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PinballOZwide Podcast - Episode: 1 Where it all began and more!

PodcastAnalysis updated 3d ago44 min listen
From the creator

We start off talking about how we both found our love for pinball from our childhoods.We move onto talking about the Melbourne Pinball Expo.If you are still interested you might as...

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Highlights

  • Pinball Aus Wide Facebook group has grown from 3,000 members in 2017 to 19,000 members by 2025
  • Melbourne Pinball Expo had approximately 300 people per session plus operators/tech support, roughly 400 total
  • Pinball machines at $20,000–$25,000 price points often require additional work and calibration out of the box
  • Jersey Jack Pinball machines frequently ship with issues including deteriorating rubbers and require technician adjustment
  • The pinball hobby has shifted to approximately 80% homeowners and 20% commercial operators
  • James Cameron's Avatar (Limited Edition) at the expo was a CE prototype with missing final UV coating details
  • Dungeons & Dragons pinball features weekly code changes that randomize gameplay elements
  • Stern, Jersey Jack Pinball, and Spooky Pinball all have documented quality control issues
  • A Venom pinball machine was available secondhand for $14,500 fully loaded with mods
  • Richie's leadership at the manufacturer has improved machine feel, making them less 'floaty' and more responsive

Notable quotes

“The hobby has just boomed. More people want pinball machines, more people want to be in the hobby, and just the exposure of pinball machines and just all the new manufacturers, the amount of machines that are being produced and different titles has just changed this hobby, flipped it upside down.”
Matt
“I don't like that the code changes weekly. I think that's pretty annoying... I'd like to learn the code and then be able to master the machine in that respect rather than having to relearn it.”
Jared
“It is a commercial machine meant to be put on site, which is meant to be maintained... which is run by a site operator who knows how to do this and they're not made for people who own them in homes really.”
Matt
“I feel that now the population is 80% homeowners, 20% operators. So surely the manufacturers need to cater to that, and that excuse now shouldn't hold.”
Jared
“manufacturers don't want to invest the extra time because that extra time is more money and we can't eat into our profits, can we?”
Matt
“It's a pretty decent machine. It's good code, flows well. We like it. So maybe Dungeons & Dragons might be the same.”
Jared
“When you're spending $25,000 on a machine, you don't usually have too many money issues.”
Matt
“Spooky Pinball with innovation, they're just amazing. They're just trying everything new they can do.”
Matt
“I think the people who are complaining are all these new people who came in during COVID, who bought all these machines and have no idea how to even look at a coil stop.”
Matt
“The flow of Venom, there's like a centre ramp that hooks around to the right, and there's a few shots that if you nail them, really quite satisfying.”
Matt

Entities

  • Jersey Jack Pinball· company
  • Spooky Pinball· company
  • Stern Pinball· company
  • Melbourne Pinball Expo· event
  • Alice in Wonderland· game
  • Dungeons & Dragons· game
  • Elton John· game
  • Evil Dead· game
  • Foo Fighters· game
  • James Cameron's Avatar (Limited Edition)· game
  • John Wick· game
  • Labyrinth· game
  • Looney Tunes· game
  • Metallica· game
  • Rob Zombie's Spookshow International (Standard Edition)· game
  • The Simpsons Pinball Party· game
  • Venom· game
  • X-Men· game
  • Pinball Aus Wide· organization
  • Pinball Oswald· organization
  • Chris· person
  • George· person
  • Jared· person
  • Matt· person
  • Richie· person

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