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Episode 1160: "Beetlejuice is a Masterpiece"

Kaneda's Pinball Podcast (Patreon feed)·podcast_episode·22m 47s·analyzed·Nov 14, 2025
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Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.033

TL;DR

Kaneda declares Beetlejuice a pinball masterpiece and turning point favoring boutiques over Stern.

Summary

Kaneda delivers an passionate, extended monologue on the Beetlejuice reveal, calling it a masterpiece and watershed moment for Spooky Pinball. He contrasts Spooky's quality, passion, and community engagement favorably against Stern's perceived arrogance and tone-deafness, predicting Beetlejuice will become the new collecting benchmark and that secondary market prices will reach $18,000–$20,000. He also previews Back to the Future with Franchi as art director, positioning both as bookend releases for 2026.

Key Claims

  • Beetlejuice is 'the modern day equivalent to our latest The The Addams Family' in impact and design quality

    medium confidence · Kaneda, in opening remarks, expressing personal reaction to the reveal

  • Spooky will produce 1,079 total Beetlejuice games (999 regular + 80 show games), all special editions, none regular

    high confidence · Kaneda, citing Spooky's official production figures

  • Secondary market price for Beetlejuice will reach $18,000–$20,000 or higher

    medium confidence · Kaneda, making market prediction based on limited production and demand

  • Evil Dead took a long time to sell out but is now trading for around $15,000

    medium confidence · Kaneda, citing secondary market precedent for Spooky games

  • Beetlejuice will sell out in nine seconds after reveal

    medium confidence · Kaneda, making specific sellout prediction based on hype

  • Christopher Franchi was 'booted from Stern Pinball' and is now lead artist at Spooky

    high confidence · Kaneda, discussing Franchi's career trajectory and current role

  • Stern is re-streaming The Walking Dead (12-year-old game) on the same day as Beetlejuice reveal, showing arrogance and tone-deafness

    high confidence · Kaneda, criticizing Stern's marketing timing and strategy

  • Beetlejuice's layout offers more inviting play compared to Winchester Mystery House riskier, tighter design

    low confidence · Kaneda, making subjective design comparison between two recent Spooky/boutique releases

Notable Quotes

  • “In just a few hours, everything about this hobby is going to change for the better.”

    Kaneda @ ~0:30 — Sets the tone for the entire episode as a watershed moment in pinball history

  • “Four years later, we are happy that Stern passed on Beetlejuice and Spooky made it. That is an incredible turn of events that I don't think anybody saw coming.”

    Kaneda @ ~2:20 — Directly contrasts Stern's Godzilla move with Spooky's Beetlejuice success, highlighting market sentiment reversal

  • “It is not about mechs. It is not about flow... What really matters the most in pinball is the moments, the special things.”

    Kaneda @ ~3:45 — Core design philosophy statement about what makes modern pinball resonate with collectors

  • “For the 999 of us, plus the 80 show game people... congratulations. Let's get our popcorn out and make fun of these babies whining.”

    Kaneda @ ~5:15 — Reveals exclusive collector mindset and FOMO dynamics in boutique pinball market

  • “I'm not waking up to text messages at 1244 in the morning hearing that I'm ruining his family. I'm waking up to text messages from Christopher Franchi saying, thank you so much for the kind words.”

    Kaneda @ ~6:30 — Personal contrast between working relationships at Stern versus Spooky, emphasizing company culture

  • “When you put a $20,000 James Bond's 60th next to this game, that's $10,000. This is going to be a rude awakening for that big giant called Stern.”

    Kaneda @ ~8:45 — Direct pricing and value comparison undercutting Stern's premium LE strategy

  • “The boutiques really have all the energy... Beetlejuice and Back to the Future are going to bookend the year of 2026 in pinball. This is going to be one of the most monumental years in all of pinball.”

    Kaneda @ ~10:15 — Positions 2026 as pivotal year for boutique dominance; previews Back to the Future with Franchi

Entities

Spooky PinballcompanyStern PinballcompanyBeetlejuicegameChristopher FranchipersonKanedapersonEvil Deadgame

Signals

  • ~

    sentiment_shift: Four-year swing from community preferring Stern's Godzilla over Spooky, to now preferring Spooky's Beetlejuice over Stern's offerings; represents fundamental market sentiment inversion

    high · Kaneda: 'Four years ago we were happy Spooky wasn't making Godzilla... four years later we are happy that Stern passed on Beetlejuice and Spooky made it. That is an incredible turn of events.'

