KickStarter Kickstarter Watch.

[Infinitron]

 

[Grunker]

Thought I'd share a bit of info with y'all. The content staff here on RPG Codex was just sent an exclusive e-mail from the makers of Angry Farmer - a fantastic upcoming RPG. Here's a snippet of what they wrote:

We think Angry Farmer could be a great story for RPGcodex for these reasons:
Innovative gameplay – full pvp, that most social game developers trying to avoid using in their projects.
Colorful and fun design – Easy and non-aggressive vegetable faces and special look for Kickstarter backers – popular trollfaces mems, imprinted on veggies.
Fast passed combat – battles are very dynamic and you have to constantly improve your strategy and experiment with your skills to win.
And don't forget - corny jokes

I think this is a game for us bros!!! Infinitron is working on a news post as we speak!

 

[General Maxson]

Thought I'd share a bit of info with y'all. The content staff here on RPG Codex was just sent an exclusive e-mail from the makers of Angry Farmer - a fantastic upcoming RPG. Here's a snippet of what they wrote:

We think Angry Farmer could be a great story for RPGcodex for these reasons:
Innovative gameplay – full pvp, that most social game developers trying to avoid using in their projects.
Colorful and fun design – Easy and non-aggressive vegetable faces and special look for Kickstarter backers – popular trollfaces mems, imprinted on veggies.
Fast passed combat – battles are very dynamic and you have to constantly improve your strategy and experiment with your skills to win.
And don't forget - corny jokes

I think this is a game for us bros!!! Infinitron is working on a news post as we speak!

Is it a troll, or just plain retarded/uninformed attempt at media exposure?

 

[Infinitron]

 

[Zewp]

Thought I'd share a bit of info with y'all. The content staff here on RPG Codex was just sent an exclusive e-mail from the makers of Angry Farmer - a fantastic upcoming RPG. Here's a snippet of what they wrote:

Hahaha, these guys posted on a bunch of other gaming forums I frequent. For a bullshit little FB game they're pretty adamant about spreading awareness for it.

 

[Destroid]

Dexter that's pretty sad, considering they explicitly mention 'no publishers' and a desire to be independently funded on their pitch page. That said, it really depends on the nature of the relationships between 22Cans and DeNA, I can't find anything to object about if they are merely a distribution partner who will assist them with that, but if they are a full invested publisher then they will have influence and 22Cans have broken trust with all of their backers.

 

[Jaesun]

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1117671683/harbinger-down-a-practical-creature-fx-film

A sci-fi/horror film by Creature FX Designer Alec Gillis, that will celebrate Animatronics and Makeup FX . Help keep FX real!

What is Harbinger Down?

In the spirit of sci-fi/horror classics, Alien and The Thing, Harbinger Down is a tense, claustrophobic full-length creature film that will feature only practical Animatronic and Makeup Effects.

If you're a fan of the art of Animatronics and Makeup FX, you know that this technique is overlooked by the big studios. I'm hoping that you will help us change that by supporting this labor of love. I will write and direct and ADI co-founder Tom Woodruff, Jr. will produce.

Our company, Amalgamated Dynamics, will create the kind of Oscar caliber Creature Effects for which we are known.
The Story

A group of grad students have booked passage on the fishing trawler Harbinger to study the effects of global warming on a pod of Orcas in the Bering Sea. When the ship's crew dredges up a recently thawed piece of old Soviet space wreckage, things get downright deadly. It seems that the Russians experimented with tardigrades, tiny resilient animals able to withstand the extremes of space radiation. The creatures survived, but not without mutation.

Now the crew is exposed to aggressively mutating organisms. And after being locked in ice for 3 decades, the creatures aren't about to give up the warmth of human companionship.​

Asking for $350,000 (already at $109,246) 16 days to go. $25 for the Movie.

 

[Direwolf]

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/stompybot/heavy-gear-assault-0

From Mektek, though e-sports and "f2p that isn't like f2p but actually is" bullshit make me raise an eyebrow. I want to like it but I just dunno.

I wanted new Heavy Gear game for ages, but this looks horrible.

 

[CyberWhale]

Has anyone here already mentioned Rex Rocket? Looks pretty sweet to me.

