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The Spinner Is Lit - Episode 67 Fall Into Pinball

The Spinner Is Lit Pinball Podcast·podcast_episode·1h 52m·analyzed·Sep 25, 2024
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claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.031

TL;DR

Spooky Pinball signs Christopher Franchi; hosts recap summer tournaments, machine trades, and Flipper Room visit.

Summary

Hosts Spencer, Mark, and Dan return from summer hiatus to discuss recent pinball activities, including Mark's tournament grind in Reno (competing for top rankings), Dan's league play and machine trading (selling Ghostbusters, buying Pulp Fiction), and their visit to the Flipper Room in Concord, California for the Golden State Pinball Festival volunteer party. Key industry news: Spooky Pinball has signed Christopher Franchi (artist) to an exclusive deal after he completes other contracted work. Hosts praise Franchi as the best pinball artist in the industry.

Key Claims

  • Spooky Pinball has signed Christopher Franchi to an exclusive deal

    high confidence · Spencer announces this as 'quick news' at episode start; described as Franchi finishing contracted work before joining Spooky full-time

  • Christopher Franchi is 'the best pinball artist going'

    medium confidence · Spencer's opinion; Dan/Mark agree enthusiastically but this is subjective artistic assessment

  • Mark hit the 20-tournament threshold in competitive play and now must win tournaments to add ranking points

    high confidence · Mark details WPPR ranking mechanics; his lowest score is 3.89, needs higher finishes to climb from top 24

  • Dan is selling his Ghostbusters and buying a Pulp Fiction pinball machine

    high confidence · Dan states this directly; deal not yet finalized but expects to close this week; he's 'getting ripped off' financially

  • Spooky Pinball employs Ben Heck and Spooky Luke as designers

    high confidence · Dan mentions both by name as Spooky designers; hosts agree they've moved in 'right direction' from earlier designs but could use more experienced talent

Notable Quotes

  • “Franchi is, in my opinion, the best pinball artist going. And I know everybody absolutely agrees with those themes.”

    Spencer @ early — Establishes community sentiment around Christopher Franchi's artwork quality and Spooky's hiring as a major industry pickup

  • “Now if they just get a really good designer. Then you've got a home run.”

    Dan @ early — Suggests Spooky's design/rules depth still needs improvement despite art hire; hints at designer shortcomings

  • “I have to get at least, I think my lowest score right now is 3.89. So I have to get anything above that to get a difference, which would get closer to Teddy”

    Mark @ mid — Explains WPPR ranking cutoff mechanics and competitive intensity in Reno tournament scene

  • “I'm getting ripped off.”

    Dan @ mid — Humorous but indicates Dan is paying additional money to upgrade from Ghostbusters to Pulp Fiction; willing trade-off

  • “Anybody who builds a fully functioning train that you can ride on in your backyard is certifiable.”

    Spencer @ mid — Refers to collector Henry's elaborate backyard train project; emphasizes extreme nature of high-end pinball collector lifestyle

Entities

Christopher FranchipersonSpooky PinballcompanySpooky LukepersonBen HeckpersonMarkpersonSpencerpersonDanpersonFlipper Room

Signals

  • ?

    personnel_signal: Spooky Pinball signed Christopher Franchi to exclusive artist deal; Franchi finishing other contracted work before joining full-time

    high · Spencer: 'Spooky Pinball has signed on Christopher Franchi for an exclusive. He is still currently working on some games for other companies, finishing up some contracted work, but he's going to be in the house with Spooky after that.'

  • ~

    sentiment_shift: Christopher Franchi positioned as best pinball artist in industry; strong community agreement on quality of his artwork

    high · Spencer: 'Franchi is, in my opinion, the best pinball artist going. And I know everybody absolutely agrees with those themes.' Dan: 'He's so good at what he does.'

  • ?

    design_philosophy: Hosts suggest Spooky Pinball's design/rules depth lags despite improving, needs experienced designer leadership

    medium · Dan: 'Now if they just get a really good designer. Then you've got a home run.' Context: acknowledging Ben Heck and Spooky Luke improvements but implying further growth needed

  • ?

    competitive_signal: Reno pinball competitive scene robust with multiple weekly tournaments; Mark competing for top-8 WPPR ranking; high skill level among newer and established players

    high · Mark describes hitting 20-tournament threshold, needing wins to advance, competing against Teddy for ranking points; mentions new players like Justin rapidly improving

  • ?

    collector_signal: Dan actively trading machines (Ghostbusters for Pulp Fiction); collector mindset of rotating inventory despite saturation of unplayed titles

Transcript

groq_whisper · $0.336

0:00
Welcome to the Spinner's Lit Pinball Podcast, episode 67. Dan, what's the title? Was it Fall Into Pinball? That's it. Thank you. Something like that. Because I forgot. I like that. This is not our first attempt at this intro. This is not our first attempt. We've had some technical difficulties tonight. So I'm your host, Spencer. And with us back from this long summer vacation is Mark. It's great to be back, everyone.
0:49
It's good to have you back, man. And then, and our other co-host, Dan. Always be pinballing. I love that. So before we get too deep into the weeds, I've got fan mail. And I want to read real quick. From actual fans. And this is a fan email from the fan email mailbag. So this is from Dan Lazar, and he sent this. I got this actually August 30th.
1:20
Hey, fellas, just wanted to share this story with you. Went to Doc's Slipper House yesterday because I listened to the podcast. I was aware on how much they do for Golden State. So I thank the young lady behind the counter for everything they do. I live in Arizona.
1:35
The owner of the machines came in and I started talking with him. I think it's because someone told him I thanked him earlier. He was so cool. He let me get a sneak peek at their expansion. Plus, I got a quick game on Williams, Indiana Jones. Just wanted to share that with you all. Again, Dan, thank you so much for being a listener, a loyal listener. And thank you for, you know, coming out to Das Whipper House and supporting that. And just letting us know, man, we appreciate you and we appreciate all the listeners and people that support their local location or if they're traveling, support a location and check it out that they're traveling to. So thanks for that. Other quick news, Dan and I were off air because we kind of lost everybody for a minute,
venue
Golden State Pinball Festivalevent
Mike Morettiperson
Capital Corridor Pinball League Lodiorganization
Henryperson
Ghostbustersgame
Pulp Fictiongame
Stern Draculagame
Labyrinthgame
John Wickgame
Algargame
Doc's Slipper Housevenue
Jason from Tracyperson
Larry Zartarianperson
Hector Villalobosperson
Adamperson
Alexperson
Teddyperson
Camp Silver Ballevent

high · Dan: 'I'm going to be selling off my Ghostbusters, and I'll be buying a Pulp Fiction... It's not like I don't have plenty of games to play... but you just want to keep things moving in and out. I don't even know why. It's like a compulsion.'

  • ?

    venue_signal: Flipper Room in Concord operates as thematic-room arcade with curated collections (classics, System 11s, spooky games); rotates inventory regularly; hosts events and merch

    high · Detailed descriptions of room-based organization, Mike Moretti's curation strategy, free-play event format, merchandise store

  • ?

    community_signal: Golden State Pinball Festival volunteer party well-attended by Northern California pinball personalities; collaborative board effort with multiple organizers

    high · Board members listed: Practical Steve, Eric, Henry, Mike Moretti, Chris Bannister; Dan mentions 'who's who of pinball people' including Larry Zartarian and community leaders

  • ?

    gameplay_signal: Stern Dracula praised for accessible yet deep ruleset with multiplier/bonus management, spinner rippability, and cash-out mechanics; aftermarket Castlevania soundboard mod noted

    high · Detailed breakdown of lower 3-bank, multiplier buildup, bonus cashout saucer, upper targets; hosts praise balance between simplicity and skill

  • ?

    design_innovation: Labyrinth features variable lock shots (upper flipper, orbits), captive ball mechanic, motorized topper with call-outs, outlane post pop-up that saves ball

    high · Hosts detail lock shot variety, captive ball setup, motorized topper functionality, outlane/inlane post mechanics; praise smooth playfield feel vs. Stern frantic pace

  • ?

    product_strategy: Algar identified as rare, collectible machine kicked off production line before Flash; hosts note rarity drives interest when appearing at shows

    medium · Dan/Mark discuss Algar rarity and scarcity; hosts recommend acquiring rare games when opportunity arises at events

  • $

    market_signal: Stern modern titles (Ghostbusters, Godzilla, Black Knight rerun) remain readily available in secondary market, easier to move than vintage Bally/Williams

    medium · Dan: 'it's easier to sell the Sterns than it is to sell, like, my Bally Williams games... There's always Ghostbusters out there... There's always, you know, Godzilla's out there'

  • ?

    operational_signal: Golden State Pinball Festival volunteer party included free-play machines, catering, outdoor social areas, curated game lineup; successfully engaged 100+ community members

    high · Hosts praise food quality, variety of play areas, chill seating, free-play format, multiple outdoor hangout spaces; mentioned as well-organized by board

