All right. So, I love the layout. All right. I love the music in the game. I I heard people talk about this. No, the music's great. The music is great. It It really has the right sort of atmospheric King Kong Kong the drums. Like I I I love all that. Love it. Love it. Love it. I I think the music is great. Um it is very cinematic, Joseph. Absolutely. Okay. So, I love that. What else do I love about this game? Um when it comes to the toys and mechs in this game, uh you know, like I I think they do the job. I I don't think there's a toy or mech in this game that's that interesting. I absolutely don't. So I And and knowing that they put the subway car in last minute and it does feel like it was put in there a little last minute. And I think Kong was supposed to hit the balls with his open hand and they changed that up. I think that was probably just too random. And so now you have Kong's arms, you know, Allah Incredible Hulk. Kong's arms will now do something every time that is gameplay related. And I think that was probably a smart move. It does look like that subway car is blocked by the gong uh mechanism. I I don't know. For those who have played it, you probably have a better a better sense of that. So, I I I think the toys are all right. I h I don't see any toys do anything with the ball that's really unique. And I think on that level, it's a little bit of a letdown of the lack of mechanical magic in a toy. We saw more mechanical magic with the Godzilla building. We saw more mechanical magic with the Godzilla magnet captive ball that grabbed the ball. I'm not feeling any sort of like toy magic happening here on the game. So, I I think that that's like I don't know, right? It's like it I I w I think a lot of us were probably expecting a more magical mech. I think the dragon in Dn D is much better JPL. I also think the uh the Sentinel in X-Men is much more woow. I think um Godzilla's mechs are more woow. I think uh Jurassic Park T-Rex is much nicer. So, from a toy standpoint, I think this game is a little bit of a miss. Uh it's not bad, but it's not great. Uh coming off of Jaws, which has no interesting toys in it, I think Elwin has gone like 0 for two since Godzilla in putting mechanical wow into the game. So, that's just my opinion. Uh, you can take it or leave it. All right. What else do I like about the game? I I like the Ellie Translate. I do. Someone uh, you know, I think the Ellie Translate with the damsel in distress who apparently, you know, Kong can't save her according to the licensers. That is the dumbest thing I've ever heard. Uh, everybody would be in distress and need saving if King Kong was trying to uh, come after you. And that's the whole Kong storyline is he falls in love with the the blonde and he's saving her from the airplanes and from the humans that are trying to kill him. So, the fact that they didn't I'm going to talk about that and what I don't like about this game. All right. So, what else do I like about this game? Uh I I do think the you know this is kind of like I I like some of it. I don't like other parts of it. I really uh I really like the some of the animations. I think some of the animations are absolutely stellar and killer. I think other ones are mediocre and weird to me. I don't know what Stern's doing in their animation department. It definitely feels like they're using I bet they're using some AI to generate some of this stuff graphically. Uh, and it's just there's a lack of consistency in the um in the in the actual animations themselves. Let me see if I can pull this up. I I downloaded Let me see if I can pull up screenshots because I was taking screenshots. Um, I'm not going to do it now, but but basically like there's some moments in the animations where Kong looks much more illustrated and cartoonish and then others where he looks more like CGI looking uh more kind of like 90s video game looking and and there's not a lot of consist. It's not all consistent. So, I think some of it is just good, some of it is bad. And I know the code is early on. Um, so you know, there's that. All right. So, like as a theme, I also like King Kong. You know, I I I do think like it's it's a good theme for pinball, but you know. Okay. So, what what what don't I like about King Kong or what would I have changed? Well, I obviously I would have liked to have been an Empire State Building mechanism and and and seeing Kong climate would have been epic. like he should have swung around and the plane should have gone around the top of the Empire State Building. Maybe that's going to be the topper. But in my honest opinion, a total miss there. A total miss. I just Sorry. I also I also would have liked them to have done one side of the playfield is the city and one side the jungle. I really thought it could have been super cool to sort of create the two iconic environments that Kong ends up in and almost like split the playfield with one side being city, one side being jungle. I thought that would have been a really cool thing to do. Instead, it's kind of just all mashed together. And and that's probably one of my biggest sort of like I don't I don't know if it's like complaints, but things I'm just not vibing with is like as I watched the stream of this game, I was watching like a three minute game play of Kong and I was watching the clips that were coming up and it was going from uh dudes in a boat like going through the jungle. Then right away there's a clip of Kong climbing a building. Then right away there's Kong shaking a log knocking off sailors. Then right away it's King Kong battling a lizard or a spider. Like all this is just happening at once. And so like as I was watching that I'm like I don't like this. Like I don't I don't know what's going on. Like why is this game all over the place? And and it's like so schizophrenic. Like I don't even understand. And then I asked someone like who are you playing in this game? because I do think a game's code and narrative and storyline are super important in keeping you coming back for more. And someone said, "You're playing as the damsel in distress, but she's not in distress. You're playing as the woman in the storyline." So, when I saw that, I was like, "Wait, what?" Like, how does that even make sense? Like, cuz think about it. Like if you're playing as the female character in King Kong, then how does that make sense? Because okay, so for example, there's a mode where you got to get the sailors across the log as Kong is shaking the log. And how does that make sense? So who do do you play as King Kong or is someone just pulling my chain? Because I heard in they someone said in an interview that Keith did that you were playing as the woman. So, I I just don't understand how that makes sense. Um, and I'm not sure who you're playing as. See, in Godzilla, you're playing as Godzilla. And so, like everything in that game is connected to you being Godzilla. So, in King Kong, I feel like it's kind of all over the place and nothing about the modes like really makes sense if you're the woman in the in the story line. Okay. So, like I I don't like that. I I think it's disjointed and I think it's just like I don't I think it's going to grow old, maybe old a little fast. Like I do, you know, because again, like you're not clicking with a movie or movies or assets that you really like. Okay? And I'm just going to come out and say it. I don't like that this game does not pull from any of the iconic Kong movies. I don't, you know, I don't know how you go from Godzilla and get everything to King Kong and get nothing and charge $3,000 more for King Kong. So just on a very basic level, how did you make Godzilla for 105 for an LE and you're making King Kong for 13 and you had a license, no
