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Has Kickstarter stopped the Mmorpg's Stagnation ?

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  • CaldrinCaldrin Member UncommonPosts: 4,505

    Well kickstarter has shown that there are a shit load of people who want a good sandbox MMORPG and are generally bored with the same old themepark games..

    SO its off to a good start thats for sure and the future does look good.. but we still have to wait and see if any of the companies actually finish anything..

    I think The Repopulation will be the first out of the bag as there has been a ton of work done on it already and its already in a alpha state, the devs behind it came to kickstarter to get some additional fund to make the game even better.. SO i really do think we will get to see a finished product with this and it already sounds like its gonna be a great game... The only issue with The Repopulation is that they have gone down the f2p + cash shop route.. probalyl the worse thing to happen to the MMORPG industry.. ah well will still be keeping an eye on it.

     

    As for the others well we will have to wait and see.. but in general i think Kickstarter will be a great thing for the MMORPG industry hopefully some big publishers will see that there is a big part of the mmorpg player base that dont want spoon fed dumbed down themepark mmos

     

     

  • EkarosEkaros Member UncommonPosts: 367

    I think main issue with kickstarter is finding the budget needed and people who can realy do it. Personaly I don't believe in it happening for MMORPGs... Expectations are just too large these days...

  • darker70darker70 Member UncommonPosts: 804
    Originally posted by Ekaros

    I think main issue with kickstarter is finding the budget needed and people who can realy do it. Personaly I don't believe in it happening for MMORPGs... Expectations are just too large these days...

    Well that can be said for many projects but Repop has been self funded and the Kickstarter is there as a boost,if god forbid it failed and considering they only need 5k to meet their very modest 25k  target still with 20 days left.!!

    So i'm very positive they will hit that and besides they would still forge ahead as we have Alpha in June but at a slower pace,but if fingers crossed they hit the projected trending target then they play in a different ball park altogether image

     

     

    p>
  • WarmakerWarmaker Member UncommonPosts: 2,246

    I find it funny people are easily parted with their money on promises alone.  And video game developers are just as bad as politicians image

    "I have only two out of my company and 20 out of some other company. We need support, but it is almost suicide to try to get it here as we are swept by machine gun fire and a constant barrage is on us. I have no one on my left and only a few on my right. I will hold." (First Lieutenant Clifton B. Cates, US Marine Corps, Soissons, 19 July 1918)

  • darker70darker70 Member UncommonPosts: 804
    Originally posted by Warmaker

    I find it funny people are easily parted with their money on promises alone.  And video game developers are just as bad as politicians image

    Lol,yeah this is the first time i've done anything like this there is a real foundation here as in Alpha more footage and Mo interviews and features to get the word spread oh and the matter of a very successful Kickstarter pitch

    But i have been following Repop since 2011 so this is not a snap descision on my part, I  wonder what was said about Minecraft in the early days now look at it. image

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  • jpnzjpnz Member Posts: 3,529
    Originally posted by Warmaker

    I find it funny people are easily parted with their money on promises alone.  And video game developers are just as bad as politicians image

    I take it you never went to those '10k per person for a fund-raiser' thingy for a policitian?

    If you are a good communicator the networking you can do in a place like that is way more valuable than the price you pay.

     

    For me it was my favorite Voice actress (Jennifer Hale)  tweeting that she was going to be in a partially kickstarter-funded game rather than the 'promise' or w/e was on that game description page.

    Gdemami -
    Informing people about your thoughts and impressions is not a review, it's a blog.

  • GigglebottleGigglebottle Member Posts: 40

    Embers of Caerus is using the kickstarter program they asked for 20K and have already recieved 30K+ I think there is still a week to go with kickstarter for more donations. Anyway that being said I think Kickstarter is a great way for an awesome idea to become reality for small Indy companies that are working with very little or nothing at all.

