Quoted from kaneda:Aurich, you're a great guy. I know we've had our differences. But I went up at Expo just to say hi because I absolutely respect you as a person and a designer. And you have to be stoked about designing a pinball machine. That's a dream come true. So it's with 100% love that I say this: stop offering design help to the competition. Design feedback is fine. Everything you said in this thread was fine UNTIL you offered Charlie to help fix his playfield art problems.
You work for the competition. Plain and simple. You were up on stage with Andrew and Heighway...That is your team. That should be your family man. I get it, you love pinball and want to chime in. And believe me, you should. But when you offer to help "fix" it for someone, that is 1000000% wrong. Stay true to the guy who's cutting you checks and know where that line is. You normally do. But this time it just feels like you're saying stuff to make yourself look better, but in reality, you're just acting like a fanboy with no loyalty at all. And look, the most admirable quality in a man is trust. And if I were Andrew, I would be like, "What the fuck are you doing offering to help design Charlie's game?" Andrew is the nicest guy and may be letting this slide, but you have great potential to be an asset long term in pinball making, but when you sign on with a team, act like a pro and show them some respect. Enough of this "love of pinball" bullshit people. These are companies competing for dollars. Real money to survive and grow.
Still love you Aurich and I know you'll agree on some level.
Did I miss where he signed a blood oath with Heighway? I thought he was a freelance graphic designer, a contractor. His next work could be with any company making a machine.
Alex Horley is a great artist, but when I saw the playfield I felt it was done by someone without any real love of pinball. The art could just has easily been for a CD cover or motorcycle gas tank. As an artist that happens to love pinball, Aurich is very qualified to give an opinion or offer help. You know a forum has gone Bizarro World when unqualified people are telling the qualified to shut up.