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Deadpool Pinball Review

Pinball Pursuit·video·24m 6s·analyzed·Sep 6, 2025
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Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.023

TL;DR

Deadpool Pinball earns 20.5/25 for accessible design and strong theme integration despite weak signature music.

Summary

Dr. C and Mrs. J provide a detailed home review of Deadpool Pinball (2018, Stern, George Gomez design) across five categories: theme, look, sound, feel, and play. They praise the machine's accessibility for novice players, well-integrated fourth-wall-breaking humor, striking 90s arcade aesthetic animations by Zombie Yeti, and intuitive rule set, while noting a lack of iconic soundtrack and conservative ball save settings. Combined score: 20.5/25, placing it fourth in their personal ranking behind Godzilla, Jurassic Park, and Foo Fighters.

Key Claims

  • George Gomez designed Deadpool and recently turned 70

    high confidence · Dr. C states Gomez 'just turned like 70 this year' and designed this 2018 game

  • Zombie Yeti designed all artwork for Deadpool including cabinet and backglass

    high confidence · Explicitly stated: 'The machine's artwork was all designed by Zombie Yeti'

  • Jerry Thompson did the sound design for Deadpool

    high confidence · Dr. C: 'Jerry Thompson did the sound'

  • Nolan North voiced Deadpool in the game with the classic animation voice actor

    high confidence · Reference to 'they got Nolan North to do the perfect Deadpool' and 'classic animation voice actor'

  • Four original songs were composed specifically for Deadpool Pinball

    high confidence · Dr. C: 'They composed four original songs about Deadpool for the Deadpool game'

  • Deadpool ranks number 7 or 8 on Pinside due to playfield design

    medium confidence · Dr. C states 'There's a reason this is like number seven or number eight on Pinside' based on playfield quality

  • Deadpool Pinball tutorial script is approximately half the length of Godzilla's

    high confidence · Dr. C compares script lengths: 'five pages compared to nine and a half' for Godzilla

Notable Quotes

  • “I judge the theme by, if I were to walk into an arcade, am I going to want to play it?”

    Dr. C@ 2:17 — Establishes their core evaluation framework for theme assessment

  • “I love how you had like the kitschy arcade stuff, but then sometimes he would appear like full 3D and kind of taunt you and stuff like that.”

    Mrs. J@ 7:05 — Highlights appreciation for animation execution and theme integration

  • “I'm not here to watch TV. I'm here to play pinball.”

    Dr. C@ 7:34 — Core design philosophy criticism affecting score; influenced by long video sequences in other games

  • “It is a good across-the-board machine where a not-so-experienced player like myself can step up and I can feel successful.”

    Mrs. J@ 11:56 — Identifies key strength: accessibility combined with depth for all skill levels

  • “I would give it a 4.5. It's near perfect for me. I think this machine looks incredible.”

    Mrs. J@ 7:18 — Highest individual score in the review (4.5/5 for look)

  • “Five is a unicorn. Five doesn't happen. It has a unicorn in it.”

    Dr. C@ 14:51 — Reveals their scoring philosophy: extreme reluctance to award perfect scores

  • “I would give it a 4.5. You could give me a 4.25. Nope. But we're not doing that.”

Entities

Deadpool PinballgameGeorge GomezpersonZombie YetipersonNolan NorthpersonJerry ThompsonpersonDr. CpersonMrs. JpersonStern PinballcompanyGodzilla PinballgameJurassic Park Pinball

Signals

  • ~

    sentiment_shift: Deadpool Pinball ranks 7-8 on Pinside with strong community appreciation, particularly for playfield design

    medium · 'There's a reason this is like number seven or number eight on Pinside. Like it is ranked so high because I think the field is so well designed'

  • ?

    design_philosophy: Intentional design choice to avoid long video sequences that interrupt gameplay; prioritizes player agency over cinematic presentation

    high · 'I don't love long video sequences that stop you from playing the game' and praise for Deadpool: 'They didn't have any of that'

  • ?

