Silver Ball Chronicles picks favorite games from seven classic pinball designers.
Summary
David Dennis and Ron from Silver Ball Chronicles record a bonus episode for a pinball media collaboration, selecting their favorite pinball machines from seven legendary designers featured on their podcast: John Borg, George Gomez, Barry Aller, John Popadiuk, Dennis Nordman, Steve Richie, and Pat Lawler. They discuss their selections with enthusiasm and detail, then reflect on what they love most about pinball as a physical, analog experience.
Key Claims
Metallica by John Borg is a John Borg design with Left Right ramps similar to Payback Time, featuring Lady Justice and a Sparky toy
high confidence · Ron discussing his John Borg favorite game
Tron is 'the greatest flow game of all time that isn't two flippers' with amazing photoshop art, playfield loaded with mechanics, spinning disc and scoop
high confidence · David describing Tron as his favorite John Borg game
Bram Stoker's Dracula by Barry Aller originally did not have Keano Reeves likeness rights but they were restored via extra plastics
high confidence · David discussing BSD extras
Demolition Man is 'the narrowest playing widebody ever made'
high confidence · Ron describing Demolition Man by Dennis Nordman
House of Horrors features artwork by Greg Frailey and includes the TGO acronym from Manos: The Hands of Fate, and was Lyman Sheets' last game
high confidence · David discussing his Dennis Nordman favorite
Theater of Magic has a popup that makes the exact same squeak on every single machine due to intentional design
medium confidence · David noting unusual consistency of theater of magic popup squeak
T2: Terminator 2 has a first-two-flippers fan layout with two ramps from right to left
high confidence · David describing T2 as his Steve Richie favorite
The Getaway has ZZ Top music and features a 'coolest Super Jackpot call out ever' with code by Dwight Sullivan
high confidence · David discussing The Getaway as his Steve Richie favorite
Fun House/Rudy features mechanical ramp, ball lock with hot dogs, and a moving jaw animation
high confidence · David describing Fun House as his Pat Lawler favorite
Notable Quotes
“the ramps though Ron the ramps and and the lighting and the lighting so much light”
David Dennis@ 4:25 — Emphasizes key appeal factors of Tron's design
“it does come together as a whole package individually each piece is kind of okay you put them all together it's a brilliant machine”
Ron@ 5:13 — Captures the design philosophy of Deadpool as a cohesive experience
“the ball goes Ary pretty easy in Circus voler where theater of magic is just like just butter wrapped in bacon it's so smooth”
David Dennis@ 9:16 — Descriptive comparison of playfield quality and ball flow
“I own a Tron I gotta keep pumping the value of that pin up my friend”
David Dennis@ 4:41 — Humorous admission of collector investment bias
“the initial impetus the initial impotence no no”
Ron@ 15:40 — Comedic blooper moment about favorite aspects of pinball
“I Canadians is the second thing too so I got to cross that out”
Ron@ 15:21 — Running joke about Canada being ruled out of discussion
“that it's a physical musical game yeah that I can also work on you like to Tinker”
Ron@ 15:32 — Identifies tinkering/repair aspect as core appeal of pinball
content_signal: Pinball media collaboration organized by Colin/Kineticist coordinating top-5 lists across podcasts and creators
high · Colin sent email to 'pinball media content creation group' requesting 'top five' contributions; hosts recording for Slam Tilt as well
?
design_philosophy: Multiple hosts emphasize importance of games working as 'complete packages' where art, music, mechanics, callouts, and lighting combine to create cohesive experience
high · Deadpool: 'individually each piece is kind of okay you put them all together it's a brilliant machine'; Lord of the Rings praised for complete package despite older DMD art
?
gameplay_signal: Heavy emphasis on ramp design, ball flow quality, and playfield layout as core appeal factors across multiple games
high · Repeated references to ramps in Tron ('the ramps though Ron the ramps'); flow comparisons (Theater of Magic as 'butter wrapped in bacon'); Left-Right ramp mechanics called 'Payback Time' pattern
?
design_innovation: Theater of Magic popup mechanism produces identical squeak on every machine due to intentional design choice rather than accident
medium · David states 'the popup the squeak it makes is the exact same squeak on every single theater of magic... it's a design they wanted it's a design squeak'
?
licensing_signal: Bram Stoker's Dracula originally shipped without Keanu Reeves likeness due to licensing limitations; likeness was restored via optional plastic upgrades
high · David: 'removed CUe they didn't have the rights to his likeness'; later playsets added Reeves imagery back to game
Topics
Favorite pinball machines by designerprimaryPinball design philosophy and mechanicsprimaryPhysical vs. digital gaming experienceprimaryPinball licensing and intellectual propertysecondaryPlayfield flow and ramp designsecondaryArt packages and animationssecondaryCollector perspectives on game valuesecondaryMedia collaboration in pinball communitymentioned
Sentiment
positive(0.88)— Enthusiastic and celebratory tone throughout. Hosts express genuine passion for the games discussed and the pinball hobby in general. Light, friendly banter between co-hosts. Only minor self-deprecating humor about lazy editing and production quality in the outro bloopers segment.
