Journalist Tool

Kineticist

  • HDashboard
  • IItems
  • ↓Ingest
  • SSources
  • KBeats
  • BBriefs
  • RIntel
  • QSearch
  • NName Review
  • +Health

v0.1.0

← Back to items

Labyrinth, Pulp Fiction!! The new Williams?!?

Bash Pinball Podcast·podcast_episode·25m 0s·analyzed·May 2, 2024
View original
Export .md

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.027

TL;DR

Hosts praise Labyrinth's Williams design philosophy while finding Pulp Fiction fun but simple.

Summary

The Bash Pinball Podcast hosts discuss two newly played games: Pulp Fiction by Chicago Gaming Company and Labyrinth by Barrels of Fun. They praise Labyrinth's Williams-inspired design, immersive theming, and charming details, while finding Pulp Fiction enjoyable but basic—comparing it to early 1990s Data East games. The episode also includes an unrelated taste test of Coca-Cola Spiced.

Key Claims

  • Mark Ritchie designed Pulp Fiction and previously designed Indiana Jones, Big Guns, Taxi, Police Force, and Diner

    high confidence · Direct statement: 'Yeah, so Mark Ritchie, brother of Steve Ritchie, designed probably his most famous well-regarded game is Indiana Jones' followed by list of other titles

  • Pulp Fiction is Chicago Gaming Company's first non-remake game

    high confidence · Direct statement: 'But yeah, this is Chicago Gaming's first non-remake game. Ah. Because up until this point, they've just done Monster Bash, Medieval Madness, and Attack from Mars. Cactus Canyon?'

  • Labyrinth was the talk of the Chicago Expo last year, more so than Elton John

    medium confidence · Statement: 'apparently this game was like the the talk of the chicago expo last year i think a lot of people were expecting it to like elton john to be kind of the the game that everybody was lining up to play but it was more so labyrinth'

  • Only 1,100 Labyrinth units are being produced

    high confidence · Direct statement: 'They're only making 1,100 of them.'

  • David Van Ess is credited as concept and game design for Labyrinth

    high confidence · Direct statement: 'Concept, David Van Ess, game design. David Van Ess.'

Notable Quotes

  • “I love the artwork. I love the film. I love what they're doing. I love the way it looks. But it's not the kind of game that I would play.”

    Host discussing Pulp Fiction @ Early in episode — Captures ambivalent reception to Pulp Fiction—appreciation of theme and aesthetics but lack of personal gameplay appeal

  • “This is a perfect one for an arcade. But I think you'd get bored of it at home.”

    Host discussing Pulp Fiction @ Mid-episode — Indicates game is better suited for location/casual play than home ownership

  • “I think they did do a good job. I think they kind of providing this immersive or kind of putting you into this world that you're playing in.”

    Host discussing Labyrinth @ During Labyrinth discussion — Praises Labyrinth's worldbuilding and immersion

  • “That's the kind of stuff that's very lacking in Stern games is just like stuff there just for the heck of it. Like there's no purpose. It just kind of adds to the charm.”

    Host discussing Labyrinth's goblin character @ Late in episode — Implicit criticism of Stern's design philosophy compared to Barrels of Fun's approach

  • “You're actually doing all the things that we complain that games aren't doing. Yeah. It's right here. It's in Labyrinth.”

    Host to Barrels of Fun @ End of Labyrinth discussion — Direct praise that Barrels of Fun addresses community complaints about modern pinball design

  • “people who are just Labyrinth fans are going to buy this who aren't even pinball fans it's just so cool”

    Host discussing Labyrinth topper appeal @ Near end of episode — Suggests Labyrinth has crossover appeal beyond pinball collectors

Entities

Chicago Gaming CompanycompanyBarrels of FuncompanyMark RitchiepersonDavid Van EsspersonSteve RitchiepersonJim HensonpersonPulp Fictiongame

Signals

  • ?