    design_philosophy: Deliberate artistic choice to use choppy animations for 90s fighting game aesthetic rather than fluid modern animation

    high · 'they could have made the animations on the screen really fluid, but they chose to make it a little choppy because they wanted that 90s fighting game aesthetic'

  • ?

    product_strategy: Pro backglass variant preferred over Premium Edition variant by reviewers

    high · 'We had the Pro backglass. I've seen the Premium Edition. I don't love the Premium Edition one. The Pro one is way better'

  • ?

    product_concern: Ball save settings perceived as too conservative; Mrs. J would upgrade play rating from 4.3 to 4.5 with better ball saves

    high · 'I would give it a 4.5. You could give me a 4.25' discussion of ball save impact on scoring

Transcript

youtube_groq_whisper · $0.072

0:00
Hi and welcome to Pinball Pursuit. I'm Dr. C. And I'm Mrs. J. And today we're doing something pretty fun. We're going to do a review of the machine we've had in our house for about six and a half weeks. Yeah, we had it for a minute. Yeah. I wasn't mad. And we're not I meant that we had it a little longer than our normal six weeks. But yeah, we're going to go over Deadpool by Stern. Deadpool. This is the 2018 game that was designed by the legendary George Gomez. Classic. Who I think just turned like 70 this year. Really? Yeah. He looks younger than that. He's, yeah, he's great.
0:51
Been making machines forever. Did Monster Bash, Batman 66. a lot of classics that people love. This is our first George Gomez game that we've had in the house. We've had quite a few Keith albums, which we love Keith, but this is our first time having a George Gomez game. So, as per usual, we're going to break this down into the theme, the look, the sound, the feel, and the play. The play. Our five categories. One through five. Everything gets a one through five. So let's go ahead and get started with the theme. So the theme is, you know, how much we like the theme, how well we feel it fits with pinball, how well it's integrated.
1:35
Do you want to kick us off with talking about the theme? Yeah, I do. So Deadpool, I've never seen Deadpool. Have you seen Deadpool? I've not seen the Ryan Reynolds Deadpool. I've seen the animated stuff. I haven't seen anything with Ryan Reynolds in it. Okay, didn't know the animated stuff existed. Yeah, here's the thing. Like, Deadpool has been in the comics for a long time. Okay. He's the merc with the mouth. He's always been kind of a comedic, fourth wall breaking character. Yeah. But, and he's always pushed boundaries a little bit. The movies just look a little too hard-R for me. Gotcha. He's not always that way, but he definitely tends to lean that way sometimes. In the comics, he's not always that way. Yeah. And the movie does have that reputation, which is probably why I haven't seen it either. Yeah. Anywho, I judge the theme by, if I were to walk into an arcade, am I going to want to play it? and that goes a few different ways. It could be, hey, am I interested in the theme of this pinball machine, or do I feel like it's been done well? Like, I love Harry Potter, but if I feel like it hasn't been done well, I'm not going to waste my time because it'll just make me angry. So there's a few things. There's no comment on the actual Harry Potter machine. No, we haven't tried it yet. Haven't tried it yet. And from the looks of it, from what I've seen, I want to try it. So we'll just make that small disclaimer. but having not seen Deadpool knowing kind of the reputation of Deadpool of it being fun and funny and kind of like kitschy I would want to play it and after having looked at the machine I would want to play it I feel like it's got fun themes integrated into it I love all the little jokes that are on the play field I think of pinball as glass over world because the classic phrase everyone uses is Woldover Glass, right? Just all the little teeny things. Yeah. How, like, when he's taunting, he was like, look, it's me. I'm in this pinball machine, right? Yeah. All the fourth wall breaky stuff. It's done super well. It's done really well. Yeah. I love the little Deadpool bobblehead. Oh, yes. So funny. Yep. Love that. Love just, it's very Deadpool, it feels. Very Deadpool. You know who it is and what it is when you walk up to it. And so I feel like they played the theme out well. Again, not having seen the movie, but knowing what I do, I feel like it's very Deadpool. Oh, yeah. And having a little more exposure, because, again, I've read a couple of the comics. Yeah. I've seen some of the cartoons and stuff with him in it. It's very Deadpool.

