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Double Fine: Broken Age (KS) released in two parts via Steam Early Access Jan/May '14

“Even though we received much more money from our Kickstarter than we, or anybody anticipated, that didn’t stop me from getting excited and designing a game so big that it would need even more money.”

This just seems like bad form. I love Double Fine but this sort of goes to show why publishers keeping an eye on projects can be important. Ambition is great and all but there's value in working within your means, especially when your means is several million dollars.
 

Suikoguy

I whinny my fervor lowly, for his length is not as great as those of the Hylian war stallions
What a joke.

More proof that mismanagement and poor planning are bigger enemies to the industry than used sales or piracy. Fucking pathetic.

There is a legitimate point in this hyperbole of a post.
 
I could definitely see some things going wrong with this.

like off the top of my head what happens if the game doesn't make that much money on Steam early access? What happens with the second half then?
 
-EDIT- Basic English comprehension Fail - Edited for reality

Backers get the whole game, and can wait for the full thing or dive in when the first half is released.

"Backers would still have the option of not looking at it, of course, but those who were sick of waiting wouldn’t have to wait any more. They could play the first half of the game in January."
 

JDSN

Banned
Cool on them to wait after their second kickstarter was finished. They should do a third one with Zaff Brad.


I guess he should have asked his backers before doing this, but he hates executive meddling.
 

8byte

Banned
This just makes them look like amateurs. Sadly, this isn't uncommon and happens even at the highest levels in the industry. Get your shit together and learn to budget. Fucking hell...
 
Fucking ridiculous. Everyone who had doubts about Kickstarter are vindicated now. I was wrong.


.

Nah. I still have faith in KS. Wasteland 2 looks like it's on track. I bailed on that Shadowrun game but it looks like it's largely on track. Project Eternity has lots of updates giving me confidence.

I just didn't trust Schafer and glad I didn't.
 

Fantastical

Death Prophet
The game they had in mind at $400k was a very different game than what they began planning after the Kickstarter ended with well over $3 million. Is it that hard to understand?

They didn't have to go this big. By now as a studio they should roughly know their limits and how ambitious they can get. This isn't the first game they've made. This is a fuck up. It's not devastating, and I don't regret funding it, but it's a bit ridiculous to go so over what you initially wanted and then tell people that backed you that it's not enough.
 

Zeliard

Member
As Chris Remo posted in the other thread:

The second "half" isn't actually half the game (I know that isn't obvious). The first part will be the majority of the story—probably closer to what acts I and II would be in a typical story. Also, the second part will benefit from all the engine/process/etc. work that already got solved to make the first part of the game, and that part of the game will have already begun development before anything is released, so it won't need nearly as much time to finish up as the first part will have.

Backers are still getting the full game overall for their pledge - the first part in January, which is most of the game, and then early access to the second part.

I don't have a problem with this. They're making a much bigger game than they originally envisioned and I prefer staggered releases as opposed to greatly diminished ambitions.

The final game will live on forever; development issues will be forgotten.

With every KS game I support, I expect delays. In this case they're choosing to split the game into two and get the first part in at a timely fashion rather than get the whole out at a much later date (July 2015 being the date floated around).

What the fuck would have happened if they barely broke 400k?

At 400k the game would have been substantially smaller in scope and with far lower production values. The only other alternative to using the money would have been to pocket it, which would have been their right to do.
 

Weenerz

Banned
Steam Early Access is just another form of Kickstarter, what a shitty thing to do. They need better management. How do you set a goal for $400k, get over $3 million and "run out of money".
 
As a backer, I'm okay with this. Could they have managed their money better? Absolutely, and I sincerely hope they learn from this. But, as it stands it doesn't look like they're going to break any of their promises. Provided they give me an awesome adventure game, we're square.
 

SerRodrik

Member
Early access for a story driven adventure game doesn't sound very enticing . Look at Steam Early Access games like Kerbal Space Program and Prison Architect for example. Sandbox building games with little to no story.It will be like Bioshock Infinite or The Last Of Us giving you a beta that includes half of the game. Why pay to play, what is extensively a beta of a type of game that doesn't benefit from said practice and might even take away from the final product's enjoyment. I will most likely purchased Broken Age, but Early Access is not the way to experience this type of product.

