Nah he went way down hill. Never has "enough time", all his videos used to be creative with like fight scenes and funny things going on, now they are all 1 maybe 2 camera angles and seem just churned out. Don't get me wrong, I like him still, and I'm not a part of the Cinemassacre sucks crowd but its just not the same AVGN that we all loved back in the day. I actually prefer most of the other content James puts out compared to AVGN videos now...

that's probably part of the problem. He's expanding out with too many other videos, with board games and what not.

A lot of people blame the partnering with screen wave media and most of it makes sense, and also Jame's insisting he never has enough time for anything. He was doing a lot of other style videos back in the day too (I miss Board James in particular). Speaking of not enough time, this guy made a nearly 6 hr documentary about AVGN and covers a lot of the recent issues. If you find yourself with some time, worth checking out.

So...I have news. I went to the Fan Expo in Philadelphia this weekend. I got the super deluxe package to get my photo taken with and autographs from Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd and Tom Wilson. It was ridiculously expensive but I figure I'm only going to do this once.

The whole thing was an exhausting ordeal with poor/confusing signs and long lines everywhere. I do not recommend it. But I did finally get what I went there for. We got our photo taken with the trio which took about 5 seconds, no exaggeration. They really hustled people through there.

Next were the long waits and long lines for the autographs (I brought the soundtrack album/record). It was super unorganized. We had timed tickets but they were almost meaningless. There were no roped lines, just taped lines along the floor which worked about as well as you'd expect. The one for MJF was weird. They had him in an area behind a curtain that you could only get to if you were getting something signed. Once back there you had to hand off your item to the people and they gave it to him to sign. You could see him but couldn't go up to the table right next to him. Also, no phones/cameras allowed. Again, it was weird. All three guys were in a BTTF panel later on so it's not like he was trying to not be seen in public.

Chris Lloyd was fine. He didn't really talk much. He's really neat and careful in signing his name.

Tom Wilson was really nice and was chatting with everyone. I asked him "Do you know anything about the new pinball machine?" He said "I have one in my basement. I was thinking of selling it but my kids keep telling me not to."
I said "The NEW pinball machine" and he said "Oh, I haven't heard anything about that." So that's the big news, people. Sorry I don't have something better to report.

I also asked Tom to write "What are you looking at, butthead?" and he wrote "You're a butthead." So I have that to hang on my wall forever.

Some guy also rented a booth with just his DeLorean decked out as the BTTF time machine. This was honestly the best deal of the day. It was $15 for a photo with it if you stood outside and $40 if you sat inside. I paid him $15 and he took several photos of us in front of the DeLorean with my camera.

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That's awesome! Super cool you got to meet all of them. Definitely a memory you will never forget. Thank you for asking Tom about a new BTTF pinball machine. That's a bummer he said that, or maybe he intentionally said that on purpose to throw ya off!

Yeah the convention line stuff is really awful, as is how fast they just rush people through. People pay hundreds of dollars to meet these actors and they give you 5 seconds with them, nothing personal at all. I think I've read of a couple actors complaining about this and not wanting to do conventions as they feel the autograph and photo lines are not fair to fans due to how quickly they are rushed through.

I highly recommend the newly released "STILL: A MICHAEL J. FOX MOVIE." The movie chronicles his battle with Parkinson's set against the backdrop of his career. The story is worth hearing and the approach/design of the movie is incredibly well done. In particular, the part that covers his filming of BTTF and Family Ties at the same time is very cool. I knew that story beforehand it it exceeded my expectations.

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/still_a_michael_j_fox_movie

It is available on appleTV+ (you can probably get a free trial if you're not a subscriber)

Great story! I really believe that if we do get a new BTTF pin, the only cast member they will get to do custom callouts will be Don Fullilove (Mayor Goldie Wilson). Thats too bad too because obviously thats not one of the central characters. You'd think Tom Wilson wouldn't be too expensive to hire on to do some callouts as well but I don't know, just a gut feeling I have. Hopefully I'm wrong.

