KickStarter Kickstarter Watch.

[mindx2]

Rip off or not, I'm quite impressed. I think she has a future in this industry...

 

[grotsnik]

It is ingenious (and deeply horrible) how people are rapidly figuring out how to maximise on the impulsive, undiscriminating nature of internet viral campaigns using a sentimental narrative. The cause-and-effect of how exactly the campaign's going to work doesn't even seem to need to be that clearly thought through (even before the financial context was uncovered - isn't a nine-year-old too young to be trying to make a complex game from the ground up? Wouldn't she be better off messing about with some RPG mod tools in her spare time over the next few years, rather than paying for a dedicated week-long camp, presumably aimed at older children, which she might end up not enjoying? How is receiving money from strangers supposed to teach her brothers any kind of lesson about her personal intelligence? Are all these videos being circulated on Youtube really going to stop Joseph Kony from murdering people?). What seems to matter is presenting the emotive conflict in such simple terms as to give the audience a chance to 'resolve' it and so provide themselves with a good healthy burst of oxytocin by clicking a couple of times.

It's pure gamification, and people just get too absorbed into the appealingly simple stakes and conflicts put forward by the sentimental narrative to utilise their critical thinking. And as the campaign goes viral it gets worse, because individuals are no longer just emotionally influenced by the narrative, they're emotionally influenced by the campaign as well, delighted by the heartwarming sight of so many people coming together to help out, and joining in becomes an ethical imperative to demonstrate to yourself and those around you that you're a card-carrying member of the tribe of dogooders and not one of those nasty non-participatory cynics.

In much the same way, I've seen plenty of people earnestly retweeting calls for information about a missing person and remonstrating with their followers to think of that poor girl out on the cold and wintry streets, what if it was your own child, huh? Retweeting this only takes a second, but it could save a life!!!...days after the police have announced that the missing person has been found alive and well. It'd only take a quick Google search to find that out, but it's so much easier and more satisfying to act as the heroic participant of an internet fairy-tale by clicking a couple of times, than to step outside the nonsense and check the context - which almost feels like an act of heartless cynicism by comparison.

 

[Brinko]

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/susanwilson/9-year-old-building-an-rpg-to-prove-her-brothers-w

http://www.judgmentgroup.com/About_Us.html

Here's the mom

 

[Grimlorn]

Someone actually posted all the rules violations in the comments section of her kickstarter. She's spamming celebrities and women's rights groups with information for her kickstarter. It's already succeeded and she's trying to get more money and attention out of it. It's clearly not about her daughter creating the game. It's about making money. She has a $10k tier that gets her daughter a personal apology from her brothers. It also mentions funding future programming courses and not the actual game. She mentions that Brenda Romero recommended she put up that $10k tier in the comments section. It would be funny if it weren't so sad.

Here's a link to her previous failed kickstarter. Selling superhero capes made by veterans.
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/susanwilson/the-cape-project

 

[Stabwound]

Creator Susan Wilson about 2 hours ago

The only reason there is a $10K tier is that it was added after we'd surpassed the goal and Brenda Romero (google her because she's got far more clout in this field than you do) asked me to do just that. I was specifically asked by industry leaders (who were total strangers prior to this campaign) to add more rewards because good people know good intentions and want to do good things. You should try it! I don't know exactly what's going to happen with the money but I can assure you it will go to Kenzie making the best RPG game and it will go to doing it in the coolest way possible that gets girls involved in playing and building games!

 

[Cowboy Moment]

lol http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/susanwilson/9-year-old-building-an-rpg-to-prove-her-brothers-w

... ... ... 1147 guys and gals did trust that face with their moolah ... ... ...

 

[Excommunicator]

the best RPG game

 

[Zed]

am I too cynical if I think it's fake? honestly, I think it's some dude. no video, no voice. just text.

 

[Infinitron]

Just do your part and report the Kickstarter: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects...ing-an-rpg-to-prove-her-brothers-w/report/new

They'll take it down hopefully.

 

[FeelTheRads]

The only reason there is a $10K tier is that it was added after we'd surpassed the goal and Brenda Romero (google her because she's got far more clout in this field than you do) asked me to do just that. I was specifically asked by industry leaders (who were total strangers prior to this campaign) to add more rewards because good people know good intentions and want to do good things. You should try it! I don't know exactly what's going to happen with the money but I can assure you it will go to Kenzie making the best RPG game and it will go to doing it in the coolest way possible that gets girls involved in playing and building games!

Woah, quite a lot of nerve on this one. I say she should get even more money, braindeads deserve to lose their money to this kind of people.

 

[Jaesun]

http://www.playereffort.com/?p=3884

Another article:

MILLIONAIRE TRYING TO RAISE MONEY THROUGH KICKSTARTER TO SEND HER DAUGHTER TO RPG CAMP​

Susan Wilson, one of the “Most Powerful Women Entrepreneurs” according to CNN, is usingKickstarter to raise money for her 9 year old daughter’s schooling. The goal is $829, but Kickstarter users have pledged over $21,000. This is borderline abuse of the Kickstarter system and the whole kicktstart makes use of the current rise of gender issues in video gaming, ‘Men VS. Women’ to populate it self .​

 

[Stabwound]

The comments section there has become a total shitshow and pledges have about grounded to a halt I think. Hopefully there's enough controversy that it won't show up on Ellen or something tomorrow.

