Work Halted On Neal Stephenson's Kickstarted Swordfighting Video Game 124
An anonymous reader writes "Last year, sci-fi author Neal Stephenson and a team of game developers set out to make video game swordfighting awesome. They set up a Kickstarter campaign to fund the creation of hardware and software tech that would make replace console controllers with something more realistic. Now, production on that tech and the game in which they showcase it has been halted. In an update on the Kickstarter page, Stephenson explains how they've sought other investments without success. The project is 'on pause,' and the team asks for patience. He says, 'The overall climate in the industry has become risk-averse to a degree that is difficult to appreciate until you've seen it. It is especially bemusing to CLANG team members who, by cheerfully foregoing other opportunities so that they could associate themselves with a startup in the swordfighting space, have already shown an attitude to career, financial, and reputational risk normally associated with the cast members of Jackass. To a game publisher crouched in a fetal position under a blanket, CLANG seems extra worrisome because it is coupled to a new hardware controller.'"
Yet another story... (Score:4, Insightful)
Sure, I'll fund you. Once you have something ready to deliver.
Otherwise, I'm not going to trust a bunch of newbies with my money, essentially giving them an interest free loan.
Not a shock (Score:5, Insightful)
As someone who has done a bit of both Japanese and French style fencing, I was excited about this game. But its pausing (read: cancellation) does not come as a surprise. Any game that requires special hardware is going to face an uphill battle. My guess is that it became apparent the hardware they needed to make the game work they way they envisioned was going to be unrealistically expensive (like over $100 per unit). Theoretically, that hardware could come down in price in the near future and they could start back up- but I seriously doubt it.
Re:Yet another story... (Score:5, Insightful)
I have to agree in part - I'm very, very, very averse to "pre-orders" of any kind, especially speculative pre-orders.
That said, a careful person can get a lot of success out of Kickstarter. The Defense Grid 2 kickstarter? I got more hardware and software out of that than my money was worth within weeks and the game I invested in is definitely being built and yet I'm already "in profit" on what I invested.
I also supported a project set around a guy making a pack of gaming cards. I have them in my hands, and a bonus app on my phone, and a pretty presentation book with games, and a little felt pack to hold them in. I never expected 90% of that even KNOWING what I was investing in, but the guy behind it delivered, and delivered enormously.
It's not "kickstarter" that should be distrusted. It's investment. If it's not your thing, and you're a bad judge of what projects to invest in, then, no, it won't be good for you. I've seen enormous amounts of money thrown away on junk on Kickstarter - big names make no difference, grandiose ideas make no difference, planning and management make no difference. You have to just think to yourself "Who is this person? Can they deliver? Will it be worth THEM delivering?" - you're investing in the people, not the product, or even the execution.
As such, there are plenty of worthwhile things on Kickstarter and I think it's huge sections on indie music, dance projects, art projects etc. are a fabulous idea. But I've never invested in something that I didn't believe would pan out - I checked the HISTORY of the people and my trust in them more than anything to do with the product.
If you invest in a random project because it's something you want, then you might as well buy anything on QVC that "sounds good". The fact that it might turn out to be utter shite that cons you with fancy words and impossible promises is something that you shouldn't even need to be told to factor into your decision.
Re:Yet another story... (Score:5, Insightful)
Nobody's asking you to trust Kickstarter (to do anything other than show proposals and track donations).
YOU are responsible for evaluating whether you think a particular campaign is trustworthy or worth donating to. Some succeed and some fail (and I don't mean fail to secure funding). Kickstarter is not vouching for the success of these campaigns and doesn't pretend to. It's hooking up people with ideas with people willing to donate.
you seem to be operating under the mistaken impression that Kickstarter is an online store.
Poor, poor Stephenson (Score:4, Insightful)
Wow.
So let me get this straight: Best-selling, presumably well-heeled author uses his star power to hold the beggar's cup on Kickstarter.
Author spends the proceeds without delivering anything.
Author pens a nice FU to the folks that trusted him, gives up.
Stephenson: how about digging into your pocket and delivering what you promised? I sincerely hope that he now has 9000+ former fans that will never buy another book from him, and will tell their family and friends to do the same. And thus ends up taking a bigger financial hit than just simply doing the right thing.
Re:Yet another story... (Score:4, Insightful)
If you're entirely happy with what consumer products you are being offered, you don't need to tell yourself it has to do with trust. You can just say "I don't want to invest in cool new products." No one will think you're a coward. Except for slashdot, which has already labeled you an anonymous coward.