    • 2:21
    is Spooky Pinball has signed on Chris Franchi for an exclusive. He is still currently working on some games for other companies, finishing up some contracted work, but he's going to be in the house with Spooky after that. So that's pretty cool. Well, good for Spooky and good for Chris Franchi for finding a home with the guys over there. That's a great pickup. Franchi is, in my opinion, the best pinball artist going.
    2:54
    And I know everybody. Absolutely with those themes. Yep. Absolutely with those themes. Correct. Yeah. He's so good at what he does. I know everybody loves Zombie Eddie, but, you know, Zombie Eddie's done some really cool stuff. I think Ghostbusters is a great-looking game, but at the end of the day, I think Franchi's art is just great. It's just fantastic. So congratulations to Spooky for a good pickup. Now if they just get a really good designer.
    3:26
    Then you've got a home run. Yeah, I mean, don't get me wrong. You know, Bug and, is it Luke? Bug and Spooky Luke? Yeah. Like, those guys are doing some cool designs. They've definitely moved in the right direction from, you know, some of those rough earlier designs. But I think that, you know, they really do need somebody, you know, I guess there's something to be said for New Blood doing new things.
    3:51
    Yes. Oh, yeah. But, you know, it's... I mean, Steve Ritchie is fucking awesome. You know, I was thinking about that, and this is even our stuff to talk about, you know. But we're going to get to it later. So what have you guys been up to? Mark, you've been gone the longest. What have you been up to, man? Well, we just started the school year, and you know that always is a busy time of year when getting the class settled and everything like that. Over the summer, I spent a lot of time with family, been traveling, obviously spent time with my wife on our honeymoon, or not our honeymoon, but our anniversary, which seemed like a honeymoon. It was really a nice time in Mexico and just pretty much just spending a lot of time with family. And I still played some pinball in the summer, so that was fun. We also took my son to college just recently right before school started. Actually, it was after school immediately started, pretty much the second week, and took him to college and to experience a new life and new chapter in his life. and he's adjusting really well. At first he was homesick while we were there. And you know how it is when you let your kids go. It was kind of hard because... The cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon. Absolutely.
    5:11
    It was one of those situations where he was afraid, overwhelmed and didn't know anybody. And he was starting to get to know some people, but he still had fear about it. And now he's starting to adjust to it. He's involved in intramural sports and meeting people that way, also people from his class. He's got a great roommate and a great person across from his room also in the same. It's kind of like two bedrooms, and they're joined with a common area. But it's like one room to get to the two bedrooms, I guess you could say. But it was really a nice opportunity to meet his roommate and even meet his parents. So it worked out really well. It was a great transition, and I wish him the success. He's still kind of in the summer mode, so he's getting used to being a lot more used to having his own schedule and getting his assignments done on time and all that. But he'll adjust, and I'm not too worried about it.
    6:13
    Other than that, not much going on. I've been playing in tournaments here and there, especially when over the summer I had a chance to play up in Tahoe. I played pretty much locally. I played at Comic Kingdom during the weekends, just trying to get as many points as possible to get in the highest rank as I can. But it's tough. This year there's a really – there's a major competition trying to get those points because I'm already hit the 20. I hit the 20 mark as far as the number of tournaments that I played in, and now it's like taking the difference in the score. And I finished pretty well in almost all the tournaments that are listed. but I have to win tournaments now to be able to add any points to my ranking. And you have to win better tournaments. It's not to take first during a Tuesday night pin brawl anymore unless that pin brawl had some bangers at it. Exactly. I have to get at least, I think my lowest score right now is 3.89. So I have to get anything above that to get a difference, which would get closer to Teddy, but Teddy just won at Elbow Room just last week, and now he's going to jump up a few more points. So I'm going to probably be 15 points behind just to get to eighth place. I'm in the top 24. So that's good. But, man, I'll tell you, there's some good players in Reno, and the competition is high. But friendly competition, but takes a lot of work to get first place. With people that are playing now, they're just so good.
    7:50
    Friendly but fierce. That's how you want it. Friendly but fierce. And it's nice to see people that you've seen come into the groups within the last two or three years and see them get better and become really good players. Oh, it's unbelievable. I have one person. His name is Justin. He just started going to tournaments, and he's, like, addicted. He goes to the one on Tuesday night. He goes to the one on Friday night. He plays at Elber Room, and he plays on the weekend. And he's really getting into it and loves the competition. He's going to be a pretty good player. In fact, I also have a sub too. I'm sorry. Go ahead. It's nice to see. Yeah, it's really nice to see. There's a lot of new players that come on board, and they really, let's just say they, I don't know how to say it. They get the passion like everybody else has. What did you say? They get that bug. They get the itch. That's it. There you go. That's the bug. They got the bug. Once you figure out how fun it is, you know, you want more of it. And the lucky thing is, especially where you guys are now, you have several great opportunities to engage in the friendly but fierce competitive pinball landscape. That's right. Thanks to Ted. Thanks to Jim. Thanks to Tony. They all are putting on these tournaments to give everybody an opportunity any time of the week to get their competition on and get familiar with the competitive scene in Reno. And Cody, too. Thank you. Sorry.
    9:29
    There's so many going on, I can't even keep track of them. Yeah, Cody is crushing it, and he has a lot of great games that are classic games. So if it appeals more to people that want to play classic games, Cody's tournaments are the greatest ones. If you want tough competition with a lot of players, then Press Start is perfect. If you want a laid-back atmosphere and just have fun and party the rest of the night, then Tony's is great up in Incline Village.
    10:00
    Yeah, there's a variety everywhere you can go. And even Alex came this weekend and experienced that, and he just loved it. Chip came up there, got himself a picture taken, because of course he did. Alex loves pizza everybody loves Alex is just a good dude and Shannon was there too he came also Shannon too, Shannon also friends of the show, brothers, Timbal brothers and righteous dudes yeah so that's pretty much what's going on with my life and I celebrated my wife's birthday which was awesome you guys have been what 32 years? 30 years. 30 years married. Congratulations to you. And I've seen your wife. That means that you probably hooked up with her when she was about five.
    10:53
    Yeah. Heidi looks wonderful. Oh, she's beautiful. Inside and out. Super gracefully. She is just better than you deserve, man. I agree. I'm just kidding. You're great. We like you too, Mark.
    11:09
    We missed you, man. We missed you. We missed you not being on the show. We missed your last episode. We had a pretty good episode and a pretty good time. I liked your episode. I thought it was really great. I mean, yeah, maybe you talked about other things, but I thought it was a good conversation. It was entertaining. I liked it. It was a realistic depiction of a conversation between Dan and Spencer. That was like the conversations we have when we're both trying to get home from work. We're just talking in our work vehicles. We don't always talk about pinball. Yeah. It's like here we talk about pinball. We actually talk about pinball more when we're driving, I think. Yeah. How about you, Dan? What do you got cooking? Well, we just finished up, I believe it was season 31 of Capital Corridor Pinball League Lodi. And speaking of everybody's favorite, Alex, I couldn't get past him, so I ended up in fourth. But he took third. Our main man, Adam, took second. And Hector Villalobos took first, which is, you know, a place Hector seems to turn up a lot. I thought you'd pick up a flipper.
    12:10
    And we're just about to start the new season this Thursday, so pretty excited about that. I jumped back into Folsom League after taking a couple seasons off and had a truly, truly rough night of pinball, but it's good to be back with those guys. And beyond that, you know, I've just been working and playing with my games. I've made a deal. It hasn't completely worked out, but it looks like I'll be selling off my Ghostbusters, and I'll be buying a Pulp Fiction.
    12:42
    So I'm pretty stoked about that. As long as all the ducks fall into a row, I'm going to find out this week if the wheels aren't going to come off the wagon. Is that an even trade, or is that extra cash on the table?
    12:59
    I don't like to discuss the terms of financials, but let's put it this way. I'm getting ripped off. Okay.
    13:07
    Okay. Cool. That's awesome. That's a good one. I really enjoy playing Pulp Fiction. It's a darn good game. I'll say that.
    13:19
    Yep. I think it's fun. I have a lot of good, I have a lot of fun playing it. I've had Ghostbusters for a good stretch. The person who I'm selling it to has, he's owned this one before. It's a sellback. So, you know, of course, it's always easier to sell a game to your buddies.
    13:40
    That's for sure. You're still going to have that access to it. And, you know, to bring in a game, you know, a new game is really, really nice because it's not like I don't have plenty of games to play, and it's not like I've even close to played out the games that I have. But, you know, you just want to keep things moving in and out. I don't even know why. It's like a compulsion. And for me, it's easier to sell the Sterns than it is to sell, like, my Bally Williams games. Sure. Because it feels like when the Bally Williams games are gone, they're just insanely hard to recover now. Where, you know, there's always Ghostbusters out there. There's always, you know, Godzilla's out there. I mean, Black Knight's gotten kind of hard to find, but they did another run, so there's always Black Knight's out there. I mean it's that or sell Metallica I don't think anybody would forgive me if I did that right that's good that sounds like a good offer so I hope it all works out and it doesn't fall through and you get the game you want yeah well I think at the end of the day you know the person who wants to sell it needs it gone the person who wants to buy it wants it here and And, you know, Henry wants Ghostbusters back, so I think everyone's going to hopefully get what they want. Okay. At the one point, it was the only game. I don't know if you've ever been to Henry's. I say you've been there because you dominated us when you stopped by. I think it was the only game he'd ever sold.
    15:12
    Interesting. Since then, he's sold another one. I happen to know he's sold a second game since then. Oh, what did he sell?
    15:20
    Davey's Guns. Oh, that's right. That's right. And that was the only, that's right, because I talked to him about his show. He goes, yeah, I'm willing to sell it because I always sit on new train tracks for his train.
    15:31
    So I don't know how that was funny. Yeah, the train is absolutely insane, by the way. I saw pictures of it in some video. It's the thing in the really real world. I can't wait. I got one. Yeah. Yeah, it's, like we've talked before about how anyone who buys a pinball machine is crazy. Anyone who buys tons of pinball machines is really crazy. Well, anybody who builds a fully functioning train that you can ride on in your backyard is certifiable. So he's Disney the second?
    16:07
    That's cool. Because it's kind of like if you really know the history of Walt Disney, like he was a big, big, big train enthusiast, I guess it is kind of the same scale as the train that Walt Disney had running around his yard. No way. For his kids.
    16:23
    There's a local collector. It's not like you ride in it. It's like you literally sit on it. Yeah. Wow. But it is big and strong enough to move several adult human beings. It's a real actual steam locomotive, right? I have no idea. I don't think it's a real actual steam locomotive. I'm sure it's electric. No, but they used to make those, like, actually a steam locomotive. I'm sure they do, but I'm just saying I don't think this one is steam. There's a guy in my town that's got it set up. He's probably a couple miles down the road from my house. But you'd have to ask Henry to get all the gory details. Yeah, we talked about it for a bit. That's really cool. I was super excited about it. In fact, was Henry at the volunteer party? He was. So you guys both went to the Golden State Pinball Festival volunteer party at the Flipper Room.
    17:18
    We did. Where's the Flipper? I forget what town that's in. Concord. Thank you. So that's in Concord, California, Flipper Room. They do cool artwork, framing, and pinball.
    17:32
    And it was an awesome place. Fantastic collection. Awesome place. Maybe next year, brothers I'm going to try to get back there So I missed you guys And I really wanted to go and see everybody And Mike Moretti, who's on the board Is the proprietor of said Flipper Room And a righteous dude Well, I have to say that Going to Flipper Room I feel Really Guilty for Playing all the games and not communicating with anybody Because it was so good of the games that they had there. It was awesome.
    18:09
    It was amazing how many games there were to play and the variety. There were classics. It was just an awesome place. I love how each room had its own games. And the food was awesome. From the Mediterranean Grill or wherever that place was, that was really awesome. So I really enjoyed it. Yeah, the cool thing, if you've never been to the Flipper Room, is that it's not like, you know, you usually go to an arcade and it's like a big room, right? The Flipper Room is all little, like, little rooms, and then each little room has kind of a theme to it.
    18:48
    So, like, you'll go to a room where it's all classics, and you'll go to a room where it's all, like, System 11s, and then you'll go to a room where it's all, like, jungle and adventure themed, and there's a lineup where it's all spooky. not spooky pinball, but like scary games.
    19:06
    Right. So it's really like creature monster bash and like Elvira and the Party Monsters. Yeah. You know, but in this case, you probably have, you know, it's a little more eclectic, right? So you'll have, you know, Scooby-Doo or Stun Dracula. And then you'll have, you know, yeah, just all sorts of crazy stuff. I'll be honest. I didn't get past the Stun Dracula in the entryway. I must have played that game for 45 minutes. That's a beautiful example. I love Stern Dracula. That was a great game. I was hooked on it, and, like, the high score was very attainable, so I was just relentlessly chasing it down, and I got it. You did get it. I looked at the high score that day, so. Nice. You know, I remember, that's another one I remember playing when it was a brand-new game at my local arcade. Wow. I had one, yeah. Well, I know it was funny. I was playing it too, and I realized, oh, there's a flipper up on the top. I didn't see it. So I was flipping, but I didn't see the top flipper flipping up there. So I was, like, ignoring it completely and realized, oh, there's targets up there. Yeah, that's the whole, like, you want to get that upper bank, but really it's that lower three bank that's more important because, like, you finish it out once and then you finish it out again, and it lights your multiplier, and then every other hit, I think, is like 7,000 points, which is, you know, significant in that game. But the whole idea is you want to build up your multiplier and your bonus, and then you can cash it out at that little saucer in the whoopsie-doo. Okay. And you can get it up to 100,000 and then cash it out and then get it up to 100,000 again and cash it out and then get it up to 100,000 again and cash it out. Oh, so you can repeat that shot. Yeah, but you have to rebuild it. Like once you cash it, it uses it up, right? If you just hit it again, you get 1,000 points. Okay. So you have to like rebuild it up. But I think that you keep your multipliers so you don't have to re-hit all the drops. You just have to hit the targets and build your bonus back up, which happens pretty fast if you have a good game going. And then those upper targets, I think that those actually light the shots that build your bonus. Okay. No wonder I wasn't getting a high score. And then, yeah, then you've got the always popular lit spinner, and it's got a very rippable spinner. And, like, yeah, it's so fun. And then theirs, you couldn't really hear it because there's a lot of action going on. But when it's a little bit more quiet, they have, like, some sort of, like, aftermarket soundboard in it that plays music from Castlevania games. Oh, darn, I didn't hear that. That's cool. Which I think is just insanely funny.
    21:52
    That's awesome. You know what game I liked that was close to that area was Boomerang. That was a cool EM. Yeah, Boomerang was a couple down from that. And then people were all over Catacomb. Yeah, that's a great game.
    22:08
    Yeah, which is just a ridiculously advanced... Ruler. Dracula's Dirt-Ass Simple. Catacomb's like, oh, well, here's the book. This game makes points. we will test so take some notes but yeah it's complicated I can't figure that game out did they still have pinball magic on display there I didn't see it no pinball magic it's been 2019 I believe was the last time I was there oh yeah they keep rotating and rotating their games in and out The one that I played the most, which I still love this game, is Labyrinth. Oh, I loved playing that game. I had so much fun, and they had it in the lineup, and it was awesome. Did he have the topper on it? He did have the topper on it, and it was motorized, and it worked, and it was so cool. They used to have a really nice Paragon as well.
    23:15
    Paragon wasn't there either. Yeah, like I said, it's been five years since they've been there. Sure. He moves stuff in and out a lot. Mike Moretti likes to keep that lineup fresh. But there's a couple games that are always there, and Stern Dracula is one of them. No, back to Labyrinth, yeah, we usually play that game at Jason from Tracy's, you know, when we go to his second Saturday things. And, you know, they picked one up with the back glass and the topper and everything. And that topper is just insanely cool. Yeah, it's so wild. It's so detailed. that looks like the Muppets are, like, right on top of your back box. I mean, it is. I mean, that's exactly what's going on. And I just, you know, it adds so much life to the game. And there's new call-outs, you know, kind of like the Black Knight topper. There's new call-outs that you only get if you have a topper where they comment on you being, what are you doing down there? And, you know, it's just, ah, it's so clever. And it's a really fun pinball adventurer style game. Like, it's really, really a well-themed game. I wish that I had more love for the movie. Yeah, the movie is bizarre, to say the least. But it fits the theme well with the machine, too, because the rules fit really well with the movie. And the thing I like the most about that game is how when you make a lock shot, you have different places you have to hit the locks. I love that. Like, you have to hit it with the upper flipper, and then other time you have to hit it with the right orbit, and then the left orbit, and then there's that cool mech where the forks hold the ball, and then you have to hit the ball like a captive ball. Yeah, the left orbit. Yeah, that's what I was just thinking of. It's got that weird little setup where it turns it into a captive ball. Like, that's just smart. It's a great game. I like it's got bait posts. You know, it's got the little dudes that pop out. It's got a lot of mechanics in it. I love the out-lane post that pops up, and then it puts it back into the in-lane. When you least expect it, that is really cool. Great game. And the thing is, it doesn't shoot like a stern. It shoots like a barrel's a fun machine is the way I could say it. It has its own original feel, but it's smooth. It's just so silky smooth the way the ball goes around the play field. Not fast and frantic, but smooth is the best way to describe it. Yeah, it's very deliberate. And again, it's less of like that fast, like, ah, but more of like, you know, a pinball journey. Right. You're going on and you're, you know, it's a marathon, not a sprint. You know, you're trying to do these things and you're trying to hit these accomplishments. And it's very well themed.
    25:57
    As far as I know, like I said, not being a huge fan of the movie, but I got to imagine that the voices and everything are very, very authentic. it's got the music it's a cool ass game I like the fact too that it even addresses the fact that the main character that holy crap I'm blanking on her name oh Jennifer Conley who plays what is her name I don't know her name I can't remember but the game comments it's like where's the girl and they're like why would she come back that's great It's great that they integrated that. So, yeah, I only got one game on it at the show at Golden State, but I really enjoyed it. I just kept going back to that one a lot. I did play John Wick. I like that game. I still don't know what the hell I'm doing on it, but I do love the call-outs. The call-outs are fantastic on it, and it is a fast game, and I was hitting the shots really well. Sometimes I just brick it, and then other times I nail the shots, and that one played really well. Have you ever played Algar? I'm sorry? Algar. I played Algar, and that game was just brutal as can be. Okay, because it shows up at the show every few years. I don't know if somebody brings one, but I'm looking at their lineup right now. Brutal. I see they have one because it's so rare. Because that game was on the line, and it got kicked off the line, I believe, for Flash. Because they could make more Flashes. because, you know, they sold so many, you know. Before you came on, Dan and I were talking about Steve Ritchie and his games, you know, like the old System of Elevens, and just powerhouse of sales, you know. Right. Everything he's, you know, done, just about everything, has just sold insanely well. But no so Algar is a rare one so you know always try to get a hold of a rare one when you see it you know Yeah It was a great time It was really nice that they had them all on free play and you could play as many games as you want, and then they had a really nice, chill spot to sit down and have a meal and chat with people, but I was not my typical self. I was like, wow, these games, I just cannot resist. So I was totally antisocial. I was antisocial. So it never did. So we're glad you... We kept telling you, you got to get down to the football room, man. Yeah, even to my friend Dan.
    28:31
    Dan, I'm sorry. I totally ignored you, man. Well, and I made up for it, man, because I pretty much, when I wasn't playing Stern Dracula, I pretty much spent all my time outside. And, I mean, it was a who's who of pinball people from Northern California. You know, I hung out with Larry Zartarian, who I'd heard his name for years and years and years, but I actually sat by him at lunch and had a nice long conversation with him. Oh, that's awesome. Yeah, he's like the EM king. He would bring 20, 30 games to shows, right? Like the whole EM lineup that like Golden State Pinball and for a lot of years at Pinnagogo, like that's him. He brings everything and I can't possibly name all the names, but I mean, I held out and I hung out with Brad, I hung out with Ron and of course all the All the members of the board who were there, Practical Steve and Eric and Henry and Mike Moretti, who is the owner of the Flipper Room, our gracious host, Chris Bannister, everybody was there. That's awesome. I said hi to everybody. I just didn't talk to them. They all came up to me later and said how rude you were. I know. I was so rude. They hate Mark, and what a bastard. He's not welcome back. No, everybody, yeah, obviously, we don't even want them to volunteer. Yeah. Everybody was so busy and so generous of their time. And, you know, there were a lot of hugs. There was a lot of good food. And there was a ton, a ton, a ton of great pinball. So, yeah, if you ever, if you are in Northern California and you just want to visit the cool place, you know, go to the Flipper Room in Concord. You can look them up on the web. I don't have their address handy, but they're there. And, you know, if you're around during Golden State time, volunteer so you get a pass to this. Yes. Everybody gets an invitation if they bring games. Everybody gets an invitation if they volunteer for shifts. And, you know, you're joining the Golden State pinball family when you do that. It's thepoolsroom.com. And you can, because I'm on the website now, check it out. So not only can you get picture framing, pinball, events, leagues, FAQs, you can shop. You can shop for posters and things. You can get, like, the flip room stuff, T-shirts, original art, degenerate pinheads. And you can also buy your Golden State Pinball Festival gear. You can buy posters, coffee mugs. So if you, like, had to fly out to the show or drive and you didn't want to grab a poster or coffee mug then, you can go back and get one now. and you can get past years posters. They even have a few of this last year's T-shirts left, and it looks like they have them in all size. Well, I don't know, extra small up through 2X it looks like they have in stock still. So if you didn't grab a shirt this year, you can grab one now. If you want a really great shirt to glow under black light,
    31:40
    this last year's was great. Well, okay, that's only Okay, that's not the Golden State shirt That's the Camp Silver Ball shirt And right you are, it is great And no, no, that's okay But to get that shirt, you have to stay at Camp Silver Ball You got to do your time in the camp, you know Okay Yes, yes You're not going to be able to steal one from someone who did Yeah No, I'm talking about the one that has the teekeys on it and stuff Oh, is that glow-in-the-dark? That glows under black light really awesome Okay, I'm sorry. I misunderstood. Okay. You must be right. You know, I didn't buy a shirt. I just got my Camp Silver Ball, which does actually glow in the dark. Okay. But I'm going to have to order a shirt now, so. Oh, yeah. It's cool. All right, cool. Right on, man.
    32:27
    No, I'm so glad you're fine because we talk about this every year, and you're like, I got work, I got this. It's like, no, man, you got to go to the – you volunteer every year, and you put a lot of effort in, Mark, and you got to go. Plus, you love the flipping room, and I'm glad you went. So, Dan, it was so worth it. It was worth it. I mean, the drive was long. It was three and a half hours there and three and a half hours back on the same day. Yeah, for you it was a long drive.
    32:53
    Yeah, it's a significant drive, I mean, if you don't live in Concord. It was about an hour for me. Yeah.
    33:00