    25:55
    assets. So like I that's it. Like in a lot of ways it's like a hard stop. Like that doesn't make any sense to me, you know? And again, like I know Stern's paying their animation animated animating department and whatnot, but like okay, but you can't tell me that like if you're a fan of King Kong and you jump on this machine, it just feels like you're playing a Netflix animated King Kong cartoon show. And there is one. There's like a Skull Island Netflix Kong show that looks a little bit more like an anime. That's what this game feels like. And again, so what I think is going to happen is this. I think the gameplay is going to be there. The like, you know, the Elwin, the rewarding shots are going to be there, but I do think it's going to get old. It's going to get old playing this animated calm. I I I just think it's going to get old and tiresome. I mean, they're really going to have to work hard to make the modes like super special and and and get you to connect with the game, but I do worry about the fact that the assets not being there are going to over time, you know, make this game feel more like Aven Avengers, right? Because remember like Avengers wasn't the Avengers movie. It was like this animated Avengers game. And same thing with King Kong. So, um, you know, so that's something that time will tell on and nobody here knows it, right? I, you know, I was listening to people like it's it was funny to me people going to Stern. They're like, "After one ball, I knew this was a better game than like what you played one ball." And I don't think I don't think anybody who played this game during a honeymoon period while they were at Stern Pinball really knows what it's going to feel like playing this game for a month. So that's just like the you know the other thing too is I don't know Godzilla gave so much that I'm I'm just not sure Jaws gave so much and Jaws has such campiness. The you know the my favorite part of watching the Kong stream is is like the beginning you know they got that like black and white film reel. I feel like they should have done it all that way. There's something about this game when it gets to that like grayscale black and white old film reel. We're in the jungle, you know, like the the vibe of the early movies. That's what they should have made this game. That feels really Kong to me. And it feels like the, you know, the 1930s4s like film reel of like a mysterious creature on an island in the middle of of the Pacific, you know, and and I just don't get that when I look down at the thing that I don't like the most, which is the Playfield artwork. And and I don't care what anybody says. This Playfield artwork looks like a clown vomited all over it. And I don't care if you're Kevin O' Conor, Greg Ferris, Jeremy Packer. Guys, look at this playfield. It it it looks like Canada's wardrobe. It looks like Elvra did a line of Coke and then shot some acid. Like, it's it's so bad. Like it's so bad it's laughable. And by that it's so busy and cluttered and like an explosion of all different colors fighting for your attention. It's terrible. Okay. And I don't I don't need to go see it in person. I don't need to I don't need to do anything other than look at the damn thing. Okay. The amount of inserts in this game. It's Greg Ferris, man. Like the look at Greg's Elvra. Like look at Elvra. Like it's just this explosion of inserts. And it is maybe a more of a 90s way to do a game when you didn't have
    30:13
    screens. Let me go get a glass of water again because I'm like I I I'm not going to be able to make it through my dune if I don't get some liquid. Hold on. Give me one second. Dude, you like this beautiful This is an armoire, by the way. I got this for Brenda. 1920s
    30:38
    armoire. Super cool. Great artist on Etsy. Man, these like viral infections are the worst. They don't go away. They're like antibiotics.
    32:25
    Oh, all right. Where were we? The clutter on the right, gang. It's like I'm fighting I'm fighting it for you. Um, all right. So, here's the deal. Artwork is on the playfield is terrible. Sorry
    32:50
    guys, the artwork on the playfield, it's bad. The cabinet artwork I don't have an issue with. It's Yeti, of course, he's going to do a great job. But here's my thing. It's like, did you notice how Stern is using the same artwork on the cabinets for all three models? When I saw that, I was like, what what's happening here? Like, sorry, but now you're rushing. You're rushing your model of how you do three tiered model artwork. And so you're buying a Kongle that doesn't have unique cabinet artwork. That's lazy. And when it comes to like this game, from what I've heard people who have played it, I feel like it's like the pros the way to go. You're not missing much with the the moving Kong and everything else and the gong and the and the subway car.
    33:48
    So, I don't think these lees gang I think, look, they'll get to pass. It's going to pass. they they'll get sold through and you know they probably will eventually sell out, but I'm telling you right now um this this this is not going to be like the Ellie the fact that the Ellie art is on the freaking premium like you know what I'm saying? So then what it's just your translates different and you know someone's going to like probably just make a make a copy of it. Like it's so easy to do that. I I don't know. I just think that there's not enough to warrant the Ellie of this game. It just doesn't feel special. I think the LE's are dead. I think LE's in general are dead. And I think Stern's Ellie model is like over and and everyone who's bought an LE recently just keeps losing
    34:49
    money. The LE model only worked when your games went up in value. Now it just doesn't make any sense. you throw, you're gonna be able to throw like replacement armor on the premium and it'll look exactly the same. So, so overall overall, here's my thing. I think Kong is going to be a very celebrated game. I think the game play is going to be phenomenal. I think the artwork is uh on the playfield is atrocious. I think um the LLE's are not going to be like coveted like people think. So, if you bought an LE, I'm happy for you. I think these less will be 10 grand uh easily. I This is not going to be, oh, you have a Kong LE. I wish I got an LE. It's not going to be that. 932 is way too many. They should have made only 500 LE's of Kong. Uh 932 is way too many. They're going to be out there and about for a long time. And you know, look, I think uh I think in the end it feels like another Stern, which isn't a bad thing. It feels like there's a little fatigue happening here with like the Elwin Yeti vibe of how Stern games are looking. There's just a like I think there's just a little fatigue. I think people want Stern to take a little bit more of a risk. I think people are looking to Stern to sort of mix it up and let the theme dictate the way the game should look. I don't know how you went from that data east game to this clown puke color scheme. Like I'm sorry, guys. Like I don't know any other way to put it. Like you made a great color scheme if it was Canad's wardrobe, but it just doesn't it just doesn't work. Like this doesn't I don't know if this is like it doesn't feel like a jungle and it doesn't feel like a city landscape. And they would have been much better off, I think, making the art package look more jungleike and old school New York City. Um,
    36:59