  • ?

    design_innovation: Beetlejuice features motorized sandworm toy and integrated mechanical moments prioritized over raw shot count; represents design philosophy shift emphasizing 'moments' over 'flow'

    high · Kaneda: 'It's not about mechs, it's not about flow... What really matters is the moments, the special things... the worm mechanism that does like three things. It's insane.'

  • ?

    collector_signal: Hard production cap (1,079 units) combined with instant sell-out expectation creating intense FOMO; secondary market premiums projected at 80-100%+ ($18k-$20k vs $10k MSRP)

    high · Kaneda: 'I've been saying this game is going to sell out in nine seconds, and it is... secondary value on this game is going to be astronomical... $18,000, maybe even $20,000.'

  • $

    market_signal: Clear market momentum shift toward boutique manufacturers (Spooky, JJP, Barrels of Fun) over Stern; positioning as beginning of era where boutiques set design and pricing benchmarks

    high · Kaneda: 'The boutiques really have all the energy... This is going to be the moment... we're going to see a big shift in pinball.'

  • ?

    personnel_signal: Christopher Franchi's departure from Stern to Spooky positioned as major creative loss for Stern and major gain for Spooky; Kaneda predicts resumes will land at Spooky as result of this momentum

Transcript

groq_whisper · $0.068

Te O. Te O. Daylight come and me wa go go. Te. Mi se te, mi se te, mi se te, mi se te, mi se te o. Daylight come and me wa go go. In just a few hours, everything about this hobby is going to change for the better. In just a few hours, you're going to see a game that's just going to make you happy. You're going to see a game that from head to toe looks like a ton of passion went into every single inch of the game. For many years now, we've been sort of responding to the pinball offerings from a variety of companies. And I want to say, after spending today, and it was a little bit of like agony and ecstasy for me today. Because earlier in the morning, I had to take Killian in to get his tonsils removed. And as a parent, you know how painful it is to hear your child cry. Like pure screams of agony. And then we got him home, ice cream and movies. And every three hours, he's on Motrin and he's doing so much better. He's such a little champion. And in my inbox, I had the trailer for Beetlejuice. I did not watch it until I saw it live at five o'clock. The reaction you saw on my YouTube and on Facebook was my authentic first reaction to the game. And then later the same evening, I watched the featurette. I've seen it now a couple times. And I want to say that this game is just very, very special. The hype is big. The product delivers. and I think what's going to happen now in pinball is going to be very, very interesting because I think if we were to look at this hobby four years ago, what was the sentiment four years ago? Everybody was happy that spooky pinball wasn't making Godzilla. We were happy that Stern made Godzilla not spooky. four years later, we are happy that Stern passed on Beetlejuice and Spooky made it. That is an incredible, I mean an incredible turn of events that I don't think anybody saw coming. Nobody really thought they could make a game as incredible as Evil Dead, and yet they have. Now looking at Beetlejuice in all of its glory, all of the fun mechs and the things that move, and the lights and the art and the colors and the integration with the theme and the spooky speak and the speaker grills and everything in this game when you go through the featurette there's not going to be a single pinhead out there that makes his way all the way through the featurette who then says nope not for me you can't even be into pinball if this isn't why you're into pinball This feels like the modern day equivalent to our latest Addams Family. Like the modern day Addams Family. I mean that. I haven't even played it yet. Addams Family is pretty much a fan layout, right? I mean, this game has got a lot of shots. It's got moments. And when you watch the featurette, I've been saying this for years. It's not about mechs. It's not about flow. It is, though. Those things are important. Don't get me wrong. But what really matters the most in pinball is the moments, the special things, the feeling that I can't wait to get to that. I can't wait to turn that on. I can't wait for the moment when I interact with that mech. I can't wait for the moment when the machine does this. I mean, you think about a pinball machine. It's a finite box of lights and mechanical things and sounds and sights that you walk up to and you want to see it do something magical. And when you hear this team talk about the passion that went into it, hiding Easter eggs throughout it, how they got the sculpts so perfect, and how they sort of just created a world under glass, synced up with the most beautiful art package in maybe like pinball history. It's one of them. It's up there. I mean, these games are all getting really good looking across the board. Harry Potter is beautiful. This game is beautiful. Evil Dead is beautiful. can't say the same about the last few offerings from Stern. There's going to be a lot of comparisons happening between this game and the other companies and what they're bringing out in pinball. This is just going to be a game that I think becomes the cornerstone and the future foundation of which all