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Stefan Riedler of RS Pinball - Episode 36

JBS Show·podcast_episode·1h 10m·analyzed·Jul 19, 2024
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claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.034

TL;DR

European distributor Stefan Riedler details pinball distribution business, EPC 2025 plans, and market dynamics.

Summary

Stefan Riedler of RS Pinball discusses his journey from KTM motorcycle engineer to European pinball distributor, his Flip Arena community club in Austria, and the upcoming 2025 European Pinball Championships in Vöcklebrook featuring 140 machines and 320+ participants. He covers distributor economics, pricing trends post-COVID, manufacturer relationships, and the growing diversity of pinball manufacturers worldwide.

Key Claims

  • Stefan started RS Pinball as a side business in 2015 and will celebrate 10 years in 2025

    high confidence · Stefan states 'next year it will be 10 years where I do it. And that means next year, 2025, so when you consider back in 2015'

  • EPC 2025 in Austria will feature approximately 140 pinball machines and target 320 participants (five slots of 64 persons or more)

    high confidence · Stefan details: 'the target is absolutely to have like 320 participants. So like five slots of 64 persons... And we will bring there around 140 pinball machines'

  • Stefan has never declined a manufacturer allotment in nine years as a distributor

    high confidence · Stefan states: 'I was, till now, never in the case that I didn't took the allotment. So I cannot say if it would hurt me or not, because with all the activities that I did and with all the growth that I had in the nine years, I was always taking the allotment'

  • COVID created a huge demand boom for pinball, but current market conditions are normalizing back to pre-COVID levels

    high confidence · Stefan notes: 'The COVID times... was a huge boom... But right now for sure the sales are not that high like it was in the main COVID time. That's true. It's going back to the normal'

  • James Bond Limited Edition prices in Europe dropped from over 17,000 euros to around 16,000 euros due to favorable exchange rate shifts

    high confidence · Stefan explains: 'James Bond Limited Edition was more than 17,000 euros... And right now, we are at around 16,000 or slightly below'

  • Jersey Jack added value (red curls, topper, inside-out plates) to games from Godfather to Elton John without raising prices

    high confidence · Stefan states: 'from Godfather to the John is they have put more value in the game for the same pricing... you get red curls, you get the topper, you get inside out plates'

  • Pinball Brothers' Alien Ripley Edition was cheaper than the standard edition despite having more features, due to reduced manufacturing costs

    high confidence · Stefan explains: 'the Ripley's Edition, which had more features in it, was cheaper than the standard edition'

Notable Quotes

  • “And I hope that we bring here in our Flip Arena as well a nice feeling to the people and enjoy the hobby.”

    Stefan Riedler @ early in interview — Establishes Stefan's philosophy about community-focused distribution and venue creation

  • “The only good thing what I could say about Andrew Highway. He brought me into this hobby, from the hobby to the business.”

    Stefan Riedler @ mid-interview — References Andrew Heighway (Highway Pinball founder) as the catalyst for his business, but with implied negativity about other aspects of the relationship

  • “So which kinds of player are you? And when they are here and when they see all brands, what is existing, or nearly all brands, and then they can play and test it and see, do they like the flipper feel of the Stern, or do they like it different?”

    Stefan Riedler @ mid-interview — Illustrates Stefan's customer-centric try-before-you-buy philosophy as distributor

  • “for me the good thing is that I am quite diverse with all the manufacturers. I'm still going to a lot of events... that helps me as well that you have always a sale here or there.”

    Stefan Riedler @ discussing current market — Demonstrates how portfolio diversification provides business resilience during economic slowdown

  • “I cannot confirm, but I will not deny because that's the business.”

    Stefan Riedler @ on unreleased game discussions — Shows insider knowledge of confidentiality practices around upcoming releases

  • “Stern, they have good products, but as well, they increased overall their whole capacity because of the COVID demands. And now they have a huge capacity with the new factory, which is really awesome, and they do a great job. But as well, these amount of products need to be sold.”

    Stefan Riedler @ on current market challenges — Identifies key industry challenge: Stern's expanded capacity creating sales pressure post-COVID

  • “I pick up at the manufacturer and I do the transport organization, basically everything by myself with my partners.”

Entities

Stefan RiedlerpersonRS PinballcompanyFlip ArenaorganizationEuropean Pinball Championships 2025eventStern PinballcompanyJersey Jack PinballcompanyPinball BrotherscompanyHeighway Pinballcompany

Signals

  • ?

    business_signal: Elton John Limited Edition sold better than Guns N' Roses Limited Edition due to quantity allocation and theme appeal, demonstrating distributor discretion in allotment selection impacts sales outcomes

    medium · Stefan: 'I sold much more collector's edition of Elton John than of Guns N' Roses, not only due to the fact that the quantity was diverse'

  • ?

    business_signal: European distributor model relies on portfolio diversification across 10+ manufacturers to achieve business resilience during market fluctuations

    high · Stefan: 'for me the good thing is that I am quite diverse with all the manufacturers... that helps me as well that you have always a sale here or there'

  • ?

    business_signal: European pinball market experiencing favorable pricing from dollar-to-euro exchange rate fluctuations, reducing end-consumer costs

    high · Stefan compares James Bond LE: 17,000+ euros during poor exchange rates down to ~16,000 euros with improved rates

  • ?

    business_signal: Stern Pinball expanded production capacity post-COVID with new factory but now faces sales pressure to move large inventory volumes in normalizing market

    high · Stefan states: 'they increased overall their whole capacity because of the COVID demands. And now they have a huge capacity with the new factory... But as well, these amount of products need to be sold. And so that's a challenge for the manufacturers and for us as distributors'

  • ?

    community_signal: Austrian/German pinball community demonstrates strong organizational infrastructure with Flip Arena, multiple regional clubs, and EPC hosting capability

Transcript

groq_whisper · $0.213

0:00
Hello, my name is Jamie Burchill, and you are listening to and or watching our podcast called Wormhole Pinball Presents.
0:10
Today, I'm very, very excited to be joined by two great individuals. Today, I'm really excited to be joined by a very special guest. And today, I'm very excited to be joined by two awesome guests all the way from Ireland.
0:24
Hello, and welcome to the Wormhole and our podcast we call Wormhole Pinball Presents, and interview series we started to highlight those in pinball and arcades. And today I'm really excited to meet again, but this time interview him, a European pinball distributor, Stefan Riedler of RS Pinball. Welcome back to the Wormhole, but this time virtually all the way from Austria. Stefan.
0:48
Hi, Jamie. It's great to see you again. Hopefully see you soon in person again. And I really liked Wormhole. It's a nice place to be. and I hope that we bring here in our Flip Arena as well a nice feeling to the people and enjoy the hobby. Yeah, I was going to ask, what do you think of our little place here at the Wormhole? What do you think about it? I really love it. What I really love on your collection is the big diversity that you have. So different manufacturers, old games, new games, some exotic ones. This is always the best thing. And maybe you have recognized when I've been on your place, I went always to the rare games Or to the games that you don't see so often Because I really like to play these games Which you've maybe never seen before Or which are maybe a bit strange And you don't see them so often And hopefully these games are then free And to enjoy them I made even Madness, A Monster Bash Games like this you can find basically everywhere Yeah You know, Tim of the Wormhole bought a new In the Box heavy metal From you, right? Yes, that's correct Yeah, I helped unbox it at his house. It came to his house. I helped unbox it. It is gorgeous. And I know you'll be excited to know that it is coming to the Wormhole this weekend. So perfect. Your heavy metal, it will be. And in fact, we're going to put it like right over here, right behind me. because it's so beautiful at the end over there and mine is signed by the band Halloween because the band Halloween they have a song in the game and a friend of mine he was once in the past a producer of them and so I was joining a concert of them in Frankfurt took the game with me, put it backstage and then all the band members which have been there signed me the back glass it's a nice fast flowing game we often use it as well like for the eliminations when we have tiebreakers. Okay. But there is then one disadvantage in the tournaments, and so please consider it when you use it because you can steal the balls. Yeah. So on this case for tournament use, I remove one post in there so that not the ball can fall in and you can shoot it out and can steal it because basically it cannot stop there again. Oh, that's smart. well thank you for that because we're going to put it in a tournament uh in less than a month so i appreciate that thank you very much it's good advice take care about this thank you uh these interviews are very informal uh i love to start out with origin stories right because my first question from when i was reading your background how do you go from working at a motorcycle manufacturer in germany to becoming a major pinball distributor take me through that journey? It was in Austria.

