1, 2, 1, 2, 3, 4 Don't get angry with me I never cost you no pain Oh, welcome everybody. Happy Friday. Welcome to Canada's Pinball Podcast. I'm feeling good. I'm feeling positive. I've been at the gym since like six in the morning. Killian is off at daycare and I'm here to talk to you about pinball. All right. So it has been over 700 days since there has been a code update for Guns N' Roses pinball. Maybe the best selling pinball machine of all time by Jersey Jack Pinball. Over 700 days without a code update. Why? What is the reason why Jersey Jack Pinball refuses to finalize the code on this game? I don't think they understand something. And I mean this when I say it because I own a Jersey Jack Guns N' Roses collector's edition and I want this company to be successful. But I don't understand, don't they get what signal and message this sends to the pinball community? Why don't they have more pride in their brand? Imagine if their brand was a restaurant and there is a dirty David Hankin on the floor. Is nobody going to pick it up for 700 days? This code is not final. There are changes they can make to the Guns N' Roses code that would just make the game better. one of the reasons why we are seeing guns and roses like prices plummet on the used market it's not just because there's a lot of multi balls it's not just because the playfields were chipping apart it's also because the company seemingly does not care to address some of the issues in the game from a code and balance standpoint think about it if you're playing this game and there's 22 songs in guns and roses pinball it is arguably one of the greatest music asset pins of all time. When you play this game, it is amazing how they have all the live footage. They have all these songs, and yet it's not balanced properly. There are songs you'll never really do if you want to get to a high score, and there are songs that are 12 minutes long that you're not even going to start because the balancing is not there. There's also a very glaring mistake with the game. The whole point of the game is to strategically do stuff before you start a song. Like that is how this game was designed. For those of you who complain about the multi balls, you don't really understand the rule set because it's all about locking the balls and getting them ready for the song. And all of this game is about building up your strategy before you start a song. Now there's one major problem with the code in the game currently. It doesn't tell you on the screen what your song value is worth before you start the song. It doesn't tell you like what's at stake until it's too late. It also doesn't let you cancel starting a song if you go into the scoop and you don't want to start the song yet. And so these are easy fixes for someone who could just take feedback from people who have been playing this game for freaking three years now, who have all this great feedback to give Jersey Jack pinball. And we are 700 days and not a single code update. And let's not even get into like Pirates of the Caribbean, where they still have not released in final form the final version of that game's code. Jersey Jack, I really hope you listen to this. I really hope if you're friends with Jack Guarnieri or Ken Cromwell or Eric Minier, you send them this podcast. Do you understand that your brand, your brand is being tarnished when you don't address stuff like this? And there's no excuses. Like if maybe it was 50 days or 100 days or even, heck, a year after the game's been out. But now we're at 700 plus days. And I think this is why a lot of people are just now moving away from Jersey Jack. They're tired of a company that seemingly does not respond to what consumers want. We're seeing the pinball marketplace softening right now. And what's going to happen right now as things get soft, as people hold on to their money more, people are going to expect more from these companies. I asked a very simple question today on my Facebook page. I said, well, somebody popped the hood on a Venom Pro so we can see how much is in the game. And nobody's done it yet. Can somebody please, if you're near a Venom Pro, can you please just pop the hood on one so we can see what's underneath the game? I think more and more people are going to want to see that these games are actually putting more into them for these higher prices. and I think we're going to be shocked when we see how little is in a Venom Pro for $7,000. And we're definitely seeing more and more distributors are putting things on sale, right? It used to be buy, buy, buy. It's no longer buy, buy, buy. It's more wait and see. And then we're hearing reduced, reduced, reduced. Now look, I don't have any line of sight into what a distributor or distributor's finances are. I have no clue whatsoever. A distributor wants to make money on every game they sell. They had a bunch of golden years where games were selling regardless of like anything. Like you just put a game in a box and people wanted it. You had a list 10 miles long of people who would buy every single Stern LE when they were only making like 500 and LEs were 7,500 bucks. But now that LEs are $13,000 and there's a thousand of them, I don't think distributors are used to what's happening right now. They are not used to buying their allocations from Stern and watching these games sit. And the real issue is not even the LE prices because the LEs are targeting wealthy people They are The real issue I see in pinball is not that It not at the top of the market The real issue is the middle If you lose the middle consumer if you lose that person that's willing to buy the pro or the premium because they don't see the value, because the distributor needs to sell a lot more pros and premiums than they do of LEs. And I think that's where the real danger lies. These $10,000 premiums, I think you can knock $500 off to get to the map pricing. You can get a stern premium for $9,500. Other distributors will give you free shipping as another way to