Lightsinthesky
Arcane
- Joined
- Jan 11, 2015
- Messages
- 629
Maybe Josh got fired for being unreliable and that's why he had to move to Boston
Well, that would certainly lead to some popcorn drama, wouldn't it?Show us the accounts! I will do a full blog post on this later but these people should be reported to the FTC and go to prison.
I think the most plausible explanation is a combination of wishful thinking, programmer flakiness, and a desire to keep the adulation going as long as possible. I remember a crazy account Adam Cadre gave from his childhood where he went with his dad to visit his sister's tombstone, and it turned out the dad had been too cheap to buy her a tombstone. But the whole way there, he kept talking about the tombstone and what it was like, even though he knew that in 90 minutes the lies would be disproved. That's how people are. Not necessarily because they're bad but because they're so averse to pain.
Those quotes are pretty damning. I don't really know any way to explain them.
To me, the main evidence that it was not a fraud is that, for a time, they employed one of the artists on FG and paid him regularly. I'd have to go back and double check, but I think that was after the campaign ended. [EDIT: Yes, it was after the KSer.] Assuming that they were paying the other artists, too, I'm not sure that they actually would be clearing that much money. Obviously people engage in fraud for small returns -- occasionally I'll get a request for a Primordia key from people who have made fake game-review websites, and I really wonder at the hourly rate of return on that scam -- but this seems like a huge amount of elaborate work. A true KS fraud (like Confederate Express) front-loads all the material during the campaign, then promptly goes silent. Here, they've been showing new art for years -- if they're paying for it, they're spending money on "inducement" for their fraud even though there's no ongoing victim money to be induce. (There's no Paypal campaign, is there?)
Ultimately, the work-return / risk-reward here just doesn't seem plausible. These guys aren't marginal drifters who can disappear into the ether. And it's not like they got half a million bucks.
I think the most plausible explanation is a combination of wishful thinking, programmer flakiness, and a desire to keep the adulation going as long as possible. I remember a crazy account Adam Cadre gave from his childhood where he went with his dad to visit his sister's tombstone, and it turned out the dad had been too cheap to buy her a tombstone. But the whole way there, he kept talking about the tombstone and what it was like, even though he knew that in 90 minutes the lies would be disproved. That's how people are. Not necessarily because they're bad but because they're so averse to pain.
I don't think this was ever a "fake a prototype, get funding, take it and run" scam. However, it was probably a "fake it till you make it" kind of deal - where they honestly believed they could create this game if they just got the funding. Perhaps they felt that any misrepresentation about the state of the prototype was excusable by this being the only way to actually get the necessary funding.
But tech demos almost always work like this:I don't think this was ever a "fake a prototype, get funding, take it and run" scam. However, it was probably a "fake it till you make it" kind of deal - where they honestly believed they could create this game if they just got the funding. Perhaps they felt that any misrepresentation about the state of the prototype was excusable by this being the only way to actually get the necessary funding.
If you are right then in law that is still criminal fraud and punishable by imprisonment.
I think the thing they should do is publish all the code and assets they have, and then try and finish the project as open source thing.But tech demos almost always work like this:I don't think this was ever a "fake a prototype, get funding, take it and run" scam. However, it was probably a "fake it till you make it" kind of deal - where they honestly believed they could create this game if they just got the funding. Perhaps they felt that any misrepresentation about the state of the prototype was excusable by this being the only way to actually get the necessary funding.
If you are right then in law that is still criminal fraud and punishable by imprisonment.
demo code is usually at best patched up to give good results in the narrow conditions of the demo, which usually means that it would not work for the real software.
They managed the game poorly, and overestimated their abilities, but getting jailed for this seems a bit overkill to me.
If the main problem is the AI, it can still be salvaged with proper level design:
You could very well have some kind of rule system that would drive the actions of the NPC actions (a bit like the aliens in 1994 X-COM), that could provide an adequate challenge without relying on an overly complicated AI.
Im kinda curious, why doesn't this happen at all? (Unfinished game rather be completely axed than open sourced for community)I think the thing they should do is publish all the code and assets they have, and then try and finish the project as open source thing.But tech demos almost always work like this:I don't think this was ever a "fake a prototype, get funding, take it and run" scam. However, it was probably a "fake it till you make it" kind of deal - where they honestly believed they could create this game if they just got the funding. Perhaps they felt that any misrepresentation about the state of the prototype was excusable by this being the only way to actually get the necessary funding.
If you are right then in law that is still criminal fraud and punishable by imprisonment.
demo code is usually at best patched up to give good results in the narrow conditions of the demo, which usually means that it would not work for the real software.
They managed the game poorly, and overestimated their abilities, but getting jailed for this seems a bit overkill to me.
If the main problem is the AI, it can still be salvaged with proper level design:
You could very well have some kind of rule system that would drive the actions of the NPC actions (a bit like the aliens in 1994 X-COM), that could provide an adequate challenge without relying on an overly complicated AI.
Presumably, its ego. I guess most people would rather own an unfinished game, than release it into the wild, where it is either ruined by the masses, or the masses make it better than you could.Im kinda curious, why doesn't this happen at all? (Unfinished game rather be completely axed than open sourced for community)
Im kinda curious, why doesn't this happen at all? (Unfinished game rather be completely axed than open sourced for community)
Yeah I guess that is largest part of the reason why, haven't really thought of thatIm kinda curious, why doesn't this happen at all? (Unfinished game rather be completely axed than open sourced for community)
The license for anything from the Unity Asset store forbid redistribution in any way, except embedded in a game. Art which is directly commissioned from a freelance artist is usually licensed for usage for a specific game, and redistribution is not allowed. Both of these cases include sub-licensing and release into the public domain.
You've got an Eldar as your avatar - so I assume you've painted miniatures. It's a bit a like getting a shoddily half-painted army in mismatching colors, with broken bits and having to finish it to a high standard - and make sure it works on the tabletop. You'll probably have to buy a lot of missing pieces, and repaint everything.
What about Option C, Fenicks didn't know anything because he's an idiot who gave a hack over a thousand dollars out of his own pocketFenicks cannot defend this and play the innocent card. He either knew they had a game or he knew that they didn't.
What about Option C, Fenicks didn't know anything because he's an idiot who gave a hack over a thousand dollars out of his own pocketFenicks cannot defend this and play the innocent card. He either knew they had a game or he knew that they didn't.
What about Option C, Fenicks didn't know anything because he's an idiot who gave a hack over a thousand dollars out of his own pocket
What if TWS is another name for frog fractions 2.Maybe this is all part of an ARG to prepare us for the Early Access launch next month.
They may also have succumbed to insanity.Maybe they are agents of The Great Deceiver.
Anything new from this duo? I imagine there's a lot of butthurt on beta forums.