Re:The Hidden Catch in Kickstarter (Score:4, Insightful)
I was under the impression from the beginning that the money they were asking for was to build a working model that would be used to sell the game's concept to someone with more money; there's simply no way the amount they were raising was sufficient to make a deliverable product. 500K minus all the expenses of hardware prototyping leaves enough for maybe half a dozen (not very well paid) developers for one year, and that ignores all the expenses of actually building and delivering production hardware at the end. I find it hard to believe that anyone thought they were fully funding the game from the ground up with that level of financing.
Re:The Hidden Catch in Kickstarter (Score:4, Insightful)
Yup, seen it a million times. Someone gets a large amount of money from Kickstarter, all at once, and falls in love with the idea of doing things. The actual project...well, we'll get that done...later. Who could possibly spend (pinky finger) one million dollars?
Wow, you weren't kidding about him saying "Kickstarter is amazing, but one of the hidden catches is that once you have taken a bunch of people's money to do a thing, you have to actually do that thing, and not some other thing that you thought up in the meantime." Amazing. He actually said it, and actually called it a "hidden catch". And he wonders why he's having trouble getting investors to buy in to his idea?
The real problem is that Kickstarter lets novices (some people call them "idiots") get ahold of large sums of cash. These people then make beginner mistakes of the sort you would expect beginners to make. They then can't handle criticism and get angry when people start complaining expecting a product.
This is why stretch goals are a horrible idea. Take someone that is already in over their head in a project that will be difficult to complete, and add EVEN MORE stuff to do. Unfortunately people love this stuff and won't stop giving money. A victimless crime, I suppose.
So, yet another scam from the start (Score:5, Insightful)
Given the statement "We stretched the Kickstarter money farther than we had expected to" the only conclusion is that when stated that for $10,000 they'd give you:
* Steel longsword based on a design by noted sword-smith and Foreworld contributor, Angus Trim
* A Studio tour and lunch with the team!
* Gotlandic war knife based on a design by bladesmith Jeff Pringle
* Original concept art plus invitations to company parties in Seattle
* Your face on your exclusive character!
* Name a character in the large world Foreworld game project.
* Name a character in a future Foreworld story, the alternate history in which The Mongoliad (and CLANG) is set
* Complete Mongoliad trilogy signed by team plus invitations to company parties in Seattle.
* Print version of the illustrated CLANG fighting manual signed by the team
* Copy of the Deluxe Edition of The Mongoliad Book 1, signed by the writers
* Motivational poster signed by the team. OMVI patch.
* Print edition of illustrated CLANG fighting manual.
* T-shirt with CLANG/Subutai Kickstarter campaign graphic.
* PDF of illustrated Clang fighting manual.
* Download of game concept art in pdf format.
* Two copies of the game
They had no intention of actually doing so, since apparently they've already done more than they expected with the money in the first place.
Risks of Investment, Rewards of Retail (Score:5, Insightful)
The reality is that backing Kickstarter projects is really the risk of an investment without the returns of an investment. In the past when people hit the point in the projects that they needed outside funding they'd need to find investors who'd own part of the product, Now they hit Kickstarter charge full price for a product they may never deliver and in the event its successful maintain all of the profits.
This is particularly bothersome to me when people like Neal Stephenson and Zach Braff who have money themselves, as well as access to investors. Kickstarter ought to be the place where small time folks who've completed the product but don't have access to the funds to get the initial batch made.
Re:Yet another story... (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Yet another story... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Yet another story... (Score:4, Insightful)
Most of those sources are risk averse, resulting in a lot of look alike products.
It's the more harebrained schemes like this one that Kickstarter is all about. The ones that the establishment won't look at while they pump out COD XIXIX11 and it's related cash cows.
Oh absolutely. But that risk is a risk for a reason. People shouldn't be surprised when money thrown at unvetted ideas disappears. No one who put down $20 on that Kickstarter asked for a business plan, or to see their market analysis. And, clearly, also had never built professional software or they would've known there wasn't nearly enough capital there. And if there's not enough capital at the start, you better be asking those questions or you have no idea if the rest will ever materialize.
Re:ripped off (Score:5, Insightful)
I'd be REALLY pissed if I was one of the 9 people that donated over $10,000.
You shouldn't, if you were, for two reasons.
One: disposable income is relative. It's safe to assume that someone who pitches in five digits for a video game is not hurting for that cash. That pledge loss is to them what $100 might be to you or I. Or $10 for someone else.
Two: Kickstarter is a patronage system. Pure and simple. It's not a purchasing system, it's not a cash-now-product-later system. Patronage. You provide funds to a person or group whom you respect and wish to assist. There's no guarantee in patronage. The artist may produce something you don't like. The artist may die. The artist's muse may prove elusive for a time. Shit happens. If you're viewing Kickstarter as anything else, you're doing it wrong.