Kickstarters? What do you think of them?

Remove all ads!

(*not sure what category this belongs in, feel free to move it)

I'm a contributor to Project Eternity. I hope the game spawns into something I will thoroughly enjoy.

I see tons of stories about all of the various Kickstarter type of developments happening in the gaming community. I don't think I will be committing anymore cash. At first I thought it wasn't a bad idea, as I personally feel the type of games that I prefer were lacking and supporting their development could only help to provide more games for all of us to enjoy long term.

Then, I started a thinking a little harder about it. I'm a picky SoB. What are the odds that even a small majority of these games will even be in my preferred category? Dragon Age sounded good, but I hated it after a few hours of play. Same with several of the Elder Scrolls games. So, I figure if I keep dumping cash into the kickstarters, I will probably end up dishing out several hundred bucks and could possibly end up not playing any of the games that are developed with my donations. So the big question I have to ask myself is...is it worth it? I don't know the answer as of yet. I will admit I am picky when it comes to gaming. I acknowledge the fact that a lot of you guys have a broader range of games than I do. Also, I admit it's a big plus in immortalizing SP in the games, regardless if I actually play them.

What do you guys think of the various Kickstarter programs out there? Are you contributing to many of them or just what you feel you will actually play or to none of them?

 

I'm on the fence about them anymore. They seem like a good idea for the reasons already mentioned, and I like unfettered grassroots innovation, but I recall seeing some dubious-sounding ones popup more recently ... the equivalent of 'Bring Christina Aguilera Back to The Voice Kickstarter!'

Also, in a weird way I feel like I'm paying for the same thing twice. I pay for the development, then I also buy the finished product. Still, anything that pushes the suits out of the picture has to be good in the end.

 

Ah thought this might have had to do with this story going around right now. There are a few games I can't wait to buy & play, but didn't back because I only found out about them after the fundraising, mostly the carmageddon remake and the game that's as close to dungeon keeper as it can be without getting in legal trouble.

If kickstarter can be the means to resurrect a franchise that still had life left in it, I'm all for it, but I guess we all have different ideas on how much life was left in different franchises. As for the batch of kickstarter 'games inspired by', or 'evokes feelings of', I'll usually steer well clear until the hype has settled and we get something concrete to judge.

 

I'm not keen on the idea of paying for something that I might possibly get in the future some time maybe. I'm more keen on see product, buy product, have product.

 

Is that true for everything? Like, if I fund the Veronica Mars kickstarter, I won't be paying for my movie ticket at the theater?

 

Well, I like this site. Kicking in a couple of bucks to have SP immortalized in a game IMO could be considered a worthwhile donation. Depends on the game genre of course. I'm not real fond donating to have SP immortalized in a Barbie Dream House game... but a Metroid remake on the other sounds good.

 

I think it's safe to say that I will be putting my faith in very few Kickstarter campaigns. But for the select few that promise to deliver the type of games I most want to see, that I wouldn't otherwise likely ever see, and that are created by developers who I trust and respect, Kickstarter (and the crowdfunding model in general) is a godsend.

But yeah, on a site where someone can create a campaign, for example, to get assistance paying off their student loans... you are going to need to make sure you are really in synch with a particular project before offering your support.