(Topic ID: 209871)

Ben Heck leaving Spooky

By pin2d

6 years ago


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  • 309 posts
  • 133 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 5 years ago by Rascal_H
  • Topic is favorited by 18 Pinsiders

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    There are 309 posts in this topic. You are on page 3 of 7.
    -7
    #101 6 years ago

    Ben free to help homepin now?

    Get the layout and software right only ben can do

    #102 6 years ago
    Quoted from deeproot:

    I spent a lot of time with Ben and Charlie back in 2015. I respect both immensely. As someone who has to separate personal from business on a daily basis, I fully understand how these things happen. Both of them will continue to rock in their own ways. Best to both.
    --Robert dT
    (edit: And out of for respect for both...I have not talked to Ben in years. I am shocked about this like everyone else and had nothing to do with this).

    “As someone that has to separate personal from business.... blah, blah, blah...”

    You’re not so special, bud. It’s called “real life” and we all have to deal with it on a daily basis.

    This is really a bad place for you to try and shine the spotlight on yourself.

    To Ben and Charlie: you guys made magic a reality. Congrats! Hope to see you combine forces again down the road.

    #103 6 years ago

    I am bummed to hear this. I've never met Ben, but have always enjoyed his contributions to both Pinside and pinball in general.

    Ben, I hope you keep some presence around here and maybe find some inspiration again with something pinball.

    #104 6 years ago
    Quoted from rotordave:

    Whitewood would be about 50% of the work, I would guess. Needs:
    - theme
    - artwork
    - approvals
    - programming (the big one)
    - testing
    - final approvals
    Even if they started tomorrow, it may take 6 months. Ben has a movie to make in Texas, so he won’t be around.
    Spooky will be making 400-500 TNAs at the end of the day, plus 500 Alice Coopers. They have enough to do at the moment ... probably 2 years production right there.
    rd

    At least double that number for TNA, I think (800-1000). They're already well over 300.

    IMO it might end up like WOZ for JJP ... as long as they make it, it will sell.

    15
    #105 6 years ago
    Quoted from Pinballlew:

    What did deeproot do or say?

    He made claims that he is making a bible adventures type theme (insinuates that he came up with the idea when we all know Ben has been working on this for years now). This is more concerning as he appears willing to sue for all sorts of stuff and more importantly the funds to be able to sue anyone into submission rather than waste money trying to fight.

    In short, he is a DBAG and if anyone needed any reason to be even more sick of his shit already... pissing in Ben Hecks cheerios sure is the top of the list.

    #106 6 years ago
    Quoted from Whysnow:

    He made claims that he is making a bible adventures type theme (insinuates that he came up with the idea when we all know Ben has been working on this for years now). This is more concerning as he appears willing to sue for all sorts of stuff and more importantly the funds to be able to sue anyone into submission rather than waste money trying to fight.
    In short, he is a DBAG and if anyone needed any reason to be even more sick of his shit already... pissing in Ben Hecks cheerios sure is the top of the list.

    Lawsuit in 5-4-3-2...........

    #107 6 years ago

    Great guys, Great pinball. Nothing but praise for both of them and the rest of the good folks at Spooky. I wish all the best to you both. My AMH is one my favorite games and eagerly awaits another Spooky title to join it.

    #108 6 years ago

    Did I miss it or has the unobtainable license for Ben’s Pinball not been revealed?

    #109 6 years ago

    They were unable to obtain the license (whatever it was), so its nobody's business.
    Spooky may try again someday for this license so why reveal it?

    Quoted from boo32:

    Did I miss it or has the unobtainable license for Ben’s Pinball not been revealed?

    #110 6 years ago

    With no knowledge or inside info needed for this particular license, why would a licensing attempt "fail"?

    Is it always just about money?

    What else could stop something (other than Stern scooping it up preemptively).

    #111 6 years ago
    Quoted from frolic:

    With no knowledge or inside info needed for this particular license, why would a licensing attempt "fail"?
    Is it always just about money?
    What else could stop something (other than Stern scooping it up preemptively).

    multiple reasons are possible:
    -too many players in the license and 1 person decides they want crazy money for their portion
    -able to secure main license but voice overs cost too much/ specific characters want more for likeness use
    -Stern bought up the license just to stop you in your tracks (they have weight to toss around)
    -license holder does not agree with something or becomes too difficult to work with

    #112 6 years ago
    Quoted from Whysnow:

    multiple reasons are possible:
    -too many players in the license and 1 person decides they want crazy money for their portion
    -able to secure main license but voice overs cost too much/ specific characters want more for likeness use
    -Stern bought up the license just to stop you in your tracks (they have weight to toss around)
    -license holder does not agree with something or becomes too difficult to work with

    Or license holder has no interest and couldn't care less about you making a pinball machine.

    #113 6 years ago
    Quoted from rotordave:

    Ben has a movie to make in Texas, so he won’t be around.

    ?

