Kickstart This!: Summer of Kickstarter

Welcome to Silver Bit's newest recurring article, Kickstart This!  With Kickstarter's rise in popularity among video game developers and in some cases composers to fund their projects, yours truly has been trying to think of ways to promote these great projects.  A few of video game Kickstarter projects get the initial publicity on big video game media sites such as IGN and Gamespot if they are attached to a popular video game designer such as Tim Schafer or noteworthy developer like WayForward.  There are plenty of Kickstarter projects that never get the public attention they deserve.  While Silver Bit is not among the most viewed blogs in the world, this writer wants to do his part in spreading the word about the Kickstarter projects that appeal to him.  One more person talking about these projects will definitely get a few others talking and hopefully cause a domino effect as more and more decide to spread the word.

The inspiration behind Kickstart This! came about due to all the Kickstarter projects that yours truly has been following and supporting as of late.  I have supported a few projects over the past year or so, but not at the frequency that I am doing now.  It has gotten to a point where this writer is scared to find another project to whisk away more money.  What a better way to kick off Kickstart This!, pun fully intended, then with the three Kickstarter projects that sucked up this writer's money this past Summer.
                       
The first Kickstarter project highlighted today is actually not a video game.  Before you raise your virtual pitchforks, this project does involve video games in some form.  Particularly, it involves video game music.  This Kickstarter is to fund Video Games Live's third album.  For those who have not heard of Video Games Live, it is a multimedia symphonic/rock video game concert run by prolific video game composer Tommy Tallarico.  Video Games Live's first two albums focused on the most popular and recognizable video game music from the likes of Mario, Halo and Warcraft.  For the third album, known as Level 3, Video Games Live is focusing on the more underrated video game tracks from games like Monkey Island, Street Fighter, Journey and Beyond Good and Evil.  Due to how niche the audience for this album is, Video Games Live is looking for passionate gamers like you and I to help fund this project.  Video Games Live is looking to raise 250 thousand dollars to fund Level 3.  Currently 205 thousand dollars have been pledged to the project with only three days left.  If you are a lover of video game music, the Video Games Live Kickstarter is definitely one to support.  Every bit counts.
                       
It has been well documented on how horribly Capcom has dropped the ball with their flagship franchise, Mega Man.  Once the Blue Bomber's creator Keiji Inafue left Capcom to create his own independent studio Comcept, Capcom seemed to abandon their mascot.  Many have been clamouring for any sort of news about a new Mega Man game, but to no avail.  Capitalizing on the demand, Keiji Inafue announced a brand new project from Comcept called Mighty No. 9.  Mighty No. 9 is the spiritual successor to Mega Man.  It is a side-scrolling action game where you run, jump, shoot and transform much like Capcom's Blue Bomber.  It might seem a lot like Mega Man, but with one huge twist.  Beck, the main character, can transform at will.  These transformations are not only earned from defeating the bosses in the game; they can be gained from collecting energy dropped from common enemies.  The Mighty No. 9 Kickstarter has been a runaway success.  The game was funded within two days and is now currently working towards its 2.2 million dollar stretch goal, which will see Mighty No. 9 ported to PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii U.  With 21 days left to go, Comcept will definitely have enough money to fund Mighty No. 9 and then some.  Guess the demand for a Mega Man game is bigger than ever imagined, eh Capcom?
                        
Last but not least, the latest Kickstarter project to make me part with my money to support.  WayForward has been on a roll with their latest offerings (Mighty Switch Force series on 3DS and Wii U and DuckTales:  Remastered for consoles).  So it came as a surprise when they announced that they will be funding a new game project through Kickstarter.  Some thought it could be a whole new intellectual property or a console installment in one of WayForward's signature franchises.  The latter came true as Shantae: Half-Genie Hero was revealed to be said Kickstarter project this past Wednesday.  Shantae is WayForward's first original franchise.  It stars a female half-genie by the name of Shantae who is in charge of protecting a fishing port called Scuttle Town.  Half-Genie hero is Shantae's first venture on consoles as she has been at home on handheld and mobile systems for the past decade.  Before any funding was needed, WayForward confirmed Half-Genie Hero will be coming to PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Wii U and PC.  Meeting the funding goal of 400 thousand dollars will allow WayForward to create a HD Shantae game with an introduction and conclusion stage along with three chapters in between.  Stretch goals are in place to include extra modes, different costumes and even bonus chapters if WayForward's goal is met.  At the moment, Shantae: Half-Genie Hero is half way to its goal with just under a month to go.

Hopefully you all enjoyed this first edition of Kickstart This!  If you are interested in any of the projects shared in this article, please pledge some of your money to the project of your choice.  Kickstarter is becoming such a powerful tool in the video game industry especially for the gamers who are getting sick and tired of the current state of Triple A video game development.  These three projects are only a small sampling of everything that is on Kickstarter.  There a tons of projects out there to support.  If these projects did not speak to you, there is definitely a project out there.