    design_philosophy: Labyrinth employs Williams-style cohesive worldbuilding and packaging with modern technical elements (LCD display, modern flippers), creating a hybrid aesthetic

    high · I thought labyrinth is you know to me it was doing more of the williams thing than jersey jack is typically doing as far as like presenting you like a cohesive kind of little world and package... I think does feel more like a Williams game. It's like a weird hybrid of modern LCD display game

  • ?

    event_signal: Chicago Expo last year: Labyrinth unexpectedly outperformed Elton John as main attraction/draw

    medium · apparently this game was like the the talk of the chicago expo last year i think a lot of people were expecting it to like elton john to be kind of the the game that everybody was lining up to play but it was more so labyrinth as it turned out

  • $

    market_signal: Labyrinth has strong crossover appeal to non-pinball fans due to fan base and topper design

    high · people who are just Labyrinth fans are going to buy this who aren't even pinball fans it's just so cool... if I owned this game and like you said I was also a big Labyrinth fan imagine if that was your number one movie of all time and you loved it how cool would it be to have this machine

  • ?

    community_signal: Barrels of Fun staff composition includes people from other pinball companies, suggesting potential exodus of talent or team reformation from established manufacturers

    medium · I think a lot of the folks who started Labyrinth were previously employed with other pinball companies

  • ?

    product_strategy: Barrels of Fun differentiating from Stern through emphasis on charming decorative elements without functional purpose, Williams-inspired design philosophy, and immersive theming approach

Transcript

groq_whisper · $0.075

0:00
All right, reporting live from Super Bari Pinball in Charlotte, North Carolina. Hello, just a quick intro. This is part two of the arcade trip episode. So at least check out the intro from last week's episode for context. I'm not going to repeat myself. So this episode we're talking about two new games that we played for the first time. Pulp Fiction from Chicago Gaming and Labyrinth from the new pinball manufacturer, Barrels of Fun. Sorry, I cannot say it that way. And on that note, here we go with episode four.
0:53
Come on in. Welcome to the Theater of Magic. Welcome to the party zone. Welcome to my home. Welcome to the bash.
1:06
You know what? We didn't talk about the other new game we played there, which was Pulp Fiction from Chicago Gaming. Pulp Fiction.
1:27
also extremely disappointed that i couldn't hear it better i think yeah i think that was a huge it's like a huge missed opportunity on that game yeah i mean you gotta be able to hear that game the music yeah i mean i could hear like hughes i heard like three words from sam jackson like the whole time we played it hamburgers the cornerstone of any nutritious breakfast yeah anyway what did you think about that game you know you know what i thought was interesting man is like I kind of went in without knowing what to expect. I hadn't heard of it. I hadn't actually looked at the play field or anything. But I thought it was fun. I love the artwork. I love the film. I love what they're doing. I love the way it looks. I love that the start button is on the little coin door thing. But it's not the kind of game that I would play.
Labyrinth
game
Coleperson
Spooky Pinballcompany
Super Bari Pinballorganization
Elton Johngame
Stern Pinballcompany

high · That's the kind of stuff that's very lacking in Stern games is just like stuff there just for the heck of it... It just kind of adds to the charm... You're actually doing all the things that we complain that games aren't doing. Yeah. It's right here. It's in Labyrinth.

  • ?

    product_concern: Pulp Fiction has significant audio quality problems in location settings, undermining gameplay experience and theme integration

    high · i could hear like hughes i heard like three words from sam jackson like the whole time we played it... i think that was a huge it's like a huge missed opportunity on that game... i think the gameplay is comparable