    For you and me, Dan, well, when I lived there, it was an hour, hour and 15 minutes. So, yeah. And just to add on that real quick because it fits with that day, When we came back, I was with Jeffrey Newen, so he was my guest. And on our way back, we were way later than we could make it to Dusk Flipper House, relating to our fan mail. Oh, cool. And we went in there, and it was closed, of course. So I was peeking in because I wanted to see the expansion. And sure enough, the two guys that own it opened the doors for us and said, hey, come on in, check it out. Totally welcoming. And let us see the expansion. And, wow, do I have to say I am so excited for the Sacramento area, the Roseville area. Wow. You are in for a treat. How many games and how much more space you have, it is going to be phenomenal. So shout out to two people, Dallas and – Dallas and I forget. I'm so sorry. Oh, gosh, I should know this. Dan? Chris, is that right? Dallas?
    34:02
    Oh, sorry. I forgot the names. I apologize. But they were gracious. We'll pick those up, and we'll give them proper shout-outs next. Maybe Dan knows. Do you know Dan? No. Okay. Nope. My bad, Dan. I can't remember. If I asked Jeffrey, he would know right away. Way to call me out, jerk.
    34:22
    Both of you did, by the way. Don't think I didn't hear you either, Spencer. I just ignored you. No, I just saw you. I'm just so much more overt about it.
    34:32
    I've met them, and I know they're both great guys, and I don't want to say the wrong names, so I just won't say any names. But one really down thing about Flipper House was just literally that it was very compact. Yeah. So them expanding it is genius. And the nice thing is that they're doing it without moving.
    34:52
    Yes. So they don't have to start over. They're just taking over the adjacent spot. So if you know where the Flipper House is or that's Flipper House, you can still go there and it'll still be there, but it'll be bigger and better than ever before. Yep. And the cool thing about it is more games. They'll have more games that they had in storage, and now they're going to be putting them on the floor. So it's really cool. Well, they always have the newest stuff.
    35:19
    So if you ever want to check out the newest and the best and the brightest in Northern California, they get it. I haven't been to the place downtown yet. Gosh darn it, I always forget that name too, Ryan's Place.
    35:32
    I don't know if he's getting all the newest games. I know that that's not what it is. I really do need to get to some of these spots. You've been working like a dog lately, too, though. No, I'm just lazy, and I've got games in my garage.
    35:53
    Hey, I gave you an out. It's the Capital Pinball Parlor. Thank you. Everybody has just given me absolutely glowing reviews of this place. And if you go there online to take a look at the place and at their lineup, the vibe there actually, to me, it really kind of looks a lot like Playfield 76. Okay. At least from the inside. From the outside, it looks like the Old West, man, because that's what Old Sacramento is all about. Sure, like Virginia City almost with the boardwalk, right? Yeah, it's like super, super cool. Yeah. Yeah, they're running competitions there, I think weekly. So, yeah, they're definitely another spot. Like, as big as Reno's gotten for events, like Northern California, Sacramento, we've got like four leagues now. We've got, you know, weekly events. Like, we saw what you guys were doing, and we're just like, no, we're doing it too. Good for you. Like, we're coming in. You guys ain't taking this away from us.
    36:58
    Well, then that will give us a reason to come up and visit you as well. Yeah, we got some spots. So, yeah, if you're ever down and you want to make a pilgrimage, like I will be totally down to go with you. I mean, if you go to the website, they have a picture of a hurricane, and I don't know about you.
    37:17
    I know that game sucks, but I like hurricane. You like hurricane? Dude, I love that game. Okay, explain why. It's got giant ramps. Uh-huh. It's got roller coasters. It's got a dude who makes fun of you. It's got that back glass with the spinning disc and the pop-up. I mean, I know that it's like a woodchoppy game, but it's just super cool. I do like the back glass with the spinning thing. I do like that. It has so many great things going for it. It just has a couple of things that really kind of just make it not a great game. It's got a very, very simple rule set. It does. Even for the early 90s. And I think that that hurts those people. Again, it's very much like there's not a progression to the game. You're just kind of hitting shots and doing things. But I don't know, man. I just, I've always had a soft spot for that game.
    38:17
    And I've never owned it. It never, like, I've never seen one come up for sale. There was one powder-coated, the powder-coated coin door and legs and, you know, rails and all, just a couple of weeks ago or like a week ago. I almost reached out to you, and then I got sidetracked. I don't remember where it was. That's on Facebook, so. Yeah, if a cheap hurricane came up for sale around me, I would buy it. It's the same thing with, like, Party Zone.
    38:46
    I love that game. I like Party Zone. I know people like, you know, get a poo-poo on Party Zone, but it's just like, I love that stupid game. I love that robot. Take it away!
    39:00
    The Super Sonic Robotic Comet! I love that! Yeah, just total bizarre weirdness. They're just funny. They're goofy and silly and quirky and fun games.
    39:14
    It's a laugh attack! It's a laugh attack, yeah. Captain B-Var And the chicken dance And then their weird like Pipe organ version Of Pinball Wizard Yup That's true yeah So bizarre love it Yeah bizarre but fun you know Yeah for sure And that's when pinball could be silly and fun and quirky Without having a major theme Going on so So is there anything else you guys want to point out about the volunteer party trip report? They did not have a hurricane.
    39:53
    No hurricane. I did because it would have torn me away from Stern Dracula. And then maybe it would have been more antisocial like me. So you watch. Now you watch. Stern Dracula is going to go up in value because we talked it up. It's great. There's one in Reno I didn't even know. A lot of people don't like that game. I like it, I think it's great I think so too Everybody seems to have a voter for the old Sterns Because they're fun Old Sterns are awesome They're awesome So we got shows coming up All show season Okay, I missed the Denver show again Had a bunch of just family stuff come up You know, cars breaking down Rocks getting shot through car windows Life Anyway, so I didn't go so just trying to keep stuff working around the house.
    40:47
    But that's okay. There's always an extra year, and I can always just drive over to Denver. But they did have an avatar there. But they have Expo coming up, and Mark, you're going to Expo. I am definitely going to Expo. And I saw that we need to be represented, so I'll definitely be there at that mixer. That's awesome. Yeah, so it's going to be like a pinball media mixer. Cool. Yeah, I'll be there for sure. Cool. Yeah, I'm looking forward to it. I'm going there to visit my father the week before and then coming out there. And pretty much I booked all my tours. I got my ticket for Pinball Olympics. Nice. That sold out in 15 minutes. And I was so thrilled that I got it. We only had one person in our group that was unable to get the ticket because they had to work and they forgot about getting in on time because, like I said, as soon as the tickets went on sale, it was almost like Pinberg. It was like they were gone. And that's not usually the case. I know last year, or I'm sorry, not last year, but the last time I went, the tickets sold out like in eight hours, but not 15 minutes. So obviously the word is getting around that this is really a fun event you don't want to miss. And I'm happy to say that. I have a ticket, and it's sitting right here in my room right now. They actually sent paper tickets out and mailed them to the people who got in. That's cool. So I'm looking forward to that. And like I said, I'm going on Chicago. You can counterfeit them. Yeah, you could. You could. God damn, you're a genius. But you can't because you got a number on them. You can't get no Olympics tickets. Ha, ha, ha. Yeah, they got a number. Come up with the steam. Yeah.
    42:25
    It's definitely something not to miss. I'm going to go see Chicago Gaming Company. But what's cool is they're not just going to a factory tour, but then they're taking you to the cool arcades. So they're taking you to Galpin Ghost. And then one of the tours, they're going to take you to Logan's Arcade. It's pretty awesome. And then they also feed you, so they also give you lunch. That's nice. It's really an all-around great deal, and I'm not going to miss it. I'm also signed up for a tournament that I'm going to play in at Antarium on Tuesday night. So I'll see how I do on that. It might be some good whopper points that might give me a lot for, you know, ending up in 30th place, but I don't care. It'll be fun. Good stuff, and we expect a good trip report with the locations. Absolutely. It'll be a great trip report, and it's awesome because we have a lot of people from Reno representing. We have six people total going from Reno to Chicago Expo. We need to start remembering to take pictures for the Facebook. We do. I know. Okay, I promised I will take pictures, and I'll make sure that I send them to you so you can post them. I'm not any good at it either, so it's not all your fault. Well, it's because I always want to play as much pinball and talk to people, and then I never get my phone out. Just to get your phone. It's my fault. You get busy. You don't have so much time. But I will. I will try my best, especially at Pinball Olympics. I'll definitely take pictures there. Well, so we got Mark lined out from the next month. So, Dan, you have, like, the other golden – Because it's the 40th anniversary of Expo this year, and then the longest-running pinball show west of the Mississippi is right around the same time, and that's our own Pinnagogo.
    44:05
    Yep, Pinnagogo is October 11th to 13th. It's in the usual spot at the, I want to say, I'm saying the wrong fair. It's just at the fairgrounds in Dixon, California. and yeah, you know, for those of you who haven't been to Pinnagogo, it is a very small, unassuming pinball show. It's just a little country fairground and it's a big room full of pinball machines and all your friends and since they do it in October, the heat's usually not very oppressive, so it's a pretty comfortable place to be and this year, although I guess that if you haven't signed up, you've already missed out, our counterparts at the Greater Sacramento Pinball League are going to be holding a tournament.
    44:57
    Awesome. Which is being headed up by our pin brother, Shannon. Isn't that great? Shout out to Shannon. Hooray, there's tournaments back at Pinagogo. That's awesome. Isn't that great? The first tournament I was ever in was at Pinagogo. Me too. If you're going to have a low IFPA number. Yeah. Yeah, that's me too. Me too. My first tournament was the pin golf. So all of us, our first tournament was a pin golf at Pin and Go-Go. Yeah. That's a truth. I only played the first round, and then the barbecue started, so I left.
    45:33
    I played in the very first tournament they ever did. That was my first Pin and Go-Go. And with the other pinball trophies in the game room, I have a bus. I took top eight novice and top eight regular got a plaque, and I got sixth. I took sixth in the novice. Cool. You're the man. I was having a really good day and a really good time. So, yeah.
    46:01
    Awesome. Isn't that cool? Yeah. For anyone who hasn't been out to Pinnagogo, who lives in Northern California, I mean, I can't imagine anyone listening to this show hasn't been to Pinnagogo, but it's an absolutely wonderful starter pinball show. So if you live within driving distance of Dixon, yeah, you know, it's very affordable. I think for the whole weekend it's, I don't even know if they have the rates. Oh, yeah, for the whole weekend it's $20, $30. That is such a good deal. Or $20 if you're 13 and under. Or you can put a veteran's discount. I don't know if they have a veterans discount.
    46:43
    But, yeah, you know, you don't have to lay out a lot of money. All the money goes to charity. It's local youth charities, Dixon Teen Center, Boys and Girls Club.
    46:54
    You know, there's usually 150, 200 machines, and you never quite know what will show up. You know, one year Stern showed up with the brand-new Dracula, and we got to be some of the first people to try out Insider Connected. So it's the OG If you love Golden State Pinball It sprung from Pinnagogo And Pinnagogo spun off to be It's own thing again They're both wonderful shows They're great friends of We're all great friends There's no rivalry, there's no competition We live in harmony now So yes, please Show up, play some games We're not affiliated with that show Like we are with you know, GSPF, but you know, if they wanted us to be, we certainly could also be the official podcast of Henegogo. So when you said Dracula, you meant Godzilla? Because you're already still thinking about Stern Dracula. They don't have Insider Connected on Dracula. It's not that good.
    47:56
    Insider Connected can't handle it. Yeah, Godzilla was there. Okay, okay. I love that game. I know, that's what I'm saying.
    48:06
    Hey, you are not off, because it's a stern. It's a stern. It's a great game. It's a completely different stern. Yeah.
    48:15
    It's all good. Yeah. I want to add a couple quick things about Pinnagogo for those listeners who may not know the quick history. It started back in the mid-'80s with a father, a son, and a friend.
    48:29
    And they got together some other friends. This was before the Internet. Other pinball collectors they knew in the area over, I believe it was in Roseville, California. Yeah, Pin Fest. Well, Pin-a-thon. Or Pin-a-thon, that's right. Before they even did Pin-a-thon, it started out at the dad's house. It was Walt, Jerry, I'm going to get the last name wrong, Shrinkler, Shrinkler, something like that. So I apologize for butchering your name. And then there's friend Spud. I don't know who Spud was. But it was like father, son, and like a friend and then some other friends who had games. And they all had it. And then a local collector actually brought, the story I've been told, actually brought a Hercules and dropped it on the front lawn. And then after a couple years of that, they rented like a rental hall and a National Guard armory. It became Pentathon. They had a tournament. And then it grew to Pentagogo and Dixon. to be the halfway point between Sacramento and San Francisco.