  • Over 10 major pinball manufacturers currently exist globally

    high confidence · Stefan states: 'if somebody is asking me how many are existing, then I always put the world map in front of my eye and say, okay, we start in Canada and then we go down to Australia so that I don't miss any of the manufacturers because it's more than 10 already'

    • Stefan Riedler @ on logistics — Illustrates the hands-on operational complexity of European distribution

  • “So there's a lot of rumors going around. And then you hear always different people talking about different stuff and different rumors and some of it you know already it's true or not true.”

    Stefan Riedler @ on unreleased games — Acknowledges the rumor ecosystem around new game announcements

    • American Pinball
    company
    Chicago Gaming Companycompany
    KTMcompany
    Abe Flipsperson
    Arno Nöbelperson
    JDL Pinballcompany
    Jamie Burchillperson
    Wormhole Pinballorganization
    Flipnixorganization

    high · Stefan describes Flip Arena operations, multiple contributing clubs (Flipper SV, Flipper Keller Landshut, Kugelopfer, Flippnick), and EPC 2025 logistics

  • ?

    community_signal: Austrian pinball education initiative: Abe Flips producing Kickstarter-funded tutorial content for technique improvement and classical game rule guides, supported by community

    high · Stefan highlights Abe Flips YouTube channel, Kickstarter reaching top tier, Stefan providing machines for content creation

  • ?

    event_signal: European Pinball Championships 2025 (Vöcklebrook, Austria) planned as major multinational event with 140 machines, 320+ players, manufacturer-sponsored tournaments, and streaming by JDL Pinball

    high · Detailed planning described: venue (ice hall, 2,000 sq meters), game diversity, participant targets, manufacturer partnerships, streaming arrangements

  • ?

    licensing_signal: European theme preferences diverge from North American market (e.g., Smurfs targets children vs. Toy Story family appeal); distributors must assess cultural fit when receiving allotments

    medium · Stefan discusses Smurfs vs. Toy Story: 'Smurf is typically really for small children... Toy Story is more made for the whole family'

  • $

    market_signal: Post-COVID pinball market is normalizing back to pre-2020 demand levels; sales declining from peak COVID boom

    high · Stefan: 'It's going back to the normal, I would say, what we had before COVID' and 'right now for sure the sales are not that high like it was in the main COVID time'

  • ?

    community_signal: Andrew Heighway (Heighway Pinball) credited with introducing Stefan to pinball hobby via Full Throttle motorcycle-themed game, but relationship soured (vague negative reference: 'everything else from Andrew, yeah, let's pass on this')

    medium · Stefan: 'the only good thing what I could say about Andrew Highway. He brought me into this hobby... And everything else from Andrew, yeah, let's pass on this. We'll pass. We'll pass on that.'

  • $

    market_signal: European pinball prices stabilizing; manufacturers addressing affordability through value-add rather than price cuts (Jersey Jack, Pinball Brothers examples)

    high · Jersey Jack added features without raising prices; Pinball Brothers lowered Ripley Edition price below standard despite more features

  • ?

    product_strategy: Jersey Jack strategy: maintain price point but enhance value proposition (red curls, toppers, inside-out plates) between major releases

    high · Stefan: 'from Godfather to the John is they have put more value in the game for the same pricing... you get red curls, you get the topper, you get inside out plates'

