Everyday in the arcade industry operators and manufacturers face the distinct and brutal reality of the arcade's waning popularity, but there is no facet of this industry more familiar with this visage of a doomed tomorrow than pinball. With only a single leading manufacturer, Stern Pinball who claim to be the "only REAL manufacturers of pinball machines in the world", it's little wonder pinball is a dying medium of entertainment. However, Jack Guarnieri has plans to try and change all that, or at the very least keep pinball in arcades.
There are two kinds of people in this world: people who do something and people who don't. After bearing witness to pinball's slow and agonising decline since the mid-1990s, Guarnieri decided that wasn't good enough, and began his own start-up business two years ago, Jersey Jack Pinball. Although some have laughed at his endeavours or called him crazy, Guarnieri has stuck to his dream as so many of his role models have. "What overcomes doubt," he says, "is the resolve and the passion and determination of people like Steve Jobs and Sam Walton, whether it's going over the hill in Normandy or whether it's building a freaking pinball machine."
Guarnieri's highly anticipated first title from Jersey Jack made a few rounds at the E3 and IAAPA trade shows in 2012, and there are currently fifteen test models on location across the US. The feedback so far has been very positive - and the test machines, according to Guarnieri, only demonstrate 30% of what the machine is!
With the support and talent of designer Joe Balcer and programmer Keith Johnson, and a massive team at Jack Jersey Pinball factory who all believe in Guarnieri's vision, no expense was spared in creating a game changing machine for pinball as we know it today, and have known it in its history that dates back to the 1920s. Guarnieri insists he tried not to let cost override the dream, "I just said, 'I want you guys to do the best thing you can.' The danger in that is that it almost never ends and you don't know what it's going to cost."
The end result of their work, effort and creative freedom is something unique in pinball to thrill long time fans and attract a new audience as well. Bypassing the usual guns, robots and guitar themes, Guarnieri settled on the Wizard of Oz, which has been recognised as the first "widebody" pin since the mid-1990s, and has attracted both men and women alike - in fact a majority of attracted players so far have been women, an uncommon audience for pinball. Also, Jersey Jack has put aside the old school features and gimmicks such as the static back glass art and dot matrix display, and has instead fitted each machine with a 26 inch widescreen monitor with full colour, cinema-grade animation display. Neither does the game have the conventional burn-out-able light bulbs, and uses RGB LED lights that can generate any hue, making this game a brightly coloured standout in any arcade. Not to mention, all the interactive toys on the playfield to capture the imagination, including a spinning house, a winged monkey, a melting witch, and a video displaying crystal ball that is Guarnieri's pride and joy.
Is it enough to save pinball? Maybe, and maybe not. The rise in home entertainment systems and consoles, as well as online gaming and smartphones has caused a kind of convenience and comfort few of us want to sacrifice for the pay to play machines. In saying that though, a 1,500 pre-order for a first title machine out of a small factory is incredibly encouraging.
The Wizard of Oz Jersey Jack pinball is retailing for $7000 USD and pre-ordered machines are expected to reach customers around mid-March. The next title from Jersey Jack is The Hobbit, scheduled for 2014 to coincide with the release of the last movie in Peter Jackson's latest trilogy.
If you'd like to see the pin in play, check out this video sourced from the Jersey Jack Pinball Youtube channel:
Via the DNA Association and news sourced from full character and company profile published on Slate.