Ultimately, that's my only real concern in all this. I worry about what happens if they don't get as much money as they're hoping for through Early Access.
 

xptoxyz

Member
Early access for a story driven adventure game doesn't sound very enticing . Look at Steam Early Access games like Kerbal Space Program and Prison Architect for example. Sandbox building games with little to no story.It will be like Bioshock Infinite or The Last Of Us giving you a beta that includes half of the game. Why pay to play, what is extensively a beta of a type of game that doesn't benefit from said practice and might even take away from the final product's enjoyment. I will most likely purchased Broken Age, but Early Access is not the way to experience this type of product.

Why I also will most likely one play it when the full story is released, they do make it sound like the first part would be polished already and not a beta, that would essentially be them making use of the all access feature to turn it in to a 2 episode thing.
 

Digoman

Member
Thread title should really be "split" instead of "cut" in the title. Everyone (backers, people who purchase the early access on Steam) gets the whole game, only in two parts.

The mismanagement is worrisome, but we are still a far away from the point of backers being ripped of.
 
D

Deleted member 17706

Unconfirmed Member
They didn't have to go this big. By now as a studio they should roughly know their limits and how ambitious they can get. This isn't the first game they've made. This is a fuck up. It's not devastating, and I don't regret funding it, but it's a bit ridiculous to go so over what you initially wanted and then tell people that backed you that it's not enough.

I agree that it's a fuck up, but I'd rather see them do this and end up delivering a product that's closer to their vision rather than foregoing other funding options and wrapping up the project in a lackluster way just to get it out the door. If this path works out for them, us backers are going to end up with a better game in the end. They definitely need to learn their lessons from this, but I'm not terribly bothered (yet).
 

Dawg

Member
And this is why we need publishers.

The sad part is everyone backed this because "they would finally make a better game again without a publisher"

I'm not saying it'll be a bad game, but it does show how important a publisher is.
 
The way the title is worded and lack of explanation in the OP other than the post from Schafer makes for easy errors on part of some posters, we all now a lot of people read nothing else than the title.

The title is exactly what it is. They don't have more money to make the whole game so they're cutting in half selling it and hope people buy early access to finish it.

You won't get the full game unless they make money with the half of it....
 

DCDW

Member
If Shadowrun Returns makes a good debut, for me they'll be the first ones to successfully make it across the KS finish line. With that they should get some sort of credit on KS as having successfully delivered on their proposed KS in satisfactory condition.
 

Berordn

Member
When I pledged 30 dollars for a smaller SCUMM style adventure game, I figured it'd be a fun 4-5 hour romp with Schafer's usual writing.

Now I'm basically getting two. I can understand some of the disappointment in how long the game's taking, but I have trouble being really offended. Content gets cut in games all the time, having a constant look on the development side of the project is spoiling some of us, methinks.
 
Ultimately, that's my only real concern in all this. I worry about what happens if they don't get as much money as they're hoping for through Early Access.

Me too. Especially as I can't imagine the number of people willing to plonk down cash up-front for the first part of this game, yet didn't already back the Kickstarter, is particularly high.
 
I wouldn't ever consider this a scam. They had good intentions and still do. It's a massive fuck--up though, and I'm incredibly disappointed. When was the Kickstarter posted? So almost two years since the Kickstarter and we'll get half a game? Such a shame, because a new Tim Schafer Adventure is what I've wanted for a long time. Can't do much but shake my head and hope the other games I backed don't end up in a mess like this. Them putting up a second Kickstarter before this even shipped is sketchy, I will admit. They shouldn't have done that IMO.

Even Shadowrun was delayed a bit.
 
This is why I haven't given Kickstarters or any crowd funding project any of my money.

ive backed Wasteland 2, Torment, Project Eternity, Shadowrun, Shadowrun Online, FTL, and Shroud of the Avatar.

So far FTL is released, and was awesome, so im 1:1 so far. I anticipate being let down by both shadorwrun games tho... and possibly P.E. if it goes over budget.
 

Nokterian

Member
Early access for a story driven adventure game doesn't sound very enticing . Look at Steam Early Access games like Kerbal Space Program and Prison Architect for example. Sandbox building games with little to no story.It will be like Bioshock Infinite or The Last Of Us giving you a beta that includes half of the game. Why pay to play, what is extensively a beta of a type of game that doesn't benefit from said practice and might even take away from the final product's enjoyment. I will most likely purchased Broken Age, but Early Access is not the way to experience this type of product.

