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Jack Danger answers fan questions on careers, design, IP licensing, streaming, and technical topics.
Stern aims to stream once a week; streaming gear is in transit and requires approvals
high confidence · Jack Danger, responding to Jordan's question about streaming resumption
A third mode for Kraken in Deadpool was not implemented due to IP licensing constraints with the licenser
high confidence · Jack Danger, responding to Brad's question about the Deadpool retrospective
Multiplayer over Insider Connected is not coming in the immediate future but remains in the realm of possibilities
high confidence · Jack Danger, responding to Mike's question about multiplayer functionality
About 50% of Stern's licenses are actively sought by Stern; the other 50% approach Stern
high confidence · Jack Danger, responding to Super Macho Man's question about IP licensing approach
Game leaks cannot be prevented
high confidence · Jack Danger, responding to Eric's question about preventing leaks
Pee-wee's Big Adventure is both a dream and nightmare theme for Jack Danger due to fear of not doing it justice
high confidence · Jack Danger, responding to Thomas's question about nightmare themes
“Mike Vicor asked me to stop pushing my SCA agenda on you, so I will not be bringing up the Aquabats at all in this episode for him.”
Jack Danger@ 0:11 — Humorous opening reference to internal Stern culture and a prior episode topic
“Sometimes not everything that we want to do makes it into a game, whether it be time constraints, resources, but most of the time it's an IP conversation with the licenser”
Jack Danger@ 1:57 — Explanation of why certain game features don't ship; reveals IP licensing as primary constraint
“We aren't. All right, next question.”
Jack Danger@ 6:50 — Blunt confirmation that Stern cannot prevent game leaks; indicates acceptance of inevitability
“It's all flavor. If you lay something out and you're flipping and things don't feel quite right, you just adjust the flippers a little bit and everything shoots great.”
Jack Danger@ 7:45 — Reveals flipper angle design is empirical and intuitive, not formulaic
“There will be IPs coming to us or we'll know IPs that we want to go find. Sometimes IPs don't know pinballs exist and then we need to go educate them.”
Jack Danger@ 8:34 — Shows Stern's active licensing strategy and educational outreach to potential licensers
“I would create an absolute banger... Beauty and the Beast... The big mansion in the back, water slide, Corvette going in and out, dude.”
Jack Danger@ 5:43 — Demonstrates design enthusiasm for feminine-skewed IP; suggests untapped market opportunity
content_signal: Jack Danger confirms intent to stream once per week with Stern; equipment in transit pending approvals. Timeline unclear but described as 'coming soon.'
high · I'll tell you, the intent was to stream once a week with Stern. We're still going to do that. All of the streaming gear is sort of in transit because we're also doing like approvals for games.
design_philosophy: IP licensing is the primary constraint blocking feature implementation (e.g., Kraken mode in Deadpool). Licenser approval gates game direction.
high · most of the time it's an IP conversation with the licenser on like, can we keep moving forward with this?
design_philosophy: Jack Danger uses thematic coherence to guide design decisions; refuses to force humor into serious IPs like John Wick; advocates for IP-appropriate tone.
high · trying to force humor into that would feel disjointed and out of place. But there's still a market for people that love this IP.
product_strategy: Head-to-head multiplayer over Insider Connected is not coming in immediate future but remains possible longer-term. Insider team is 'overburdened' with other work.
high · Not in the immediate future, but you never know when that's going to come down the pike.
industry_signal: IP licensing flows both directions: ~50% of Stern licenses originate from Stern's outreach; ~50% from licensers approaching Stern. Stern sometimes educates IPs about pinball market.
high · Sometimes IPs don't know pinballs exist and then we need to go educate them. Other times IPs come to us... It's almost a 50/50 on like the licenses that come through.
positive(0.78)— Jack Danger is enthusiastic, helpful, and candid throughout. Tone is casual and humorous. He expresses love for the community and commits to continued design work. Only slight negativity in discussing constraints (leaks, licensing), but presented matter-of-factly without frustration.
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“I promise there will be more pinball machines that exist because of my involvement. That is a guarantee.”
Jack Danger@ 9:45 — Direct commitment to continued game design despite role transition to Head of Community
leak_detection: Jack Danger explicitly acknowledges that Stern cannot prevent game leaks. No mitigation strategy disclosed; accepted as inevitable.
high · Eric asks, 'How are you able to keep upcoming releases from being leaked to the public?' We aren't. All right, next question.
personnel_signal: Jack Danger confirms continued involvement in game design despite title change to Head of Community. Explicitly promises future games: 'I promise there will be more pinball machines that exist because of my involvement.'
high · I promise there will be more pinball machines that exist because of my involvement. That is a guarantee.
design_innovation: All Stern games feature two pin-prick holes at flipper tip to guide technicians on flipper centering. Designers use empirical playtesting to set flipper angles; no formulaic approach.
high · if you look at a playfield at the tip of the flipper, you'll see two little pin prick holes... aim the middle of your flipper at that hole, and that's exactly where the flipper needs to be.
sentiment_shift: Jack Danger positively receives suggestion for Beauty and the Beast pinball and acknowledges gap in feminine-skewed IP offerings. Enthusiastically designs concept, suggesting market opportunity recognition.
medium · I agree that there could and should be more IPs that skew more feminine... I would create an absolute banger... Beauty and the Beast... The big mansion in the back, water slide, Corvette going in and out, dude.
community_signal: Multiple fan questions about entering pinball industry careers. Jack Danger provides clear pathways: attend shows, network, identify skill fit, contact HR or reach out directly.
medium · Kieran asks, 'How can I get started in a career in pinball?' The best way to do that is to start attending shows, meeting some of the folks that actually work in the industry
product_concern: Insider Connected team reportedly 'overburdened' with current workload, limiting ability to add new features like multiplayer or expanded leaderboard functionality.
medium · They are completely overburdened with stuff that they're working on right now, but they are always looking for cool and interesting ideas to add
design_philosophy: Jack Danger articulates that ideal themes are those he both loves AND fears not executing justice to. Pee-wee's Big Adventure cited as example of dual emotional investment creating pressure.
medium · I would love to make that game. That is a dream theme for me, but it is also a nightmare theme for me because... I'm also afraid that I won't be able to do it justice.