Mrs. J@ 18:31 — Illustrates scoring constraints and framework rigidity

  • “Mrs. C. I need better ball saves. I lose them too quickly.”

    Dr. C@ 19:15 — Specific mechanical criticism that would have improved score from 4.3 to 4.5

  • “On a given day, could those Deadpool and Foo Fighters switch? I think with our ranking, they're like .5 points away from each other.”

    Dr. C@ 22:33 — Indicates Deadpool and Foo Fighters are functionally equivalent in their ranking system

  • “You're very stingy. She's so stingy, guys. I don't like to get anything close to a five.”

    Mrs. J@ 14:45 — Self-aware commentary on scoring disparity between reviewers

    • game
    Foo Fighters Pinballgame
    Pinball Pursuitorganization
    4:03
    You know, they even got the classic animation voice actor, which I could go on about how great Nolan North is. Like, they really did so many things well with the character of Deadpool and keeping it true to that character. I even like they just embrace the absurdity yeah right yep the random things we use chimichangas to travel through time and fight a megalodon right and he's like riding a unicorn this is probably in another topic so I won't go too far in depth but like it's just very funny it's very good so what's your rating one out of five on the theme give it to me we go over this every time a three means meets expectations a five is like blows me out of the water something I've never seen before. 3.5. Neat Expectations goes a little bit above. Goes a little bit above. Yep, I'm happy with it. Okay, okay. I would personally give the theme probably a solid four. Okay, love it. I think that it is above average. I think that it is done really, really well.
    5:06
    It's something that I find funny. Is Deadpool my favorite comic book character? No. Is Deadpool necessarily the game that I want lots of little kids to come in and play.
    5:19
    It's not rated R at all, but it's not necessarily a kid-friendly machine. Yeah. Right? And we judge things based on that, as we're expecting. Family-friendly machines, but also maybe some others mixed in there. They'll all be family-friendly, but different levels. Yeah, so for me, I think it's a solid four. It's above average. It's a really good, so that means that the two of us combined, 3.75. I feel like that's a good score. All right. Let's go to the look. Let's go look. Take us away. So the look is, you know, the cabinet, the play field, the animations, the back glass, all that stuff, right? How does the machine look? The machine was all the artwork was designed by Zombie Yeti Nice And I got to say he captures deadpool so well i i love the artwork i love the look of the katana the look of the back glass we had the pro back glass i've seen the premium i don't love the premium one the pro one is way better yeah premium has like eating a chimichanga which is funny it's great it's very cool but i like the one that we had on the pro uh better I love the animations I think that they did such a good job of like and I watched a little making of they could have made the animations on the screen really fluid but they chose to make it a little choppy because they wanted that 90s fighting game aesthetic that's what I put down is I love the old school arcade feel yeah I mean it takes me back to like the Ninja Turtles right or like the yeah exactly the slapper games that I think of in arcades like that's exactly what it was and they played it up so oh yeah played it up so well i think they captured that so incredibly well zombietti's art looks so good on the cabinet um i like how you had like the the kitschy you know arcade stuff but then sometimes he would appear like a full 3d and kind of taunt you and stuff like that yeah like they kind of it fit the theme so well um i give the look of this a 4.5 It's near perfect for me. I think this machine looks incredible. I love that. One thing that I did love, I mean, you mentioned a lot of things that I had in mind, but we all know I don't love long video sequences that stop you from playing the game. Drives me nuts. I'm not here to watch TV. I'm here to play pinball. They didn't have any of that. It was just straight, direct, to the point. There were still fun little flash-up things that were fun. And then it's also fun to have those for other people that aren't necessarily playing. so it's like the battle scenes. Yeah. You know, it was fun for me while you were playing to, you know, just kind of watch those go on. Or you can look up while things are going and you can see that, but it's not stopping you from playing the game. Love that.
    8:00
    Yeah, I mean, everything else is what you mentioned. I'm looking through my notes a little bit. Just the chimichangas, the big sword, the, like, just, I guess it's the katana, my bad. The katana, yes. The katana, but just, like, so many fun things.
