Hi. I'm a complete novice, so please consider such the words of one:

After reading a while on this... what's the actual problem? Broken physics? Incomplete coding?

As someone somewhat in the tech field, having someone try and build something as such and then in the end just say "Oh, can't make it work," really just makes me think that the person is just genuinely retarded and simply has a lot of time invested into similar things. And I don't mean such as a casual insult, but as a genuine "if I was watching this person for a week, I would probably at some point ask them what is wrong with them."

Realistic solutions for such things:
Physics: you could literally post the stuff on a college engineering forum and have someone spit back a legit 3D model with animations within a week tops.
Programming: Again, you could literally post this on a forum and have someone spit the full working code back.
Electronics: Again, you could have any enthusiastic college kid come and do it for you.
All this and waived rights and they wouldn't even bat an eye.

Also, stuff like this belongs on GoFundMe. Not on pre-orders.

Oh well; SJW's are retarded too

In this day and age, it seems like it would be more prudent to start with a base pinball program, program the pinball game you envision, all the objects physics and rule codings and whatnot will already be correct at that point, and then transfer such into the creation of a real pinball game.

I'm guessing they have designer booths set up? I'd have to mentally run through the processes first, but designing virtually first would come with the added benefit of having 3D models already ready for 3D printing for cheap prototypes components during the transition phase.

Yeah, I could see the desire to keep doing things the original way, which for boutiques such as Spooky, that seems good, but MG was very ambitious looking and done with, seemingly, only preorder financial backing. For stuff like such, it would make more sense to seek a means that minimizes expenses accrued by tinkering and testing physical components over and over as they are changed, modified, and replaced.

It would depend upon the physics engine used. Better engines cost more money. Remember, engineering uses some of these same engines to outright design systems that we use on a daily basis.

Heck, if you started with a virtual version, you could use the virtual version to put full-blown game replays on the actual pins displays by having the pin relay back ball locations and times back to the virtual version.

I checked it out. That looks like a fun game. Reminds me of jersey jack sorts. Looks way more fun than the Sterns to me.

I'd go with worth much less. Right now it classifies as a "current event." In the future, it won't have that benefit. It will still be rare, but it will be a largely non-working rare from a company that never produced any completed projects. It won't be in the same category as any of the prototypes or rates from Williams, Bally, Stern, etc., because all those were actually successful companies with many completed products. This will be in the same category as if Joe Blow tried to make a pinball machine (or anything really) and then gave up before finishing it: virtually worthless.

Most things worth doing are hard. That is why we, as people, have tools and resources to assist us.

In the case of JPop, he did not properly utilize his resources (consulting other experts) until his primary resource (money) was already gone. With the money being invested into the projects, he could have contracted out independent consultations at multiple times during the development process, which more than likely would have prevented the entire fiasco.

When pinball was at its height as an industry, computing was still in its early stages. Now, decades later, we have the fortunate opportunity to utilize the tools of the personal computer and the general communication of the information age to assist us. If one wishes to individually attempt to tackle major projects such as JPop, without sufficiently utilizing the tools available, then one will be faced with a comparative disadvantage to both competitors and consumers.

I'll post what we talk about, if I talk with them. I doubt all people are that behind the times that they don't utilize computing in some shape or fashion during the design phase.

The plot thickens....

Almost looks like it needs to spin the reverse direction and have more friction... it uses centrifugal force, which by the angle of entry, places it going towards the outlane lol

Sounds more like he is releasing soon a manual for "it was supposed to be This."

Doesn't Full Throttle use 4 small spinner discs? May be a good example on how non-broke ones affect ball movement.