Saloon Doors are Coming Soon for Chicago Gaming Company Cactus Canyon Remake Pinball Machines

Knapp Arcade·article·analyzed·Nov 17, 2022

Analysis

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TL;DR

Chicago Gaming teases Saloon Doors feature for Cactus Canyon Remake LE via injection mold photo.

Summary

Chicago Gaming Company's Cactus Canyon Remake Limited Edition machines are receiving a long-awaited feature: Saloon Doors, a mechanism from the original 1990s prototype that was cut from production. Planetary Pinball (Bally Williams rights holder) shared a photo of an injection mold on Pinside, suggesting imminent production. The doors are expected to coordinate with a code expansion project.

Key Claims

Original Cactus Canyon prototype machines in the 90s contained saloon doors designed to guard the trough at the top of the playfield
medium confidence · Historical reference to prototype design; plausible but not independently verified in this source
Coding exists for the saloon doors mechanism that causes them to open when hit, revealing the shot
medium confidence · Stated as 'supposedly' in the article; indicates legacy code from original development
The saloon doors feature was dropped from original production either to cut costs or due to time constraints with the Pinball 2000 project
medium confidence · Speculation about historical reasons for omission; plausible manufacturing/timeline explanation
The late Lyman Sheats was working on an upgraded code expansion with Josh Sharpe
high confidence · Named individuals and specific project attribution; author indicates this as known information
Saloon Doors may be sold in conjunction with the upgraded code expansion
low confidence · Author explicitly states 'speculation' and notes Chicago Gaming has not announced sales model

Notable Quotes

“Supposedly, the coding exists that causes the doors to open when hit revealing the shot.”
Author (Knapp Arcade) — Confirms that legacy code from original prototype may enable the feature without new development
“Man this is a bad picture. Did someone snap it with their Nintendo Game Boy camera? LOL”
Author (Knapp Arcade) — Light commentary on photo quality; indicates the injection mold image is genuine but poorly photographed
“Earlier this evening, Planetary Pinball, the Bally Williams rights holder, shared the below picture on Pinside”
Author (Knapp Arcade) — Establishes official source and timing of the leak/announcement

Entities

Chicago Gaming CompanycompanyCactus Canyon RemakegamePlanetary Pinballcompany Lyman Sheatsperson Josh Sharpeperson Cactus Canyongame Pinball 2000product

Signals

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business_signal: Saloon Doors feature possibly bundled with code expansion to create value differentiation for LE tier
low · Author speculates doors will be 'sold in conjunction with the upgraded code expansion'; no official confirmation
?
leak_detection: Saloon Doors feature revealed through Planetary Pinball's Pinside post rather than official Chicago Gaming announcement
high · Author notes 'Chicago Gaming has not announced how the rumored Saloon Doors will be sold'
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personnel_signal: Lyman Sheats (deceased) previously developed code expansion; project status and continuation unclear
medium · Reference to 'the late Lyman Sheats' and ongoing collaboration with Josh Sharpe; project viability post-death unaddressed
?
announcement: Saloon Doors feature for Cactus Canyon Remake LE confirmed via injection mold photo shared by Planetary Pinball on Pinside
high · Planetary Pinball shared injection mold picture; speculation that this indicates imminent production
?
product_strategy: Legacy feature from original 1990s prototype being retrofitted to modern remake; demonstrates reverse-engineering of cut content
high · Original prototype contained saloon doors; coding reportedly exists; feature was dropped from production

Topics

Product enhancement and legacy featuresprimaryCactus Canyon Remake Limited Edition availability and featuresprimaryCode updates and programming expansionssecondaryBally Williams IP licensing and remake productionsecondaryPinball prototype and production historysecondary

Sentiment

positive(0.72)— Author expresses enthusiasm about the feature arrival ('pleasant surprise', 'Hallelujah!'), though tempers it with skepticism about the announcement method and image quality. Positive anticipation for LE customers who have waited; light humor throughout.

Transcript

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Customers who have been enduring the long wait for Chicago Gaming Company's Limited Edition version of its new Cactus Canyon Remake pinball machines may be in for a pleasant surprise. Earlier this evening, Planetary Pinball, the Bally Williams rights holder, shared the below picture on Pinside along with a picture of the word "Hallelujah!" Speculation is that this is a picture of an injection mold for the long-rumored Cactus Canyon "Saloon Doors." Back in the 90s, the original Cactus Canyon prototype machines contained saloon doors that were designed to guard the trough at the top of the game's playfield. Supposedly, the coding exists that causes the doors to open when hit revealing the shot. This feature was ultimately dropped in the original production version of Cactus Canyon, either to cut costs or in the rush to finish the game and work on the Pinball 2000 project. I don't believe that Chicago Gaming has announced how the rumored Saloon Doors will be sold, but there has been speculation that they will be sold in conjunction with the upgraded code expansion that the late Lyman F. Sheats Jr. was working on with Josh Sharpe. Man this is a bad picture. Did someone snap it with their Nintendo Game Boy camera? LOL