    8:17
    Can I give it 4.25? Oh, wow. Or are we only going, are we only sticking to fives? That just makes it really hard for me to do the math in between. Five, five, four. We're giving it a four. Four? You're giving it a four. 4.5. Nope, nope, four. Okay. 4.5 is very high. But again, I was very pleased with the shortness of the clips. I just want to play the game. Okay. All right. So next we have The Sound. Jerry Thompson did The Sound. Okay, love it. Here's the thing, guys. I love Nolan North. he's a fan boy I love voice acting I find voice acting incredible there's a great documentary you should go watch it's called I Know That Voice it's all about voice acting you've never told me about this so tell me more it is a great documentary that goes over how these people do these voices and it's incredible it is so good you'll have to watch it it's a really good one when I used to go to the local comic convention which is called FanX here in Utah my favorite panels were usually the ones that were the voice acting panels they just talk about their craft they would do twisted tunes where they would read like the script of Back to the Future but they had like Biff was played by the guy that did Pinky from Pinky and the Brain so he did all of Biff's lines as Pinky and they would just switch around they're so talented and the fact that they got Nolan North to do the perfect Deadpool in this game. Just, hmm. But not just that. I love all the sound effects. The snicked shot sound is incredible.
    9:55
    I love the little Deadpool voice. I think that's not well. Yep, yep, I like it. All the little, like, dosing of the ninjas and the chimichanga truck having a little, uh-huh, you know, like, what do you know? Yeah. The T-Rex and Megalodon, I think the music is great. They composed four original songs about Deadpool for the Deadpool game. Really? Yes, all those. I like the Western one. Yeah. Those were original songs made just for the game. I don't know if you do that. That's really fun. And that's probably going to be, I feel bad saying this now, because I don't know if I can come away from that machine, like, having an iconic Deadpool machine song in my head. Like, Go Go Godzilla is going to be stuck in my head forever. Oh, forever. I mean, they had the classic, like, Jurassic Park theme, so of course. Like I can identify machines by their iconic songs. I don't feel like Deadpool had an iconic song. I don't think that's a bad thing though. Well, it had four that it rotated between. And maybe that's why. I'm still listening to one in my head. And maybe that's why. The funniest one was the Western one. Yeah. So funny. The lyrics are hilarious. But you have to kind of like stop and pay attention. Exactly. And I don't think I do that enough. Yeah. It's not in my face enough. So for me, sound of this machine is near perfection for a pinball machine. Yeah. I give it a 4.5 for sound. I gave it a three. So it's pretty basic. I just don't know that there was an iconic song that came away from it. I did love the call-outs. The call-outs are great. Yep. I love the little Deadpool voice, as we talked about. I can hear the sound effects of when he's on the unicorn, there's the rainbow. I can hear that in my head. But it was fine. It was fine. Didn't love, didn't hate. It was what it was. So I gave it a solid three. Okay. This is the one that we differed the most on. Yeah, I know. It's crazy. Okay. Yep. Next is the feel. The feel. So this is all the things that you interact with on the play field, how the play field's designed, the shots, how does it feel to shoot this machine?
    11:50
    I'm very passionate about this one because I loved it. Oh! Here's the thing, is I feel like this is a very across the board I think I said this about Godzilla too but I feel more so this way about Deadpool About is a good across machine where a not player like myself can step up and I can feel successful I love that. I feel like I could hit the shots, I could hit the scoop, I could get the katana lock. I felt like I could do so many things where there are so many other machines where I feel like I can't hit the shots. I just can't get it I can't get it but these I feel like I could get them all and that makes you feel so successful and so good and then I feel like you know for the more advanced players there's definitely more advanced play and so I just I love the feel I love the different mini balls not mini balls multi balls thank you because I'm thinking mini Deadpool he has a great mini multi ball just I could get things going and be successful very quickly and so I feel like that's because of a good play field flow and I had accessibility to all the different things. And so I just really liked it. Yeah, I think the feel of this is really where this game does shine. There's a reason this is like number seven or number eight on pin side. Like it is ranked so high because I think the field is so well designed. The orbits feel great. You're rewarded for doing just about anything in the game. And I like that, right? Again, great for us less experienced players. I think that katana shot where it goes through, over, up, and then over again and down is one of the coolest, craziest ball paths.
