Alice in Wonderland
Gottlieb, 1948
Houdini
American Pinball, 2017
Magic Girl
Zidware Pinball USA, 2017
Retro Atomic Zombie Adventureland
Zidware Pinball USA, 2012Quoted from PinChili:I'm confused what he could possibly sue for? I would have assumed the NDA was only in regards to not revealing game info that he himself did not reveal first? Since when is simply airing frustrations and talking about someone/something else illegal?
I think John mistook zidware for Fight Club.
In America you can sue for any reason. It was an idle threat or he's a flippin moron because any discovery in litigation will expose his house of cards and he knows it. It takes awhile to rile me up but cowards who hide behind the law to scare, threaten and bully people need to be kicked in the dick. Jpop, you're a coward.
Quoted from Sjsilver:I agree, however, we are talking about someone who has proven to be a renaissance master at the art of imbecilic moves, especially when they are driven by his ego. It seems very clear to me that he is completely prepared to burn everything to the ground if he doesn't get to keep doing things his way, and I can totally see him trying to take down those who he thinks are really to blame in the process. Not that he has the legal logic or funds to do so, but real world constraints seem to have very little effect in the logic in Popadiuktopia.
Then let him start with me. I'm no easy win and definitely not intimidated by legal threats or a courtroom. Coward.
Quoted from frolic:With that being the case, and John refusing to show them, then they might as well not be. He knows there is threat of legal action at this time, and by his own admission once things go nuclear the entire project is dead because he can't defend it.
He clearly stated that is what will happen. And yet he won't show what you've seen. So he'd sooner let the whole thing blow up than change a single thing about how he operates and go down in failure. That is what we're dealing with.
What if that's what he wants? He doesn't want to throw in the towel because that would mean failure for him. But, if somebody/some group takes him to court and the whole thing ends, it's "not his fault" and he can walk away clean. At least in his mind.
Been busy and so has the writer for Wired, but we're going to try and talk in a couple hours, he's apparently still interested in the story even knowing it's a trainwreck. We'll see.
Quoted from zombieyeti:Hey guys - I'm sorting thru things and just spoke with John - I'm hoping for the best.
Good luck man. Hopefully you at least get paid. Like I said in my email, maybe we can find an opportunity that isn't vaporware based for you.
Quoted from frolic:This is where I'm stuck as well. When you look at all information available, and motive, John might be able show a lay person something that appears 90% complete if he explains it that way, but he knows it won't hold up to scrutiny if shown to the world.
It's either that, or mental illness. There doesn't seem to be any other explanations here.
You mean a little something called "Peer Review"? That pesky little requirement to actually "Prove" something to people outside of your little "bubble" or "lab". Ya, this is doomed and like someone said earlier, could very well doom the pre-order business just as it was flourishing...
Quoted from ZenTron:People want communication from JPop and he gives some and look what happened.
Nothing?
Quoted from ZenTron:People want communication from JPop and he gives some and look what happened.
I think people were looking for him to communicate the progress he has made (that a few have hinted that they've seen with their own eyes) and an updated project timeline that was realistic to have games built and shipped.
What they weren't expecting him to communicate was that he is basically broke, he has no plan, and he has hired a lawyer. 
Oh, and Pinside apparently shoulders the blame?
Quoted from Roostking:You mean a little something called "Peer Review"? That pesky little requirement to actually "Prove" something to people outside of your little "bubble" or "lab". Ya, this is doomed and like someone said earlier, could very well doom the pre-order business just as it was flourishing...
Not for Spooky, JJP, PPS and Stern.
Quoted from desertT1:What if that's what he wants? He doesn't want to throw in the towel because that would mean failure for him. But, if somebody/some group takes him to court and the whole thing ends, it's "not his fault" and he can walk away clean. At least in his mind.
Can't help but think of the analogy of a UFC fighter "giving up their back" and letting someone put a choke on them, just so they could tap out and pretend they gave it their best and were beat, when in reality they just didn't want to be there anymore.
