Case Against John Popadiuk Dismissed; Turner Pinball Wins Deeproot Assets

Knapp Arcade·article·analyzed·Nov 30, 2022

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.020

TL;DR

Popadiuk lawsuit dismissed; Turner Pinball acquires Deeproot assets for $50k

Summary

John Popadiuk's lawsuit was dismissed in Northern District of Illinois Bankruptcy Court. Deeproot Pinball's remaining assets, including IP for unreleased games (Magic Girl, RAZA, Alice in Wonderland), were auctioned and purchased by Turner Pinball (Chris Turner) for $50,000. The RAZA prototype was likely destroyed at Intertek during UL testing. American Pinball did not bid on the assets.

Key Claims

Case against John Popadiuk and Zidware was dismissed in Northern District of Illinois Bankruptcy Court
high confidence · Stated as fact; article references court documents below
Turner Pinball purchased Deeproot Pinball assets at Texas Bankruptcy Court auction for $50,000
high confidence · Direct statement with specific dollar amount and court jurisdiction
Chris Turner (Turner Pinball owner) also owns Turner Logic, which did programming for Deeproot
high confidence · Explicitly stated relationship between entities
RAZA prototype was left at Intertek beyond contractually allowed period and believed to be destroyed
medium confidence · Article states 'now believed' — indicates inference rather than confirmed fact
American Pinball (David Fix) did not bid on Deeproot assets despite prior podcast interest
high confidence · Stated as direct fact about auction non-participation
Zidware customers will not be made whole from the lawsuit dismissal
high confidence · Direct statement about customer recovery prospects
Turner Pinball also purchased life insurance policies held by Deeproot
high confidence · Explicitly stated as part of asset purchase

Notable Quotes

“The original Zidware customers definitely will not be made whole, but there may be some relief for them with more announcements on this subject later this week.”
Author (Knapp Arcade) @ N/A — Indicates potential partial recovery for defrauded customers despite lawsuit dismissal; suggests developing story
“Despite expressing interest in potentially manufacturing the pinball machines that were designed by Deeproot during its short life numerous times on various podcasts, David Fix and American Pinball did not place a bid for Deeproot's assets during the bankruptcy auction.”
Author (Knapp Arcade) @ N/A — Indicates American Pinball's public interest did not translate to actual investment; notable given David Fix's history with Deeproot designer Papa Duke
“Many had assumed that the prototype RAZA pinball machine that had been given to a company called Intertek for UL testing and certification was part of the bankruptcy assets, but it was not.”
Author (Knapp Arcade) @ N/A — Clarifies a common misconception about what assets were available in bankruptcy; explains why RAZA prototype is inaccessible
“The ball is now in Chris Turner and Turner Pinball's court.”
Author (Knapp Arcade) @ N/A — Final statement passing control and future responsibility to Turner Pinball; indicates uncertainty about whether games will be manufactured

Entities

John Popadiukperson ZidwarecompanyDeeproot PinballcompanyRobert Muellerperson Chris Turnerperson Turner PinballcompanyTurner Logiccompany

Signals

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business_signal: Original Zidware customers will not be made whole from lawsuit dismissal, indicating total loss of investment in failed pinball game ventures
high · 'The original Zidware customers definitely will not be made whole'
?
business_signal: Deeproot Pinball's bankruptcy auction resulted in asset sale to Turner Pinball for $50,000, transferring IP for four unreleased games (Magic Girl, RAZA, Alice in Wonderland, Food Truck)
high · Assets were 'put up for auction by a Texas Bankruptcy Court last week and sold to Turner Pinball for $50,000'
?
community_signal: Zidware/Deeproot saga represents major community controversy involving failed game production, customer fraud, bankruptcy, and uncertain future of promised machines
high · Entire article documents years-long dispute resolution; 'At long last the story of John Popadiuk, Zidware and Deeproot Pinball may have come to a conclusion'
$
market_signal: American Pinball's non-participation in Deeproot asset acquisition despite publicly expressed interest suggests either financial constraints, strategic deprioritization, or internal disagreement about Deeproot game viability
medium · 'David Fix and American Pinball did not place a bid for Deeproot's assets during the bankruptcy auction' despite 'expressing interest...numerous times on various podcasts'
?
community_signal: Chris Turner (Turner Logic founder/programmer) expanded from software services into hardware/IP ownership by acquiring Deeproot assets and operating Turner Pinball

Topics

John Popadiuk / Zidware / Deeproot Pinball litigation and bankruptcyprimaryUnreleased pinball game IP and asset ownershipprimaryTurner Pinball acquisition and future manufacturing prospectsprimaryCustomer recovery and restitution for defrauded collectorssecondaryAmerican Pinball's strategic non-involvement in acquisitionsecondaryUL testing and certification process challengesmentioned

Sentiment

neutral(0.35)— Article is factual reporting of legal/business resolution. Slightly negative undertone regarding customer losses and RAZA prototype destruction, but balanced with acknowledgment of partial resolution and future possibility under Turner ownership.

Transcript

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At long last the story of John Popadiuk, Zidware and Deeproot Pinball may have come to a conclusion. Last month, the case against John Popadiuk aka J Pop and his defunct pinball company, Zidware, brought by a group of pinball collectors who lost money in his failed attempt to produce pinball machines like Magic Girl, Retro Atomic Zombie Adventureland (RAZA) and Alice in Wonderland was dismissed in the Northern District of Illinois Bankruptcy Court (see below). The original Zidware customers definitely will not be made whole, but there may be some relief for them with more announcements on this subject later this week. The majority of the remaining Zidware and Popaduik-related assets were in the possession of Robert Mueller's now defunct company Deeproot Pinball. They were put up for auction by a Texas Bankruptcy Court last week and sold to Turner Pinball for $50,000. Turner Pinball is owned by the same individual, Chris Turner, as Turner Logic, the company that did programming for Deeproot while it was still in business. Along with the Deeproot Pinball intellectual property, Chris Turner also purchased several life insurance policies that the Deeproot companies had possession of. Despite expressing interest in potentially manufacturing the pinball machines that were designed by Deeproot during its short life numerous times on various podcasts, David Fix and American Pinball did not place a bid for Deeproot's assets during the bankruptcy auction. Many had assumed that the prototype RAZA pinball machine that had been given to a company called Intertek for UL testing and certification was part of the bankruptcy assets, but it was not. It is now believed that that specific machine was left at Intertek for longer than the contractually allowed period of time and destroyed. Lots of loose ends in the J Pop / Zidware saga have been tied up. Is this the end of the story or will games like Magic Girl, RAZA and Food Truck pop back up at some point in the future? Time will tell. The ball is now in Chris Turner and Turner Pinball's court. Below are the documents related to the Deeproot bankruptcy auction: