I was thinking in line of manufacturers doing announcement (or at least support/allow their country distributor to do so) of their upcoming/new titles & reveals, just like at TPF & (the old) Pinball Expo.
We’ve had Jersey Jack come out here a few times, which is fantastic, but our events/expos feel amateurish in comparison.
Quoted from ausretrogamer:I was thinking in line of manufacturers doing announcement (or at least support/allow their country distributor to do so) of their upcoming/new titles & reveals, just like at TPF & (the old) Pinball Expo.
We’ve had Jersey Jack come out here a few times, which is fantastic, but our events/expos feel amateurish in comparison.
I have attended numerous pinball events in many countries and I think that Australian Newcastle Pinfest is without doubt world best. Six years running and better every year.
There are manufacturers as well as distributors displaying new products at this event. Every brand including new ones are usually represented in some way. It doesn't need the actual manufacturer to attend and often there is a deal done where the local distributor 'flies the flag' for the actual manufacturer.
The upcoming event in Newcastle has Gary Stern as a keynote speaker among others. Surely that qualifies?
I can only assume you haven't been to it or you mean something else by your post?
I think for that to happen you would need to find a group of collectors who are disengaged from the local pinball politics that goes on down here and are not only willing to put up machines to bolster attendance numbers but would also need to withstand the fallout that will occur when they refuse to allow the local hierarchy to interfere with its organisation and implementation.
The current existing public pinball events down here are typically held for an ulterior motive (promoting themselves, promoting the local forums, flogging off beat up container pins in a public auction) rather than the primary goal of promoting pinball itself to the general public. This is why they lag behind our North American/European counterparts and always will.
Newcastle Pinfest may be considered by some as the front runner in a very small existing field but they need to sever the apron strings from the local forum if they ever want to attain anything remotely approaching world's best classification.
Above all, pinball in Australia needs to expand dramatically beyond its current clique status and place a much heavier emphasis on attracting new entrants. Broaden the userbase, lose the closed shop hierarchy mentality and the overseas pinball manufacturers will see untapped potential market growth and begin to take a much greater interest in what is happening in the antipode.
Quoted from Homepin:I have attended numerous pinball events in many countries and I think that Australian Newcastle Pinfest is without doubt world best. Six years running and better every year.
There are manufacturers as well as distributors displaying new products at this event. Every brand including new ones are usually represented in some way. It doesn't need the actual manufacturer to attend and often there is a deal done where the local distributor 'flies the flag' for the actual manufacturer.
The upcoming event in Newcastle has Gary Stern as a keynote speaker among others. Surely that qualifies?
I can only assume you haven't been to it or you mean something else by your post?
Have heard good things about Newcastle Pinfest. Haven’t attended personally, but one of our contributors will be there in a few weeks, so I’ll be keen to hear/see/read what he files for us.
Quoted from pinsanity:I think for that to happen you would need to find a group of collectors who are disengaged from the local pinball politics that goes on down here and are not only willing to put up machines to bolster attendance numbers but would also need to withstand the fallout that will occur when they refuse to allow the local hierarchy to interfere with its organisation and implementation.
The current existing public pinball events down here are typically held for an ulterior motive (promoting themselves, promoting the local forums, flogging off beat up container pins in a public auction) rather than the primary goal of promoting pinball itself to the general public. This is why they lag behind our North American/European counterparts and always will.
Newcastle Pinfest may be considered by some as the front runner in a very small existing field but they need to sever the apron strings from the local forum if they ever want to attain anything remotely approaching world's best classification.
Above all, pinball in Australia needs to expand dramatically beyond its current clique status and place a much heavier emphasis on attracting new entrants. Broaden the userbase, lose the closed shop hierarchy mentality and the overseas pinball manufacturers will see untapped potential market growth and begin to take a much greater interest in what is happening in the antipode.
Pinsanity – why the continual hatred mate? My suggestion is move on with life whatever has happened in the past and enjoy the good things. That aside, I disagree with you comments. Some recent examples follow of events that have been either arranged and/or advertised well outside Aussie Arcade or Aussie Pinball – that said, the forums are one aspect of communication that are well used by people. You seem to suggest that unless you are ‘in the group’ or part of the forum, then you have no access to any events as they are held as a big secret. In my opinion, nothing is further from the truth. Maybe provide me with some recent examples as I may be wrong.
I am aware of one recent ‘invite only/exclusive’ event…..however, this was for a blokes 40th Birthday, and I’m pretty sure when its your birthday party you can invite who you want (in this case 100 plus pinheads), and not open it to everyone.