    #114 6 years ago
    Quoted from TheLaw:

    Common feeling around here.

    Word. Pinball can only offer up so much drama and deals before it just gets old. Tournament scene is tired and old too, with the homogenization of points-worthy tournament formats and more and more pay-to-play over the years.

    Quoted from rubberducks:

    Pretty sure the last thing he wants is to end up locked in a legal battle - likely result.

    lol now that would be hilariously bad for Deeproot, considering that there was talk of BA on here and archived from long before anyone even knew they existed.

    #115 6 years ago

    So sorry to hear this, Ben. AMH is still one of my favorite pins and you will forever be a part of pinball history. You have a lot of talent. I was really looking forward to seeing what else you could do with a little more experience. Best of luck in the future.

    #116 6 years ago

    What is this about a movie Ben's making?

    #117 6 years ago
    Quoted from benheck:

    Was then going to develop Bible Adventures as my own thing, see where it went... until the deeproot announcement.
    Basically, pinball has nothing left for me.

    Wait, what about the deeproot announcement? Are they doing bible adventures too?

    #118 6 years ago
    Quoted from pinlink:

    What is this about a movie Ben's making?

    yeah, that too! I need a Ben Heck FAQ...

    #119 6 years ago

    another B-movie is all good.

    25
    #120 6 years ago
    Quoted from greenhornet:

    another B-movie is all good.
    » YouTube video

    Metropolis is NOT a "B movie"... jesus christ.

    #121 6 years ago
    Quoted from Whysnow:

    In short, he is a DBAG and if anyone needed any reason to be even more sick of his shit already... pissing in Ben Hecks cheerios sure is the top of the list.

    It's not often that a company preemptively loses my business, so you have to give them props for that. Can't even think of the last company to do that. SCO, maybe?

    #122 6 years ago
    Quoted from Frax:

    Metropolis is NOT a "B movie"... jesus christ.

    the bands name IS... B-movie.

    #123 6 years ago
    Quoted from iceman44:

    Maybe Ben should take over for Lyman since he’s “retiring”
    GL to both u guys

    Rouge, you could fund Ben and the two of you could start a pinball company

    #124 6 years ago
    Quoted from Prefect:

    Small businesses are scary things. My brother has a lot of things he wants to do with the family business and my dad is just happy with it being a profitable enterprise and taking it real slow. Small businesses don't get mulligans. I would not be surprised and this is just speculation, that the owner either wanted to slow down development or something else that was risk adverse like put together more of the same. That is hard for someone like my brother who has a ton of ideas but can't implement them.
    Good luck to Ben and Spooky. You guys made a go at selling wooden boxes with ball bearings and made it work. Not by any means an easy task.

    As an owner of a small business for 10+ years; this is the truth...It's extremely hard at times to maintain a profitable enterprise; and unless you've lived it, you don't understand it. A couple wrong moves, and it's game over.

    So I'm sure Spooky had to make firm decisions based on what was going to bring the $$ in.

    #125 6 years ago

    Ben >> how much to hire you to build me a Phish pinball machine?

    nobody else will want to buy the damn thing, but it is never going to get finished on my own accord (I dont have even a fraction of your genius)

    #126 6 years ago
    Quoted from Whysnow:

    how much to hire you to build me a Phish pinball machine?

    I can see it now.

    download (1) (resized).pngdownload (1) (resized).png

    #127 6 years ago
    Quoted from Whysnow:

    Ben >> how much to hire you to build me a Phish pinball machine?
    nobody else will want to buy the damn thing, but it is never going to get finished on my own accord (I dont have even a fraction of your genius)

    Count me in!

    #128 6 years ago

    technically speaking it would be Gamehenge

    I have the rough layout and rules/storyline pretty much written out already.

    #129 6 years ago
    Quoted from pinlink:

    What is this about a movie Ben's making?

    Quoted from cait001:

    yeah, that too! I need a Ben Heck FAQ...

    The movie (and Ben's "Ben Heck Show" future) is explained here:

    #130 6 years ago
    Quoted from Whysnow:

    technically speaking it would be Gamehenge
    I have the rough layout and rules/storyline pretty much written out already.

    Shhh...pretty soon DR will announce "their ideas" for The Man Who Stepped into Yesterday.

    PS: I'm not a crazy Phish fan, but that sounds like a great way of doing Phish pin without it being "just another music pin".

    #131 6 years ago

    With Ben leaving what will become of the whole Ben Heck Show team. :-/

    #132 6 years ago
    Quoted from Frax:

    lol now that would be hilariously bad for Deeproot, considering that there was talk of BA on here and archived from long before anyone even knew they existed.

    You're assuming that they would have to win in court to achieve their objective. Most people don't want months and years of legal wrangling and harassment. Besides, given the nature of the company, they're likely to field better counsel.

    #133 6 years ago
    Quoted from o-din:

    Off to Deeproot?

