The Video Game Kickstarter Thread of the Future of Passing the Risk to the Consumer
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Any news on the Planescape Torment sequel?
Wasteland 2 is almost here. If I didn't have The Banner Saga to play, I'd probably be getting that or Shadowrun.
Wasteland 2 is almost here. If I didn't have The Banner Saga to play, I'd probably be getting that or Shadowrun.
I'd rather a game be late but perfect than on time and crap.
For all intents and purposes, I should be the number one kind of person that would support these guys. But they've been trying to get this game off the ground for almost 10 years and I've seen so little actual development in the game. I've heard that a number of developers that Dave Wishnowski has brought on have walked out because of how much he asks of them with giving so little. I've heard a lot of really iffy stuff on the guy, actually.
The sad thing is, I want this to do well because I've been hoping for a good, modable wrestling game on the PC pretty much all my life. I just wish the project was in hands that actually made me feel could actual deliver on a decent product.
The Black Watchmen: A persistent ARG game tied into The Secret World.
Don't know what an ARG is? ARG stands for "augmented reality game". It's the kind of game that blurs the line between the game and reality. In this case, it's about The Secret World... a world where every myth and legend is true and conspiracies have controlled everything since the dawn of time. However, you don't PLAY this game in TSW. You play it in the real world, on different levels depending on how involved you want to be.
- Red: You get access to the Black Watchmen website, which has games and missions that tie into the overall plot of both games.
- Orange: You get access to the Black Watchmen App, which allows greater real world involvement. Not only does the app allow you to team up and confront other agents, it also means you might get phone calls from the Black Watchmen which have mission critical data.
- Yellow: Full involvement. At this level you might have a black SUV show up at your front door and have agents escort you to an isolated location to participant in a real test. You might get packages delivered to your front door. You might have people following you. ALL OF THIS HAS HAPPENED IN PREVIOUS WATCHMENT ARGS.
They are asking for a whole lot and aren't promoting it well. Toss some money their way.
Don't know what an ARG is? ARG stands for "augmented reality game". It's the kind of game that blurs the line between the game and reality. In this case, it's about The Secret World... a world where every myth and legend is true and conspiracies have controlled everything since the dawn of time. However, you don't PLAY this game in TSW. You play it in the real world, on different levels depending on how involved you want to be.
- Red: You get access to the Black Watchmen website, which has games and missions that tie into the overall plot of both games.
- Orange: You get access to the Black Watchmen App, which allows greater real world involvement. Not only does the app allow you to team up and confront other agents, it also means you might get phone calls from the Black Watchmen which have mission critical data.
- Yellow: Full involvement. At this level you might have a black SUV show up at your front door and have agents escort you to an isolated location to participant in a real test. You might get packages delivered to your front door. You might have people following you. ALL OF THIS HAS HAPPENED IN PREVIOUS WATCHMENT ARGS.
They are asking for a whole lot and aren't promoting it well. Toss some money their way.
Shovel Knight guys say they've finished work and have a submission model going out. So, as far as they're concerned, it's ready and we're just waiting on Nintendo.
I decided to look at the stretch goals just to see what consumed some of the time--I don't know about you guys, but I don't care about most of these. I'm glad the game was funded so well, but I just don't see most of these being relevant.
Whatever; the game's coming.
I decided to look at the stretch goals just to see what consumed some of the time--I don't know about you guys, but I don't care about most of these. I'm glad the game was funded so well, but I just don't see most of these being relevant.
Whatever; the game's coming.
What I don't get it is why they suddenly felt the need to do that last minute. 3DS and Wii U versions were intended from the start; they weren't stretch goals that the team suddenly realized they could do more with. They were always going to release the game on 3DS and Wii U. So why decide so late that they needed more special stuff for those systems? Do they think that might encourage people to buy it on more than one system? Because I have a feeling those who buy it for PC aren't going to give a shit about those features. Hell, I'm buying it for 3DS and I don't give a shit about those features.
