American Homebrew: Our Plan to Save American Pinball
NOTE: EVERYTHING IN THIS STORY IS JUST SPECULATION AND CONJECTURE AND HAS NO BASIS IN FACT SO PLEASE DO NOT SUE ME DAVID FIX. WE CITED EVERYTHING WHERE APPLICABLE.
American Pinball might be in trouble. We actually don’t really know, but there are signs. One of them being that Dennis Nordman, the designer of pinball classics like Whitewater and formerly of American Pinball, accused them of not honoring his contract and outright lying in interviews about his game. On top of that, it seems like sales of their games haven’t been, well, what they want them to be. Their last game was Barry O’s BBQ Challenge. I mean, think about that. Even if you know nothing else about this company, their last game was called Barry O’s BBQ Challenge. Dude.
Their parent company, Aimtron Electronics LTD, seems happy to funnel money into American Pinball even if sales or popular opinion says otherwise. So, like, what is the end game here? Is Aimtron just looking to diversify by any means necessary? Will AP be shuttered in the next year, as some podcasters have suggested? Who am I asking these questions to? Is it you? DAD??
Re: American Pinball closing: I don’t want them to! Some American Pinball games are fun! I like Hot Wheels. The rest of their staff is full of awesome pinball people like Ryan McQuaid and Steve Bowden. So how do we save them? How do we fix this thing and get people to buy their games again? Let’s look to a little weird-ass label from Omaha, NE and how they took over the entirety of indie rock during the early 2000s.
Create the Saddle Creek Records of Pinball
For a little while, Saddle Creek Records was THE taste maker for a generation of hipster indie emos. Founded by Justin Oberst (brother of Conor) and Mike Mogis in the 1990s, they became a great model for independent record labels in a time when it was absolutely brutal to make it as an artist. Yes, other labels did this, but Saddle Creek had a roster of artists that reflected their values, which usually meant kinda sad, weird, and arty. Bands like Bright Eyes, Cursive, The Feint, and Rilo Kiley all sounded different, but they all had enough in common that pale kids in very tight t-shirts would sway awkwardly at their shows and buy all their cds. I should know, I was one of them for a time.
Saddle Creek was a success because they embraced a DIY ethos and defined their aesthetics through their music and not the other way around. They also had a tried and true way of finding new artists: they mined the local community. For a really long time, Saddle Creek bands were exclusively from Omaha. After that, they tried to find bands with a similar sensibility who had fallen through the cracks of the “mainstream.”
So who is that group in pinball? It’s simple. Homebrewers. Those guys are the Omaha of Pinball.
The Homebrew scene is more vibrant than its ever been
Not me taking this creepy ass pic of Gary and Seth Davis in front of the Homebrew section from my perch at the Nudge Booth.
There were 40 different homebrew games at expo this year. Some had original themes, most were licensed, but an overwhelming number were surprisingly awesome. Yes, you’ve heard about Tony Hawk, but there were a dozen games just as cool and full of innovation, to the point that we had Matt Benzik tasked with shooting just the homebrew section this expo.
The point is that this is a super vibrant community full of engineers, artists, and the people you need to make cool games. And guess what? They’re already doing your research and development. FOR FREE. So tap into that. And profit.
Create American Homebrew
Maybe this is, like, a separate entity from American Pinball proper, but in my mind, you just put all your efforts into this. Find a leader, someone either there internally like Steve Bowden or Ryan McQuaid, or get someone from the outside (see below) to run a stable of awesome fuckin’ homebrew designers. Pull the best ones straight outta expo. Grab their game, try and get the license or not, and make a super limited run of 100 and make them like the “collectibles” everyone in the Kaneda-verse seems to think they are. If you want to create FOMO, that’s how you do it. 100 LEs of Ghost in the Shell by Ed Owens? HELL YEAH BORTHER. SIGN ME UP.
Plus, you’d have this amazing group of people behind your project. Like, the homebrew community is SUPER supportive of each other. That is one of the biggest reasons I keep coming back to the homebrew section every year, the vibes are immaculate. People want to see what their friends did and how they improved their game! You’d have that energy behind all your projects. That’s cool as hell.
