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Kickstarter does NOTHING to protect backers of MMO.
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"Doing your homework" simply means Kickstarter is something that is not sustainable. People who invest money into projects have a certain expectation that those projects are viable and that they're not just throwing their money away.
When that trust is tarnished, and it continuously is tarnished, people will no longer be willing to support Kickstarter. Currently the gaming industry is a wild wild west, it's a phase that won't last.
So people can't have a say in how the system might be improved or simply to tell others to be wary of ks projects? ok.
Epic Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAigCvelkhQ&list=PLo9FRw1AkDuQLEz7Gvvaz3ideB2NpFtT1
https://archive.org/details/softwarelibrary_msdos?&sort=-downloads&page=1
Kyleran: "Now there's the real trick, learning to accept and enjoy a game for what it offers rather than pass on what might be a great playing experience because it lacks a few features you prefer."
John Henry Newman: "A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault."
FreddyNoNose: "A good game needs no defense; a bad game has no defense." "Easily digested content is just as easily forgotten."
LacedOpium: "So the question that begs to be asked is, if you are not interested in the game mechanics that define the MMORPG genre, then why are you playing an MMORPG?"
Here's a good article. Kickstarter game funding in 2014 dropped to half of that of 2013. People being skeptical about projects is mentiond as one of the reasons.
http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2014/10/02/kickstarter-game-funding-down-dramatically-in-2014.aspx
None of the things you listed are given by person who receives the donation.
We do gain things when making a donation. We get tax deductions, we can also use donations to gain publicity and goodwill, and if nothing else doing good makes us feel good.
But if we gain a promise that the recipient of our "donation" gives or tries to give something of equal value to our donation back then it's not a donation any more.
Nice link!
Epic Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAigCvelkhQ&list=PLo9FRw1AkDuQLEz7Gvvaz3ideB2NpFtT1
https://archive.org/details/softwarelibrary_msdos?&sort=-downloads&page=1
Kyleran: "Now there's the real trick, learning to accept and enjoy a game for what it offers rather than pass on what might be a great playing experience because it lacks a few features you prefer."
John Henry Newman: "A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault."
FreddyNoNose: "A good game needs no defense; a bad game has no defense." "Easily digested content is just as easily forgotten."
LacedOpium: "So the question that begs to be asked is, if you are not interested in the game mechanics that define the MMORPG genre, then why are you playing an MMORPG?"
Of course you should be wary of KS projects. It seems that people that are wary of KS projects are happy with KS, those who would throw money away on something like OP linked...welllll....they deserved that really.
Same with bridges....dont buy one, trust me.
I don't think I would buy anything from you kid.
Epic Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAigCvelkhQ&list=PLo9FRw1AkDuQLEz7Gvvaz3ideB2NpFtT1
https://archive.org/details/softwarelibrary_msdos?&sort=-downloads&page=1
Kyleran: "Now there's the real trick, learning to accept and enjoy a game for what it offers rather than pass on what might be a great playing experience because it lacks a few features you prefer."
John Henry Newman: "A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault."
FreddyNoNose: "A good game needs no defense; a bad game has no defense." "Easily digested content is just as easily forgotten."
LacedOpium: "So the question that begs to be asked is, if you are not interested in the game mechanics that define the MMORPG genre, then why are you playing an MMORPG?"
Sounds like the OP has NO CLUE how Kickstarter actually works.
i got a card saying "thank you" from person i made donation to. Youre now saying its not a donation any more?
Youre saying that "in game monument" or "mentioned in credits" is worth 5k$?
And who decides what is "equal value"? You? rofl
Its a donation, and mistake people make (you included) is to proclaim it "investement" and actually expect something in return.
Because you see, when company makes donation to get tax reduction its still called donation, doesnt really matter who or what gives what.
The guy that donated money to build that hospital wing and had it named after him also had a "promised reward" from exact same people to whom he donated money.
You sound like youre in market for bridges. I can set you up.
I agree.... Hence the CU avatar. I'm just saying you have to make sure the people who are saying they are going to make you something awesome areacutally capable and willing to do so.
Investment: the action or process of investing money for profit or material result.
Hence: Harry invested in a Kickstarter project in hopes of having the game HE wants to play made. He invested $20 into Divinity: Original Sin by Larian Studios. In return he was rewarded with the ability to purchase the game and mod tools promised by the devs when they reached their goal. He invested in hopes to get a ROI, return on investment. In his case the return is the abiltiy to purchase the game HE wants to play, not the game EA wants him to play. According to EVERY economic professor I know, that is by definition an investment of a strict non-financial nature.