    I was more thinking APB

    #134 6 years ago
    Quoted from dsmoke1986:

    So I'm sure Spooky had to make firm decisions based on what was going to bring the $$ in.

    It seems like Ben and Charlie both realized this, and if their goals aren't aligned they acted like adults and moved on. Nothing wrong with that at all.

    #135 6 years ago
    Quoted from greenhornet:

    the bands name IS... B-movie.

    LOL, understandable. I did not have sound on. Seriously though, Metropolis is amazing.

    #136 6 years ago
    Quoted from vdojaq:

    I was more thinking APB

    24n6up (resized).jpg24n6up (resized).jpg

    #137 6 years ago
    Quoted from benheck:

    Original plan: Design my game for 6-8 months, then spend a year on code for its release summer of 2018. (same time I finish my show, not a coincidence)

    But then the license stalled last summer and I switched over to helping on Alice Cooper (rules, storyboards, dialog) Came a point where the completion of my game was so far out I just kind of gave up. This is probably how Dennis feels regarding Elvira 3.

    Was then going to develop Bible Adventures as my own thing, see where it went... until the deeproot announcement.

    Basically, pinball has nothing left for me.

    You forgot: Mike from Homepin stole my hardware design and code, fought tooth and nail claiming they didn't, then realized his programmer did and didn't even apologize.

    Really sucks to hear all this bad news at once, the hobby is really getting tarnished and cuthroat.

    #138 6 years ago
    Quoted from toyotaboy:

    You forgot: Mike from Homepin stole my hardware design and code, fought tooth and nail claiming they didn't, then realized his programmer did and didn't even apologize.
    Really sucks to hear all this bad news at once, the hobby is really getting tarnished and cuthroat.

    And it's about to get worse.

    #139 6 years ago
    Quoted from toyotaboy:

    You forgot: Mike from Homepin stole my hardware design and code, fought tooth and nail claiming they didn't, then realized his programmer did and didn't even apologize.
    Really sucks to hear all this bad news at once, the hobby is really getting tarnished and cuthroat.

    Wasn't there a "glitch" designed into the code that was put their on purpose, but they couldn't figure out why it was happening? I'm still going to maintain that this hobby is niche enough, that anything unethical will eventually hurt these companies.

    #140 6 years ago
    Quoted from toyotaboy:

    You forgot: Mike from Homepin stole my hardware design and code, fought tooth and nail claiming they didn't, then realized his programmer did and didn't even apologize.

    Jesus, I must have missed that bit. Surprising to me coming from that guy, he's always gone out of his way to build bridges. (/s)

    #141 6 years ago
    Quoted from toyotaboy:

    You forgot: Mike from Homepin stole my hardware design and code, fought tooth and nail claiming they didn't, then realized his programmer did and didn't even apologize.

    I am sure Mike was well aware, Ben don't go down that rabbit hole as Mike is not a fun character, you will hate pinball even more

    31
    #142 6 years ago

    We're doing a Saturday Special Edition on This Week in Pinball tomorrow morning - interview with Ben Heck!

    #143 6 years ago
    Quoted from swinks:

    I am sure Mike was well aware, Ben don't go down that rabbit hole as Mike is not a fun character, you will hate pinball even more

    I would say that is a very astute observation considering it has been touted from day one that every aspect of the TBAG manufacturing process would be overseen and approved by the man himself.

    Or is this no longer the official position? Who knows? The narrative changes so regularly to fit the circumstances.

    #144 6 years ago

    Sad day for pinball!! This was shocking news to me that’s for sure.

    -1
    #145 6 years ago

    I support spooky, although not a fan of their games, way to basic of a layout. A fallout with the manufacturer and the designer? Pretty common

    13
    #146 6 years ago

    Saturday Special Edition!!

    Interview with Ben Heck:

    http://thisweekinpinball.com/interview-ben-heck-leaving-spooky-alice-coopers-nightmare-castle-preview-next-ben-heck/

    - Why He is Leaving Spooky
    - Alice Cooper Nightmare Castle Preview
    - What is Next for Ben Heck

    #147 6 years ago

    Thanks for the interview. Seems pretty straightforward, no scandal or anything.

    Ben, I hope you get the time away you would like but still hang out with us here and maybe the itch and good timing will catch you again.

    #148 6 years ago

    Interview was very informative and good to hear right from Ben what the heck is going on.

    #149 6 years ago
    Quoted from pin2d:

    Saturday Special Edition!!
    Interview with Ben Heck:
    http://thisweekinpinball.com/interview-ben-heck-leaving-spooky-alice-coopers-nightmare-castle-preview-next-ben-heck/
    - Why He is Leaving Spooky
    - Alice Cooper Nightmare Castle Preview
    - What is Next for Ben Heck

    "I wish we were slimy and did a vault addition"

    Lol. Halarious

    #150 6 years ago

    "Illinois is a aweful and terrible place"

    I love this guy. His personality is fantastic.

    There are 309 posts in this topic. You are on page 3 of 7.

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