I’m hoping for Doc Brown. Christopher Llyod has been very fan forward. He’s likely to embrace the roll if asked. Fingers crossed!

Yeah for sure. Christopher Lloyd for custom callouts is a real possibility.

I swear you guys are bigger irrational dreamers than even the Harry Potter folks. Fan forward or not, Christopher Lloyd isn't going to do it for free and I doubt Stern or anyone is going to pony up the cash. Man I hope you guys are right and I'm wrong, but I just have a bad feeling...

What other license besides Harry Potter is a holy grail license that would compete and win for dollars spent by consumers? I don’t think Stern is going to lay back and let JJP rake it in. They will get the assets and do it right. If a slot machine company can get the assets so can Stern. Also: original actor voice seeded AI is doing a darn good job recreating audio likenesses. No studio voiceover work required.

I was thinking the same thing. The actors don't sound like they did 38 years ago so doing it with software (like was done with Bruce Willis recently) would be better than the actors doing it themselves.

You're misunderstanding me. What I'm saying is you guys hopes and dreams for what will be in this game are likely not going to be what ends up being reality. Trust me, BTTF is my dream theme too.

If pinball companies aren't already doing AI voice work, they should be. As the most recent "special when lit" podcast showed, even 15 seconds of audio can train an AI voice to sound almost indistinguishable from the real person. And since actors have hundreds of hours of audio readily available it is very easy to train. The cost difference between paying a real voice actor, and having some intern type in dialogue is huge (plus if you need to add something later because rules got added, it's just typing it up). That's not to say the actor doesn't get a licensing cut, but it still reduces cost.

This wont be another TS4. Bet on it.

Short video of Tom Wilson on the BTTF panel at Fan Expo.

Always hoping for a proper remake, another dream theme for me. No disrespect to the Data East pin, but it could've been better. I made a design of how I would've made a BTTF pin just to see what could've been. If the pinball remake couldn't get Michael J. Fox, the guy who voices Marty in the telltale game would be a great choice. Probably won't happen, the licensing alone would be insanely expensive, but still a cool idea.

Tthe data east game wasn't terrible (when you compare to other titles at the time, like turtles for instance), but it wasn't great. I also don't think they are worth what they are going for (but I get it). As with everything evolving technology-wise, a newer version will almost always be better. I mean just compare the data east jurassic park to the Stern version.

I'm not saying it will be that either. I'm just saying its going to be along the lines of what we can already expect from pinball companies. I should just say Stern because if anyone is making BTTF it'll be Stern (unless you count Kapow as a seperate pinball entity than Stern). When is the last time Stern used anything more than a very low tier celeb for call outs? The days of getting the entire cast of Star Trek to do call outs are over. Ghostbusters used Ernie Hudson, and no disrespect to him at all but lets be honest he's by far the cheapest guy in the group to hire. I would love if Stern hired Christopher Lloyd for callouts but I just feel like theres no way thats going to happen. We're going to get guided by Mayor Goldie Wilson and we'll just hope for good sound a likes or movie clips for the rest. Maybe...MAYBE we'll get lucky and get Tom Wilson (which would be fuckin sweet) but it would be weird to have the antagonist of the series be the main voice of the game. Maybe we could get Tom and Don. I'm just trying to be realistic here. It would not shock me if it was an "all new" BTTF story ALA Jurrassic Park either. I could see where maybe now its up to Biff to save the day in the Delorean but that would not bode well for getting MJF in the game. I guess we'll see, but these are my feelings which are based in recent history.

It’s either Doc doing the original trilogy or his kids (Jules & Verne) doing a new storyline. None of the other 2nd tier characters make sense leading the progression through the ruleset.

J Jonah Jameson didn't make sense for Spiderman either but thats what we got. Good lord please don't let it be Jules and Verne lmao

Einstein or Copernicus?

