Friend of mine put in $500 as a deposit nearly 4 years ago for position #X in the list of original 13 Magic Girl machines promised. Was told by John Pop that in short order the 'paper work package' was forthcoming and the position was secured. However, JP nearly immediately (within hours or a day) asked if more machines were to be made (a new number of 19 was tossed out, and then again 25) would the $17,000 dollar price tag for the game be OK.

John Pop knew before or shortly after making this initial offer the numbers didn't add up. Anyone with any common sense or ability to discern truth from lies did as well.

The paper work package never did show up, and neither did much else (emails often going unanswered, his 'answers' to questions which had never been asked, reasonable conversations not materializing, details of any kind or even NDAs to look over and sign) during the 3 weeks from where $500 was paid and ultimately a refund from demands to him for the money back. It didn't pass the stink test at all then, and its rather shocking how many folks bought into his growing level of BS during the next four years. There was a reason while designers were being snatched up that Stern, JJP didn't hire him. The industry knew of JPop being nothing more than a prima donna dreamer, not an implementer.

When I met JPop in person in the Fall of 2011 it was clearly apparent a flunky group of folks floated around John Pop trying to maintain a cult of personality. My friend had made the right decision, too bad so many didn't understand what was being presented to the public was an attract mode to a game which ultimately takes more than just your lunch money.

I laughed when Ben signed up, even with the understanding of his habitual drinking. BH did parlay his involvement into games that had a bit more than dead shots found in Lost, so well done.

Hopes and dreams do not make games magically appear. Grit, determination, business acumen, connections, favors, smiles, work ethic, accountability, distribution, design, testing, networks, experience, smarts, luck along with many other things come into play when making games actually appear.

GLWTS

#42 of all things, the answer to life the universe and everything.

There is one actual 'main' manufacture of pinball and the rest are literally boutique players. The one of interest has a stable of starving artists in line to work for nearly nothing.

Is it just me, or is Pint-Asia apropos? A pint of blood, going to asia. Laughable almost.

No job for JPoop, the hobby and market received what it deserved. JP didn't do this to the hobby really, he screwed over naive 'investors'. The hobby and the industry did this to itself. Taking advantage of naive and gullible while the industry (really only one, but at the time in '11 maybe coming into two manufactures) not taking a sociopath scam artist looking for a job with a cult personality and proven record of being a prima donna into its fold, out of the market, and deep six him into a project which would have never see daylight via market or shows while holding him to NDA and a management position of promise with absolutely no real power. Also a non compete clause for his effective usefulness in the market. Honestly, this is the only way to keep someone like this guy away from potential consumers.

But didn't Pinside and its members basically become pinball hobby promoting and encouraging folks to invest into things like JPoop's promises over four years?