    okay. Well, Yeti's got to be careful, gang, now that he's like the art director at Stern. He's just got to be careful that, you know, part of his job is to make sure you you match up the right artist with the assignment and don't just, you know, make it your style on everything. It just doesn't work that way. I mean, you can do it, but I I do think real fatigue is starting to set in and and and I think the fatigue is real now. But I I'm not upset about King Kong. I think King Kong looks like a lot of fun. I just feel no desire to buy one. Um, I think it's going to be a great game on location. The lack of assets, the lack of connecting with the source material is the main reason why I wouldn't buy one. I think Jaws Jaws gave Jaws lovers everything and more what they wanted in a game. You know, yeah, you didn't get the shark eating the ball, but you got the movie, man, that you love. And I think same thing with Godzilla. You got everything you loved about that franchise. I think if you love King Kong, you're not getting everything you love about the franchise. You're just not. Okay. I think that's a fair take on it all. I don't I I don't think that's like too negative. I don't think that's um you know, a controversial take on it. And I think that's
    38:24
    that Zombie Yeti needs to go on a sbatical. No, like it it's just it's just starting to feel like Stern is now like Marvel and and they're just launching comic books and every comic book looks sort of similar, right? I think that's the and it's it's I I'll say this, I'll play devil's advocate. Like they seem to be pretty successful at it. So, you know, it's like if the sales are there, the sales are there, right? So, and I saw a picture of Kong next to Godzilla, and they look really good next to each other. All right, so in the end, King Kong, I don't think it blew us away. I don't like it didn't it didn't sell out. You know, again, you got to remember a Keith Owen game, not selling out the LE in in a week. That that's like it that's the state of modern pinball now, gang. I think a lot of people are just tired of running at this stuff. And there's no FOMO around King Kong. I don't I don't think anybody has FOMO here. I I think this is a game where, you know, I you're going to be happy with the pro and you're going to be happy with the premium. I just don't think there's any FOMO whatsoever. All right, so let's talk about Dune now because I definitely think, you know, King Kong won last week by a by a wide margin. I I think Kong had the better launch. I think games are on the line. I think everything they did was like what they wanted to do. Like King Kong was launched the way Stern wanted to launch King Kong. They don't have any regrets. They didn't, you know, they didn't fumble on the goal line. They they launched their game the way they wanted to. Barrels of Fun, completely different story. And I'm really gonna, you know, talk about these guys right now. And I'm going to I'm going to talk in a way that's not, you know, I'm not angry. I I I don't really I know David a little bit. I know Blake really well for years. Um I know they're upset with me and I know that they're disappointed in me and in my coverage of their company and I know that they feel that I've slammed them uh inappropriately uh on my coverage of how they launched this game. And I've been very critical about how this game was brought to market. I've been very critical of the theme. I've been very critical of and I'm going to be very critical on this show. And I'm I'm going explain why. because I think that there's a lot of um desire by the crew over at Barrels of Fun to get a lot of credit because of what they've done in in their inaugural game, right? And I get it. Like I've gave them credit for launching a pinball company, making around a thousand games in a year. Nobody got ripped off, right? Nobody um nobody was lied to. Nobody was um so you know they did what they they they did what they set out to do and I I've always believed that that a company's sophomoric effort especially now when there's so much competition is is really important and these guys are not new. None of them are new. Like everybody connected to Barrels of Fun is not new to pinball. They they've been around the block many times. They have a lot of friends in the community. They've seen pinball launches, uh, you know, year after year after year. They've witnessed it all. And they they sort of like had a lot of fun with how they teased their company at the very beginning. They had like a year-long teaser campaign. And, you know, and now I want to evaluate how they launched their sophomore game. I want to talk about what I've seen on this game. Maybe I'll do my Carrie Hardy parody, which I think it will be funny. I'm going to do it. It's like painting Carrie to be excited about this game. You could see it. You could see it. Um, and I just want to start out by saying if you're David and Brian and Blake and you're mad at me, I just want to say this gang. You guys selected this theme. Okay? Like, I just I want to start there. You guys selected a theme that is a huge huge huge risk. I I I mean that you picked a theme that is based on a new Dune franchise that doesn't have any nostalgia for the pinball buying demographic. you picked a theme that people don't really want. And every time I've done a survey and every time I've done a, you know, a questionnaire of of people all throughout the pinball community and I put your title into a listicle of what titles would you like to see, Dune hardly gets any votes. So, right off the bat, I don't really think there would be any any any ill will between you guys and me and me and you and how a launch it if you picked a theme people really wanted. Nothing would matter. Nothing would matter. You could fumble the launch to Kingdom Come. It doesn't matter. Dutch Pinball could have the worst launch ever of Back to the Future and they would still sell out on day one of like their aotments. So you guys picked the theme. All right. And and again, everybody knew it was Dune. Everybody knew it was Dune. And I was screaming from the high heavens that if you guys have Dune, don't do what I think you're gonna do. Don't keep it a secret until the very last minute and then reveal it's Doom because all it's going to do is make everybody who was hoping it wasn't Dune. It's going to make them see it with wish wishing it was something else. But they didn't listen to me. You know, there's people saying like Canadian should have called them up and and offered to help. I did. Canad should have gave them some DS. I did, you know. So when you wanna when you want to like try and indict me for my reaction to their launch. Yeah. Because I tried to help my friends over there. They didn't listen to anything I said. And then they and then they like apparently just had this date April 15th set for a while. Okay. just so happened to be the same day Stern Pinball was going to release Keith Elwin's new game. So, what do you do? You're Brian Savage, Blake, David Vaness. What do you do? Do Do you just keep going forward with your plan or do you pivot? You know, you know what happens in my industry, any industry of marketing, it does, you know, it's like when something happens that you didn't expect, you got to change your plan. You got to change your marketing strategy. They didn't do that. They didn't change any of it. They just operated as if Keith Owen's new game wasn't coming out or or they knew it and they just were content dropping their game right on top of a Keith Owen game. Okay. Okay. So, so