Hello gamers and philanthropists, and welcome to Kickstart This! New Home Office Edition, which (as the title suggests) comes direct from my brand spanking new home office. I’m surrounded by unpacked boxes of books, games, and most importantly, Legos, but like the Death Star, it is armed and fully operational. With that in mind, let us turn our aim to the spectacle that is Kickstarter, and the handful of recent video game projects that have risen above the fold in vying for your affections, attentions, and well-earned remuneration.
First up is point-and-click adventure thriller The Mystery of Oak Island, followed by side-scrolling beat ’em up Rudo Resurrection. As if that was not enough, there is also FPS action horror A New Reckoning, and monster mayhem in Kaiju-A-Gogo.
Let’s rock and load!
Project: The Mystery of Oak Island
Genre: Action Thriller Point-and-Click
Platforms: PC (Win, Mac, Linux), iOS, Android
Funding Target: $100,000
In A Nutshell…
The point-and-click adventure genre is enjoying a fantastic resurgence thanks to Kickstarter, and now there is The Mystery of Oak Island from Visionaire Studio, which is based in Cologne. The company has had success with the genre in the past in their native Germany, but they plan to expand their scope this time around by including English, Spanish, Italian and French language options.
You may have already heard of Oak Island, a real location in Nova Scotia, which has been the source of a deep mystery since 1795 when flagstones marked with hieroglyphs were discovered next to a pit. There have been numerous expeditions over the centuries to what is commonly known as “The Money Pit,” with six of these adventurers dying in the process. It was more recently the subject of a History Channel show, The Curse of Oak Island.
Why Flash Your Cash?
The intrigue of the real-life mystery, combined with Visionaire’s story, which offers three playable characters over different time periods, makes the project immediately attractive. Add to this the gorgeous 3D-rendered sets and cutscenes, and you have what could be a solid point-and-click game in the vein of The Dig or Broken Sword.
Rewards?
Oddly, players can pay the lower amount of $8 to receive just the game’s orchestral score, while they will have to splurge a little more to receive the game itself. Visionaire is offering an Early Bird tier of $19 for the first 500 backers, who will receive a DRM-free digital copy of the game. Once these have all been snapped up, the price rises to $25. For $35, players will receive both the game and the soundtrack, as well as some digital goodies like posters, wallpapers, and access to the developer forum.
Now, Visionaire is trying something with their higher-end tiers that I have never witnessed before. They are selling advertising space in three different geographical locations in the game. For a pledge of $5,000 or more, players or companies can advertise their products or services in Oxford, London, or on Oak Island itself. Each of these advertising opportunities is limited to two spaces. Likewise, the top tier of $10,000 or more allows you to advertise your name or company at the beginning and end of the game. [UPDATE: Visionaire has dropped the “advertising space” tier and lowered the entry fee for the top tier to $7,000.]
Stepping back from the corporate sponsorship tiers, the penultimate pledge level of $5,000 will see you embark on your very own tour of Oak Island, including flights and hotel. Players will also receive a special credit mention, as well as a limited Treasure Chest Edition of the game. This is limited to one lucky individual, so if you are an Indiana Jones-type, this could be your big chance to solve a mystery.
Project: Rudo Resurrection
Genre: 2.5D Side-Scrolling Beat ‘Em Up
Platforms: PC, PS3, PS4, PS Vita, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Funding Target: $50,000
In A Nutshell…
Love Double Dragon? Love over-the-top wrestling? Then Rudo Resurrection is your dream come true. Developer Rotary Games has done something very smart, teaming up with Philadelphia-based Chikara Pro Wrestling to bring some of their lucha libre-style characters to the game, which guarantees them an immediate fanbase.
Why Flash Your Cash?
Rotary Games is revamping a sorely-missed genre, as well as bringing a little-known wrestling label to a worldwide audience. Working with the Unreal Engine 4 has allowed the developers to fully realise a cyberpunk world in an 80s comic book style. If Borderlands was a side-scrolling beat ‘em up, it would look like this. While the initial target of $50,000 will allow the base game to be achieved, Rotary Games has a number of stretch goals in mind. These additional goals will add additional characters, villains, and levels to the game. And if the campaign goes well beyond Rotary’s wildest expectations, the game could be released on Xbox ($200,000) and PlayStation platforms ($250,000) as well.
Rewards?