Ok ok. Maybe Flea (Needles) would work. What’s wrong McFly? Chicken?!
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But honestly Doc needs to be in charge of the missions and hopping through the timelines (a la BTTF: The Ride at Universal).

Apparently the franchise is being used again for an attraction at Universal CityWalk in Orlando. Assets could lend themselves to a pinball machine with a similar storyline premise. https://www.backtothefuture.com/news/2022/12/9/universal-orlandos-first-ever-escape-room-experience-universals-great-movie-escape-is-now-open-at-universal-citywalk
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Back to the Future: OUTATIME
Guests are transported to a museum in 1993, where they learn Back to the Future’s antagonist, Biff, is up to his antics and has stolen Doc Brown’s newest time travel device to sabotage the space-time continuum. Guests must work together to uncover Doc Brown’s clues as they travel through time to track down Biff and save the past and future before they run “outatime.”

Sounds an awful lot like the old BTTF ride (which was awesome btw)

Sounds EXACTLY like the old ride. Looks like they're using a lot of the old elements too. The wait video before boarding is probably paid. The Institute signage is the same. Looks like they took elements from the ride cars and put them in the escape room. Smart way to repurpose a ride that should have never been removed.

It’s an “escape room”, I did it back in October when it first came out. It’s pretty decent with the decor and the way it immerses you into the back to the future movies. But if you fall behind during the room challenge, it automatically pushes you along to get you to the end. Takes the fun out of the “escape room” feel.

The twin pines mall is dead (not surprised)

AI can't add the exact flare, emphasis, and showmanship like a real human being can to callouts. Even the best AI voice replications seem a bit off. AI is cool but we need to stop acting like it's some miracle tool when it isn't. Seems like a race for being cheap and lazy versus putting out a quality product.

In some cases, the actor isn't alive anymore so you're relying on someone to imitate them. If you're a fan of Jim Henson you know the latest Kermit doesn't sound right. There is also AI assisted filtering. In other words a human is adding the inflection, but using AI to do the voice imitation. There's a podcast with will sasso called dudesy about AI, and there's a fan that generates perfect imitation of Tom Hanks and Miley Cyrus.

I also don't know why people think AI means a company can just do whatever they want. Ok sure, maybe an actor simply does not want to take the time to record some lines (or unable maybe in the case of MJF), but if you're then going to use AI you'll still need to: A. Get approval from the actor to use AI.B. pay the actor, quite possibly the same amount or nearly the same amount as if they were going to do it themselves. C. Get the actors approval for the AI lines and how they are delivered. and probably a lot more. This is what I'm talking about when I say people are delusional. Is it theoretically possible? Sure...I guess. Is it likely? NO

Bingo! Yes, lots of legal issues and costs still involved. Some actors may just say no to any AI voice work and even if it is allowed every line would likely need to be reviewed. I think one thing writers are fighting for with the writers strike is no use of AI for scripts.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/danafeldman/2023/05/24/the-hollywood-writers-strike-3-reasons-not-to-back-down-on-ai/?sh=5d50aafb3955

AI for scripts is a lot different than computer-generated actors. It is inevitable that we see computer-generated actors in new movies, either while they are still alive (as with Bruce Willis, or the de-aged Jeff Bridges in Tron Legacy or Harrison Ford in Indy 5) or after they are gone. I would think that most actors' kids/grandkids would not only welcome the royalties but would want to keep their family member relevant in current movies/culture and not forgotten. People that were the top stars from just a few decades ago are almost forgotten now. How many young adults even know who Burt Reynolds was?

But this is off topic. BTTF is awesome and I hope the pinball machine is coming soon, with or without custom callouts.

Bruce Willis provided his digital rights for a Russian phone commercial. Anything is possible. Nobody said it was likely Stern would do this and I’m not delusional. I think you need to come to the realization that this technology has been used plenty and will only continue to be used more prominently. Tarkin and Princess Leia were both recreated digitally for Rogue One. With JJP getting Tim Allen, Jim Hanks and Annie Potts to do custom callouts for TS4 you must realize that tier 1 voiceover work is more likely than ever.