I just want to start because this is going to be a very intellectual, I hope, very thought out and I think a very fair assessment of this game's launch. And I I'm I'm not angry with these gentlemen. I hope they're not angry with me. I just this is my observation of of how they launched this game. Okay. So they didn't they didn't pivot. They went up against an 800 pound gorilla and they got and they lost. They got they they completely got lost there. There was none of the content coming out of last week. You know, nobody was, you know, nobody was clamoring to share Dune content and nor could they really. And we'll get to that. Okay. So, you got your launch plans. What were they? What were they? What were the launch plans? Because you launched a game. So, here's the thing, and I and I and and I I know they're going to listen to this. This company has been, you know, I every time I talked to David personally, he said, "Chris, we don't want to launch a game until it's on the line and it's going into a box. I don't want to reveal a game until that date is here." Cool. That's like his hill to die on. It's like he he wants to so badly be known for that. Fine. I'm not going to I'm his company. He can pick what battles he wants to win. He can pick what legacy he wants people to think. Fine. Did he do that? Did he do that? Did he launch the game when this game is on the line being made going in boxes this week going to customers? No, he didn't. No, he didn't. They're going to make two games and then send them out to operators. Two. Two. How are two games, what are they going to do for you? How could that possibly help you get any sales anywhere? Two games are going to go out into the world. And the statement now is they're building games, but they're not gonna ship those games being built just yet because they're going to go through rigorous testing. What does that mean? What does that mean? What was the game not rigorously tested the last year? And I don't understand. Yeah. So, you're going to build consumer games and then rigorously test them? How are are you going to put 500 plays on consumer? No, you're not. Like, I don't understand what that means. What I what I'm what I'm thinking it means is that games aren't shipping to customers right away. That's what I think he's saying. But they still want to get credit for we launched and revealed the game when games were on the line and going in a box. You know what I'm saying? It's like they it's like sure kind of but not really. And and it it's confusing to me because you didn't have to you didn't have to do that and you didn't have because what happened is and everybody knows this is you launched your game too early. It's not ready to be shown. There's zero movie clips in the game right now that are waiting licenser approval. So, why would you show off your game to the world for the first time without having a great first
    50:19
    impression? And so, when people are trying to show gameplay, it's empty. There's no call outs. There's no clips. There's like and that's why I said and and I don't know if these guys are even still Patreon subscribers. I don't even want to evaluate the game because it's so early. It's so it it just so early. It never should have been it never should have been launched. And so like all of what David wanted to do, this is why I'm like what was the plan? Was the plan to launch a game with like incomplete code to a level where there's no clips in it? Why would that make people want to order
    51:05
    it? So like I don't know what the future holds for the code in this game, but I know as of today it just feels completely incomplete. And so like then you have Carrie Hardy on his way over there and by the time he even gets through the door, the game leaked like all like everything went out hazardly on a Monday night and all of your launch plans were spoiled. I don't know who did the leak. I mean I I there's a lot of people that were like I don't know. All I know is I woke up. I didn't wake up. I was up. All I know is like Monday night all of a sudden I'm like I'm watching a Dune trailer and I'm seeing everything on Naps Arcade and I'm like all right cool. Like I know this wasn't the plan and I know that everybody traveling there must be pissed off now because they didn't get the exclusive first look and they didn't get a chance to make their content. And by the time they made their content, everything had already been spoiled. So like, well then don't send a distributor the damn video. Why would you do that? You know, for a company that was so good for so long and preventing any leaks, why would you shoot your foot off at the very moment you needed to, you know, to succeed?
    52:43
    So, so that's so that's kind of like where I'm at with this game. I think the sandworm is really cool. Really cool. You know, I'm not sure like if it's um how it will feel over like multiple like that hundreds of plays, but it's probably one of the coolest engineered mechs I've seen in a long time. But it's also a Dune mech and most people don't want Dune. And so I don't know what to tell you. And every time I talk to David Vaness about theme, he kind of talks to me like like, you know, he didn't do any market research. So why why is that a toxic thing for me to say that a company should be doing market research because all those men and women who work at barrels and all the distributors who need to sell your product and all the legacy you're trying to build with your brand is going to come down to the themes you select. And if you didn't do any market research, then all I can say is so then you're just going off of your gut what you think would sell. I never in a million years would have picked the modern Dune movies as where I would go next. You know, he did Labyrinth. He has a relationship with Henen and people, right? He should have made the Muppets. You would have sold more Muppets than Dune. So, I don't know. I'm just want to ask you guys, you've just heard my my feelings on this launch. And do you think I'm being unfair? Do you think I'm being too negative? Do you think there's anything I've just said that like you disagree with? Because from where I'm standing or sitting, I want these guys to succeed. I just think they're they're they're making major mistakes at the very beginning and then they're like and then they want to like be mad at me. You know, I I get these text messages about, you know, they're like personal nature text messages from David Vaness like, you know, saying how I'm unfairly slamming his
    55:03
    company. And I I don't think I'm anything I've said about them has been unfair. I think they want a lot of credit and I think they need to earn it. And I think it's just that
    55:21
    simple. Yeah. I think everybody's going to wait to play the game, but I it's just if you're David
    55:38
    Vaness and you're watching Spooky sell 888 Evil Deads and you spent way more money on Dune, you're not going to sell 888 Dune machines. not at 116 plus accessories. That's the other thing, you know, the communication out of the company for the last like month or so was like, we're the best bang for the buck in pinball, right? We're the best bang for the buck. Well, who who you don't get to say that. We do. And if you add up the topper and the shooter rod and the sculpts on the slings, well, you're $13,000 game. How is that the best bang for the buck in pinball? A $13,000 game. The best bang for the buck in pinball is a Stern Pro. Absolutely. Without a doubt. How is a Stern Pro not the best bang for buck and pinball?