Here's another good laugh, her talking about her shoes that cost more than the camp.

 

[Jaesun]

 

[Tommy Wiseau]

Reported it but, unsure if it will amount to anything. I'd rather have Kickstarter as a place for backing up actual products instead of, y'know, just selling stories.

 

[Studio Fawn]

Rip off or not, I'm quite impressed. I think she has a future in this industry...

Haha yea, women have a future in the industry... as long as we are talking about just dreams and stuff of a 9 year old. When they grow up, it isn't so cute anymore and no one cares. Kind of like sending a handicapped kid to football camp so they can show everyone that handicapped people can play football (but when they grow up, lol get off the field and let the big boys play).

There are a lot of women developers (that worked hard for many years getting trained and climbing up to try and get a chance to make a game). News isn't going to pick up and cover them though.

A 9 year old girl that wants to go to camp ?? Holy moley she is going to reshape the entire industry and show what is possible for girls! (which is basically acting as marketing candy that no one really cares what they actually end up doing).

At least pledging makes people feel fuzzy and good (and we all know that is way more "real" than actually supporting change). Kony 2013 ! woo

 

[Blackthorne]

So, a few days ago, a Kickstarter came on-line. With a goal of $829, a 9 year old girl, MacKenzie Wilson (Posting through her mother, Susan) wanted to raise the money to go to an "RPG Camp" and make a game to prove her older brothers wrong.

It started out harmless enough - a a $10 pledge got you a copy of her game when she was done. There were other tiers, with basically CafePress awards....

and suddenly it raised $22,000.... and details came out.... her Mom is a multimillionaire CEO and crowdfunding enthusiast.... this has gotten interesting. Check out more details here... but something is fishy.

http://www.ign.com/boards/threads/s...-to-send-daughter-to-rpgmaker-camp.452932212/


Bt

 

[Blackthorne]

Crap. I did a quick search, but didn't find this - and started a new thread. Sorry for the faux-pas. Yeah, this thing is a mite crazy and shady.


Bt

 

[Vault Dweller]

I can't believe how much of a ripoff this all is. And people are just giving their money away. They apparently have too much of it.

I don't like this Veronica Mars movie project. It's going to do 4-5 million and that's all going in Warner Bros. pocket. They get free marketing and advertising through word of mouth and record breaking news. They save 4-5 million on the movie budget. They'll just add maybe 10-20 million to the budget and make that back easy in box office sales. It would be funny if Warner Bros. backed out of doing the movie. It's not like they have a contract and 60k people backing the project isn't really a lot of people/interest. WB would get so much bad press for it I think, so they are going to have to do it.

I really hope we don't see movie studios doing this, but I think projects that studios aren't sure of putting into production will start seeing kickstarters and people will have to pay millions before the movie is released to studios to save the studios money so they'll greenlight the project. It's disgusting.

I have no words for that 9 year old kickstarter. People would rather send 20k to a 9 year old to "develop a game" rather than donate to charity or put someone through college. All that money is going in the mother's pocket to spend on shopping sprees. It won't go into making any game. The 9 year old probably won't want to make the game after the month is over, or after spending an hour trying to do it. People are just so stupid and despicable.

Just read the comments for that kickstarter, and it's a bunch of women buying into her BS about girls needing to be supported and how her brothers are making fun of their sister and mom. There's always going to be that social dynamic and kids are always going to think their parents are stupid. Instead she's playing it up as some kind of battle of the sexes feminist fight where if girls aren't protected and encouraged through this kickstarter, girls will be worse off for it. I don't know if she actually believes it, or it's a scam. It sounds like a scam though, considering she could afford the class herself.

Kickstarter gonna kickstart?

 

[Trash]

Guess she didn't come by those millions through luck or circumstance. She's shown a remarkable insight into human nature and gullibility and a strong lack of any morals that would not make her use them for her own advantage.

I'm sure she's an excellent CEO.

 

[Grimlorn]

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/623745679/948103832?token=3fa62ca3
"Mean poor people say I can't use Kickstarter for dubious intentions so I'm doing what they can't- SCAM PEOPLE out of money & pay for it"

 

[Metro]

The number of people defending her is amazing -- fucking dolts.

 

[Infinitron]

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/623745679/948103832?token=3fa62ca3
"Mean poor people say I can't use Kickstarter for dubious intentions so I'm doing what they can't- SCAM PEOPLE out of money & pay for it"

Impressive. I think whoever made that is taking things a bit too far, though.

 

[Grimlorn]

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/623745679/948103832?token=3fa62ca3
"Mean poor people say I can't use Kickstarter for dubious intentions so I'm doing what they can't- SCAM PEOPLE out of money & pay for it"

Impressive. I think whoever made that is taking things a bit too far, though.

Yeah probably. I was upset about this at first, but now I'm just enjoying the trainwreck. There's a thread on neogaf about this. People are actually signing up for kickstarter just to report it for abuse. At least there are a lot of people seeing this scam for what it is, instead of just blindly buying into it.

 

[Metro]

I like how this women made her money: cyber-squatting on the Kinkos domain. Wondering why the fuck Kinkos didn't register that in the early 90's when the internet was starting.

 

[Jaesun]

http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/fuck-you-all