I think most of the games on kickstarter are legit. The problem is that most of these KS developers have little knowledge of what it takes to get a game finished. Way to many of these end up on steam with serious bugs, yet the devs have no intention of fixing them.
Most of the indie MMO's fall into this category. I am very hesitant to fund one of those because without decent financial backing, you can almost forget any MMO staff having the time to put out a finished game.
I do, I would rather give money to a team trying to make a good game than download some piece of F2P trash any day of the year. I do also make sure the team is actually capable of making the game they say they are so I can say I have not been burned in the 3 that I have KS'd. I missed the Pathfinder KS'er but bought into it recently because it is something that is interesting and have to say the community there has been outstanding so far.
Actually all of the communities for all the games I have KS'ed have been 1000 times better than any of the mass appeal games I have played in the last 10 years.
So again, yes I will continue to support great idea's for games through KS'er but also making sure the team is able to do it, cough cough Greed Monger cough cough.
I've backed SC, SotA, Repop, and Crowfall. Plan to back CU as beta 1 approaches. My only regret is SotA, wish I had read more about their combat system before I gave them money, but that's on me more than them. I do believe they could have been more transparent with the system than they were. My impression was more of TSW deck system at time of backing.
I wish more of a mutual fund type thing would arise for funding games that way we could actually see returns on investments in real dollars, than just getting a bunch of pixels to show for our dollars, and a game to play. I want shares, not just a cape, pony, house, or a space ship!
If developers go the normal route, they are expected to provide dividends to their investors. Why can't a structure be set up where they don't feel like they have investor overlords, but us backers get the same treatment as high level investors with returns for our dollars for successful projects???
Why on Earth would they ever do a crazy thing like that? If people are willing to give them tons of money with no strings attached whatsoever, why would they go and attach the strings themselves? That's just crazy talk! xD
On topic: Nope, not so far. Though I did support a few games by buying their Early Access.
My SWTOR referral link for those wanting to give the game a try. (Newbies get a welcome package while returning players get a few account upgrades to help with their preferred status.)
This quite frankly...AMAZES me, giving someone money to do with what they want. NO PROTECTION WHAT-SO-EVER! There is a sucker born every minute. PEOPLE, this is a business venture! Don't fund something that is LIKELY to fail. The net is DEFINITELY the wild wild west!
I have backed 6 projects on KS. Five of them funded.
Transhuman for the Eclipse Phase PnP RPG. Came out maybe a month later than their prediction.
The Mandate - a Sci-fi game still in development.
HEX the online TCG. Still in development, but in beta and is playable now.
Underworld Ascendant - upcoming and not due until late 2016.
Dreamfall Chapters - 2 of the 5 chapters have released, rest on their way.
So, no duds for me yet. I do research before I donate. The only one I saw as a bit of a gamble was The Mandate because I wasn't familiar with the developers.
No, I have not backed any kickstarter games. I do buy early release games, like "Life is Feudal" and "Elite: Dangerous" to help them out. If the game has been released and I can play it, even in a primitive form, then I might back it.
Part of the job of creating a real game is the organizational skills needed to bring it all together. A KS game with 2 people has not demonstrated that like an early released game has.
Ummmmmmmmmm, I hate to break it to you, but Elite: Dangerous was a Kickstarter game. So, while you may be correct in your assertion that a game developed by 2 people in their basement might be more risky than some campaigns, you also show that there is less and less differentiation between KS games and "real" game because you contradicted yourself.
This illustrates what I mean... ED got enough backing, game design, coding, artwork, etc, done to get onto Steam. That's the point at which I might support a game. I typically will stay subbed, at least in the old days, for years even if I don't play much, just to support a game.
But I'm not going to give any money to just an idea, just "markitecture" as we say in my S/W field. Just because marketing has cool slides, a neat intro movie, a few ship models, doesn't mean I will pay anything. Once I see a real functioning game, even in a primitive state, that has released on Steam for example, then I may/will back it.
The idea of a kickstarter is not new, it's 500 years old.
In the 1500's, Spain, England, and France were making a killing in shipping. The King/Queen of the country authorized the ships, controlled the shipments. Everyone works for them.
But the Dutch introduced a new idea: kickstarter. We get regular people to each kick in a smaller amount, and the total will make the ship. Once it starts trading, we split the profits. It's called share-holding. No King or Queen needed. The regular people fund it all.
This new KS thing in games is the same thing, except nobody holds any shares, nobody gets a cut of any profits, and the regular people still fund it all.