    56:40
    So I, you know, I think there's this like again there's like this desire to get credit and and to just say hyperbolic things about your efforts. You know, I was reading um Naps Arcade did a story about I guess they did an interview with Loser Kid, right? And they said something that made me laugh. So they said that they have a they're just
    57:11
    Sorry, this is hard for me to like talk with my cough, but they said something like, "Oh, we're just a couple years into our 10-year plan." What? Like, you have a 10-year plan? What does that mean? I wouldn't like Are you talking to investors or you talking to a pinball community? So, what what is that? You know, again, like the marketer in me is like, I wouldn't have said that. Why do you want to talk about a 10-year plan? All you're making me I know what you're I know why you're saying it. You're you're trying to say you're going to be in it for the long haul. You're trying to say like this is just the beginning, but all that does when you say something like that is it makes people think about the future and not the here and the now. And you need to get people to buy your game in the here and the now. Once you start talking about 10-year plans, then I'm starting to like wonder, well, maybe I should just wait. If these guys are going to be around for 10 years, then I might as well wait until they make a theme that's much more to my liking than this. Do you hear Spooky Pinball talk about a 10-year plan? No. You know what you hear Spooky Pinball talk about? You know what Spooky Pinball says? We can't wait till you see our next three titles. It's only going to get better from here. Beetlejuice is next, people. Spooky Pinball knows that its next three themes are going to be like, "OMG, OMG, OMG." They are so excited for us to see what's next around the corner. When I talk to David about what themes are next, he doesn't say it. He doesn't talk like that. He says stuff like, "Well, you know, some people are going to like him, some people aren't." I don't want to hear that. I don't want to hear that. And so, you know, there's been a lot of um there's been a few people that think that like, oh, I'm not, you know, like Canada's negative, he's toxic, he's this, he's that. I don't think anything I just said is inaccurate. I think, you know, there's a bunch of manchildren who cheerlead everything in this hobby and it gets boring listening to people like that and that's why they don't have many views and that's why they don't have any subscribers because they say the same thing about every company. They're like cheerleading every company. And I'm not I'm not gang. I'm trying to help these guys, but I can't help you if you don't do market
    59:35
    research. You know, I can't help you if you don't listen to a word I say about how I would launch Dune. I can't help you if you want to release your game early and you don't have the assets ready. You don't release early then. If you didn't have those assets ready to go, you don't launch on April 15. And that would have just helped you out because here's what I would have done if I was David Vaness. All right, just start making games, bro. Just what what date are you going to be able to show assets? So, okay. So, let's just say like the the licenser is not going to approve our assets until the end of May. All right. All right. I would just make games and not launch it until the end of May. Here's what it just feels like happened. It's like they needed the money or something. It's like they needed the capital to come in. They needed to get non-refundable deposits in to pay the people to make these games because labyrinth sales are done. It just and I think they learn like how hard it is, right? When game two is not ready at the right time when game one demand is over because it seemingly feels like they needed to make all like what is it,00 or 1,200 labyrinths. I feel like they need it. They were they their plan was to sell all of those. So they they overestimated the demand for Labyrinth. They once again are overestimating the demand, I think, for Dune. And what that is going to do is it's not going to line up with your 10-year plan because they seem like they they need to like, you know what I'm saying? like they need they they needed to be making labyrinths for another few months, but the demand wasn't there. And so that's why they had to rush to Dune out because they couldn't keep their line stagnant, right? They've got employees. They've got to they got to come in every day and do something and make something or we're losing a lot more money. And that's what sinks a pinball company are those idle days because you can't survive idle days as a manufacturer. The reason JJP can have idle days is because they have a billionaire backing them. The reason American Pinball had idle days is Amtron was backing them. But the problem they face over at Barrels is they can't afford idle days because the burn is so significant. You know, it's why people don't realize like Alice's Adventures in Wonderland saved Dutch Pinball because Back to the Future was not ready. And if Alice wasn't ready to go, there'd be nothing for all those people working at Dutch to make until Back to the Future was ready. So, if Melvin didn't make Alice, Dutch Pinball goes out of business. They they would have closed shop. Even if they had the Back to the Future license, they would have closed shop.
    62:38
    So, all of this is I I'm I'm just curious like do you are are you jing with what I'm saying? Does this make you want to cancel your subscription of Canadas Pinball Podcast or is this a place where we're kind of we're kind of having a real real conversation about pinball? I love pinball. I love what a lot of these companies are doing. You know, I think anyone who gets King Kong is going to have a good time. I want to read your commentary because I just I I don't know. I feel like certain people just, you know, they get mad when you talk like this.
    63:23
    The other thing concerning me, did you read this in the Naps Arcade interview or the interview at Loser Kid that Knaps reported on is that Barrels of Fun is going to absorb the space next to them because that company is is went away and they're going to expand their facilities. And I'm like, like why? Why? like that. That is exactly what you probably don't need to
    63:54
    do. I don't want to see this these guys go like haggus and like get too big too fast, but like I don't think you do. You need more
    64:07
    room. American Pinball's dead, gang. They might be working on Cuphead, but trust me, like I don't think you'll ever see it. It's kind of like Predator. I don't I I just I'm not holding my breath to see Predator. So, I want to um I want to now just talk with you guys. So, what do you think? You heard my takes on Kong and Dune. What are any of you canceling your subscriptions now? Because um we've got a we've got a lot of great stuff happening on the community. Um if you're not a Canada Club member gang, I I really feel like you should join. And part of it's just to show support for for a conversation like this. Uh all the hours I take out of of my my day to make content for all of you. I'm very appreciative of everybody who is a subscriber. I I did not raise my prices. Contrary to what someone tried to say on Facebook, it is still just $5 a month. We just went to an Easter egg hunt, got two cups of coffee, and it was $7. So, for $5 a month, you can listen to Canadas Pinball Podcast, show your support, and um you're going to get two to three shows a week, and they're so timely, and they're entertaining, and it's a lot of fun. And I think not just that, getting into the Patreon chat is is awesome. Like, it it's so much healthier than than than anywhere else. And you know, I think the people that continue to try to label the show as toxic and negative, I think those people don't listen and they don't want to admit that I'm right. I'm right. I'm right about what I just said on Kong and Dune. I think Kong is a great game. I think it's going to play phenomenally well. I think it's amazing fun. I think the art is atrocious on the playfield. Should have been less busy. Um, and I think like clicking with that, you know what, whatever. It's all subjective. But I'm right in my own head. But you know what I'm
    66:13
    saying? But it's gang, the thing is this. You know, we didn't talk about Harry Potter like, right? It's like all of a sudden it's like Jersey Jack. Now, if I'm them, I'm like, "Okay, okay, okay, okay. I'm happy if I'm Jersey Jack because nobody dominated. Nobody. Nobody like really put the gauntlet down. If I'm Jersey Jack, I'm not worried about Dune. Kong is
    66:39
    not Kong doesn't have me panicking at all. Um, you know, my worry about Harry Potter is is is is muted clips. It's I someone asked Jack, he said, "You're gonna get both." What does that mean? Both. Why Why would there be both, Jack? There shouldn't be any muted clips. So, I'm I'm I'm preparing to be
    67:07
    disappointed. Hector said, "I'm right." I think Hector agrees with everything I say, though. Hector, love you, brother. So, will you still be friends with Ralph? The bromance on the No, I I love Retro Ralph. Why would I not be friends with Retro Ralph? I sp I spoke to him all last
    67:29
    week. Um I I don't know why I wouldn't be friends with Retro Ralph. Did he say something about me that I wasn't aware
    67:43
    of? I think Rob's a good guy. I think he gets it all, too. Like when him when him and I talk, they have a video cancelling Patreon. I don't even know what that is. What video? I don't pay attention to anyone else's content, gang. I watch the gameplay videos, but I don't listen to uh to personalities talk about pinball anymore. So, people can say, you know, I I'm Look, I don't I don't stop anyone from making content, but I only want to listen if if it's like a game review or something. Well, you know what? I've got uh I I can afford people if you know what the thing is like if anyone cancels Canadas Pinball Podcast, you know what my feeling on it is? I can't wait to welcome you back. It's just that simple. I never worry about keep people cancelling on me because I've noticed historically most people who cancel their membership come back because when you cancel Canadas Pinball Podcast it it is a um it is a weekly habitual addiction for a lot of people in a good way. And so I I don't really I you know when I look at my numbers like you know they go up and down but like we've been hovering around like a really good number and like my the monetary number is really the most important one. So, like I could have 740 people and make less money than when I have 680 because because people will give more money. So, I don't I don't really care. Did you do the Carrie Hardy parody? I stepped away. I did not do it. Do you guys want me to do the Carrie Hardy Dune video that you're going to see soon? Do you want me to Do you want me to do it? Only if you guys want me to do it. I'm gonna I have to do like I have to like move this like camera A camera B camera A camera B. Like Carrie's that is the most
    69:34
    ridic I'm over here now and I'm over here now and I'm it's the same damn dude. Dude, there's no going cutting between cameras. It It's the It's the silliest thing I've ever seen. Like you do editing back and forth when it's like you're interviewing someone, but like what is that? All right, ready? All right, let me do it. It's good fun. It's good fun. All right, hold on. Hold on.