future pinball collections are built upon a game like this. I think if you're a pinball owner and you're buying new in box games, everyone's going to want a Beetlejuice. Now look, they not going to make more of these This is it Spooky is going to make 1079 games 80 are show games 999 regular games They all special Nothing regular nothing SLE They're all going to be very special. The topper is insane with the Beetlejuice Snake. Everything about this game is so special, okay? Everyone is going to want one who loves pinball. I feel this way about this game. They're not going to make more. And I was on Pinside tonight, you know, And I was reading people complaining about that as if they did not have a fair chance to get this game for months. If you're on pin side, you're into pinball. If you're on pin side, you knew it was Beetlejuice for months. If you're on pin side, you knew that dealers and distros were taking lists of interested people. And all of those people who moved at a decent, brisk pace got a game. So I think what's going to happen today is a lot of these people that waited too long are going to get locked out. I don't even know, like the secondhand scalp on this game after seeing it today is going to be astronomical. And they're going to want to hate on it. And they're going to want to find some fault. And they're going to cry like babies. And I'm going to tell you right now, for the 999 of us, plus the 80 show game people, For all of us in on a game that moved at a decent pace and just did some proactive move to get it from a dealer or a distro, congratulations. Let's get our popcorn out and make fun of these babies whining that Spooky should make more games. But let's get back to the game. Let's get back to what really makes this thing just so much fun. I'm looking at it right now. I'm staring at the game right now, and I just absolutely love what Christopher Franchi has done to our eyes when you walk up to this game. What I love about Franchi, you have to understand the context of a man that was basically booted from Stern Pinball. A man, you know, he's been trying to find a home. Think about it. Like a guy with a heart the size of Kaneda's head is trying to find a home in pinball where he just feels like he's respected. He feels like he's listened to and he feels like his ideas will go far. And my gosh, this is a masterpiece. Evil Dead is a masterpiece. I'm not waking up to text messages at 1244 in the morning hearing that I'm ruining his family. I'm waking up to text messages from Christopher Franchi saying, thank you so much for the kind words. I'm so happy you appreciate what I've been working on. That's the difference. And when you think about this game, I'm going to keep looking at images right now. It's just head to toe. Every single inch of this game is just going to make you smile. And it's got something for everybody. I mean, I'm looking at the layout right now. The Dante's Inferno. The sculpts are big. The sculpts are beautiful. You're going to have a lot to shoot. A lot of moments. A lot of interesting ways for the ball to go. And everything's down below that glass. You know, that's what I love too about this game. This isn't a game where you're going to look at it and see all these flat plastics. Screws everywhere on the flat plastics. They really did a great job putting a physical world under glass. And they're going to couple that with this incredible artwork. I mean, I'm looking at the wire forms. They're all painted. They're painted. They look beautiful. And it's not just like one color. There's like, it looks like there's a red, there's a purple, there's a green. You know, they literally go through the game. And I'm looking at this Polaroid camera, the worm, the tombstone, the now serving clock with the numbers, the Beetlejuice sign with the red arrow. It's just so beautiful. And I really can't wait for all of you to see it today. And I think that's going to be what's going to be so fun about today is how many years have we waited for this? when was the last time you really feel like you saw something that you connected with that blew you away that made you just want to have it and here i am at 4 30 in the morning it's why i'm not screaming about my excitement for this game because everybody is sleeping right now but it's really just going to be a game that is the new benchmark in pinball and we've sort of been through a lot the last few years, you know, coming out of COVID, seeing Stern machines like skyrocket in price, seeing Stern then charge us $20,000 for James Bond's 60th. I mean, when you put a $20,000 James Bond's 60th next to this game, that's $10,000. This is going to be a rude awakening for that big giant called Stern. I think what's going to happen now that this game is going to become the new benchmark for all collectors to have in their collection. I think we're all going to get so excited about what's to come down the road for a company like Spooky. I know everyone's excited about what's next from Jersey Jack. Barrels of Fun has a lot of heat around Winchester. That's great. I think the boutiques really have all the energy. And the reason why is so simple. Same thing with Back to the Future and Dutch. For those of you sleeping on Back to the Future, get ready it going to be insane as well like it going to be magical And guess what everybody Franchi is doing the art on Back to the Future So I mean I love Beetlejuice