Transcript
youtube_auto_sub · $0.000
[Music] the pinball network is online launching silverball Chronicles Nordman what's my favorite Nordman my favorite don't like alien we know it's the pop bumper on Wizard of your that's it that's the one [Music] hello everybody uh this is David Dennis and with me is Ron we're throwing this together last minute howlet how you doing my friend I'm just doing great yeah we're throwing in a bonus episode this month Colin over at the ky.co has sent out an email to everybody in the pinball media content creation group and said hey let's do a collaboration or as the kids call it today ra Ron collab basically he said hey let's record a p a podcast publish a little segment so we're going to throw in a bonus episode here kineticist is that the one who had the list of a favorite podcast and we were on it that's right alphabetically I might add oh so we were sort of towards the middle oh okay I you confused me there I thought alphabetically I'm like we don't start with a we start with s we should start we like zezy top could be yeah yeah zver ball Chronicles yeah I like it well the kineticist wanted to know what our top five pinball machines are well that's far too easy for us well the problem with that is I'm on two podcasts and I'm slam tail podcast is the other one and I'm going to have to do this twice so it's going to be for me it's going to be stupid if I just name the same five machines both times so we're going to have to put a Twist on it then so yeah I thought of an idea an idea that we could name our top game from each of the designers that we have featured on silverball Chronicles oh so we're talking John Borg George Gomez Barry aler John poppet Duke uh the Nordman himself Steve Ritchie and Pat Lawler so we have to give you the listener our favorite pin from that Designer that's what you're getting at yeah that's what I'm getting at and no we didn't forget Wayne nans but he did so many games I can't decide yeah hundreds of games I I'll say flipper clown there sounds good wow I'm going to do the one with the horse that kicks the cowboy of the ass that was a good one yeah that that yeah that that that is a good backbox animation yes so the other thing at the end we're also going to say what do we love most about pinball and Ron I'm sorry it's not you oh I'm sorry it's not Canada either no that one really hurt that was very mean well you do have a manufacturer now so well let's not talk about that okay let's go with John Borg your favorite John Borg game and it better be the same as mine uh it may not be Metallica oh damn it I love me some Metallica you'd love to chop some wood uh I it's fun chopping that wood just hack and slash into Sparky all day yep it's got the Left Right ramps like like payback time stuff going on what do they call it in that game Lady Justice I think that's what they call yes that's the one yeah it's got Sparky everything about it is cool wonderful game love it love it I really do love that game I play a lot of that in my league as as the listeners know know that's a good one my John Borg uh design probably the number one game on my list is clearly Tron the greatest Flow game of all time that isn't two flippers amazing Photoshop art package a Playfield loaded with tons of mechanics the spinning disc at a scoop I mean but the ramps though Ron the ramps and and the lighting and the lighting so much light anyway that's mine that's not a surprise for anybody who listens to this podcast really I thought it would be Rush being you're Canadian at all no I I own a Tron I gotta keep pumping the value of that pin up my friend okay what about what about George Gomez this one I was thinking about I'm kind of stuck between two I have two on this but I'm going to go with the one that everybody knows I'm going to choose uh I'm going to go with Deadpool yeah cuz that's a solid Choice it's just super fun with the honorable mention to his best shooting game game Johnny pneumonic wow Johnny with the coolest toy the glove what's the best what's the best thing of uh Deadpool the whole package it does come together as a whole package individually each piece is kind of okay you put them all together it's a brilliant machine and all that crazy music all the different themes I I love what is it the um canama music the the one that sounds like some kind of like um a carnival I love that love that I'm gonna go with the pin that everybody is going to generally go with with with a very good shout out to Deadpool by the way um as the close runner up for me I'm choosing Lord of the Rings another pin where the entire package coming together from the callouts the sound the music the DMD everything aside from kind of the the generations art back in those modern dmds um what more can you say about Lord of the Rings it's got the mech it's got the flow it's got a diverter it's got the callouts jackpot one jackpot two God I love that I was doing that at um at pintastic I was playing Lord of the Rings and I was yelling that out this fail is beyond any of you on what about outler this one I did have a hard time with cuz eler doesn't have a whole lot of games that I think are like absolute smashes but he has like the most amazing b-level games that is consistent across his entire career what did you put there other than way NS he probably has the most games on the list yeah I like I love Dirty Harry y it's a good one I embarrassed myself greatly during the pentastic tournament on Dirty Harry in which everybody saw on stream because I was drinking how about how about my choice I mean come on Bram Stoker's Dracula