Episode 952: "Exclusive Rumors for Club Members"

Kaneda's Pinball Podcast (Patreon feed)·podcast_episode·16m 18s·analyzed·May 9, 2024

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.029

TL;DR

Kaneda leaks exclusive rumors: Stern lost Indiana Jones license, JJP's next game is surprise theme, Funhaus remake coming from Nick Parks.

Summary

Kaneda discusses community frustrations with Stern Pinball's pricing and arrogance, then reveals exclusive rumors about upcoming games: John Borg's Indiana Jones was cancelled mid-development due to licensing cost disputes; Jersey Jack Pinball will release Mark Seiden's game (described as a surprise theme requiring warming up to) before Harry Potter (likely Eric Mennier's game) in fall 2024; and Nick Parks at The Pinball Company is manufacturing 400 Funhaus remakes via Pedretti Gaming with Brian Allen artwork, currently testing in his showroom, with potential price reduction from $11k to $10k.

Key Claims

Stern Pinball lost the Indiana Jones license with John Borg because they refused to pay the licensing fee, not due to actual license expiration.
medium confidence · Kaneda speaking on his podcast; described as information he is 'hearing' from unspecified sources in the industry
Harry Potter is definitely coming to Jersey Jack Pinball, but not as the next game—it will be the game after the next one, likely designed by Eric Mennier.
medium confidence · Kaneda; stated as 'absolutely happening' and based on pattern analysis of designer assignments
The next Jersey Jack Pinball game will be Mark Seiden's design and will feature a surprise theme that nobody has been discussing, which requires 'warming up to.'
medium confidence · Kaneda; cites 'reliable sources' and says this is not The Matrix, Muppets, Beastie Boys, or Top Gun
Nick Parks at The Pinball Company is manufacturing 400 Funhaus remakes through Pedretti Gaming with a new art package by Brian Allen.
high confidence · Kaneda presents this as 'Kaneda exclusive' and verifiable by physical game being tested in Nick Parks' Missouri showroom
The Funhaus remake LE price may be lowered from $11,000 to $10,000, representing a $400,000 revenue loss if all 400 units sell.
medium confidence · Kaneda; stated as 'hearing' from unspecified industry sources
Jersey Jack Pinball's next game will be revealed at Pinball Expo in October 2024, approximately six months away.
high confidence · Kaneda; based on Jack Danger's confirmed public statements about expo reveal timing
The Abbas family has a relationship with an executive producer of Avatar, making it a licensing possibility for Jersey Jack Pinball.
low confidence · Kaneda; speculation based on claimed family connections
Stern Pinball divulged that manufacturing a game costs approximately $3,500, information later obtained by Nick Parks in an interview.
medium confidence · Kaneda recounting historical interview; notes Stern demanded the podcast remove this number

Notable Quotes

“When you sell a $2,000 topper, you're disrespecting us. When you sell a $20,000 James Bond, you're disrespecting us.”
Kaneda @ ~03:30 — Encapsulates community frustration with Stern Pinball's pricing strategy and perceived corporate arrogance
“Somewhere in the halls of Stern Pinball is a John Borg Indiana Jones game that is never going to be made.”
Kaneda @ ~05:40 — Directly references the cancelled Indiana Jones game as existing in some form before cancellation
“Harry Potter is definitely coming. So if you're a Harry Potter fan, it is not a rumor. It is absolutely happening.”
Kaneda @ ~07:50 — Strong confirmation claim about Jersey Jack Pinball's future pipeline
“I'm going to tell you right now as a Kaneda exclusive, who's bringing Funhaus to market.”
Kaneda @ ~21:30 — Introduces exclusive leak about Nick Parks and The Pinball Company's Funhaus project
“If all of us just don't buy anything over the next six months, there's going to be absolutely no harm other than you're going to have a lot more options.”
Kaneda @ ~18:20 — Explicit call to community action: boycott to pressure price reductions on current games
“The feedback I've gotten on this game is that it's an amazing game if you can warm up to the theme. And that makes me nervous.”
Kaneda @ ~10:50 — Expresses uncertainty about Mark Seiden's mystery game theme selection
“You know me, these are big gambles. These are big risks. And I just think there could be no worse time with when we look at what's happening in the pinball marketplace.”
Kaneda @ ~24:00 — Commentary on market conditions and financial risk of The Pinball Company's Funhaus investment

Entities

Kanedaperson John Borgperson Gary Sternperson Keith Elwinperson Jack Dangerperson Mark SeidenpersonEric Mennierperson

