[dropcap size=big]E[/dropcap]very week we take a brief look at all of the Kickstarter video game campaigns that launched in the previous week.  This isn’t to say that all of these projects are worth your hard earned cash, but with any luck having all of them in one place will make it easier to educate yourself on the projects you’d like to back, and which ones to run from.  You’ll find two types of campaigns listed, “featured” and “the rest“.  Featured campaigns are those that contain a significant amount of game information, are from known developers, or are significant in some other way.  The rest of the games are usually smaller campaigns that are lacking in information, are from unknowns, have unanswered questions, or have not yet stood out for one reason or another.


Featured Campaigns :

vidarlogoGame : Vidar

What it is : Marcus wrote: “When you think of RPGs what typically comes to mind are long, epic storylines that were carefully crated for players to fall in love with. With that said, there’s usually one main storyline per game and tons of NPCs giving tiny little sidestories. Vidar is a new RPG hoping to be funded via Kickstarter which tweaks this formula. It’s main focus is to offer players a different story each time – a coherent, full story. How can a procedurally generated story be nearly as good as carefully constructed tales?”

Keep an eye on it in our calendar


Blue-Collar Astronaut is a beautifully hand-drawn physics arcade game similar to Lunar Lander, and it's crowdfunding on Kickstarter.Game : Blue-Collar Astronaut

What it is : Marcus wrote: “Video games used to be incredibly simple affairs. Arcades were filled to the brim with easy to understand but incredibly challenging to master titles that players couldn’t get enough of. The likes of arcade classics such as Asteroids, Lunar Lander, and Missile Command inspired developer Mutated Software to launch a Kickstarter campaign for their own title: Blue-Collar Astronaut. You can easily see the inspiration thanks to its very simple controls and gravity-based gameplay.”

Keep an eye on it in our calendar


Where They Cremate the Roadkill is a unique experimental game that's crowdfunding on KickstarterGame : Where They Cremate the Roadkill

What it is : Marcus wrote: “Back in the early 90s it felt like many creators weren’t sure what to do with computers. Sure, typical PC games arrived, but so too did many truly unique multimedia experiences. Their goals weren’t typically game-like so much as to simply explore and discovery many beautiful, terrifying, or odd things. I bring all this up because the Kickstarter pitch for Where They Cremate the Roadkill reminds me tremendously of that time full of creative freedom. There is definitely some sort of story being told, but the biggest impression it leaves is over the visual and audio stylings instead.”

Keep an eye on it in our calendar


Lacuna is an open world exploration and building game that's crowdfunding on Kickstarter.Game : Lacuna

What it is : Marcus wrote: “Do you wish to explore space and colonize all the planets you might come across? Well, unfortunately that’s not something most of us will ever be able to experience… But thankfully we’ve got video games to live out these fantasies in! Case in point, Lacuna is a Kickstarter project that has that exact concept. Players get to explore in space, land on planets, and colonize new planets. Of course, you’ve got multiple methods to utilize: be a diplomat, be outrageously aggressive, or perhaps a different tactic all together. Aggressive players will have to fight the aliens who live there in order to succeed!”

Keep an eye on it in our calendar


Beneath Floes is an interactive fiction game on Kickstarter that tells the story of the Nunavut people.Game : Beneath Floes

What it is : Marcus wrote: “Twine is a great, free interactive fiction engine which is allowing many people to create stories easily. Developer Bravemule is one such team who utilized Twine to create Beneath Floes. This story is focused around Inuit history and traditions. Unlike some Twine tales, this one also includes color imagery alongside text. If you’re at all interested in what this game has to offer then you can check it out right now because Beneath Floes is free! With that in mind you might now be wondering why a Kickstarter campaign exists for this game..”

Keep an eye on it in our calendar


The Shadowrun Universe is back, and this time it's heading to Hong Kong.Game : Shadowrun: Hong Kong

What it is : Marcus wrote: “So what does Shadowrun: Hong Kong do differently aside from the new locale? Players must not only be skilled tacticians in the art of battle and magic but also consider the sociopolitical ramification of choices – and “save face” to gain clout. Of course, you’ve also got a new team in tow each with their own unique skillset. The game is being designed for Windows, Mac, and Linux exclusively meaning no tablet ports are planned. Stretch goals add aspects such as animatics, additional teammate, and a new side mission. Of course if Shadowrun: Hong Kong continues to do amazingly well (and it will) we can expect to see more stretch goals added shortly.”