  • UsulDaNeriakUsulDaNeriak Member Posts: 640
    Originally posted by Saydien

     So for me Kickstarter has absolutely NOTHING to do with any actual investments so please stop talking about return on investments, return on capital employed, EVAs or whatever. The only thing that such fans that DONATE cash in kickstarter should be interested in is if the game will make it and also last long enough for them to cherish their tiny bonuses. There are no actual investors on Kickstarter.

    of course there are no investors on kickstarter and they never will be there donating money, because they are not donators; they are investors. but some of the projects on kickstarter are asking for money to support the 1st stage of development up to the point, where they are able to present investors a showcase. the next stage will of course not happen on kickstarter.

    and btw, there are other sites, where you actually can invest in MMOs starting with 5€; not just donate. and yes, you become a shareholder (of a closed fund).

    played: Everquest I (6 years), EVE (3 years)
    months: EQII, Vanguard, Siedler Online, SWTOR, Guild Wars 2
    weeks: WoW, Shaiya, Darkfall, Florensia, Entropia, Aion, Lotro, Fallen Earth, Uncharted Waters
    days: DDO, RoM, FFXIV, STO, Atlantica, PotBS, Maestia, WAR, AoC, Gods&Heroes, Cultures, RIFT, Forsaken World, Allodds

  • WereLlamaWereLlama Member UncommonPosts: 246

    Im just learning about Kickstarter myself, and it is very exciting to see the funding they are getting for online games in 'very' early development.

    I believe the best value it provides is allowing very small independents to test out new ideas, ideas that normally would require a large publisher to ever see the light of day.   3d models, rigging/animating, engine licenses, programming and more programming, illustration art, sound effects, and all the salaries/bonsues/benefits/team building events, cost lots of money.

    Someone is going to come up with a new twist on MMORPGs and it will be amazing.

    I know Im not the only one, but I hope I can make my own cool little twist to a beloved genre, and now I have Kickstarter as another tool to increase the chance of that happening.

    -Blitz

     

  • KenFisherKenFisher Member UncommonPosts: 5,035
    Originally posted by BlitzVF

     

    3d models, rigging/animating, engine licenses, programming and more programming, illustration art, sound effects, and all the salaries/bonsues/benefits/team building events, cost lots of money.

     

    I agree.  And even a modest sum of money can be a big help in achieving these things.  I'm sure a big name game spends more going to one convention than an Indie spends on a year of development.

     

    I'm anxious to see Embers (name?) and Repop make it to release.  Frankly if either (or both) releases a non-buggy sandbox of medium quality, that's a huge win for the genre.


    Ken Fisher - Semi retired old fart Network Administrator, now working in Network Security.  I don't Forum PVP.  If you feel I've attacked you, it was probably by accident.  When I don't understand, I ask.  Such is not intended as criticism.
  • teakboisteakbois Member Posts: 2,154
    Originally posted by JC-Smith

    I don't really understand the resentment towards Kickstarter though, or people who like to condascend others for contributing to projects. There are generally good incentives from most projects, which allows players to get some added value for their contributions when the game ships. Obviously it doesn't do you much good if the game doesn't ship, but that's where using your head and choosing your projects wisely comes into play.

    The problem is, at least with this thread, is its dishonest bs.  Guy with big Repopulation sig making an absurd question that anyone with half a brain knows is the answer to with the intent of getting more attention (and more money) to repopulation.

    What I also find tacky is you, as an indie dev, talking up indie devs and trashing the bigger companies.  Sorry, you are in too biased of a position and it just comes across as more indirect, dishonest hyping of your product.

    Let your product do the selling.  Talk about why we should donate to it, what it offers to us.  Instead you seem to be trying to make your product better by making whats around t look worse, which makes me think that the product isnt good enugh to stand on its own.

     

  • JC-SmithJC-Smith Member UncommonPosts: 421
    Originally posted by teakbois
    The problem is, at least with this thread, is its dishonest bs.  Guy with big Repopulation sig making an absurd question that anyone with half a brain knows is the answer to with the intent of getting more attention (and more money) to repopulation.