take some more money off. Now, look, shipping isn't free. That distributor has to pay for that shipping. They're passing that savings on to you as the customer. It's a smart move to give free shipping. We're going to see more and more distributors have to do stuff like this. Here's what's also going to happen. And I think we saw it this week with a Godfather LE for sale for like $9,999. I think we're going to see distributors unbox a game that's pretty much brand new and they'll stream the game and then sell it for like 10 grand. So think about it for a minute. If you're a distributor and you were selling people Godfather LEs for $12,000, you can't really offer one that's brand new for $10,000 without pissing off everybody who just bought from you at 12. So what they're doing is they're unboxing it, streaming it, and voila, $2,000 just evaporated from the price. Now, the real question is this. If a distributor can sell you a Godfather Elite that is basically brand new for $10,000, that's $2,000 off of MSRP, are they even making money on that sale, especially if they're going to give you free shipping, right? So then how much is a distributor paying Jersey Jack for that game? Is it $9,000? Are they making $3,000 off every LE they sell? I don't think so. It's really razor thin margins. And we're going to see this more and more and more. The only issue I've been noticing in the pinball marketplace is this, though. Even with these reduced prices, the problem is the prices where most of these used games are starting at is bonkers. You're telling me that a Ghostbusters premium is $14,000. Now you're going to take off like two or $3,000 from the price. $14,000 for a Ghostbusters premium. I mean, freaking the LE was $7,500 or $8,000 at most. And at least it was limited. You have no idea how many Ghostbusters premiums are out in the world. Do you know? I bet there's thousands of them and they're not worth $13,000 each or $11,000 each. Now look, they might be worth that to you, but that's what I'm noticing is going to be the new sales tactic by a lot of these distros is they're inflating the use prices of all these games and then they're going to put them on sale, but even the sale price doesn't look that attractive. Look, I get it. We harp about price so much and I was thinking about this this morning, like why is there so much conversation lately about pinball prices and the market of pinball. And I know why. And I feel like I have the answer. The reason why we're so focused on price is because we're really not happy with the majority of pinball offerings that have happened in 2022, 2023. People are just not satisfied or blown away by these games. If these games were magical, if these games were masterpieces, If these games were really innovative, if they were really pushing the envelope, right? If every new game that came out was better than every game before it, we would not be having this price conversation. But deep down inside, we know that's not happening. We're not seeing like pinball being taken to new levels with each release. We're seeing stuff that feels a little bit like it's cutting corners. Like when you lift the hood on a Venom Pro, you are gonna see much less than you saw on like a Tron Pro. And so clearly Stern is probably saving money because remember, Venom is not like a movie property where they had to license all these clips and assets. It's all homegrown animations. And then it's obviously that Stern is investing a lot more money in the code and software department. You know, a lot of people have been saying like, look at Pulp Fiction, it's such a great value, But don't forget, people, Pulp Fiction has no screen. It basically has no animations at all. It has no requirement for a large coding team to make that game. Pulp Fiction is a single-level game, right? So Pulp Fiction at $9,700 basically with no ramps, single-level, no LCD screen, no assets from the movie other than call-outs and other than imagery of the actors and actresses in the movie. Think about it. That's $9,700 without all of that stuff. now imagine if Pulp Fiction had everything else in it imagine if they had to code a game if they had to code hours of a pinball experience all of a sudden Pulp Fiction would probably be right where a Stern LE is at you know so that's where we're at I think we're having a lot more conversations about the marketplace about the cost of these items because we're really waiting for another great game to come out now look I hope something great comes out at Pinball Expo I think we're going to see a remake from the pinball brothers i think we're going to see maybe that mystery game i think we're going to get more guardians of the galaxy pros who cares about that i mean remember the old saying pros are for hoes but it is funny to me that like a stern pro is almost the same price now as a stern limited edition game it's just bonkers the last four to five years i almost wish i could have just got into the hobby right now i'll tell you why because the newbies like the new people coming into pinball now who got bit by the bug, they have the enthusiasm, they have the excitement. They were never around when these things were much more affordable. So they don't feel like they're getting ripped off at all. It all about the theory of relativity Relative to them this is what pinball costs Relative to these gentlemen if they have or burning a hole in their pocket instead of buying an S Mercedes they can snap their fingers and overnight flood their basements with pinball machines, and all of a sudden, they've got some clout in the pinball world, and unlike a Mercedes S-Class, the second you buy 10 pinball machines, you instantly have all of these new friends. You're instantly part of this new community. Someone who buys one single Mercedes S-Class, nobody cares about them. Nobody wants to be your buddy because you have one. And that's what's amazing about this hobby is once you buy a few, you are indoctrinated into a community. And