Episode 38: Do Pinball Leaks Suck? What I Learned Working Behind the Scenes
In this episode, we’re diving into the world of pinball leaks, do you love ’em, hate ’em, or do they totally ruin the surprise and excitement for you? I’ll be sharing my take, and yeah… probably...
Highlights
- 60-70% of the pinball community is interested or excited about leaks; 20-30% are indifferent or mildly annoyed; 5-10% outright dislike leaks
- Game development from concept to market takes 24-48 months
- The Harry Potter playfield leaked just one day before official launch
- Stern Pinball is expected to announce Star Wars next, followed by a Walking Dead remaster, repeating their pattern from previous years
- Jack Danger now holds a liaison role to the community at Stern Pinball
- The new Uncanny X-Men code includes 8-9 X-Men battle modes followed by a future-mode sentinel destruction sequence
- Barrels of Fun's Dune may have launched prematurely due to external pressure or an unspecified event
- Leaks hurt manufacturers more than they help the community
Notable quotes
“I think the wonder and excitement that we had in our childhood for everything... I think this wonder and excitement might have been because we had to wait we didn't know”
“How would I feel if we're a day away from launch and then someone launches the crappiest Vaseline all over the lens picture of my play field or my cabinet art? Like it would be so deflating to me”
“Leaks are something that the community really likes... 60 to 70% of the community is interested or excited about leaks”
“I fit in both categories. And I think I was more annoyed with Harry Potter because I was a part of the project, right? I worked on it, too.”
“Leaks probably suck for the manufacturer... I don't think they suck for us because it gives us more to speculate on”
“The music they paired with that mode... builds tension and stress and I love that because it's an evoking an emotion out of me... Those are the best pinball moments”
“When you start death eater multiball the game kind of does go dark but it could go completely black or maybe like a pulsing green or something like that and then there's a tone that sounds like it's trying to be a bass drop”
“I will definitely... if i do have a leak i if it's a leak of like a gameplay or whatever i probably won't share it... i don't want to ruin it for a designer or whatever”
Entities
- Barrels of Fun· company
- Flippin' Out Pinball· company
- Jersey Jack Pinball· company
- Pinball Brothers· company
- Spooky Pinball· company
- Stern Pinball· company
- Turner Pinball· company
- Dune· game
- Evil Dead· game
- Harry Potter· game
- Star Wars· game
- Uncanny X-Men· game
- Walking Dead (remaster)· game
- The Flip Side Podcast· organization
- Dirty Pool Pinball· person
- Eric Minier· person
- George Gomez· person
- Jack Danger· person
- John Borg· person
- Retro Jango· person
- Retro Ralph· person
- Zach· person
- Electric Bat· venue
More from The Flipside Pinball Podcast
→ All content from The Flipside Pinball Podcast
Is There REALLY a Problem With Transformers Pinball?
The new Transformers pinball machine from Stern Pinball is finally here… but so is the controversy surrounding it. In this episode, we dive deep into the rumor that Optimus Prime was originally...
Stern Accidentally Leaked Transformers Pinball… Autobots, Roll Out!
On this episode of The Flipside, we’re talking about the leak that lit up the pinball community — Stern accidentally showing images of the Transformers playfield and cabinet through the Insider...
Pokemon Pinball Livestream! Ralph vs Rudy Round 2 + Birthday Stream + Wizard Mode?!
Get ready for round two on Pokémon Premium Pinball as Ralph vs. Rudy goes live once again! This is only our second time streaming the game, so the big question is… can we make a run at the wizard...