Yes! I've backed several games that I liked the look of - playing all of them now - also a movie (Alex Cox directing "Bill the Galactic Hero), a documentary about Kurt Vonnegut and a space project. Why the hell not? If it's something I'm interested in I'm quite happy to invest a few quid to see it get a chance to happen; it's not a huge outlay, and so far I've not been disappointed. It's a fact that most of these games would never have seen the light of day if not for crowd-funding, as big producers resort to quick-profit, pay-to-win clones. I've found some real gems, with far better gameplay than the most recent big-name offerings.
To my mind it's a far more honest approach than the execrable prevailing trend to *buy* into game betas. Maybe I'm just becoming an old curmudgeon, but I remember the days when one was rewarded for spending time and effort on *proper* (not just stress-testing) beta-testing by being given game time, or a free copy of the game, or some other goodies. Bah, humbug!
No, I have not backed any kickstarter games. I do buy early release games, like "Life is Feudal" and "Elite: Dangerous" to help them out. If the game has been released and I can play it, even in a primitive form, then I might back it.
Part of the job of creating a real game is the organizational skills needed to bring it all together. A KS game with 2 people has not demonstrated that like an early released game has.
Ummmmmmmmmm, I hate to break it to you, but Elite: Dangerous was a Kickstarter game. So, while you may be correct in your assertion that a game developed by 2 people in their basement might be more risky than some campaigns, you also show that there is less and less differentiation between KS games and "real" game because you contradicted yourself.
This illustrates what I mean... ED got enough backing, game design, coding, artwork, etc, done to get onto Steam. That's the point at which I might support a game. I typically will stay subbed, at least in the old days, for years even if I don't play much, just to support a game.
But I'm not going to give any money to just an idea, just "markitecture" as we say in my S/W field. Just because marketing has cool slides, a neat intro movie, a few ship models, doesn't mean I will pay anything. Once I see a real functioning game, even in a primitive state, that has released on Steam for example, then I may/will back it.
Yes, but that "backing" came from people who fronted that money. Oh, and as long as we're talking about marchitecture, feel free to pop by the original Elite: Dangerous KS Page where you'll see some great examples. The first video has all the detail of grandma's vision. TRADER!!! BOUNTY HUNTER!!!! PIRATE!!!!!!! end. And then we see DB's video down below with 8 monitors in the background, because anyone in the software industry will tell you that the more monitors you have, the more you're getting done. That's why I have 10 monitors on my desk.
The fact that you like completed games is fine, but don't act like KS is only about manufacturing marketing material and nothing else. 75% of the 100 KS games listed on steam have positive community feedback.
As far as your spending habits, why would you ever stay subbed to a game you're not playing? Why not take that $15 and drop it into a KS campaign that looks interesting? You're just throwing it away anyway. I'm not sure why you feel like you're giving yourself credibility by saying that you stay subbed to games even if you're not playing them. IMO, that's just throwing your money away. I LOVE WoW, but if I got a month or so without playing or have other games I'm playing at the time, then I'll unsub. Same goes for any sub game I play.
I've backed SC, SotA, Repop, and Crowfall. Plan to back CU as beta 1 approaches. My only regret is SotA, wish I had read more about their combat system before I gave them money, but that's on me more than them. I do believe they could have been more transparent with the system than they were. My impression was more of TSW deck system at time of backing.
I wish more of a mutual fund type thing would arise for funding games that way we could actually see returns on investments in real dollars, than just getting a bunch of pixels to show for our dollars, and a game to play. I want shares, not just a cape, pony, house, or a space ship!
If developers go the normal route, they are expected to provide dividends to their investors. Why can't a structure be set up where they don't feel like they have investor overlords, but us backers get the same treatment as high level investors with returns for our dollars for successful projects???
Why on Earth would they ever do a crazy thing like that? If people are willing to give them tons of money with no strings attached whatsoever, why would they go and attach the strings themselves? That's just crazy talk! xD
On topic: Nope, not so far. Though I did support a few games by buying their Early Access.
Well, I know I would give substantially more money to the projects I look forward to, instead of the $60 to $100 ish faire they normally get out of me because I justify that amount as just a pre-order of the game. I also look at it as just a vote with my wallet to push the industry in the direction I would like to see it go.
I haven't donated to any Kickstarter campaign, and really don't plan on ever doing so. There has been no game on Kickstarter that has excited me enough to want to open my wallet. In some ways, I wish there was.
I havn't so far, I was really close with Crowfall and sat fingering my VISA but decided against it at the last second.
I will fund a game if it fits me just right though, nothing really catched my eye so far besides CF. There are also a few devs that I would fund for more or less anything but none of them made a kickstarter so far.
I have never backed a KS MMO project, and I never will.
The only one I considered backing was Star Citizen, but by the time I was convinced it was a good proposition, they didn't need my backing anymore !