    69:58
    I'm I'm going to do a little wardrobe change because I'm going to I'm going to make it look like how he looks in the
    70:48
    right. He's got he's got a white shirt on and and a like a blue hat on backwards now. He's like he's he's like he's he's in it. Like I got to play I went down the barrels of fun and on my way down there something happened. I'm gonna I'm gonna move this as I go. Some something happened. I I'll just keep it. I don't want to keep moving it.
    71:19
    Um, I I I packed up all my gear. Like, I was ready. I brought all my tripods, all all my gear. And then all of a sudden, like before I get there, like something happened and and the game was out already. And I'm like, what did I just do? Why did I Why did I make this trip? Um, and then I get there and like, you know, everyone's scrambling and and um I get to see the game. Now, when he talks about the game, it's like you I'm not going to do a southern accent. I'm not doing a southern accent. Uh and then he's like, you know, you can see like he's got like like the energy level is like energy level, too. He's like, you know, when I when I hit my shots, they were fun. And um you know, I'm not sure about u the spinners. you know, they're they're made of metal and they they the clicketity clank of them. I'm not sure about that. And they said they might put um put a sticker on the spinner because there's no decal on it. And they might actually put um some decals on those red targets as well. But again, I all I know is like what I saw was a pinball machine and it it was fun when I shot it. And I'm not sure if the worm mech is going to get old, but I I know that I played a pinball machine and I feel like when you hit a shot, it's fun.
    73:04
    And yeah, they there's no decals on that. Wait, you guys can give money now. Did I I think I finally set up my monetization and juicy time. Look at you. So, wait. All this time. All right. No, it carries like Thank you, brother. Wow. This is the first time I've ever got money on YouTube ever.
    73:32
    No, but Carrie's like, "Use your squeaky voice." He's like, "What I do know, like, you know, because if I could do it a little bit more care, what I do know about this game is it comes in a box." Okay. Like I I'll do more of like a joke. And there's like there's a worm that like really slowly lifts up. Now, is that going to get boring over time? Yes. Will I say that to you? No. No. Okay. All I know is I played a pinball machine. All right. And And is it fun? Yeah. Playing pinball is fun. Is this game fun? Am I going to buy it? I'm not going to tell you that. Um there were no assets. It seems like they have everything, but nothing's in it. Nothing's in it. I, you know, I was looking at I didn't even realize the screen was in the back of the game until uh, you know, until someone said it's there. And I just think like, you know, the integration of nothing is nothing, you know. So, it's like until they put those clips in. Is Carrie Is he in here yet? He's
    74:48
    here. Carrie, I wouldn't say nowhere near as gay. Okay. Okay. And and the reason I say that is I wouldn't use a a homophobic slur here because I don't think that's a good look for you, bro. And I have a lot of friends that are gay and I don't think that's cool, bro. I And I'm being serious now, Carrie. Like, you you don't want to talk like that. It's not homophobic to say not as gay. Okay, bro. I don't know what like where like Okay, it's weird. Wait, I don't know where. Maybe it's just New York City, bro. We don't talk like that anymore. He meant happy. I I doubt it.
    75:38
    Okay. Anyway, it's fine. No, but Carrie, like literally I could tell I could tell it was paining you, bro, to talk about the game. It was It was like I could tell like you had that dilemma, bro, because they because you were like because you went in because you went in there. I could tell you wanted to say but I the your energy level like it didn't seem like you were that excited, bro. gotta be
    76:17
    honest. Oh, look, I'm the last person who's going to get like woke and offended, gang. I'm I'm just looking out for you, Carrie. I'm not looking out for me. Trust me, when I when I try to help you with that, I'm not looking out for for and and maybe you don't care, but that's that's my thing, man. I'm not I'm not looking out for me, man. You can see you can use those words. I just don't talk like that to people.
    76:43
    No man, like the game was empty, Carrie. The game was empty though, bro. Like, let's be honest, there's no code in the game. I mean, it was very reminiscent of Batman 66 when they first launched Batman 66. And and Carrie, let me ask you, since you saw it, like, do you think they were ready to launch that game? Do you really think like Barrels was ready to have media come in and to get people to shoot content on a game with no assets? Like I'm I'm just curious, gang. Like, it's fine. We're all grown men here. Like, we can we can have little We're not going to go down that road. We're we're we're good. We're good. This is a this is a safe space. Okay. Hold on.
