Yup. I've talked with people at Stern who say exactly this, they want the ball to be visible, or come back out of where it went in, not appear somewhere else.

I honestly can't say I can argue with it. Once you're used to it, sure it's cool, but Stern always thinks about location play as part of their strategy, and it's hard for new players. And I mean new to the game, not just new to pinball.

I'm not gonna bash the new game I played last weekend at Golden Gate Pinball Festival, but the ball randomly appearing wasn't magical, it was annoying.

Easy bash toy for multiball probably.

I seem to recall the insistence on shooter rods really annoyed Keefer and/or Steve for World Poker Tour, and it is pretty ridiculous on that game.