Dirtypool Pinball - PODCAST - An Exploration Of The Pinball Industry

▶ Full Dirty Pool Podcast Playlist https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLS9lWVjGsygallsiz2_TJ_oxIlhl29fLC&si=iLC8oBnZfl_U7pJj Mike Vinikour (MXV) has had one of the more unusual careers in pinball. From testing games at Williams/Bally Midway during the arcade era, to competitive Mortal Kombat, to helping shape modern Stern Pinball software and rules, he's been involved with games from several di...

▶ Full Dirty Pool Podcast Playlist https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLS9lWVjGsygallsiz2_TJ_oxIlhl29fLC&si=iLC8oBnZfl_U7pJj Jason Knapp of Knapp Arcade joins Dirty Pool Podcast to talk about running one of the few dedicated pinball news sites still trying to keep track of the hobby in real time. We get into pinball journalism, how stories are chosen, how much work goes into keeping information...

▶ Full Dirty Pool Podcast Playlist https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLS9lWVjGsygallsiz2_TJ_oxIlhl29fLC&si=iLC8oBnZfl_U7pJj Steve Bowden has one of the stranger paths through modern pinball. Tournament player. Broadcaster. Rules analyst. Designer. deeproot employee. American Pinball employee during one of the company’s rougher stretches. A lot of the modern hobby overlaps with Steve somewhere...

▶ Full Dirty Pool Podcast Playlist https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLS9lWVjGsygallsiz2_TJ_oxIlhl29fLC&si=iLC8oBnZfl_U7pJj The P3 has carved out a very different lane in modern pinball. Swappable modules, a ball tracked LCD playfield, physical mechs, and a platform that approaches game design from a completely different angle than most traditional machines. Gerry joins the Dirty Pool Podcast...

▶ Full Dirty Pool Podcast Playlist https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLS9lWVjGsygallsiz2_TJ_oxIlhl29fLC&si=iLC8oBnZfl_U7pJj It's podcast time with RAYDAY! Raymond Davidson of Stern Pinball known for titles like Rush, Metallica Remaster and of course Fall of the Empire. We’re lining up topics around rules design from a player mindset, how code evolves after location testing, and how modern game...

▶ Full Dirty Pool Podcast Playlist https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLS9lWVjGsygallsiz2_TJ_oxIlhl29fLC&si=iLC8oBnZfl_U7pJj We’ve got Kaite Martin joining the Dirty Pool Podcast. You may know her from Scorbit, NYC Pinball, or from helping keep the New York scene visible and active. We’re digging into tournament culture, media coverage, what it takes to grow pinball in a major city, and how new...

▶ Full Dirty Pool Podcast Playlist https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLS9lWVjGsygallsiz2_TJ_oxIlhl29fLC&si=iLC8oBnZfl_U7pJj 💰 Kaneda’s Pinball Podcast http://www.patreon.com/kanedapinball Back to the table with another long-form conversation, this time with Chris Kooluris from Kaneda’s Pinball Podcast. Starting with where that voice comes from and how unfiltered commentary fits into a hobby t...

▶ Full Dirty Pool Podcast Playlist https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLS9lWVjGsygallsiz2_TJ_oxIlhl29fLC&si=iLC8oBnZfl_U7pJj I sit down with the highest ranked pinball player in the world, Jason Zahler, to get into what competitive pinball actually looks like at that level. We get into his early start, climbing to number one, how he approaches tournaments, what separates top players from everyo...

▶ Full Dirty Pool Podcast Playlist https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLS9lWVjGsygallsiz2_TJ_oxIlhl29fLC&si=iLC8oBnZfl_U7pJj Abe Flips from AbeFlips.com joins the Dirty Pool Podcast to talk about his new instructional series Mastering Pinball and the state of modern pinball education. Abe has become one of the most respected teachers in the hobby through his clear breakdowns of real control tec...

🎧 Dirty Pool Podcast - Full Episode Archive youtube.com/playlist?list=PLS9lWVjGsygallsiz2_TJ_oxIlhl29fLC Ron Richards joins to talk about the origin of Scorbit, the platform that lets pinball machines report their own scores. What started as a way to automatically capture game results became a hardware system that does much more. The Scorbitron reads score data from the game and sends it to the c...

▶ Full Dirty Pool Podcast Playlist https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLS9lWVjGsygallsiz2_TJ_oxIlhl29fLC&si=iLC8oBnZfl_U7pJj ▶ Previous Episode https://youtu.be/3yPvvL4yUYs?si=pw4ls-3WfSKiAJba This one isn’t about defining pinball culture. It’s about exploring what it means to different groups and why those meanings don’t always line up. Episode 25 of the Dirty Pool Podcast features Cliff Alber...

