All that money, and the game is still in alpha...
Show me a game that went from scratch to outside of Alpha in less than three years with the level of complexity they are trying to achieve. I know of no such examples.
They spent all that time on movie cinematic of his wife dressed up, instead of actual game play.
Referring to AtV openings? Paid for by Subscriber money, not game dev funds. All behind the scenes media and equipment (sets, cameras, etc) are paid for by Subscribers. She isn't a dev, Ben isn't a dev, Tom Hennessy isn't a dev, so their activities aren't detracting from development. They do give out lots of development info, add to in-fiction lore, and put a face on a long and complex development process.
Though, if you're maybe referring to her role in SQ42, what's the complaint? Cheaper than hiring a Hollywood actor for that role because she's already on the payroll as marketing director?
After this blows up and he files for bankruptcy... and i am betting it will happen, he will destory the faith in people supporting kick starters.
That's assuming it goes that way, which even people in the video game financing industry (Kevin Dent) don't see any warning signs. Chris was rich before this started and will see it through to the end. He has already said they have enough to finish development as is. If they really were running low on cash and the outlook was grim, I assure you ever "limited" ship would be on sale again in a final cash grab.
This is why there is so much hate.
So the hate comes from doubt that they can accomplish what they're already on the road towards (and getting near strictly content production as the engine framework comes together) that people spread FUD campaigns in order to create self-fulfilling prophecies?
I understand why the most vocal against the campaign does what he does (Derek Smart). He's a direct competitor, is threatened, displays signs of delusion with large doses of hypocrisy, and is a self-professed internet troll. He has talked shit about every up and coming space game until it comes out and then he says "see, I knew it'd be alright." Biggest example is Elite.
But, the rest of the general public, I don't understand. What stake do they have in it? Is it jealousy that whales can willy-nilly spend thousands of dollars on pledges? No one goes off on internet tirades on Gucci bags that cost thousands of dollars but are only worn once. Leave people to spend their money how they see fit in peace. The disclaimers are all on the website. Is it because of the size of the pot? Is there some unofficial rule on the max size a crowd-funded project can be?
There is no precedent to a project like this, as far as I can tell. Hundreds of thousands of people offering $90+ million for the Best Damn Space Sim Ever which required the standing up of an entire game development studio across three countries. Are there risks? Of course, and we all understood that when we pledged (just like every crowdfunded campaign I've been apart of from space sims to the Bill Nye documentary to mountain bike GoPro mounts). Are there benefits? Absolutely! It has the potential to really launch this space sim renaissance and really give PC gamers something to be proud of.
I do see a lot of assumptions and presumptions about their financials, their ultimate demise (even countdowns to that effect), and attacks of character on those involved (none of which I can find to be substantiated). I also see a lot of things to respect about some involved (CR's recent letter asking everyone to take a look at Infinity: Battlescape). He's truly interested in space games and gaming in general and I believe he wants the project completed the most.
So, until there's evidence of these impending disasters, I'll continue to drink my Kool-aid and the detractors can drink theirs, I guess.
Facebook
Twitter