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Episode 276: Josh Sharpe and Jeff Teolis, UNITED!

PodcastAnalysis updated 2d ago47 min listen
From the creator

What?!? Yes, it's true. Hear how two bitter adversaries have put aside their differences for the greater good during this pandemic. Maybe.

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Highlights

  • ICR (online pinball ranking system) has over 500 players and approximately 8,000 matches in two months, with new players being added daily
  • Only 10.6% of North American IFPA-sanctioning states/provinces have deemed it safe to hold tournaments; 27% of non-North American countries are cleared to resume play
  • IFPA 17 World Championships, originally scheduled for May in Florida, then postponed to November, is now postponed to TBD in 2021
  • Pinball Expo has set September 4th as a drop-dead date to decide whether the show will be in-person or remote
  • Josh Sharp is not sanctioning small tournaments (3-5 players) under IFPA because it doesn't serve the competitive structure without state/provincial/national/world finals
  • Josh Sharp has modified his home pinball settings (removed ball saves, extra balls) to align with tournament difficulty during COVID, and reports his kids now play easier games like Jurassic and Iron Maiden because of these settings
  • Josh Sharp consulted on rules and playfield design for American Pinball's Hot Wheels and is positive about the game's execution
  • Lyman designed Elvira, House of Horrors with shot-setup mechanics that allow high-value cash-outs similar to those in AC/DC, creating a 'million a minute' dynamic where play time doesn't directly correlate to score

Notable quotes

“It's been a quiet five months, and we haven't talked about Pintastic, Pinberg, The Northwest Show, MGC, Pinfest, IFPA 17.”
Jeff Teolis
“pinball's supposed to be effing fun, man. That's the whole idea of what makes good games. Like if you're not having fun, the games won't last.”
Josh Sharp
“The world sucks right now, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and it's just social distancing. It's being careful. It's being responsible, washing your hands, wearing the masks, doing all the right things.”
Jeff Teolis
“With no upside of us being able to run states and run provincials and run nationals and run worlds like without the ability for sort of the sport to exist. It's kind of in a vacuum.”
Josh Sharp
“I've never had a day where there wasn't a new player, which is pretty cool. So we're just over 500 players and like 8,000 matches so far in two months.”
Josh Sharp
“You didn't win the silver. You lost the gold.”
Jeff Teolis
“It's different for COVID, but not for the World Championships. Got it. You could argue that one of those countries has a better chance of getting at-large bids than the other.”
Jeff Teolis
“I know what that six-time second-place finisher is feeling. And I want to, you know, they follow him through this championship... And it's like, I know those eyes. Those are my eyes. The sadness behind those eyes.”
Josh Sharp

Entities

  • American Pinball· company
  • Stern Pinball· company
  • COVID-19 Pandemic· event
  • Foosball World Championship· event
  • IFPA 17 / PAPA Finals· event
  • Pinball Expo· event
  • Pinball Expo 2020· event
  • Elvira, House of Horrors· game
  • Hot Wheels· game
  • Iron Maiden· game
  • Metallica· game
  • The Simpsons Pinball Party· game
  • Final Round Pinball Podcast· media
  • Pinball Profile· media
  • Slam Tilt Podcast· media
  • IFPA (International Flipper Pinball Association)· organization
  • Amanda Sharp· person
  • Jeff Teolis· person
  • Josh Sharp· person
  • Lyman Sheets· person
  • Marty Robbins· person
  • Raymond Davidson· person
  • Rob Burke· person
  • Zach Sharp· person
  • ICR (Interactive Challenge Ranking)· product

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