Recent non clique events that (to my knowledge) were not held for ulterior motives – and yes, these will be skewed towards Qld as that’s where I live:
Brisbane Masters – To date, Australia’s largest IFPA comp, approx. 130 competitors – quite a few of which were first timers and had a blast. I spoke to numerous other competitors who were not part of any forums and/or rarely contribute or view who heard about it through friends and/or facebook and some local promotions such as radio or flyers.
Townsville Winter Carnival - small event that I started as an 8 person comp a few years back – this year we had over 40 people over a few days. Promoted through Oz wide Facebook site, forums and local facebook groups and word of mouth. Flow on from this has been a local casual monthly comp start up with 15-30 regulars turning up. These include partners, kids and 90% of attendees have no idea of any internet forums to do with pinball. All advertising is through our local (anyone is welcome to join) facebook group, and I throw some comments on the forums to show things are active. This has also had a huge flow on effect, as one of the guys got so enthused, he has bought a heap of machines, partnered with a local guy and they have open a pinball and arcade bar. Tonight is the first organised comp – and of the people who have stated they are going on facebook, most are newbies to local pinball comps. The owner has also opened up the bar during unlicensed hours once a month to encourage kids and families to get into the hobby.
Local Brisbane monthly/fortnightly comps – yep, these are advertised a fair bit through AA, however also through local facebook pages and in various establishments – quite a few of the times I have attended these events, there are people that who have heard about them through friends, facebook or during visiting a location where the machines are sited. I know the Pinball Grotto on the Gold Coast comp series are also well advertised outside AA, with a big focus on attracting new people to the hobby, including training/familiarisation sessions where you can get tips and tricks from more experienced people.
Melbourne Matchplay – advertised through various facebook sites, plus forums – open to anyone.
Melbourne Flipout - yep, a distributor is running this event, so he prob wants to get sales no doubt. But it is open to the public and a great opportunity to play plenty of new machines that many wouldn’t otherwise get the chance. Plus plenty of the locals donate their own machines for the event.
Pinball Expo a few years ago in Sydney – was open to all and anyone, including some sellers/distributors that were out of favour with a few people, and was a great event all around. I spent most of the 3rd day helping the organiser to welcome people at the door – I was asked to question how and where they heard about the event. While I don’t have the written figures in front of me to quote, it was very surprising – the top reason from memory was a huge flyer on the freeway – most people did not hear about it through forums.
Pinfest – most of the advertising I see is done well outside the forums, and I am certainly not aware of any ‘exclusive’ parts of this event – and it is firmly focussed on a family friendly atmosphere with exposure of pinball as a hobby as the main idea.
So not really sure where you are getting the idea that every (or most) gatherings in Australia are secret and controlled by people who run forums. Of the above, the first 3 are completely run by volunteer enthusiasts with no financial interest – I can certainly assure you the events I run and assist with locally cost me money and plenty of time.
To those outside Australia, hopefully this provides some balance, and if you are heading over this way, sing out as there are plenty of regular fun filled events happening that are open to everyone – sure they are not to the scale of many US events, but things have progressed a lot in the last few years. For me personally, I initially went to these events for the pinball, now I have formed many genuine friendships because of them, and look forward to catching up with people more than the gameplay or hobby in many cases.
To anyone else in Australia who is a collector or entusiast and not sure where to start, do what I did – have a few people over for a casual get together, gauge interest for further events, and go from there. We went from 1 event every year with less than 10 people, to now 2 regular monthly comps at different venues, plus 2 major events every year. This has involved at least 200 or so new faces over the last couple of years (in a city of 180 000, so not huge population), and interest in the hobby has increased a lot.
Quoted from pinsanity:Contact swinks - he can provide you with plenty of background info on how that place operates.
I can only speak from my own experience - I rediscovered pinball in 2013 (thanks to Norbert Snicer for bringing pinball to non-pinball events, like Supanova), and since then we have met great people in the community which has helped in bringing pinball to the biggest pop culture / gaming event in the southern hemisphere, PAX Aus (in Melbourne). PAX Aus attracts over 60,000 attendees each year, and I can tell you they absolutely love the Classic Gaming area, especially the pinball section.
I can't speak highly enough of the guys that volunteer their time and their pinball machines, as those three days at PAX Aus get quite hectic (very long hours (9am till 11pm)). We are doing our bit to showcase and bring pinball to non-pinball peeps, and it seems to be working (anecdotal evidence), as more and more establishments are routing pinball machines due to their patrons asking for them.