Inspired by the retro glory days of 8-bit games, Rex Rocket is a traditional 2D platformerbrought into the 21st century. Paying tribute to classic NES games like Mario, Mega Man, and Metroid, old-school gamers will find Rex Rocket a breath of fresh air, stirring warm and fuzzy feelings of nostalgia. Rob and Tyler, two passionate indie game devs, have a mission to keep the world of retro games alive. Rex Rocket features one-of-a-kind handmade pixel art, over 100 handcrafted levels connected in an expansive starship filled with a wide variety of puzzles, enemies, hazards and bosses. To top it off, we have an an original, kick-ass chiptunes soundtrack by Saskrotch. Creating this universe and the memorable characters in this game has been a true labor of love.

 

[himmy]

or just plain retarded/uninformed attempt at media exposure?

Still doing a better job than Guido.

 

[Infinitron]

Lovecraftian Kickstarter - The Kingsport Cases: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1374511342/the-kingsport-cases?ref=home_location

The Kingsport Cases is a fully procedurally generated survival horror game set in late 19th century Lovecraftian lore. When the quiet, foggy port town loses its only detective to a tragic accident, the local police department calls you, a fledgling detective of little renown from Essex county. “It’s an easy job,” they said, but you shouldn't count on it.

Players will be able to explore randomly generated maps within the town of Kingsport as they investigate the area for clues and knowledge to help uncover the truth behind the several mysteries at hand. A plethora of randomly generated yet charmingly dynamic characters will either assist or hinder you throughout your investigations as they carry out their own goals and ambitions as part of a procedurally generated storyline.

The Kingsport Cases’ estimated release date is February 2014 and will be available for PC, Mac, and Linux.

Steam Greenlight entry: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=143558159&tscn=1368313082
RPS article: http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2013/05/22/polyptical-discourse-the-kingsport-cases/

 

[Jaesun]

Their pitch was rather terrible but that is an interesting idea.

 

[kaizoku]

Has anyone here already mentioned Rex Rocket? Looks pretty sweet to me.

Inspired by the retro glory days of 8-bit games, Rex Rocket is a traditional 2D platformerbrought into the 21st century. Paying tribute to classic NES games like Mario, Mega Man, and Metroid, old-school gamers will find Rex Rocket a breath of fresh air, stirring warm and fuzzy feelings of nostalgia. Rob and Tyler, two passionate indie game devs, have a mission to keep the world of retro games alive. Rex Rocket features one-of-a-kind handmade pixel art, over 100 handcrafted levels connected in an expansive starship filled with a wide variety of puzzles, enemies, hazards and bosses. To top it off, we have an an original, kick-ass chiptunes soundtrack by Saskrotch. Creating this universe and the memorable characters in this game has been a true labor of love.

*updated my journal*

I have been wishlisting several platformers, hoping they eventually get made and released on GOG.
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/explodingrabbit/super-retro-squad
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/322438897/mercenary-kings
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/yachtclubgames/shovel-knight
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1829034266/volgarr-the-viking
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/928099324/fist-puncher-old-school-beat-em-up

 

[CyberWhale]

kaizoku - add Tiny Barbarian DX to that list.

 

[Infinitron]

Sid Meier doesn't like Kickstarter because it "locks him in": http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articl...e-must-not-forget-the-value-of-the-core-gamer

What does the future hold for Meier? Would he consider self-publishing, using a platform like Kickstarter perhaps? After all, with big names like Tim Schafer, Brian Fargo, Chris Roberts and others successfully funding their games via the community, couldn't Meier get in on the trend? From what Meier said, it sounds like he wouldn't touch Kickstarter with a ten-foot pole.

"You've got to convince people to support it and create trailers or whatever it takes to get the support. I think you kind of lock yourself into a lot of ideas early. I really enjoy the luxury of changing my design and evolving over time. I'd be a little concerned with Kickstarter if I committed to X, Y and Z and I found out down the road that Z didn't work very well, I kind of promised to do this. I think it's great for people who want that indie environment, but there are advantages and disadvantages to each situation," he noted.

