KickStarter Blackthorne health fundraiser

[Blackthorne]

Yep. I fucked myself up pretty good almost two Saturdays ago now. My leg gave out on me while I was out, and I fell - bad - into a bunch of metal chairs. Caused a huge contusion on my chest, under my armpit - and I nicked an artery. Was bleeding internally - had to have surgery to drain it and repair the artery. Lost a lot of blood on top of being severly anemic from my failing kidney.... I got six units of blood. Was in the hospital for a week. I'm still recovering; the swelling has mostly gone done, the JP drain is gone, and I have about 13 staples still in. They come out next week. I have an appointment with my nephrologist next week, too, which is probably about when I'm re-starting dialysis. It's kind of a bummer. I'm doing okay today, but I'm not about to win any awards.

 

[Maxie]

what the fuck man why did you randomly fall into a bunch of metal chairs

 

[ds]

This is why we don't use luck as a dump stat.

Hope you will get some ability points to fix your build soon.

 

[Blackthorne]

what the fuck man why did you randomly fall into a bunch of metal chairs

I have neuropathy in my hands and feet from years of dialysis which makes it hard for me to feel them. I also have spinal stenosis and bulging discs at L4,L5 and S1 which limit my mobility and cause me a lot of pain. Some days are worse than others, and I've taken to walking with a cane sometimes because somedays my balance is horrible. That day was particularily bad - I had my cane with me. I stepped backwards, and I must have pinched a nerve just right because my leg went DEAD and buckled out from under me, I fell backwards, tried to regain my balance, failed, and crashed into the chairs. It sucks. I've got a lot of complications from over 20 years of dealing with ESRD and dialysis and three failed kidney transplants. Life kinda heaps it on you when you're chronically ill.

 

[pOcHa]

I would happily donate to another fundraiser

i used the the link from the first post - here it is again:

https://gofund.me/7c706f7b

 

[HoboForEternity]

I would happily donate to another fundraiser

i used the the link from the first post - here it is again:

https://gofund.me/7c706f7b

Oh nice it's still online. Thanks!

 

[Blackthorne]

Thanks guys. Staring at the $2,000+ nephrology bill is enough to make other organs fail, so I appreciate it.

 

[Blackthorne]

Just a little update for y'all who might care -

I'm back on in-center dialysis again. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Treatment's four hours long, and I get on at 6:35 AM. It's about as fun as it sounds, dialysis at God's fucking Hour, but it's keeping me alive. Treatments suck - I usually leave feeling pretty drained and awful, and generally have to nap a couple hours afterwards. But, I'm alive, and in better health than I was. Between the hospital stays, and dialysis removing the excess fluid I accumulated from kidneys not working... I've lost almost 80lbs in pure water weight. It's nuts. Anyway, I'm alive... again. On the mend. Still trying to make some adventure games when I can.

 

[Outlander]

Your're a fuckin fighter, hope you get better.

Just try not to fall into a bunch of chairs again!

 

[Blackthorne]

Heh, I've avoided chairs for the time being. Been on dialysis over a month - can confirm, again, it sucks terribly. It was also easier when I was younger. I've been doing this 20 years, I don't even know how in the fuck I've managed.

 

[MRY]

One part Rocky, one part Spider-Man. Watching how you keep going through all this makes it much easier to weather milder storms.

 

[Blackthorne]

Got a letter from a new transplant clinic in another city; I'm going to start all over with them... which means more tests, again, like colonoscopies, dental exams... real fun stuff. But, I got no other choice. Just trying to soldier on, but goddamn, it's a slog.

 

[Outlander]

Just an idea, try to turn that shit into something positive, maybe you could write a book or a game about sampling human organs across the country and talking with their -dead- former owners, dark humor style, etc.

 

[Blackthorne]

Well, if I for sure get another transplant, you can bet that one of the sidequests in Quest for Infamy 2 is to get a fucking kidney for someone. (Only to have a sorcerer magically regrow the dudes kidney anyway, cause if I'm writing a world with magic, that shit is HAPPENING.)

In other news, I have to take a new monthly medication that costs $75 for the co-pay... I spend like $200 on medications already, with insurance... it's nuts. Apparently without insurance, this shit costs $1400+ though.

 

[taxalot]

 

[lightbane]

New drama incoming? Will this be another Victor Plugf case?

 

[Durq]

How is the Order of the Thorne/Roehm To Ruin Kickstarter rewards fulfillment going?

 

[Grauken]

Just don't do kickstarters, it's not healthy

 

[Durq]

I am really curious about that "One Limited Edition Keepsake Box constructed from Oak - a wooden box that features The Order of the Thorne Logo imprinted on it". How is that one guy who paid $1,000 enjoying it? He's had it for eight years now, right?