If you are in Melbourne at the end of October (Oct 26 to 28), I would recommend you come along to PAX Aus and see for yourself the excitement on patrons faces when they come in and see (old and new) pinball machines, arcade machine and very old gaming systems. We (the collective of the Classic Gaming at PAX Aus) ensure that the area is friendly, inclusive, educational and fun - no egos or cliques.
Quoted from ausretrogamer:I can only speak from my own experience - I rediscovered pinball in 2013 (thanks to Norbert Snicer for bringing pinball to non-pinball events, like Supanova), and since then we have met great people in the community which has helped in bringing pinball to the biggest pop culture / gaming event in the southern hemisphere, PAX Aus (in Melbourne). PAX Aus attracts over 60,000 attendees each year, and I can tell you they absolutely love the Classic Gaming area, especially the pinball section.
I can't speak highly enough of the guys that volunteer their time and their pinball machines, as those three days at PAX Aus get quite hectic (very long hours (9am till 11pm)). We are doing our bit to showcase and bring pinball to non-pinball peeps, and it seems to be working (anecdotal evidence), as more and more establishments are routing pinball machines due to their patrons asking for them.
If you are in Melbourne at the end of October (Oct 26 to 28), I would recommend you come along to PAX Aus and see for yourself the excitement on patrons faces when they come in and see (old and new) pinball machines, arcade machine and very old gaming systems. We (the collective of the Classic Gaming at PAX Aus) ensure that the area is friendly, inclusive, educational and fun - no egos or cliques.
Now that sounds like a great event which truly fits the criteria of a world's best classification.
I think this is where domestic pinball needs to be positioned to expand domestically and at the same time attract greater overseas interest at all levels. By attaching itself to a much larger userbase, then piggybacking off that larger attendance base, marketing and word of mouth not only assists with publicity so unlike dedicated local pinball events it also ensures that any of the existing pinball egos can't dominate and control the narrative for their own agenda.
Your efforts in the Victorian scene to expand the hobby base to a wider range of participants are admirable and perhaps it is wishful thinking but it would be great to see more Vic pinball guys show their support here for you publicly.
We can’t even get manufacturers to come to Canada - literally next door - and you want them to come to Australia?
Quoted from jwilson:We can’t even get manufacturers to come to Canada - literally next door - and you want them to come to Australia?
I have seen your customs, knock more people back then allow to enter
If you have a DUI from 7 years ago you cant even enter
It is very difficult for manufactures to outside of the US, it is a customs nightmare for all of them. They do support shows outside of the US but sending stuff but normally do not physically show up to these events.
Quoted from ausretrogamer:I was thinking in line of manufacturers doing announcement (or at least support/allow their country distributor to do so) of their upcoming/new titles & reveals, just like at TPF & (the old) Pinball Expo.
We’ve had Jersey Jack come out here a few times, which is fantastic, but our events/expos feel amateurish in comparison.
We only have 25 million people here and 20,000km away from the usa, looks like we will have 2 manufacturers at Flipout
Quoted from Ballypinball:We only have 25 million people here and 20,000km away from the usa, looks like we will have 2 manufacturers at Flipout
Definitely looking forward to Flipout 2018! Loved the first one (2016), but missed out last year (new family arrival kept us busy). Buying a couple of tickets as we speak - bringing along my brother-in-law as he is now into pinball and looking for his first machine. I've recommended Mr Pinball as I was happy with my AFMR LE purchase (and subsequent service).
PS: I hope the t-shirts will be available for purchase at the event!!!
Quoted from robm:Recent non clique events that (to my knowledge) were not held for ulterior motives...........
Go to any show in the US and you'll experience much better examples of a public pinball event.
Quoted from Ballypinball:If you have a DUI from 7 years ago you cant even enter
LOL is there a story you want to tell us all about here...?
Quoted from DonnieDarko:LOL is there a story you want to tell us all about here...?
I can verify that is true. It happened to a friend.
Quoted from MrBally:It happened to a friend
I was more interested to hear about when Wayne was busted for being DUI... 
Quoted from pinsanity:Go to any show in the US and you'll experience much better examples of a public pinball event.
No problem at all with that statement, however your previous post had a tone about it suggesting that all events held in Australia were closed shop unless you were part of an exclusive club. I gave examples where that certainly isn't the case.