ah yes BSD mhm it's got the mechs it's got the ramp it's got the physical ball lock it's got keano Reeves did you ask anymore it doesn't have Keo Rees it does if you buy the uh the extra plastic the extra Plastics that they had removed CU they didn't have the rights to his likeness is is his voice in there though I don't know that's that weird part of his career where he's like are you always Bill and Ted or is that how you act whoa sorry and and it has great call outs you know 13 million I love my bats and my Rats the bats and my rats Papa due John Papa Du JP that is the easiest One World Cup soccer okay okay and you're choosing that because of the rules uh I mean I'm choosing that cuz I think it's his best game okay shoots really great I mean Striker come on how can you not like the World Cup pup go and the call outs again so good so good so good and we'll get to the call outs again that was done by uh that's Tim kitro Tim Tim kitro we'll get to Tim kitro again in the list here ah but I'm gonna go theater of magic I love theater of magic I know the rules are a little little bit not that great but uh it's got the popup seller trunk thing it has the Turning trunk with the multiple States and the sneaking the ball in the back and the ramps and the magnets that move it off of the ramp and onto another ramp oh you know the most amazing thing about that game is that popup the squeak it makes is the exact same squeak on every single theater of magic I don't know how that's possible it's a design they wanted it's a design squeak so you know it's coming love me some theater imag magic wonderful art package just what an awesome theme I will give honorable mention of circus V yeah circus voler is pretty good as well but I find it it it um the ball goes Ary pretty easy in Circus voler where theater of magic is just like just butter wrapped in bacon it's so smooth what about the Nordman himself Dennis Nordman for me that's easy it's in my basement it is Demolition Man yeah okay cuz you cuz you like them wide it's not really wide I mean it is wide but it isn't it's the narrowest playing widebody ever made yeah that's a good one I find it grindy but I mean that's kind of of the era right those uh Bal Williams dmds are kind of grindy now when you look back how is it grindy well you got to you know you got to shoot the ramps and you got to collect the the yellow light or the orange light and then when you do that you you shoot it up you put it in the claw the claw into the it's okay cuz when wizard modes are easy to get to so to me that's the opposite of grinding well yeah but it's it's it's you know like that if theater imic same thing right shoot this shot don't question me Ron uh my Nordman I'm going to go with something that I've played uh quite a bit and I mean you know no it's not obviously his his his Whitewater which is freaking brilliant and all of that shout out to that I'm going Alvar House of Horrors um I really really enjoy that game now that it is is a complete package it's all come together it's I'm not a very good pinball player so shooting uh wide openen ramps is awesome those plastic ramps feel great it's got cool mechs in it the art package is unbelievable by Greg fras and uh it's lyman's last game Lyman sheets and it has TGO in it from the famous um Manos the hands of Fate that's the one Manos the hands of Fate okay Steve Ritchie this one was hard because there was a point where I had almost my whole collection was Steve Ritchie games uh I'll I'll pick one of the ones I still have get away yeah good one so we were uh when I we were on our way to pantastic my wife and I we stopped in uh Portland Maine and we went to uh Arcadia the downtown core there and we played the getaway and my wife immediately went after playing her first ball that is an awesome game so there you go I guess I should call it the getaway highspeed part two like the official name it's got zzy top you take the play field from the first one you add a supercharger get some zzy top in there and the coolest Super Jackpot call out ever I love the ball lock too on the right side donut heaven the way the ball goes up and then into it so good so good Dwight Sullivan's code with the blinking and the lights I better not I better not hum that we might get pulled yes yeah get a what do they call that DC dmca dmca or YMCA or yeah W krp mhm okay T2 that's my Steve Ritchie the first two flippers fan layout two ramp right to left shots absolute Masterpiece do the thing on steroids into the cannon through the skull lock a vertical up Kicker ah love this game God I want one of these games but I can't find one and they're fairly pricey when you find not garbage because they're like they made 10,000 plus of them you think you'd be able to find they made a ton of those games you live in a country with like three or 400 million people uh yeah doesn't everyone oh I don't but you have the same surface area we do you're too spread out that's that's right that's right the same surface area I will say it is it is funny that any game that has the Left Right ramp thing where it returns to you I just call it payback time no matter what game is no matter what it it's called in the game I always call it payback time and the swearing ROM that they put in oh with the mystery ah so much fun and I love it you just it shoots up and it pops out and it's in the pop bumpers and it's not easy it is a it is difficult so awesome let's close it out with Pat Lawler what's your favorite Pat Lawler you know I have a pat Lawler but I won't say it's that one I will say Whirlwind with an honorable mention