The Official Pinside Kevin Kulek Skit-B Predator Discussion

1

#166 9 years ago

guyincognito

Inactive member

Have any of the smaller "boutique" (am I using the correct term here?) shops like Skit-B talked about open sourcing the code for their machines?

Inspired by the concept of the Stern ROM browser/utility that was released by a fellow Pinsider, I've often wondered about the general idea of tinkering with the source code for the game's rules.

There are SO many creative and enthusiastic people in the community that I think you could really expand the fun by "re-programming" the game's rules.

Is there a discussion about "home brew" rules here on Pinside?

0

4

#171 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Would a t-shirt make an adequate topper for a pinball machine?

http://www.80stees.com/products/dillon-predator-shirt

dillon-predator-shirt.main.jpeg

0

#626 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Quoted from Razorbak86:
"I'm ignorant of the legal situation Kevin is under, but I wish he could have just said this months ago:
“Hey guys, so we’re building this game, and it’s going great. To keep costs low we’re not allowed to specifically talk about the IP online. We don’t really know if that even means we can’t say the name of it in this message, but to prevent problems we’re going to play it safe. It’s the game you all know, nothing has changed, and the license is fine. But that’s why we pulled all the info, helps you get your game cheaper. Sorry for the confusion, carry on!”

I'm curious as to how much cheaper that really makes each game? Are we talking < $100 or > $1,000?

Maybe Stern and JJP should get in on that deal? Buy a mystery themed game and save big money!?!

Has anyone ever heard of a similar license restriction where you could sell a product publicly, but not be allowed to mention that you produced said product?! That sounds baffling to a small minded boob like myself.

0

9

#1363 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

SkitB should just silently re-theme the game as NBC's "To Catch a Predator" and start shipping.

To-Catch-a-Predator.png

0

#1957 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Shell Beach Multi ball!

0

#2140 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Weren't those skinny pictures were from when she lost a bunch of weight for a movie role as a homeless woman?

Shelter - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3136112/

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2428371/Jennifer-Connelly-displays-thinner-face-gaunt-figure-play-homeless-role-husband-Paul-Bettanys-new-movie.html

It's crazy what actors do for a role. Guys like Christian Bale have lost upwards of 60 lbs (Machinist) and gained nearly as much for other roles (Batman).

christian-bale-weight-loss.jpg

0

#2354 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Quoted from benheck:
So the question to ask is: If they retain the license and all you get is the Predator sounds, imagery and maybe the musical score (no Arnold or original voices) would that be enough to keep you in? What is the minimum amount of Predator IP you'd be happy with? Just the title and the monster?

Would a new playfield design be required to remove the drawings of the main (human) characters?

How does licensing differ if it's a drawing of a character versus a photographic image?

I would imagine there would be a lot of work to redo all the callouts (audio) and DMD video, any idea of how long of a delay that would create?

Could SkitB make it so that some future community member can replace DMD callouts (audio) with non-licensed ones, similar to how the "Pinball Browser" software works on Stern ROMs?

Any idea on how long all that would take? A month? Six months? A year?

BillvsAlienvsPredator.jpg

0

6

#2867 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Quoted from Whysnow:
My votes of confidence may have had that effect and I truly appologize if this project fails and people take a loss that they otherwise would not have because they held tight to my vote of confidence. I am actually still confident that something will get worked out and that Kevin will take care of everyone (be it game, refund, or ?).

The Players in the Con (Confidence Game)

There are three key players in any long con: a victim, a con artist, and one or more associates.

The Mark: The intended victim of
The Grifter: A practitioner of confidence tricks, or more informally, a con artist. A grifter may play many roles, and often creates multiple personas over their career.
The Shill: An accomplice to the grifter, who has no apparent connection to the con. Shills are put in place to encourage the mark to act in the desired way.

0

#2873 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Quoted from Whysnow:
so you are claiming that I am part of an active con?

Quoted from DevilsTuner:
I dont think he is saying that but I think you may be inadvertently being a shill for them.