but Back to the Future is another level of love that I have And it's got Michael J. Fox. It's got all the assets. So, you know, I think Beetlejuice and Back to the Future, which are going to bookend the year of 2026 in pinball. Let's just think about that for a minute. January, Beetlejuice goes on the line and then you're going to have Back to the Future on the line at the end of the year probably revealed in October on the line by like December this is going to be I think one of the most monumental years in all of pinball and the company that I don't think is going to be part of any of the conversation in any of the real excitement is Stern and they did it to themselves and I think you're going to see that when John Youssi the featurette and you think about how Stern launched The Walking Dead and how they look in their own launch videos It just feels like we're just saying the same stuff. It's just rinse and repeat. And then you watch these spooky videos and you hear the passion and the excitement and you just see these young guys that are hungry. Where would you put your money, right? If all these companies right now, you could publicly trade, where would you put your money? Who would you want to invest in? And I think that's where everybody's at right now. You know, you want to be part of something. You want to be supportive of a company. And I think right now, this company is number one right now. They've got the most mojo and they make you feel the best about being a part of its organization and its family. And what they did tonight with inviting those people over, staying up late. I interviewed Nolan who was over there. He's an amazing dude. And the stuff he said, go watch the Facebook Live. Like just this feeling that when they open their doors, they're not just opening the door to the company to let John Youssi the game. They're opening their hearts. They're opening their creativity to us. They're opening their imaginations to us. And you want to be a part of it. And it's almost like impossible not to be into pinball and to not want to be part of this. You know, I don't want to be part of Pinside. I don't want to be part of these internet trolls. I don't want to be part of any of that. I want to be a witness to a pinball machine that makes me feel like I remember where I was when I saw it for the first time. I remember how I felt when I played it for the first time. I remember what this machine did to me when I got to these modes. It's been a really long time since we've felt that way about a game. And, you know, it's going to be comical today. As the world wakes up and gets blown away by this Beetlejuice, which all of you will be. And then Stern's going to want to show you the stream of The Walking Dead with AI graphics that look terrible. it's a game that's 12 years old nothing new happening mechanically and how are they honestly with a straight face gonna march this game out that's 30 more money the le that doesn't come with a topper that doesn't have butter cabinets that doesn't have mechs as cool as this game how are they with a straight face gonna actually serve that up on the very day that the world is going to fall in love with Beetlejuice. It reeks of a company that is tone deaf. It reeks of a company that got so big and stopped listening to the community and to the customers. And I think what we're going to see next is a big shift in pinball. I think we're going to see people probably stepping down at Stern, not wanting to work there anymore. I think we're going to see resumes landing on the desks of places like Spooky. I don't know if they need anybody, to be honest. Do you really want someone else from like a big corporation? I think they just keep doing what they're doing. I really don't think they need anybody else. I mean that. I don't think they need anybody else. I think they just keep doing this, baby, and we're going to be loving it and we're going to be buying it. And it's going to be difficult to get on a list to buy the next spooky game after John Youssi what happens today. I mean, what's going to happen today is not just like an absolute instant sellout of Beetlejuice, which I've been saying forever now. I've said this game is going to sell out in nine seconds, and it is. And I've been telling all of you who listen to this show to get on a list. And if you get burned, you know, don't come crying to Kaneda because I've been telling you. Now, I have five games on top of my game number 999. I've got five games to offer up to the Kaneda Club. I have not decided yet how to utilize those games yet. We will do stuff that is creative. We will do stuff that is fun. and I think I'm going to sort of like pace it out because they're going to be making this game for a while. And I want one of those five Kaneda Club additions to be special and each one to be a moment that you're going to remember how Kaneda gave away the opportunity to buy it. You're not getting the game for free. But here's the thing. Me giving you the opportunity to buy this game at MSRP is basically me saving you, if you don't have one already, $5,000 or more. I think the secondhand value on this game, I got to be honest, is going to be astronomical. I think it's going to be easily well over $5,000. There's easily going to be more people that want this. You got to remember, Evil Dead took a long time to sell out and is now trading for around $15,000. This thing