Why get a NIB Maiden when used ones can be had for cheaper though? It’s not like it’s rare. Just saying. Prices are coming down on used games and people paying more than retail for used games has calmed down.

Again more good points... this is what goes on in my head, haha. I am a sucker for NIB but I have had my share of HUO and they have been great, taken care of by good pin owners. I did enjoy the Scooby stream from Spooky and even TPN's review of them playing were all positive. I'll think about it more over the weekend. Gotta move one of my current pins first and it ain't gonna be GZ or Deadpool.

Sorry I couldnt resist ...I present "james bond playing a pinball machine with scooby doo on it construction paper art"

DALL·E 2023-02-10 15.08.10 - james bond playing a pinball machine with scooby doo on it construction paper art (resized).png

I'd get the Maiden in April and play it for a while and then sell it to pickup a Scooby later once code is complete and you've had a chance to play it more.

Not bad advice. Right now, Maiden is a proven machine, an amazing machine. Scooby still needs to be shipped and more importantly evaluated by the playing public. You should have a solid month to read reviews on Scooby to form a better opinion. I think Scooby will be brilliant, but it is an unknown still. Personally, I will give Scooby a couple months on the street and then pick one up if reviews are good. I was all set to pull the trigger on a Halloween, but after personally playing and talking with a few owners, I decided against it.

That game plays great. I just hate the theme but if I was a fan of IM then I would get it in a heartbeat.

Oh and get ready for the whining from the early adopters of SD. It will have issues and the early guys will blow them out of proportion. Par for the course. We are in the “excited phase” right now. IM has had the bugs worked out by now.

Expect to take a loss unfortunately on IM. So if your ok with it go ahead. But why buy a pin now just to sell it to get the one you want anyway. Pick up a used one then and don’t buy NIB.

Get them both.

If you keep it stock, play it for six months and then and sell it around the Holidays you can sell it for a minimal loss. Usually when you lose money is when you dump a bunch of mods into the game. You might be able to buy into a Scooby spot later from someone that's tired of waiting.

I just want to enjoy and not speculate. Find it weird to act like pins are investments. I guess that’s the difference between a player and enjoyer, and someone worried about their money. Yah, I get it, money is very tight…but this is not an investment…this is to enjoy. This is the worst investment you can imagine and shouldn’t do it!

I agree, and I'll add this to your point about money being tight: If money is so tight that you can't afford to lose a few hundred bucks when you sell a game, maybe you shouldn't be buying a game in the first place.

I still haven’t made a spot for scooby yet. I may just place it in the middle of the room and tape the extension cord down. Haha

I’m starting to feel the pressure

I’ve seen a lot of people post about playing 1 game = $1 they would’ve spent anyways. And I love this thought process

Put 500-1000 plays on it. Take good care of it but enjoy it. Lose a few bucks and swap for something out.

You saved money on gas, quarters, beer/food and got to stay home

Yep! I used to go to barcades and spend a shitload of money on beer and pinball. Also, driving home after a few beers…not good! Now that I’ve got an awesome collection, I think it’s saving money in the long run…”so to speak”. I love the hobby! To me it’s a win/win! If you want to add a game….
Make more money! If I want something, I work harder, smarter, faster!

Oh hell, let me NOT help then

I asked the wife before it was announced (Scooby Doo is her favorite) and she said she only plays once and a while so it would be a waste. Fast forward 2 months, there was a discussion in one of the forums she reads about how the voice actors for scooby doo are on a new project. Not only do I have one on order, but my distributor was nice enough to let my wife spend my money on a CE and I quote "No, we will take it now and give ME the BEST one." (There was discussion of waiting til MGC and letting her play it there to see if she wanted it). This isn't and investment, the wife is nailing this one to the floor. My money her game.

Happy wife. Happy life. Haha

“Alright sweetie, I guess if you want a pin I’ll get you one. But I need to look at one for me too…”

And where are you going to go play around here without driving to Akron (facepalm)

Rack it up is really the only other place I’ve been to in Canton.

But Ya I agree. Now that I have a few pins in the collection I don’t leave my house. Haha

Me neither... well except for the required beer run

Best place is madcap in Kent ohio

Seems like you might be a little short on space, unlike me………

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i agree. pins are a commercial piece of equipment, and all equipment usually has a write down of 10% per year. i think pin flipping for profit is meeting saturation and big profit days are coming to an end in short order.

That’s a haul. I occasionally go to Stonehedge

You’ll definitely need to tighten it up or purge….. I had to sell one to make room for Scooby

Just fold some pins up and store them vertically. That was my solution. I have 12 pins folded up and stored in one bedroom. Selling is a last resort lol

I've reached capacity as well. Will be getting rid of time crisis 3. The good news is that I will then have room for Scooby and another pin

Any word on the deadflip stream?