2

28

26

#4363 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

keaunu_conspiracy.jpg

0

9

#4629 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Quoted from CaptainNeo:
And i'm sure there are plenty of people that were on the fringe to get something, they thought was cool, and now it's in going to shit, because someone decided to snoop around and shut down the operation.
Was it shady to take money for a product that wasn't ready to go out the door without licensing after saying they did? Sure. If the 250 were already made before you even knew and were selling them out the door, would the 250 that bought one give a shit? probably not.

If SkitB had managed to ship the pins, and then Fox found out after the fact, would the FBI have rounded up all the machines from player's basements and commissioned Todd Tuckey to destroy them by throwing them off a rooftop?

predator.jpg

0

1

#4893 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

If anyone is on a business trip to Midland Michigan, they should stop by the SkitB factory and ask for a tour?

1

0

#5638 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

What would you have spent the money on, had Skit-B never announced Predator? Another pin? A motorcycle? A trip to the West Indies? A Vietnam-era Gatling gun in near-mint condition?

0

1

#5664 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Quoted from sd_tom:
OT: I'm in Australia right now and Arnie is doing real estate website ads:
» YouTube video
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2723694/You-number-Arnold-Schwarzenegger-mistakes-BEARDED-barista-woman-latest-real-estate-ad-Down-Under.html

That's pretty funny.

2

7

5

#6596 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

I can't be the only one who thought this might be one big gigantic build-up to April Fools and that today Kevin would announce that the first 10 machines were shipping today?

1

2

1

#7347 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

I was told that you could collect and redeem 7,000,000 Pinside Karma Points for a Wiliams F-14 Tomcat!?

0

2

#7911 9 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

The 'Games Linked to Topic' always provide an extra bit of amusement. At least until they're removed...

0

2

#8240 8 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

What if the settlement comes down to:

Each unsatisfied Predator buyer and up to 3 guests can use the SkitB vacation home in Midland, MI for 1 weekend date (Saturday or Sunday) once every 3 years with unlimited access to high-end photography equipment and up to 10 partially constructed Predator pinball machines.

0

3

#8428 8 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

dont_feed_the_trolls.jpg

0

9

#8518 8 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Quoted from labnip:
50+ people are still in on getting the Predator pin and have let Kevin know. They are still in production.

tumblr_l8v1t5SDW01qa1o5zo1_500.jpg

17

9

-8

#8701 8 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

I don't know if this is of any help, but I have recently come in contact with a benevolent Millionaire Playboy out of Vancouver who is really into pinball! He just might be able to invest enough of his own money to get a legit license from Fox and get this train back on the tracks. The terms of the deal aren't completely worked out yet, but as I understand it, he would "license" the game from SkitB and then take the final steps to get production rolling. There are a few caveats with this deal though. As MP is not buying or taking over SkitB as a company, the pot of money from pre-order deposits is assumed gone (zilch, nada, spent, zeroed out, Kevin's Retirement Fund, etc). That means anyone who wants a game is going to have to start sending in pre-order deposits when the time comes (DON'T WORRY, he's not asking for any money NOW!). How much money? At this point, without a BOM, no one knows for sure? There is some talk of him being able to offer some kind of "credits" to existing SkitB pre-order buyers, but unless he's willing to subsidize the lost SkitB pre-order money or have new customer's subsidize existing customers, I don't see how this could happen. On the other hand, he's a millionaire and a really great businessman, so he might be able to make it happen!? (Isn't this EXCITING!!!) Now, I do want to make it clear that he doesn't have any prior experience manufacturing a retail pinball machine (or anything really). But then again, neither did Kevin.