Quoted from zombieyeti:Hello all - I'm the artist on JPOPs 'recent' machines - I haven't heard for him in a few weeks and started doing some diggin which led me here - can someone summarize what is going on? thanks in advance!
Your art is badass!
Quoted from TecumsehPlissken:I def. want to hear Zombie yeti's take on things , hoping he elaborates more about why he went "digging" for info on John BTW I love your work , its a Big part of what sold me on AIW even though @ the time I didn't know someone else was doing all the art
I'm guessing that since he just showed up, yet this shit show had been going on for about, oh, a couple of years, thats all you need to know.
Its over.
Quoted from zombieyeti:Hey guys - I'm sorting thru things and just spoke with John - I'm hoping for the best.
Thats what everyone says, yet no information reveals. Sorry man, you may the artist, but there is a lot of people who said they same thing.
Quoted from Roostking:Thats what everyone says, yet no information reveals. Sorry man, you may the artist, but there is a lot of people who said they same thing.
Pretty sure he is referring to his own personal issue with John not the project as a whole.
Quoted from Sjsilver:Hey StevenP,
First of all, thank you for coming back to the thread. It is really nice to hear from someone who John choses to actually talk to.
Second, thank you for your assurances that you would not be any part of his threats.
Can you confirm that you were not his "advisor …(snip)... as a “very good” friend and legal guru since day one." that he referenced copying on that last letter?
If you were who he was referencing, it would make many people feel a lot better that his threats are completely empty. If you weren't, do you know who this "Legal Guru" is?
I seriously am not going on a witch-hunt here, I am just trying to get definitive proof of whether John's threats of legal retaliation are completely empty or not. For all I know, he could still have a lifelong friend who is willing to give him pro-bono help in suing his critics and customers. After all, you don't have to have any strong legal footing to sue anyone in this country, and make them deal with the pain and expense of defending themselves. Arron from Fast Pinball has stated that such threats have moderated his public opinions on this, so I know that I am not alone in picking up those threats.
If he is using his relationship with you to add credibility to his threats of legal retaliation in an attempt to silence his critics, I would love for you to clear the air about that.
Again, thank you for coming back to the thread. And I apologize if I was wrong in assuming he was referencing you in that last paragraph.
I came back to visit Pinside because someone told me about the latest controversy and that I may be referenced in it. I have not received (nor asked for) direct confirmation from the source (because I don't want to go there), but i do think I may well be the referenced "legal guru." (Although I do prefer Lawdog!) And I do not condone any implications that I would be initiating (nor even defending) any legal actions relating to Zidware. As i have reminded John several times, i'm only handling IP stuff, and I suggested he get a business/corporate/consumer/whatever lawyer if he needs representation for any legal disputes relating to Zidware. It is simply not my area of law, and I did not sign up for that!
I hope that clears the air sufficiently. I also don't think he is seriously contemplating legal action (my opinion). I think the negativity is getting to him and he's reacting badly. My advice to him (as friend and hobbyist who's somewhat aware of the current controversies) continues to be to show and explain everything he has and his plans for completing things, and do so publicly. And to communicate with customers and address their requests and questions.
Honestly, if someone were brought in to take charge of these projects, and the production runs expanded, I still believe these 2 titles could be completed and produced profitably (with MG priced like RAZA). And that they would be amazingly cool games. But getting there seems like a huge step.
Quoted from jackofdiamonds:Grab a 6 pack and get the hell outta there buddy!!!!!
Gonna need a 6-pack of 40s for this mess!
Quoted from StevenP:Gonna need a 6-pack of 40s for this mess!
Time to play a game of Edward Forty Hands
Quoted from Kneissl:If lawdog is right and it works out, first round is on me.