    What I also find tacky is you, as an indie dev, talking up indie devs and trashing the bigger companies.  Sorry, you are in too biased of a position and it just comes across as more indirect, dishonest hyping of your product.

    Let your product do the selling.  Talk about why we should donate to it, what it offers to us.  Instead you seem to be trying to make your product better by making whats around t look worse, which makes me think that the product isnt good enugh to stand on its own.

    The guy who started this thread is in not affiliated with Repop. He's a regular on our forum though.

    That having been said, on the second and third paragraph, please do point out where I trashed other products or hyped Repop? I spoke entirely in generalisms about areas where Kickstarter would benefit the genre. I'm not in the business of trashing other games. That having been said, what your suggesting is that since I am a part of a project that has kickstarted that I have no business in a Kickstarter discussion. I disagree with that.

  • EndDreamEndDream Member Posts: 1,152
    It definitely has shown that there are a lot of people tired of the same old thing. But time will tell if any of these games end up good. I think archeage has the best chance followed by pathfinder.

    Remember Old School Ultima Online

  • GdemamiGdemami Member EpicPosts: 12,342


    Originally posted by JC-Smith1) Generated and player created content requires a lot more initial work. Once they are functional though they require a lot less long term work, because players will be creating situations and content can be reused with generation. Each game is different, but in general I can't see any reason that someone could claim a sandbox would cost them more money to produce than a theme park game.

    This is fairly shortsighted perception, and I would even say incorrect.


    There is hands down way more minimal initial work needed for narrated content because of simple fact that narrated content does not allow as much repetitiveness as sandbox designed games.

    The main difference is in long term development though and in that regards, narrated content is way better because the longevity is dependent on volume rather than repetitiveness. With years of development, themepark game gains an advantage while sandbox becomes a nightmare to develop due broad horizontal growth.


    This is where sandbox is more expensive in long term - sandbox game content added over the years requires exponentially more work to keep the content updated. Unlike in case of themepark narrated content that is stacked and "consumed" and you can just add at same pace for years.



    Originally posted by JC-Smith

    I don't really understand the resentment towards Kickstarter though, or people who like to condascend others for contributing to projects. There are generally good incentives from most projects, which allows players to get some added value for their contributions when the game ships. Obviously it doesn't do you much good if the game doesn't ship, but that's where using your head and choosing your projects wisely comes into play.

    You don't?

    Donations are a form of charity to give money to those who are in need, cannot help themselves or suffer a handicap. Are you the case? Are you disabled, are you homeless, do you live in 3rd world country, etc? Because those are people you are supposed to be like when asking for money...


    You either do business or charity.

    I have no issue with people throwing their money on some fun stuff projects but funding someone else living? C'mon...


    As I said before, Kickstarter is just for milking money from naive people.

  • dave6660dave6660 Member UncommonPosts: 2,699
    Originally posted by XAPGames

    My estimation:

    100 MMOs on kickstarter

    • 1 makes it huge big.
    • 9 make a profit after release and can continue development.
    • 10 make it to release and struggle.
    • 80 don't make it to release (not enough funding or management issues).
     
     
    Overall impact?  Minimal except in rare cases.
     
    Savior of the genre?  One can only hope.

    That's the risk you take when starting a business.  I was just reading an article that stated the average rate of failure of a new small business is about 60%.

    Entrepreneurship is a good thing.

    “There are certain queer times and occasions in this strange mixed affair we call life when a man takes this whole universe for a vast practical joke, though the wit thereof he but dimly discerns, and more than suspects that the joke is at nobody's expense but his own.”
    -- Herman Melville

  • GdemamiGdemami Member EpicPosts: 12,342


    Originally posted by dave6660

    That's the risk you take when starting a business.  Entrepreneurship is a good thing.