 

[Blackthorne]

Oh god, this guy has been after me for years. I can't watch this whole thing, I really got a lot going on, but jesus dude... I'm trying. I do have some people helping me this Summer to get the last of the stuff out... that's been a shitshow. I know. I'm sorry. I tried really hard, but ended up doing a lot on my own.

But, yikes, this is the first thing like this I've gotten online. It's pretty rough.

I am really curious about that "One Limited Edition Keepsake Box constructed from Oak - a wooden box that features The Order of the Thorne Logo imprinted on it". How is that one guy who paid $1,000 enjoying it? He's had it for eight years now, right?

Ugh, I forgot about that.... we had someone promise to make that... never did. Ugh. Yeah, It's a mess. Making games is the easy part. Running a company and fulfillng rewards is the tough part. I made a lot of mistakes. Trust me, I feel bad. My health issues aren't fake or a joke, though.

 

[Cohesion]

You have made great games and released them unlike for example Unknown Realm or that Ultima IX Remake. You are a honest dev, not a scammer.

 

[Blackthorne]

You have made great games and released them unlike for example Unknown Realm or that Ultima IX Remake. You are a honest dev, not a scammer.

Thanks, I tried. We definitely had some snags with the physical rewards - I am not denying that. I am still trying to make good on that and hopefully I can finish that chapter up this year. I’m working hard to put the finishing touches on more of our games… I can only do so much though. Anyway, thank you, I do appreciate that.

 

[mindx2]

WOW! That individual is bitter! Rincewind is this the actual eXo guy that you've mentioned before?

I kind of kept skipping ahead as he isn't the most dynamic speaker but he does realize the actual game was made right? Most people know my love of boxed copies and I've paid a lot for them over the years, even on KS during the craze. In most cases that I didn't receive a physical reward at all I also never got a game to play. I've actually played Blackthorne's finished game and enjoyed it. Even better is that as a backer I also have the boxed copy and hint book on my game museum shelf! Yeah, it took a number of years but I also know the health issues he's dealing with as I have a few(er) myself . Should it be an excuse, no but it does factor into my understanding and patience. Many KS creators have used health as an excuse but with little actual way of verifying said health issues. Steve literately posts pictures of himself in clinics/hospitals connected to machines with big ass needles stuck in him! The eXo guy also doesn't seem to know much about Steve's life in general. Doesn't even know he has two kids or the divorce. To harp on the Disney trip is rather petty. Steve doesn't even know how much time he has left with his kids so one trip to Disney with kids (at that age) is a no-brainer no matter whatever else is going on in anybodies life. Now if there were pictures of him trotting around the US/world each year I would be highly suspicious but I've seen no evidence of a lavish lifestyle.

I'm sure I have some bias in this since I've met Steve once and interviewed him. I really enjoyed our brief time talking/reminiscing about the bygone era of computer games*. Regardless, I received everything I paid for... especially the actual GAME promised! You know, the important part of any KS game development. Is it taking too long to get the physical goodies out to people, yes. That's on Steve and he should accept that criticism and try to correct it but the tone and accusing manner in the video is overblown. He makes it seem like it's all a big scam but if it were there wouldn't be an actual game delivered (albeit digitally). Heck, I'm still waiting for my boxed edition of Pathfinder: WotR and that's a much larger company than Steve's one man band.

*

Spoiler

Though if he was getting all that Amazon junk food (Doritos & Dew) at the time he didn't have any with him to bribe me with!!

 

[mediocrepoet]

Just don't do kickstarters, it's not healthy

This. It's basically an investment where your only potential upside is that the thing gets made and maybe you get some stuff like a copy or a shirt out of it. It should never be viewed as a proper store because a lot of this shit never comes to fruition, even when it isn't out of fraudulent or malicious intent. It's more like a quasi-donation - a form of patronage in a more traditional meaning that didn't necessarily imply any guaranteed return.

As a result, unless you're super passionate about something being made, such as it's something that isn't getting delivered anywhere else, and can afford to watch the money burn in front of you, you really shouldn't contribute to them.

EDIT: I think this general realization and the poor success rate of game Kickstarters is why that medium seems to have mostly dried up.

 

[mediocrepoet]

For the record, I was actually becoming skeptical a few years back about Blackthorne's story and what not because I'd never received my physical rewards. He eventually did send me the boxed copy (missed a t-shirt, but whatever) and didn't ask me to reimburse the postage even though I'd offered to. This leads me to believe that, unlike some other projects I've commented on, he really did intend to deliver and ran into a variety of health and life complications as well as the shitty factor of simply underestimating the costs of delivery and had to take a hit to cover them off.

It seems like a bad situation that was not at all due to ill intent.