"Money, dear boy": Realoaded Productions' Luck with Kickstarter

With members of Amber Glass trotting across Scotland and getting to all sorts of exhibitions, I figured that I would get patriotic over Scottish Gaming and started searching for more games developed here in Scotland. If this was a joke, I suppose the punch line is that I eventually started playing All Points Bulletin: Reloaded.

At first, I was tempted to write an analysis on APB: Reloaded as a bit of advertising since I felt the game was, admittedly, rather unique in a genre that is prone to repetition. I felt the collapse of Realtime Worlds kind of absorbed so much attention that, ironically, little was learned of the game itself, even when Reloaded Productions took it upon themselves to ship it out as it is today. However, I instead found something much more interesting: Reloaded Productions tried a Kickstarter.

Okay, technically they had two Kickstarters. But the one that won my attention was APB: Vendetta. Vendetta (as I’ll call it for now) was supposedly a competitive shooter that incorporated the hyper movement ability of shooters like Max Payne and the Half Life: The Specialists mod, had fighting game inspired special moves and “technology” (fighting game jargon for the abilities and potential that a certain character possesses and the in-game mechanics immediately related to said character) and with a forefront desire to be open for modifying with ’easy-to-mod’ server tools.

So wait, Reloaded Productions wanted money to develop a shooter that relishes in arcade-like classic shooter gameplay with a fighting game twist and promotes community interaction with easy modding tools? All you need is the ability to become Brain Blessed, whose special move is punching the Moon which crashes into my opponents before exploding and I would be cherishing that game more than my first born son!

So did I back the project? Well, sadly, no.

You see I only discovered this Kickstarter a few days ago in late May and the Kickstarter ended on the 30^th April 2013. Did the game make its $300,000USD goal?

Sadly, no.

Now, while I have no doubt that Reloaded Productions had put in marketing for this Kickstarter, this whole case does feel as though the funding was beaten by the fact there was little buzz about it. Maybe this is a naïve university student talking here, but seeing how everyone seemed to buzz about Impossible Road when it was getting voted “Game of the Week” by Pocket Gamer versus powerhouses like Sid Meier’s Ace Patrol and Angry Birds, why wouldn’t this same group be trying to promote an admittedly rather high-end game from being developed in bonnie Scotland? Was the Scottish gaming community as in the dark as I was? Did Reloaded Productions advertise in the wrong direction?

If you ask me, it was the latter, though to Reloaded Productions’ defence the direction they went did make sense. In the comments section of Vendetta’s Kickstarter, Reloaded Productions made the following statement:

"…Also, we realize that the APB:R community is taking APB:V as a threat instead of an opportunity for the game…, the team…and the franchise... That's clearly not the case, as APB:V is not a threat at all, but actually something that helps all three areas moving forward.”

Assuming that their revelation is accurate, it is safe to say that Reloaded Productions tried to advertise Vendetta to the APB: Reloaded (I would shorten it, but I fear I’ll muddle it up with Reloaded Productions!) Community and they reacted poorly to it, seeing it as a threat, which to their defence I could see the knee-jerk reaction to take it as such, since past MMOs often show, when developers start working on another project, it is often a sign of a dying game. Fortunately, content updates, including the latest one of adding music from rock band Dope Stars Inc. proves the life of APB: Reloaded is far from over.

So why am I bringing it up?

Well, with Kickstarter already getting its fair share of controversy with Zach Braff and other celebrities utilising it, I figured we should change that thought. Reloaded Productions: if the moon has aligned with the great planet Saturn creating a magic force that compelled you to reading this, I request that we try again.

Now I can’t say I get the terms and conditions of Kickstarters but if you can, please let us, your fellow Scots and gamers, open our wallets and give you the money that you deserve to make a frankly interesting game. Let us catch wind of your situation. Let us buzz each other, our friends and our families to pledge to your cause. Let us make a game where I can punch explosive moons at people as an incredible actor with vocal chords worth admiration.

Ok, the last part is just my crazy idea. The point is you’ve tried two Kickstarters to no avail… third time’s the charm?

Greg Baxter
Amber Glass Broadcast