Meier is more than happy to let 2K Games handle everything on the business and promotion side so he can focus on what he loves: good game design. "They do all the stuff I don't want to do; they allow me to make games and really focus on that part of what it takes to get a game out there. I get to design games, I get to program games, I get to work with the artists and the sound guys and do the fun stuff. They worry about testing it and publishing it and promoting it and selling it - whatever it takes to do that I would be really bad at, they do. So more power to Chris Roberts and the Kickstarter, but having a great publisher is a real asset and allows me to focus on the things that I can do and not worry about all the other stuff that needs to be worried about," he said.

 

[tuluse]

That makes some sense, but I was under the impression Meier had almost nothing to do with game design anymore, so it kind of rings hollow.

I guess this means no Meier-Reynolds Alpha Centauri 2

 

[Jarpie]

Sid Meier: "I've sold my soul so I don't care fuck-all what the gamers actually want"

 

[winterraptor]

That makes some sense, but I was under the impression Meier had almost nothing to do with game design anymore, so it kind of rings hollow.

I assumed this too. Makes me wonder just what of all the shitty derivatives of his classic games can be layed at his feet. Perhaps in the sense of an advisory role? Bah. Fuck him.

 

[udm]

In tabletop gaming-related news, we have:

Tome of Horrors Complete miniatures for use with ToHC Pathfinder / Swords & Wizardry
Mekton Zero, an RPG by Mekton Zeta and Cyberpunk 2020 designer Mike Pondsmith
Maelorum, reprint of a gamebook with over 400 pages (it appeared on KS last year)
Deadzone, sci-fi miniatures game
Xia: Legends of a Drift System, a space adventure board game

 

[Jaesun]

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/698883673/unrest-an-unconventional-rpg-set-in-ancient-india

Legends tell of heroes, villains, and quests that save the world from darkness. The streets tell a different story. For PC, Mac & Linux​

Unrest is a story driven RPG set in ancient India in the midst of an uprising. Play as ordinary men and women struggling for safety, freedom, food for their children, and a chance at peace.​

• • Explore the drought and famine stricken streets of an ancient Indian city, where a fog of hunger and discontent shrouds the natural beauty of the land.
  • Use the detailed conversation system to instill fear, command respect and gain the trust and friendship of others. Understand your enemies and make them see your side of the story.
  • The narrative adapts to failure and death - instead of a game over screen, the plot continues and your fate becomes part of it. However, you can still save and load at any time if you want to.
  • Make tough and interesting decisions in the lives of people untouched by destiny. The traditional hero’s quest of prophecy, power, and revenge forms a backdrop to your own struggles.
  • Combat is brutal, decisive…and always avoidable. Bloodshed might be the easy way out in some situations, but has lasting consequences beyond those apparent on the surface.
  • Hand drawn 2D art and soundtrack based on ancient Indian music to help you immerse yourself in the world.
  • Full mod support lets you create your own worlds and adventures.
  • Unrest will be available DRM-Free on multiple digital stores, without any DLC or micro-transactions. We promise.

The majority of the game will consist of exploring the massive city of Bhimra and the surrounding area, interacting with various characters, and trying to achieve your goals either through combat or conversation. The world is full of side quests and optional content for players with a keen eye.​

Asking for $3000 (already at $4,321). $10 for the game.

 

[Metro]

Meier hasn't been hands on in several years. Almost a decade. He just lends his name to stuff.

 

[Grunker]

So... quite a while has passed. No games out yet, but we can still spew out a few random thoughts on Kickstarter as a phenomenon so far. From my point of view, there is way too much negativity AND way too much optimism on the subject. Seems like some people severely overestimate Kickstarter's potential or start talking about developers like friends instead of companies looking for profit. Some people react to this by digging themselves down in the opposite ditch and claiming Kickstarter is just preordering without knowing anything at all. The latter are actually kind of right - except that isn't a very good reason to be pessimistic (see why below).

For example, in the Shadowrun thread, slackerwizrd quotes Gurkog as follows:

If backers want to mod with post-Berlin content they will have to use the Steam Version. That probably shat on the hopes of a few backers. I am still happy that they swiftly refunded my pre-order upon request (they can at least get that done on time).