0

7

#9685 8 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Pinsider #2: [the whole gang holds Kevin hostage] I say we kill him!
Pinside: [shout] Yeah!
Pinsider #3: I say we hang him, *then* we kill him!
Pinside: [shout] Yeah!
Pinsider #4: I say we stomp him!
Pinside: [shout] Yeah!
Pinsider #4: Then we tattoo him!
Pinside: [shout] Yeah!
Pinsider #4: Then we hang him...!
Pinside: [shout] YEAH!'!
Pinsider #4: And then we kill him!
Pinside: [shout] YEAH!'!'!

kevin_kuleks_big_pinball_adventure.jpg

0

29

#9799 8 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

what_to_do_with_predator_pin.jpg

0

3

#9833 8 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Quoted from Tigger64:
Same here - I've read numerous stories of scams, including one popular one where they sold speakers out of a van and they were basically just boxes with a brick in them.
Funny, but true: I was visiting a friend and he and wife started to tell me how they were approached in a parking lot by a guy selling speakers. In my head I was thinking, "ah crap you didn't fall for that did you?"
She starts saying how she figured they were going to get robbed or ripped off, and then he motions over and says "but they sound pretty
good".
I think I blurted out "Wait. What? They work?!"
They did sound OK, but I think it was a different variation where they say it's some top brand, but it's really fake knockoffs.

Quoted from Betelgeuse:
Believe it or not, I got some nice speakers off of the 'guys in the white van' in a parking lot in the late 90's. I talked them down so cheap that I figured it was worth it for the towers I could see in the box, even if the speakers ended up being MIA. Turned out they were just an unknown brand, but sounded/looked great and I still use them for my entertainment center today. You just never know.

It's called the "white van speaker scam".

http://www.digitaltrends.com/home-theater/dont-be-a-sucker-the-white-van-speaker-scam-explained/

57

2

-55

#16558 6 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Have the vultures gotten their pound of flesh yet?

Seems some would only be happy to see this man die?

Write off your preorder gambling losses and get on with your lives.

0

1

#16582 6 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Maybe the courts would allow the pauper to be publicly flogged by the debtors?

1 lashing for every 5 Pintasia credits owed.

93

0

-93

#16605 6 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

A poor family lost their home and possessions.

A bunch of gamblers lost out on a unnecessary toy.

The lack of perspective highlights how petty and vindictive adult children who've had their toys taken from them, can be.

41

4

-37

#16718 6 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Quoted from c508:
I'm honestly amazed whysnow isn't all over the reporter's request.
Seems like it's his chance to shine.

If you look back through the thread whysnow was the biggest cheerleader.

Maybe he was an accomplice?

Maybe he has the missing $500,000!?

This is all just crazy speculation of course, just like the idea that anyone is going to get any financial compensation out of an unemployed man with 5 children,a flooded home and zero assets.

Dream on though. That's certainly what you were doing when you sent in 5 grand to a man in a barn for a game with awful art, a simple layout and lousy play.

The best thing a reporter could do is write "If you do not want to lose money DO NOT PREORDER PINBALL" somewhere in bold near the top.

43

0

-43

#16724 6 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Quoted from Whysnow:
I know you live local. If you ever want to reveal whom you are in real life rather than hiding behind an internet avatar, I would love to meet up and play some pinball. I am guessing you would not make up such outlandish claims if you came out from hiding and actually interacted IRL.
With your avatar initials and recent increased trolling, it is sad to see that this is what you have become online when you used to be a worthwhile contributor.

Down Simba!

I'm not insinuating you have 500k in Predator deposits. That's as preposterous as thinking that Kevin has 500k to give back, much less a pot to piss in.

How many more years will this drag out and for what? To put an adult babysitter of 5 behind bars for his business ineptitude?

13

0

-13

#16727 6 years ago

ASS

guyincognito

Inactive member

11y 61,800 1,353

Look, all whysnow and I are saying is that there has to be some personal responsibility assumed for taking a chance on pre-ordering a game from a guy with no commercial experience producing a large run of a major licensed title.

Quoted from Whysnow:
We all need to also keep in mind that ANYONE that paid even a penny over the 1k deposit needs (on their own and so long as not lied to about game being ready to ship) to take on some blame in this situation. These people opted to pay in more than needed for their own personal reasons (jump the line, get a game sooner, etc...) but those funds enabled this all to go on/ go on longer. So sick of all the people in this hobby taking no personal accountability for anything in life.

By Xerico

9 years ago

Topic Stats

You

Find in topic

Linked Games

Topic Gallery

Topic index (key posts)

Reply

Hey there! Welcome to Pinside!