Seriously??

Have you watched Toy Story 3? It’s a classic, best in the series. It is the timeless classic of this gen

I think I disagree every statement in your post. I'll take it paragraph by paragraph. One, In my opinion The Hobbit is the best theme, yet is still the worst offering from JJP. Two, I think Toy Story is among the more timeless Disney brands. It's still in the top-100 on IMDB and has had already had two wildly popular sequels. With many animated squeals going straight to the home market, that has to count for something. Combine that with the new Disney park "Lands", it's among the most coveted Disney brands. Three, maybe I have my nostalgia goggles on, but it still looks pretty damn good to me. Perhaps the background trees and things like that look a bit dated. Four, see three. I think there is nostalgia for Toy Story. I'm 36 and was excited to watch the first two films when they were re-released in the theaters. Five, really, the only thing I agree with is that it will be difficult to match some of the emotion in the movies. Is isolation an emotion that's easy to portray in pinball? Nope. They will have to focus on the more fun and exciting moments, but with three films there is already quite a bit to work from. I felt the same way with the Walking Dead. I spoke about it being more of a character drama. Stern made it and didn't include any of the character drama, do people care? I don't think many do. Pinball machines take general themes and imagery from base material. Beyond that most just want good pinball.

I would also argue Toy Story has much more relevance than many titles being pumped out.

I will leave it for you to decide what those are, but many of the titles being pumped out do not have the depth like toy story

Let's quickly check in with the new Toy Story Land at Disney Hollywood Studios at (only!) 9:43am this morning...

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Yeah, no one gives a damn about Toy Story anymore.

How well did Family Guy do? From what I can tell it didn't do any better than Shrek despite not being a family theme. I think it's safe to say that Shrek did poorly not because of the theme, but more because it was a re-skin of an existing game, and an already not-so-great game at that.

And all those classic toys represent othe r license holders that need to be brought into the arrangement. Which is why you'll likely see generic versions, very limited examples or them just not included at all.

In your opinion, what licenses are best for pinball?

As always, theme matters to most individuals. It doesn't necessarily make the game, but it can be a turnoff.
I don't like the WOZ, but the pinball machine is actually a pretty good game. Family friendly themes like WOZ and Toy Story are well suited for pinball whether you're a fan or not. I have no interest in either of these themes or anything like them, but anybody can clearly see there's a market for them.

Toy story a bad license? Is it april fools?

If the pinball machine is even done remotely well, it would almost be a license to print money. Disney isn't stupid, the significant investment in Toy Story Land tells me that the well can be drilled deeper and Disney sees this as a long term opportunity.

No one goes to Disney World parks to play pinball machines, because no one in their right minds pays $75-100 for admission to then piss away the day by playing $1 coin drops in a corner of a room. People go into theme parks to experience the rides and shows, most of which are outside.

JJP has done a fantastic job approaching the home collector with themes that you don't have to hide from the kids or sensitive spouse. My mother and sister want me to get a WoZ. I personally enjoy Hobbit, and my girlfriend really enjoys DI. My son has watched the movie and thinks WoZ is a great machine. Fact is, I could pick any JJP game out of a hat and it would do well with my family and guests.

Not everything theme has to be an aging rock band or super hero. Toy Story came out in 1995, which means the kids that saw it back then are now in their mid-30s and probably have kids themselves and take them to the new movies. Add in the parents which took these 30-somethings back in 1995, and you now have a theme which can touch THREE generations. For untapped themes, not much else can compete.

Add in loads of source material, the fact that the pin's toys won't take much effort to look spot on, the good nature of the theme, all the different ways the rules can be designed, and that you currently have over 4x the downvotes to upvotes on your OP (on a pinball site!), and it's crystal clear that this is a theme that can work, and reach a wide audience. Not every child has a 5 min attention span and is consumed by their PS4.

Toy Story sounds like an awesome theme for a pinball machine as long as JJP has licensed assets from the films (including actor audio) to use. I hope either Toy Story or Willy Wonka is next for JJP and that it's not, or ever is, Guns and Roses. GNR has already been made and I don't see a new pin at JJP prices selling a ton.

