I've been adding color LCDs and movie clips to virtual pinball games since 2011, and created all the animations for Full Throttle in 2013-14, so I have more experience than anyone in this field I'd say.

My take was just to replicate what a DMD did perfectly.....very quick, very short bursts of visual information, that can be glanced at and understood in a second. Only when holding the ball do you show the player something a bit longer.

Pinball doesn't need complex and expensive animations. Player score and game progress are really the only things players are scanning for in the half-second they lift their eyes from the playfield. Everything else is just padding.

NEVER have movie clips playing for more than a few seconds at a time, and only play very exciting clips that compliment the action on the table. See Alien pinball.

Games should not be designed for spectators, everything should be focused on the player experience. If people want to watch you play, they can watch you play.....not stare at a TV in the backglass.