    49:36
    So that's just a brief history. That's neat. And it's been going on since the late 80s. Another point, Mike, that Dan talks about, it's what I always describe. And Golden State is too, but it's much larger. But Pinnagogo is literally the show where you feel like the old our gang serials where the kids cleaned out the barn and they're putting on a show. And it's great. It's so down home, laid back. Like I said, it's just pinball and friends. And if you go there and you don't know somebody, you'll make a new friend, I promise. You can't not. Just hanging out, talking pinball. The last time I went, also 2019, I still talk about it. We still talk about this. Somebody had brought a beautiful example of Class of 1812, which is a rare Gottlieb you don't see very often. and speaking of 1812 it was at flipper room and they had a contest where he had to play one-handed and of course jeffrey got 30 over 30 million one-handed he's got some long arms can you believe that dan can you believe that that he was able to do 30 could be the man who does that he's got long arms gosh sakes i couldn't believe it and and i thought tony had it in the bag and he didn't. All of a sudden, Jeffrey steps up and took the wind out of his sails.
    51:01
    That's cool that they have that. It was fun. That's a great Halloween-ish themed game to have, too. Sure. So anyways, Pentagogo, it's at pentagogo.org. If you're interested, you want more details on the show. And again, it's October 11th to 13th. Be there or be square. And what's so cool is we have a trip report from two places because they're at the same time.
    51:28
    You'll have a great trip report on Pentagogo and I'll have a great trip report on Expo. It'll be great.
    51:35
    Somehow I think going on Expo might be a little more exciting. Maybe. The good news is, yes. Maybe I'll just skip Pentagogo and go to Expo. No, probably not.
    51:50
    Yeah. Yeah, man. No, I really want to fly out and go to Pentegogo. You need to. You need to fly. Like I said, just fly out. I got to get to the airport. You can knock somebody out. You don't need a hotel room. I know. I got a place to stay. And I could probably have my daughter's son-in-law come by and I could see my grandson. Yeah, we can roll up to Chico, whatever we got to do, man. Yeah, man. No, that would be, we could go roll up to Chico, pray to God somebody's not higher than a kite. and lock it up to get Monstro's Pizza open for half an hour.
    52:25
    Just see how much a plane ticket costs. Yeah, I got it. The cost of a plane ticket is going to get the brakes fixed on the van. The brakes would need to be redone.
    52:36
    Yeah. So, anyhow. Look, someday you're not going to remember how great it was to fix the brakes on the van. You will remember how great Can I Go Go 2024 was. I was literally just having this conversation with the boys about responsibility versus fun, and responsibility first and fun later. For them, that's the right thing to do because they're young, but we're old. So we need to dig it in while we can. I have a whole basement full of fun stuff to prove I'm irresponsible, Dan.
    53:14
    Yeah, I need that lecture myself, Strunzer. You might have to give it to me. So You sweet summer children I know So hey but you know what We've got exciting new games out We do don't we We do that none of us have played yet I believe Mark you haven't played these yet right Nope I know Dan you and I talked we haven't I've watched streams I've looked at Pictures But I have not gotten to flip either the Uncanny X-Men or Avatar, what's the battle for Pandora?
    53:54
    Yep. They had Avatar at the Denver show, so if I would have made it, I probably would have got to flip it. I don't know if X-Men was there or not, but, you know. You failed us again, Spencer. I did, I did actually. But, you know, I'm going to get over to Cheyenne here soon again, or Denver. There's a couple of arcs. I want to hit Lions, and I want to hit, God, what's the other? There's another arc here I want to hit. But anyway, a couple of arcades in the Denver area. So that's all I can do trip reports on. So hopefully maybe by October I'll do that. So I need to open the Buc-ee's. So I need to pick up some Beaver Nuggets. So you guys mind if I start? Sure. Go for it. You're driving the bus. All righty. I'm barely got the steering wheel in my hand. No. No, I'm on the road. We're good. I've got a cigarette in one hand and a beer in the other. He's driving the bus? Yeah, he's driving the bus. and tell a man. It's like, that's because I'm a professional. You're an idiot. You're a dumbass. There we go.
    54:54
    That'll forever be funny to both of us. So, I'm just going to do a quick overview. First impression, I'll start with X-Men. I'm an X-Men comic book fan. I read the comics from way back. You know, a lifetime of comic book reading.
    55:11
    I love the artwork because it looks true to that era of X-Men. If you don't know, it's based on a series of books, Days of Future Past, and some really landmark X-Men issues and storytelling at that time in the X-Men world, in their universe.
    55:37
    It's the second full commercially available title from... Jack Danger. I knew the Danger part. I was like, first name, Jack. Jack Danger.
    55:51
    Some really cool looking stuff. There's a lot of controversy about the lower left hand play field kind of a la like Golden Wings or the old golly that I think it looks cool I think the implementation looks cool Even the Pro doesn look bare You know, lots of cool gizmos, lots of fun mechanical stuff going on. With the Sentinel, if you know the mythology, Sentinel head pops up on the premium. I think it's more static bash toy on the Pro. So there's hands that move and bend the return habits rail or rail, all kinds of cool stuff. Looks like a lot of fun.
    56:34
    I know I heard that they kind of had to rush it out. So right now people are kind of going, you know, the sound's not great. They said they're going to fix that. They said that, you know, it's early in the code. Well, obviously they're going to build up the code. So it looks to be, over time, when it gets fleshed out and finished and polished, to be a really good title. And it's one I'm looking forward to playing and maybe possibly owning someday if I really like it. On to Avatar. I keep scratching my head. Okay, first of all, I think the game looks amazing. And it's a first design for a new designer who I didn't do my notes, so I don't know. Mark Seiden. Thank you. Now he did the Zelda homebrew, right? Metroid. Metroid, thank you. See, both those original games, original Zelda, original Metroid, I played like a monster when I was stationed at Pearl Harbor a billion years ago. So he did the Metroid homebrew. Beautiful-looking layout, beautiful-looking game, some neat stuff, the UV coatings, the lower play fields, really taking – Jersey Jack to a new level, I think. It looks very, very cool. Hopefully it plays very cool. It looks like it does.
    57:57
    It's really weird. They've taken a, at best, in my opinion, a C theme. I've not even seen the new movie. I've seen the first movie. Wow, really good movie. Visually stunning. Interesting story. But Even when they did the first one I liked the first game I'm one of the few people who actually liked The Stern Avatar game I think it would have so doubled it out As second ramp It was a specific era of Stern It was And it was right towards the end of that specific era Which we've talked about a lot But I just think that There's so many other themes I think they could have went with I think this game will sell well because of what's in it, because of the artwork. The artwork is beautiful. And it's a lady artist that's doing this. I forget her name, too. I apologize.
    58:54
    But the artwork looks stunning. The play field, the layout, it's got like six ramps, two mini lower play fields, divertas, all kinds of crazy stuff. I think, what, six slippers? The game is jam-packed. but I think two things that might hurt it are the theme itself. People are excited now because it's new and it is beautiful and it looks fully featured and fully packed, but I think over time, unless you're a real huge Avatar fan, I think down the road people that do buy it will get rid of it because they'll have something new that comes out of a theme that they're more passionate about, like more of a dream thing. And that's not necessarily a bad thing, but I think the longevity in people's collection might be less. because it's like, yeah, I like Avatar, but no, I want my, back to the future. That's one that constantly comes up. Muppets. Somebody comes out with a Muppets game, people would, I think that would move out of their collection earlier.
    59:53
    But I'm excited to play, and it looks cool. Awesome. Dan, what do you think? so I watched the gameplay stream and I watched the follow-up stream of X-Men I like X-Men I was a big, big X-Men fan in my teenage years you know, the 90s X-Men mostly but, you know, I went back and read all the old the back issues, Days of Future Past, whatnot I don't like that they themed it it's Days of Future Past themed but it's sort of done through, like, a 90s cartoon sort of lens. So it has Bishop and it has Gambit and it has the newer versions of Rogue and Cyclops and Jean Grey rather than having the authentic 80s ones that would be in Days of Future Past, right? Right. That's fine. You know, it's an adaptation, which I can accept, but, like, if they wanted to win me over, like, they really should have gone for that 80s aesthetic. You know, they really should have used the 80s version. The 1980 version, in fact, of the characters, maybe even 79. It's that old of a storyline. But, you know, the Ellie, the side art with Wolverine standing in front of the posters, defending Kate Pryde from the Sentinel, it's straight smoke. Like, it's beautiful. Yeah. You know, the other side with the X-Men all posed, and it looks like it's something from the cartoon. It's cool.
    61:23
    The play field, I know everyone loves Zombietti. I love Zombie Yeti at times. He's done some great art packages. I don't think it's great. I think it's really, really, really, really overdone, but I know that's his style.
    61:39
    And, you know, it doesn't scare me away from the machine. There's just a lot there to take in. The shots, on the other hand, like Jack, Danger's outdone himself. Like, it's got all kinds of whoopsie-doos and, you know, shots and stuff that I don't think that you expected to be there. and it's got the Danger Room thing, which has got that Spy Hunter Gold Wings sort of thing going on. It's the danger zone in Gold Wings. It's the danger room for Stern on Channy X-Men. So that's really, really cool. I think the Pro looks like it's really full. Like, you know, at first glance, it doesn't look like it loses a lot, which I think Stern has gotten pretty good at. You know, the Pros don't necessarily look stripped. If you know where to look, you can tell the difference. And obviously on the premium and the LE, you got those hands breaking ramps and flicking the ball around, and you've got the head kind of a little bit more animated.
    62:38
    So there's a lot there to like. That said, I'm two streams in, and the music and the voices are just atrocious. and it sounds nitpicky but like man I don't I was talking to a guy at the show his name is Adam and he has an arcade in Sebastopol, Rewind Arcade and the place looks amazing, a little plug for Adam and we were going back and forth like I want to do with people about why was Attack from Mars great and, you know, why don't you think the new Sterns are better? And Deadpool came up a lot. And me and Spencer have gone round and round about Deadpool. And I'm like, I don't think Deadpool has the best play field ever made. It's only got a couple shots, and the best shot on the game can fail. But it had really, really good sound and really, really good voice work. And it's like, what happened between Deadpool and this X-Men game, or even between John Wick and this X-Men game, where all of a sudden the music and the voices just got so poor, except for the fact that I guess you don't have named or you don't have characters who have established voices that you heat your hands on. Like maybe they couldn't get the cartoon talent. But, you know, Stern's done two X-Men games, and they both had just really rough voices.
    64:01
    Like if you listen to that second stream when Professor X starts talking, you're just like, what the hell's going on there? Wolverine sounds like Wolverine, but he sounds, oh, I'm Wolverine, I'll claw you. And it's just like, oh, man. It sounds so amateur, right? Like, what are you doing? Yeah, like, I, you know, I just don't get it. You know, meanwhile, you flip over to Avatar, and, you know, J.J.P. is just so damn good at what they do. And I know everybody comes up with these bullshit reasons that they don't like J.J.P. games. you know, the codes too deep, and, oh, I don't like the way the flippers feel, and they're too expensive. But, I mean, there's just no doubt that they make the most gorgeous pinball machines on the market, and that with every game that goes by, and I think this is, you know, getting to be like their 10th, but they just get a little bit better. You know, they started off making really maybe overstuffed pinball machines, and then there were a couple titles where, you know, maybe it felt like they were getting a little too empty, and the toys were a little chintzy and nobody wanted to see that from JJP. With this title, and we haven't even seen the full version of this yet because they haven't showed off the collector's edition play field yet, but, you know, with the art and the lower play fields and the ramps that have diverters on them and the ball just disappearing and doing unpredictable things, it doesn't have, like, as wild looking of a layout as X-Men does. And I think that's a good thing for Stern because I think Sterns have been getting really samey for the last few titles. But, like, the aesthetics of it are so good. The art is really nice and just very clean and understandable and well done. And, you know, the toys, I think they're mostly off-the-shelf toys, but it's a much better grade of toys than they used in, what was the one with the cake toppers? Toy Story? Yeah. Yeah, I guess they're using off-the-shelf toys from... They use some McFarlane stuff. From McFarlane, yeah. If you're going to use toys, McFarlane toys are the ones to use. Them or NECA.
