Arcade Collecting > Pinball

Steve Ritchie Speaks (again)

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LLUncoolJ:
I'd rather see them not pay the license fees and pour that money into the game itself. I'm not sure how much money the fee actually is on a per machine basis. Let's face it, some of the licensed themes actually take value away from machines in the long term. DM is a decent machine, but the theme is from a rediculous movie. The Shadow is another one, I don't want to look at that backglass, but it's a reasonably fun machine. Sometimes it makes sense. I'm sure Stern sold a shitload of Family Guys because of the theme. It's a pretty unremarkably playing machine. But just to crank out a machine for every movie or TV show that comes along isn't really a strategy. I have seen every episode of 24, but I wouldn't want that machine in my basement, and I doubt I'd play it a second time if I saw it in the wild.

But I guess the arguement to license or not to license is for another thread.

Jeff AMN:
The license argument has its reasons on both sides. The license is cheap, it's like $10 per game. The fact is, however, is that licensed games sell much more than the generic themes do. I'm not saying a generic theme can't work, because I think it can, but over the course of pinball history it has been the licensed titles that ops have gobbled up. The decision to go licensed titles only was one that was kind thrust upon Stern by the operators.

Jeff AMN:
Family Guy was a bad choice. The game design is great, but it's not a family friendly theme at all. Something that was popular at that time that would have sold better would have been Ninja Turtles (appeals to the mid-30s guys right down to the 4 year olds) or something similar. Shrek still gets asked for, from what I understand, so people do dig on the gameplay.

Stern's not wanting to work with Disney anymore is kind of unfortunate. A Pixar movie theme would be great. How many more quarter drops could they have picked up with Cars over NASCAR? I'm guessing quite a few, even though Cars isn't even one of the good Pixar films.

Not getting Harry Potter hurts too, but that was Rowling's decision, it wasn't for a lack of trying.

Jeff AMN:
Huh, recent estimates for home sales seemed to put it around 10%. Maybe figures thrown out there aren't all that reliable, so who knows.

All I know is that if they make a Ghostbusters pin, I'll buy it sight unseen.

shardian:
I would totally believe 25-30% direct home sales.  That's only like 1000-2000 pins per model! There are easily 1000 people in this country who buy a NIB pin each time a new one comes out.

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