    • 2:22
    That's not my type of fun game. Cole had fun my buddy Cole he actually is not a pinball player but handily beat both of us at that game I think twice yeah we were doing real bad and this guy never played pinball I think he thought that we were messing with him we just sucked at that game anyway shout out to Cole yeah so I want to like this game. I think I do like it. But like you, I don't love it either.
    3:00
    It's definitely like the old school vibe with the playfield and layout. There's no ramps, but it is modern flippers and modern speed, which I like. I think it's fun. But I also think ramps are fun.
    3:17
    New stuff is fun. So to me, this has a similar appeal to like early 90s Data East game. Okay. Like that's like a similar level of interest for me. Now this is cooler, like it's a cool theme. It's got some modernizations and things. You're talking about like the gameplay. Yeah, like the gameplay is comparable. Yeah, it seems more basic for sure. There's not a lot going on. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It has some toys in it and stuff, but they're not really part of the game. They're just kind of sculptures that are like a hamburger sitting there. What kind of hamburger? John Travolta sitting there, but they don't do anything. Yeah. The artwork and the play field, super cool, like 90s, 80s vibe or something. It's like the kind of comic art where it's almost bad but not quite. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, which works. Yeah. You know what's funny? I just realized. This pawn shop shot in the middle kind of reminds me of like Tony's Place. Yeah, yeah. It's like the font and the plot. The way that it's set up in the middle.
    4:24
    It's sharper. It's more angled than Whodunit. That's probably the most fun thing to do in that game. To hit those drop targets and then hit the ball lock.
    4:34
    It does seem like a cool game to have in an arcade. But I think you'd get bored of it at home. Yeah, you're right. This is a perfect one for an arcade. It reminds me of Lethal Weapon a little bit, I guess. Oh yeah, dude, no wonder I thought Lethal Weapon. Look at this. Sorry.
    4:53
    That's the Lethal Weapon play field. Oh my god, it's like the inverse. It's kind of the same quality of artwork. Interesting. Wow, man. It's got the gun.
    5:09
    Yeah, that's definitely why I thought of that. Whoa, interesting. Yeah, big Lethal Weapon vibes on that one. But yeah, that's kind of my point. You can get this game for $2,000 maybe.
    5:22
    Right. How much does a Pulp Fiction go for? It's like... $9? Yeah. Scaly, it's a weapon. Unless you love Pulp Fiction, which is a cool movie, but I'm not scrambling to go grab one. Man, but the 90s was Danny Glover. You know what I'm saying? Yeah. I mean, to be fair, you do have Mel Gibson on the back of your... But it doesn't even look like him. Did they even get the light? Like, it barely looks like him. What game? No, in Lethal Weapon. Look how un-Mel Gibson-like that looks. Yeah, he looks like the off Mel Gibson. He's like... It's off enough that you can just pretend it's David Hasselhoff. Yeah, yeah.
    6:01
    Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I got the David Hasselhoff version. He's like the Mel Gibbs-off. You know what I'm saying? Not on, but Gibbs-off.
    6:10
    Definitely Gibbs And now for a word from our sponsor Sega introduces Spider with real web action New Streets of Rage, new Control 40, incredible moves.
    6:32
    Sega Genesis gives you more real villains, hot graphics, and killer two-player action. It's a whole lot more And now back to the show Yeah but I mean Danny Glover Yeah I mean I would be Probably equally happy And it's got a ramp so It's got that going for it That being said Pulp Fiction I won't pass full judgment until we've actually played it with volume. Yeah, it needs to be an actual experience. I mean, we did play it, but we just couldn't hear it. You're right. I didn't know what I was doing half the time when I was playing it anyway. Yeah, so Pulp Fiction. Okay, so I forgot about it that it was designed by Mark Ritchie. Oh, really? Yeah, so Mark Ritchie, brother of Steve Ritchie, designed probably his most famous well-regarded game is Indiana Jones, which, not a game I love. Not a game I love. Wait, they're brothers and they both design games? Yeah, Steve and Mark Ritchie. But Steve is the more prolific of the two, by far. So, Mark Ritchie, Big Guns, not the best of the System 11 Williams games.
    7:58
    Now, Taxi is super fun. I forgot that he designed that. That's a pretty big name, yeah. Yeah, Taxi is a great game. Okay, Police Force, another System 11 that's not that great. Okay, Diner. Wow. That's a good one. Wow, he's got some good games.