Yeah this is true though. It is just weird,when playing a adventure you just expect a beginning and a end. Not a way "On the next episode!" I do not like it.
 

Paches

Member
What happens if they make too little money off the Steam route and continue to come up short? Do we have any idea in how bad of shape they are?
 

8byte

Banned
There is a legitimate point in this hyperbole of a post.

It's definitely hyperbolic.

It's just extremely disconcerting when someone asks for a certain amount of money, receives way more, and then blows it all before the product is even finished.

It illustrates that little planning was done prior to the Kickstarter, and a "plan" of sorts to detail development wasn't really set in stone.

Ambitions should never trump your responsibility to the consumer. What if they don't get the money? What if they do, but blow it again? Wait for episode 3? It's just a vile and misleading thing to do, especially since you asked people to do this on faith, and nothing more. They COULD have delivered a game, and invested the left over funds into future content for backers, or any other number of options...instead they decided to take advantage of the situation and overshoot their capabilities. Poor form.
 
If Shadowrun Returns makes a good debut, for me they'll be the first ones to successfully make it across the KS finish line. With that they should get some sort of credit on KS as having successfully delivered on their proposed KS in satisfactory condition.

FTL beat them to that months ago.
 

Artanisix

Member
I know I know I KNOW it's a completely different DF team, but this sort of thing is why I'm hesitant and kickstarting the final fantasy tactics-esque roguelike thingie game from DF. And kickstart things in general, for that matter.

Just for the record, I already did put in a few dollars for Broken Age.
 

Suikoguy

I whinny my fervor lowly, for his length is not as great as those of the Hylian war stallions
If Shadowrun Returns makes a good debut, for me they'll be the first ones to successfully make it across the KS finish line. With that they should get some sort of credit on KS as having successfully delivered on their proposed KS in satisfactory condition.

Leisure Suit Larry Reloaded launched already, an aside from some complaints on some lack of animation, people are quite happy with it.
 
D

Deleted member 17706

Unconfirmed Member
This is what I want to know also.

You can start by reading this very thread?

Seems like reading anything but the title is overly difficult for a lot of people in here.
 

Carl

Member
Well thank fuck i didn't give them any money for Challice.

Will give away my code for this whenever they send me it. Don't care at all about this game anymore.
 

xelios

Universal Access can be found under System Preferences
I can't believe some people will actually defend the mismanagement of almost tenfold the funds requested, and the fact they did not tell people about this until successfully receiving even more money for their second project. I hope everyone gets their game(s) but come on. That last part is pretty shady.
 

p2535748

Member
This is what I want to know also.

I don't know if they made this publicly clear or just said it to backers, but once they received the money, they decided to completely change the scale of the game. The original pitch was very small and simple. They decided to expand it.

I suspect that, had they received only the asked for amount, the game would be out by now, but it would be a very reduced version of what we're getting.
 

megalowho

Member
Damnit, Double Fine. Don't screw this one up for crowdfunding moving forward.

This has become the largest project at the studio now as well I believe, which was never the original intention. I'm not sure that's exactly the best use of everyone's time, considering just how profitable traditional adventure games are these days. I want to give Tim & co. the benefit of the doubt until whatever Broken Age ends up being arrives, but I also sort of feel like a sucker for backing Brad Muir's project now. These guys haven't proven they know how to deal with a bunch of cash and very little oversight.
 

Ravidrath

Member
4IDvGwi.jpg

Man, I bet they regret posting these funny money pics now.
 
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Deleted member 17706

Unconfirmed Member
Well thank fuck i didn't give them any money for Challice.

Will give away my code for this whenever they send me it. Don't care at all about this game anymore.

Because of budgeting issues? That's rather petty, don't you think?

I can't believe people will actually defend the mismanagement of almost tenfold the funds requested, and the fact they did not tell people about this until requesting even more money for their second project. Quite objectively, you'd have to be a fanboy to defend such behavior.

No one is defending the mismanagement as far as I can tell. With the fact that they mismanaged the budget, and considering the situation, a lot of us are just fine with the decision they made. Regardless of how poorly this project may or may not have been managed, most of us who backed the game are still interested in getting a Double Fine Adventure.
 
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