Pinball artist Christopher Franchi joins the show to talk about designing art for fast-moving, physical games where nothing stays still and everything has to read instantly. We get into how pinball’s mechanical constraints shape composition, how Spooky Pinball’s visual identity comes together, and why horror themes only work when restraint is part of the design. Franchi breaks down collaboration w...

This episode traces Total Nuclear Annihilation from its earliest idea through to a finished production game. Scott Danesi walks through how TNA started as a very specific reaction to modern pinball, how the layout, rules, sound, and scoring all evolved together, and what had to change once it moved from a personal project into a real commercial product. We talk early prototypes, design compromises...

Ryan Gratzer from Pinball Map drops by to untangle how the world’s most obsessive pinball location tracker actually works and how your favorite arcades lineup changes the second you visit. This one digs into Ryan's pinball origins, community reporting, app evolution, and the odd psychology of people who will happily move a mountain to report a broken slingshot but won’t like, comment and subscribe...

Bug from Spooky Pinball joins to break down the creative chaos behind Beetlejuice, from shaping the theme into a playable world to the collaboration across design, code, art, and sound that gives the game its personality. We talk problem-solving during development, how rules evolve once players get their hands on the machine, and what it takes for a boutique studio to ship something this ambitious...

Counterflip absolutely makes the best pinball t-shirts... Shea sits down with us and we get into everything from his pinball favorites to why making a genuinely good T-shirt feels like a boss battle. We talk about how printing goes wrong, how his first business attempt at 15 tanked spectacularly, and how he rebuilt it into Counterflip by focusing on real quality instead of the disposable stuff mos...

What does it take to build the brain behind modern pinball? Aaron Davis, founder of FAST Pinball, joins the show to talk about designing the hardware that powers homebrews, boutique manufacturers, and the next generation of game coders. We dig into the origins of the FAST platform, how open hardware changed the indie landscape, and what it really means to make a control system reliable enough for...

Brad Albright is the creative force behind the 2D layered art of Winchester Mystery House, bringing the entire cabinet, playfield, and backglass to life with his signature dimensional style. His work bridges vintage illustration and modern surrealism—capturing the mansion’s eerie beauty while still keeping it fun and tactile. In this episode, Brad talks about how his multi-layered approach evolved...

The next stop in our Winchester Mystery House series introduces Eric Priepke — the software engineer and programmer behind the house’s mind-bending code. From scripting the complex logic that ties every haunted room together to balancing the chaotic layers of light, sound, and animation, Eric helped the house come alive in ways that only a true programmer could appreciate. His precision work is wh...

The first in a new series diving into the artists, engineers, and mad scientists behind Winchester Mystery House. We sit down with UI artist, 3D modeller, and graphic designer Joshua Clay to talk about what it takes to shape the look and feel of Barrels of Fun’s most ambitious game yet. From haunting interface layouts to the subtle textures that bring the mansion’s ghostly charm to life — this epi...

For months, we’ve been quietly building something inside the walls of Barrels of Fun. The doors are finally open. Introducing Winchester Mystery House Pinball, the next major release from Barrels of Fun, designed by Karl DeAngelo in his debut as a pinball designer. This behind-the-scenes feature pulls back the curtain on the months of development that went into the game’s haunting atmosphere, from...

Rob Berk has been the face behind Pinball Expo since 1985, curating a gathering that’s become the longest-running pinball show on the planet. From hosting early designers who rarely shared stories in public, to shaping the culture of how collectors, vendors, and fans come together, Rob’s influence is unmatched. We dig into what it’s like to create an event of this scale, how the Guinness World Rec...

Tom Graf of Fox Cities Pinball joins the Dirty Pool Podcast to share what it takes to set up and run tournaments without losing your cool. From the logistics of organizing events to the art of staying calm when things get hectic, Tom breaks down his approach and why his relaxed style works so well. We also touch on his background and the Fox Cities Pinball stream, rounding out a look at how one of...

I went to Stern for a media day event and spent hours meeting the crew, playing Star Wars Fall Of The Empire, and hanging with tons of other creators. Along with a full factory tour, I’m now fully briefed on all things Spike 3 and Star Wars. Fire your questions away and join me as we watch Stern’s live reveal of the game and talk about it together. 🔺 Praise the Great Pyramid: 📡 Twitch – twitch.t...

Mark Seiden joins the Dirty Pool Podcast to talk about his journey from homebrew designer to working at Jersey Jack Pinball. We dive into his creative process, what it’s like designing Avatar, and how collaboration shapes modern pinball design. From early influences to the nuts and bolts of game rules, this episode explores how Seiden’s unique vision fits into the pinball landscape today. 🔺 Prais...