Dirty Pool Podcast - Ep32 - Gerry Stellenberg and the Multimorphic / P3 Platform
Dirty Pool Podcast - Ep32 - Gerry Stellenberg and the Multimorphic / P3 Platform
▶ Full Dirty Pool Podcast Playlist 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 to talk about the origins of the Multimorphic platform, designing games around modular hardware, how different modules take advantage of the system in unique ways, and how the P3 has evolved over the years. We also get into the balance between physical and digital integration in pinball, the realities of building a platform meant to support multiple experiences in one cabinet, and how players have responded to pinball that experiments outside the standard format. 🧬 Multimorphic / P3 Pinball If you had a P3 cabinet, which module would you want to try first? 📡 Twitch 📺 YouTube 📷 Instagram 📘 Facebook 👕 Apparel
Kineticist’s take
Multimorphic VP Gerry Stellenberg explains P3 platform design, adoption barriers, and technical innovation.
Synopsis
Gerry Stellenberg, VP at Multimorphic, discusses the P3 modular pinball platform's design philosophy, technical architecture, and market positioning. He explains the P-ROC board heritage, ball-tracking systems using infrared grids, flipper mechanics, playfield modularity, and addresses community skepticism about whether the LCD-integrated P3 is "real pinball." Key themes include the challenge of gaining operator/collector trust for a novel technology, the gap between exposure and adoption, and how Multimorphic iterates on hardware reliability while remaining bootstrapped.
Highlights
- P3 has shipped for approximately 9 years, with original prototypes dating to 2012
- Multimorphic offers modernized P-ROC boards used by other manufacturers including Dutch Pinball, American Pinball, and Spooky Pinball
- P3 flipper assemblies today are 'probably the most reliable in the industry'
- The wooden rail warping issue that caused roller wear was resolved four years ago (circa 2020)
- Nine unique physical playfield modules exist for P3, with 27 total games available (including add-ons)
- Heist module has the most add-on games, with eight or nine experiences available
- P3 pricing is around $11,000 for a full module plus new cabinet, similar to traditional pinball
- Ranger in the Ruins roguelike module add-on costs around $150-$179
- Ball tracking system uses 24 infrared emitters and detectors to track multiple balls simultaneously
- Multimorphic is a bootstrapped company, not venture-backed, limiting placement and marketing reach
Entities
- American Pinball· company
- Dutch Pinball· company
- Jersey Jack Pinball· company
- Multimorphic· company
- Spooky Pinball· company
- Stern Pinball· company
- Turner Pinball· company
- TPF· event
- Alexi Lightspeed· game
- Final Resistance· game
- Heist· game
- Portal· game
- Princess Bride· game
- Ranger in the Ruins· game
- Weird Al· game
- Brad Albright· person
- Chris (Turner)· person
- Gerry Stellenberg· person
- Scott Denesi· person
- Dirtypool Pinball· person/media
- Buffalo Pinball· person/streamer
- P-ROC· product
- P3 platform· product