InSomnia - Second Kickstarter Campaign

[HiddenX]

Studio MONO started a second Kickstarter campaign for the Dieselpunk RPG InSomnia to secure the funding to complete the game. You can download the prologue-demo here.

InSomnia (PC, Mac, Linux)

The InSomnia Prologue is an introduction, where you’re playing as Typer - a possible future companion in the final game. The story of this chapter takes place a few days before your main character finds himself in a cryogenic chamber within the Urb.

This is a Prologue part of the game’s aim is to introduce the player to the many mechanics of the final game. However, it's still treated as alpha-version; there are still many aspects that will be changed in the future. Within the Prologue are elements that will teach the player the prehistory of InSomnia and to get you familiar with the controls, the combat situations and to introduce you to the game’s world - Object 6.

Playing it will give you a general idea about the project. In the final game the end of Prologue will lead to the character creation, and of course the start of the main plot.

What is InSomnia?


InSomnia is a dystopia with a dismal dieselpunk setting that takes place in a semi-deserted space metropolis. A real-time RPG, that focuses heavily on a non-linear plot in an open world, as well as on realistic combat mechanics.

Story:


The story of InSomnia unfolds on a massive interstellar space ship, where the sole descendants of a once great civilization fled from a dying planet, engulfed by the flames of war. Object 6 has now been travelling for over four hundred years, hurtling towards its destination - the Evacuation Point. Supposedly a far-away world, the inhabitants of this gargantuan metal arc hope to begin the history of mankind anew.

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More information.

 

[Couchpotato]

Well it's not the first game to launch two kickstarters to finish, but this always makes a bad impression the developer doesn't know how to manage their funds correctly.

 

[Ripper]

I think these low-target campaigns know full well that their kickstarters will be insufficient to make the game. They keep the target low in the hopes of at least getting some money, and then hope to raise more through early access alpha scraps, finding an investor, or running second campaigns. This is why I don't trust unrealistically low budgets.

 

[Couchpotato]

I think these low-target campaigns know full well that their kickstarters will be insufficient to make the game. They keep the target low in the hopes of at least getting some money, and then hope to raise more through early access alpha scraps, finding an investor, or running second campaigns. This is why I don't trust unrealistically low budgets.

I agree Ripper and I used to always say that when new projects asked for small amounts of funding. A developer should ask for whats really needed to fund their game.

The problem though is backers always deem it to high and funding always failed unless you were a well know developer like Obsidian , or Inxile Entertainment.

 

[Ripper]

Yes, and I do understand why they do it. It's a shame, and I would personally be much more likely to back something calling for funding at a level that makes sense to me. A few hundred thousand for a decent indie game seems about right to me. Harebrained Schemes, for example, always strike me as professional and competent, and set their targets at a sensible level.

 

[Stingray]

So what happens when/if this one fails? The game promised in the first one never happens? It sure sounds like it, judging from the comments on Kickstarter (on the original campaign's page). Shady.

 

[Ripper]

So what happens when/if this one fails? The game promised in the first one never happens? It sure sounds like it, judging from the comments on Kickstarter (on the original campaign's page). Shady.

That's about the size of it. I've seen this over and over. They are spinning it by stating:

"At this point, all the parts of the game have been completed, and all we’ve got left to do is put them together, polish it up and debug."

I think that's baloney. They've just released the "prologue", which is essentially the bones of the game engine with a little bit of content. That's all the original budget was ever realistically going to fund. Now they have something to show, they hope it will secure the next round of funding to develop more content, and so it goes on.

 

[CelticFrost]

I never knew you could do a second kickstarter for the same project.

That to me is shameful on Kickstarters part.

 

[Ripper]

As far as I can tell, KS and Indiegogo don't usually give a toss about the campaigns on their platforms, so long as they get their percentage.

 

[CelticFrost]

As far as I can tell, KS and Indiegogo don't usually give a toss about the campaigns on their platforms, so long as they get their percentage.

Seems shady to me if that is the case. What is to stop someone that knows they will need X amount of money to make something from asking for smaller amount they know they will get the first time and coming back over and over again?

 

[Ripper]

Seems shady to me if that is the case. What is to stop someone that knows they will need X amount of money to make something from asking for smaller amount they know they will get the first time and coming back over and over again?

Not much stopping them at all, except the reputational damage from backers that don't much appreciate it.

I'm saying that this is essentially what a lot of these projects do. They don't all run second campaigns, but they do know that the relatively small and achievable target they set in the initial campaign will never fund the game. They just want enough to make something they can show to investors, or hawk on Early Access, and then hopefully finish the game before the money stops flowing. I don't think it's very fair on backers, because they are rarely upfront about their strategy and the high-risk nature of it. It also usually means that the projected shipping dates are pure BS.

To be clear, I have no problem with very low-budget games, where the target amount is commensurate with the scope of the project. I'm wary of the ones that clearly have a large scope, but ask for a relatively small sum - essentially the maximum amount they think they can get, but knowing it will never realistically cover the project.

 

[Kylex]

As far as I can tell, KS and Indiegogo don't usually give a toss about the campaigns on their platforms, so long as they get their percentage.

That's how it should be.
Backers are able to decide for themselves, which projects to support.

But if the established industry intervenes, Kickstarter will kill the project, like it most likely happened with Skarp.

 

[borcanu]

imo the campaign is fine. i just dont like the product. gameplay / combat is really low on my priorities and games keep putting 90% of their resources into it

 

[you]

just remember xullia ran multiple campaigns on multiple platforms and did ok. Not claiming these guys are as good or even honest; just saying sometime it works out for the best.

 

[mercy]

I agree Ripper and I used to always say that when new projects asked for small amounts of funding. A developer should ask for whats really needed to fund their game.

The problem though is backers always deem it to high and funding always failed unless you were a well know developer like Obsidian , or Inxile Entertainment.

And we still received crappy KS junk games from both Obsidian _and_ Inxile Entertainment in form of poor PoE and wretched fastfood Wasteland2.

 

[forgottenlor]

I backed the first time, and from what I've seen from their updates, it seems like they've developed some good material. Still, I'm not going to back them again. I won't back the same game twice. I wish them luck, though, because I hope I get a finished game.

 

[utergatuk]

i would rather play an ARPG than a real time RPG. if they would make this turn based, it would be much more appealing to myself.