Wedgehead Pinball Podcast Wedgehead

It's the year 1980, and the US Olympic Hockey team shocks the world and beats the Soviet team in a stunning 4-3 upset in Lake Placid, NY during the height of the cold war.But another miracle happens in pinball that same year too, as a fledgling Stern Electronics releases 9 excellent machines in 1980. They were the clear last place manufacturer behind Bally, Williams, and Gottlieb, but in 1980 Stern makes an unbelievable run of machines, a run that we think has never been bested by...

In this episode Alan sits down to talk with Ian Matheson, operator at Propeller arcade inside of Propeller Brewing in Halifax, Canada.We talk about how he got started, including some incredible stories about the old school underground Nova Scotia pinball scene before opening his public arcade which include stories of setting machines on fire in the front yard, peeing in sinks, and drinking beers while blasting Van Halen.But in case that description doesn't hint at the content enough, we do sw...

In this episode, Alan and Alex discuss the outlier machines released in the last 7 years without ramps, and with simpler rulesets.We talk about Total Nuclear Annihilation, Beatles, Bond 60th, and Pulp Fiction, and why we love seeing the variety added to modern pinball offerings.But sometimes we use swear words.

In this episode we finally talk in depth about "Modern" pinball, where it started, what defines the modern era, and the different innovations or changes to the classic game that we all know and love.For all the listeners out there that have been asking us to talk more about modern games, this episode is for you. And if you want to hear more about modern pinball and enjoy this show, there are literally dozens of other pinball pods out there that almost exclusively discuss all the newest r...

In this edition of our popular "Die on this Hill" series, we are rejoined on the show by Mitch Curtis, the operator known as 'Pinball Over Boston' as he jumps onto the show to defend one of his favorite underappreciated games, 2000's Sharkey's Shootout made by the fledgling Stern Pinball.Mitch is a very passionate boy, and speaks at length about how much he loves this old/new mashup game, so much so that he even filmed himself giving a tutorial on this game years ago! https://www.youtub...

In this episode of our 'Operator Spotlight' series Alan and Alex speak with Mitch Curtis of Pinball Over Boston, about his decade of running a pinball route in the Boston area. We cover what it was like starting out, how he grew it, how he handled the covid 19 shutdowns, and what it's like for him nowadays on the other side.We talk about his locations Flat Top Johnny's, Roxy's, and Double Bull Taphouse, and the transition from part time to full time operator, and managing 70 amusement d...