[sgreco]

Having never really understood a casual viewer's perspective, I think the endgame adds a lot to strategy and to the excitement of the game.

The best mix between keeping the game like a spectator sport and not eliminating the endgame altogether would be to create an endgame like the one in 2008. Capping the track ball used the same game pieces that had been used all along, it just used them in a slightly different way. Climbing, balancing, Minibot races etc. may seem too arbitrary to make sense in the mind of a casual spectator.