    77:34
    But I, you know, I'm curious what Carrie says about it being
    77:42
    ready. They spoke about it having a lot of code, but I wasn't seeing it, but they're telling me what to shoot for and how to comp. So, like, okay. So, Carrie, I mean, it sounds like the game wasn't ready. I mean, I I saw your video, man. It's like, so you're literally standing over a game with hardly any code in it, and these guys are like, they have to Did Did anyone have to stand over King Kong to like talk about modes? No. Like, they the game actually
    78:21
    worked. Carrie, did someone tell, have you been here the whole time? Did someone tell you I was doing my Carrie Perry? Anyway, um I'm a Patreon subscriber to Carrie Hardy's page, gang. So, like, show the man some love. He's a good sport. He's a good
    78:39
    sport. Yeah. I I just I just don't understand, you know, and Barrels is like, "It's going to take us a whole year to finish the code." And like, I get it. Like, Stern might do that. I don't know. But like you need you still need it's just more important now than ever to have decent launch code. I'm not asking for a game to be complete, but you need decent launch code nowadays, right? You can't ask 116, tell everybody you're the best bang for buck in pinball and and not have decent launch code.
    79:20
    Yeah. No, I I I think Carrie was hyped to see it, but I don't think the game left I don't think he left there hyped, you know, and Carrie like Carrie and I like people for people might have forgotten this. So Carrie and I, right, like Melvin brought us in on Alice and we both got to see it early. We both got to make content. Look, I saw the Alice stream. Like it's fine. It is what it is. That game is not going to ever have the depth of code of anything, but it plays and it's a work of art and it it Alice succeeds in being what Alice intended to be, nothing more. Um, you know, I think a lot of people would, you know, love the artwork of Alice and the the beauty of it, but I also think a lot of people would find the game shallow and underwhelming. But my point being is is that Melvin brought Carrie and I in you know we got we got to like get a little hype going and it was fun and they sold all of them. Yeah, we both we were both honest, man. Like Carrie and I like nobody Carrie you go back and watch Carrie and I's content on Alice. Like nobody was saying like oh yeah the code's going to blow you away. It was just pretty. We didn't know how it shot. We didn't. We didn't. Absolutely did not. Remember the first time Carrie and I saw how Al is shot was during the first horrendous stream we were trying to help people watch. So it's um I don't know gang because like my worry about Dune being incomplete is like okay so now what? Right. So So like now what? Because you you have no timeline on when you're going to get a game. you you're probably gonna wait now because the code is so incomplete. And I think like if you order a Kong, you're much more confident. Code's going to come along a lot faster. Elwin's team is the best in the business. And then you're going to have Harry Potter. And when Harry Potter comes out, gang, it's going to be like code complete. Jersey Jack does not launch like like games with incomplete code. like they might not have the wizard mode, which would be ironic with Harry Potter, but for the most part, you're going to be playing like the majority of Harry Potter on day one. So, you'll be able to determine whether or not um you know, you want the game because what you see is what you get. That really is like Jersey Jack's launch motto. And I don't know, not bad to have that as the motto. Problem is is like if what you see is not what you want, you're not buying the game. Avatar, right? Godfather, Elton, Dune was rushed out. Kong feels like it's in a rush. Well, you know, we didn't talk about it, but Kong not being on Spike 3 is to me is like a real miss. I think Dune fans will love the game, but if you aren't a fan Yeah. I mean, but who are these people, Gary? Has anyone here like in your social circles met a Dune fan 40 to 60 who like legit like loves the new movies? Like I I it's like Avatar fans like they're kind they're fans of the film but they don't collect they don't collect Dune stuff. And that that's the big difference. You know what I'm saying? Is like you could be you could go spend 30 bucks and watch Dune and IMAX. You're not dropping 12 grand because there needs to be carryover. And and when we do surveys of the pinball buying demographic and you and Dune doesn't survey well it you're in trouble. If it was Goonies, it would have sold they would have sold all thousand in one day. If it was Rick and Morty, they would have sold all thousand in one day. If it was Gremlins, all 10,00 in one day. Karate Kid, all 10,000 in one day. Big Trouble in Little China, all 10,000 in one day. If they made Predator properly, all 10,000 in one day. Fraggle Rock would have been I bet they would have sold all thousand Fraggle
    83:45
    Rocks. Yeah, I didn't talk about the Kong animations. I don't I don't know about them. They're not as good as the Godzilla ones. They they they they feel like they're trying to do the same thing, but they don't work as
    84:03
    well. This has been a fun show. Carrie, thank you for letting me parry to you a little bit. Um Carrie and I are definitely, you know, we're definitely on the friendly side of the fence together.
    84:17
    Um, I think people see both of us as probably the most trailblazing content creators. It's good. It's good. It's fun. It's more fun. It's like you feel free, you know. Absolutely feel free. Everyone does their thing, you know. At this point, there's no there's no love loss with anybody anymore. I mean, I really, you know, I've been I was talking to Jenz this morning. We had a great conversation at like 3:00 in the morning. And you know, like him and I, we're like, we're always going to be like brothers. You know, we might go through periods where we stop talking every now and then and I might say something that offends him, but like the he's like a freaking he's like a Denmark version of me. Like literally same haircut, same movies, same interest. Like your same interest. I mean, that's what it comes down to. was like, "It's hard to be mad at people who have the same interest as
    85:11
    you." And then he got a no, he hasn't spoken to me on the phone yet, but like it's fine. Um, but life's way too short to hold on to anger. It really is. I mean, I that's I 100% believe that. And, you know, I think we've all created a little pinball family for ourselves here. and and and it's it's
    85:40
    Lauren. Talk about a selling point. I know. Use that. Hey, Chris, will JJP let you and Yes. Uh yes. Uh Ken Cromwell already said he can't wait to have me come over and see the new game. Um and if if schedule works out, I can't wait to go back. And unlike last time, um I feel like, you know, this trip should be just for JJB, not go down the block and see Stern. Um I don't, you know, but yeah, I I I've already I've already been um invited via text to see the next
    86:19
    game. Look, I don't think they I don't think they think I'm wrong on Avatar gag. I
    86:32
    don't. Well, I mean, Carrie, you you you went you went to a place that they will never forgive you
    86:39
    for. Um, but look, you know, I mean, I've I still own only a JJP game. I had a little moment where I was debating whether or not I get a Kong Ellie and then I just Chris wake up. That's stupid. It's a stupid It's a stupid buy. Kong Ellis are not going to hold value at all. And like I don't want it bad enough. Like I I I I'm very happy with what I've seen with the game, but I I also don't feel like I need to own it, you know? I don't understand why that's like such a hard concept for people. Like you can really get excited about something you don't want to own. And it's not because I can't afford it. I just don't want it as an owner, but I want to play it. Um, no, I'm not getting Elton John. Elton John's a great location game. I am definitely getting rid of Guns and
    87:37
    Roses. Here's the crazy thing about when I do get get rid of Guns and Roses.