Signals

?
machine_intel: Indiana Jones pinball by John Borg at Stern was cancelled mid-development due to licensing cost disputes; game exists in some form but will not be released
medium · Kaneda reports hearing about cancellation from unspecified sources; describes game as 'pretty far along' in design process
?
machine_intel: Harry Potter confirmed for Jersey Jack Pinball as second game in upcoming pipeline (after mystery-theme Mark Seiden game); likely designer Eric Mennier
medium · Kaneda states 'Harry Potter is definitely coming. So if you're a Harry Potter fan, it is not a rumor. It is absolutely happening.' with caveat that it's not next
?
machine_intel: Funhaus remake by The Pinball Company with 400 units, new Brian Allen artwork, Pedretti manufacturing, currently testing in Missouri showroom
high · Kaneda presents as 'Kaneda exclusive' and claims game is physically testable in Nick Parks' showroom; specific production numbers and manufacturer details provided
?
licensing_signal: Stern Pinball declined to renew/acquire Indiana Jones license due to cost; Kaneda speculates it was too expensive despite potential market success
medium · 'the reason why they lost the license is they didn't want to pay the money. Somehow it became too expensive.'
$
market_signal: Kaneda advocates community boycott strategy: avoid purchases for 6 months to saturate demand for current games and force price reductions
high · 'If all of us just don't buy anything over the next six months, there's going to be absolutely no harm other than you're going to have a lot more options.'

Topics

Stern Pinball pricing strategy and community backlashprimaryJersey Jack Pinball upcoming game pipelineprimaryCancelled Indiana Jones Stern gameprimaryFunhaus remake project by The Pinball CompanyprimaryLicensing disputes in pinball industrysecondaryPinball market saturation and pricing pressuresecondaryDesigner assignments and game announcementssecondaryManufacturing costs and financial viabilitymentioned

Sentiment

mixed(-0.35)— Kaneda expresses strong frustration with Stern Pinball's pricing and corporate strategy, advocates for community boycott, and criticizes Pedretti quality. However, he shows genuine excitement for Jersey Jack's pipeline (especially Harry Potter) and optimism about community collective action. Concerns about Funhaus remake's financial viability temper enthusiasm. Overall tone is critical of market conditions but hopeful about selective future releases.