All areas of the hobby have potential to improve and welcome new entrants. Follow up from my post about a local event held in a public setting - all advertising done through local social media and direct emails - had 21 people play, and approx 10 of those it was their first ever comp. 6 of those 10 are definetly coming to another local month comp this Friday at a different venue. We made sure we provided support and ideas for gameplay and what some basic rules were for the newbies and they all had a blast. Starting small, no doubt how all the US events started.
Quoted from robm:No problem at all with that statement, however your previous post had a tone about it suggesting that all events held in Australia were closed shop unless you were part of an exclusive club. I gave examples where that certainly isn't the case.
No tone at all, that's just some people choosing to get overly defensive after reading some shortcomings of the local scene and then trying to conflate a series of separate observations into one all encompassing indictment.
Quoted from DonnieDarko:I was more interested to hear about when Wayne was busted for being DUI...
Not me just watching too much tv shows
Quoted from pinsanity:No tone at all, that's just some people choosing to get overly defensive after reading some shortcomings of the local scene and then trying to conflate a series of separate observations into one all encompassing indictment.
Well i am confused then. If you state there is no tone suggesting that most or all events in Australia were closed shop in one post, yet in a previous post you stated:
Quoted from pinsanity:I think for that to happen you would need to find a group of collectors who are disengaged from the local pinball politics that goes on down here and are not only willing to put up machines to bolster attendance numbers but would also need to withstand the fallout that will occur when they refuse to allow the local hierarchy to interfere with its organisation and implementation.
and
Quoted from pinsanity:I
The current existing public pinball events down here are typically held for an ulterior motive (promoting themselves, promoting the local forums, flogging off beat up container pins in a public auction) rather than the primary goal of promoting pinball itself to the general public.
and
Quoted from pinsanity:Above all, pinball in Australia needs to expand dramatically beyond its current clique status and place a much heavier emphasis on attracting new entrants. Broaden the userbase, lose the closed shop hierarchy mentality and the overseas pinball manufacturers will see untapped potential market growth and begin to take a much greater interest in what is happening in the antipode.
To my mind (and happy to admit if i'm wrong), but the tone/suggestion of the above sections of your post is that all or most events are closed shop, influenced significantly by an exclusive club or are held for motives other than the fun of pinball or raising awareness of the hobby. So i countered this suggestion with recent examples of some small and some larger events where this is not the case.
You also suggest that some people (i'm possibly assuming you mean me, since i'm the one replying to your posts?) have been overly defensive about shortcomings of local events. Maybe... however i like to think i'm pretty open to new ideas - in fact after our monthly and larger local events in Townsville, i always take the time to talk to new participants during and after the event and find out what they are enjoying, what they think could be improved, and if they ever feel uncomfortable and what else could we do to improve. We are also looking at doing education sessions on gameplay and rules, as well as opening up venues for families outside of normal hours to encourage kids and families as a unit to play together. On the flip side, people who put a lot of time, effort, money and other resources into events probably do get a bit defensive when someone makes an all encompassing suggestion that all or most events in Australia are held for individual profit or as part of an exclusive club. I personally know plenty of the organisers of large and small events who gain absolutely nothing from the event, but do put a heap of their own effort, time and money into it - they do it because they love pinball and are trying to promote it. They don't have a product to sell, agenda to push or wish to be put on a pedestal.
I completely agree with your statement that overseas do it better in many cases - hence why we are locally trying to put more events on, in more venues, with different people for the benefit of the hobby. Doing these activities of thing will help, making statements that all events are closed shop will not help progress the local scene.
Quoted from pinsanity:Contact swinks - he can provide you with plenty of background info on how that place operates.
I'm sure he knows heaps from the 3 weeks he was involved in the first one held 7 years ago and that's all I'm going to say about that.
Anyhow on a positive note, Newcastle Pinfest is on this weekend raising money for local charity again. This year it's at a new, bigger venue at Club Macquarie Lake Road Argenton. See the flyer for details
32767430_1536128999848940_5464460837429182464_n (resized).jpgQuoted from blue95:I'm sure he knows heaps from the 3 weeks he was involved in the first one held 7 years ago and that's all I'm going to say about that.
Anyhow on a positive note, Newcastle Pinfest is on this weekend raising money for local charity again. This year it's at a new, bigger venue at Club Macquarie Lake Road Argenton. See the flyer for details
[quoted image]
Wish I was going. I’ll live vicariously through the Facebook event page.
Quoted from ausretrogamer:Wish I was going. I’ll live vicariously through the Facebook event page.