    87:45
    I I've been toying with a thing where I just kind of store it, you know? I don't I don't need the money. I don't want to take the hit. And I also like I still think years from now I mean and I mean this when I say it. There's just something amazing about G&R as a a jukebox you can play, right? That that but the rest is Yeah.
    88:13
    The thing that really kills GNR. I I keep telling this to people. It's not the multiballs. It's not. It's the It's the outlane drains. The game is just frustratingly hard and that's why they have to feed you all these multiballs constantly to at least get through stuff. But it's it's it's a brutal game. And I think if GNR had more flow and less brutal draining because that's the problem, right? It's like there's too many shots close to the flippers, there's not a lot of flow at all. There's barely any flow. And so you're like always like bricking the ball back towards the flipper area, the sling area, and then it's just outlane drain, outlane, drain. Like that's that's the problem with G&R. The only really rewarding shot in the game is up the left ramp to the upper playfield guitar neck, you know, because like the upper right flipper orbit shot, it's not consistent. It's not it's not that rewarding. It's just not consistent. Um, and then, you know, the the right ramp is not that rewarding. There's just not there's like no combos anywhere in the game.
    89:33
    Yeah. No, Elton. Um, Elton's a much better shooter, but like, you know, my problem with Elton gang is like I I know I'd get bored of it because it's like just another music pin, right? And like I'd get bored of Elton and just seeing that collage of him and like there's not a lot of um I just think Elton's the is is like the perfect location game.
    89:57
    Elton is like such a good game to play on location because you don't need to own Elton because it doesn't have like this deep deep deep code or rule set where you really need to like stay in it. No, again I think like you know and look for me I'm in a unique situation. I I'm never going to have a lot of pins. And, you know, I'm really looking forward to my next game being a movie based a movie based pinball machine that has somewhat more of like a like a linear storyline or or like you feel like you're journeying through the the the movie that I love. Um, that is what you know when people say like theme isn't everything, I I get out of dodge with that. Theme is everything. Saying theme isn't everything. Come on, gang. Theme is like 90% of a reason why you'd buy a game. I mean it. I mean it. And there's nothing more there's nothing crappier than an amazing shooting game that's on a theme you don't like because in the end like you're going to get rid of it.
    91:13
    Um, I don't know. Ghostbusters and Tron Remastered. You might be waiting a lot a while. You You notice like again then we're going to call it a day. You notice what's interesting is Stern stalling on Spike
    91:28
    3. Why do you think that is? Do you think they just like know they need to price increase and like they know like like people are not ready. I don't know what it but like I I'm shocked we didn't get the bigger screen on
    91:50
    Kong. Do you really think we need a good music pin next? Why? Why? Like what? What? We We have too many music pins in pinball. I think we need more 80s nostalgic movie pins. is my my opinion. I think there's too much music pin out there. Wuang guys. Geez. No, you would not sell a Wuang pinball machine to this audience, guys. Have you seen this audience? You'd sell more Kenny
    92:29
    Rogers. I don't know. I kind of get bored of music pins. Like I I have to be honest. Like I just I just would much rather have cuz the thing with music pins gang is like there's just like the the world under glass isn't there. And when you think about music you love like you're not thinking about the world of that band. What they do is they take like notes from music videos and album covers and make the world. But for the most part like it's just not a physical world. That's not how you associate with a band. So, I I think that you know what's you know what's crazy is that no one's ever like really made a game where it looks like the stage of that band. And when you look at like like the old Guns and Roses stages from the 1990s, like the ramps are there. Like Axe was running up and down those ramps. Like it's crazy me that nobody's made the actual like top third of the game like look like an actual entire stage setup of that act. Like you could totally do that. And I'm shocked no one's done that. Like it it just it would be so
    93:44
    cool. Jimmy Buff, remember when we thought it was like Margaritaville? Remember that rumor? I I've had some really bad mistakes uh on in the rumor mill. Um everybody look, have a great Saturday. I'm going to go rest some more. Uh it's a nice warm day here in Connecticut. The weather's turning. It's nice. Um I want to just say Carrie, thank you for coming on. I'm not offended by your comment. I You know, you know me. I I like to keep my show very PG. I don't curse on my show. I don't use any slang words or anything that could even be taken inappropriately. Um, I I I I find it funny that some people think I'm so negative and toxic and yet I don't even curse. Uh, I I think this show is another great example of Canad Pinball Podcast always gives constructive criticism that is balanced. And if it wasn't and if it was just negative, then people would be leaving in droves and they're not. So, I really do I really do. Um, John Erlick, what's up, buddy? I really do appreciate all your all the support you guys do and I love having you guys hang out every Saturday. And the numbers here are great. We're actually getting more people watching this now than we ever did on Facebook, which leads me to believe that a lot of my audience and you guys in general prefer YouTube over Facebook because Facebook is like it's just it's terrible now. Like they're just I mean I I have my page there, but boy is it just like what happened to Facebook? It just they just bombard you with ads and reels and it's just a cesspool now of content. Don't be negative, buddy. You have to love every pin. That's your job. Well, look, I mean, yeah. No, my job is to entertain uh my audience, and that's not a job. It's it's just it comes natural to me. And you know, I think that's uh that's the only way I would want to make pinball content. I I you know, I'm not a distributor. I I I get it. I get it. Some people are in it to sell games. Some people are in it, you know, to say nice things. Some people value the relationship with the manufacturers more than um you know, telling you how they really feel, you know, because I just think it's normal to love some stuff and not love stuff. I think some companies do things great. I think some companies are like just amateur hour. You look good in pink. Comm does not. Thank you. Everyone is a little gay. Just depends on how much. That's probably true. Um all right, everybody. Have a great Saturday. Uh this is a great show. Wonder if I'm going to get any correspondence from my friends at Barrels. Like I I don't know. I don't I don't know where we go from here. I really don't. I I I think they're mad at me. Um maybe they should just send me a Dune when it's ready to actually review and and we should go from there. Everybody be good. Canada out. But I'm still here. I'm trying to end the stream. Click it. Then later.