I do not think it would be wise for any pre-order person to sit idly by and simply cross their fingers that this works out. If John is not willing to "open up his books" to you so you know exactly how much money is left I would highly recommend doing what the Skit-B folks did. Contact John's local police department and open a complaint. Allow them to conduct an investigation and determine where the money went, what is left, and if there was any criminal activity involved (either intentional or unintentional).
If John does not have enough money to refund those that had asked then he certainly must not have the money to build X number of games. It does not matter at all how complete any game's design is. Not even if it was 100%. The problem is (apparently) that there is no money to build the games, period. No other manufacturer will touch this with a 10 foot pole.
Quoted from zombieyeti:Hey guys - I'm sorting thru things and just spoke with John - I'm hoping for the best.
And I'm sure part of that conversation today with John was.... Stay off pinside don't talk to those people.. Everything is fine
Quoted from Roostking:Thats what everyone says, yet no information reveals. Sorry man, you may the artist, but there is a lot of people who said they same thing.
I hear you & in my case I don't want to disparage a guy I've worked with for years and have a ton of respect for without knowing everything. I'm not trying to be coy - just respectful - not just to John but to the buyers of his machines... I've spoken with a few of you and hopefully you know where I stand. I want to see these machines made and everyone made whole...
I'm guessing that Jpop doesn't have enough money for a lawyer, and would not have enough return on investment if he sued someone to even attempt it. I agree with earlier opinions that he wants a scapegoat to blame for the projects' failure so he can walk away and pretend to have the high moral ground. He is delusional and narcissistic.
Quoted from zombieyeti:I hear you & in my case I don't want to disparage a guy I've worked with for years and have a ton of respect for without knowing everything. I'm not trying to be coy - just respectful - not just to John but to the buyers of his machines... I've spoken with a few of you and hopefully you know where I stand. I want to see these machines made and everyone made whole...
lt3n5n.jpgQuoted from zombieyeti:I hear you & in my case I don't want to disparage a guy I've worked with for years and have a ton of respect for without knowing everything. I'm not trying to be coy - just respectful - not just to John but to the buyers of his machines... I've spoken with a few of you and hopefully you know where I stand. I want to see these machines made and everyone made whole...
Ditto.
And given that most (all?) RAZA games are not fully pre-paid (I don't know the details), the additional payments, plus expanding the runs, could well cover parts and production with some profit, imo. I don't think it's a huge leap financially to get the games done, and if they are as cool as they look to be, demand and more units could be pretty profitable imo. I admit, there's a lot of things to sort out first to get there, though. And like Z. Yeti, I just want to see these games made and everyone happy, as I've said many times.
Quoted from StevenP:I came back to visit Pinside because someone told me about the latest controversy and that I may be referenced in it. I have not received (nor asked for) direct confirmation from the source (because I don't want to go there), but i do think I may well be the referenced "legal guru." (Although I do prefer Lawdog!) And I do not condone any implications that I would be initiating (nor even defending) any legal actions relating to Zidware. As i have reminded John several times, i'm only handling IP stuff, and I suggested he get a business/corporate/consumer/whatever lawyer if he needs representation for any legal disputes relating to Zidware. It is simply not my area of law, and I did not sign up for that!
I hope that clears the air sufficiently. I also don't think he is seriously contemplating legal action (my opinion). I think the negativity is getting to him and he's reacting badly. My advice to him (as friend and hobbyist who's somewhat aware of the current controversies) continues to be to show and explain everything he has and his plans for completing things, and do so publicly. And to communicate with customers and address their requests and questions.
Honestly, if someone were brought in to take charge of these projects, and the production runs expanded, I still believe these 2 titles could be completed and produced profitably (with MG priced like RAZA). And that they would be amazingly cool games. But getting there seems like a huge step.
Thank you for the clarification. It absolutely clears the air.
You are a good guy, StevenP, even if your zidware glasses are a little rosier tinted than most others these days. John needs to listen to you.
Quoted from StevenP:And given that most (all?) RAZA games are not fully pre-paid (I don't know the details), the additional payments, plus expanding the runs, could well cover parts and production with some profit, imo.
