Using kickstarter to kickstart your title/studio

[phoenix_rossy]

This is very true but it goes even beyond cost, but also the idea of the game and if it appeals to the individual. I recently saw a successful KS for a VXACE project that asked for 2k that got funded to 2,700 and it was a very basic styled RM game. But the concept and footage was there. If you can convey your idea in a way that really makes it appealing, you're essentially being a good advertiser / salesman.

And this is the true essence of the Kickstarter platform. If you're no good at marketing and selling your concept/game, you're not going to go very far. A good salesman can sell you a bag of crap and make you think you've grabbed a bargain  

This is the main reason that some pretty decent-looking projects simply don't get the attention they deserve.

 

[Nemoide]

Hey, I'm the guy who made Unemployment Quest, the Kickstarter of which was mentioned in the first page.  I haven't been around here too much these days but I just want to share a little advice for anyone looking to do a Kickstarter for their project.

The most important thing to remember is to BE HONEST.

Seriously, honesty goes a long way on Kickstarter.

First I'll talk about setting your goal: try to figure out EXACTLY how much you will need to get your project done.  You can give yourself a little padding and round up because unexpected costs can pop up out of nowhere, but you need a solid plan of how expensive the project will get.  With UQ, I asked for $1000 because I figured the CDs would cost $900 and if I burned through the rest of my savings account (probably $200 at the time) I should have been able to get discs to everyone if I met my goal and have been "profitable" in the sense of HAVING DISCS. Unfortunately I didn't take international shipping into account.  I got lucky and had a whole bunch of people just getting digital copies, but  this was a significant factor I neglected and it could have put me in a really tight spot.  Which leads me to the next topic:

STRETCH GOALS: Only do them if you REALLY NEED more money to make them AND you KNOW THAT YOU CAN.  I didn't have any stretch goals for UQ because I didn't want to tack on some dumb "extra bonus dungeon" that wouldn't have costed me any more to add.  I didn't know much about commissioning artists, but I had a schedule and wasn't ready to commit to something like that on the fly.  There's nothing wrong with stretch goals, but they should only be used to serve the project, not to just make you extra money.  I made a point of never asking people to pledge more after the goal had been met unless they wanted one of the exclusive rewards, because that can be used as ammo against you.

FINALLY: REMEMBER THE BACKERS ARE THE PEOPLE WHO MATTER MOST.  Building your relationship with them is the only thing that counts on Kickstarter!  I'm a super-awkward person, but I took the time to individually respond to every message and never tried to deceive anyone; I was always up-front about the shortcomings of my game while also focusing on what makes it different from other titles.  The people who entrusted me with their money were pleased with the result and THAT MATTERS.

Basically, I think that as long as you're honest, you'll go far.  It's also important to make sure you talk about your idea with friends or family before the Kickstarter goes live.  I've seen some people just make a Kickstarter and then never promote it, so it ends with $0 pledged.  Kickstarter isn't a magic money machine even if it sometimes seems like it to some folks!

 

[Traveling Bard]

So how did you advertise UQ? Just friends and family? Or did you hit up other communities? Just curious.

 

[Nemoide]

I mostly asked friends, family, and online communities that I was already a part of to either kick in or to spread the word.  I got lucky and it got picked up by some other sources that were reporting on Kickstarter goings-on like indiegames.com and Destructoid.  Most of the funds ended up coming from people who were just exploring Kickstarter for a project to back.  In this way, it CAN be like a magic money machine; it's just bad planning to expect things to work out that way.

I didn't make a press release to send it out to gaming websites, but I've heard that this is a good idea and I can imagine it's certainly one worth doing!

 

[seita]

How were you able to get indiegames.com and destructoid to feature your game? Did they just see it there?

 

[Nemoide]

For IndieGames.com an editor/contributor found it on Kickstarter, liked it, and posted about it.
With Destructoid, the writer of the article found another article (US News and World Report) and used THAT as the source.  Since the game deals with "real life" themes, I'm pretty sure that it got the attention of folks who are normally dismissive of fantasy.  (Mostly luck on my part!)

To avoid sounding like I'm bragging too much... it might be worth looking up UQ on Destructoid/Indie Games and reading the comments.  There was definitely a bit of nerd-rage with a segment of gamers!  THIS IS ONE OF THE HARDEST PARTS ABOUT USING RPG MAKER IN SOMETHING LIKE KICKSTARTER!  Especially if you meet/exceed your goal!  It's good to try to prepare yourself mentally for a backlash!  But again... as long as the backers are happy, that's what really counts!

It definitely took a lot out of me and even though I've had people tell me that they would definitely back any other projects of mine down the line, I'm personally aiming to avoid crowdfunding for the future!

 

[trexrell]

If you asked for over $1500 to make a rpg maker game then THAT"S why it didnt get funded.... RPG maker games have been around for awhile, people know about how much it takes to make them so they not gonna pay that unless you have a lot of custom work ALREADY done. You have to look at other successful projects and see hows yours stands with it.

If your making an RPG maker game it should not really take you much of anything to make a game out of the RTP. If your making a game out of the RPG maker engine its gonna cost you way more money unless you are going to make all the resources yourself. Custom tilesets can cost up to 300 USD a set. That is 5 tilesets.  Not to mention you need actors, battlers, battlebacks, portraits, custom scripts, etc... Take it from someone who is in the process of making something of that caliber it takes a lot of money. And to be honest a Kickstarter for rpg maker games is to fund for the most expensive element. And that is time especially for something you want to be well... good.

My minimum will be around 10,000 and that is because I would be throwing my own money into it. Even though in order to really do it in the time frame i need is a bit more. I do not think passion is enough. Planning and organization is more important in my opinion. How you going to get it done and how long its going to take you. I think one misconception that i notice some guys are doing is getting the game funded and kind of disappearing and not showing much progress for about a year. The problem with that in the long run I believe that would kind of hurt profit. PR and advertising is an element that is not really mentioned in any of the projects I have seen. Unless you get on steam than you are pretty much set. I failed my first campaign and it helped me discover what it really takes to make a "successful" game not just to make something that would not generate much profit. But both well review and a commercial success. 

 

[seita]

Welp, now that I've made my mark on Kickstarter and I now have some time, I figure I could answer any questions if anybody is interested in the whole process I've gone through so far.

 

[Shaz]

I'd love to see a completely new "how I did it" thread from you, rather than just a Q&A - including all the things you had to take into consideration, what aspects you think had the greatest influence on the campaign's success, what decisions you made along the way and why you went that way, if you had to do it over again, what would you change?

 

[djDarkX]

I agree.  It would be very good material to read on how to get a game off the ground.  Seita, I think your game has to be the most successful campaign ever, but I don't really know well that translates due to the amount of commercially available RM games out there.  Still, the drive behind this one was phenomenal, so a "story" or guide on Kickstarting a project would be great.

 

[seita]

Hey sounds like a plan, this may take me a while to write up.

 

[djDarkX]

Take your time.  We know you have a game to worry about, staff and other things, but it's nice of you to go out of your way to do something like that.  I know that whatever you post won't always work for everyone, but it'll be a good start regardless.  Looking forward to it!