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You didn’t answer my question. Haha. For those of us that don’t have the numbers please tell us the themes and licenses that are best for pinball.

Back to the Future would be a great license for pinball. So would Toy Story. Haha

Now that's funny!

Yeah. If they get no assets like they did for POTC, that will take me from buying to not buying. Fingers crossed they get it all.

Same here. Yeah for the prices JJP is charging, or any manufacturer offering an $8k+ model of a pin, I think licensed assets are a must. I would have bought a JJP Pirates if it had the licensed actor audio and actor video but without them all of the 125 chapter modes feel identical. All of the multiballs are similar as well, without licensed assets there's really nothing that makes the player feel like they are going through an event from each of the 5 movies. I was ready to sell my Star Wars LE for one but even with Pirates having the more loaded playfield the licensed assets in Star Wars and more unique rules led me to keep the game instead.

I’m not a huge fan of the hobbit license, but man they knocked it out of the park on theme integration there. Almost makes me want to buy it it’s so good.

It's all just a matter of preference but for me I'm not really excited for games that are based of Disney park stuff, things that would attract young kinds in an arcade, etc. When people show pictures of Disney park wait lines all I can think is a bunch of kids running around everywhere that don't have any money to buy games to begin with.

I prefer games with a little edge, a little sex appeal, humor that doesn't have to cross the line but needs a slight edge, etc. Music themes work great, any pg13 nostalgic movie that has good music, monster/horror themes, space/sifi, bars, billards, etc all make great theme options for me. Fortunately there are a lot of options for me to choose from in those categories. So if others are into Toy Story and want one that's certainly not a problem or me. Money saved in my mind. I feel more relieved then disappointed when someone makes a game I don't want lol.

As do I, and as do most of us probably. But only having that would result in me being the only one that plays the pins. Nothing wrong with having a family title every now and then.

you lost me at the "I love the hobbit game" part.

Totally not related to the original topic, but at SeaWorld there used to be an area where you could wait in line for free beer. At first I was like, "oh cool, free beer". Then I thought about the cost of the entry ticket and my limited time there. I walked over to a different vendor and just bought a beer and continued on with my day.

Saying JJP games are 8k+ is a joke POTC registered owners standard ed 5 registered owners CE and LE registered owners 84 JJP games are $9500 and up

Do you ever have anything good to say about JJP? No, lol. Also, I said any game in the $8k plus range, not just JJP. Stern LE's are now around $9k as well.

Toy story! I agree! Haha.

Yeah I hear ya on the themes that work. I happen to think Toy Story will do just fine if done right.

My wife pretty much likes the same things. MM, SS, Deadpool, and Met are her favorites. When we have family over kids are just smacking the buttons and flailing about and don't seem to really care about any of the themes that much. But maybe something a little fresher like Toy Story would draw them in, I'm not sure it would matter a lot though.

Seems like there is plenty of interest. I'm just one data point, I know a lot of folks that haven't really cared for any of the JJP themes yet but at the same time others seem to prefer them over stern themes. Options certainly are not a bad thing.

You have never heard me say a kind work for Stern LE games you want kind words for JJP the so called LE needs to be $7500

I’m sure ts will be a fun machine. I’m sure jjp will do a great job on a great theme. My only question is the price, how many will pay 8-10k for a kids theme? I don’t know, I’m honestly asking. Will a kids theme fit in enough collections? Looking at some other kids themes, they didn’t do as well as could have because they just didn’t fit. That’s my concern. Obviously potc as a Disney theme would be considered kids, but there is a darker theme to it. If ts is made in powder blue like jetsons, will it fit?

But it's not $7500 and it's also not going to start being $7500 because you are mad about it.

I have a Shrek pinball that I enjoy playing due to the sound bites and game play, while toy story is a grea series and my kids enjoyed it a bunch, I don’t se the draw for me, as mentioned WIlly Winka original would be more prone to a pinball machine in my opinion.