    8:17
    Pretty well known. Yeah, and then Pulp Fiction, so he's kind of getting back into game design with the much more old-school, simple design. But yeah, this is Chicago Gaming's first non-remake game.
    8:31
    Ah. Because up until this point, they've just done Monster Bash, Medieval Madness, and Attack from Mars. Cactus Canyon? And Cactus Canyon. I almost forgot. So, I mean, part of that is just the game is already fun. You know, not to throw... Yeah, they didn't have to create anything new. So they feel... But the games, they did a good job making them because they feel like good... I think they feel good. A lot of people don't like, you know, people complain that they don't feel the same or whatever. They feel great to me.
    9:06
    Yeah, maybe it's a little different, but it's good. It's fine. There's going to be a name-a-town gaming company, and they're going to have some recreation of Hook.
    9:17
    I'm going to say, no, it doesn't play the same. It doesn't feel the same. It's not Data East. I don't think we're going to ever get a Hook remake, unfortunately. That's a mistake. Even if it were a well-regarded game, just the licensing issues would probably... I mean, they couldn't even get Robin Williams on the original one. That was so weird. Or Julia Roberts, I don't think. She's on there, though. But it's not her. It totally looks like her, dude. Ish. Totally looks like her. If you look at Tinkerbell, it totally looks like her. I mean, they definitely got Dustin Hoffman. Dustin Hoffman, for sure. That's 100%. The thing with Julia Roberts is that it's so small. Yeah, it's hard to say. And it's hard to say. But it's like I would think if they got her or Robin Williams rights, they would have used it more than what they did in that game. Well, it's like the Mel Gibson. You know what I'm saying? It's the same. It's like just – Because it really doesn't look like him that much. At all. Like you mean Robin Williams? No, no. Oh, Mel Gibson. In Lethal Weapon, right? Yeah. But it's featured so prominently. It's so – It's like if they didn't have the license, like why did they even put his face so big on it? You know what, man? Maybe it's just bad art. Right, right. And I think maybe that's the thing. It's like people will just think it's bad art and just like, oh, it's Monk Gibson. Or they just had to try to make it look different enough that they didn't see that. You put them side by side and the judge says, nope, not the same person.
    10:44
    Now, it may come as a shock to some of you, but on rare occasion, Don and I talk about and enjoy things other than pinball, including the various ways we like to poison our bodies with sugar and chemicals. So we just could not turn down the opportunity to debut a new flavor of Coke. Side note, pretty soon we'll start posting what we're calling Bonus X episodes, and those will more often than not be the home of these pinball diversions. Or not. I promise nothing.
    11:16
    Are we debuting it on this show? Yeah, this is the as of yet unannounced debuting here on the Bash Pinball Podcast.
    11:26
    A new permanent flavor from Coca-Cola, which is not a common thing. You know, they frequently come out with these little like, you know. Limited edition. You see them in the gas station for like a month or two and then they're gone. And they're usually just kind of like, that was interesting. Like an interesting like ran of fruit or something. Yeah, or recently they did the XP, and they just had these weird random names that didn't mean anything. And they had flavors that were more synthetic, I guess. Weird. So this is not one of those. This is a permanent flavor, which I guess means they plan to have it forever, like Coke and Cherry Coke. Coke Zero. So let's give it a taste test. Yeah, so this is Coca-Cola Spiced. Coca Spiced What the vibe of this label How should we say it So Coca Spiced Yeah it feels sensual From the sea it almost looks like a mermaid tail But the font made me think, is this Dune related? Dune. When I first saw it, I was like, oh, it's a limited edition Dune flavor. But it has nothing to do with Dune. 100% reminds me of Dune. Because this flavor launched in March around the same time that Dune 2 came out. So I just associated those two, but really they're unrelated. Spice. Raspberry spiced Coke and other natural flavors. When I think of raspberry, I don't think of spice. I know. Okay, I got to try it. But hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on. So I've already had it, but Don's never experienced the new Coca-Cola spice. I like this label. All right. Here we go. it's delicious what what do you think it tastes like it kind of tastes like medicine but like in a good way i don't know to me it's like a like dr pepper's sister sister spice This is going to sit in a similar place for me as Dr. Pepper. I don't drink that much soda, but when I do, I usually drink Dr. Pepper. This is Dr. Pepper's sister. You're 100% right. But it's still Coke. It still tastes like at the core, there's still the Coke.