    Problem is, this is no entrepreneurship as you are not taking the risks - your donators are...

  • JC-SmithJC-Smith Member UncommonPosts: 421

    @Gdemani: If your talking about the amount of work that goes into developing a proper generated content scheme then your talking about a bit more initial work to design that system as opposed to a static quest system.

    Once you have created that system though you do not need as many quests as a static quest game. Because you can resuse your templates. Rather than creating 5000 storylines that a character will use once, or maybe never use at all, with a generated system you can focus on creating 500 templates that can be reused. That doesn't mean simplistic, they can be complex. But by randomizing the goals, npcs, and providing branches they have some replayability.

    That's what I'm talking about with a generated system as opposed to static. In the longrun players can keep reusing the templates you've created, years down the road, and you can continue adding new ones. Where in a typical level based treadmill each of those storylines is used just once, typically.

    As far as your last bit, pretty trollish. Calling Kickstarter a charity just shows your ignorance on the subject. Kickstarter is just for milking money from naive people? So what your saying is you know better than everyone who has used Kickstarter. And your goal here is to protect them from themselves, because your apparently smarter than they are?

    Every game needs funding to be produced. That money typically comes from a publisher who you then pay to pre-order or order post-launch. What Kickstarter is offering players (in most cases at least) is a chance to pre-order directly to the devopers and cut out the publisher. That ensures that the developers keep control of their own projects. And typically the rewards offered for pledges are pretty generous. Your often getting half off with additional incentives. So long as the game ships, it's a beneficial arrangement for both parties.

  • GrumpyMel2GrumpyMel2 Member Posts: 1,832

    Kickstarter,  in general, is a very exciting development that I believe will help foster an atmosphere where alot of different creative projects, including games in general can flourish.

    I think it remains to be determined exactly how much impact it'll have on the MMO market specificaly. I DO believe it can provide a benefit for indie MMO projects to get some good exposure and proof of interest along with a bit of seed cash that they can utilize to help them attract the kind of funding sources (Angel Investors) which they need in order to get products launched. Exactly how much of a benefit it will be in that regard, I'm not sure, but I think it does have some potential.

    As far as funding an MMO outright, I'm uncertain....

    One things that is encouraging is the availability of quality tool-sets and engines, etc for MMO Development seems to be increasing and the price-point for those offerings seems to be dropping. It's also the case that operating costs (hosting) for such services also has dropped quite a bit in recent times.

    Taken together, this MAY mean that the cost to produce small, indie MMO's becomes far more affordable and the barrier to entry is decreased in future (and Kickstarter could have a role in these). Note we are not talking AAA style MMO's, we are talking about vehicles with reduced graphics/production qualities, possibly limited feature sets/limited content. For certain sets of fans, this MAY NOT MATTER much though. As there are quite a number of people willing to trade such production qualities for more personalized service and direct interaction catered to thier tastes. I thinking a dynamic similar to the promulgation of MUD's in the early years...or experiences similar to NeverWinter servers but with enhanced capability to scale.

    I don't neccesarly think this will replace/eclipse the AAA market....but it MAY create an enhanced alternate scene where people disatisfied with the offerings provided by the AAA market...might be able to find offerings that cater to thier preferences....much like the independant muisic/movie scene has become. Anyway, that would be my hope.

  • GdemamiGdemami Member EpicPosts: 12,342


    Originally posted by JC-Smith

    Where in a typical level based treadmill each of those storylines is used just once, typically....Calling Kickstarter a charity just shows your ignorance on the subject.


    1) Yes, it is indeed used once only and that is why you need to invest way more work into it compared to generates quests system.


    The point you are missing is that people will likely go through all those 5000 storylines you created over the years than going through 10x 500 templates...


    Repetitive content costs less development time but does not ensure same longevity.

    2) If you think that Kickstarter is the same as Kickstarter...