The RAZA crowd should pay up so there is money for MG to get built? Scary.
Quoted from Sjsilver:You are a good guy, StevenP, even if your zidware glasses are a little rosier tinted than most others these days. John needs to listen to you.
Welp, good work, you just lost the owners another $20, John's off registering zidwareglasses.com now. 
Quoted from ChadH:The RAZA crowd should pay up so there is money for MG to get built? Scary.
There was a time, maybe as recent as a year ago, that if the MG prototypes were brought out and shown, the RAZA money could have easily been collected.
But to collect money from anyone now, just to complete prototypes, after all that has happened, is impossible.
Quoted from StevenP:Honestly, if someone were brought in to take charge of these projects
People have tried. It always ends up the same. They hit John with the truth of how things need to go and he stops taking their calls.
Quoted from Sjsilver:Thank you for the clarification. It absolutely clears the air.
You are a good guy, StevenP, even if your zidware glasses are a little rosier tinted than most others these days. John needs to listen to you.
I try, I try. And the truth is, beyond all the problems and issues, he HAS put a ton of time and effort into these projects (full-time and then some) and has already addressed a huge amount of details to make these things production-ready. He wasn't just drawing layouts on paper/computer and putting together some artwork on a cabinet. Stuff like the plastics set (shape/artwork), detailed printed playfields with inserts, etc., many custom parts (brackets, toys, mechanisms) designed and ready for manufacture, a capable and appropriate modern boardset to run the game, lots of original music and voices and display graphics, a sound system, cabling laid out for production, lighting (incl. some new improvements), new cabinet design... all of this is in place. For MG and (with a few toys being finalized) for RAZA. This isn't just a designer ready to hand over a design to the "engineering department" to do the heavy lifting; the engineering has been done in parallel.
So, seeing all this stuff has tinted my glasses a bit rosier than most. And makes me really hopeful that these games will get finished somehow. Because i like pinball. And, despite any possible personality quirks, i really do like John too and think he has good intentions to make great pinball for his customers, believe it or not. I am well aware that good intentions can make for good paving material!
Quoted from toyotaboy:So if he's not working on art, and he's not getting a pinball flipping or working on code, what IS it he's doing everyday?
Anyone else notice that zombieyeti hadn't heard from him in a few weeks, yet within a couple hours of posting on this board John's magically been in contact. I guess that answers that...
Quoted from StevenP:Here's where the disconnect is. The 2 titles are mostly complete. Starting with cabinet design and art for both (finalized and all they need is an order placed for production), MG playfield is about 95% complete--I'm talking full artwork, complete layout, ALL mechanisms (including many new toys, plus flippers, bumpers, ramps, magnets, printed plastics, very cool lighting, etc.--all production-ready parts), sound system, a capable boardset (i/o designed by Quetzal, i believe, plus a driver board with serial light addressing, and a specced motherboard--not dissimilar to WOZ, I think), plus original music, a lot of voicework, and a bunch of animation developed for the LCD screen. RAZA is very close to this stage, with a few original playfield toys and a ramp to be finalized and a bit of tweaking to some ramp/post placements. Full artwork is done--payfield, cabinet, plastics. Layout is basically done apart from finalizing the few toys. Not sure how much audio and video are done for this title.
As I haven't seen this clarified in the subsequent two pages of posts, have you played either of these games? I think everyone finally understands that "looks complete" and "is complete" are two entirely different animals. Even if you are completely correct that the playfield is 95% complete, I don't want anyone else to get the mistaken impression that the game is 95% complete. By your description my gut is that it is closer to 70%, and then you add on the parts/assembly/manufacturing process, and the out-the-door estimate of completion drops to 50% or less.
Quoted from zombieyeti:I want to see these machines made and everyone made whole...
You deserve to see these machines made. Your artwork is amazing, and I think everyone would agree we'd like to see it on even more pinball machines.