It would seem that HBS isn't keen on the idea either, but rather it was imposed onto them by the Shadowrun IP owner (i.e., Microsoft). It would have probably been better if they were more forthcoming at the start of the campaign, but I guess my cynical side believes that HBS kept it a secret because of the potential lost in revenue on the Kickstarter campaign.

and I must admit that it amuses me a bit that some people apparantly thought companies using Kickstarter quit being companies and started being everybody's best friend. Since when did someone looking to profit on you become your friend?

This will be my most central point: Kickstarter gives companies a way to turn a profit on a small to medium market that was inaccessible to them before. But this is a good thing for us, because we ARE a small to medium market and we want stuff targeted at us.

This is all it is for now; a way for someone to profit on us, mainly in the way we want them to. In other words: they get to make the games they want to make, we get to buy the product we're interested in (or rather, play the games we want to play). Don't think this is some sort of charity where you allow the developers to make the game they've always dreamed of making and then they repay you with the game you've dreamt about playing. That makes the two of you friends who are giving each other stuff. You're not. You're customer and they're company. You buy, they sell.

Even worse: you're customer paying up front (a bad way to purchase something - preordering is paying blindly and with no information). You're doing this because it's the only way to get the product you want. If these companies could secure financing for their games in some other way, of course we would prefer that. Then we could wait till after the game was made and decide - with full information - whether to buy or not. Now we are buying in the blind because it's the only way.

Now, I like Fargo a lot, and he might have some good points. Tighter relationships between developer and customer might turn out great for better games or at least games that better meet the audiences expectations. Removal of the classic, meddling publisher is obviously a great benefit. And so on. That's all really cool. But that still doesn't eliminate the fact that in the end, Kickstarter is simply the only way for us to buy the product we want and for them to make it for us (to turn a profit). For all their talk of spending money out of their own pockets, of course most of these developers are looking to profit from this in the long run. Kickstarter is not volunteer work. For people like Fargo it's a way to get back in the business of making shit they enjoy making for people who like playing it. They want to return to make a living on us, and we want them to do that. That doesn't make us friends, it makes us a good pairing of customer and company. For smaller developers, these guys want to launch a career on these games.

Both Fargo and the smalls devs are spending their own resources in the hopes that they can turn a profit later. They're investing, just as we are. No developer - big or small - is in this for the product of the isolated Kickstarter alone.

The points Fargo raises actually might have really awesome effects on the business (though it remains to be seen if they will). Of course there are also pitfalls. However the central point of my post is this: you're customer, they're company. You're looking for quality product, they're looking for profit. Never forget that.

I actually think the reason people like Vault Dweller are so skeptical of Kickstarter is because so many people give off the impression that Kickstarter is some kind of way to eliminate all the problems of a capitalist, mass-appeal games industry. And it's really not. Though it might solve a couple of issues, most minor, it certianly brings a few of its own. The reason we should be optimistic about Kickstarter is simply because it's the only thing we have, where we had nothing before! If you care about oldschool RPGs of any variety - if you actually want these games and you want to play them, things are better now than before simply by virtue of these kinds of games actually being produced again. For me, this is an improvement over nothing almost no matter the business model. In other words, Vault Dweller is right when he doesn't buy into the hype, but he is wrong when he concludes that this must mean he should be pessimistic.

That said, Kickstarter right now - without us being able to weigh the benefits - is still worse for the consumer in many ways. It looks like we're gonna get the games we want - but we're getting them by sacrificing some of the perogatives we have on a normal market. The customer is betting a lot more than he used too, and the same is not true for the developer.

TL;DR: Kickstarter is still a business, we're still customers and developers are still companies. We should still be happy, because the products we're interested are actually "at risk" of being produced now, where before the chance of that was 0%. But don't forget that developer and player are not buddies - one is looking for profit, the other for product.

PS. I think Kickstarter's potential to diminish the role of the publisher is awesome. But whether it has the desired effect - especially with a pay-blindly-up-fron system in place - remains to be seen.

 

[Metro]

Are there really a lot of (intelligently thinking) people who thought otherwise?

 

[Grunker]

Are there really a lot of (intelligently thinking) people who thought otherwise?

I can't speak to people's motivation and thoughts, but I can say that the way people have been arguing and talking about their expectations of the developers, that's they way many people see them.

 

[Absalom]

Same here. While they (may) make the games we want, they have ALL of the power in the relationship.