    • 3:40
    Oh, it was in Austria? Yes. Yeah, KTM is an Austrian company. Oh, okay. It's around 50 kilometers away from me. And during the time that I worked there, I bought my first pinball machine. And my technical education, let's say my origin is I did my A-level in electrics, electronics. Later on, I started automotive engineering. So I'm from the technical guy from my education. And when I was young, I rarely played pinball. but then it came in my mind somewhere in the 2000s it would be great to have a pinball machine so I had a look on, searched in the web found some in ebay and so on and have seen, oh shit they are crazy expensive, they cost a thousand euros so a thousand bucks oh no, I don't buy such an expensive toy then I dropped the thinking, but half a year later hmm, I want a pinball machine and Oh, Labyrinth. Yeah.
    4:42
    Oh, that? I don't know. Sorry. It's quite loud. No, no. It'll stop. It's the best topper in pinball right now. We'll talk about that later, but I think that topper is so great. And if it interrupts you, so what? It's so good.
    4:59
    So then I searched in the eBay further, and I found one pinball machine, and I bid on it and I bought it for 600 euros. That was at Buck Rogers. It was around nearly 1,800 kilometers away from me. But I was on a business trip the week afterwards in this direction. That's the reason why I bid for this game. And then when I drove there and picked this game up, I came home directly with two games, with the Buck Rogers and with the Cyclone. So it got more and more. And during this time when I worked for KTM, And then we built the house. And after the renovation, I got more pinballs. I had, at the end, 15, 16, 17 pinball machines, something like this.
    5:44
    Yeah, you went down a wormhole. And due to the fact that I was working for a motorcycle company, even when I was developing the sports car, the game Full Swaddle, which was announced by Highway Pinball at this time from UK, was interesting for me because of the motorcycle theme. And then I decided to buy a game. and thought, okay, let's try. And I buy some more. I worked at this time point already for another Austrian company. And so I started then to create my company, create RS Pinball and buy and sell pinball machines. So that's basically, I would say, the only good thing what I could say about Andrew Highway. He brought me into this hobby, from the hobby to the business. And now it's my full-time job. Everything else from Andrew, yeah, let's pass on this. We'll pass. We'll pass on that. You know, no worries. I see a bunch of machines in the background. Are you at Flip Arena?
    6:42
    Yes, I'm now in the Flip Arena. So you see here in the background some games like the Elton John or the Phantom, Mermaid Edition, or over there, the Funhouse, the Spinal Tap. Over here are some games. I grabbed now some games, which you see directly in the background. I set them up today. I grabbed some of these games today in the morning for another customer because I do as well like contracting. So if somebody is searching a game, I search the game for them and acquire the games, reject the games, and then move the games to them. So describe Flip Arena to me, if you don't mind.
    7:20
    Yeah, Flip Arena, it's a pinball club with all different kinds of games. So I am the head of the pinball club. a friend of mine is the device and then we have here in the club let's say between 20 and 30 members and we meet each two weeks on Saturday in the afternoon starting from 2pm till late night everybody can join the Flip Arena and can play with us, have some fun it's a one time entry fee what you have here and then you can play as much as you want and each game what you want we do have here a small kitchen like with good pizza and with some drinks. So, because if you're here from 2 p.m. till late night, you need something to eat and drink. Right. And enjoy your time.
    8:07
    And the Flip Arena itself here is normally my showroom from our pinball. But we use it then as the clubhouse from the pinball club.
    8:18
    That's really smart. We organize basically once, so each two weeks we have open, basically once a month we organize a tournament. It's a match play tournament, Swiss style, 16 rounds. And the result of the 16 rounds, so the amount of wins, goes into our league. And we have 12 league appointments and the best six count into the results. So that means if you have eight results, then the worst two get vanished. And the best four players compete then for our league in the Austrian League Final against the other leagues, which we do once a year. Oh, that's fantastic. And each tournament is an open tournament where everybody can join who wants. And so it's not registered as an IFPA league. Let's say it's an Austrian league and it's a combination of 12 tournaments, what we have, because this is much more reasonable nowadays with the IFPA rules for the players. Because in the past, we had sometimes players which had been here and playing a full season, 190 games, and got one result for the IFBA. I love the try-before-you-buy philosophy that you have. I know a lot of other distributors have showrooms, but not exactly what you've got going on at Flip Arena. That's fantastic.
    9:40
    Yeah, my philosophy as well as distributor is people should have the opportunity to play the games and enjoy them and see which kind of game they like. So I typically, if somebody is coming to me and say, what's your favorite game? What do you recommend? What should I buy? And then I say, let's see what game type you are. Because I always explain, if you drive a car in Europe, you would say some would drive only Mercedes. The others would drive only Citroën. On your end, it's maybe a Buick or a Cadillac. And so it's different philosophies. And so let's see which player type you are. Do you like a fast game like it's Venom? Or do you like more a stop-and-go game, like, for example, Wizard of Oz?
    10:21
    So which kinds of player are you? And when they are here and when they see all brands, what is existing, or nearly all brands, and then they can play and test it and see, do they like the flipper feel of the Stern, or do they like it different? And then we find the right game for them, and I help to find the right theme and game, what they can enjoy. let's talk about the EPC or the European Pinball Championships for a second if you don't mind how big is this event and when and where will it be held this is the biggest European tournament or one of the very biggest tournaments and it's a major so this year it's in Poland and next year we will organize it in Austria so we will organize it in Ficklebrook in the town where I'm living not here in the Flip Arena because this space is far too small we will go to near the stadium in Vöcklebrock. That's an ice hall. We have there nearly 20,000 square feet. Wow. That it helps to understand in US dimensions. Thank you. So nearly 2,000 square meters.
    11:26
    And we will bring there around 140 pinball machines. Don't mind me. And from these 140 games, so I will bring, let's say,
    11:37
    basically nearly all of the games which have been introduced. in pinball since 2015 around. So it's a target to have each Spike 2 from Stern. We will have each Jersey Jack, each American pinball, each Chicago Gaming. And when I say each Chicago Gaming, I also mean Vacation America. I only need to convert it from 110 to 220 volts, but it's already in the storage. Wow. So I would like to really bring from all these manufacturers all these games so that we have a good diversity.
    12:07
    And I have as well classics, Bailey Williams, like Johnny Manomic, Star Trek, or Indiana Jones and stuff like this, but other clubs and the Austrian Pinball Club, Flipper SV, or Flipper Keller Landshut in Germany, two hours away from here, or some other clubs like Kugelopfer, only one hour away from here, and I will also shoot out to Flippnick, the club in Graz, which will organize the week before us, the IFPA. From them, we get also games. And so we will have there around 140 games. Target is to have between the games, head-to-head, around 60, 70, let's say 20, 30 inches of space. Between the aisle, it will be, let's say, like 15 feet of space. So space is not the problem. We have enough parking space, and the target is absolutely to have like 320 participants. So like five slots of 64 persons or even more. And some special tournaments because of the kind of games that we have that we maybe do tournaments only with, so I'm already here in talk with some, with the whole set of games from the manufacturer and make a dedicated manufacturer's tournament. Oh, that's cool. And supported and sponsored by them, but we maybe get some people over here as well, so the idea is maybe to do a kind of one or two seminars in addition and something around, not only the tournament, but to make it accessible as well for the general public and people and have, let's say, like 20 to 40 games maybe in free play area so that as well the tournament players that they can play between the tournament games as well. Some people, for example, if I was in Fulda on the big tournaments, I'm not such a good player. And if I'm playing, for example, on a classic and my game is over after five minutes and Johannes is playing on a stern and beating it for 30 minutes, then I have 25 minutes of waiting time. So my engine is running cold and I'm not again in and I would like to play. And then it's always important from my point of view that you have some free play games that the people can join and can have some fun. Or there will be as well some high score tournaments where you can play meanwhile your game that you can really have around four and a half days full of pinball. and our IFPA country director, Arno Nöbel, he's supporting me with the tournament system, what we are defining there, so that we take care about all the actual IFPA rules and that we have no problems that somebody is excluded from a tournament and then the tournament would not be valued this amount. So here he has a close look on. Good. Because as well the IFPA rules get from year to year, let's say always a bit longer, a bit more sophisticated, some new stuff in it, then you need to be here on the latest status that everything is working fine. Who is streaming the tournament? Is JDL Pinball going to stream it? Yes, JDL will stream it. They will be before at Flipnix to stream the IFPA, and then they will move to us and stream the EPC. So I really think we will have there a very good opportunity, and as well for Americans or for people from abroad, it would be a very good chance to fly over. then the best players can join the IFPA, and then you can join as well the EPC and all the side tournaments. So there will be multiple tournaments.
