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.