    Every business needs funding, that does not mean donation though. Donated business is no longer a business but charity or hobby - something lacking market survivability without said donation.

    I am not here to protect anyone, just pointing out the absurdity of the donating someone who does not need money, but want them only.


  • darker70darker70 Member UncommonPosts: 804
    Originally posted by Gdemami

     


    Originally posted by JC-Smith

    Where in a typical level based treadmill each of those storylines is used just once, typically.

     

    ...

    Calling Kickstarter a charity just shows your ignorance on the subject.


     


    1) Yes, it is indeed used once only and that is why you need to invest way more work into it compared to generates quests system.


    The point you are missing is that people will likely go through all those 5000 storylines you created over the years than going through 10x 500 templates...


    Repetitive content costs less development time but does not ensure same longevity.

     

    2) If you think that Kickstarter is the same as Kickstarter...

    Every business needs funding, that does not mean donation though. Donated business is no longer a business but charity or hobby - something lacking market survivability without said donation.

     

    I am not here to protect anyone, just pointing out the absurdity of the donating someone who does not need money, but want them only.

    Seems like we are at an empasse so no point argueing also some of that post is some what hard to fathom if anybody wants a pop at it be my guest.

    Just a big thanks to all who gave their opinions and input it's been mostly civil thank the stars,and if I have helped a start up company get a foothold then great ,one day we may get the games of our dreams with a Kickstarter ideology.

     

    p>
  • nariusseldonnariusseldon Member EpicPosts: 27,775

    LOL ...

    1) Is there ANY MMO produced using kickstarter?

    2) How much a MMO cost? What is the biggest kickstarter project funded? 200k? a million? 10 million?

    Are you so desperate so put money in a mirage?

  • JC-SmithJC-Smith Member UncommonPosts: 421

    @Gdemani: Fact is a generated quest can be just as complex as a static quest. You can have 20 quest steps with a proper generated system, with each of those steps having random reusable elements, only sharing a storyline. 90% of players skip the quest stories in modern MMOs and just hit the accept buttons.  It's the actions they are doing in the missions that keep them busy.

    Again with the charity thing. I'm not sure where you think that any game doesn't need money to be completed. You can take a small and efficient indie project like Repop, and it still costs a significant amount of money to produce. I've personally put about 20-25% of my income over the past four years being poured into the game, not to mention bypassing contract work which would have been in six figures during that time in order to dedicate time the game. Josh Halls has also poured money into the game and the whole team has poured large amounts of time into the game. You don't pour that kind of time or money into projects without believing in them. But money and time are not unlimited, especially for indie developers.

    Could we finish the game without any outside funding? Yes, but it would significantly increase the time to release, and likely result in a less polished product. That's not what the games fans want. Given the track record of MMOs that launch poorly, it's not what we want either. 

    Kickstarter funding doesn't sound like a lot of money, but for an indie developer it is huge. In six months time we'd have gotten what would have taken us 2 years to get done from a world design and content standpoint. Kickstarter will not only allow us to get to launch more quickly, but it will also allow us to pack in more polished content. From a coding standpoint the game will have no issues launching in a year either way. From an art, content and polish standpoint, Kickstarter will make a huge difference. What's the biggest complaint about indie MMOs? Lack of polish. Lack of content. Buggy. Those are all things that Kickstarter can aid with.

    So for an indie project like Repop, it's a good thing for both the developer, and for people who plan on playing it. From their standpoint it allows them to get things at a discounted price and obtain some unique items or titles, or at higher pledges a permanent place in the games lore. For the developer, it allows us to create a better game, which also benefits the players, and to see that game sooner rather than later.

     

  • jpnzjpnz Member Posts: 3,529
    Originally posted by Gdemami

     

    2) If you think that Kickstarter is the same as Kickstarter...

    Every business needs funding, that does not mean donation though. Donated business is no longer a business but charity or hobby - something lacking market survivability without said donation.

