Episode 2 - The Ritchie Brothers Steve vs. Mark

Wedgehead hosts defend Mark Ritchie legacy while celebrating both Ritchie brothers' pinball design contributions.

Synopsis

Alan and Alex from Wedgehead Pinball in Portland discuss the legacies of Steve and Mark Ritchie, legendary pinball designers and brothers. They defend Mark against being overshadowed by his older brother Steve, highlighting Mark's iconic games (Fishtales, Taxi, Diner, Sorcerer) and design philosophy, while acknowledging Steve's revolutionary contributions (flow, multi-ball, upper flippers). The hosts also cover Mark's recent work on Pulp Fiction at Chicago Gaming Company and discuss both brothers' design signatures, personal anecdotes from meeting them, and their respective strengths and missteps.

Highlights

• Steve Ritchie is credited with introducing locks and lane change to pinball design
• Mark Ritchie's first published game was Firepower 2, a sequel to Steve's Firepower
• Mark Ritchie frequently collaborated with Python Anghelo on game design and art direction
• Steve Ritchie's first game was Superman (1978-1979), an Atari game
• Pulp Fiction is Mark Ritchie's first ramp-less game and was designed at the request of Quentin Tarantino
• AC/DC is credited with saving Stern Pinball, along with Lord of the Rings and Iron Man
• Mark Ritchie sang on the song in Riverboat Gambler despite not designing that game
• Slash was Steve Ritchie's first game featuring a repeating upper flipper shot
• Steve Ritchie recently joined Jersey Jack Pinball and has an unreleased game called Elton John
• Mark Ritchie has been working at Raw Thrills for some time, designing arcade games

Entities

• Chicago Gaming Company· company
• Jersey Jack Pinball· company
• Raw Thrills· company
• Stern Pinball· company
• AC/DC· game
• Big Guns· game
• Black Knight series· game
• Elton John· game
• Firepower· game
• Firepower 2· game
• High Speed· game
• Pulp Fiction· game
• Road Kings· game
• Slash· game
• Wedgehead· organization
• Alan· person
• Alex· person
• Mark Ritchie· person
• Pat Lawlor· person
• Python Anghelo· person
• Quentin Tarantino· person
• Rodney· person
• Roger Sharpe· person
• Steve Ritchie· person