    15:36
    They're lovely people. I got a chance to interview them, and they do just such a great job. I think they're one of the best streamers of pinball on the planet. And it's always good. They really do a good job. They have super equipment. They have several rigs that they can jump over from one rig to another. Yeah, he's got three of them. And the pinball crowd, which is at the tournament and which is supporting them in addition on co-commentary, is always, always great. Well, ask Jim if he needs a commentator. I'll fly to Germany or Austria, and I will make this happen. So you tell him that he's got a commentator in his back pocket. I'll fly up there for it. That would be awesome.
    16:21
    By the way, you're a good pinball player because I saw your ranking, and you're close to 1,000. So don't say you're not a good pinball player. You're pretty good. Yeah, I don't concentrate enough when I play, let's say. I like to relax playing. This was once something where Jim had a lot of fun. I think it was Hot Wheels where I was supporting him on co-commentating at Fulda. And then I was explaining, yeah, you should play the game like this and this and stack the ball there, collect it, and try to get further. and the check was here and there. And then I said, yeah, but that's not the style like I to play because to put the fingers up and try to catch the balls and keep them in multi-ball, for me, the balls, they need to fly, shoot and fly. Yeah. I'm working on slowing everything down in my game, and it's a transition. It's taken me a lot longer than I thought it would. So let's talk about… I would like to mention here one thing shortly because I mentioned this now. for pinball techniques. So for everybody who is not aware about it, we have a very good, great guy in Austria. It's Abe Flips. So have a look on his YouTube channel, Abe Flips on YouTube, and he has right now a Kickstarter running He regularly playing here on our club as well and teaching the people of how to play And the Kickstarter was good enough to reach the top tier So as well, he will do rules and considerations for pinball tournaments, classical games.
    17:56
    And I brought him already or he picked up some of my games that he has a good diversity as well for the games where he can do the recordings. And this is good for everybody who starts playing pinball or is already playing and wants to get more professional. So that's a good shootout to him. Oh, well, and you sent me the link, and I've watched a bunch of it. So congrats to him, and that's it. Way to go, Abe. There you go.
    18:20
    Let's talk about more in depth about being a distributor. Okay. You started this distributor, or did you buy an existing company?
    18:31
    No, I started it by my own. So I had a main job, and I started it as a side business, as a side activity. I was in contact, in addition, with the Stern distributor, so I started as well to sell the Stern games. And next year it will be 10 years where I do it. And that means next year, 2025, so when you consider back in 2015, there was not such a big amount of companies already existing and delivering games. It was already going up, so Jersey Check was there. I ordered before already, for example, in Hobbit. When I started the distribution ship, my Hobbit was still prepaid but not delivered. So when this got delivered, I was taking care already of importing it as well for the Hobbit of a friend of mine who ordered it together with me, took care about all the taxes and all that stuff. And I did it for a long time as a side business. It was growing and growing. I'm regularly and very often going to tournaments to different events and exhibitions bringing my machines there setting up a booth and trying as well to show pinball to a new crowd, to new people and we have a big booth where I am a distributor and we as a pinball club Oh Oh, that girl has already been through it once why would she go through that again? It's a great topper. We'll talk about it again. I think I will shoot it then a bit more quiet. Okay, it's fine. And so due to this, it was continuously growing. And with the Comic-Con nearby where we have a setup, the largest one was like with 140 games, where some other clubs was helping me as well. So we are continuously getting new customers.
    20:24
    And I'm a collector as well, So I contact the brands when somebody is coming up newly and trying to buy an early game that I can test it and then buy more and sell the games to the customers. Do you get it? So you can see the Spinal Tap over there. Yeah. I have here the Fathom. And I have a Super Hoop as well from Bidronic.
    20:50
    So you can see basically nearly each pinball brand in here in the room as well. Yeah, you distribute for all the major pinball companies, right? And if somebody is asking me how many are existing, then I always put the world map in front of my eye and say, okay, we start in Canada and then we go down to Australia so that I don't miss any of the manufacturers because it's more than 10 already. So the hobby is really strong increasing.
    21:18
    The COVID times, every private person and every business person in pinball will confirm it to you that it was a huge boom during COVID. The demand was big. The people wanted to have the games. The prices were raising. So if you had new games on stock or if you had used games, it was easier to sell them. But with the economic situation what we have right now, it's getting more tough. People maybe wanted to trade and not buy so many new games. and for me the good thing is that I am quite diverse with all the manufacturers. I'm still going to a lot of events. I did it before. I do it right now. So for me it's, let's say, kind of normal activity like I always did and that helps me as well that you have always a sale here or there. But right now for sure the sales are not that high like it was in the main COVID time. That's true. It's going back to the normal, I would say, what we had before COVID, but there is for sure coming challenges.
    22:21
    because, for example, Stern, they have good products, but as well, they increased overall their whole capacity because of the COVID demands. And now they have a huge capacity with the new factory, which is really awesome, and they do a great job. But as well, these amount of products need to be sold. And so that's a challenge for the manufacturers and for us as distributors or dealers to get all these games to the customers and find customers for them. Absolutely.
    22:54
    Let's say a major pinball manufacturer is coming out with a new machine. As a distributor, do you get a heads up about that machine that is coming, or do you find out kind of when we find out? It depends really on the manufacturer. So on some manufacturers, you get the final confirmation very short before, and on some manufacturers, you have seen the game already or you had as well already the chance to play it and to give them as well some feedback on the game. So that really is a bit diverse. But for me, because I was working in the past in automotive industry, I know what confidentiality means, and that is for me always an important point. When I get the information from a manufacturer and when I play something or see it,
    23:40
    customers always ask me, what is the next title? Is it this or that? and then I need to tell them. I cannot confirm, but I will not deny because that's the business. And we have, all of us, we do have, let's say, different kinds of lists. So I have a lot of people which are interested in, for example, if there are Harry Potter would come or if Back to the Future would come or different other titles, like say like Fifth Element and stuff like this. So there's a lot of rumors going around. And then you hear always different people talking about different stuff and different rumors and some of it you know already it's true or not true. And some others, it's also, yeah, it's a nice story. Let's listen about it. Let's see what really comes out. And not everybody is always correct when they are announcing anything. Do some predictions. I'm not in the prediction business as a streamer. I just like to interview people and find out their stories. I'm not in the rumor business or any of that stuff. There's much better people like Nap that can do that. and Colin at TWIP and KineticSys. Do you have to have a set number of machines that you have to buy per manufacturer, or do you have to wait for the demand, or do they call you and say, here's 10 machines, do you want them or not?
    25:04