    66:11
    And, you know, I haven't really heard much of the sound, but, you know, apparently they have the real – the James Horner and the other guy score since James Horner passed, and they have real movie talent doing call-outs, including the general guy who did the really good call-outs in the Stern version. So I'm really hoping that we get another Amps Dude jackpot. Oh, yeah. See, and that's the thing. You know, if I can find a Stern Avatar for, you know, $3,500, then I'd grab it because I really do actually like that game. You probably can. You can probably find a Stern Avatar, the standard edition, for that much. You know, like Transformers. You know, I got my Transformers for like around $3,000. Yeah. And, you know, you can still find those out there for that kind of money because it was an era of Stern where I think the games were cool, and I actually really liked that kind of 2010 era Stern stuff. But the only game from that era that people just really seemed to have a big boner for is Tron.
    67:15
    You know, but everything else, like, it's good. They're a good game by good designers, and, you know, people made them. So, yeah, I think Avatar looks like it's going to be great. And, you know, I just, I kind of get what you're saying about the Avatar theme. Like, it doesn't resonate with you as much as maybe the 80s era X-Men do, but Avatar is a worldwide phenomenon, you know, and you can't just keep trying to sell machines to dudes in their 50s. You have to put themes out there that other people will like. Right. And so, you know, initially when they said, oh, it's going to be Avatar, I was kind of like, yeah, really? And somebody, I mean, the thing I kept hearing was, oh, why wasn't it Matrix, Matrix, Matrix? And, like, you look at the last Matrix movie, and it tanked. Terrible. You know, it was terrible. Nobody liked it. And you look at the last Avatar movie, and it made $2.5 billion. Right. And a lot of that was overseas money. And, hey, that's where you want it to be from because you want people, you know, to say, oh, Avatar, I love Avatar. I will try this pinball machine rather than it just being another, you know, pinball-themed pinball machine that we'll like because we like everything. So, and, you know, coming off of Elton John, which, again, was another theme that I had misgivings about, but when I played the game, it was brilliant, and everything about it is well done. I have a lot of faith that Jersey Jack's going to do it again.
    68:47
    Mark. Well said, sir. Well said. All right. My first impressions, same as Dan. I watched the stream. We'll start with X-Men, Uncanny X-Men. The layout just blew me away. Having that lower of, I guess you could say it's like an upper play field, but it's not. It's a lower left play field. But it's just awesome how you have these two different shots that keeps the ball in play, but then if you wanted to go back into the main play field, you just hit that one ramp, I think it is, and then it goes back to the main thing. So I really like that. That was really eye-catching to me. The way that the balls go in all these different directions blew me away when I watched the trailer, and even during gameplay. It was awesome to see. I really like the art. It is busy, like you said, Dan, but it looks really colorful and definitely has that motif of comic book art, just like coming off the pages of a comic book. I was not into comic books which is funny I don't fit into that crowd but just seeing it from a person who is not into comic books I really thought they did really well with the theme and the artwork the coding I'm not going to really comment that much because it was lackluster at best because it's not finished it's not even let's just say it needs to be in the oven a lot longer to get it to be appealing to me to see the gameplay. Stern going to Stern. But it's okay. I have faith in it because look what they did with Bond. And I own Bond. So there you go. The code is what got me buying the game. I do love the theme too, but the code is what really said, wow, this really is a nice deep game. And before, it was horrible. It was like there was no direction in it. You had no idea where you were going. You didn't know if you were making any accomplishments. It was awful. and now look at it. So looking at the Uncanny X-Men, I see that this will just develop and be incredible. The mechs I really loved from the LE and the Premium. I really like how it smashes the wire form, and I like how it flicks the ball back. I want to see that more, but I really couldn't catch it on video until I see it with my own two eyes in person. I really want to see that mech. Do I think it's worth getting over a pro? I think pro is the way to go based on what I'm seeing. But then again, I haven't shot it. So I really have no comment on that. But as far as first impressions, I really liked what I saw from Jack Danger. He has a home run. Again, people were going nuts on pin side. And then of course you have the same kind of roller coaster effect that we always see when a new game gets revealed. The music wasn't good, et cetera, et cetera. Code can always be changed, and it can always be improved. But layout can't once they get that in the factory and it's ready to be producing machines, and they nailed it with the layout. So I'm really looking forward to playing that as soon as it comes to Reno. I know we're getting a few at our local places. Elbow Room is getting one. I'm almost positive Calumet Kingdom is getting one. That would be a sin to not get it for there. So really awesome to see what Jack Danger and Stern and the team produced for that title. Avatar.
    72:22
    Well, first I have to say that Jersey Jack knows how to make amazing featurette videos. The top quality of the, just the cinematography, the audio was professional quality. It was like I was watching a featurette from a motion picture from an actual movie. It was done so well. It really showed passion. You could see the passion in them on really enjoying doing this project and having a chance to really show under the world, a world under glass, but then to take it to the next level with the lighting, come on. That bioluminescence, if I can say that right, glowing under a black light or a UV kit, if that's what you want to call it. Yeah, UV. Yeah, UV LEDs.
    73:19
    Amazing that I want to see that in person, and I know it would probably be more effective in a darker room, but it will be really interesting to see what the pro looks – or sorry, not the pro, my bad. The limited edition versus the collector's edition to see if those colors really pop. if there's three colors that look better than just one. Chances are it's going to be mind-blowing. It'll be mind-blowing. Yeah, it's got to be mind-blowing. And the idea of how they did the lighting to make it have a shadow across the play field with the eclipse and then having that shot right up there on the upper right-hand corner where you have to hit that steep ramp to hit that spinner. How cool is that to hit a spinner to get a jackpot? Spinner is lit. Hey-o. I mean, that is perfect right there. You said money shot. You let that out. I know. I caught myself. Hey-o. I caught myself. By the way, Mark, you were so right. The trailer game at JJP is insane. Yeah. There's a lot of goodness for that. Incredible. Stern makes a good trailer, you know, with their person flipping and, you know, their little introduction and whatnot. But, like, then you see that JJP trailer, and you're like, these guys aren't even playing the same game. Yeah. It's like you watch every trailer for every Star Wars movie, and it seems like as the Star Wars movies get worse, their trailers just get better and better. Yeah. Like, they went to the Star Wars trailer guy and said, hey, how do you make trailers? And, oh, here's what you do. Because, yeah, you see that trailer, and you're just like, oh, yeah. Trailer was fantastic. and the featurette was fantastic. That's what I call it. It's a featurette. It definitely promoted the game. Oh, crazy. Incredible. And all the details. I saw the details when I see that, and I'm not a director or anything, but I see those things. I saw, like, the backdrop had the LED, how would you say it, like the straight LED, not a chandelier, but, you know, like the lights that were in the back behind it. And then the floor was all, you know, luminescent. It had the different colors that matched what was on the play field. And having the clips in the movie with the editing, I mean, I don't know if that was Ken Cromwell, whoever it was who did the editing should get kudos for that because it really wanted me to have that game. I mean, it was really persuasive.
    75:50
    So that was awesome. And obviously what was mind-blowing when I saw that was the artwork. And the artist is Leah Faske. I don't know if that's pronounced right, but it's L-E-A-F-A-S-K-E, Leah Faske. And she is unbelievable how she made everything organic with no straight lines.
    76:13
    Amazing stuff because the Navi had things that were not man-made. They were all from nature. So she had that in her artwork all over the play field and the back glass and on the side and everything to really represent the Avatar world with the knobby and have that organic look to her art, which is phenomenal. Phenomenal. That's kind of what I was saying about X-Men is it's like it takes a classic story, but it like does this weird reinterpretation that to me doesn't feel authentic. Where Jersey Jack is doing everything they can to make their game feel like an authentic part of the world that it's supposed to represent. Yes. And that, to me, like, as someone who's probably a little bit too into this shit, like, that works for me because I'm not just like, oh, yeah, it's the X-Men. I remember that from, like, 1997. Like, if you come to me and you say, hey, we're going to, you know, adapt a story from, like, 1980, like, oh, I want to see the Dave Cockrum or the John Byrd artwork, you know. Right. I want to see that authentic shit. and then they're just like oh yeah but we had it all redrawn by you know pinball superstar zombie eddie who again great artist who's done tremendous work but it's just like oh i mean it looks great but it's not the real thing it's not period accurate right but you see you see avatar and even though it's been redone it's not you know luckily it's not stock uh images right like No, not. Stern Wars or Bond. Turned out okay on Bond for the most part.
    77:52
    It's completely authentic, and you can tell that the licensor super cared about how their product was represented. Yes. Which, I mean, love Bond's style or hate Bond's style. Same thing with Bond. You know, Dan Jack doesn't just let anyone do anything with their shape. It's got to look like Bond. Right, right. And so art, phenomenal.
    78:19
    Layout, I don't know how many ramps are in it. I can't figure it out. But I love how there's so much action going on in the upper part of the play field. And then you have some things that you can do in the lower play field, the lower, lower play field, which is really interesting. I'm very – I was kind of a little, I don't know, not put aside, but just confused how they have a pop bumper and then they have targets. So how do you control that? With nudging? Yeah. If that's the case, that's kind of cool. There's flippers down there. Right. There's flippers, but the first part doesn't have any flippers. It just has a pop bumper. Right. It goes through, yeah. So I'm wondering if you'd like to nudge it a little bit to get as many as you can, you know, for those targets, and then it comes down. But how cool is that? And this is what's great about Jersey Jack, is they chose a smaller ball to make it look like you're looking deep down in the ocean.
    79:16
    Very cool. To have that perspective. Almost kind of like it reminds me of, oh, come on, I know that. Crawl. Like, crawl.
    79:25
    From the ocean, that's not being endlessly overly engineered. Right. You know what's crazy? And maybe this is just me, and I'm kind of going off on a bit of a side, But I have a game with a lower play field. I have ACDC, and it's got the lower play field. It always drives me a little nuts when it's like it's a lower play field, but it has its own ball.
    79:46
    Yeah. Uh-huh. I want it to be the same ball that I'm hitting on the upper play field that, like, has to go down into that lower play field. Okay. Like, God, what's the Gottlieb? Black Hole. Black Hole or Haunted House. Or Haunted House, yeah. I hate it when you have cheater lower play fields. And smaller balls.
    80:09
    Well, I never have disliked. I see a t-shirt in Dan's future. I hate smaller balls and cheater lower play fields. Cheater lower play fields and small balls. I mean, the small ball thing is probably smart.
    80:23
    But, yeah, I always thought that that was a little bit annoying. Although, on the other hand, I thought that Stewie Pinball was kind of genius. Yeah, Stewie Pinball was pretty cool. I always thought that they should take that Stewie Pinball out and, like, make it standalone.
    80:37
    Oh, yeah. Uh-huh. Like, I thought that would be hilarious. But, you know, back on to what we're talking about. But, yeah, those little play fields look super cool. And it's a great way, because, again, it goes with the theming of the second Avatar movie with the undersea theme.
    80:53