Please no. Maybe Mr. Strickland, but he’s 92 years old.

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nobody said it was likely, they said it was a possibility. Its also a possibility that I win the lottery tomorrow...twice!, it doesn't make it any less delusional to go around telling people dude get ready for my big winstomorrow!

Yes I know digital versions of actors is a thing and will continue to be a thing. Does not relate to this hypothetical game at all. Yet another silly thing for people to have brought up in the first place. All my comments toward AI callouts apply to CGI recreations of actors as well.

TS4 callouts make you believe the possibility now is stronger than.... EVER!??? Really? lol. More likely than any other time in pinball history? Are ya sure about that?

Haymaker I wish you would pee in someone else’s pool. Find your happy place because this one’s mine.
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For the record, all of the Foo Fighters did or were set to record their own callouts until their drummer died. They put everything on hold until they figure out what to do to pay respect to Taylor. So yeah I think personalities have taken an interest in this hobby and want to be a part of the finished product.

Never said they wouldn't get paid or had to approve lines, but think about what a game changer this is. The pinball company writes all the lines ahead of time and get approval at the same time as the art. They then generate all the voices and get final approval. The actor does nothing but review the lines like they would a script, and they get paid without actually working. It's a win win on both sides.

If you're Micheal j fox, you'll take any easy income at this point. The rest of them probably don't have very high standards either if they are all doing shows. It's the kiss of death right up there with cameo videos.

Dupe

I'm just trying to be realistic about a game I hope gets made not dream about pie in the sky hopes and dreams that will leave me disappointed when it comes out

And if stern makes a topper, it'll be the same delorean toy on the playfield zip tied down with led flames behind flat plastics and a $3k price tag.. meanwhile the mod community will likely create a magnetic floating delorean with wirelessly powered lights with the entire 2015 hill valley 3d printed behind.

You want that? Check out the hype thread for GTF. They actually joked about the turret being a pleasure cannon when folded down. I think everything mentioned here is realistic. Just depends on if Stern wants to see it through or skimp. I think they learned their lesson on Bond.

I miss when that thread was popping off with theories...it was really funny.

It was just announced that the next Stern cornerstone ("Venom" or related) will be shown at Comic-Con in July.

I now have high confidence that a third game will be announced by Stern this year, and low to medium confidence that it will be Elwin's Back to the Future.

Here is one scenario that could happen, but I don't have any inside information or strong evidence that it will:

The BTTF game will be announced/revealed on Back to the Future Day, October 21, 2023. Coincidentally, this is during Pinball Expo.

I base this prediction on all of the clues, hints and statements that I have seen over the past 2+ years, including the fact that there are only 2 Stern "cornerstone" games planned for 2023 and Stern is moving to a larger factory in October. This BTTF game is not a cornerstone; It will be a Kapow!/Stern collaboration with Elwin on design and Franchi on art. There will be no "Pro" version of the game, only Premium/LE/Super LE (similar to The Beatles or Batman 66), so I hope you have been saving up!

If it's not a Kapow! game announced later this year then it will probably be a vault (like Stranger Things).

One thing we know for sure is that Elwin's next game is coming soon. It's either Jaws or BTTF. The only question is in what order.

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Knapp arcade is speculating one vault, and possibly a John wick title (which makes sense because we know Jody enjoys trolling spooky). That doesn't mean we won't see a kapow title but I'm not holding my breathe. I predict we don't see bttf until 2025 since stern loves even number anniversaries.

Could be. We've seen quite a lot of talk for over 2 years that BTTF is coming which is why I think it could be very soon. But there are some strong rumors that Jaws is coming soon (the next Elwin) which is why I only have low to medium confidence about the timing of BTTF.