I have backed some single-player indie games (Wasteland 2 and Kenshi), because I felt that they had a very high chance of delivering an outcome that I would be happy with. In both cases, I have been delighted with the outcome.
i dont back kickstarters or any other crowdfunding. If its promising i wish them the best of luck, but i only pay for finished and fully functional products. I have prepurchased games a couple of times in the past and will not do it again for the same reason.
Online gaming is a service, i expect it to work before you charge me.
I'm not backing any more until the ones I have are, for better or worse, finished. The only one which is actually released is Wasteland 2; the rest (Grimoire, Planet Explorers, Tides of Numenera, Darkest Dungeon, etc.) are still in private development or early access.
War for the Overworld did release, but it's still very much in a beta state, and as such will probably not do well. The core of a great game is all there, but the lack of features, polish, and excessive bugs have pretty much sealed its fate.
Right now I'm at about 50 / 50, and quite honestly I don't have the disposable income to keep handing out money with odds like that. Unless it's a studio I know I can trust (like Obsidian) I'm done with Kickstarters. With the exception of Killing Floor 2 (big fan of the first) I'm also done with that early access nonsense until Steam gets serious about protecting consumers when a developer decides not to finish the damned game (here's looking at YOU, Double Fine) and leave their fans holding the bag.
AN' DERE AIN'T NO SUCH FING AS ENUFF DAKKA, YA GROT! Enuff'z more than ya got an' less than too much an' there ain't no such fing as too much dakka. Say dere is, and me Squiggoff'z eatin' tonight!
We are born of the blood. Made men by the blood. Undone by the blood. Our eyes are yet to open. FEAR THE OLD BLOOD.
Comments
I think most of the games on kickstarter are legit. The problem is that most of these KS developers have little knowledge of what it takes to get a game finished. Way to many of these end up on steam with serious bugs, yet the devs have no intention of fixing them.
Most of the indie MMO's fall into this category. I am very hesitant to fund one of those because without decent financial backing, you can almost forget any MMO staff having the time to put out a finished game.
I do, I would rather give money to a team trying to make a good game than download some piece of F2P trash any day of the year. I do also make sure the team is actually capable of making the game they say they are so I can say I have not been burned in the 3 that I have KS'd. I missed the Pathfinder KS'er but bought into it recently because it is something that is interesting and have to say the community there has been outstanding so far.
Actually all of the communities for all the games I have KS'ed have been 1000 times better than any of the mass appeal games I have played in the last 10 years.
So again, yes I will continue to support great idea's for games through KS'er but also making sure the team is able to do it, cough cough Greed Monger cough cough.
Why on Earth would they ever do a crazy thing like that? If people are willing to give them tons of money with no strings attached whatsoever, why would they go and attach the strings themselves? That's just crazy talk! xD
On topic: Nope, not so far. Though I did support a few games by buying their Early Access.
My SWTOR referral link for those wanting to give the game a try. (Newbies get a welcome package while returning players get a few account upgrades to help with their preferred status.)
https://www.ashesofcreation.com/ref/Callaron/
We're asked to pay for something that may or may not be made, and which may or may not become what we expect. And those are big NOs in my book.
I haven't spent a dime on kickstarters, and I never will.
I have backed 6 projects on KS. Five of them funded.
Transhuman for the Eclipse Phase PnP RPG. Came out maybe a month later than their prediction.
The Mandate - a Sci-fi game still in development.
HEX the online TCG. Still in development, but in beta and is playable now.
Underworld Ascendant - upcoming and not due until late 2016.
Dreamfall Chapters - 2 of the 5 chapters have released, rest on their way.
So, no duds for me yet. I do research before I donate. The only one I saw as a bit of a gamble was The Mandate because I wasn't familiar with the developers.
This illustrates what I mean... ED got enough backing, game design, coding, artwork, etc, done to get onto Steam. That's the point at which I might support a game. I typically will stay subbed, at least in the old days, for years even if I don't play much, just to support a game.
But I'm not going to give any money to just an idea, just "markitecture" as we say in my S/W field. Just because marketing has cool slides, a neat intro movie, a few ship models, doesn't mean I will pay anything. Once I see a real functioning game, even in a primitive state, that has released on Steam for example, then I may/will back it.
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2024: 47 years on the Net.
The idea of a kickstarter is not new, it's 500 years old.
In the 1500's, Spain, England, and France were making a killing in shipping. The King/Queen of the country authorized the ships, controlled the shipments. Everyone works for them.
But the Dutch introduced a new idea: kickstarter. We get regular people to each kick in a smaller amount, and the total will make the ship. Once it starts trading, we split the profits. It's called share-holding. No King or Queen needed. The regular people fund it all.
This new KS thing in games is the same thing, except nobody holds any shares, nobody gets a cut of any profits, and the regular people still fund it all.
------------
2024: 47 years on the Net.
