Episode 1: A Small Introduction

LoserKid Pinball Podcast·podcast_episode·5m 59s·held·Jan 12, 2019

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.021

TL;DR

New podcast debut covers Stern's Monsters CES reveal and Spooky's sales milestone.

Summary

Josh Rupp launches the LoserKid A A Pinball Podcast with a personal origin story—from Windows Space Cadet to owning four machines—and covers two major industry stories: Stern's Monsters reveal at CES 2024 featuring impressive artwork and designer passion, and Spooky Pinball's Total Nuclear Annihilation reaching 530 units sold, a company record. The episode emphasizes accessibility, community engagement, and appreciation for modern pinball artistry and manufacturing.

Key Claims

Stern revealed Monsters at CES in Las Vegas on Tuesday (January 2024)
high confidence · Josh Rupp, episode host, describing the week's news coverage
Monsters was designed by Dwight Sullivan, John Borg, and Christopher Franchi
high confidence · Josh Rupp citing the Chicago demo team credits
Christopher Franchi created the artwork for Monsters using black and white with color splashes
high confidence · Josh Rupp describing the visual design
Total Nuclear Annihilation (Spooky Pinball) sold 530 units, setting a Spooky company sales record
high confidence · Josh Rupp citing KT's Facebook post confirmation
Josh Rupp purchased a Gottlieb Amazing Spider-Man in Denver for $400 in Labor Day weekend 2014
high confidence · Josh Rupp personal backstory

Notable Quotes

“I opened the door and I was in awe Guys, this room was a decent sized room, but it was filled to the gills with pinball machines.”
Josh Rupp @ ~6:00 — Describes the moment that reignited his passion for pinball after encountering cousin Sean's collection
“The first game I ever got to try was Cirqus Voltaire. And let me tell you guys, I was hooked.”
Josh Rupp @ ~7:00 — Identifies the specific machine that converted him from casual interest to serious hobbyist
“Stern is doing a great job with their reveals nowadays, and honestly, this is the best one by far.”
Josh Rupp @ ~20:00 — Commentary on Stern's marketing and reveal strategy, praising the Monsters CES presentation
“code has come so far along that you could have the exact same play field laid out, but with entirely different code. It will make that game an entirely different game”
Josh Rupp @ ~22:30 — Reflects on modern pinball software complexity and how code design now defines gameplay more than playfield layout
“when someone is connected with creating one of these machines on a passion level, it causes a game to go from just a pinball machine and turns it into an experience that you can feel.”
Josh Rupp @ ~25:00 — Philosophy on designer passion as a driver of game quality and emotional resonance
“I admire what Charlie and the crew of Spooky have been able to do from taking their passion in pinball and turning it into a family business adventure.”
Josh Rupp @ ~28:00 — Recognition of Spooky Pinball's entrepreneurial achievement and family-business model

Entities

Josh RupppersonLoserKid Pinball PodcastorganizationStern Pinballcompany[name withheld pending review]gameChristopher Franchiperson Dwight Sullivanperson John Borgperson Jack Dangerperson

Signals

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announcement: Stern Pinball officially revealed Monsters at CES 2024 in Las Vegas with full design team and multimedia presentation
high · Josh Rupp reports Monsters reveal at CES 'this past Tuesday' with Jack Danger, Zach Sharp, and Gary Sturr in costume, plus Chicago-based gameplay walkthrough by Dwight Sullivan, John Borg, Tim Balls, and Mike
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design_innovation: Modern pinball artwork is advancing significantly with artists like Christopher Franchi using sophisticated black and white with color splash techniques
high · Josh Rupp praises Franchi's Monsters artwork as 'beautiful' and notes broader trend: 'It's crazy to see how much artwork has come along in these last five years between Zombie Yeti, Christopher Franchi, Dirty Donnie'
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design_philosophy: Designer emotional investment and passion significantly influences perceived game quality and player experience
medium · Josh Rupp observes Dwight Sullivan's enthusiasm showing 'like he was just showing off a brand new baby' and theorizes that 'when someone is connected with creating one of these machines on a passion level, it causes a game to go from just a pinball machine and turns it into an experience'
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gameplay_signal: Modern pinball code has become sophisticated enough that identical playfield layouts can produce entirely different gameplay experiences through software alone
medium · Josh Rupp responds to comparison between Monsters and AC/DC: 'code has come so far along that you could have the exact same play field laid out, but with entirely different code. It will make that game an entirely different game'
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Transcript