The Rayman Legends Debacle

This past Thursday was not a fun day for Wii U owners including yours truly.  Just under three weeks before the release of easily the most anticipated third-party game for the Wii U, Ubisoft decided to announce two big changes to the latest instalment in the Rayman series.  Rayman Legends is now going to be multi-platform and has been delayed until September.  Ubisoft's reasoning for the delay was that it was for the fans.  One of the biggest loads of crap I have heard in a while.  It is just like Activision saying that the newest Call of Duty is not exactly the same as previous entries, it is a lie!  If Ubisoft remotely cared about their fans, they would not have waited until the eleventh hour to pull this bait-and-switch with Rayman Legends.  

Going multi-platform is best for business and personally I am totally fine with Rayman Legends going multi-platform because it allows more gamers to experience this masterful platforming game and it will help support Ubisoft Montpellier in creating new games such as Beyond Good & Evil 2.  While a multi-platform release is good for business, delaying Rayman Legends only 19 days before the game was set to release for the Wii U is definitely not good for business.  The delay alienates fans who have been promoting Rayman Legends through social media and other forums on the internet and supporting the game through pre-orders.  It serves as a slap to the face of every Wii U owner who Ubisoft promised would support their new system with quality games. Also a slap in the face to all the developers at Ubisoft Montipellier who have been in crunch since last summer in order to get Rayman Legends complete for its February release date only to have it delayed right when it goes gold.

Apart from all the people Ubisoft upset with this delay, nobody seems to notice how stupid delaying Legends until this September.  What HUGE game releases just got announced to release this coming September?  It is Rockstar's newest entry in their open-world behemoth known as Grand Theft Auto V.  Yes, there will be other games that will most likely release in September other than GTA V, but sales-wise most gamers will be buying GTA over any other game released in September.  Since this delay was most likely made to maximize profits on a simultaneous multi-platform release, releasing Legends in the same month as the biggest game of 2013 is just asking for history to repeat itself.  For those who do not know or remember, Ubisoft made a similar decision when they released Rayman Origins back in  2011.  They released Rayman Origins on the same day as Assassin's Creed Revelations and Saint's Row The Third.  Long story short, Origins got lost in the shuffle of the holiday season and the game did not come close to Ubisoft's sales expectations.  How is putting Rayman Legends in the same exact situation going to help sales especially since Ubisoft easily hurt sales by alienating their entire Wii U audience?  If Ubisoft wanted Rayman Legends to succeed, they would release the game in the summer when gamers are starving for new games instead of feeding it to the cannibalistic holiday season.  I love Rayman, but it cannot compete with the Grand Theft Autos, the Assassin's Creeds and the Call of Dutys.

As much as it hurts to have Ubisoft delay one of the games I bought my Wii U to play, there is nothing I can do alone to change this delay.  All I can do is talk about here, but it comes down to all of us Wii U owners to make our voices heard.  Do not stop at a measly exclusive demo, we want the entire game.  If we can convince Ubisoft to release Rayman Legends for Wii U before September, it will be amazing.  If not, at least we tried.  There are other ways of making our voices heard such as boycotting Ubisoft games or buying Rayman Legends used, but we should not unintentionally hurt the excellent developers at Ubisoft's many studios who sacrifice a lot to make the games we love including Rayman Legends because some idiot in a suit thought more about the money lining his pocket than the customers he ultimately serves.  No matter what happens, I will still buy Rayman Legends on the first day it releases.  Now I will definitely think twice before pre-ordering another Ubisoft game.  Sorry Ubisoft, us gamers do not like to be treated like trash.

For those interested in making your voice heard about this situation, please sign the petition I provide in this link, http://www.change.org/en-CA/petitions/ubisoft-entertainment-s-a-keep-to-the-original-rayman-legends-release-date-for-the-wii-u?utm_campaign=new_signature&utm_medium=email&utm_source=signature_receipt#.  The more people sign this petition, the more Ubisoft will take notice and hopefully release Rayman Legends when it was originally scheduled to release.  Like Ubisoft says, they listen to their fans.

Hump Day Video: The Definitive 50

Late last month EB Games announced that come April 9th, they will no longer be taking Gamecube games for trade-in.  This announcement has sparked an interest in me to search all local EB Games stores for any of the few Gamecube games I am still looking for (Pikmin 1 & 2, Skies of Acadia Legends and Wario World).  I have searched Cambridge and Kitchener to no avail, but there is still hope some people will trade in their Gamecube games before the deadline.  With all my searches for old Gamecube games, I stumbled upon a great Youtube channel called The Definitive 50.

The Definitive 50 is a Youtube series hosted by Newbs from Splodinator.com that countdowns the top 50 games of a certain console.  The first season was the Definitive 50 Super NES games.  The current season is the Definitive 50 Gamecube games.  Each episode is around two to three minutes in length and has host Newbs explaining each games significance as one of the top games of its console generation.  The short episodes make it easy Youtube show to watch in small chucks and the informative nature of the show makes it a great watch for older gamers and younger gamers just starting out.  If you have any interest in classic games, check the Definitive 50 out.  It might just introduce you to an old Gamecube or SNES that may interest you or remind you a classic game that you forgot about.

The Definitive 50 Gamecube games is still in progress.  Number 21 on the Definitive 50 should be up in the coming days.  Below is Number 22 on the Definitive 50 Gamecube games, Beyond Good & Evil.  If you enjoy this episode, make sure to subscribe to the channel and watch all the other episodes.