>It's amazing to me how virtual and real pinball are really not comparable at all in terms of enjoyment (at least for me personally). I still don't really understand why.

Have you tried it in VR? With free head movement, and proper 3D sound simulation, the physics feel a lot more real.

It's still missing good haptics. I think the PS5 DualSense force-feedback controllers and trigger might be able to give you the feeling of the ball rolling around different places, but I don't see anyone trying to make this work in virtual pinball yet.