(Topic ID: 177168)

Will Dialed In! make pinball more popular?

By solarvalue

7 years ago


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There are 95 posts in this topic. You are on page 1 of 2.
#1 7 years ago

It's obvious that Pat Lawlor is trying to incorporate many elements from modern life in his new pinball machine. There's the much-discussed phone and the drones on the playfield, the selfie mode and a new "emoji attack" mode. Will this help to draw in new people who are unfamiliar with pinball but might relate to these elements which they recognize from their daily lives?

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#2 7 years ago

Would only happen if the game gets enough public exposure. It's tough because operators would need to have it and place it in enough locations where enough non pinheads would play it (movie theaters, for example). The issue there is that operators would be more likely to put a movie themed pin (Hobbit, Star Wars) in a theater. The short answer would be "I hope so" but I think it's an uphill climb.

#3 7 years ago

Not sure. But reading about the strong reaction it generates - positive and negative- on Pinside will make my days at work go a helluva lot quicker.

#4 7 years ago

I think that the "what the hell is this?" Factor will bring interest.

Too many times Ive seen new blood walk by a pin, and make a comment because of
the theme that brings judgement first.....ie "I hate Kiss!", or "I love The Walking Dead!".
Most times its not enough to stop them to play.
Woz was different, Definitely the same comments, but the back box, and light show in a public setting appeared to attract people to put coin in.
Im guessing its still earning well.

Im hoping that the "show" and uniqueness, will attract new players, and things like the selfie mode....not ideal for home use pinheads.....will continue to bring laughs and interaction, as well as Bluetooth.

We may not need this, but new blood millennials will eat this up!

-7
#5 7 years ago

If pinball 2000 failed I don't see DI doing it

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#6 7 years ago
Quoted from JY64:

If pinball 2000 failed

Pinball 2000 didn't fail. It exceeded it's goals. But the powers that be were going to close the pinball division no matter what.

LTG : )

#7 7 years ago

"If you research the past, you can understand the present, and predict the future."

The greatest challenge for large scale DI success is getting more than a few wealthy homeowners to buy one.
Popularity is based on "word of mouth" in the public eye.
That is a very large hurdle now.
We are talking a price range of $8-12K.
Remaining operators are balking due to cost, except in high traffic areas, or dedicated remaining locations, and time to manufacture remains completely inconclusive.

Using Pinball 2000 is an improper comparison based entirely on market, operator, and manufacturer current circumstances.
I never understand why people state that Pinball 2000 was a failure, as this was not what occurred.
Read the history of the game, watch "Special When Lit" DVD, it will explain some of the aspects of the industry at the time.
That is just a simple way to learn the history.

Ultimately, this particular machine will be marginally successfully at minimum purely due to the current "buzz feed" on the hobby.
However, it will take more than 1000 machines for it to make its mark as a milestone in pinball history.
Otherwise, it will be simply known as "another JJP machine", regardless of this being the best of his offerings to date.

#8 7 years ago

No-

Pinball in arcades/barcades are a niche. The mechanical nature make them too much of an upkeep, and they don't attract kid as much as ticket machines. I would venture to say that without the home market pinball would be dead. I don't see this pin having super huge numbers in the home market.

AC/DC is probably the most popular pin the last 5 years, and it did not "save" pinball. I would say pinball is in much better shape than it was 10 years ago when Stern was doing layoffs, but I feel that it won't be any more popular than it is right now.

#9 7 years ago

Um.....no.

#12 7 years ago

A single glance at the image of a man holding a cell phone into the air and any millennial will be unable to stop themselves from emptying their pockets into this machine.

#13 7 years ago

No
one game will not save pinball

Wind the clock back, back to a time where we fell in love with these wonderful machines
yes, there was one game that drew us in, but what kept us coming back was the next game, would it be even better?

when I grew up, there was a machine at the local Fish & Chip shop.
looking back they had most of the classics there, but as a kid I did not care
what I did care about was that next month there would be a new game, new challenges

until there is a time where locations change the game on a monthly basis, then pinball will remain a niche market

#14 7 years ago

Lol, NO because operators cannot afford them for location. Only pinheads are buying these at the insane inflation rate that Jack and stern seam to think is a good idea.

#15 7 years ago

No, because:
- the younger pinball audience needs to get exposure to pinball, including Dialed In!, in the first place
- the industry needs more operators, who then have to put their pins at more locations that young people frequent
- however, the current high NIB pinball machine prices is an inhibitory factor for operators to make money on their purchases/investment
- and/or at $1 per game, would this inhibit the new/young perspective player from considering the pinball game, any game?

The bottom line is that the pinball interest is currently growing, but mainly in a niche gender and age group, and in order to expand this great game and hobby to the younger masses, the new pinball machine prices have to drop considerably so that operators have a reasonable business case to place pinball machines in more places for the young.

#16 7 years ago

If JJP starts making slot machines, that will point to DI being close to their last pin. Look how IT (Incredible Technologies) has grown their slot production lately.....

#17 7 years ago

Emoji attack? Yeah, it's going to make pinball way more popular with junior high school girls.

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#18 7 years ago

Old people trying to muscle in on what they think kids are into (Drones, lol) is always a mixture of sad and hilarious.

#19 7 years ago

Details matter....

#20 7 years ago

No

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#21 7 years ago
Quoted from TimeBandit:

Old people trying to muscle in on what they think kids are into (Drones, lol) is always a mixture of sad and hilarious.

This has been posted before, but it's too hilarious to not post it again.

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#22 7 years ago

I would like to try Dialed In, so I am open minded to it.

But obviously selling me another pin is not hard. Companies need to expand beyond us, and I don't know if Dialed In is it.

However JJP does have an ace-in-the-hole with Pindemption. Can Dialed In + Pindemption earn more on location than a typical pin?

Possibly.

#23 7 years ago

Zero chance......

#24 7 years ago

If the pig flying out of my butt stopped to play it... oh, but the arcade near me closed... and the other one is closing in February, so there will be nowhere to play it.

I probably won't see one on location within 200 miles of me. Maybe if I drive down to NYC or the Silverball Museum. There just won't be enough exposure to make a difference.

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#25 7 years ago
Quoted from frolic:

This has been posted before, but it's too hilarious to not post it again.

Hahaha if there is one pic that sums it up... yep, that's it.

#26 7 years ago

To be fair though it's far nearer the mark than Gottlieb's Punk ( December 1982 !! )

#27 7 years ago

No. Unfortunately pinball will remain obscure. Most kids don't even know what a pinball machine is. So so sad.

We live in a digital world and pinball sadly is from an analogue age. Pinball machines are relics, kept alive by those of us that are still wishing to cling to fond memories of our childhood growing up playing the silver ball. We play because we grew up with pinball. Our (us enthusiasts) kids might be exposed and catch the bug, but 99% of kids will have no exposure and therefore won't foster those fond memories or develop the love for pinball. They won't build the nostalgia we did.

There is nowhere for kids to experience pinball where it was meant to be experienced. Not in some middle class basement or wacky enthusiasts back yard shed. They are meant to be out in the wild, in a place where kids can spend there pocket money and play them after school and on weekends. Such a shame.

#28 7 years ago

Maybe if they put them in old folks homes.

#30 7 years ago

It's probably too early to tell, but I do think Dialed In has the potential to get a younger crowd back into pinball. Couple that with the JJP redemption add-on and the selfies, drone, cellphone, emoji's and other things the game has that are wildly popular with school aged kids and even a fair amount of adults, I do think all in all it has the potential to open some doors with a newer crowd. We'll just have to see how many of these start ending up in homes and on location.

If it tops WOZ and Hobbit sales, then we're starting to get somewhere. If Lawlor being on it also helps drive sales, who knows what could happen. He's the one who designed Addams Family (20,270 produced), Twilight Zone (15,235), FunHouse (10,750) Whirlwind (7300) and Road Show (6259) so I'd say his track record is good and people's expectations are very high. I'd guess in todays market, 3000-5000 will sell, but if it breaks 5000 produced/sold, then that will seal the deal.

#31 7 years ago

no chance, kids don't care, game won't be routed enough at that price to catch on anymore than a very localized way

#32 7 years ago

I'd say any new unique pinball machine would make pinball more popular in a very small way. Most people don't know that pinball machines are still being made. If people keep buying them and more are being bought than scrapped, there is a trickle down effect that more people will slowly be involved with pinball. To counter that though, more and more arcades and barcades are closing or getting rid of pinball that has exposure to the general public. I know a few middle-aged people that are getting themselves back involved that now know that pinball is making an effort for a come-back. Their kids get the exposure to it, but that younger generation is not getting much general exposure to all the great pinball nostalgia and new innovations.

JJP needs to get one of their pins in a headline movie or prominently in the background in a major commercial. Then people would say, "Oh, that's cool ... where can I get/play one of those?"

#33 7 years ago
Quoted from sevenrites:

I'd guess in todays market, 3000-5000 will sell, but if it breaks 5000 produced/sold, then that will seal the deal.

#34 7 years ago

I don't think it's going to hurt. The family friendly places I've gone to that have pinball machines have kids playing them which is a good thing. The problem is that there aren't many places like this that have a family friendly atmosphere and pinball. Typically pins are at bars. When we have friends with kids over to our house the kids are all over our machines. So they do like them. I guess it's an exposure issue.

#35 7 years ago

No shot.

The ROI is going to be brutal for most operators and the maintenance costs won't help that number.

The cherry on top is that most kids have no interest whatsoever.

I visit the Silverball Museum twice each month. The crowd is made up almost exclusively of 35-70 year old males. The lone exception is when a birthday party is being hosted.