Maybe I’m wrong here but since they did the reveal stream themselves I don’t think they’re gonna do a dead flip stream anymore. It seems pointless at this moment unless he streams it for free. Anyways, I wouldn’t mind another stream of the game regardless of who streams it!

I think they mentioned it at the end of the last stream…playing a 5 person game with Jack Dizzle.

Spooky said there will be a JD stream of Scooby.

I don't view it as pointless, they uploaded a pre-recorded video. A Livestream is different, no editing and uncut gameplay. I'm not saying they are hiding anything or editing stuff out. Also you get to see someone that hasn't played Scooby Doo a ton, play Scooby Doo. All the Spooky Doods have been playing Scooby Doo for a while, so they know the shots and how to play it. I'm sure Jack will play it well, but still it will give you a better idea of what to expect.

SpookyLuke and co, are there any plans your end to develop your own achievements system? Even if it began offline line currently, Scooby Doo could be a great game for achievements.

I ask, as my kids are all from the achievement/trophy generations, it would be great fun to play co-op if you could bring that to Scooby Doo (seems ideal for team play) and get some achievements for getting all clues, capturing villians and unmasking them etc

In the past(not long ago) you would sell a used bought NIB and expect a loss of $500. But the market got stupid and supply issues came about so people were selling pins they had for a couple years at and above the price of NIB.

I just don’t see buying a pin and say I will buy one now, sell it later to get the pin I really wanted. Just seems like a waste of money to me. Some people will buy a pro to tide them over till a premium ships. Just seems impatient and a waste of money.

If you have the money more power to you. Not referencing you btw

How many of us would be buying pins if over time they deflated to zero? I may have 1 or 2. But no way would I have 12 plus games going to zero over time.

How many pins would you buy over 10k if they 100% were going to be worthless over time?

I hate IM as a band, ended up buying the pin and love it. Buy the game you can get first. More happy days in your life.

For those of you on Facebook, here’s the Scooby-Doo Pinball group.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/829658511342741/?ref=share_group_link

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You should make that group private.

I confused. You took that to the ultimate extreme. Who said that the pins would lose 100% and be worthless?

That guy provides the most useless comments I’ve ever seen.

I always see people claiming don’t buy if you’re afraid of losing money. Buy because you like the game. My point is almost every HUO buyer knows what they are buying will retail value. If they didn’t retain value people opps most people would never buy one.

SpookyLuke

I just wanted to say that as a first time pinball buyer, you guys are amazing. The emails from Morgan kept me updated super easily. I just received a beanie too because I need to rock the Spooky ghost everywhere I go in the winter and rep some awesome people.

I just have one request at the moment. Any chance you can share a huge PC wallpaper sized picture of the backglass? Would love to have it as the background while I work. Also, if you guys have any other sketches from Jeff Zornow and Matt Frank I think a lot of people would love to just look at them. They did an amazing job updating some of the most classic character designs in animation, and I think their work here is up there with what Zombie Yeti puts out. We truly live in a wonderful time for the hobby!

I’ve seen a bunch of people on here assume they can sell the pin for what they paid or more. This is not a good assumption. You will lose money 95% of the time. If you enjoy pins, enjoy and then sell…but don’t expect to not lose some money…I’ve never seen anyone claim the pin will go to zero…except you. And if your pins go to zero…please contact me

Just to add to this - look at the value of a new vehicle once you drive it off the lot (especially in recent times).

Of course that all depends on how long you keep it too. How many pins can you think of that were created 10 or more years ago, are HUO and are worth less than their MSRP? I'm struggling to think of one.

100% and this is the only reason the HUO market has flourished.

Some people act or suggest it’s not about how much you can sell a game for after you own it. But it 100% is and only works cuz of the ROI on your pin.

So does that inexorably lead to the conclusion that the only people purchasing NIB are those doing ROI calculations before putting their money down? I seriously doubt it. There are many a collector that have a passion for the hobby and don't perform calculations prior to purchase to assess whether they'll make money on the pin down the line should they wish to sell. That's a fallacy. If you're one of those folks that is a "bean counter" and equates enjoyability with ROI, so be it. But many of us buy pins because we feel a connection to the theme and/or the gameplay is terrific and rather than pumping quarters at a barcade (if you can find one in your area), we'd rather have it in our house to enjoy with our family. Full stop. If we do ultimately choose to sell and take a loss then so be it. Comes with the territory given that pins are not and should not generally be viewed as investments in my opinion.

My question remains if your ROI lead to negative 100% how many games would you buy?

This isn’t a coherent question. This would never happen.