Transcript

groq_whisper · $0.049

said woman take it slow and work yourself out fine all we need is just a little patience ah welcome everybody to canada's pinball podcast you know i want to give a real quick welcome to Keith Collins, who just joined Canadian Pinball Podcast at 10.11 a.m. Maybe he heard my latest rant show. Keith, welcome. He's a $10 club member. I also want to give a shout out to Ted Hauser. I hope I said your name right, Ted, who's a new Raise the Roof member because he raised his membership from 5 to 10. Ladies and gentlemen, you know it. If you like what you're hearing here, I would happily love it if people would raise their subscriptions and let's keep this party going. So the reason why my last show was a real rant about Stern Pinball. I'm going to give you a little bit of the context into my world. I'm buying furniture for my new house and a beautiful West Elm couch, which I sat on yesterday, super comfortable, super well made, is $2,000. The same price as a Stern Foo Fighter topper. The greed is real. The arrogance is real. And I think it's catching up to Stern pinball. I think all of us are tired of it. I think the enthusiasm around that company and their new games is just dissipating really quickly. And I don't think Keith Elwin's going to be able to save them. I don't think Pokemon's going to save them. I just think we're tired at these prices for what we're getting. And the more we say no, and the more we stop buying, they're going to have to change. And the only change they can make is either lower these prices, start listening to us as a community and start showing us more respect. When you sell a $2,000 topper, you're disrespecting us. When you sell a $20,000 James Bond, you're disrespecting us. And someone over there, whether it's Gary or Keith Elwin or Jack Danger, somebody has to knock on Gary Stern door and say, Gary, we're losing it. We've gone too far. We need to correct. All right. So on this episode, let's talk a little bit about some new stuff because being a club member comes with privileges. and this is some stuff that not everybody knows. So let's start with the first thing that we somewhat know about. Now this is something that doesn't happen very often where a pinball company is designing a game and midway through its design and I mean pretty far along on this game, midway through designing this game, the designer was told that the company no longer has the license to make the game and that game was John Borg's Indiana Jones. Now, this was something that I know was upsetting to John Borg. I know this is a theme that everybody was getting excited for. I'm hearing that it was based on the original movies, not the last one that came out. And the reason why I'm hearing they lost the license is they didn't want to pay the money. Somehow it became too expensive. So you don't really lose a license, right? It's not like, where are my keys? I lost my keys. the reason why Stern Pinball decided not to make Indiana Jones they did not want to fork over the money and it was just too much and I don't know man it's like how much is too much for an Indiana Jones license if they did it right in modern form with LCD screen I think they would have sold three times as many Indiana Jones games as John Wick machines so it really is a shame so somewhere in the halls of Stern Pinball is a John Borg Indiana Jones game that is never going to be made. Now, if I were Jersey Jack and I heard that Stern Pinball lost the Indiana Jones license because they didn't want to pony up the money, if I'm Mr. Abbess and I'm a billionaire, I think Indiana Jones would be a great game for Jersey Jack to make So speaking of Jersey Jack Pinball now look Elton John is a great shooting game but between you and me everybody really waiting for the next two games from Jersey Jack Pinball I mean, that is what everybody is waiting for. And there's so much excitement I hear within the halls of Jersey Jack Pinball about what their future themes are. There's a lot of dream themes that are being thrown around in the rumor mill. stuff like Top Gun, stuff like Beastie Boys, stuff like Harry Potter, stuff like The Matrix, stuff maybe like The Muppets for some of you people out there. So here's what I'm hearing now. I am hearing that Harry Potter is definitely coming. So if you're a Harry Potter fan, it is not a rumor. It is absolutely happening. But I'm also hearing that Harry Potter is not next, that it is coming a little bit later on. So that leads me to believe that is going to be Eric Meunier's game is going to be Harry Potter. Do you think it would be Steve Ritchie? Now, this part of me was like, there's no way it's going to be Steve Ritchie. It's going to be a music pin. But do you really think Steve Ritchie is a Harry Potter fan? I mean, Steve Ritchie did do Game of Thrones, so he's sort of done fantasy themes before. But I just can't see Steve Ritchie doing Harry Potter. I don't know, something about those two just don't go together. I could see Steve Ritchie doing Beastie Boys. So I think that Harry Potter is going to be Eric Meunier's game, and it's going to be the game after the next game. Now let's just talk about timing on when that game might come out. We're going to see the next Jersey Jack game probably at the end of the summer or early fall by Expo. It will definitely be at Expo in October. So let's just count the months right now. So it's May, June, July, August, September, October. So that's six months. Now here's the thing. Do you really think Jersey Jack has six more months of orders for Elton John? Like, how are they going to make Elton John for the next six months? So I'm not sure if that means they're going to move up their next title, but I have to imagine that Elton John demand is absolutely going to be satiated sometime by like June. It might even be satiated by now. Even though people are loving the game, I still don't think they're going to get a lot more orders for the game. I think it's going to be a slow burn kind of game. We also know, and this is 100% confirmed, because Jack has been saying this, the next game from Jersey Jack Pinball is going to be Mark Seiden's game. Now, I want that game to be The Matrix, and maybe they're trying to throw us off the scent that it is The Matrix by saying stuff like it's not The Matrix, but I'm also hearing that it is not The Matrix from a lot of reliable sources, and the feedback I've gotten on this game is that it's an amazing game if you can warm up to the theme. And that makes me nervous. It makes me somewhat excited. What's so good about it? But why would any of us have to warm up to the theme? And definitely Matrix is not a game you would need to warm up to. Harry Potter is not. Beastie Boys is not. Top Gun is not. And then it makes me nervous that it might be the Muppets. But here's why I think it's not the Muppets. I'm also hearing that this is going to be a surprise theme from Jersey Jack Pinball that nobody has been saying. Now, look, we've been saying the Muppets for a very long time. So what could it be? You know, what could it be? What could Mark Seiden's game be over at Jersey Jack Pinball that is a total surprise theme that if we warm up to it, we're going to enjoy it. Now, I'm going to give you a few more themes that have always been in the rumor mill with Jersey