I don't mind R rated titles. I just don't see a huge resurgence of pinball with the younger generation...ever.

Hotwheels.... I'll pass.

Yup.

I own a couple Sterns, would add SM and would look at this if it were any good. Man I loved Hot Wheels! I guess I am becoming more nostalgic with age.

My yes vote just tied it up!

Dan

I guess I'm looking at a Hot Wheels pin a bit different than others.
I voted NO on this one, but it could be a fun pin if done right.
Theme is ok, but not a knock-out for me.
I would play one out in the wild, but not buy one for my home collection.

What I see happening on a Stern Hot Wheels pin is that:
* Stern designers would do a great job on playfield concerning: jump-ramps, loop-d-loops, banked curves, flag drops, other hot wheels type features, etc.
* And of course they would do a nice job on lighting, speakers, spot for shaker motor add-on, etc
* Stern would take this in a slightly new direction in that this machine would be designed to have a low-cost "option" .....that would have specific places on (& above/around) the playfield where the small cars can easily be mounted, but that it would be up to the new owner to install their favorite cars in these spots so it is more to their liking.

I had some of both!!

I like these

hotwheel.jpg kisshot.jpg

I still have a decent collection of Hot Wheels, Matchbox, Johnny Lighting, Corgi, and Dinky.

Red baron was my favorite.

Interesting that the voting right now seems pretty evenly split. I voted yes and was a little surprised that there aren't more yes votes so far. Seems like a perfect theme for a bit more mass appeal. It seems like a theme that appeals to nostalgic adults and kids alike.

I think anything that gets more people to gravitate to pinball is a good thing. (unless people are scared it would only further drive pin prices up with more popularity)

i'll take a justin beiber pinball anyday over hot wheels.

stern... you listenen

I hear people say they want a lot more adult themed pin, but Gary Stern said during CAX that Stern will not be doing those type of themes as the market they are targeting has shifted from bar type locations to more of a home market.

So as much as most of us would love to see that, unless some other company makes one, it seems unlikely Gary will produce an adult themed pin.

On the topic of Stern making a Hot Wheels pin- that would be something I could see Steve Ritchie doing. I think he would take a more edgy approach as he doesn't do cute. Twisty- turn style ramps with flow, really blends with pinball, so I could see this being a good theme.

Hot wheels wouldn't be my first choice because of HS and HSII and not sure another car theme would appealas several have been done over the years. But wouldn't be against it if it was a great playing machine and some good ideas have already been suggested by previous people posting on this topic.

Personally I have no desire for an R rated pin as I have kids my own and other kids over to play pinball. However, if Stern made an great R rated game and then did the same machine with a family friendly theme, that would be fine.

Didn't Zaccaria have a machine in the 80s called Hot Wheels?

I think this could be done without being cute. Just put a bunch of cars all over the place. It would look like Corvette with a NASCAR color scheme.

I'm thinking more along the lines of Justin Beiber and Kill Bill, but less violent; I'll call it "Bitch Slap Beiber". Flawless idea IMHO.

Kids like things that are edgy. Teenage kids do anyway. 8 year olds are unlikely to care much what they are playing. I could never get my 14 year old son excited about playing Hot Wheels. He would think it was absurd and for little kids. BBB on the other hand he would think was awesome, theme wise.

huh?

I think they should do a Stompers pin instead of Hot Wheels!

Stompers.jpg

I want a Tonka truck pin other than Road Show ..... joke.

Hot wheels would make an ok title but I think it is a little dated and not for all ages.
Any car theme would probably do.

Could do some cool interactive toy shots like in Demo Man crashing cars together. Or ball driving cars up ramps/through loops. I know it wasn't Mattel but they need to get some Micro Machines in there too.

A Hot Wheels pin could be very cool IF done right. Key word is 'IF'.

The license lends itself to many fun ideas for fun wireforms or ramps (a vertical 360 loop is mandatory!!!!). It would be cool to see the pinball get truly airborne again via ramp ala No Fear.

The license nowadays is all about fast cars...dragsters....muscle cars...trucks. A bunch of sweet rides done on a smaller scale, and I can see this being exciting to see via original artwork (playfield/cabinet/dot matrix). We haven't had a truly exciting car pin since 90's games like High Speed II & Corvette (Viper Night Drivin wasn't bad either). Game also needs some hard rocking tunes (licensed rock songs would put it over the top).

The game has to be fast. I think Gomez or Steve behind the wheel for this project, might produce a very fun game that has the potential for a huge player base. I can see Hot Wheels pinball in family fun centers who are dominated by games like Shrek, Monopoly, Rollercoaster Tycoon, Pirates of the Caribbean, Iron Man, and Spider-Man.

Hot Wheels CAN be cool...as evident here in Hot Wheels Turbo Racing for the PS1 (Metallica's "Fuel" song is the theme song to the 1999 released game).

... uh, isn't that true of any theme / license?

Yea, but some licenses aren't done justice.
*points to Sopranos from Stern*

OK. Hot Wheels? Not Matchbox?
Most of my Hot Wheels cars went the way of stress testing with superchargers, once I figured out a way to hook up a supercharger to a transformer. More Steam!
I suppose we don't have a choice, do we? Stern will keep making whatever the hell they want and we 'll continue not to have a voice in things.

We all know it fast and furious

I would say it depends on the kid and their age. The teenage years stretches a LONG way. What a 13 year old is into is often WAY different than what a 16 year old is into even moreso than what a 19 year old is into.

No theme is universally appealing to any focus group. If Stern has finally figured out that these LE version games are predominantly going to home collectors, they have to be thinking that a family friendly game in the PG to PG-13 range is the key. That covers a wide spectrum of ideas and even PG-13 themes can be edgy.

Mom may not be a dedicated pinball player, and probably will not want a pinball machine solely based around scantily clad, buxom girls staring at her, but a game like TRON appealing to Dad and junior may have pretty girls on the backbox and that is OK.

It is quite possible that a modern family today has parents that grew up listening to AC/DC, and the kids may also have been exposed to AC/DC via Rock Band/Guitar Hero platforms. The comic book/Super Hero movie themes are also pretty safe as families probably saw those flicks.

However a cartoon theme like Family Guy could be pushing it (I think it is a great game BTW). It seems like a cartoon, but it is obviously for adults, not kids. But a game like X-Men based off comic book art could hit a wider spectrum. So if Dad the collector is buying the pins at home and junior/missy are playing and Mom has to look at it, it needs to appeal to a broader base. Dad gets to have a machine at home, but maybe not the exact theme he wants.

In short, it is tricky. I think that recently, Stern is on a roll thematically (but I think TRS was a mistake). The LE games are not going to bars anymore, so the previous argument (by Pat Lawlor I think it was), that people are looking to drop some coins into a game while they have a beer after work (or something like that) is not relevant today. Stern is aiming toward the probable demographic that has the money to buy these increasingly expensive pins-the family/home collector.

When I was a kid it was always Hot Wheels above Matchbox. Back then durability was a pretty big deal, because let's face it, I was 3-7 playing with hot wheels, probably pretty hard on toys.

When it comes to being smashed with a metal ball a la TF, you probably want to go with the more durable.

Hot Wheels is going to be a future pinball from Stern. Finally something different than a movie or music theme.

Robin got a 64-67 vote 7 years ago...

Interesting!

Does Robin have any more predictions like this in Pinside?

-mof

A Hot Wheels pin would look nice next to the Christmas tree.
$10k by Christmas!