Looks like we're getting another season of NukaBreak and Chriss Avellone and Brian Fargo are back on board this season.
A Wild West strategy game where XCOM meets the over world of Heroes of Might and Magic? And it's being done by some reputable devs? I'm totally on board for this.
Mighty No. 9 backer update:
Beta codes should be going out for those who are getting them.
Also, everyone who backed the Kickstarter should be getting a free code for Mighty Gunvolt, an 8-bit style game for 3DS, with two of the playable characters being from Mighty No. 9 (and then one from Azure Striker Gunvolt).
Beta codes should be going out for those who are getting them.
Also, everyone who backed the Kickstarter should be getting a free code for Mighty Gunvolt, an 8-bit style game for 3DS, with two of the playable characters being from Mighty No. 9 (and then one from Azure Striker Gunvolt).
Is it just me or has the flood of Kickstarters slowed down to a trickle or stopped altogether? A year or two ago, we had developers coming out of the woodwork, especially old school developers from Sierra and LucasArts, but it seems now that crowd funding isn't as big as it was a few years ago. Maybe because a lot of these games haven't delivered, didn't do very well, or took too long to release that the shine off crowd funding has worn off?
Starters have realised that:
a) a KS isn't "free money"
b) stretch goals that are too cool are unrealistic and too expensive, and can bring the whole thing crashing down
c) publishers did more than just "ship the game to the shop"
d) there's more to making a good game than having a good idea and a good coder
And backers have realised:
a) that it isn't just like a pre-order
b) that the final product can look nothing like promised and that's just too bad
c) that the waiting period can be quite long (as in, 2+ years) and there's no guarantees about it any which way
d) it's actually not really worth it to get early access/beta/alpha/etc for most games these days
Also,
a) there was a big rush when it was just starting, this seems a more realistic level of new KSers being launched
b) most of those who really wanted to and could get the cash (aka those with some sort of name to attach to their game or have a really good idea), are probably busy right now.
c) obviously, some games have failed and soured quite a few people
I still see a LOT of KSers for board games and such, of the "it's finished but I need the cash up-front for production costs" variety. People have no problems backing those. People have become a lot more wary about funding companies of 1 person who has no business background. Surprise surprise, people think banks should take hosts of risks and support small up-and-coming ventures, but if it's their own capital, suddenly most people aren't all that eager to take risks.
a) a KS isn't "free money"
b) stretch goals that are too cool are unrealistic and too expensive, and can bring the whole thing crashing down
c) publishers did more than just "ship the game to the shop"
d) there's more to making a good game than having a good idea and a good coder
And backers have realised:
a) that it isn't just like a pre-order
b) that the final product can look nothing like promised and that's just too bad
c) that the waiting period can be quite long (as in, 2+ years) and there's no guarantees about it any which way
d) it's actually not really worth it to get early access/beta/alpha/etc for most games these days
Also,
a) there was a big rush when it was just starting, this seems a more realistic level of new KSers being launched
b) most of those who really wanted to and could get the cash (aka those with some sort of name to attach to their game or have a really good idea), are probably busy right now.
c) obviously, some games have failed and soured quite a few people
I still see a LOT of KSers for board games and such, of the "it's finished but I need the cash up-front for production costs" variety. People have no problems backing those. People have become a lot more wary about funding companies of 1 person who has no business background. Surprise surprise, people think banks should take hosts of risks and support small up-and-coming ventures, but if it's their own capital, suddenly most people aren't all that eager to take risks.
I think you're right on all accounts here, Bubble. I think a lot of people got wise to Kickstarters, like @Jay's rule that he must at least SEE some of the product in question. Some game play in the case of video games.
Plus, I think there's been a strong rise in Early Access games, for better or for worse.
Plus, I think there's been a strong rise in Early Access games, for better or for worse.