Jack Pinball. I know that Jack really, really wanted to make a Pac-Man pinball machine. So do you think Pac-Man might be the surprise theme for this game? I don't know. I don't think that would sell. I don't think it's a good choice. The other one that Jack almost got was Michael Jackson. Now look maybe Michael Jackson little wacko Jacko maybe Michael Jackson is a theme you need to warm up to because of all the controversy surrounding Michael Jackson Now if Jersey Jack Pinball made a Michael Jackson pinball machine it would be their best selling machine of all time. I don't think Jack wants to go near it because of all the controversy. But can you just imagine a pinball machine, a Jersey Jack machine that had Smooth Criminal and Beat It and Billie Jean and Bad? it would just be incredible. I know that so many people would be all over that game, but again, I don't think it's going to be Michael Jackson. The other rumored game that I know a lot of you don't want, which might be a surprise and might take some warming up to, is Avatar. Now, we know that the Abbas family has a relationship with the executive producer of the film, so that's another property that is a possibility for Jersey Jack Pinball. All I know is this, Elton John, really great shooter, not a dream theme. I think a lot of people are going to sit and wait and maybe dabble at that game when the price goes down. It's going to be about six months before we get this next JJP game. What's going to be exciting about the fall is this, is we're going to get JJP's next game right when we're most likely going to start to see some back to the future from Dutch. I can't wait. It also makes it really easy. Just wait the next six months. See, I love it. If all of us just don't buy anything over the next six months, there's going to be absolutely no harm other than you're going to have a lot more options. And if you want any of the games that are out now, you're going to be able to get them for so much less money. I don't even want to speculate how much cheaper it's going to be to get a John Wick or a Foo Fighter or a James Bond or a Texas Chainsaw Massacre or a Looney Tunes or a Pulp Fiction. All these games are going to be so easy to get for so little money if you just wait it out and that's the new thing in pinball it's unfortunate but i'm just looking out for you just wait it out now speaking of waiting it out a company that i think has waited too long to bring this game to market i'm gonna break this news to you here exclusively you know i've been talking about how there was a single distributor in the United States that was bringing 400 Funhaus remakes to market. They were the ones who commissioned this game to be made and nobody knew who it was. We were speculating, was it Cointaker? Was it Flip N Out Pinball? Was it Automated? Was it? Was it? Was it? It wasn't any of those people. I'm going to tell you right now as a Kaneda exclusive, who's bringing Funhaus to market. So if you've ever wondered why people sign up for Canada's Pinball Podcast. This is why. The people bringing Funhaus to market is no other than the same gentleman who brought the Jetsons pinball to market. Remember who that was? It was Nick Parks over at the pinball company in Missouri. Now, Nick Parks and I, years ago, we had a great conversation, a great interview. Nick Parks was the one who revealed to the world what the actual bomb was on a Stern pinball machine. And he got in trouble after he made that revelation. It was like $3,500 is what Stern told him it costs to make a game. And they made us edit the podcast to take down that number. But that number still rings true in my head. But anyway, Nick Parks once commissioned 300 Jetsons pinball machines to be manufactured by Spooky Pinball. So Nick is at it again. He's going to remake Funhaus and he's using Pedretti Gaming to manufacture the game. Now that's not the only crazy part about this exclusive. I'm also hearing that they are currently testing the game. It's got Brian Allen's all new art package. I'm also hearing that the game is just sitting out on the floor at the pinball company in Missouri in Nick Parks own showroom So if you driving by Missouri today take a step in there and take some photos for Kaneda and the community because I think they testing out the game on location in his showroom And if I was Nick Parks, I would just like rip the bandaid off this thing and just reveal it to the world. I mean, it's a remake of Funhouse. I think they're probably nervous whether or not these games are going to sell, because I think this is a pretty big financial investment on his part. And now I'm hearing that the price of this LE might be lowered from $11,000 down to $10,000. Now that's a big difference because if you think about it, he's got to sell 400 of these and going from 11,000 to 10,000 is basically losing $400,000 in potential revenue. Now what's going to be interesting about this is that Nick Parks is going to be selling all of these exclusively through him, the pinball company, right? So he's a distributor. A lot of money has to be put out there to make the game, engineer it, get the artwork. Maybe there's new code. All that money has been fronted, it seems, by the pinball company. You know me, these are big gambles. These are big risks. And I just think there could be no worse time with when we look at what's happening in the pinball marketplace, there's no worse time to bring out another game around $10,000 when you're looking at what's happening in the pinball market. And I think a move like this was clearly probably instigated when COVID was happening and everybody thought the gravy train wouldn't stop. But I think the gravy train has stopped. And I just don't think people are going to be throwing money at these games. And the other thing, you know, Pedretti remakes and Pedretti quality is not the best. And I don't think we're going to get a built like a tank cgc remake with this fun house and there you have it people once again canada is gonna scoop the industry before the industry scoops canada everybody thank you so much for being a member of the canada club i hope you enjoyed my previous show i hope you understand why i made that show free for everybody it's the kind of thing that everybody needs to hear but you're always gonna to get the majority of my content will be for you and your ears only and i thank you so much we are doing great we have over 680 subscribers every month we have more subscribers to canada's pinball podcast than all other pinball content creators combined that should make you feel proud i know it makes me feel proud and as i wait for this baby to come with two mouths to feed this side hustle really does matter. It does mean a lot to me. So thank you all so much for the support. I know for some of you, $5 a month is a lot. I know for some of you, it's nothing, but anything you can give and any support you give me is so much appreciated by this family. So I hope you know that. Everybody have a great day. We'll be back with more episodes. I want to say hopefully not this week because I'm holding a baby in my arms. There is an induction scheduled for Tuesday. So something's about to happen any day now. Thank you all so much for the support. I'll talk to you soon. But I need you, oh I need you, oh I need you, oh this time.