#36 7 years ago
Quoted from Mike_J:

No shot.
The ROI is going to be brutal for most operators and the maintenance costs won't help that number.
The cherry on top is that most kids have no interest whatsoever.
I visit the Silverball Museum twice each month. The crowd is made up almost exclusively of 35-70 year old males. The lone exception is when a birthday party is being hosted.

None of the kids that come over and visit my 2 kids ever play our machines. They might play one game, then walk away without playing all 3 balls. Then I finish their game and shut off the machine. I agree, most young kids 18 and younger have ZERO interest in pinball. This is just my personal experience with kids coming over to our house to play with our kids. These kids range in age from 6 to 12 years old. They don't care about pinball at all. We currently have a WOZ and Stargate. We've also had a Space Invaders and a Star Trek Pro. Didn't seem to matter what machine or theme.

#37 7 years ago
Quoted from sevenrites:

It's probably too early to tell, but I do think Dialed In has the potential to get a younger crowd back into pinball. Couple that with the JJP redemption add-on and the selfies, drone, cellphone, emoji's and other things the game has that are wildly popular with school aged kids and even a fair amount of adults, I do think all in all it has the potential to open some doors with a newer crowd. We'll just have to see how many of these start ending up in homes and on location.
If it tops WOZ and Hobbit sales, then we're starting to get somewhere. If Lawlor being on it also helps drive sales, who knows what could happen. He's the one who designed Addams Family (20,270 produced), Twilight Zone (15,235), FunHouse (10,750) Whirlwind (7300) and Road Show (6259) so I'd say his track record is good and people's expectations are very high. I'd guess in todays market, 3000-5000 will sell, but if it breaks 5000 produced/sold, then that will seal the deal.

Hobbit isn't going to beat WOZ in sales so you're really just talking Dialed In vs WOZ and as much as I liked DI, and I do, and I'm getting one for myself, I would be very, very surprised if DI could outsell WOZ which, in case anyone doesn't know, is itself still being made today.

#38 7 years ago
Quoted from Pinballomatic:

I would be very, very surprised if DI could outsell WOZ which, in case anyone doesn't know, is itself still being made today.

ZERO chance DI or any other JJP ever outsells Woz. Too many were purchased at the bargain basement price of $6500, like mine.

No pin will ever sell thousands at $9500 delivered. Nope, not gonna happen.

UNLESS, you believe that you can buy a DI at $9500 and sell it for $10-$12k later? HUO LE's will be going for $7500-$8k this time next year. But that's true with BM66LE as well (except there are 240 versus 2500 LE's)

#39 7 years ago

the only thing that can safe pinball is us pinheads, we must let the youngsters fall in love with the game!
we can do it!
open up your game room for the neighbourhood, nephews nieces son dougthers etc
take your family to barcades etc.

#40 7 years ago

We should soon hear that there have been thousands of Dialed In deposits. Production is sold out through November, etc.

#41 7 years ago

Dialed In is geared toward young players (emoji, controlling flippers with phone etc) so it had better end up being appealing to them. I'm not sure that collectors are interested because of this fact but I want to be wrong as I'm a big fan of JJP.

#42 7 years ago

No I don't think it will but having said that my two kids aged 9 and 12 think the game looks great and are very keen to play it.

#43 7 years ago

Barrier to entry in terms of pricing is too high for all but the most dedicated operators to take the risk on ROI.

#44 7 years ago

Umm NO!
Maybe if the title was Harry Potter and the ...

#45 7 years ago

The first step in being cool to the younger kids, is to be annoying to older people.
Looks like JJP might be hitting it out of the park!

#46 7 years ago
Quoted from iceman44:

ZERO chance DI or any other JJP ever outsells Woz. Too many were purchased at the bargain basement price of $6500, like mine.
No pin will ever sell thousands at $9500 delivered. Nope, not gonna happen.
UNLESS, you believe that you can buy a DI at $9500 and sell it for $10-$12k later? HUO LE's will be going for $7500-$8k this time next year. But that's true with BM66LE as well (except there are 240 versus 2500 LE's)

I suspect JJP may have lost money on those $6500 games and you will never see a game with that many toys again.

#47 7 years ago
Quoted from Pinballomatic:

Would only happen if the game gets enough public exposure. It's tough because operators would need to have it and place it in enough locations where enough non pinheads would play it (movie theaters, for example). The issue there is that operators would be more likely to put a movie themed pin (Hobbit, Star Wars) in a theater. The short answer would be "I hope so" but I think it's an uphill climb.

Agree

#49 7 years ago

"Will Dialed In! make pinball more popular?"

No chance.

#50 7 years ago

No. My prediction is that there won't be a single D.I. on location in France. Exposure will be minimal. At this cost collectors won't dare bringing this pin to festivals (keep in mind we have to swallow a 20% sales tax on top of that, and a exchange rate getting worse every month). All you can hope is to see one on display by a distributor...

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