    So this is always, as well, depending on the manufacturer. Some manufacturers, they tell you, okay, we bring this game that's a limited edition based on the sales, what you have done. your allotment would be like this and this think about it, give us a let's say like in a few days or maybe in a week a feedback is this allotment fine for you do you like more or do you like less and so if a manufacturer is coming with an allotment then you know okay this I could have for fix but then it as well depends sometimes okay do I would like to go with this amount because my country or Europe is on themes different on some themes like US, so that you check here what is the situation, or check with your sub-dealers how big is the demand. And on some others, on the smaller ones, you have, let's say, often a kind of minimum quantity, and if you want to get more, that's then typically not such a big problem. It depends always if it's a limited edition or if it's a standard one as well. I was always just fascinated with that, right? So, like, if you hear about a theme, they tell you this theme is coming, and let's say it's Smurfs. Do you guys have Smurfs over there in Europe, those little blue dudes? Smurfs we have. Smurf is big. Smurf is well-known. But this would be something where I would say, for example, the theme is good. The theme is well-known. But how have you integrated it? What have you done? What is in it? Because the Smurf is typically really for small children. Right. So and there I would say there is a different story on Toy Story because Toy Story when this has been released, this was really Toy Story one really a while ago. I have really seen it when I was much younger. You and you know, this theme as well. So big. And it's made. I would say Toy Story is more made for the whole family and Smurfs is more made only for the children. Okay. I was just curious if you saw, like, you get a heads up, here's Smurfs, and you're like, these little blue guys aren't going to sell. But you bought 10 of the last pin, and you decide to only buy five Smurfs, LE Smurfs. Does that hurt you on the next release, or it is what it is?
    27:26
    I was, till now, never in the case that I didn't took the allotment. So I cannot say if it would hurt me or not, because with all the activities that I did and with all the growth that I had in the nine years, I was always taking the allotment or even purchase more. For example, some people have mentioned that John will not sell when it has been introduced, but it's such an amazing game and I bought quite a good amount of them. and I reordered and reshipped already in and air freighted some more games and container freighted some more games because it's really such a good title.
    28:04
    And because the demand was at the beginning not that high, let's say on the John for the collector's edition, like it was on the Guns and Roses as well due to quantity, it was still possible to order a few more collector's editions, which I was then possible to get to my customers. And so I sold much more collector's edition of Elton John than of Guns N' Roses, not only due to the fact that the quantity was diverse.
    28:31
    When you buy the pins directly from a manufacturer that's based out of the U.S., do they ship to you and then you ship out, or do you have to organize shipping from the manufacturer? So I pick up at the manufacturer and I do the transport organization, basically everything by myself with my partners. I build up a good network of logistics companies. I have as well some customers in the logistics industry, which helps as well. But you always need to reject the cost because depending on the country or area where they're coming from, if a game is coming from Texas or from Chicago, then maybe in Chicago the one company is cheaper in shipping and in Texas the other one would be cheaper.
    29:17
    So I take care about all of this. I get all of the games to my place. I have an additional warehouse, which is very close to here, where I can unload the whole container, even if it's stacked containers. So stacked games in the containers. And then we ship to our customers or we put in extra equipment. If they order, let's say, like invisible glass, speaker light kits, shaker or whatever, and then the games get shipped to the customers. It's as well due to all the customs. It's important to get them in at once in one place. Then you have all the customs handling, all the rules, the check, if they're good, if everything is fine. And then as soon as it's in Europe, then the shipping is easy to distribute to the different countries. Okay.
    30:04
    Prices have gone up, like you said before, after COVID. Do you see a price decrease coming or is this the price point for the foreseeable future?
    30:16
    I take two examples now. Let's take two of the main manufacturers. Let's say like Stern and Jersey Jack.
    30:26
    And you need to consider as well the situation that I'm in Europe and not in the States. You have in the States basically always the same dollar price up to now. We have the situation that the prices for Stern at least was going down a bit in the last time Because if you compare it, for example, to James Bond Limited Edition, the exchange rate, euro to dollars, was very shitty for us. Yeah. So the James Bond Limited Edition was more than 17,000 euros, including the 20% VAT what we have. And right now, we are at around 16,000 or slightly below, slightly above. So this is always a very important factor. so this is one point what we need to consider and this we have seen for example on these games and on Jersey Jack I mentioned them as well what they have done as an example from Godfather to the John is they have put more value in the game for the same pricing so they already had a look on the actual situation on the market but they have not decreased the price but they put more value in it you get red curls, you get the topper, you get inside out plates. So that's extras what you paid for in the past around a thousand bucks.
    31:43
    So they already had a better look on it and took care about it. But let's see what the future will bring in kind of manufacturing business. I think the very high prices would have been there during purchasing in COVID. They have been reduced.
    32:00
    And so some of them give the advantage as well further. So I have a third shootout. let's say, take Pinball Brothers, when they have introduced the Alien Ripley Edition, you got more features in the game, but due to the reduced purchasing costs that they had, they as well lowered the price. So the Ripley's Edition, which had more features in it, was cheaper than the standard edition, what was there before. So now they built the Ripley's Edition, which is a bit cheaper. so some of them are really considering it and some are going more on the keeping it on the same value but really I cannot predict how it will go on I think it will be quite stable and I had some discussion with some friends in the past weeks for example if you are employed at an automotive industry company then we have a kind of tariff payment wage and due to the annual negotiation what they had with the working council, I think it's called in English.
    33:08
    The money what the people are earning in the past three, four years increased around 25%. So, for example, if a Stern Pro was in the past like 6,000, to have an easy number, then it's clear that this would be maybe now as well 7,500. Then it's normal. You earn 25% more, the game code. But the machine is a bit more expensive than this 25%. And this is maybe because we know pinball, it's a lot of fun, but it's nothing what you need that you can live. It's a toy. It's a fun thing. And sometimes these products are then raising a bit higher in prices. But I see as well that they are moving maybe a bit faster, maybe up or down instead of if you buy milk, a daily product, this will not increase or decrease the price such easy as it might be on pinball. So it's for sure interesting for us. Let's see what the future will bring. That's fascinating because I don't want, you know, as an American, it's very difficult for me to think that the government says, oh, well, you're making more money. This, you know, it's just, that's bananas to us. No, no, it's not the government. But let's say because of all the inflation, what happens? The people, they earn 25% more than four years ago. This is because everything got more expensive. And so let's say if you earn 25% more than the pinball, if the pinball is 25% more expensive, it's still the same price. But what happens to us in a personal feeling, I see it's 1,500 more expensive. And I say, hey, it's crazy. It's 1,500 more expensive. but at the same time I earn more. This is the difference from what we had in the past 20 years because you had an inflation of, let's say, like 2%, 3%, 4%, but not of such high amount. And this is something where it's sometimes as well hard for me to have a look on the used games. If I have a used game in stock, maybe for a while, I will reject what is the actual market situation, how it has been moving up or down, because maybe I would sell it far too cheap because I still in the thinking in the mind from before But I would need to sell it then a bit higher to be as well on the market price I don want to overshoot it even if I a professional one The games should still be a reasonable price as well on used games.
    35:38
    So you need to have here a close look on. For me, it's always important to have the customer being happy. I need to make a living, that's clear, but as well the customer should be happy, and they should come back again as well when they are happy and it should not be a rip-off. And so you see in the internet some shops or some scammers where you think, okay, they only want to rip off and if they sell once a game to a guy, then they never want to see him again, but they made such a big amount of money. And I'm more the guy, I'm open for everybody. I go to so many events. I welcome everybody to come here and to come frequently here because that, I think, is then a long-term business approach.
    36:23