    13:34
    I loved that shot. And then you get the reward of a locked ball at the end because you're like, I'm working towards something. Yeah, you do this crazy shot and then you have this, oh, if I do that two more times. Here we go, let's hit it again. I'm going to do some cool stuff. so um i i think the play field of this it's just it's so good and i think initially i thought it was a little bit simple yeah and then it grew and it grew and it grew on me over time um and that's where i think my appreciation came away really high for the the feel of this game um i want to know what your ranking is first before i give mine you talk this up high 4.5 4.5 because again it is so simple i know exactly what i need to do from getting them well we'll get that that's in the play i'm so sorry i'm getting ahead of myself i know what i need to do i can hit those shots i felt pretty consistently because you like to hang out and kind of coach me and so he'd be like okay hit this shot and i would be like okay within a shot or two i'd be able to get it and And that just feels so good as a novice player like myself. That is high. I know. And you know how I feel. I know. You are very stingy. She's so stingy, guys. I don't like to get anything close to a five. Five is a unicorn. Five doesn't happen. It has a unicorn in it. It does. 4.5. It's just a mini unicorn. Got it. Okay.
    15:00
    Gosh. See, I'm waffling between a four and a 4.5. I'm way more lean meat with my points. Yeah, you are.
    15:07
    I mean, go with your heart. it's probably a 4.5 crazy I'm gonna go with you on that one I am so much more lenient on games than you are you know what actually we'll let you come back do you need to ponder no I'm going to a 4 I think it's a 4 it's okay I think it's a 4 it's still above average and we're coming from two different perspectives you being the lesser experienced you being the most. That's fine. Okay, play. The play. Can I start? The play, yes, please. Start us with the play. I love that I know how to accomplish goals. I know how to start battles, which are usually kind of straightforward, but this one was very straightforward. You hit the lock. The scoop. The scoop, thank you. And you're good to go. I like that it starts out with three battles and then progresses to five, because then it's really fun when you see the T-Rex and the Megalodon. Exactly, pop up. and I knew pretty much how to complete those battles. It was very straightforward and simple and felt possible. Loved that. Yeah. Loved that. This definitely is known for having a simpler rule set. Yes. You compare the length of the script for the tutorial that I wrote for Deadpool versus the length of the script that I had to write for Godzilla. Like half. It's almost half, guys. It was like five pages compared to nine and a half. it was just shy of half yeah because this game is so much more easy to understand and describe and i loved that about it because i could tell anyone who came over how to play the game very quickly how to be successful yeah but at the same time there's enough strategic depth that i was kept captivated yeah uh you know as the more advanced player of the two of us i was able to be like okay i'm going to focus on this i want to get to megalodonkosaurus this time or i want to it's my Sauron battle. I can do those things, and I can say, oh, I want to get Disco Multiball. I appreciate that about a game. I appreciate being able to linearly do things.
    17:17
    Do I wish that sometimes I could have stacked some of the multiballs on top of modes? Yeah. It annoyed me that I couldn't do Disco Multiball during my Juggernaut fight. I really wanted to do that.
    17:28
    So for me, I loved how the gameplay was. Would I have liked a little bit more? Probably. Yeah. So give me, what is your ranking on the play? I feel like this is going to be another high one for me. It is, it is. Because like I said, the modes were easy. Easy to understand.
    17:51