    14:06
    There's the Coke bite. Yeah, it's got the Coke bite. It's not nearly as much bite as Dr. Pepper. When they say spiced, they don't mean kick you in the mouth spiced. they just mean like a subtle different sort of flavor it's kind of hard to get right away yeah like i think i think my brain leans more towards spice than the berry flavor yeah yeah well it's like the berry flavor hits first and then like the aftertaste is all of the other flavor it's and it's like i can almost yeah it's like a cinnamon or like a nutmeg or something it's hard to put your finger on but i think it's good i think it's cool i always wonder why there's not more you know I don't know, besides those limited flavors, with the main soda companies, it's like the same general flavor forever. So the backstory with this, you know that a lot of McDonald's and fast food restaurants have those Coke machines where you can pick your flavors.
    15:02
    Oh, yeah, the freestyle machines. Yeah, the freestyle machines. That's right. So apparently, of course, they've been monitoring what everybody has been using. It's like a free marketing tool. and the overwhelming most popular flavor is raspberry that people add to coke and so i think that was kind of the starting point just hard data that's a uh it's a nine out of ten for me yeah i'll give it a nine out of ten too we we have to come up with a we are rating system though for the bash pinball i just use the pin site i just adopted i was thinking in my head like 8.25 Well, let's see. If we're looking at the artwork, and I don't know what you consider the play field. I like the artwork. I would say just the label is the play field, right? It's like fun. It's got curves.
    15:51
    I'm at a seven. You're at a seven? I mean, it's fine, but it's not like blowing my mind or anything. It's kind of generic. It feels a little phoned in.
    16:01
    It's kind of 3D. If you really focus in on the detail, like really, really focus in, it looks almost 3D. Maybe the play field is how it tastes.
    16:11
    Because that's like the experience. It's 100% the experience. Yeah. No, it's got a solid play field. Like, I give the play field on this a 9 out of 10. I like the Coca-Cola spice. I love it. All right, well, I'll try to keep some in the pinball shed.
    16:26
    After these messages, we'll be right back. Come on, let's go. I need breakfast. And don't try to... My Kellogg's corn pops. My keys. They're locked in. Stay calm. Smooth move. Maybe we could call for help. Yeah, sure. Help! I want my corn pops. Oh, like sweet popcorn, I could be having them now. But thanks to the little dweebette, I'm locked out. My pops are locked in, and what am I gonna do?
    16:54
    I was gonna do that. Kellogg's Corn Pop Cereal is part of this complete breakfast. I gotta have my pops. TriStar Pictures announces the collaboration of three extraordinary talents. Jim Henson, creator of The Muppets and Dark Crystal. George Lucas, creator of the Star Wars saga. And one of the most innovative forces in modern entertainment, David Bowie. Together, they will take you into a dazzling world of fantasy and adventure. There's nothing to be afraid of. A world where anything seems possible. and nothing is what it seems.
    17:34
    Everything I've done, I've done for you. The world of Labyrinth. And now, back to the show. Labyrinth.
    17:59
    Matt, I'm looking at the play field. Yeah. Man, it is incredible. Yeah, man. It's incredible. Concept, David Van Ess, game design. David Van Ess. I don't know who it is. It looks like he did animation for some spooky stuff. I think a lot of the folks who started Labyrinth were previously employed with other pinball companies. Barrels of Fun.
    18:23
    What did I say? Labyrinth? Yeah, Barrels of Fun. Maybe it's like all the things they didn't like about that company. and they maybe they just wanted to make things that weren't spooky of course spooky decided to do that anyway but yeah they should have stopped at Scooby Doo yeah that's like as PG as you can get because it still spooky but you know yeah but yeah I want to play this game some more i really do it yeah it has that kind of like williams feel yeah it definitely does yeah apparently this game was like the talk of the chicago expo last year i think a lot of people were expecting it to like elton john to be kind of the the game that everybody was lining up to play but it was more so labyrinth as it turned out. Yeah, but the theme, dude, that theme is so... There's like these die-hard fans. Give me the child.