sells out in nine seconds. I think you're going to see $18,000, maybe even $20,000. Because here's the thing. People are not going to want to ever sell this game. They're not going to want to let it out of their collections. It's just that special. And I think there going to be some comparisons today to another game that sold out pretty quickly to Winchester Mystery House You know looking at both layouts both art packages both mechanisms I think Spooky got it I think they got it I think the layout in this just looks much more inviting. There's going to be a lot of the comparisons and there's going to be, you know, the Winchester faithful holding on. I'm happy for both companies. I am. But definitely Winchester's layout is a lot more risky. And I think that's what happens. You know, Carl's such a good player that he's going to design a game that makes it rewarding for him. But when you watch the streams of Winchester, man, like it just feels a little tight, a little bricky. And I don't think that's going to be the case with Beetlejuice. Maybe we're going to get a little bit of like Beetlejuice is too easy, but I know that most collectors would rather a game be rewarding to play because it's filled with moments and magic and fun stuff versus like you're holding on and it's challenging and you're bricking the ball a lot. Bricking the ball a lot sounds like the old spooky. I love it. If you go back and watch like old spooky games, remember when there's like posts everywhere that you were just bouncing off of to a company that just made this worm mechanism that does like three things. It's insane. Like I really am so happy for everybody over there. Zach made a great featurette video. Bug and Luke and DJ and Franchi in the video are amazing. You're going to enjoy it. I would just sit down, watch it. And again, anyone who's into pinball is going to watch this thing and want one. I feel bad for guy number 1080 who wakes up tomorrow, didn't know this even existed and wants one and thinks he's going to call over to Spooky at like three o'clock tomorrow and order one and sold out, sold out, sold out. It's going to be bonkers. The calls coming into Spooky at I think 10 o'clock their time is going to set the call center on fire. They've got 70 spots available. Call in or try to get through on the website. I don't know what you're going to do, people. I don't know what you're going to do. I think they're going to be so hard to get. It's going to be comical. Everyone's going to be going for him. People that don't have a spot, scalpers are going to be going for him. People in Indonesia are going to be going for him. I mean, it's just that popular and it's going to be a glorious day today. And I think people are going to laugh Stern's walking dead stream out of the room. I mean it. It's like, and they did it to themselves. The fact that their marketing team and their new CMO and everybody over there thought it would be cute to stream a game on the same day that Beetlejuice drops, it shows you how like misguided their arrogance really is. And I think this is going to be the moment where Seth walks into Gary and George's office and says, I'm the CEO of this company. And we passed on this theme. Look at the excitement for this game. We fired this artist. Look at the games he's capable of making. We have made every wrong decision over the last few years and we are resetting this company today. That is what the vibe is going to be over at Stern. People are going to cancel their Walking Dead LE orders when they see this game. This game is the new beginning of what pinball is going to be compared to over the next five years. I'm so excited. I love being positive because there's a reason to be positive. I love that the conversations I'm having with people around this game are making everybody smile. It's building bridges between people that were enemies. I love that I'm talking again with some people I haven't talked to in years because we're just excited about this game. This is a galvanizing magnetic masterpiece and I can't wait for you to see it and it looks amazing and I know it's going to be the kind of pinball fun that brought us all into this hobby in the first place. It is 4.48 in the morning. So much more to come about this game today. I can't wait for all of you to see it in just a few hours and discuss it. And I can't wait to hear the crybabies who didn't listen to Kaneda, didn't get on the list. They're going to be just as fun, you know, because all the people who got one are going to like rub it in their faces. And guess what? They should. They should. Because everybody had a fair chance to get this especially anyone who's a member of pinside pinside babies zero canada club members one love you guys love you spooky thank you for doing this for all of us i can't thank you guys enough you've made pinball magical again canada out Come Mr. Tallyman, tally me banana. You son of a bitch! I believe! The real question is, who are we selling this to? Same people we've been selling it to the last two years, and whoever else will buy it. But John, if you do this, you will kill the market for years. It's over. and you're selling something that you know has no value we are selling to willing buyers at the current fair market price so that we may survive you will never sell anything to any of those people ever again i understand do you do you this is it i'm telling you this is it

