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Kaneda Klassics: "Deep Thoughts by Deeproot #2"

PodcastAnalysis updated today9 min listen
TL;DR

Deeproot's Papaduke outlines 21-game pipeline, criticizes competitors' quality, and promises differentiated manufacturing standards.

From the creator

It only gets better when we get to part 3!

Synopsis

John Papaduke Jr. of Deeproot Pinball discusses the company's ambitious pipeline of 21 planned games over the coming years, with Raza launching in March 2026 after significant delays. He criticizes competitors (Stern, JJP) for structural weaknesses and poor manufacturing quality, claiming Deeproot's in-house production and rigorous quality standards (demonstrated via hammer tests on playfields) will differentiate the company. He emphasizes bootstrapped funding, designer talent (Dennis Nordman, Asler), and a focus on profitability per title rather than volume sales.

Highlights

  • Raza launching in March 2026 (delayed approximately one year from original timeline)
  • Deeproot has 21 games planned over the next few years beyond Raza
  • Deeproot switched from outsourced Mirco boards to in-house production due to quality failures
  • Deeproot playfields are significantly more durable than competitors, surviving hammer strikes without visible damage
  • Stern and JJP have fragile business models vulnerable to sales variability due to high fixed and part costs
  • Deeproot is bootstrapped with no external investors, funded entirely by founder's capital
  • Raza is intentionally positioned as a niche game, not expected to generate thousands of units or immediately establish Deeproot profitability
  • Designer Asler has capacity to create a pinball machine design monthly

Notable quotes

I've been overwhelmed in being delayed by the time we launch in March of next year, about a year. You know, sometimes I struggle to find that passion still for pinball.
John Papaduke Jr.
It's an absolute sewer. I want nothing to do with it. So any report I get from Pennside, I immediately disregard.
John Papaduke Jr.
I know that they're trying and he's got a really nice process set up. It's a whole recipe of issues, but we can't let that happen with deeproot. It's got to be brought in house. It's got to be done right.
John Papaduke Jr.
I guarantee you pull any manufacturer right now, whether they're doing it in-house or not, and you drop a ball from three inches...every one of them will dimple. And I'm sorry, that's an engineering defect, and Deeproot is not going to put up with that, and we're just going to be different.
John Papaduke Jr.
Stern is completely...very weak. Their model is very precarious...The bigger you get, the easier it is to fall. It's like building a house of cards with an unsteady foundation.
John Papaduke Jr.
There are no investors in pinball. It's company money. It's my money. And you know I find that you know even when people say well oh my gosh they blowing all this a month and they never going to be able to make it back. And I just I just laugh because it obvious that the more they try to convince themselves and others about all of this the less they in reality.
John Papaduke Jr.
And I think that most of what we're going to show on our launch day is going to be point after point after point after point where we saw a weakness or something that the competition refused to fix or do. And we're doing it.
John Papaduke Jr.
I don't see any benefit to anybody for those companies going out of business or for deeproot to come in and crush them. I think that there's still plenty of a market and an opportunity for each of these companies to make the best darn argument they can to consumers.
John Papaduke Jr.

Entities

  • Deeproot Pinball· company
  • Jersey Jack Pinball· company
  • Mirco· company
  • Pennside· company
  • Spooky Pinball· company
  • Stern Pinball· company
  • Raza· game
  • Asler· person
  • Dennis Nordman· person
  • Jeremy· person
  • John Papaduke Jr.· person
  • Sean· person

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