I'm going to wholeheartedly disagree with the OP on their labeling all kids as having no attention span for pinball. My kids are 6 and 10 and they love playing. My 6 year old son plays way more pinball at my house than he does video games. Don't just assume every kid falls into the same category. My kids even travel to pinball shows with me so we can play more and try out pins for our next purchase.

If we are going in for little kids themed machines from the 1990s,why not a Teletubbies game. Or maybe a Blues Clues or Barney machine?

Yeah, because that's not a leap or anything. SMH.

"What makes a good theme" threads are down near the bottom of the barrel.

I think the TS movies are overrated and the 3rd one pulled a major cop-out by not ending at the dump (the logical conclusion to any toy)

Buuuuuuuut.... To suggest it's a bad theme for pinball? And less relevant than Guns and Roses? You're nuts.

And it's JJP so at least the game called Toy Story will have... You know... TOYS in it. (instead of super busy artwork to hide how empty the game is)

Toy Story is a killer franchise. Why people equate it with only children is beyond me. I was 23 when it dropped saw it opening night in a theater packed with other 20 somethings. Everyone in there was blazed and rowdy it was a total party. Still an all time classic movie and is in no way dated, it's just as watchable today.

You think GNR is more relevant (as a license) than Toy Story? Wow. That tells me all I need to know about your ability to appraise what is good for JJP!

Toy Story is a classic, timeless license and Pat and team will likely product JJP's finest pinball machine. Dialed In was just a warm-up...and it's awesome.

snaroff

Here is my 2 cents.

I'm at Disney right now. The kids are in love all over again with Toy Story and I am sure alot of people on this forum have children. Also this will appeal to all demographics so it can be set to play at any location. Great opportunity for whomever makes this game. I will certainly puchase a minimum of 6 for the street and one for my home. I am not the norm but it will be well received by our customers and this is a license with longevity far beyond some of the others currently in production.

I just don't see it outselling WOZ if the Standard Toy Story is $8500 or above.

WOZ ECLE started at $6500 and also sold many for $7500 along with Standards around those prices. There just are not likely enough people out there that are spending $9000 on games to sell 4000 Toy Story games. It also does not help that the market is starting to get flooded with HUO games that are above $7000 used. People's gameroom's are full and selling something expensive and taking a decent sized loss to get something new and expensive is a losing proposition that people are going to get tired of doing.

Sure some JJP games are routed. But you are not going to see a lot of 9K pinball machines on location. It's just not a good business decision so I wouldn't really factor that small amount of sales in. You would be JJP's top customer if you spent $63000 on Toy Story games. Good for you and for your locations if you can do that, I don't see how it's profitable though. Add in that if the game has issues like most have you will have 7 down games to deal with all at once.

I think it could do quite well. Its a long running franchise, new one on the way.. It has a huge following for a wide age range
For on location it would draw allot of people in since most people are familiar with all the movies. Of course its junk, then it wont matter.
I hope it turns out well
ITs one I would like to play

Well, this thread is all about opinions and thats my opinion. I see the theme as one for little kids. Many of you see it differently, apparently.

Well then your opinion is one of a moron's because this thread is about a theme that transcends multiple generations, and you thought it drew a straight and logical connection to two shows aimed to preschoolers and babies.

I think Toy Story is the type of theme that pinball people are generally going to see as harmless and light fun that would also appeal to their families. Light fun and harmless is not going to be a must buy for most pinball buyers (men between the ages of 30 and 70) but I am sure there will be some that want to buy because it could provide a small bridge to get the family interested in playing some pinball. There also is a group of pinheads, as witnessed on this site, that would love to have a Toy Story pinball machine because they enjoy the theme and view it as a premium license.

You feel very strongly about Toy Story I see. Well, if youre gonna tell me my opinion is that of a moron, then your opinion is that of a man-child longing for a pin about a movie made for children. And this thread is actually about why it makes for a bad theme, which I agree with. I dont think it transcends multiple generations. I think the Randy Newman score is lame. I think its a bad idea. You can think what you want.

I don't know how anyone disagrees with that. RN is the goddamn worst.