Yes you could have been wearing a Flipout Tshirt 
Quoted from blue95:There's a few Victorians on their way with machines, plus some flying in, so one might appear
We Offered a Pirates and Houdini but you are already Full
Is the new venue Licensed this year
Quoted from blue95:I'm sure he knows heaps from the 3 weeks he was involved in the first one held 7 years ago and that's all I'm going to say about that.
That was fortuitous then. Any longer and you run the risk of turning into just another matching tshirt wearing drone toeing the party line.
On that note, this should be the first year that attendees are permitted to give honest reviews about Thunderbirds on pinside without threats of banning (or imaginary international lawsuits) from AA.
Wait, what how's that work again?
Quoted from pinsanity:That was fortuitous then. Any longer and you run the risk of turning into just another matching tshirt wearing drone toeing the party line.
On that note, this should be the first year that attendees are permitted to give honest reviews about Thunderbirds on pinside without threats of banning (or international lawsuits ) from AA.
Wait, what how's that work again?
You sound like you would be an absolute blast to be around at a party. Such a ray of sunshine.
Quoted from FalconPunch:You sound like you would be an absolute blast to be around at a party. Such a ray of sunshine.
If you are looking for someone to simply parrot everything the local masters tell them to regurgitate, you've got the wrong person and the wrong forum.
Quoted from Ballypinball:Yes you could have been wearing a Flipout Tshirt
well played
Quoted from blue95:Here are some photos of Pinfest 2018 set-up and testing day. All ready to go for tomorrow morning.
https://www.facebook.com/pg/NewcastlePinballAssociation/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1708624275932744
Whoa! Thanks heaps for sharing. Damn this is gonna be another awesome fest!
PS: love the Pinfest tees!
More pics, seemed to be a successful weekend
https://www.facebook.com/pg/NewcastlePinballAssociation/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1709804479148057
https://www.facebook.com/pg/NewcastlePinballAssociation/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1709814519147053
https://www.facebook.com/pg/NewcastlePinballAssociation/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1710921192369719
Fantastic stuff! Pinfest looked like it was a huge success. Thanks again for the links.
PS: Great to see that Norbert Snicer was there (one of the most generous & genuine people in pinball) 
Quoted from blue95:Seemed pretty good, was a new venue, so we were pretty happy with the response from the public. Hopefully the venue was happy with us and want us back again next time
I'd be surprised if the venue wouldn't want PinFest back for 2019! It is on the bucket list, so hopefully i/we will be able to make it in the near future. Well done and congrats once again!
Quoted from jwilson:We can’t even get manufacturers to come to Canada - literally next door - and you want them to come to Australia?
Jack's been to the last two flipouts ... so has Homepin .. Stern has had reps there .. if what you mean is they don't come to Ontario .. well then you are correct (not sure why it's the case)
Quoted from SquidVicious:Jack's been to the last two flipouts ... so has Homepin .. Stern has had reps there .. if what you mean is they don't come to Ontario .. well then you are correct (not sure why it's the case)
They saw the potential for market growth in Canada.
Homepin had to face reality sooner or later about the global market and not just rely on our limited local market down here who whilst great for the ego are terrible for the bank balance.
Ironically I said that advice from the start.
Quoted from ausretrogamer:I was thinking in line of manufacturers doing announcement (or at least support/allow their country distributor to do so) of their upcoming/new titles & reveals, just like at TPF & (the old) Pinball Expo.
We’ve had Jersey Jack come out here a few times, which is fantastic, but our events/expos feel amateurish in comparison.
Old topic, but yes, Stern even specially made a Venom Premium and airfreighted it here for the event
Pinside_forum_7766938_0 (resized).jpg
Quoted from blue95:Old topic, but yes, Stern even specially made a Venom Premium and airfreighted it here for the event
[quoted image]
Hoping to attend Pinfest in the near future
Wanna join the discussion? Please sign in to reply to this topic.
Great to see you're enjoying Pinside! Did you know Pinside is able to run without any 3rd-party banners or ads, thanks to the support from our visitors? Please consider a donation to Pinside and get anext to your username to show for it! Or better yet, subscribe to Pinside+!
This page was printed from https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/would-an-australian-pinball-expo-attract-manufacturers-from-the-us and we tried optimising it for printing. Some page elements may have been deliberately hidden.
Scan the QR code on the left to jump to the URL this document was printed from.
Townsville City
Toronto, ON
Paradise, NV