    Are you hampered by a region as a distributor, or can you sell to anyone anywhere? This as well depends on the manufacturer. So there is a legal situation in Europe that you can sell everything everywhere from the European Union out, but some manufacturers give you then the restriction and say, no, we have a contract, you should only sell in your country. and if I have, for example, then a customer from another country and they want to buy the game from me, then I tell them, you can pick it up on my place, that's no problem, but I'm not allowed to ship the game to you. So that's on some of the manufacturers'
    37:02
    some harder discussions. Okay, Corey. Haggis Pinball is getting hammered on podcasts and social media. Do you think Haggis can make it? I think it's a tough situation right now And as well, Dutch people had been in such a tough situation. Yeah. So there is recently now in the last days, yesterday, I've seen some social media posts that maybe they are now moving out of the factory because of not paying the landlord.
    37:30
    I tried to reach Damien. I was in regular contact in the last weeks with him. And we had the plan that he is coming soon over to my place as well, because the first beasts should be ready. but I think it's a quite tough situation right now. I don't say that they are busted or that they are totally safe but I think the product what they are doing is a great product. It's really good quality and unfortunately it came to this situation and I know that nobody is happy about it especially I am not very happy about it because I have prepaid several games or done payments for several games and so I would get busted in this case and this would not be a nice situation but let's see where it goes. I do my best to work with them together and to try to get the customers happy. For sure, customers are continuously asking me what's the situation, what's going on and with the legal situation what we have here in Europe, it's the case if the company really would get busted then all my customers would get their money back. Okay, good. If it will happen, you can keep it, but let's move them to another manufacturer, to another game, so that they don't hurt me, let's say, too much.
    38:48
    But if they want to get the money back, then this is the case. All right, great. I had here a situation during COVID, for example.
    38:58
    We had quite long delays on Spooky Pinball with the Halloween and with the Ultraman. Okay. We had a super bad exchange rate over here development. So when the games had been then coming over to Europe because of the delays and of the certification to be allowed to sell them in Europe, the game got a thousand bucks more expensive for the end customer.
    39:22
    And so some of them said, no, I want to not take the game. And all of them which told it to me, they got the money back. I had deposited Spooky for the games and I tried then to sell it to somebody else which was not possible with all of these games in this time let's say but then as well with the good cooperation that I and Spooky have we found this here a good solution and as well they had some of my games they sold then in the States and this was then a fine situation too let's talk about the distributor and manufacturers tried to work together. Everybody from us needs to make a living, but we have usually longer relationships and we know that if the customer is happy, we will be successful as well. Absolutely. Absolutely. That's a great practice. After Texas Pinball Festival, you came to Houston and got a tour of the Barrels of Fun factory. What do you think about what Barrels of Fun is doing? they're doing really a great job so it was I know David van Es from the past I had already some calls with him I met him the year before at TPF he was working at Spooky in the past and David Fawcett for example and so on so they are doing a good and great job and for me it was a good combination to go to TPF and then continue to visit him I am let's say the major distributor I would say over here in mainland Europe. I work together with a lot of distributors in different countries. I do import the Spooky games for whole Europe. I have here a good distribution network and bring over the games. The quality of what they are doing is really stunning. They position themselves quality-wise and game-wise in the level of a Jersey Jack game. You see it as well price-wise. It's not priced like a Stern Pro, but it's a lot of stuff in it and very good ideas, and I'm really looking forward to get soon the first container of games for my customers.
    41:32
    CE certification is in finalization, and then to get end of the year, beginning of next year, I hope something in this time range, then a new title for the people. Yeah. I checked my timing if it would have been possible to visit the factory a second time this year because the Houston Arcades Expo is directly the week before Chicago. Chicago Expo, yeah. But I cannot manage to go down there because my kids have their 11th birthday exactly the weekend before. I need to be at the birthday party of my kids. Yes, you do. I would then go to Chicago. Yes, you do. I would be there only on Sunday, half a day, and so I decided I go only to Chicago this time. Okay, great. Next year, March, I have planned to go again to Texas and I would like to visit the factory again. Well, you're going to come to Houston, hopefully, and then come back to the wormhole and we'll show you the behind the scenes of our new museum that we call Wormhole East that we're building downtown. That'll hold 125 pens. That has 14,000 square feet. Really looking forward to it. And all these great things we'll show you. Multimorphic is another Texas company And I've gotten to know their team really well What's your feeling on the P3 platform?
    42:55
    P3 platform is very interesting Very good I do have two of the games over there It's I do have Weird Al's Museum of National Hilarity And Final Resistance over here I love The situation on this game is when you move it, when you take it to shows, that's absolutely the most heaviest game because they have put so many stuff into it. You have, from the technical perspective, it's really fascinating. You have this grid that the machine always knows where the balls is, then the whole interaction with the display, but still you have up to 15 or even more balls in it because you have the trough and shooting it out in different positions. For the people, it's the case that for them, when they have a first look at it, they ask, okay, why do you have three buttons on the left and right? What is this and that? This is sometimes a bit strange at the beginning because they need to get used to how to play it. Then sometimes I adjust the playing because when you have VL as an example, you have the upper flippers and the lower flippers. You have two buttons on both sides to control the upper ones and the lower ones. and when you're not used to it then you need to train yourself for this I'm already used to it and it's super to play because then you can easily control that the uppers and lowers and catch the ball behind the upper flipper or grab it on the lower one and with the upper you go on the orbit shot as an example but at the beginning the people think okay I need only one button you have the stacked switches that you have two switches I've seen now that I think it was Scott Danese or a kit is available that you can adjust this as well to have it only on one flipper button, to have two switches behind for this feeling. This is a unit that I would like to buy that the people have maybe more the feeling like on a normal pinball machine, that they get faster used to it.
    44:56
    The entry-level price is a bit higher, but as soon as you have the game, then the price of the single kits is very reasonable. and with the actual portfolio and lineup that they have, it's really a wide range of what they can already offer. And as well with the mini games and all that stuff, you have more than 20 games, so you have a good opportunity.
    45:19
    What's the point? They did as well. They considered and listened to the market and considered all these points and worked it in with the, what do you call it, new generation, with the facelift, let's say, what they did on the controlling of the servos instead of the coils so that they can put in here different things. Now with the pack for the changed flipper mesh to have here a bit better feel and with different ATX power supplies. So they are doing well. But it's a smaller brand. It's going forward. More people are asking here for the games. I take it to different shows. We'll have it maybe soon as well in Germany at the tournament because the organizers especially ask as well for it to take it once and so that the people can see and play then Final Resistance. I like Scott's games. I like Scott. Well, I like Scott. TNA is one of my absolute favorites, and so Final Resistance is very cool too. Here's a shameful plug. I had Scott D'Anesi on a couple of weeks ago on the podcast, and it was excellent. He is easy to talk to and a great dude. I really like him. what's a pinball theme that hasn't been made yet that you think would resonate more in the European market than the United States market?
    46:41
    That's a good question. Thank you. There is already so many things out there. What I personally, there is a movie what I really liked in the past what I watched very often was like Gun in 60 Seconds.
    46:55
    Yeah. This was a cool with Nicolas Cage with the Ford Mustang. So this was a nice one. I don't know how big it is overall in the rankings and with all the earnings, what they did. And I'm not into all the new television series, what are there on Netflix or Disney or wherever. There is so many stuff going on.
    47:21
    Let's say I can... I have not expected at the beginning that The Wizard of Oz and the theme is so huge in the States that we would sell it as well, such good in Europe.
    47:33
