I don't get Kickstarter, so if someone kicked in 15 bucks, is there some return on their investment?
Strictly speaking, no. Indie developers and other creators put their projects up on Kickstarter to get crowdsourced funding from the community, rather than going to big publishers or corporations. This way, indies can create products that wouldn't otherwise be possible or financially viable.
If someone posts a project on Kickstarter with, say, a $100,000 goal, and the project
meets that goal, then it shows there's a demand for that project, and the creator ends up recieving all of that money so he can actually make it happen. Usually the creator has to be credible and accountable enough for backers to actually donate money, so the product can be made.
But! That doesn't mean "Well crap, I've already donated $25 on Kickstarter to make this product happen, and now I have to spend another $60 retail price when it's actually released." That's usually not the case at all. With most Kickstarter projects, the norm is to give the product for free to people who pledged a certain amount of money, so once they've pledged, they've already secured their order for the product.
With Takedown, every supporter who donated at least $15 will be receiving a digital copy of the game... period. People who donated more money will be getting even cooler stuff. Because I supported at the $75 level, I will be getting a digital download of the game, AND a boxed DRM-free copy, AND a t-shirt.
Even better is the fact that Takedown will probably cost more than $15 when it is released in retail (think $50 or $60, average price for a new game). So when you backed the game on Kickstarter for $15, then you essentially just scored a huge discount on an AAA title when it releases. That's your reward. The prizes you get for donating might be considered an "ROI" so to speak.
well, one project is bound to be the first one that happens to. (And I think that has already happened to some other projects anyway).
I'd love a R6 like game as much as everyone else here, but when they struggled this much to even get 5500 people to pitch in just $15 I just think it's hard to convince investors you can make a game that you can sell for $40+ to a few hundred thousand people. (I have no idea how much it costs to make R6, but imagine at least a few million dollars).
That's an understandable concern, but considering how transparent Chris Allen has been about it (not just on the KS page, but on the forums and with the rest of the community) I'm convinced it looks really solid. A couple things:
1) Before the Kickstarter even met it's goal, Chris specifically said "We have VC investors who are automatically prepared to fund us if we reach the $200,000 goal." Or something to that extent. Keyword being VC investors, NOT publishers. VC investors fund the game and get a cut when it releases, but have no say in the design or the product itself... which is absolutely critical so the developers have full creative control. (No "dumbing down" to worry about)
2) Apparently the Kickstarter has gained him attention from even more investors than before. From the update he posted last night, next week he'll be flying all over the country and having meetings with a ton of different people.
*shrug*
Facebook
Twitter