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Make My MMO: Crowdfunding February 23 - March 1, 2014
This week's Make My MMO adds Trials of Ascension's Light the Forge campaign, which is Chaos Forge's company-specific (i.e., non-Kickstarter) bid to raise $40,000. The fantasy sandbox canceled its initial Kickstarter campaign because it "failed in showing its true potential," according to a news posting on the ToA website. If the Light the Forge drive is successful, the devs will use the $40,000 to finish the game's demo and return to Kickstarter in the hopes of attracting additional funding. Head past the cut for a breakdown of other crowdfunded MMO projects for the week ending March 1st, 2014.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding February 9 - 22, 2014
In the world of MMOs, no news is not necessarily good news -- especially when it comes to crowdfunding. Silence often denotes a lack of progress on a game, and that can certainly make investors nervous. Thankfully, many games provide players with updates that we, in turn, provide for you here. If no news is bad, then news is good, right? Unfortunately, this doesn't hold true. In the case of Star Rider and Hot Rod Hustle, the news is that neither met its funding goals. So we say farewell to these two games from Make My MMO. And Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen's campaign was chock-full of news, but in the end, its Kickstarter didn't succeed either; Pantheon, however, is continuing the fundraising effort on its official site. At least some news is good! War of Omens also leaves this round up, but for different reasons: Players can hop in and play the game! Likewise, HEX: Shards of Fate and StarCraft Universe move on now that both have moved into testing. Another sandbox, Terrayn, also joins the Kickstarter ranks. To hear other good news, keep reading.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding January 26 - February 8, 2014
The crowdfunding train just keeps rolling right along, with passengers always coming and going. New passengers hop aboard while others hop off at their desired destination. Sadly, some have to disembark early -- such is the case with Universe Rush and Antilia. Although the Kickstarter campaign fell far short of its goal, Antilia does plan to continue development on its own. On the brighter side of things, some passengers reached their stop; Tales From The Strange Universe reached its goal, and both it and Novus AEterno (which brought in over 3.5 times its initial goal) will now take their places in the funded category. The Repopulation, earning over 175K during this latest Kickstarter run, disembarks at Betawatch station thanks to its ongoing alpha testing. Catch up on all the news for all these titles as they journey through crowdfunding here in Make My MMO.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding January 12 - 25, 2014
After a sleepy holiday season, the crowdfunding crowd has woken up and gotten down to business. And amidst that new bustle of activity, Make My MMO's ranks are altering a bit. Two games leave our listing, but each for different reasons; the cross-platform space sim Space Unfolding folded after missing its goal, and Face of Mankind moved along to Betawatch to join the ranks of the games in testing. And now that War of Omens' campaign has wrapped up, it moves into the fully funded category. Some campaigns have really kicked into high gear. Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen joined the crowdfunding race and has delivered a slew of nearly daily news. Novus AEterno has nearly tripled its goal and is closing in on yet another stretch goal these final days of its campaign, while The Repopulation has also blown away its initial goal and is aiming for its eigth stretch goal (not to mention revealed plenty of juicy new bits). A smaller title, Tales From The Strange Universe, is more than halfway to its modest goal with a week left. And newcomer Star Rider also jumps on the Kickstarter bandwagon. Unfortunately, others aren't faring as well. Things aren't looking promising for Antilia or Universe Rush, whose campaigns end soon and are still over $85K and $98K short of their respective goals. Want more details on these stories or an update on all the already-funded projects? We've got the round-up right here.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding December 29, 2013 - January 11, 2014
Was 2013 the year of Kickstarter? Whatever you think personally about the funding model, you can't argue with the fact that over $480 million was pledged through the crowdfunding platform in the last calendar year. That's definitely one hunk of change! But whether or not that figure translates into a tidal wave of awesome games has yet to be seen; the jury will remain out until even more funded games actually release and players get to experience what they backed. As for specific MMO news this past fortnight, the bulk of it involves new titles vying for a slice of 2014's crowdfunding pie. The CCG War of Omens has already grabbed a piece; it met its goal and has moved on to stretch goals for the last couple of days. Other hopefuls include more two space strategy games. Learn more about all of these, as well as the news from the funded front, right here in Make My MMO.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding December 15 - 28, 2013
'Tis the season... but not for news! With minds focused on the holidays, it looks as if not much happened in the realm of crowdfunding since our last Make My MMO update. Just how slow was it? It was so slow that Star Citizen did not announce earning another $2 million. A few tidbits did, however, did trickle out. Novus AEterno met its goal within 102 hours and still has a month of funding ahead. On the other hand, Empires of Tahn followed what seems to be the new norm: cancel the project before getting the dreaded "unsuccessful" label. And one title that is already strong in its development has jumped back into the crowdfunding realm; The Repopulation aims to incorporate even more features into the sandbox. There are also a couple dev blogs to speak of and a few odds and ends, all of which you will find rounded up for you below.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding December 1 - 14, 2013