You can try to twist the word all you want. Fact is fact. You are never garunteed an expected outcome. That's why it's called "investing" and not "buying"
As per dictionary definition. Seems like some of you do not even know what the definition is, how are you expected to make any form of logical debate? LOL
Yet when you read the definition of donate it fits as well...
To fund or contribute...
For every minute you are angry , you lose 60 seconds of happiness."-Emerson
Uhm no.
Donation: is a gift given by physical or legal persons, typically for charitable purposes and/or to benefit a cause.
Gift: or a present is an item given to someone without the expectation of payment.
Simply because I enjoy proving people wrong. Enjoy
I agree with the Op's title. Kickstarter does very little to protect it's investors. And it doesn't have to. That's how these investments work. No one protects people when they lose all their money in the stock markets due to bad decisions. That's the weay the world works boys & girls.
Actually it doesnt work that way, you donate 20$ (you dont purchase anything, you just give them money no strings attached) and as a thank you you get a copy of the game (if its ever made)
For all intents and purposes its a donation
problem arises when people start considering it investement. It clearly says donation and not investement with all the differences and similarities there are between the two.
An instance of presenting something as gift, grant or contribution. notice the "OR"
OR if we go by the British definition, A contribution...
For every minute you are angry , you lose 60 seconds of happiness."-Emerson
If you're so concerned about it then why don't YOU do something about it? Find the person that they stole the picture from and tell them so that they can send the scammer a "cease and desist" order. Better yet, start an online petition to have Kickstarter shut down altogether. That way no one will ever be scammed through them again and the world will be a better place.
I've got a feevah, and the only prescription... is more cowbell.
This whole thread would have been more effective if you had actually found an example with at least one donor - then you'd have an example of at least one donor who needs protecting.
This scammer hasn't even figured out that you can make a few "self-donations" to get the ball rolling. Too obvious a scam...
I have bought a few early access games on Steam that I'm very happy with -- I could see what I was getting... but I have never nor will I ever back a KS project. I guess I'm just too old fashioned to buy goods that are years away from delivery. I much prefer traditional transactions where I see what I'm getting and based on that, I decide to buy it or not.
I even have a hard time buying a new house based on a display model... did it once, and regretted it when I had to spend months getting the builder to correct all the deficiencies.
I'm leary of even the seemingly honest KS projects.
“Microtransactions? In a single player role-playing game? Are you nuts?”
― CD PROJEKT RED
No. Problem arises when people aren't smart enough to determine that an investment in NO WAY GARUNTEES the desired expectation. That's the difference between "investing" and "buying"
For example, a man invested in an OTC stock in a public company. The company decided it did NOT want to make their product and filed for ch11 bankruptcy. All investors lost their money. Did that man "donate" money? No, he invested it, and he loss. That's an actual example. Ask any stock trader about the OTC markets.
What's the difference? English isn't even my first language and even I can figure it out. I know a whole team of lawyers that wish you people served for jury duty since u do not know the difference between a gift and an investment, lol. PLEASE PLEASE sign up for jury duty in the NYC area.
Kickstarter can call it a donation, a gift, a pledge, a hail mary, whatever. According to their LEGAL FILINGS they are sanctioned in the U.S as a micro-investment company. Nothing any of you can say will change that. And according to law Kickstarter has to be VERY careful about their wording, which is why in their FAQ they state it as a "pledge" because the word, according to law, still has a contractual agreement tied to it.
Which leads me to the most important point of this topic. I agree with the OP's title, Kickstarter should do more to protect its customers who've pledged.
You people should be more upset at pre-orders and DLC. Now that is a grey-area crime and yet people still keep pre-ordering broken games.
Why is pre-order a different & worse breed? Because a pre-order is not an investment, it is a contractual agreement for purchase. And most times you are definitely NOT getting what you purchased. That's why the U.S had to create the lemon law to protect car buyers. Hopefully we can get a similar law for videogames.
One.
I do firmly believe that the consumer is in some ways responsible. Do your due diligence. Do your research. Don't get me wrong, Kickstarter has some responsibility to hold - they get money from projects funding after all - but ultimately, it is your money. You make the choice as to whether or not to back a project.
Two.
Backing any project on kickstarter should be seen as a risk. No different than investing. No different than donating. It is very possible that despite me donating to a cause, it could fail. When you invest in something, it is very possible to lose. As a consumer, understand that projects you are interested in backing could fail. Do your due diligence. Do your research. Maintain realistic expectations. This won't prevent you from investing in projects destined to fail, but it should improve your odds of "winning" the kickstarter game.
/thread
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