The licensing problem
Another great homebrew by that guy Glen and his cronies. Seriously, it plays like a “real” pinball machine, except it’s in better shape than most real pinball machines.
Yes, most of the best homebrews are licensed themes. So what? Use the money you’re saving on game design with brand-new designers to buy a couple of themes. Build a relationship with a licensor like a real, live company. Spooky does it! I feel like these themes are gettable. Especially when the prestige of 100 LE games is behind it. Find themes with super fans that are underserved COUGH ANIME COUGH and exploit it for profit.
OR, make them original themes. I know everyone would be kinda bummed if the Tony Hawk pinball theme became generic skateboard pin, but if you spent a little money on your own cool soundtrack and hired a graphic designer or two, you could pump out an original theme that would actually sell.
Who is the Conor Oberst of American Pinball?
I think if this extended metaphor is gonna make sense, what we mean by this is who is the artist/designer who is gonna lead the crew. Ideally, this person is both designing cornerstone games AND helping to produce the American Homebrew lineup, constantly fostering a new generation of pinball designers and creating a bunch of hits (and a few misses).
In my mind, we have three options for how to find Conor for AP: in-house, free agent, or poach somebody. Let’s break down all the best options.
The in-house option: Ryan Mcquaid
They already have an awesome option for a dude who knows the homebrew scene AND has made a great game, Sonic Spinball (that evidently can’t be made by AP because they don’t own the license sigh.) Ryan seems really smart, Sonic was super fun, and if they’re looking for a cost effective version that already understands how AP works on a business level, then he’s your guy, right?
The only obvious concern is that, well, he hasn’t released a commercially available pinball machine yet. That’s a big thing, especially when you need star power to draw people in. Let’s be real: Keith Elwin moves machines. Stern could release Schindler’s List: The Pinball and if Elwin designed it, I’d still probably get on a buy-early list. Ryan isn’t that sort of a name (yet).
The free agent option: Scott Danesi
Scott Danesi is the biggest homebrew success story there is. Total Nuclear Annihilation went from a basement game to a commercially successful machine that launched Scott into the pinball firmament. Total Nuclear Annihilation was so successful that Spooky RERAN it, something they haven’t done with any of their other games. When you ask a rando, more often than not that will be their favorite title from Spooky.
Plus, the dude is a legit genius. Not only is TNA a breakthrough modern-faux-retro in its design, but the art direction, music, and light show are all incredible as well. Scott is a successful DJ, understands pinball design, and can help foster a new generation of Danesis to do the same thing. Plus, you’d be getting a certified banger of a designer. People follow Scott from platform to platform. I know people who own a P3 ONLY because Scott designed the spiritual sequel to TNA, Final Resistance, for it. That’s star power, baby.
Currently Scott isn’t an in-house designer for anybody. Could you lure him out of pinball semi-retirement with a phat-ass check? COULDN’T HURT TO KICK THE TIRES ON THE OLE BOY!
Poach somebody option: Jack Danger/Keith Elwin/Brian Eddy/Steve Ritchie/Eric Meunier/Whoever
Here’s Jack and our boi Wedgehead right after I said, “Pretend I’m in my underwear!”
Ah yes, the tried and true approach: money! If Aimtron, and by extension Amereican Pinball, really want to make a splash, this is the best way. Stern has tons of amazing designers in-house currently, but it seems like Jack Danger and Keith “The Second Man Who Saved Pinball” Elwin would be the goals in this scenario. Both have name recognition, both have made absolute banger games, and both could use a multi-story mansion in a Chicago suburb.
The options don’t end there. Brian Eddy has created some of the most popular pinball machines of all time, rumor is that he’s next up at Stern, but what about after that? How about another favorite, Steve Ritchie? Could you lure him, badger-style, out of his JJP office? Probably not! But hell, we’re just spit-ballin’ here!
Try it
Look, evidently Ninja Eclipse has already sold out. If nothing else, that proves that people are willing to buy from companies that aren’t Stern, JJP, or Spooky. They’re HUNGRY for pins. American, you have capital and some vision. Let’s embrace it! Give Steve or Ryan the reigns and let American Homebrew soar. Use that name for free. Our gift to you! All I ask is for first rights on the Cowboy Bebop pin.