If it seems as if crowdfunding's gone into a turkey coma lately, you aren't just imagining things -- at least as far as funded games are concerned. News on that front has seemed scarce compared to the deluge of some other two-week spans, but the current campaigns are trying to make up for it. Life is Feudal canceled its Indiegogo campaign, but devs vowed to "survive according to Plan 'B'," so we'll keep an eye out to see whether it moves into personal funding as other games have done. (That route is working for Neo's Land, whose donations keep creeping higher.) Similarly, Novus AEterno scrapped its second Kickstarter campaign, but in a twist, it's already restarted another with a lower goal. Outer Worlds Online, however, just didn't make the funding cut. On the successful side, manners and dinner parties will be coming to an MMO near you; Ever, Jane got an invitation to join the funded club. A few other funded titles also saw some progress, and still others joined (or re-joined) the race for your support. And topping all that, we also bid farewell to Elite: Dangerous, who leaves Make My MMO for Betawatch now that its alpha has started. You can catch all the updates below.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding November 17 - 30, 2013
One thing gamers can definitely be thankful for this year is crowdfunding! Thanks to this phenomenon, we have many more options opening to us than ever before. And there are definitely some good gaming prospects on the horizon, even if news about all but one is seeming a bit scarce lately. While it's true that a few funded projects tossed out a news morsel or two, two new campaigns replaced two unsuccessful ones (neither The Zodiac Project nor Omuni Online made their goals), newcomer The Mandate already made its goal, and another hopeful -- Ever, Jane -- has secured three-quarters of its goal with only a couple of days left, the majority of the spotlight has been stolen the upcoming space sim Star Citizen, which continues to blast the crowdfunding record to smithereens. If you missed any of the news, you can catch up on it all right here in Make My MMO.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding November 3 - 16, 2013
A quiet fortnight in the land of crowdfunding these past two weeks have not been. In fact, with the popularity of this funding model, it may never be quiet again. The past two weeks have had their share of campaigns starting, campaigns closing, and campaigns obliterating goals and funding records alike. Three new prospective games have popped on the radar (including one for those with impeccable manners!), and one has disappeared. But even that game isn't gone for good; although pledges had climbed to over $86K, Trials of Ascension canceled its campaign in order to "regroup, rework, and return." Another title, City of Titans, is taking its place among the fully funded crowd. And there there is Star Citizen, which proved that a single fortnight can't go by without the game's gathering another million or two. All that information and more can be found here in Make My MMO!
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding October 20 - November 2, 2013
The news meter for crowdfunding keeps right on ticking. The last two weeks have seen a score of changes in the realm of community funding initiatives, with some titles experiencing success, others not meeting their goals, and even more joining the ranks. One big name in gaming, Brad McQuaid, is even planning on launching a campaign in the near future. The zombie-centric The Living was unsuccessful, and Story Quest Online failed for a second time. Mixmaster Online removed itself from the field and canceled its campaign. On the other hand, 8BitMMO met its first stretch goal, ensuring that a Mac edition of that game will be available for players. And then there's City of Titans, which is climbing closer to doubling its goal with only two days left. Finally, there are all the progress updates for those already-funded campaigns, conveniently rounded up right here for you in Make My MMO.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding October 6 - 19, 2013
This was quite a fortnight in the realm of crowdfunding, and for once we don't mean just Star Citizen news! More than one game met its funding goals, with one title proving that fans can be a very passionate lot: City of Titans reached its lofty goal within days. On top of that, two other games joined the fight for funding. Conversely, Alteil Horizons pulled its campaign at literally the last minute to avoid the stigma of an unsuccessful stamp and plans to launch again. Want the scoop on all these stories and many more? Learn the latest right here in Make My MMO.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding September 22 - October 5, 2013
Not all games that turn to crowdfunding need a boost to get off the ground. In fact, one new addition to our column this week -- 8BitMMO -- is utilizing this avenue to help accommodate the exponential growth it has experienced over the last couple of years. The other newcomer, however, is actually trying to build from the ground up; City of Titans wants to give displaced City of Heroes fans a new home. In other news, Star Citizen was the news! Videos, interviews, new goals, and more poured forth from this crowdfunding giant this week. We also heard from Embers of Caerus (which has been pretty quite for a long while). Even Neo's Land chimed in with a new demo. And you can get the whole scoop here!