groq_whisper · $0.018

0:00

Hello Pinball Land, it is Friday morning and you've just tuned in to the Loser Kid Pinball Podcast. I am your host Josh Rupp coming at you from Vernal, Utah, also known as Dinosaur Land. I know there's plenty of pinball podcasts out there, but I just want to sit down and join in on the conversation, so I appreciate you giving me a listen. Before I start into the meat of the show, I want to give you a background of me in the hobby. What originally got me interested in the hobby was that silly little 3D pinball game called Space Cadet, you know the one that came pre-loaded on the Windows computer, what was it, 15, 20 years ago. And that's what actually planted the seed of pinball in me. I loved on that game how you could explore and see each thing, see what it did when you hit it, when you shot around the loops, starting missions, advancing spinners. It just was awesome to see. Well, as a teenager living in a small town without a major city within 180 miles and not much here besides a Walmart, I kind of forgot what pinball was after 3D Space Cadet had kind of lost its charm. So I fast forward 14 years later, and I finally get my hands on a physical pinball machine for the first time. My wife and I had some kind of family event out in Salt Lake City. So we make the trip out there, and her cousin was nice enough to offer their home as a place to stay. I'd never met the guy, so I didn't know he was into pinball. Heck, at this point, I didn't even know I was into pinball. Well, that night, as everyone was going to bed, I'd forgot some of the stuff from the car. It was pitch black inside the home and I didn have a clue which way I was going and I started to hear some noises I start following those noises and it brings me to this door I knock on the door and my wife cousin tells me come on in I opened the door and I was in awe Guys, this room was a decent sized room, but it was filled to the gills with pinball machines. So Sean waves me over to the pinball machine he was playing and asked me if I'd like to take a try. The first game I ever got to try was Circus Voltaire. And let me tell you guys, I was hooked. Sean and I ended up staying up for hours playing his machine, Spider-Man. Simpsons pinball party, Revenge for Mars, NASCAR. It was crazy amount of pins he had in there. It was one of those situations where I didn't have enough time in the world, but I wanted to play each one of them. As Sean taught me about the rules and different aspects, I became more and more intrigued by these pinball machines. So after that weekend, I get home and pinball is just on the back of my mind. I didn't know where to start, didn't know where to go from it. And being in a small town where there's no pinball machines around, the most information I could get was just looking up different sites on the internet and figuring out how I could get my own pinball machine. Finally, after months of looking around the internet, I found a Gottlieb Amazing Spider-Man for sale in Denver. I know some of you are cringing, but I was excited for the first time to own a pinball machine. It was Labor Day weekend in 2014, and my wife says, why don't we make a trip of it? So we go out there, and I thought it was funny because I thought I was breaking the bank at this point with my first purchase. I ended up getting that Amazing Spider-Man for about 400 bucks So after making that 12 hour round trip I get Amazing Spider home and my family ends up playing the crap out of it That how it all begins right You get one you think it going to be enough but you always find that your pinball machines are missing something so you start looking for another and another and another At the moment my collection is at four pinball machines because of the size of my home and my budget, but I can't get enough of it. So enough about me. Let's get started with the stories of the week. That's right, Munsters. Munsters was revealed this past Tuesday at CES in Las Vegas, Nevada. Guys, Stern is doing a great job with their reveals nowadays, and honestly, this is the best one by far. With Jack Danger, Zach Sharp, and Gary Sturr dressing up as the monsters, it was great to see them get into character and that presence along with the pinball machine. I must say the game looks beautiful. It's crazy to see how much artwork has come along in these last five years between Zombie Yeti, Chris Franchi, Dirty Donnie. All those guys are killing it right now. Franchi knocked it out of the park with this one. That black and white with the splash of color is just beautiful. The game looks fun too. That was the other thing I loved about CES, just the people getting up to the pinball machine. You could tell the people that were excited to play it for the first time. Not even Munsters itself, but a pinball machine in general. I noticed in the chat someone was complaining that the game looked like another ACDC, just a little tweet, which I could kind of see that, but honestly code has come so far along that you could have the exact same play field laid out, but with entirely different code. It will make that game an entirely different game So back in Chicago Jack John Borg Dwight Sullivan Tim Balls and Mike start showing off the premium I like it when Stern takes off the glass and walks you through the basics of the code It really helps you to understand the game and to get a better appreciation of what coming out Can I just say it awesome to see Dwight Sullivan talk about monsters like he was just showing off a brand new baby. I mean, it is his latest project, but for John Borg and Dwight, this project feels more like a passion project, which I love because when someone is connected with creating one of these machines on a passion level, it causes a game to go from just a pinball machine and turns it into an experience that you can feel. All in all, I'm excited for this pin. I'm not a huge Monsters fan, but after watching the videos, I can't wait to see one of these in the wild so I can get some playtime on it. Moving on, I want to congratulate Spooky Pinball and Scott Denisey for making Spooky Pinball history. Yesterday, KT made the comment on their latest Facebook post that Total Nuclear Annihilation has set a record of most units sold in Spooky history at 530 units out the door. I admire what Charlie and the crew of Spooky have been able to do from taking their passion in pinball and turning it into a family business adventure. I gotta tell you, it takes a lot of guts to give up on a say job and start up a business in pinball and make it successful. So my hat's off to you, Spooky. Great job and keep up the good work. I know it's the first episode, so I wanna keep it short, but before I go, I wanna put this out there. I want some community involvement. It's great that we hear from industry professionals, but I want to hear from you guys out there in pinball land. Send in your emails to Loserkidpinballpodcast at gmail.com with your thoughts. I'm excited to see where this goes, and I hope you're excited to join along with me for the Red. Have a great and safe weekend.