to a guilty pleasure of mine Road Show Road Show mm don't tell anybody bu that let's rip some Road God I hate that I'm all worn out party time my uh my wife and I played that at pantastic and she hated it a but I'm tell you what I'm going to go with something very similar as my favorite Pat Lawler this one holds quite a glimmer within my heart no it's not dialed in that's the closest one in there we're talking fun house Rudy Rudy is awesome the mechanics behind Rudy is amazing uh the ramp is Fun the ball lock on the left side it's got hot dogs in it I love hot dogs give yourself a hot dog into midnight he sleeps he snores his the the the the coating that had to go into all of that with the quivering jaw H the vision of I want to shoot a que a weird dummy in the face amazing any other honorable mentions in there um among those designers I mean there's lots of honorable mentions but I I think I got through them all great okay so what do you love most about pinball Ron don't say me let's let's spread it out a bit spread it out hold on I have to cross that out then um yeah yeah I Canadians is the second thing too so I got to cross that out sorry yeah keep rolling keep rolling um what do I like most about pinball that it's a phys musical game yeah that I can also work on you like to Tinker that was probably the initial impetus did I say that right impetus yeah the initial impetus the initial impotence no no oh sorry uh I'm gonna I'm gonna I'm gonna say something very similar um I I very much love that it is a physical random analog experience uh as opposed to a very digital based experience so I'm a little bit younger than you Ron and I've almost exclusively grown up in a digital world digital video games you hit the a button he always jumps This thing always comes out from that direction at all those times when we play those games so it being an actual physical thing with a solenoid that literally moves a device or a Target is very exciting and appealing to me it's that Nostalgia of the previous World how's that sounds great I think that's it MH and Ron where can people find us if they're looking for more information they want to hear more and they want to join our patreon well they should just head on over to silverball chronicles. comom and that's wonderful mix of top five which really wasn't a top five and what we love about pinball enjoy yourself at pinball Expo everybody and our next episode is coming out shortly do you want to give them a preview of what that's about Ron our next episode is full of tight but findable shots ooh very well [Music] done [Music] oh I see you have stayed for the bonus episode bloopers I'm Larry the Chronicles AI hello there sadly there are no bloopers in this bonus episode I'm shocked you didn't know that Dave is pretty lazy these days seriously though this was only a short episode what do you expect as you can tell by the quality Dave didn't put much work into editing he didn't keep anything interesting for the bloopers usually he keeps all the parts and edits them in Dave even keeps that bits where Ron says terrible things about people for future use he didn't even do that poor Dennis creel Ron really doesn't like you all right go away now there is nothing else here please leave
Both speakers love pinball primarily for being a physical, analog experience rather than digital
high confidence · Final discussion of what Ron and David love most about pinball
“it being an actual physical thing with a solenoid that literally moves a device or a Target is very exciting and appealing”
David Dennis@ 16:25 — Articulates appeal of analog vs. digital gaming experience
community_signal: Hosts attended Pintastic tournament event; multiple personal anecdotes about playing games at tournament venue
high · David mentions playing Tron at Pintastic; Ron describes Dirty Harry tournament experience; couple played Getaway at Arcadia arcade on route to Pintastic
?
collector_signal: David admits owning Tron and consciously promoting its value; ownership influences game selection and enthusiasm
high · 'I own a Tron I gotta keep pumping the value of that pin up my friend'
?
gameplay_signal: Strong emphasis on callout quality and memorability across multiple games; Tim Kithro specifically praised for World Cup Soccer callouts
high · Multiple references to loving specific callouts: 'jackpot one jackpot two' (LOTR), 'party time' (Road Show), callout quality as major appeal factor
?
historical_signal: Episode structured as retrospective of seven featured designers from Silver Ball Chronicles; systematic coverage of their contributions to pinball
high · Hosts explicitly state they are selecting 'our favorite pin from each of the designers that we have featured on silverball Chronicles'
~
sentiment_shift: Newer/younger host (David) expresses particular enthusiasm for physical mechanical aspects of pinball vs. digital games; represents generational perspective on analog appeal
high · David: 'I've almost exclusively grown up in a digital world... being an actual physical thing with a solenoid that literally moves a device or a Target is very exciting'
?
content_signal: Next Silver Ball Chronicles episode will focus on 'tight but findable shots' theme
high · Ron previews next episode: 'our next episode is full of tight but findable shots'
?
community_signal: Hosts participate in multiple podcasts (Silver Ball Chronicles and Slam Tilt) and coordinate with broader pinball media collaboration network
high · Ron mentions doing this list twice for both podcasts; broader 'pinball media content creation group' referenced by Colin/Kineticist