    Right. Yeah, like with the giant squid thing that you're fighting down there. Yeah, that's pretty cool. Yeah, like a crab thing or something. That's a giant crowd thing, not a giant squid thing.
    81:03
    The next theme. Dude, I know this is just me being, like, kind of a fuddy-duddy, but it's like, why doesn't someone just – oh, actually, somebody did make 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, didn't they?
    81:14
    Well, they did, Captain Nemo. Captain Nemo, yeah. It was, like, sort of a super premium, like, one-off. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It was, like, yeah, they made, like, eight games. It was, like, a production. Like, that should be a game that, like, an American pinball does. You know the funny thing, though? I think that's funny. 20,000 leagues under the sea. Yeah. Like, dude, I'm sorry. If you're going to do, like, these weird, like, unlicensed teams, do shit that, like, guys would be into. Everybody loves 20,000 leagues under the sea. If you're going to sell games to 50-year-old guys, pick shit the 50-year-old guys want. Yeah, there you go. Although I'm sure you got barbecue as a dead stat winner.
    81:53
    Yeah. Guys like to smoke things. Yeah, so we buy smokers. yeah there you go yeah so anyway I'm excited I'm really excited about Avatar I want a 20,000 leagues under the sea I know I still don't want it that'd be cool what a good thing so anyway just going back to Avatar I just want to just say that's okay no worries I love the Chani so we'll just get right back on the road. I just figured I hit a berm and then the dirt road, I was just hanging on the steering wheel going, whoa, still on the road technically. We didn't overturn the bus yet. No, we're talking about pinball. We're talking about pinball, so we're good. It was good, didn't we? Anyway, those are my first impressions. The music is great because it's from James Horner, and then the new composer that made adaptation to it to fit with the theme of what James Horner did in his music with original music is really cool. And I like how they have the score that kind of floats around. I mean, the display is just top-notch. I can't wait to see how they implement that, too. Jersey Duck is so good at their play work. It's so good. That's another thing that X-Men really booted. Like, their display looks janky. Yeah, it's like it reminds me a lot of Avengers with the stills, but there's, like, motion with the still. it almost like the world's worst flipbook yeah yeah yeah it looks like um like you said it's like still images but you know slight movement and it almost looked like placeholders like okay there's got to be more stuff that goes in place of this um but yeah anyway uh yeah i'm really excited about avatar both are great games i have not played them so i can't say which one is better than the other, but as far as the whole experience and the wow factor, Avatar takes the cake for me Yeah oh absolutely No doubt Like if money with no object and you like hey which one of these do you want
    84:08
    I'll take Avatar in a second. And as far as theme goes, yeah, it's interesting, and I know they said this on other podcasts, that no one walks around with merchandise on shirts and stuff like that with Avatar, but then it's one of the highest grossing movies in the world of all time. So it's got to be a good theme if it made that much money in the movies. So now getting to play the actual thing and be in an adventure hitting a ball around, I think it will be pretty appealing to people when they see it in the wild.
    84:42
    I think so, too. Well, I mean, I'm just saying I don't think it's as, you know, I understand that a lot of the people are bitching about it, but like I said, I just don't think Avatar is that bad of a theme. I think it's a contemporary theme. It's an active franchise. they're still making movies and the movies are still making money. And I think that what they've shown is like they can take that and they can bring you into that world. And I think that that's always been the strength of Avatar was that people who love the Avatar movies love that world. And, you know, kind of going against what Spencer said, I think someone who buys an Avatar, I think for them it's a keeper. I mean, maybe like the generic pinhead who just buys everything, you know, the rich pinhead who buys everything. I don't think, you know, anything's a keeper for that person. You know, they're always going to dump it, you know, when the next big thing comes along. But there will definitely be those people who buy Avatar because Avatar is the movie that they have to have.
    85:41
    Right. Yeah. I think there's both camps in every scene. Avatar is like Star Wars at this point before Star Wars got ruined. There you go. I just want to bet that you're strong enough to admit they run Star Wars. Avatar. The people who don't love Avatar don't get it. I got to see the second movie. So, I got to see it. And that's the cool thing. They got license for both movies. No, that's awesome too. Yeah, they got all the assets. Voices and music. They didn't make that mistake again. There you go. Good. No, they did not. Yeah, good thing. Pirates fakes it real well.
    86:18
    Right. But, you know, how much better would Pirates have been if it had more voice lines and if it had the real Hans Zimmer score, especially the music. I could live without the real voices, honestly. Like, the guy who does the call-outs, Gibbs, does fine. But, man, if it had the real music in it, oh, dude, that would be such a banger.
    86:38
    Agree. Yep. Absolutely. So I think we've covered bases on that. So we are up to, unless you guys have anything else, we're up to shout-outs and thank yous. You guys got anything else?
    86:51
    No, I don't think so. I mean, like I said, I'm excited about them coming. I have a feeling that you'll definitely get an Uncanny X-Men at Pinnagogo, right? I mean, it sounds highly probable. Well, you know what? That one, they're running the LEs first.
    87:10
    Yeah, but I'm sure they'll bring an LE into the next. Someone will show up. I mean, it's pretty likely that we'll see both of them there. Yeah, I think you're right. I think you get to play both of them. By mid-October, you know, some of the distributors will have them. Maybe the pirate will come up with one or two. You know, like it would be crazy to not get that game out there. And, again, it's of that time of year, kind of like that Godzilla time. Right. Where, you know, maybe Stern will show up. Maybe Stern will bring Dracula. There you go. Oh, there you go. I can play more Stern Dracula with the new Insider Connected features. Yes. That's from this cast By the way, to everybody who has pin friends, we all know that there's a Jurassic Park game at Costco, you can stop sending us pictures Or you play it at Costco, which I did, in fact it was funny because Rick and I were picking up pizza for our league which starts also I wanted to let everybody know that, that was the other thing going on, is we have Team League starting up again, so we're in our third week now.
    88:23
    Anyway, we were over at Costco, and we were playing, and sure enough, one of the damn ramps was not registering. It's like, damn it, I wish we could open this game and fix it.
    88:32
    We were having fun playing it, but it didn't work. The opto was not working. Does it have a key lock?
    88:38
    It does. It has a coin door on it. It's got a door. It's like a mock coin door. It has a lock on it. We tried opening it. Cool. I was wondering, like, does that actually lock? It does lock. We couldn't open it because we were going to fix it. But anyway, it played really well. It was a really fun game, and I just wish we could get further in the game because the damn ramp didn't register. So when we did the jump, it was like nothing happened. And it's right in off-go. But very cool to have it on display and play it. And people are, like, waiting in line to play it. The full effect of when a game doesn't work right.
    89:14
    Yeah. The authentic pinball experience. Yeah, when I played at RC Willie. Also, the games were either not level or like they had ball hang-ups or like they were losing track of the balls. And I'm like, yep, these are a real thing.
    89:32
    That's right. You can play at RC Willie, too. I got to remember that. RC Willie usually has. I mean, I don't know how long that's going to be happening. It seems like kind of that home arcade boom is kind of letting off, you know, So the arcade one-ups are slowing down a little bit. But I went to an RC Willie with my buddy, and, yeah, they had four Stern Pros. They had a Godzilla.
    89:53
    They had a Stern Dracula. No. They had Jaws, Venom, and something else. I don't remember. Something recent.
    90:05
    And then they had just a humongous display of arcade one-ups. Oh, wow. That's cool. And I was just like, yeah, that's awesome. I'm like, you know, more arcade games is always better. And, you know, they charge, you know, right at a stern retail price. So, you know, you'll probably save a couple hundred bucks if you go through a distributor. But, you know, you could also get R.C. Willie credit and, you know, pay that thing off at a hundred bucks a month for like a thousand months, too. Oh, that's true. I didn't really want to do something stupid.
    90:37
    Yeah. R.C. Willie's got you covered. And they were doing, like, high-scoring contests and stuff, too, for, like, gift cards. They were? Yeah. Like, the guy gave me a flyer, and he's like, you know, I told him I was in a pinball league. He's like, you should tell all your pinball friends to come here and buy their games. One of them had.
    90:55
    Yeah. Ted did. Ted bought one from R.C. Willey. I think one had as well. Yeah. That's funny. It's like, you know, it's how they go. So I live in the one place in America that has neither a Costco or an R.C. Lilly. That's because you live in Wyoming. I live in Wyoming. Yep. We've got fresh air and sunshine. Get some more people and that shit will come. Now, I don't think that's exactly what you want. No. Hey, Weird Al's coming to Casper, though. I was just going to tell you, Weird Al's coming to Casper. Tickets going still Friday. He did the date. Yeah. Ooh. It seems like he's not getting any closer. He's getting really close to you guys. He's going to be at Stateline, Mark. Is he really? Yeah.
    91:40
    It's like next summer, next fall. But the closest he's getting to me is Modesto, so I'm probably going to have to pick up tickets for Modesto. And it's an amphitheater, and it's in late August. Oh, wow. Is he doing his classics? Is it like a classic show where he's singing all his hits? So Al always does all of his hits because, you know, that's how Al operates. But I think this is going back. It's called Bigger and Weirder. and I think it's going back to like his bigger stage shows. His last couple concerts have been a little bit more scaled down. They had the orchestra one, Strings Attached, which was great, but it didn't have costume changes and stuff. It did have an orchestra, though, and then they did. It was kind of like Weird Al's version of S&M, which is that Metallica concert. Yeah, the Metallica concert. And then the last couple before that were both the ridiculously, it's like the ridiculously ill-advised self-indulgent vanity tour. Yes. And they were kind of like the sit down and play the rare cuts sort of shows. Like unplugged kind of like that vibe? Yeah, not unplugged, but like the same idea. The same vibe. It really didn't have a lot of like costume changes and stuff like that. But the kind of funny thing about those shows was, like, in every city, they would play one unique cover song.
    93:04
    Okay. You can actually go onto YouTube, and they have, like, montages of all the different cover songs that they played in all the different cities. So, you know, maybe they'll play your favorite song. For the two that I went to, I think they played I'm Down at the first one, and then I think at the second one they played Saturday Night's All Right for Fighting. Oh, cool. Yeah, he did Daydream Believer or something. No, Last Friend of Clarksville he did at one show. Yeah, he did all kinds of songs. Like, in every city they do a different cover song, you know, that may or may not have something to do with the day or the city. I think our show was Saturday night, but I'm sure he does lots of shows on Saturday night, so it's probably just a coincidence. But, yeah, so Weird Al's coming to town. He's going to be near all of us. I know. Isn't that great? Yeah. That means I've got to reinstall Weird Al in my P3. Weird Al is back at Comic Kingdom so he put it back in so yeah did he have to send back Princess Bride?
    94:04
    yeah he had to send that back right after it was over for GSPF oh they didn't let him keep it for a while? no I didn't realize how far off that thing was actually from production like they are just now shipping those so they were nice enough to send one out yeah we went to a multimorphic update this week Oh, yeah. What's going on at Multimorphic? I'm getting new front art for my Weird Al. I'm getting the limited edition front art. Nice. Yay. Cool. I'll install it. I didn't install the last piece of art that I bought for my P3 either. I just like to buy things for that thing and then not install them. And it's still playing Final Resistance, and Final Resistance is still great. Good deal. I love Final Resistance. I love that game. Everybody loves that game. Even people who really don't like the P3 platform are like, okay, but this is a really cool game. It's such a good game. People just need to quit talking shit about the P3. They don't understand it. They don't like it. It's fine. But it's definitely real pinball.
    95:02
    Yeah, absolutely. Don, just tell your husband, Don, to come here next to me and become one of us. Don's got some making up to do because he was not aware of what was it. He didn't know. I don't remember what it was. I don't know. He didn't know some real basic stuff. Real basic stuff. Let's be nice to him. Hey, Don's a good guy.
    95:23