Keep an eye on it in our calendar


Moonman is a new proceedurally generated game on Kickstarter that puts you in the role of a.. moonman just trying to get by.Game : Moonman

What it is : Marcus wrote: “Games such as Minecraft, Terraria, and Starbound have massive audiences thanks to their sprawling, procedurally generated worlds, crafting interfaces, and the freedom they provide players. It only makes sense that more games will continue to come of that same type. The latest out there is Moonman which is currently seeking funding on Kickstarter. Although it has obvious inspirations from said games, it’s still poised to chart its own journey. Developer Ben Porter has been working on the game for two years now and is hoping to get additional help and the time required to push it to completion.”

Keep an eye on it in our calendar


Maestros of the Anthymn is a Kickstarted crowdfunded music focused fantasy adventure game.Game : Maestros of the Anthymn

What it is : Marcus wrote: “Music is a wonderful thing but have you ever considered it to be powerful? In the world of Maestros of the Anthymn it actually confers power onto the realm of Chora and its many inhabitants. Unfortunately, Chora is split into different sections, with each group feeling their music is the most powerful of all. As such, tempers flare and wars rage as each attempts to assume dominance with their brand of music. You play as a character named Tiarnen who has a special power of his own. With his abilities, he hopes to bring peace to all of Chora so they can create music together.”

Keep an eye on it in our calendar


igneos-the-last-phoenixGame : Igneos: The Last Phoenix

What it is : Marcus wrote: “Igneos: The Last Phoenix focuses on players discovering more and more of a destroyed world. A big part of the experience seems to be the joy of discovery and uncovering the world’s mysteries. You’ll have to solve puzzles to continue to explore more areas. Of course, this isn’t a tranquil landscape. There are enemies looking to destroy Pharos so you’ve got to defeat them first. Thankfully, players have access to a variety of flame-based attacks and grapple moves to succeed under any circumstances.”

Keep an eye on it in our calendar

The Rest of the Campaigns :

Slime Quest : An old-school top-down 16 bit RPG.

Jail Intelligence : The developer implies that the game is basically done, but there’s nothing shown of this prison based RPG.

No Turning Back : A roguelike with retro pixel graphics.

Gem Wars : The developers describes it as “Super Smash Bros., Mega Man, Worms and Quake III Arena.”

Chess Brain : The goal is to create the world’s smartest Chess brain.

The Theif that stole Christmas : The typo in the title isn’t mine.

Eclipsed : A moody looking platformer.

NF Magazine : A campaign for the next year worth of Nintendo Force Magazine.

Abyss : An Unreal 4 powered adventure game with nothing to show at the moment.

Devils Affliction : A 2D RPG that’s a relaunch of last years unsuccessful campaign.

Miner Builder : I couldn’t figure out what sort of game this is going to be based on the Kickstarter page.  An RPG?

Timelines : A strategy card game with some nifty artwork.

Project Noble : A fun looking roguelike with a campaign that needs an overhaul.

Paradise City Golf and Mystery Adventure Game : A golfing game with lots of background info, but no game to show.

Dare Up Adrenaline : A wingsuit game that looks to be well into development.

CatFish : A lovely looking open world adventure with cartoon graphics.

Terra Incognita RPG : The 4th campaign for this 16 bit RPG, two of which have already been successful.

Trinity: Ground Zero : Another game that doesn’t actually indicate what type of game it is, I’m guessing it’s a shooter.

Battle For The Sun : A FPS with lots of aliens to shoot.

ROV Commander : Money to fund a STEM education pilot program for 8th graders.

Sobbing Sound Studios : Always bothersome when people use stock photos for their cover photo.

Fleet Command : A Star Trek game that hasn’t been shut down yet.

The World : This weeks winner of the “Least Amount Of Info Provided” award.

Forgers Tale : An open world game with everything under the sun in it.

Country Ball World : The funding video is 57 seconds of the main menu.

The Incredible Baron : A beautiful looking “reverse tower defense” game.

Fell into Heaven : A 2D RPG adventure with no game to show.

glyFiction : An engine for making “Wordless Text Adventures,” pretty rad.

Déjà vu : A medieval RPG adventure game.

WWIII RTS : An RTS with a campaign that uses an uncredited screenshot from Nuclear Dawn.

Kung Fu Kid Legends : A stylish update to the classic NES fighter, Kung Fu.

Chemo blaster : An action game where you blast cancer cells.

Prevail of Tactics : A turn based strategy/RPG with no screenshots, but an in-depth funding video.

Daydreamer : A re-launch of the previously unsuccessful campaign for this platformer.

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That’s it for last weeks Kickstarter campaigns.  Watch your wallets!

About the Author

Greg Micek

Greg Micek has been writing on and off about games since the late nineties, always with a focus on indie games. He started DIYGames.com in 2000, which was one of the earliest gaming sites to focus exclusively on indie games.

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