“It reeks of a company that is tone deaf. It reeks of a company that got so big and stopped listening to the community.”

Kaneda @ ~12:30 — Summarizes Stern's perceived loss of market connection and community trust

  • “This is a galvanizing magnetic masterpiece and I can't wait for you to see it.”

    Kaneda @ ~15:00 — Culminating endorsement framing Beetlejuice as industry-unifying moment

  • “I think the secondhand value on this game is going to be astronomical... easily well over $5,000... maybe even $20,000.”

    Kaneda @ ~13:45 — Explicit secondary market valuation prediction reflecting collector FOMO and scarcity dynamics

  • Back to the Future
    game
    Jersey Jack Pinballcompany
    Barrels of Funcompany
    Winchester Mystery Housegame
    The Walking Deadgame
    James Bond 007 (60th Anniversary LE)game
    The Addams Familygame
    Zach Sharpeperson
    Bugperson
    Lukeperson
    DJperson
    Nolanperson
    Sethperson
    Garyperson
    Georgeperson
    John Youssiperson
    Carlperson
    Killianperson

    high · Kaneda: 'A man that was basically booted from Stern Pinball... he's found a home in pinball where he feels respected... we're going to see people probably stepping down at Stern... resumes landing on desks of places like Spooky.'

  • ?

    industry_signal: Stark contrast drawn between Spooky's perceived community-first, artist-respecting culture versus Stern's perceived corporate, arrogant, unresponsive culture

    medium · Kaneda: '[Franchi] wakes up to 'thank you' messages vs at Stern waking up to texts at 1:44am saying 'I'm ruining his family'... Spooky opens their hearts and imaginations to us.'

  • ?

    product_strategy: Spooky deliberately capping production at 1,079 to maximize perceived value, scarcity, and FOMO; contrasts with Stern's perceived high-volume, premium-pricing strategy (James Bond $20k)

    high · Kaneda: 'They're not going to make more... all 1,079 games are special... no regular, no SLE... Everyone is going to want one who loves pinball.'

  • ?

    competitive_signal: Stern scheduled Walking Dead stream on same day as Beetlejuice reveal, positioning perceived as tone-deaf and strategically catastrophic; Kaneda interprets as arrogance/misguidence

    high · Kaneda: 'The fact that their marketing team... thought it would be cute to stream a game on the same day that Beetlejuice drops... shows you how misguided their arrogance really is.'

  • ?

    business_signal: Stern positioned as losing market leadership position; boutiques (especially Spooky) positioned as new market leaders with better products, pricing, culture, and community connection

    high · Kaneda: 'Where would you put your money? Who would you want to invest in? Right now Spooky is number one. They've got the most mojo.'

  • ?

    product_launch: Beetlejuice reveal happening on specific date (appears to be morning of recording); Kaneda predicts instant sellout within 9 seconds with only ~70 slots available for final orders

    high · Kaneda: 'In just a few hours everything about this hobby is going to change... They've got 70 spots available... It's going to be bonkers. The calls coming into Spooky at 10 o'clock their time is going to set the call center on fire.'

  • ?

    design_philosophy: Kaneda articulates preference for 'moments and magic' over pure challenge/difficulty; suggests Beetlejuice leans toward accessible, rewarding play vs Winchester's tighter, bricker design

    medium · Kaneda: 'Most collectors would rather a game be rewarding to play because it's filled with moments and magic... versus holding on, challenging, bricking the ball a lot.'

  • ?

    content_signal: Kaneda contrasts Spooky's passionate, authentic featurette production (Zach's video with team interviews) versus Stern's formulaic, uninspired launch marketing approach

    medium · Kaneda: '[Spooky] opens their hearts and creativity... When you watch these Spooky videos you hear the passion... then Stern's Walking Dead videos... rinse and repeat... just feels like we're saying the same stuff.'