I have backed one Kickstarter campaign and in doing so Kickstarter validated my card to ensure it was legit. Also, Kickstarter charges a 5% fee so if this project would get funded Kickstarter will give 95k

Just booked my hotel room at Expo.

Kim

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Edit: I love this girl and had to add the link with sound: http://coub.com/view/1z0sc07o

$96,522 .. I can't stop checking.. wanting to see if the number starts to go down.. wonder what tolerance for risk the alleged bots have?

Well, 40 people dropped out.

number of backers dropped to 70 from 110 backers, but the bid amount went up. very odd.

the known bots seem to be gone

Amazon also takes a 5% fee, so they would actually only get 90k

okay so Amazon and Kickstarter get 5% ??? Did not know that......like ebaY, fees everywhere!

huh backers dropped but money went up.. the plot thickens?

He called to threaten you and he gave his last name? Sounds legit.

This has got "dodgy" written all over it from start. From the playfield design all the way down to people wanting to pay $3000 to have dinner and a few drinks.

At this point, Vonnie D should just put the rest of the money in himself. He'd get paid back as soon as the Kickstarter pays out.

Actually, if I understand how KS works, as long as you can raise more than whatever the fees are, you should always fund the rest yourself. For instance, hypothetically:

100k Kickstarter Goal with 10% total fees
20k Raised organically (2k in fees, 18k left)
80k put in by organizers (8k in fees, 72k left)

When you get your 80k, you pay yourself back and have 10k in free money.

I'd imagine (hope) that KS has some kind of procedures to prevent this. Nor do I want to imply that this is what is happening here. However, since there is no guarantee to deliver anything w\ a Kickstarter, it sure seems like the entire system would be rife with abuse. I look forward to playing the Gremlins prototype at Expo (and the Pinball Circus flipping whitewood!)

Lier I never called him. Wait I did call him liar but never on the phone.

Screen Shot 2014-07-25 at 4.30.18 PM.png

Well, one backer just pushed this project over 100k...

BAM! Funded!

So, just to clarify, In the past hour this project lost 39 people backing it and went from:

2 @ $6500
1 @ $8000
3 @ $9000
3 @ $10,000

To:

2 @ $6500
1 @ $7500
1 @ $8000
4 @ $9000
3 @ $10,000

Wow this just keeps getting weirder and weirder.
Can I still pre order on some bath salts?

Well, they just met the goal.

My guess is people will not see any return and Vonnie D fails. This entire project is half passed run and shady. If the ks was tampered with and it should be investigated, then everyone should have funds returned.

So if I'm reading this thread correctly we should start to see the bots pull their pledges correct since they made their goal?

No, you will only see the bots pull if other people back, otherwise it wouldn't successfully fund.

Well, this is interesting.

https://twitter.com/VonnieDPinball/status/492792684419891200

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2065029795/pinball-gremlins-pinball-machine/backers

I don't see his name listed in there anywhere.

See, that is exactly how you respond to criticism^

I am obviously skeptical, looking at the numbers and backers...but if this goes through, and you do get money, and you're not scamming people and you are actually going to try your hand at building a serious boutique pin...you should probably never let Wes handle any PR stuff again, because he is absolutely horrible at it.

And your being nice about it. Wes is the worst PR person ever.

I bet Leticia S. Perkins is sure going to be happy when she gets her minibike, hydroponic garden, bikini tv show and PINBALL MACHINE.

It's great that all the bots are backing the same projects. How much does this cost Wes?

https://www.kickstarter.com/profile/981962080
leticia-0025.medium.jpg

Yep...I was going to throw a few dollars in until I came on here and saw Wes's attitude. I don't want to support that, it's toxic to the hobby.

Well now that it's funded, the truth will come out. We'll see if anyone gets a machine. $100k doesn't seem like an awful lot of money put a pin into production.

Anyone who believes these are not bots is a moron. Anyone who believes that the team is not directly responsible is also very gulible.

It is pretty insulting at this stage.

Sorry Vonnie. Should have picked better friends. Zero interest at this point and hopefully this debacle fades away quickly.

Entire project is a 'non' starter as far as most are concerned, so I'm Findng it hard to believe this project got $100k of real backers. Bye bye.

Keefer and Metallik have been around a long time. I'm going the smart route on this one, I suggest the real backers follow suit.

Wouldn't surprise me to see their Pinside accounts pulled eventually.

1 hour to go, 73 backers. Any guesses on the number of backers when the bots purge and the counter hits 0?

Two, Ivor Biggin and Phil McCavity both from Portland Oregon and both are still in on the Bikini TV opportunity as well

I'm really excited about the Bikini TV thing. Bots better not f that up.

So I'm walking on the beach enjoying an adult beverage..... Life is good..... and what am I thinking?