I think a lot of that comes from perception of large banks. The headlines go that "1stCitiNationalCorpBank posted $4B in profits!" and think that they should be funding everything since obviously they can afford it. And that they're being evil, etc. Now some of that may well be happening, but $4B profit is probably on $20B-$40B of revenue, which means 5%-10% profit. Not really all that "holy f'n awesome!" profit there. Healthy yes (I think) but hardly robber barons. If banks were much much smaller, then you wouldn't hear about it because the sensational number is lower. And there's probably benefits to many smaller institutions rather than big large ones too, but that's for a completely different thread (and different sub-forum).
Edit: fixed math
Even this is fail proof. I've backed 19 KS projects so far. Most have been a variety of success and failure but you are correct, I now completely HAVE to see gameplay and even then I'm now pickier then ever.
Castle Story : Gameplay shown, plays like absolute shit. Still in Alpha hell with incompetent devs in control.
Project Eternity : In pre-alpha, reviews are mixed. Will wait and see when released.
Timber and Stone : In Beta. Played some. I like it. Will play more once I clear up my gaming queue.
Forced : Released. It's solid. Wish more people had it for COOP goodness.
Forsaken Fortress : Failed. Barely got in Alpha. Unplayable mess.
Sir, You're Being Hunted : In Beta. Played some. It's entertaining. Will play more once I clear up my gaming queue.
Sui Generis : In slow dev hell. Slightly worried but gameplay vids so look promising. Updates are sparse.
Roam : In devl. Not worried as gameplay vids and constant updates shows progress.
Torment : Q4 2015
Stonehearth : In Alpha. Updates are sparse but not worried at the moment.
Massive Chalice : I regret backing this. Updates are irrelevant. No gameplay yet.
Liege : In closed alpha. Updates are good. Looking forward to the game.
Rimworld : In Alpha... feels Beta though. Very playable and fun. Will play more once I clear up my gaming queue.
Lord of Xulima : In Alpha. Got "Greenlighted" recently. Updates are sparse. Will try the alpha once I clear up my gaming queue.
Kingdom Come : Q4 2015
Wasteland 2 : Releasing in September 19th.
Contagion : Released. It's solid. Will play more once I clear up my gaming queue.
Divinity Original Sin : Released. It's solid. Will play more once I clear up my gaming queue.
Cosmic Star Heroine : No gameplay shown yet but updates are there. Releasing in December.
So out of 19 KS...
3 have released successfully.
2 were absolute failures.
2 are leaning towards failure.
1 is being released next month.
The rest are in dev.
Backing KS, one should expect a variety of results. My advice? Back those who show the most promise. That show actual gameplay. Or else expect to wait many years for "something". Project management for these people are clearly terrible.
I see KS being more and more unpopular... for good reason. Maybe KS needs to select those projects a bit more. There's been too many failures and more of note, too many scandals.
To be frank, I haven't even checked KS the last few months unless someone posted something somewhere of note.
I thought Massive Chalice had a playable demo at PAX.
This is probably the biggest factor. A lot of the companies that got in when the new source of funding opened up (causing the big rush of KS projects we had previously) are either still working, or completed their projects and didn't need to immediately jump back into doing more kickstarter projects, for example Stoic and Harebrained Schemes (creators of the Banner Saga and Shadowrun Returns respectively).
I didn't back this one, but a quick check of their update history shows that they're done multiple twitch streams of gameplay. Maybe if you paid attention to the "irrelevant" updates you'd have seen what looks like hours of gameplay, which they still have on their youtube account. They even had a playable demo at PAX.
GasBandit
Staff member
I've backed the new Carmageddon, which is playable in beta and making slow but steady progress.
Now, on the other hand, I've bought early access to:
Gnomoria, which is really far along - there's still a few bugs to squash and some features on the roadmap I'd really like to see implemented (prosthetic limbs especially, I've got a number of gnomes missing an arm or leg)
Space Engineers, which shows incredible promise but is so frustratingly buggy as to almost be unplayable, especially in multiplayer. Also its dev has a bad track record - only released one other game, released it unfinished and buggy and abandoned development to start working on SE
Prison Architect - which is currently perfectly playable and almost bugless, but development is going very slowly (hasn't been an update since I bought it in the summer sale) and while it is entertaining for the first few hours, right now has no endgame other than "make your prison even bigger."
