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Episode 3 - Boutique Manufacturers
PodcastAnalysis updated 3d ago32 min listen
Highlights
- Stern represents 80-95% of all pinball machine production in the market today
- Spooky Pinball is the most successful and credible boutique manufacturer
- Boutique manufacturers typically produce 1,000 games per title while Stern produces 3,000-6,000
- Rick and Morty and TNA are the only two genuinely good non-Spooky boutique games released in the last decade
- Boutique games are unreliable for location/operator use due to QC and maintenance issues
- Major failed boutique manufacturers include Deep Root, Suncoast, Sidware, Highway, Skip B, and Team Pinball
- New boutique companies can be identified by pattern: announce, take deposits, then repeatedly delay with 'something came up' excuses
- Scott Denise (designer of Rick and Morty, TNA) is a fantastic new designer bringing fresh talent to the industry
Notable quotes
“Stern as Walmart to Spooky as the ma and pa shop... I'll go pay twice as much for apples and apples might not taste as good but I like the people that run it”
“When you're an operator and you have one of your two games sitting in a bar, you don't want that game down for a full week. The bar owner's gonna get pissy.”
“If you put it on the line and you do what you say you're going to do, I have the utmost respect. Do I like most of the games they make? No.”
“Don't buy an idea of a pinball machine from someone you don't know. Buy one that exists and you can play.”
“For your first game buy a Stern... your second game or when you're looking at a boutique one don't buy one if it's the company's first pin”
“TNA is legitimately one of the best games of all time. Rick and Morty is also excellent.”
“When 007 came out there was people on a Facebook group saying this game's never going to earn... It earns fantastically.”
“Spooky you might have a board failing a week later, they send you a whole brand new board no questions asked which is awesome... but when you're an operator that game's down for a full week”
Entities
- American Pinball· company
- Barrels of Fun Pinball· company
- Chicago Gaming· company
- Deep Root Pinball· company
- Hexa Pinball· company
- Highway Pinball· company
- Home Pin· company
- Jersey Jack Pinball· company
- Multimorphic· company
- Pinball Brothers· company
- Sidware· company
- Skip B· company
- Spooky Pinball· company
- Stern Pinball· company
- Suncoast Pinball· company
- Team Pinball· company
- Rick and Morty· game
- TNA· game
- Ultraman· game
- Pops Pinball· organization
- Wedgehead Pinball Bar· organization
- Alan· person
- Alex· person
- Scott Denise· person