Quoted from Aurich:Welp, good work, you just lost the owners another $20, John's off registering zidwareglasses.com now.
Except I grabbed it first. 
Quoted from Strohz:Anyone else notice that zombieyeti hadn't heard from him in a few weeks, yet within a couple hours of posting on this board John's magically been in contact. I guess that answers that...
The good news is he's paying attention? Actually I think someone here tipped him off that I posted tbh. But it got results - right? 
Quoted from Baiter:As I haven't seen this clarified in the subsequent two pages of posts, have you played either of these games? I think everyone finally understands that "looks complete" and "is complete" are two entirely different animals. Even if you are completely correct that the playfield is 95% complete, I don't want anyone else to get the mistaken impression that the game is 95% complete. By your description my gut is that it is closer to 70%, and then you add on the parts/assembly/manufacturing process, and the out-the-door estimate of completion drops to 50% or less.
You deserve to see these machines made. Your artwork is amazing, and I think everyone would agree we'd like to see it on even more pinball machines.
Thanks man! I do really appreciate all the kind words from everyone here! It's good to know all the work didn't go unnoticed at least. And I'd LOVE to continue doing pinball art - no question there!
Quoted from StevenP:I try, I try. And the truth is, beyond all the problems and issues, he HAS put a ton of time and effort into these projects (full-time and then some) and has already addressed a huge amount of details to make these things production-ready. He wasn't just drawing layouts on paper/computer and putting together some artwork on a cabinet. Stuff like the plastics set (shape/artwork), detailed printed playfields with inserts, etc., many custom parts (brackets, toys, mechanisms) designed and ready for manufacture, a capable and appropriate modern boardset to run the game, lots of original music and voices and display graphics, a sound system, cabling laid out for production, lighting (incl. some new improvements), new cabinet design... all of this is in place. For MG and (with a few toys being finalized) for RAZA. This isn't just a designer ready to hand over a design to the "engineering department" to do the heavy lifting; the engineering has been done in parallel.
So, seeing all this stuff has tinted my glasses a bit rosier than most. And makes me really hopeful that these games will get finished somehow. Because i like pinball. And, despite any possible personality quirks, i really do like John too and think he has good intentions to make great pinball for his customers, believe it or not. I am well aware that good intentions can make for good paving material!
It sounds like he is truly ready for the expensive part...producing them. Getting manufacturers to make all of the toys, gadgets, mechanisms, ramps, playfields, etc...is the most expensive part. Then, he just has to get some kind of assembly line going to put it all together. I'd say he can probably get the next 100 games done for about $400-500K if he doesn't have to hire anyone (just get a bunch of people to do it for the love of pinball). I have my reading glasses on and I still can't see pink. Maybe I am color-blind.
Quoted from zombieyeti:The good news is he's paying attention? Actually I think someone here tipped him off that I posted tbh. But it got results - right?
True! I also want to add your artwork is truly amazing, and echo how incredibly talented I think you are. I have zero interest in the Alice in Wonderland as a theme, but the artwork he showed was so awesome I probably would have bought one anyway if they were actually available!
Quoted from Baiter:You deserve to see these machines made. Your artwork is amazing, and I think everyone would agree we'd like to see it on even more pinball machines.
Wholeheartedly agree. Your work is amazing. Please send a resume in to Stern, JJP and Spooky Pinball and ask for some work.
Quoted from Wolfmarsh:Except I grabbed it first.
Need to just make it a page with this image:
Quoted from zombieyeti:And I'd LOVE to continue doing pinball art - no question there!
One way or another we'll get your art on a shipping game. 
Quoted from ChadH:The RAZA crowd should pay up so there is money for MG to get built? Scary.
Quoted from nintendo:Does anyone know how much Jpop was asking for each of his new pins?
Yes, everybody knows. 
Quoted from zombieyeti:The good news is he's paying attention? Actually I think someone here tipped him off that I posted tbh. But it got results - right?
I would love it if John was reading this thread secretly. I be he does.
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