Some projects are in an advanced state, but the discussion about whether people have enough information to back a project is typically about projects which aren't in a state where such information is available. Projects like DFA, Wasteland 2, and frankly most big game projects, existed, if at all, in a very early state (such as a design document, a prototype, or nothing in the case of DFA). Small indie games are typically in a more advanced state because they need that to be convincing. Which suggests that people are indeed not going in blindly (they are willing to give experienced developers more of a leeway, while requiring more proof from less experience ones).

Regarding people being disappointed with a project's failure, that's natural, but it doesn't mean much. Investors are disappointed when a project they invested in failed, patrons are disappointed if the creator fails to accomplish anything with their money. However in terms of mindset investors tend to accept up front that they are gambling with their money and people who pre-order never accept that.

I think Zolgar said it well: "Kickstarter is a Crowd-Funding platform and a gamble, to call it anything else is inaccurate". There are similarities in mind set to investment, to pre-ordering, and to patronage, but there are also differences between Kickstarter and any of these.

That's fair. I am fully satisfied with noting the similarity to pre-orders or investments or patronage. Also I think that KS offers enough freedom to each project owner that the project can be geared more towards patronage, investment, ... whatever works best. So it's up to the project owner and the crowd to decide what they like most. If you want a patronage project, just ask only for support and limit the promised return to certain conditions. If you want an investment, promise some kind of participation (limtied or unlimited) in the success, if you want a pre-order, offer a guarantee. That way everything is possible and known from the beginning. KS can be just all that you want it to be.

I also gave it some thought, and I figure that Kickstarter projects can often viewed as an investment in the general sense of the word, i.e., making an effort to get a long term outcome. The motivation behind paying for a game project is not just getting the game, but investing in the future of the creator, the game style, the platforms the game will run on, etc. People invest in an adventure by Double Fine not only because they want a game, but because they want more adventure games in general, want studios to be financially independent, want more games for Linux, want more DRM-free games, etc.