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EP 27 - The Craziest 48 Hours in Pinball This Year
Flip N Out Pinball Podcast
42 min
Summary
Three major game launches in 48 hours: DCC/Ender's Game and Bon Jovi shift from skepticism to enthusiasm.
Penn Cromwell and Greg Bone recap an eventful period (late July–early August 2026) featuring three major Multimorphic/Barrels of Fun game launches: Dungeon Crawler Carl and Ender's Game (same day, same layout, different themes) and Bon Jovi (Barrels of Fun). They discuss distribution partnerships, marketing strategy trade-offs (Gen Con vs. pinball shows), and how negative first impressions of Bon Jovi's Data East–inspired artwork and nostalgia appeal shifted dramatically after gameplay footage and Southern Fried Gaming Expo demos. The hosts praise the quality of promotional materials and real-time community feedback loops.
Highlights
- Flip N Out Pinball Podcast became a distributor for Multimorphic products just days before the DCC/Ender's Game announcement.
- Multimorphic chose Gen Con over Southern Fried Gaming Expo specifically to co-launch DCC with the game's creators (Matt Dinniman and team) and build evergreen content.
- IP fans (e.g., Dungeon Crawler Carl, Pokémon) are unlikely to purchase $12,000+ machines despite loving the IP, because they lack the collectibility mindset that drives traditional merchandise purchases.
- Bon Jovi artwork, designed by Johnny Crap, draws inspiration from Data East games of the 1980s–90s era, which Penn Cromwell dislikes stylistically but Greg acknowledges as evocative of 90s-era bedroom posters.
- Gameplay footage featuring pro player Karl DeAngelo and narration by Jeff Dodson significantly reversed negative sentiment around Bon Jovi within days of launch.
- Southern Fried Gaming Expo provided immediate, real-time community feedback on Bon Jovi that proved pivotal to shifting market perception.
- David Van Es (Barrels of Fun designer) doesn't receive enough industry recognition compared to more famous designers like Keith Elwin or Brian Eddy, but Bon Jovi will build his credibility.
- Ender's Game was chosen as the dual Multimorphic release because it is Jerry (Multimorphic founder) 's dream theme, not because of market strategy.
Three new games. Two days. Plenty of opinions. This week we're catching up after one of the wildest stretches the pinball industry has seen all year. We dive into the launches of Dungeon Crawler Carl, Ender's Game, and Bon Jovi, discuss why some first impressions completely changed after seeing the games in action, recap the buzz coming out of Gen Con and Southern Fried Gaming Expo, and touch on Sonic's momentum, new announcements from American Pinball, and what could be next for the hobby. It's an honest, unscripted conversation with a few laughs mixed in, just the way we like it. Get your next pinball machine or arcade game from Flip N Out Pinball Flip N Out Pinball USED INVENTORY on facebook HERE Contact Ken and Greg for sales and service at:
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