    Because, yeah, the people, they know it, but it seems much more popular over on your place. So this is something which is really well recognized over here in Europe on the market. And what I see is running good. I thought as an Austrian that you would say sound of music.
    47:56
    It's more popular, let's say, in the U.S. than in Austria. everybody in the US knows it I don't know when I've seen it the last time oh gosh they play the hell out of that here in the United States yes I know everybody I need to have a look once again on it I think it's maybe 25 or 30 years ago that I've seen it that's sad that's a cry of shame that's terrible do you sell toppers and accessories as well yes I do for example I'm the international sales partner for Elite Pinball. That's, for example, the Hobbit topper, what they have done, or the IJ topper, the POTC topper, and as well for the other manufacturers, that stuff. So I do have them in the program. And I put them now as well more on the webpage, for example, on the Stern accessories.
    48:52
    I put them now since a few weeks as well on my webpage. It was not such big on my web shop till now because you need to focus when you are not so many people on the core things and when the customer want to have any additional equipment, I anyhow organize it or offer it to him, but it was not in the web shop.
    49:16
    Some toppers are just expensive though. I mean, they did triple in cost, but they're still selling, right? I mean, the toppers are still going.
    49:24
    Yes, they are. Let's say, for example, the Black Knight topper, which is here in front of me on the game. It was, let's say, like a $500 topper in the past, and now it's nearly the triple the price.
    49:37
    Therefore, it was very important for the topper itself that they made an additional run of Black Knights as well, because the game is a good game. It was not built in such a high quantity, because at the time when it had been introduced, it was not so super popular, let's say. it was well known and Steve Ritchie have done a great job good theme integration in his trilogy let's say and the topper was really at this time point because it was so rare it was skyrocketing in prices and that's the reason why they then produced it at a later time point again it really fits very nice on the game I picked up this elite which might end up here in the club today in the morning and it's really something cool when the head is moving around and when he's talking to you it's a really good topper uh the labyrinth topper we already saw been yelling at you today um cactus canyon's got a good topper that's interactive i mean we're not really into the toppers here at the wormhole but i could see if you had a collection of four machines and one didn't have a topper that lone wolf would probably drive me crazy. So I can see people going down that topper world. What's your best-selling pinball topper that you've sold in the last 10 years?
    50:57
    The best-selling pinball topper that I sold? I would say I sold really a very good amount of the IJ toppers from Elite in the different versions. What they did at this time point they had the Elite version, then a Deluxe and a Standard version and so as well more Topos had been available. It took a bit longer time on the Standards because everybody at the beginning wanted to have the Elite and the Deluxe but it's such a great addition on your Classical Indiana Jones game so that was selling really good in good quantities. and do you sell arcade games as well?
    51:46
    yes you see maybe here in the background I do have one over there yeah this is even in design I use this game often for when I go to shows and you have such a multi-arcade PCB in it that you can play let's say like 2000 games and we customize the design of the cabinet for our customers as well and offer them for private as well in different designs. So it's a good addition because if somebody,
    52:19
    let's say main customers for pinball, I would say is around between 35 and maybe up to 60. Let's say this is the major customer crowd and male still. Yeah. and it often happened to me in the last years that the people, the couple said, yeah, our kids are out of the house, we have a new room and we want to make a fun room for ourselves, so they put in a pinball machine, depending on the size, snooker table or whatever, a dart machine and an arcade game, and so it's always a great addition.
    52:56
    That's cool. I do have as well a couple of neon lights, where I asked as well manufacturers to get permission So we made some special neon lights with the different company logos what we have here in the club And so it always important to have here some additional stuff But I don have let say like the old fuel stations the pipe ones and all that stuff. I focus on pinball. I do have the other stuff as well. I have it in addition. I do have the soccer tables and dart machines.
    53:33
    But we have a saying, and this means Schuster, Bleibed and Leisten that means shoemaker, stay with your shoes and not make trousers or stuff like this and if somebody is coming to me and asking for a jukebox then I have some people which I'm working very close together and I can organize it for them but jukebox is again it's a scene like pinball and you need to have there as well your experts which know how to fix the old stuff and the things And so then I work together with other people.
    54:07
    Can we talk about Stern Insider Connect? Is Stern Insider Connect the future of pinball? Let's say it is, and I think it will be a very good thing for the people and for the industry. And it gave them a good advantage what they have with it. because they really, so George and the team, they thought about long-term stuff already in the past because you can introduce it on each Spike 2 title. So they had already something in the mind a long time ago. Spike 2 was introduced in 2016 with Aerosmith and Batman.
    54:51
    And so at this time point, they already had something in mind. they considered already on all the games when you have a game which has no insight in it they considered the holes already on the apron and it really gives a lot of opportunities and with the challengers what they are now doing not only with the leaderboard what they are having they really make playing for the people more interesting and more long term interesting so if you have a game and for example if you have only one game and you know it already inside out you know everything but you had it before inside and then you put inside in it then you have to change ah I not only want to beat my high score I want to get all of the single batches I want to achieve everything and so this is really interesting it helps as well on location on site with the leaderboard that you can say I make a local leaderboard for example in a bar the best player gets a voucher for some bucks for the bar for example each month or whatever and so the people are coming more often, they're having continuous competition, you see, ah, somebody beat me. I'm not on high score anymore. I want to come back. And that's really good for the whole industry. It would be, as a player, it would be nice to have the opportunity as well to put other manufacturers' games into it as well. I don't know how the thoughts are here. Stern for sure has the advantage that they have so many games and that you have such a diversity now. that this is really good. So here the other manufacturers have a bit of challenge. Let's see what Jersey Jack is doing. They have removed Squabit from the software. I assume they are developing an own system, and they do have already nine titles. So there is a good variety already there. And they have here good opportunities too.
    56:49
    Let's see what the future will bring. It's good for competitive pinball and for casual players as well. It is. I agree with you. And as an operator, if you are an operator, I think you have to have Stern Insider Connect just for the data that the system allows you to see is invaluable as an operator. But I used to play a lot of video games, console games, Xbox, and I played a lot of Call of Duty.
    57:15
    And my kids and I would play Call of Duty, and we got addicted to achievements from Xbox. I don't know if you've ever seen any of that stuff, but I think, you know, those companies, Sony and Xbox, figured out that achievement, badges, they're addicting.
    57:35
    And the other day I was on my phone and my phone popped up a John Wick contract. And I thought, yeah, and I was saying to myself, I was I was on a date with my wife and I was like, can I get out of this date and go try to win that contract? at John Wick, but it's a very, very smart thing that they're doing. It'll be interesting, like you said, to see how the other manufacturers follow suit.
    58:04
    But I believe, and this is my next question, do you think that Stern is going to start charging for Insider Connect?
    58:16
    I don't think it will be done in the short term. long term basis I assume so to be honest yeah I mean you know they're going to get you and if they will do so I hope that they will if they introduce it I hope that limited customers will have it for free included because this would be then one major part and what is always important and what they have done always till now is the basic game what is delivered is a full game so and the people they are happy to pay maybe something for it if you get something in addition. They should not cut away from it. So there's still the basic game, need to be a full game, full code, everything in it, but you could do some extras on top, as an example. Sure, like Chief Creed does. And I don't think that I put now something in the ears of Stern or so because they have a big, big, big team and a lot of people are thinking about that stuff, But it's bringing it big forward. I was fascinated about the figures, what George Gomez gave out at TPF, where he showed us in the seminar a chart, how many games have been done on Insider Connect, and how exponentially it was growing. And I think this is really a good sign as well, because you get more players, you get new players. And this is important for all of us, independent of the brand. it's for the whole hobby it's important to get always new people into it that we have something continuous in the future if our kids right now don't know what pinball is who should buy pinball in 20 years right we're in trouble yeah yeah and so it's the kids are playing xbox they're playing playstation they're getting achievements and they're used to achievements and it is it's it's Absolutely brilliant. But I say my over-under is two years. It's going to cost you $1.99 a month for Stern Insider Connect.
