The denizens of the internet have long been used as a resource for the development of a host of things, from graphics work to the production and proliferation of actual physical products. This "crowdsourcing" concept takes the benefits of a massive group of people available on the internet and typically pairs them up with individuals who have the skill or design talent to get something created, even if they lack the money to do so.
One place where this is beneficial is the world of indie game development, where "companies" are usually nothing more than an individual person coding something in their spare time; if lucky you have a group of people who can devote themselves to a project, but generally speaking worries about paying bills and taking care of the day job get in the way of creating something amazing.
Kickstarter.com is a website that lets people submit projects and then solicit money to fund it; tiers can be set up to reward people who submit certain amounts of money, and the whole thing is collaborative and community-powered.
A friend of mine who's involved in virtual world development tipped me off to one such project by Heather Logas who has worked as a game design contractor (she's had a hand in most of the episodic Sam & Max games from Telltale Games for example) and is interested in creating her first game on her own. The game, tentatively titled "Dreamtime," is a text-based choose your own adventure in the vein of H.P. Lovecraft and traditional myths. The final game will be for the iPhone, Android and web browsers. Heather is looking for $8500.00 to fund development of this project for two months so she doesn't have to worry about game contracting and can devote her energy to it fully. The hitch is that, though she's received a commitment of $5000.00 so far, if she doesn't meet her threshold by the end of February 1st, the project won't get funded.
There are several reward levels for people who donate, starting at $3.00 and going all the way up to $500.00. People who pledge money have a chance at anything from a game design journal complete with concept designs and backstory notes to a chance at contributing to a side quest for the game. And everyone who donates at least the minimum amount will be able to participate in a contest to select a final name for the game.
All in all it's a very cool idea, both in terms of the game itself and the way she's going about soliciting help from the larger internet community. And if in the unfortunate event her goal isn't met, no money will change hands; if the project doesn't happen, you're not out of the donation money.
"Dreamtime" (working title): A Game about Personality and Consequences
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