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Sony's new e-paper watch actually looks like a timepiece
Earlier this week, Sony introduced its FES Watch U, an e-paper timepiece that it is crowdfunding in Japan. And today, at IFA 2016, we had the chance to see it in person for the first time. As we pointed out before, the FES Watch U is a much more polished version of Sony's original e-ink watch, which was revealed in 2014. The new wearable features a steel frame, instantly giving it that premium look and feel, as well as sapphire glass on the higher-end model.
Nextbit isn't bringing the Robin to Verizon and Sprint after all
If you backed Nextbit's Robin and have pledged allegiance to Sprint or Verizon in the US, well, you're out of luck. Nextbit CEO Tom Moss admitted in a message to the project's backers that development of the CDMA Robin was based on misguided information from potential carrier partners, and noted that there "doesn't appear to be a workable solution." In other words, that CDMA Robin isn't happening and Moss's remarks don't leave much hope for future developments. Here are the important bits: anyone who ordered that variant will get a full refund within 48 hours, and a 25 percent discount to Nextbit's online store.
Players power direction of Oort Online's development
Oort Online's dev team is not content to make this voxel sandbox in the isolation of its ivory tower (or the corner of a deserted warehouse, whatever may be), but it has been asking for constant input from backers for the direction of the game's development. "As the game currently stands, the playable features are quite contained as we've been focusing on establishing the core MMO services and game engine," the devs posted. In a recent backer survey, 43% of those surveyed asked for the devs to prioritize the creation of character races out of the four options presented. In addition, the team said that some of the biggest priorities for a 1.0 release include resource gathering, crafting, and PvE combat. At the bottom of the list? "Real money purchases -- I want short cuts!" Oort Online is a "universe-sized" sandbox that's currently in alpha testing and has raised over $123,000 in crowdfunding. [Thanks to Jose for the tip!]
Oort Online strives to create a 'universe-sized' sandbox
Why should your sandbox MMO be confined to one measly world? That's the premise of Oort Online, an upcoming sandbox title that involves several worlds that can be explored, conquered, and molded by players. In this voxel-based game, players will exist on the same server and can choose to fight a nasty galaxy-spanning race called the Protectors or carve out a slice of land on which to build a masterpiece. "We think fans of procedural games are going to love Oort Online! We're making a universe-sized sandbox and giving players control over what happens," developer Wonderstruck said. Oort Online has been in development for six months and is available right now as an early access prototype for funders who spend $95 or more. The crowdfunded project also has cheaper tiers for alpha and beta access and promises a package of goodies (including a chance to win instant access) for those who send out a tweet promoting the game. Get a sneak peek of Oort Online in a dev video after the break!
Shards Online launches its Kickstarter
If you had a dollar for every Kickstarter MMO that advertised itself as a fantasy sandbox, you'd have... well, a fair bit of money. We've lost count. Shards Online, though, is a bit of a different beast, as it's not reserving its sandbox nature to mechanics. Players will be able to influence and take control of server rules, creating individual shards where things are arranged just right for particular playstyles. The prospect of unlimited custom rulesets for servers is pretty different, isn't it? The game's Kickstarter campaign has just launched, aiming for $320,000 by 6/12/14. It includes most of the things that you'd expect in an MMO Kickstarter -- beta access, digital copies, and so forth. If you've got $10,000 to throw at the game, you can even get a custom-designed house and have the developers show up as gods to run a one-time live event. If you're interested in the concepts, check out the Kickstarter and consider throwing a few dollars toward it.
The Daily Grind: Do you hold crowdfunded MMOs to a lower standard?
Crowdfunding MMOs seems to be all the rage these days, with young folk tossing money about like it ain't no thing. I don't get this generation with all of its jams and swatch watches and Walkmens. Back in my day, crowdfunding took place in the form of a barn raising. Anyway, I've been wondering if an atmosphere of mutual investment and indie scrappiness has caused us to hold such MMOs to a lower standard than we would otherwise. Maybe you're just so happy that this particular title is being made that you don't mind that it's missing key features, such as avatar heads or hit boxes or localization to any known country on Earth. Are you willing to forgive blemishes and a less-than-complete games because it comes partially from your own pocketbook? And do you actually own a pocketbook? Do you even know what a pocketbook is? Kids these days, am I right? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Another stretch goal hit for The Repopulation, another short story chapter posted
The second Kickstarter for The Repopulation is humming along at a decent clip at this point. It's already met its target goal, and now it's just a matter of smashing down stretch goals. The latest mark has funded the addition of calprate mounts to the game; they're the vaguely deer-goat-thing displayed in the header image, for the record. Except that one doesn't have a player-shaped bit of cargo on its back. Baby steps. In addition to looking forward future stretch goals, the team is also posting chapters of a short story to the official website. Chapter 4 of "Evening Star" is available to read now, detailing more of the world and feel of The Repopulation for existing backers and potential future backers. Or just people in need of a science fiction story to read on a Friday afternoon -- they're welcome as well.