    The multi balls. Again, I knew how to get those started. You had different, you've got the katana lock. You got the mini Deadpool Like you were able to get those things rolling And extra balls Extra balls I knew how to do that i swear so many times it like your extra ball is lit and i like i have no idea on the playfield where that is so and of course i'm too afraid to like really look up around the playfield while you're trying to find out where it is yeah um what's your score give me your score listen to your heart listen to my heart i know uh don't be stingy four just a four i thought for sure you're gonna do four point five you could give me a point two five nope but we're not doing that four four solid four yep yep okay it was really good i really like it as well okay love that i'm going with four as well so one thing i do have to say they're very stingy with the ball saves. Oh.
    18:55
    Maybe if they had better, like, if they gave me more ball saves. You would like it better? I would give it a 4.5.
    19:04
    You are so... That's what would have pushed it from a 4.3, maybe, in my mind to a 4.5. Oh, okay. So take note. Take note, Stern. Yep. Mrs. C. I need better ball saves.
    19:19
    I lose them too quickly. Oh, that's funny. Okay. So. Do you need a calculator? No, I got it all. I got it all figured out, I think. He's got a calculator brain. I do not. Yeah. So we add this all up.
    19:34
    My score comes out to a very respectable. Sorry, I didn't add up my individual scores. That was my problem. Should have done that first. Calculator brain. Nine plus 12. 21 for me. Oh, that's good. That's a good score for me.
    19:53
    You are giving this... Did they pull this down? You did. When it comes to scores. When it comes to life, you bring me up. Oh, thank you. Josh Groban, me. Yes. You raise me up so I can stand on mountains. Wow.
    20:19
    Flashback. We're silly people. Quick math. I'm trying to figure this out. I think you give it an 18.5. 18.5? Wow, Jane Ann, that is slow. So, overall, our score ends up adding up to a solid, I think it's 20.5. I'm going to correct myself. If it's incorrect, it's going here. I'm going to put the graphic. Put a lot of pressure on his math brain. 20.5. Okay. Where does that fall? So, what that does for us is it now goes, and I want to know if this is... Because I may have other opinions. Because this is our combined score.
    21:07
    We have at the top right now, it's Godzilla. Fair. And then it's Jurassic Park. Okay. And then with this score, it still goes Foo Fighters, then Deadpool. Oh, see, that's where I'd go Deadpool, Foo Fighters. You would go, so you would put this above Foo Fighters. Yep. Probably just because I'm Foo Fighters, I can't hit that right ramp.
    21:26
    Or the cross section one. Oh, the one that goes. Yes, I can't hit two of the ramps. I love the Duffoo Fighters machine, don't get me wrong. I just, I struggle.
    21:36
    So, yeah, so you put this. Godzilla, Jurassic Park, Deadpool. So Jurassic Park, Deadpool. You still put Jurassic Park above? Don't make me make that decision. They're equal right now. They're both in the number two spot. Really? I can't decide. They're tied for two. Here's the thing is it's so nostalgic. It's so low for it being your number two. Well, I probably rated the other one so low too. I feel like we need better calibration. skills oh you're such an introvert i know so how do you rank them um i think it's accurate you think it's accurate yeah i would put foo fighters above deadpool i think i would breaks my heart but i do love foo fighters i actually would be mad i mean it's still like a toss-up almost but i still think i would go godzilla and then jurassic park and then Foo Fighters and then Deadpool. Probably.
    22:33
    On a given day, could those Deadpool and Foo Fighters switch? I think with our ranking, they're like .5 points away from each other. I believe it. So, anyway, that's our review of Deadpool.
    22:46
    Just to let everybody know, Mrs. J might not be on the next video. Oops. We're having a kid. You can't see it, but I'm very large and pregnant right now. So I don't know how much you're going to be able to really play.
    23:03
    Yeah. So you may have another co-host. I may have a guest for our next machine. You'll probably still make an appearance. I will. I'd love to say hi. But you may not have played it enough to really know. Yeah. Though I don't think based on the theme you're all that mad about that either. Yeah. For our next machine. It'll be a surprise.
    23:21
    But anyway, thanks everybody. Again, if you haven't subscribed, please subscribe. It really helps out the channel. It really helps us out. Please. we're over 750 which is crazy I didn't think people would actually care what we thought about things it's crazy I love it it's so fun but yeah until next time keep flipping
    23:58
    Holds his hand It won't get better Than this