We've seen it time and time again, we hear or see a new game and get excited only to later find out it's been shelved for various reasons. While we wonder how good the game was going to turn out. Meanwhile publishers try and predict what games will sell, which to greenlight or put a brake on.
It's become very clear the direction seems to be a safer approach, especially on higher budgeted games. After all, the money trail is there so why not keep riding it? Ubisoft once said they try and make franchises. They feel the investment in too large to make standalone games unless they can make them into franchises. Watchdogs would be the latest game that is about to get another one. I know a lot of people are waiting for Beyond Good & Evil 2. How many years has it been since the last one? Ubisoft owns the rights and they don't appear to be letting that ip go to someone else and there does appear to be some headway in a new game coming. But what if they did? What is they allowed it to become a Kickstarter project to see just how much of a demand is out there? How about the Sega game Shenmue? The game cost 47 million dollars back then, it's no wonder they are reluctant to make another when it only sold 1.2 million copies. Would a Kickstarter project show the real interest or is it just a small group who are very vocal about a new one?
The latest Kicksrater game to garner attention are from ex-Rare developers called Yooka-Laylee. We are all aware of what happened with Rare. The important people left and Microsoft never could regain that magic they had before (there is anticipation of their new project or projects coming now that they appear to be Kinect free). They had some decent games on the XBox but were later left to hold the baton to Avatar support and to be at the forefront of Kinect games. Not exactly a stellar resume compared to their time with Nintendo. Now some of the guys from Rare set up shop under the name Playtonic Games. Kickstarter allows them that flexibility and more importantly funding. The shackles of making games for big corporations can kill innovation and creative control.
In a time of endless shooter games and sandbox titles we have forgotten at times the joy of side-scrollers and platformers. Will Playtonic prove there is indeed a market still out there for these types of games? Early indication shows there is.
What about the endless other games that never got a chance like Eight Days and Agent? All gone but not forgotten. The Last Guardian is another title that appears more dead than alive. many were upset to hear the new studio Microsoft created called Black Tusk working on a new project. Only to be shelved indefinitely for something more proven, another Gears of War game. I myself would love a new Jade Empire. Would it be a good idea to let these titles go free by way of Kickstarter? Chances are many of them won't because they don't want to give up the IP, 'tis a shame really. If only the public had more control of development but there is also a very strong counter-argument that the public doesn't know what the hell it wants. Yet here we are with projects sitting in limbo or totally morphed into something completely different.
If you put some pedigree and recognition behind the projects it does indeed make it easier to get the funding. Tim Schafer had no problem at all reaching his goal. There is of course many downsides to Kickstarter projects. It really is left in their hands and they can change things and not always for the better during production. Just ask Peter Molyneuz and the game Godus. Every time he speaks he is just asking for trouble mind you.
The thing is something is better than nothing. It's sad to see so many games just sitting there that people were once getting their hopes up only to be let down. Most of the time because they decided to work on something else, most likely the publishers told them what they should make instead. There are lots of great ideas out there and projects that just stopped. I recently watched a documentary on Atari. How quickly that company went from a mass hit and making millions and millions of dollars to bankruptcy. It was run very poorly but you had some amazing people that worked there and what they had to work with wasn't much. Compare that to today and you still have management getting in the way. We have seen big talents either leave the big wigs or start up their own team. This new game by Playtonic Games may just show that management gets in the way of what the public really wants. Kickstarter, is it the answer or should we just leave it alone?
WTMG's Leo Faria: "A Difficult Game About Climbing is obviously frustrating, and I don’t exactly think it’s a fun pasttime, but it’s exponentially more enjoyable than the horrendous Getting Over It With Bennett Foddy. It’s actually beatable with enough trial and error. Its mechanics, whilst not exactly polished to the brim, work as intended, with no intentional input lag. It’s still clearly meant for Let’s Play youtubers to film themselves losing their minds over it, but it can still be a passable challenge if you’re up for the task."
WTMG's Oliver Shellding: "Overall, I think Stitch is an ultra quaint title that oozes warmth and welcome in gameplay and visual presentation, and is just such a decompression tool after a long day doing literally anything. It gives me such joy and relaxation to bring together the numbers and colors until I’ve made a bicycle or a nutcracker or whatever. I’ll do Christmas puzzles in April, it’s fine and the game doesn’t judge me. Unlock more and more pieces, don’t wait for power ups or villains because there are none, and just keep making yourself happy. If games are art, this one is a sweater my mom made for me, and I’m wearing it to keep out any and all chilly elements. But, just like mom, I’ll only pretend to listen."
WTMG's Leo Faria: "I loved that New Star GP ended up being nothing like what I was expecting from it. I thought I was going to get a simple and straightforward love letter to Virtua Racing, only for it to be something more akin to the best F1 racing games from the mid to late 90s, with a perfect blend of accessible physics and simulation elements. New Star GP is adorably retro in its visuals and vibes, but it’s got some surprising amount of depth and an interesting career mode. A little hidden gem in the racing scene, without a doubt."
No, that would be terrible for the industry. Publishers and companies that actually have the money to fund these projects suddenly begging people to fund/invest/donate for their failed ideas?
Kickstarter should be used for people who have a product someone wants but cannot get a publisher or investor to pitch in money. It's bad enough the system is abused as is already, we don't need people WITH money to get richer by not using their money.
The reward will never outweigh the risk in just about all the examples you listed. They could use Kickstarter as an indicator of player interest, but even then it's kind of broken in a lot of ways. I'm thrilled Bloodstained hit its funding easily, outside funding was dependent on it hitting that. It's still no guarantee the game is going to be worth the overall investment in the end. Would 800k or a Million dollar funding level be enough for MS to greenlight Banjo Threeie, Blood Wake or I dunno...Sudeki 2? Nope, probably not.
When we're talking about triple A development on the consoles or PC, you're talking about millions in development and advertising/marketing. A few thousand people kickstarting a proof of interest, barely moves the risk meter on something like a Banjo or The Last Guardian.
Large publishers will never ask for money. I am not an expert but I believe there are some rules and complications that don't make it easy for them to do so. Probably stock market value would react because it would look like a desperation move, etc.
On top of that canceled projects, lets use SSM cancelled IP was according to the rumor costing around 80 million usd. It was rebooted a few times, and finally sony pulled the plug. Probably realizing that it would cost at least that much more to finish it plus market it. Don't forget Marketing is 40-50% of the budget most of the time. IF you want good marketing. So tell me, do you really think KS can help Sony pull in 50 million USD ? Don't think so. This is an extreme example.
When it comes to famous devs going rogue and creating some sort of a twin of old IP, but with different name ? am all for it.