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding September 8 - 21, 2013
In the oft changing world of crowdfunding hopefuls, faces come and faces go... and sometimes they come back again. If one of the newcomers to this edition of Make My MMO looks familiar, that's because the game ran a shorter, unsuccessful Kickstarter campaign last July. With a longer run this time around, perhaps Story Quest Online will fare better. On the flip side, one campaign flipped sections: We congratulate StarCraft Universe on meeting its goal and joining the ranks of the fully funded. Plenty of other news came from the funded ranks as well, from the crowdfunding king hit more funding goals (again) to progress reports and new feature reveals. You can catch all the details right here.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding August 25 - September 7, 2013
If you build it, they will come. While that adage hold true for baseball diamonds in cornfields, it's a little bit different for MMOs. If you're set on developing a new virtual playground, you get them to come so you can build it! That's the philosophy behind crowdfunding, anyway, and many are latching onto it. So how fare the fields of crowdfunding lately? New projects (Alteil Horizons, Epic Space) sprouted up, one took root and grew stronger (Divergence), and others (Project Snowstorm, Realms of Creation, Enspira Online) withered away from lack of nourishment. See how your favorite projects are growing right here in Make My MMO.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding August 11 - 24, 2013
Just when you think it will be a quiet couple of weeks on the crowdfunding scene... it isn't. Crowdfunding hopefuls seem to be following the advice of The Gambler this week: Know when to hold them, when to fold them, when to walk away, and even when to run! The funded crowd is holding steady with only a few bits of news, but two projects are on the brink of folding as they are both far short of their goals. Legends of Firestorm, on the other hand, didn't just walk away -- it high-tailed it out of Kickstarter without a word of explanation. In the meantime, thwo new projects (StarCraft Universe and Enspira Online) have joined the scene, and another project resurfaced. Check out the details right here.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding July 28 - August 10, 2013
Ah, the joys of bringing more games into the fold. Sadly, we don't know whether this will be just a brief passing in the night or a more permanent stay; that all depends on how newcomers Project Snowstorm and Legends of Firestorm do on their respective Kickstarter campaigns. Will the community help them make their MMOs? We'll keep watch and keep you informed. Speaking of keeping informed, a few of the funded projects found themselves in the news lately -- and we mean more than just crowdfunding king Star Citizen! And we've got it all rounded up right here for your perusing pleasure.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding June 30 - July 13, 2013
The last two weeks haven't been quiet on the crowdfunding front. While Star Citizen takes the lead with the most news (from ever-expanding coffers to just "finding ways to make the game more awesome"), other titles had their own snippets to report as well. There's also some upheaval in our ranks: We gained a new MMORTS/MMORPG mix project but lost two others from our list when both Skara: The Blade Remains and Anthym didn't meet their goals. And yet another title makes its final appearance before moving on to Betawatch! That's right, folks; TUG is saying hasta la vista to Make My MMO in favor of alpha land. Curious as to what all else has transpired? Then check out the details after the break.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding June 16 - 29, 2013
Go ahead -- make my MMO. And here you thought this phrase only worked when interrupting a robbery! What was a unique phenomenon in the not-too-distant past has become an increasingly popular trend: crowdfunding new MMOs. Whether they're using the Kickstarter funding platform or another, more and more developers are turning to the public instead of publishers to take their designs from the drawing board and into reality. In fact, sometimes it feels like there are just too many to keep up with! Besides the new campaigns that seem to be popping up like dandelions, there are the successfully funded games to keep an eye on. So here's what we're going to do for you: We'll make it easier for you to keep tabs on both the new campaigns hitting the crowdfunding scene and the progress of those MMOs that already made their goal and have moved on in their development journeys (but haven't made beta yet). Join us past the break for the inaugural Make My MMO, a biweekly accounting of all MMOs crowdfunded. Have you heard about new campaigns that aren't listed? Send us a note and let us know!
Some Assembly Required: Kick(start)ing the sandbox genre
Sandbox aficionados are known to reminisce about the "good old days." You know, that time long lost in the past when the greats of open-world play like Ultima Online and Star Wars Galaxies (pre-NGE of course) enjoyed their heyday. Many a lamentation has also been heard about how things have never been the same, or how nothing has filled that void. Of course, the sandbox never died. In 2012 we started the year off with a guide to games sporting sandbox features to scratch a variety of virtual world itches and we ended with a look at some promising upcoming titles for 2013. With plenty of choices abounding, why are sandbox fans still decrying the lack of a home? It could be because they want one home for everyone to settle in together, basically one game to rule them all. But how realistic is that? Even with the plethora of offerings now, many folks want to play their ideal sandbox, and everyone has their own idea of what the perfect one would be (and conversely, what would kill it). Perhaps the answer, then, is to forget about a single universal home that accommodates the masses and actually create a number of niche games where people find exactly what they are looking for. Wait, that's already happening? Enter Kickstarter.
Some Assembly Required: Citadel of Sorcery interview reveals a dynamic world
When word filtered to us that a new virtual world was in the works with unique features, I said what any other sandbox-loving player would: Yeah ri... er, I mean, "Show me what you've got." And that's exactly what the folks making Citadel of Sorcery did! And they didn't just tease me with a couple of phrases and leave me dangling; they offered a deluge of information about the upcoming game. In fact, they sent me enough to complete five different articles. That's more Some Assembly Requireds than you can shake a stick at. Not only did I get to learn many facts about Citadel of Sorcery, but in sitting down and talking with Philip Blood, Director of Game Design at MMO Magic, Inc., I also got to experience first-hand the passion that the developers have for their game. Philip graciously answered a barrage of questions (perhaps part of the reason the interview grew so long!) and helped paint CoS as a game that might satisfy the longing of players who yearn for a vibrant, living world where their choices make a difference. Unlike traditional games, CoS promises a vast world where each player will experience the game in very different ways. In all, the game sounds innovative and exciting. But don't just take my word on it; check out the details for yourself in this in-depth interview.