1979 Revolution: Black Friday falls short of fundraising goal
The revolution will not be televised (or appear on your PC), as 1979 Revolution: Black Friday has missed its $395,000 Kickstarter goal. However, this is not the end of the game, but is instead a fresh start. While Kickstarter failed the game, developer Ink Stories has decided to take things private, and has created a new 1979 Revolution website. A scant development for the moment, the site exists so that those who really believe in this project can continue funneling money toward its development. Helpfully this allows Ink Studios to offer backers even more comprehensive rewards for their donations, including a $2,500 slot that earns your face placement on an in-game poster among the heroes of the revolution, and a $7,500 price point which will earn you an associate producer's credit on the game and render your apparently wealthy body as a member of the revolution with his or her own storyline, both in the game's cinematics and its graphic novel. Unfortunately, since its Kickstarter failed, the politically-charged 1979 Revolution has to start its fund-raising efforts from scratch. So far, the site has attracted a little over $12,000 - still quite a ways before it hits $395,000, but at least the development team has proven its devotion to telling the story of the 1979 Iranian revolution. It's unknown how this might affect the game's release date, which was initially planned for Spring 2014.
Shroud of the Avatar enters first phase of early access testing
Backers of Portalarium's crowd-funded title Shroud of the Avatar are getting their first glimpse at the game today as the title enters the first part of its early access phase. The game is playable as of today, December 12th, and this phase of early access will end Saturday, December 14th. Between now and then, players will be able to delve into the many features included in Release 1 of Shroud of the Avatar. The devs proudly announce that they were able to implement almost every planned Release 1 feature (except for changeable head shapes in character creation), so even in this early stage of the game, players should have plenty to see, do, and -- if they're doing their jobs right -- break. The full list of Release 1 features, plus a guide on how to get the game up and running and a list of known issues, can be found at the game's official site. [Thanks to Don for the tip!]
Precursor reveals 'Shadow of the Eternals' soundtrack tune, CEO defends Dyack
Composer Giancarlo Feltrin has revealed the first musical tune he's created for Shadow of the Eternals, the spiritual successor to Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem that's currently seeking funding. The song is called "Bathory's Theme," after Erzébet Bathory, an infamous female serial killer who will be part of the game's pilot episode. Precursor Games' CEO Paul Caporicci has posted his own update on the title's development, focusing a portion of his note on the selection of Denis Dyack as creative lead. "Denis Dyack was my first choice for Creative, as he has a keen understanding on the creative aspects of game development," says Caporicci. "It saddens me to read that people's impressions of him are painted by anonymous accounts of other individuals." At Silicon Knights, Dyack oversaw the original cult-hit Eternal Darkness, before launching less successful games like Too Human and X-Men: Destiny. Ultimately, legal issues with Epic would seal the fate for Dyack's development house. Fans have asked about Nintendo's involvement, and Caporicci says that Nintendo has "been very supportive of our endeavour" so far. The game is being built in CryENGINE for the PC, but shouldn't have "substantial differences" when ported to the Wii U.
Exclusive interview with Hailan Rising's Adam Smith
Hailan Rising, an up-and-coming PvP title from Reloaded Productions, is currently in the screaming throes of open beta. It's always a fun time, especially for the development team, which is Producer Adam Smith was up for talking about how the game's coming along in these final weeks. Reloaded Productions is trying desperately to (what else) "wreck" the server by giving out prizes to the first three players to crash the game. Since destruction and mayhem are Massively's watchwords, we think you should help them out. Check out our interview with Adam Smith after the jump!
Hailan Rising enters open beta, invites players to break the server
Hailan Rising, a level-less, free-to-play, PvP-oriented MMO from Reloaded Productions, is entering open beta on February 21st at 1:00 p.m. EST. To celebrate the beta launch, the development team is challenging players to crash the game's servers. This "Wreck It Week" challenge will reward the first three players (as reported by the devs' monitoring tools) to crash the server with in-game currency, items, and other goodies. The third place prize will be 10,000 G1C, the in-game currency. Second prize will net one lucky player 20,000 G1C, which is valued at about $240 USD. The grand prize winner will receive 40,000 G1C, an epic in-game item, an original weapon named for their game-crashing character, and a QA acknowledgement in the game's credits. Winners will need to have a GamersFirst account in order to receive their winnings. In addition, all closed beta participants will receive 200 G1C. [Source: Reloaded Productions press release]
Insert Coin: 2012's top 10 crowd-funded projects
This trip around the sun has been a monumental one for crowdfunding, marked by big projects and astronomical numbers. Take Kickstarter wunderkind OUYA, for example, which raised more than $8.5 million in funding from 63,416 backers. Kickstarter itself has even grown and matured, expanding to the UK and putting its foot down when it comes to pitching hardware by requiring working prototypes and assessments of risks and challenges. Out of the 60 crowdfunding efforts that crossed our desks as Insert Coins in 2012, 47 were successfully funded, four still have time to rake in funds and nine fell short of their goals or were otherwise stymied. We've handpicked and placed the top 10 projects that won our hearts and, on occasion, our hard-earned scratch after the break.
