So, as you know if you follow me on Twitter, I back a lot of Kickstarters (so much so that Kickstarter has branded me a ~superbacker~. I believe it’s really important to support independent artists, and that’s the biggest way I do so - along with monthly Patreon payments, and commissions from my furry accounts.
So here’s a post I’ve been meaning to write about what will get me to back a project or not.
Small Teams
I prefer to back games made by smaller teams. This means I’m less likely to back if there’s a heavy external developer/publisher presence - not just as help for creating physical boxes, but throughout. I did not back Shenmue 3 because I felt that Sony could have easily funded that themselves. I did not back Mighty No. 9 for various reasons, but the lack of transparency over Deep Silver’s involvement was one of them.
Amplitude was one exception, as I felt that Sony would never back that, it was Harmonix fighting for the right to use the name.
I don’t have a big problem if a partner gets picked up after the crowdfunding campaign finishes - for a recent example, Frog Fractions 2 getting some additional assistance from Adult Swim Games.
UK Shipping
If UK shipping on your product is half the price of the thing, chances are I’m not backing it - or at least, not at a tier without digital rewards. I would have loved Fidget Cube, but IIRC, UK shipping was very expensive compared to the price of the project. When I first saw the Voyager Golden Record replica, it did not have the digital download tiers - and again, UK shipping was really expensive.
Hierarchy of Sites
I trust a crowdfunding attempt on Kickstarter more than I trust one on Indiegogo - due to no flexible funding, and hardware projects requiring a working prototype.
Fig is an odd one. My stance on Fig is to look at the ratio of backers to investors. For example, looking at the current project at time of writing, “Little Bug”:
What this tells me is that the majority of people interested in this game have dollar signs in their eyes rather than actually wanting the game. I can’t see this providing a good return on investment, because if no one wants to pay for the game itself while crowdfunding…
Electronics
I don’t back robots, security products, wireless earbuds with voice commands/translation features, or any electronics on Indiegogo (see above). At best, these products are snake oil. At worst, they are actively transmitting any data you give them to a country where you don’t particularly want your data going.
With robot crowdfunding pitches, most of them promise the world with things they can’t possibly deliver, and are also no match for stairs, and would probably be savagely attacked by my two dogs.
As for wireless earbuds, for starters I’m going to lose those - but also, for the ones offering translation features, they’re just connecting to an app on your phone, and the videos usually edit out the few seconds while the app processes. Since it’s not seamless, you may as well be using the app on your phone anyway to communicate.
Text and Images
I am very unlikely to watch your video. I will only watch your video if your campaign text is interesting (either in a good sense or a bad one), but there’s something I’m missing. In most cases, I’m scrolling through your page, and I’ve decided if I’m backing or not from that alone.
This doesn’t mean the video isn’t important. I choose my way, others choose the opposite.
Direct Marketing
If you @ -me on Twitter with a link to your campaign because you were randomly searching for the word “Kickstarter”, well… I’m less harsh than some people, I actually usually will check out your campaign, but you’re starting with negative a few points towards me actually backing, thanks to the minor irritation. If your project is good, you shouldn’t need that, I should hear about it through friends or the other people I follow.
So yeah, those are my basic thoughts on backing. One more: for games, I expect the project to get delayed - but I’ve never backed one that got cancelled on me yet.