The first 250 backers at $10 will receive a digital copy of the game, while everyone else will have to cough up an additional $5. A pledge of $25 will add the soundtrack into the mix, while $40 tags on the exclusive Art of Rudo digital book.
Climbing to the top of the turnbuckle, five lucky people can pledge $1,000 or more in order to see themselves as an NPC within the game. The penultimate tier of $2,5000 is limited to just three people, and will allow each of them to design a boss to fight. The highest donation level of $5,000 is limited to five backers, and will see them all gifted with a physical statue of Chikara wrestler UltraMantis Black. All of these top tiers include various goodies, such as t-shirts, signed posters and in-game credit, as well as an invite to an exclusive party, where you can meet the developers from Rotary Games as well as the wrestlers of Chikara.
Project: A New Reckoning
Genre: Action-Horror FPS
Platforms: PC (Win, Mac, Linux), PS4, Xbox One
Funding Target: $50,000
In A Nutshell…
Tagged as a “modern psychedelic and death fantasy,” A New Reckoning sees players shoot everything that moves on a barren Earth infested with undead hordes and bizarre, terrifying creatures. The main character, Mark Faraoh, has spent years as a criminal in solitary confinement. He escapes when Armageddon is unleashed on the planet, wondering if this is a horrifying reality or a hallucination born from his own chaotic madness.
Why Flash Your Cash?
Kickstarter games do not often impress with their graphics, relying on unique concepts or interesting gameplay to win backing. Panzer Gaming Studios seeks to change that with one of the prettiest FPS games seen in a long time, utilizing the Unreal Engine 4.
Which is probably for the best, because the grammar used on the Kickstarter page is borderline criminal. If you can look beyond the confusing sentence structure, you will find a game that promises to be every bit as good as it looks. A New Reckoning promises to include an arsenal of spears, electrified brass knuckles, acid guns and many more implements of destruction. And players won’t just use those weapons on zombies, but carnivorous plants, giant scorpions, and other B-movie monsters as well.
Rewards?
A pledge of $15 will grant you access to the Alpha version of the game, but players will have to donate $40 in order to receive the finished game. An extra $10 will include the Regress DVD, which documents the development of the game. Oddly, Panzer Gaming Studios has decided not to target the highest echelons of pledge levels, keeping their highest tier at the modest $110, which guarantees early access to any story expansions which may be released.
Project: Kaiju-A-Gogo
Genre: Isometric Monster Masher
Platforms: PC (Win, Mac, Linux) iOS, Android
Funding Target: $50,000 CAD (Approx. $46,000)
In A Nutshell…
Mixing Pacific Rim’s global scale with the destructive mayhem of arcade classic Rampage, Kaiju-A-Gogo allows players to pick one of three mad scientists and their associated beasts, which they will use to launch attacks on an unsuspecting world with a view towards total domination.
Why Flash Your Cash?
The concept is simple and fun, made more so by cartoony graphics that Kerberos Productions has decided upon. Players can choose to destroy the world with Ginormasaurus, a robotic dinosaur, Armagordon, an atomic powered automaton, or Shrubby, a 100ft Venus fly trap with legs. Each monster boasts up to 90 unique powers and attack combinations, which they will need to destroy the 50 real world cities within the game, while fending off attacks from various government armies.
Rewards?
The first 500 donors at the $12 CAD level will be able to download the game once it has been unleashed. After that, a pledge for the game alone rises to $15 CAD. If you add another $10 CAD, you score a place in the game’s credits, as well as a host of digital goodies including wallpaper, concept art, T-short design and a limited edition lithograph.
Climbing to the top of the tower, a pledge of $500 CAD or more will allow players to pick a city to be destroyed (someone, please pick Glasgow!). This is limited to just 10 people. At $1,000 CAD there is a one-person reward, and that lucky soul will receive the Kaiju-lele, a hand-crafted instrument from the good people at Kraken Maiden.
The penultimate pledge tier of $2,000 CAD is limited to 20 donors. It includes the Pick a City perk, as well as a Kerberos VIP Card, which entitles you to free access to any Kerberos public event, insider access to games in development, and download codes for all of Kerberos’ games.
Until Next Time…
Another month has passed, and another fine selection of Kickstarter gaming projects has been delivered. Remember, without your help and support, these games may never see the light of day. If you cannot afford to spare some cash, why not share our article on Twitter and Facebook to help spread the word about these developers and their excellent projects.