    60:20
    Might be. I don't give here any predictions. I hope that it's free for as long as possible. But I really like the work that they are doing. It's really, it brings it forward. And typically I have here on this row three televisions. They are right now not here because we used them on the last show. and we have here on this televisions, we have our leaderboard, we have the videos from ApeFlips, we have the actual status for the tournament, so to show it and so the people are always having a look on the leaderboard as well. Even if the leaderboard is not the tournament what we have on this day, but they say, ah, okay, should I play again the Turtles, for example, or John Wick is a new game, or this or that, I want to be the best. And so you have always, you want to be the best and you have always been competing.
    61:08
    All right. I've kept you long enough. We have right now, it's time for our very popular and exciting game show segment that we call the Hurry Up. Basically, it's rapid fire questions, sir, without a real timer. And since I threw in a few tough questions, I'm going to give you a pass. So I'm introducing the pass. So you get to pass one of these questions, okay? Okay. Let's see. All right. Here we go. Kentucky or Scottish whiskey? no whiskey at all I hate it favorite sport it reminds me always of my first girlfriend when she was smoking and then you were kissing her alright favorite sport to watch football, skiing or ice hockey sorry the connection was football what's your favorite sport to watch football, skiing or ice hockey My favorite, I would say football because right now we have the European Championship. I don't watch sport that much, but football. Soccer, to be precise. Absolutely. The next two questions were sent in from my friend Ko from Quarter Drop Arcade. The best pinball machine with the word who in the title. Doctor Who, Bally 92 The Who's Tommy Pinball Wizard Data East 94 or Whodunit, Bally 95 I would say Whodunit followed by Doctor Who I really like the game going up the elevator, up and down making your challenges and I'm not such a good on a repetitive shot on Doctor Who that's the reason why I prefer the Whodunit Why don't Europeans put ice in their drinks? Is there an ice shortage across the Atlantic that we in the United States should be worried about?
    63:04
    Can you start, please, the connection shortly by Europeans? Okay, sorry. Why don't Europeans put ice in your drinks?
    63:14
    We do, but it depends on what, but not that big amount like you do. If I go to McDonald's in the States, it's basically ice and drink, but I would like to have a drink with ice. I was wondering if you had an ice shortage in Europe.
    63:28
    No, we don't. That would be worried about. All right. On a scale of one. A cold drink is important and good, but not in such huge amounts. We like ice. And we like huge things here in America. So you know that. And on alcoholic drinks, anyhow, it's better to use, let's say, like there are some special plastic or stone ice cubes, let's say. You put them in the fridge. and then you don't have watering down your drink. It still gets the drink cold, but you don't water it down.
    64:02
    All right. Favorite motorcycle out of these three, Harley-Davidson, BMW, or Honda? I would say KTM because I'm working at the company, but out of this combination, I would say Harley-Davidson. Okay. On a scale of 1 to 10, how upset were Jurassic Park LE buyers when Stern released the 30th anniversary edition of Jurassic Park?
    64:29
    Ooh, the LE buyers. I had some which have now both, but generally I would say 8 or 9. Yeah. Okay, better food, Europe or America? This was really…
    64:44
    Go ahead. Finish your… finish. This was basically, it's a great title. It's a lot of fun. So the people which didn't have a Jurassic Park, they had been super happy about it to get all this feature and it looks nice in the red. I had as well some customers which have the LE and bought it in addition because maybe one is then in the main house and the other one is in the holiday house. But for the original LE owners, they had been a bit pissed because it's not limited anymore.
    65:20
    Better food, Europe or America? Europe, absolutely. Here's two reasons why you're wrong. One, look how big we are. We didn't get this big by eating bad food. And two, you know me. I think too. Here's the other reason why your food is not good. You put mayonnaise on French fries. No, I don't eat mayonnaise on French fries. That's not possible. Only ketchup. Oh, but most of you Europeans put mayonnaise on French fries. That is so disgusting. My girlfriend does, and then I move her ceramics far away from mine.
    66:03
    All right, last question for the hurry-up. Best Arnold Schwarzenegger-featured pinball machine, terminator 2 terminator 3 or last action hero terminator 2 that's the classic one yeah it's the best that's the best all right stefan this was very fun thanks so much for being a great sport and thanks so much for for being on the podcast i took you we did way too long i'm so sorry we talked forever i could talk to you for another hour so i really appreciate it you're coming to the States after your kid's 11th birthday, you're going to be at Expo. Is that right? Yes, that's right. And I will have the seminar this year at Expo as well. And so if you really want to see why Europe has some good food, I will bring, and I will ask a lot of Austrian people, we will bring Austrian sweets. So even if you're not interested in how the pinball sport have been evolving in Austria, this is my seminar title, what I will bring. Then we will have some nice biscuits and Austrian sweets. So even this should be then a reason maybe for you to visit the seminar. I'm going to be at Expo with Tim and John. All the Wormholer guys are going to be there. So let's hook up and first drink on me, okay? Perfect. How can people – Yes, I'm really looking forward to see you again. Absolutely. How can people follow you? How can they follow you on social media? And if someone wants to buy a machine, how do they get in touch with you? go on www.rs-pinball.at or com or de you will find my webpage from the company RS Pinball let's put it like this is the company logo or go to the club Flip Arena you find me on Facebook you find me on Instagram I do when I'm at different shows always or often a video walk through and show the people what's going on there. This is what I get feedback from a lot of people that they really like this, to see what's going on in Germany, in Hungary, in Switzerland, or even in the States when I'm there because if they cannot see it, that they see what is new.
    68:19
    For me, it's always important to meet a lot of people, have a lot of fun there, network, see new suppliers, see new developments, what are going on, and enjoying the time with the big pinball family. Well, it is a great family. and I'm so happy to talk to you again and first drink on me in Chicago.
    68:38
    Yes, and then I will bring Jägermeister. We have the small bottles. I'll show you how to drink it in Chicago.
    68:45
    You're not going to get me to drink Jäger. All right, Stefan, thank you so much, man. I appreciate it. Thank you. It was great to see you. Bye. That was fun, Stefan. Thank you so much for being a great sport and a great guest. I wanted to go down a rabbit hole with him because I'm fascinated with the behind-the-scenes aspect of being a distributor. Just like I love what Coe from Quarter Drop Arcade does on Instagram, how he's documenting his journey. And I really love Rachel and Cale from Electric Backcast, how they take you behind the scenes of being an operator and an owner of Arcade. So I kind of wanted to do that on the distributor side. Speaking of behind the scenes, our vault construction is almost done. So I'm going to be starting a series of reels and posts called Name That Pin. We'll be recording a collection of pins from the Wormhole East building that's going to be completed and documenting the building's journey. Question for the audience, though. Should we post a link to the entire Wormhole collection? Would that be something you'd be interested in seeing? or maybe I ease like 10 a week because there's over 200. So maybe I could space them out. Who knows? Let me know what you think. What else would you like to see us document here at the Wormhole? Send me an IM email to wormholepinball at gmail.com. We are in the process of redoing our entire website. So that journey will be documented there as well. If you're interested in joining our Discord channel, hit me up. We don't bombard you with a lot of content there. but if you're on the platform there's no reason why you shouldn't be on our server as well next week I don't know what I'm doing next week I might have someone, I might not but I definitely have someone for the 31st and I'm booked solid in August so hit me up and let me know who you think we should interview and who we should highlight alright that's all for Wormhole Pinball I am Jamie Burchill and please remember our number one rule at the Wormhole, don't be an able