that's where the real value lies. That's where the real entertainment is. That's where the real enjoyment is. You start to feel a connection to people. You know, I work in marketing. The number one thing that's depressing people in modern society is a lack of community. And what is buying five pinball machines do? What is starting a pinball podcast do? What is Facebook live streaming about pinball? What is getting in fights with Christopher Franchi about his translates do for you? It puts you into a community. It puts you into a conversation with like-minded people. It's the reason why going to Pinball Expo will be fun for people. It's not because the show itself is great. The show itself, you get everything you need to get in two hours. You could walk around Pinball Expo in two hours and you will be bored if that's why you go to the show. you're going there to meet people who can talk about pinball when you go into the real world if i go into a bar today after work and i tap people on the shoulder and i want to have a conversation about what the heck is american pinball thinking not putting a magnet protector on galactic tank force nobody's going to want to have that conversation with me but if i do it here or i do it at pinball expo or on facebook or on pin side all of a sudden there is a hyper engaged community ready to tell me their point of view about that magnet, about that game. And that's why I love pinball. And that's why I encourage each and every one of you. Engage more with the community. Engage more with your pinball friends and just wait for these great games to come out. You know, look, I have a lot of friends who are distributors as well, and I talk to them on a weekly basis. And it's tough times, people. I know some people are saying sales are better than they've ever been before. That's not what I'm hearing from my distributor friends. They are waiting for a hit game to come out, but there have been some titles recently that they're sitting on. Inventory is piling up, and we're still friends. I'm not attacking their livelihood when I tell you to wait and see. When you buy a pinball machine, I would love you to buy a pinball machine from Cointaker. They are great people. I would love for you to buy a pinball machine from Mike at Automated. He's an amazing person. Another amazing person, Joe over at Pinball Star. If you buy a game from any of those three people, drop my name. Guess what happens when you drop my name? I get zero kickbacks. I can't say that for everybody else in the pinball space. People are getting kickbacks for Win Schilling games. I won't name names. They know who they are. And every time they hear this, they're probably crossing their fingers that I don't out them because I don't think it should be like that. I don't think people who make pinball content should get kickbacks for sending referrals to distributors. That's not the job of pinball media. We are here to tell you an objective opinion about these companies and call it like we see it. So when I see something like this American pinball magnet that is deteriorating, I say to myself, why? Why in 2023, when this kind of wear and tear happens on a magnet like that, when you have artwork surrounding a magnet like that, it is going to chip away because of the forces of the magnet. When I'm seeing this on American Pinball's Galactic Tank Force, I'm not on an agenda to take this game down. I'll tell you who was on an agenda to take this game down. American Pinball. They didn't market research whether or not people wanted this theme. They did that, not me. They obviously didn't quality test this game. They didn't catch the air balls from the tank. They didn't realize how this magnet was going to rip away the artwork in the game. shouldn't a company test these things like thousands of times before they sell them to consumers it's 2023 i'm very tired of watching consumers have to absorb mistakes that should have been caught at the factory level at this much money everyone expects more and look the playbook how to do it right is out there all you got to do is look at how stern dealt with their magnet issue this was happening to stern machines and they fixed it with their new current magnet innovation. I'm sure that has a patent on it, but you can do something similar. It's not like it's that hard to get to the drawing board and figure out how to make these mechanisms so they don't tear apart a pinball play field. And that's all I really want to see. You know, I wake up every day and I think about pinball, hopefully not as much as you do, but I do think about it every single day. I think about other industries because sometimes I think it's easy to get tunnel vision in this hobby. You know, I was at my parents' house. I was down in my dad's bathroom. He's got this little man cave. It's amazing. And I'm sitting in his bathroom and I pick up a copy of DuPont Registry. Now, if you don't know what DuPont Registry is, it is basically like an automotive used car sales magazine for wealthy people. And there's about 100 pages on every single page. Every single car for sale has basically no miles on it. And every single car for sale is about $150,000 all the way up to a few million dollars. Every single car. And these are all these exotic cars, beautiful cars with low miles because just like pinball, rich people don't like to actually use the things they buy. They just like to have them. And I was thinking to myself, it is absolutely embarrassing when I got to the end of that magazine that we're complaining about $8,000 or $10,000 or $15,000 when these things are like $350,000 and people buy these things without even thinking twice. I think what's going to happen is this. Pinball is just going to have to attract wealthier people for it to sustain itself at these prices because to the average American you know those exotic cars are dreamland Most people can even afford a Brenda come on. I'm almost done. I love you, but like most people, most, most