    19:17
    Through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered, I have fought my way here to the castle beyond the Goblin City to take back the child that you have stolen.
    19:30
    It's got like a cult following. Yeah, they're only making 1,100 of them. You would think there would be 1,100 labyrinth fan just like hardcore fanboys who would probably buy that i don't even play pinball yeah 100 i was really surprised and pleasantly surprised that labyrinth is you know to me it was doing more of the williams thing than jersey jack is typically doing as far as like presenting you like a cohesive kind of little world and package i thought it was i thought it was really cool you know i I never thought about it that way and I agree with you. Yeah. I think it does feel more like a Williams game. It's like a weird hybrid of modern LCD display game but it kind of physically feels maybe not mechanically but like just the way that to me it felt still a little bit more modern. I thought the flippers on that felt very Williams-y. Really? Yeah, they had much more of a delay than the Stern. They felt regular to me. Like just snappy. Yeah, that's because you're used to Williams games.
    20:39
    Well, interesting, man. But yeah, I was kind of surprised. Like that game, I think they did do a good job. I think they kind of providing this immersive or kind of putting you into this world that you're playing in. Yeah, I thought that the artwork and just all the random toys and, you know, like you can see the castle kind of underneath. And they kind of come up out of the play field in places. Yeah. And there's sort of a little dimensionality to it, which is cool. Yeah, it's like the artwork from the play field goes up onto the side of the features. Yeah, Popeye does that too. Yeah, yeah. It also had like a little guy that just popped out and like mocked you when you missed the ball. For no reason. He had no purpose in the game, it didn't seem, other than to just mock you when you drained, which I loved. I love it. You know what's funny is when you played it, and that's when I first noticed that guy. Yeah. And I thought he was going to save the ball. I thought he was like a cool kickback. And I was like, oh, that's awesome.
    21:43
    It's like, nope. That's hilarious. Yeah. And that's the kind of stuff that's very lacking in Stern games is just like stuff there just for the heck of it. Like there's no purpose. It just kind of adds to the charm. It's much more charming. It was, yeah. It was more charming. man i also you know let's give him props on the uh this little topper because here's the thing right if if labyrinth was like my favorite movie of all time and i love pinball this would be my shit dude the topper is off the charts cool on this game you know what i'm saying like i you know like it's it's an it's an awesome i don't i'm not someone who cares about toppers at all ever zero percent of the time have i ever wanted to buy one but if I owned this game and like you said I was also a big Labyrinth fan imagine if that was your number one movie of all time and you loved it how cool would it be to have this machine and you would probably go out of your comfort zone and buy this fucking thing because it's so cool people who are just Labyrinth fans are going to buy this who aren't even pinball fans it's just so cool which you know what I just realized it's also kind of a nod to Jim Henson, man, and his puppets and the animatronics that went into that, which is the magic of those movies. Right, right. I think they knocked it out of the park. I can't wait to see what else this company does. I don't like Labyrinth enough that I would probably go out of my way to get this game, but if I came across one used and I was ready to move on from a game, I'd consider getting it. Yeah, I'd be curious. I gotta play this some more, man. This is so cool. I don't know why. What the heck? I think I was distracted by Jaws. Shout out to these guys, man. You're actually doing all the things that we complain that games aren't doing. Yeah. It's right here. It's in Labyrinth. That's what they're doing. So thank you.
    23:42
    Thanks for hanging out. Next week, look forward to our first Bonus X episode. I'm going to Pinfest this weekend. So be there or be somewhere else entirely. That is totally up to you. Until next time, always remember... A little toxic weights never hurt anyone. Wait, that's not it. Hang on. You rule the universe!
    24:13
    Leave this territory now. Return to your home. Invecuate all personnel. you