Kerbal Space Program - totally awesome. Don't regret it one bit. Even when it was more unfinished, it was still tons of fun.
Now, on the other hand, I've bought early access to:
Gnomoria, which is really far along - there's still a few bugs to squash and some features on the roadmap I'd really like to see implemented (prosthetic limbs especially, I've got a number of gnomes missing an arm or leg)
Space Engineers, which shows incredible promise but is so frustratingly buggy as to almost be unplayable, especially in multiplayer. Also its dev has a bad track record - only released one other game, released it unfinished and buggy and abandoned development to start working on SE
Prison Architect - which is currently perfectly playable and almost bugless, but development is going very slowly (hasn't been an update since I bought it in the summer sale) and while it is entertaining for the first few hours, right now has no endgame other than "make your prison even bigger."
Kerbal Space Program - totally awesome. Don't regret it one bit. Even when it was more unfinished, it was still tons of fun.
GasBandit
Staff member
Oh, no no no NO! I-76 naturally, was really fun on da bun. But Carmageddon was not garbage at all! It was one of the first games to pioneer polygonal deformation under damage, had good and unique car designs, a large variety of levels... I have the original carmageddon on my tablet now (which reminds me, I need to put it on my new phone) and it's by far my favorite mobile game of all time. It was great fun in LAN multiplayer too, so long as you kicked the crap out of any friend who dared choose the bulldozer car. Really, it was one of the best games of the mid 90s. It spawned other sequels of varying quality, but the original is definitely one of my favorite games of all time. If you can spare 99 cents, I definitely recommend you try Carmageddon out on Android or IOS.
As a computer programmer, this looks so interesting to me:
They were 6% done when I first started watching the video, and hit 9% right as I was finished. I have a feeling this will easily make its goalsWhen we were young, wizards like Gandalf and Dumbledore struck a chord in our minds. We spent hours pretending to be wizards and casting epic imaginary spells.
Now, we want to bring that kind of creative freedom to video games. Instead of giving the player pre-packaged spells, CodeSpells allows you to craft your own magical spells. It's the ultimate spellcrafting sandbox.
What makes it all possible is code. The game provides a coding interface where you can specify exactly what your spells will do. This interface is intuitive enough for individuals (young and old) who have never coded before. But skilled coders will also enjoy using their coding skills in new and creative ways! Even children can use this interface to make mountains out of the terrain, make an impenetrable force field around yourself, or even make a golem creature out of the surrounding rocks. The sky is the limit!
...
"Arms Race: The Video Game!"
I do like the idea that it will allow the practical expression of all those kids who play like:
"I shot you"
"But I have a bullet-proof vest"
"But I'm using armor-piercing bullets"
"But I spun out of the way"
"But I caught you"
"But I'm covered in butter and slipped away"
...etc.
--Patrick
I do like the idea that it will allow the practical expression of all those kids who play like:
"I shot you"
"But I have a bullet-proof vest"
"But I'm using armor-piercing bullets"
"But I spun out of the way"
"But I caught you"
"But I'm covered in butter and slipped away"
...etc.
--Patrick
Have them play a card for each move, and you've got a TCG right there.
Everyone who got money has to make their games now. Expect to see more Kickstarter game projects building up next year, though perhaps not from the same people.
I've been waiting awhile for this one to start...
Pathologic, but remade. Easier to run on modern systems. Doesn't fucking break down all the time. And all the depressing Russian literature I can stand. God, I love Kickstarter.
Pathologic, but remade. Easier to run on modern systems. Doesn't fucking break down all the time. And all the depressing Russian literature I can stand. God, I love Kickstarter.
I would so play this