people, I should just leave that in the show so people can see what I go through to get this show to people. most people okay are we still we're having this most people i should leave i'm gonna leave that i'm gonna leave that it i mean seriously like i'm recording in the living room clearly i'm doing a pinball podcast brenda walks in and just starts banging on stuff in the kitchen sink i i don't get it like you know like i don't get it i love her to death but come on clearly clearly can i on air i need like an on-air sign somewhere all right most people can't even afford a bill for $500, like an emergency bill. And that is why when you're buying stuff like pinball machines, it's very much like buying a Lamborghini. Nobody who buys a Lamborghini needs a Lamborghini, right? It is like something extra. It is a toy for a very wealthy person. I think a pinball machine is a toy for a somewhat successful individual. You know, look, I'm not making millions of dollars a year. Most of you are not making millions of dollars a year. Some of you are, and I'm very happy for you. I begrudge nobody's successes. But like with everything, you have to look at something and say, how much went into this? How much went into making this pinball machine? Is it worth this much money? It's wood, it's lights, it's steel, it's code, it's artwork, it's ink. It's not like the materials are that expensive. We know that. I bet you a Venom Pro, the bomb on a Venom Pro, when we finally lift the hood on the game, I bet the bomb on that game is $4,000. I bet it is $4,000. I bet Stern is making $2,500 at least on every pro they make. And I don't care if they do. All I want and all you want, I just want the games to get better. I want there to be more magical games a year. I want to stop complaining about prices and I want to start gushing about how excited we are because we just got this game or that game. That is what everybody wants. You know, when the games stop being exciting, we focus on the negative. We focus on like Galactic We tank force magnets. We focus on Christopher Franchi's translates. We focus on pinball drama. We focus on market trends. Who cares about any of that stuff? It doesn't matter. What we should all be focused on is getting magical pinball machines into the world. And you have the power to do that. As a consumer, all you have to do is say no. Like if you don't buy games that you don't see the value in, guess what's going to happen? these companies are going to put more into the games. Imagine if Stern made Jurassic Park and everybody said, I'm not buying this because it doesn't have the movie assets in the game. The next time they make a game like that, they're going to go get the movie assets. They're going to go do it. But if you buy it anyway, it sends a message to them that this is enough. You don't have to go get everything. Look, they can get everything. They can get the actors. They can get the clips. They can get the Jeep Cherokee, everything. They could get everything and still make a nice profit. profit. We all know this. So it's going to be really interesting when Jaws comes out to see exactly what is in it. And I can't wait till we get there. Everybody, look, I hope you have a great Friday. Do me a favor. Turn off Pinside for the weekend. Listen to my Saturday Morning Spectacular to be entertained for 90 minutes. Root for Ireland in the Rugby World Cup, which is happening this Saturday. Take care of yourselves. Take care of your family. Take care of your finances, but really just take care of yourselves. It means so much to me when I get messages like this. And I'm going to read this message to end this show. I want to read this. This comes from Philip P. He said, Hi, Chris. I can't believe how fast time goes by. Almost seven years ago, I wrote you the message below. I still listen to every single episode and I still think your pinball podcast is easily the best there is. It's my favorite podcast and that's not just pinball podcast. I remember when you took a break because someone threatened your career and it made me sad. I was excited when you got back on the air. I want to thank you again for the hard work you put into these shows, so thank you. I'm probably one of the first Patreon backers, and I only took a short break backing when I thought you left the scene for good. I bought and sold some machines over the years, usually lost money, never really cared. Just like you, I care about my family first and foremost. In February 2017, we had a two-month-old baby boy. Now we have two kids, both going to school. Recently, I found the time and motivation to take care of my well-being. I started eating better. I started cycling. Instead of buying a new pinball machine, I spent $5,000 on a gravel bike and another 5K on a nice watch. No regrets. I wish you and your family the best and hope to hear some more great shows. This is everything to me, people. That is exactly what I love and that is exactly why I do this show. I love that even if it's just for a few people out there, if we can turn a negative into a positive, we can stop spending every single dime on pinball and take care of yourselves, take care of your family, take care of life. Now, for some of you out there, you're doing it, and I love it, and I love hearing from people. I love seeing Bill Brandis with a freaking six-pack even though he just dropped the show because apparently he makes so much money he can't afford $5 a month, and he says he's busy. He doesn't have time to listen to my pinball podcast. I see Bill Brand has joined every single pinball streamer every time they go live. Bill, I don't buy it. You came to my wedding. I'm going to go to your hotel, and I'm going to run up a tab. Everybody, have a great Friday. Enjoy the weekend. And Jersey Jack Pinball, stop being lame. Update your code, or Panzer Freak is going to go nuts forever. Later. I hear a melody ringing in my brain You can keep the memories, don't have to be ashamed Don't get angry with me