"Gotta get home to check the VD Pinball drama."

Geez.... I need a life.

Funded...

You've got to wait one more week to find out if it's really funded. And Vonnie has to wait at least an additional week to see money.

"When funding ends successfully, the cash is not immediately available for creators to get to work. Amazon Payments, which processes all Kickstarter transactions, has a mandatory hold period of 14 days for funds (it takes another three to five for the funds to transfer, as well). During that time there’s a seven-day window where backers can fix any payment problems, and finally in two weeks the funds are ready to withdraw."

I'm curious. Did anyone here pledge anything in excess of $100?

I'm not asking how much, just a simple yes will suffice.

Regardless of that, it still is funded now though so they get the money now, even if it adds up to less than 100k right?

I think I was the 2nd person to fund the 100$ to reserve a standard spot. I'm not too worried to lose it; I hope they accomplish everything they plan to with this game. I don't have to give any more money until its shipping time, if that ever happens.

I really don't know. I'd think Amazon likely does some kind of due diligence before handing 100k (minus fees) to someone.

As I said above, given Kickstarter's model, anytime a project raises enough money to cover fees, they're in the black. If friends\family\gamblers fund the rest, you could reimburse them and still have money in the bank. According to Kickstarter's terms (shown below), a creator is required to fulfill all rewards or refund the money.

While I have backed one Kickstarter in the past, you won't see me ever doing it again. The way it's set up now, there is virtually no accountability. For failed projects, the backers have to mount a lawsuit to recoup any money. Most backers won't bother with that.

creator-responsibility.png

_{Post edited by pinlynx: Added some clarity.}

Amazing

I know I'm late to the party, but grabbing my
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and
popcorn.jpg

Congrats guys! I hope everything is legit and goes smoothly for you.

To be fair, she's going to be loving life when she's got some stuff grown hydroponically in her house, half-naked chicks on TV, and a pinball machine in the living room. She may even ride her minibike down to the corner store to buy some incense/bath salts to complete the experience!

You know, there's no way to know if this is legit or not due to the way that KS is setup and the lack of transparency, but this thing has failed the sniff test for me. Maybe it ends up OK, but I am not getting near this thing with a 10-foot-pole.

What exactly is Barry Oursler's involvement in this? Is he designing aspects of the game or just a consultant? His face is plastered on the VD FB page as well as the KS.

Never thought I would see pigs fly but this kickstarter proved me wrong.
My guess is the pig smoked some Bombay Breeze:

"Each packet has the brand name, Bombay Breeze, and is decorated with a psychedelic logo featuring a cartoon elephant meditating among abstract-looking coils of smoke and stars"

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/11_26/b4234058348635.htm

IBTL (in before the litigation).

For the record, Von was an employee and we mutually agreed to part ways. He wanted to build a pinball machine and I was not quite ready to take the leap. We are friends and communicate regularly. Wes has been a friend and customer for several years. He has purchased many arcades and pinball machines from The Pinball Company. He supports pinball by having a good selection of pins and hosting pinball tournaments at his arcade. I supported the project and I am familiar enough with the project to believe a machine will be made. Not sure how many they will sell or if they will make a dime doing it, but I'm comfortable with the risk. I have also supported JJP as the first US distributor to get on board. In addition, we have supported PPS's MMR and Skit-B's Predator projects. I will continue to support these projects as they are good for pinball. That said, I think it best for individuals to wait until a machine is designed, built, and ready to deliver before making a pinball purchase from a reputable dealer. As always, Pinsiders have weighed in and your constructive criticism and comments do help these companies understand the needs and concerns of their potential customers and players. Keep it coming!

Nic

From an employers stand point I understand this posting. So for the record my information on him being terminated did not come from Nic.

Nic, what do you know about Wes? Other than what I already know "He's a liar" as we have never spoken face to face that I am aware of and no phone calls were made to him about this project or any project, nor threats were ever made "that" makes him a liar! So, that much I know is a fact! I already question this entire project based on the facts that came out about him & his so called marketing experience. Other than his bankruptcy, Salt bath or whatever you want to call it, puppet shows and the list is long. That's all we have to go on.
Von, I think is most likely a good guy, but this other guy, well 1 bad apple spoils the bunch. People can believe whatever they want. That's what makes this a great country. You will NEVER convince me, even if a machine appeared tomorrow and blows every machine away on the market and leaves people like that the KS was legit. It's it strange that nothing goes on for days and days and days, then in the last hours BOOM the miracle happen. I would buy the fact that maybe 1 or 2 stepped in and pay the job to be an investor but not like this. I have seen investors buy money losing companies for taxes right offs that would explain this. Again not theses people who showed up. Sorry I do not buy it. Plus KS has it's own scam stories.