    I listen to every episode. He does a great job. He's a righteous dude. Oh, the other thing is, you know, not to plug someone else's podcast, but the last Buffalo Pinball, they had a big, long interview with, gosh, who was it, Spencer? Josh Coogler. And he talks a lot about the Princess Bride, and he makes that game sound ridiculously epic. So I'm looking really, really forward to giving it another shot. Because it was okay at the show, but, like, I would really like to try it in a more tuned-up environment. Right. Tuned-up environment and nice flippers and all, like you said, just all dialed in, ready to go. But, yeah, that was a great podcast. I listened to that. He had our great background information with American Pinball, too. Oh, yeah. It was really good. The American Pinball stuff was interesting. Yeah, really good. And it made me a little sad, to be honest. Yeah, me too. Because American Pinball, I think, is a cool company with a lot of promise, and they were doing pretty good things. And I still think that they do pretty good things, but they need to get their leadership situation figured out. Agree. Yeah, we're all in agreement on that. We want them to succeed, you know. We really do. How they let Kugler and all their talent get away, you know, and then, you know, people are wondering, well, why isn't it as good as they were? Well, a lot of their good people are gone. Right. you know, and they're off you know, they're off at Barrels of Fun and they're off at other companies doing their thing now, so Stern and Spooky you gotta keep those guys you know, for a while they were the engine that could, and I still think Galactic Tank Force is a super cool game with a super interesting theme and great art, and you know he talked about how much fun they had making it and then it was like before the game even released they're like, okay, well we don't need you anymore Yeah, that was kind of abrupt, wasn't it? I thought what was super awkward, you know, we're just talking about another podcast now, which is kind of sketchy, but I thought what was super awkward was when he was just like, hey, by the way, Dave, if you want to pay me my royalties, that would be great. Somebody else brought that up. Oh, the pinball. I was listening to the pinball show. It was the latest episode this morning while I was working, and I had it on. And they brought that up. It's like, yeah, that's awkward, you know, painfully awkward. But it sounds like he's having a really good time at Multimorphic. Yeah, which is cool. And working on the P3. And going over the rules like you said, Dan. Oh, it sounds like a really solid game. It sounds so good. It's so solid. And the way they integrate it. I don't really need Princess Bride. I probably don't really have to have it. And after that interview, I was all like, I got to get my hands on one of these Princess Bride modules. Yep. For sure. So, yeah, coming soon to a P3 near you. Maybe not mine, unless I go crazy and start selling some stuff, right? You know, it would be cool. Because now you're going to save up for a Stern Dracula. You know, like a week after we kicked this episode onto the platform, onto the web. Did someone say something about Stern Dracula? Somebody's going to post something on freaking Pinside or someone going, I remember they're making Sourcemaker a new Dracula.
    98:38
    You watch. I heard, you know, it would be the Ferris Bueller thing, you know, from my cousin's friend's sister's boyfriend's brother-in-law that works at 31 Flavors. This is pretty serious. Thank you, Simone.
    98:52
    Thank you, Simone. I was going to talk about Stern Dracula, and they're like, oh, I love the Miss Multi-Ball. I'm like, no, that's Williams Dracula.
    99:01
    They're like, oh, you got the Miss Multi-Ball working? Well, yes, but that's a different game. Well, but, yeah, but they have the Ark of the Covenant, you know, cool multiball. Oh, no, that's the Stern Indiana Jones.
    99:14
    Have you seen the topper for that thing, the aftermarket topper? They have it over at Flipper's Arcade in Cheyenne. Sometimes I'll have to dig up the photo and send you guys. It's got a real – I don't know who made this topper, but it is really, really cool. It smokes, right? It has, like, the fake flames, you know, the real flames. Is it on a Stern Indiana Jones? Yeah. Because I virtually promise you that they made that for a Williams Indiana Jones. They might have, but it looks really cool on the Stern one. Of course they have. They have a real nice example of the Stern Indiana Jones, which I liked the game. I liked it more if it had two ramps and had a better code. But that multiball is a light show, and the lead-up to that multiball is really cool. You know, I think that game is better than people give it credit for. Agreed. Not as good as it should have been, but it does fall victim to that good old stern, terrible voices. Yeah. It's like you said, Dan, it's of the era. Yeah, the Connery impersonator in that game is rough. It's like the Connery impersonator on Saturday Night Live, you know? Yeah, about that bad. Yeah, it's a bug cover for 100 Alex. I'll take the penis mic to y'all, Alex.
    100:36
    Canadian boys. Hey, we're at 140, so we're doing really good. So we ran over. We just ran so far over. You know what, man? It's a good episode. It's been real nice. We haven't been on for a while, and it's three people, so there's more to talk about. No, it's good. It's good, and we've had a good episode. The game is mine, Trebek.
    101:02
    Oh, that's funny. I'll take drop anus relations for a hundred. Oh, my gosh. I was watching those the other night, so those are so funny. It was like Daryl Hammond, right? Daryl Hammond and Bill Powell. Yeah. All right, so my shout-outs and thank-yous. My shout-outs and thank-yous are to all our wonderful listeners and to you guys. And thank you guys for continually being part of the show And making me always look forward to the next episode When we go to record, I always get real excited Excuse me, real excited about it And to all our wonderful listeners who continue to support us My other shout out is kind of not pinball related But nostalgia related And I'm shouting out to the movie If you haven't seen it, it was a little quiet summer movie. It's on Prime now. Amazon Prime. You can watch it. I'm sure it's on somewhere else. It's called Snack Shack. The guy made it about his hometown. Filmed the whole thing in his hometown of Nebraska City, Nebraska. It's set in 1991. It's two kids, 14-year-old kids, summer between 8th grade and their freshman year of high school. and they've got a bunch of households making money and they've got to get legit jobs. So they bid, they go to the city council and bid on the local snack shack at the pool and they end up running the snack shack at the pool and hilarity ensues.
    102:45
    It's a cute... Cool. That sounds like a good one. It's a cute, fun movie and when you guys watch it, maybe, Mark, you might see it. Dan, you'll definitely see it. the two boys that are best friends, one's name, they call him Moose.
    103:01
    It's Mickey. Because Russ and I sat down and watched it. I said, Mickey, go on. And the whole movie, we're looking at each other going, that is so Mickey. And it's hilariously funny.
    103:12
    It's very coming of age. So, you know, no matter when you grew up, this is probably right around your guys' era. So this will really hit home for you. But it was a fun movie And god especially right now in the world The world needs more just Oh let's just have a fun movie You know So definitely man I highly recommend to you guys And all our listeners Check out Snack Shack It's just a fun romp It'll remind you of your youth And it's a good time So that's my shout outs and thank yous tonight Cool Alright, I'll go next You said cool, I thought you were in there Okay, I am You can't take any more months off, man We've lost all of our rhythm Our rhythm tonight has been so bad Well, we had a long day at work We did, we had a long day I was off today That's why you're on top of things I took the day off, oh yeah That's exactly what I described myself as Right on top of it Okay, so shout-outs. First of all, I have to have a shout-out to my wife. Obviously, we celebrate her birthday, and she puts up with all my pinball crap. So I appreciate her supporting me and having me be happy and enjoy my hobby. But sometimes I go a little overboard, and I've got to balance my time. But I just want to thank her. I want to thank the correct names of the people who showed us Das Flipperhaus. It's Chris and Dallas. Chris is right with the K. Yeah. And Dallas. I was going to do that for you, but you beat me to it. Okay. All right. So I'll thank you. Thank you, fucking shit.
    105:06
    I'm crawling out from under the bus. I literally just stand here. I can't remember where that's from, and that's funny. I'm doing my part. I didn't do fucking shit.
    105:21
    I said here the whole episode, not looking that up. I didn't even think about it to be honest. I did, and then it went away because, like, Dan was pulling on the steering wheel as hard as he could to get it out into the lake. So.
    105:42
    I was just like, fuck, I don't know where we're going tonight. Let's see what this takes us. Oh, my gosh. Okay, shout-out to you, Spencer, for making me laugh. Thank you. That was well-timed. That was great. Oh, my gosh. Yeah, and shout-out to Alex for coming down here.
    106:02
    Fuck Alex. I'm just kidding. We love you, Alex. We love you like you love FIFA, buddy. So, anyway. He's like, man, I was really pulling for you. I'm like, God, fuck off.
    106:19
    He's literally the best human being to ever live. He is. Anyway, those are my shout-outs.
    106:31
    You know, I just want to thank you guys. I want to thank everybody in Northern California who's putting on leagues, running locations, especially Dallas and Christopher with the K out at the Flipper Room in Rockland, California.
    106:48
    And down at the Capitol Pinball Parlor. You know, even though I haven't visited your place yet, everyone tells me it's great. And, you know, the organizers of the shows, you know, I'm super excited about Pinnagogo.
    107:02
    Can't wait to see all my pin buddies. Can't wait to grab a big steak at the Cattleman's. Oh, yeah, I drove by there, and I was like, ah, this place is so good. Telling you, man. Yeah. When you come to town, we have to have big steaks. But, yeah, you know, big thanks to you guys. Big thanks to Jamie for putting up with my shenanigans. You know, big thanks to all the pin bros out there, the guys out there making new games, all the other podcasters, you know, especially the ones who listen, which is probably just Don. But, no, I think we got a couple. We got a couple. We had a couple of shout-outs. Yeah. and going along with it oh by the way I totally screwed up we can't leave yet I don't even know if you'd want to like edit this but we did get some feedback from our fans on my question right because I asked you know Uncanny X-Men Avatar which game did the Uncanny Tin Man prefer which do you prefer and why Mike Moretti of the flipper room, so neither thing catches me. I could really do without more Marvel pinball. However, the layout's freaking amazing. Amazing enough to give into the dark side of the rehashed pinball themes. Why does JJP feel the need to continue to remake old pinball things from other manufacturers? But since they're doing it, I hope they come out with an updated boomerang next. Oh, okay. I'm looking forward to JJP's Spanish Eyes 2025. That's what I remember seeing that.
    108:32
    Cool. Shannon Miles, our pinbro, He says he's mostly looking forward to Avatar And Adam Pressler, our host with the most Says the game I'm looking Yeah, the game I'm most interested in Is Dutch Pinball's Alice in Wonderland He went off on his own Answered for something else Other than that, I'm so done Hello? Do you hear me?
    108:58
    I need to fix the screensaver on this new computer I keep not touching it, the monitor keeps turning off Oh, yeah, we're good Okay, other than that, I'm just so done with rehab schemes and the pricing. I can't fathom spending $12,000 on what equates to a toy at my house, of which I have 30 other toys, which didn't cost me half that price. It's pure insanity these days. By the way, it's funny that he says that because I'd like to congratulate him on just dropping the bucks and the trade and picking up a JJP Wonka. Yeah. So, yeah, he actually, man, he's got a new look lineup going on, too. He's got, like, four between just swapping games out and bringing new games in and getting rid of stuff. He's switched, like, five or six games around in his collection. So it's going to be pretty cool next season. Nice. But, yes, you know, thanks to everyone. Thanks to all the pinball people out there. Thanks to anyone who interacts on the Facebook, and thanks to anyone who tells your friends to check us out, because we're just a bunch of bozos who just want to talk to pinball and feel like maybe you guys want to, you know, just jump on the bus and hang some turns with us, hit the median, just do all the stuff that we do. Listen to Spencer. Let us know that he doesn't do shit. and thanks to all the people at Flipper Room for putting on the volunteer party I forgot to mention that too absolutely for hosting it that was really a great time and food was awesome camaraderie was great and games were awesome and super location so just five stars I'm thinking about changing the name of the show to the pinball party podcast half. Get on the bus, start drinking, and hang on.
    110:55
    Spencer's driving and not doing shit. I'm just dying, man. That was the line of the night. You should have led with that. I did not think of it to the very thing when you guys were like 45 minutes. Yeah.
    111:11
    Mark's like, yeah, I looked it up. Then you're like, I had it all ready to go if you did. I'm like, I just stood here not doing shit. I didn't do shit. Yeah, I didn't do fucking shit, man.
    111:23
    Spencer, take us home, buddy. This has been Episode 67 of the Spinners Let Pinball Podcast, September 2024.
    111:32
    So, play pinball. Keep America strong. Bye.