Dirty Pool Podcast - Ep35 - Mike Vinikour | Designing Modern Pinball Rules
Dirty Pool Podcast - Ep35 - Mike Vinikour | Designing Modern Pinball Rules
▶ Full Dirty Pool Podcast Playlist 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 different angles. In Episode 35 of the Dirty Pool Podcast, we'll be talking about Mike's path through the game industry, how rule design has evolved, balancing depth with accessibility, software testing, field testing, working with designers, the realities of developing modern Stern machines, and plenty of stories from both the arcade and pinball worlds. We'll also get into his photography, massive vinyl collection, and whatever unexpected rabbit holes the conversation decides to find. 📡 Twitch 📺 YouTube 📷 Instagram 📘 Facebook 👕 Apparel
Kineticist’s take
Mike Vinikour shares his unconventional path from arcade player to Midway QA tester to pinball rules designer.
Synopsis
Mike Vinikour (MXV), a legendary pinball rules designer, discusses his personal history including 16,000+ vinyl records collected over 44 years, his early career as a professional Mortal Kombat player and arcade champion, and his work as a video game QA tester at Midway Games (1994-2001) where he helped establish the company's QA department. The conversation spans his transitions from punk rock fandom to music photography to his current role designing pinball rules, emphasizing how passion, mentorship, and community encouragement shaped his trajectory.
Entities
- Midway Games· company
- Dirty Pool Podcast· content
- Punk Vault· content
- Mortal Kombat· game
- Revolution X· game
- Terminator 2: Judgment Day· game
- Boards of Canada· organization
- Bowel Prophets· organization
- Marilyn Manson· organization
- Skinny Puppy· organization
- The Beatles· organization
- Mike Vinikour· person
- Just Games· venue