3 so far, no plans at this stage for any others
E:D - Very happy with and currently still playing
SC - yet to see if it will be worth my money
Pantheon - My dream MMO if they can pull it off
Yes! I've backed several games that I liked the look of - playing all of them now - also a movie (Alex Cox directing "Bill the Galactic Hero), a documentary about Kurt Vonnegut and a space project. Why the hell not? If it's something I'm interested in I'm quite happy to invest a few quid to see it get a chance to happen; it's not a huge outlay, and so far I've not been disappointed. It's a fact that most of these games would never have seen the light of day if not for crowd-funding, as big producers resort to quick-profit, pay-to-win clones. I've found some real gems, with far better gameplay than the most recent big-name offerings.
To my mind it's a far more honest approach than the execrable prevailing trend to *buy* into game betas. Maybe I'm just becoming an old curmudgeon, but I remember the days when one was rewarded for spending time and effort on *proper* (not just stress-testing) beta-testing by being given game time, or a free copy of the game, or some other goodies. Bah, humbug!
Yes, but that "backing" came from people who fronted that money. Oh, and as long as we're talking about marchitecture, feel free to pop by the original Elite: Dangerous KS Page where you'll see some great examples. The first video has all the detail of grandma's vision. TRADER!!! BOUNTY HUNTER!!!! PIRATE!!!!!!! end. And then we see DB's video down below with 8 monitors in the background, because anyone in the software industry will tell you that the more monitors you have, the more you're getting done. That's why I have 10 monitors on my desk.
The fact that you like completed games is fine, but don't act like KS is only about manufacturing marketing material and nothing else. 75% of the 100 KS games listed on steam have positive community feedback.
As far as your spending habits, why would you ever stay subbed to a game you're not playing? Why not take that $15 and drop it into a KS campaign that looks interesting? You're just throwing it away anyway. I'm not sure why you feel like you're giving yourself credibility by saying that you stay subbed to games even if you're not playing them. IMO, that's just throwing your money away. I LOVE WoW, but if I got a month or so without playing or have other games I'm playing at the time, then I'll unsub. Same goes for any sub game I play.
Crazkanuk
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Azarelos - 90 Hunter - Emerald
Durnzig - 90 Paladin - Emerald
Demonicron - 90 Death Knight - Emerald Dream - US
Tankinpain - 90 Monk - Azjol-Nerub - US
Brindell - 90 Warrior - Emerald Dream - US
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Well, I know I would give substantially more money to the projects I look forward to, instead of the $60 to $100 ish faire they normally get out of me because I justify that amount as just a pre-order of the game. I also look at it as just a vote with my wallet to push the industry in the direction I would like to see it go.
I havn't so far, I was really close with Crowfall and sat fingering my VISA but decided against it at the last second.
I will fund a game if it fits me just right though, nothing really catched my eye so far besides CF. There are also a few devs that I would fund for more or less anything but none of them made a kickstarter so far.
I have never backed a KS MMO project, and I never will.
The only one I considered backing was Star Citizen, but by the time I was convinced it was a good proposition, they didn't need my backing anymore !
I have backed some single-player indie games (Wasteland 2 and Kenshi), because I felt that they had a very high chance of delivering an outcome that I would be happy with. In both cases, I have been delighted with the outcome.
i dont back kickstarters or any other crowdfunding. If its promising i wish them the best of luck, but i only pay for finished and fully functional products. I have prepurchased games a couple of times in the past and will not do it again for the same reason.
Online gaming is a service, i expect it to work before you charge me.
I'm not backing any more until the ones I have are, for better or worse, finished. The only one which is actually released is Wasteland 2; the rest (Grimoire, Planet Explorers, Tides of Numenera, Darkest Dungeon, etc.) are still in private development or early access.
War for the Overworld did release, but it's still very much in a beta state, and as such will probably not do well. The core of a great game is all there, but the lack of features, polish, and excessive bugs have pretty much sealed its fate.
Right now I'm at about 50 / 50, and quite honestly I don't have the disposable income to keep handing out money with odds like that. Unless it's a studio I know I can trust (like Obsidian) I'm done with Kickstarters. With the exception of Killing Floor 2 (big fan of the first) I'm also done with that early access nonsense until Steam gets serious about protecting consumers when a developer decides not to finish the damned game (here's looking at YOU, Double Fine) and leave their fans holding the bag.
AN' DERE AIN'T NO SUCH FING AS ENUFF DAKKA, YA GROT! Enuff'z more than ya got an' less than too much an' there ain't no such fing as too much dakka. Say dere is, and me Squiggoff'z eatin' tonight!
We are born of the blood. Made men by the blood. Undone by the blood. Our eyes are yet to open. FEAR THE OLD BLOOD.
#IStandWithVic