Pinball Magazine & Pinball News PINcast February 2026 recap

February 2026 was a major month in pinball news: Stern revealed Pokémon Pinball (designed by Jack Danger and George Gomez, co-designed with Tanyo on code), a massive licensing deal that sold out immediately with secondary market speculation; Dutch Pinball Exclusive ended in a split between Barry (Dutch Pinball) and Melvin Brown Williams over the planned Rasa game and new investor involvement; and Melvin was quickly appointed creative director at American Pinball under new ownership by Brian Vincent. The podcast also covered Stern code updates and Pokémon's unprecedented market impact as the world's largest media IP franchise.