     

    I am not here to protect anyone, just pointing out the absurdity of the donating someone who does not need money, but want them only.

     

    Using this logic, how does anyone build a house / boat etc?

    And don't you get something if you pay more than 5 or w/e the amount? normally a game / month sub; in this case.

    So its like a pre-order system?

    Gdemami -
    Informing people about your thoughts and impressions is not a review, it's a blog.

  • GdemamiGdemami Member EpicPosts: 12,342


    Originally posted by JC-Smith

    Fact is a generated quest can be just as complex as a static quest. ...I'm not sure where you think that any game doesn't need money to be completed.

    1) That is no fact, that is an opinion and complexity isn't everything. Try to make storylines like SWTOR has with some quests generator - with voice-overs, cut scenes, phasing, etc.


    I do not think actions are a motivator. What drives players running quests in narrated content is progression - the sense you are moving somewhere. This is unlike to be provided by quest generator.


    You are comparing two things strictly mechanics wise but they both have very different purpose and role.


    2) I explicitly said that any business needs funding, didn't I? Do you consider game development not a business? Fair enough, but do not ask money for the product once it is released though.

    Do not take me wrong, I fully understand your perception of someone running a business - you just try to gather any money you can. That is absolutely fine but I say that from a donator perspective, you will unlikely find a reasonable justification for the donation(especially one that does not even have a product to offer yet).


    The truth is, there comes a responsibility and expectations with an investment, with donation there is none. Donations encourage irresponsible business.



    Originally posted by jpnz

    Using this logic, how does anyone build a house / boat etc?

    Not sure what you mean...

    Sole purpose of a business is to make money.

    If you are not making money, your business deserves to be closed.
    If you are making money, there is no need for donation.

    Funding a starting business is still a part of the business and it is no exception to the rule. In your previous post you argued that Kickstarter may provide sign of demand but such argument is false.

    What people are donating is idea, not the product nor business. Those are very different things.

    When you are investing money, you are not funding ideas but ability to utilize the idea and turning it into profit - we talk business here.

    You can have a fantastic idea for the best game ever(in your personal opinion) but if your numbers behind your business do not fit, your idea is very much worthless and your business does not deserve to exist. Why supporting such behavior?

  • jpnzjpnz Member Posts: 3,529
    Originally posted by Gdemami

     


    Originally posted by jpnz

    Using this logic, how does anyone build a house / boat etc?

     


     

    Not sure what you mean...

    Sole purpose of a business is to make money.

    If you are not making money, your business deserves to be closed.
    If you are making money, there is no need for donation.

    Funding a starting business is still a part of the business and it is no exception to the rule. In your previous post you argued that Kickstarter may provide sign of demand but such argument is false.

    What people are donating is idea, not the product nor business. Those are very different things.

    When you are investing money, you are not funding ideas but ability to utilize the idea and turning it into profit - we talk business here.

    You can have a fantastic idea for the best game ever(in your personal opinion) but if your numbers behind your business do not fit, your idea is very much worthless and your business does not deserve to exist. Why supporting such behavior?

     

     

    You seem to know exactly how 'Kickstarter' works and how all projects within it operate. /sarcasm

    Exactly what's the difference between crowd-source funding and Kickstarter?

     

    As someone who seem to talk 'business' alot you don't present very much logic.

    Logic isn't generalizing millions of people that have backed kickstarter projects and saying 'What people are donating is idea, not the product nor business. Those are very different things.'

    The 'point-and-click' project that got 3M, some would have backed it because they want the game at the end.

    They essentially pre-purchased a PRODUCT.

     

    Edit 1

    I'll try to explain my 'build a boat' example.

    If I want to build a house or a boat or a building, I would normally pay someone to build one for me.

    Similar to how I would back a kickstarter project for someone to build something I want for me.

    Get it?

    Gdemami -
    Informing people about your thoughts and impressions is not a review, it's a blog.

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