The Kickstarter generation is really ramping up. With a slew of projects recently funded, and a heap more struggling to find the same success, it's a lot of keep track of. I believe that every game I see on Kickstarter has the potential to be great, and that the main problem crowdfunded projects encounter is finding their audience.

Rather than listing all of the projects I can find at once, I intend to spotlight one game at a time, and give each one the attention it deserves. My aim is to make that connection -- to help projects find potential funders by helping gamers find projects that appeal to them, in turn (ideally) providing a mutually beneficial service to both parties.

As there are so many developers seeking funding on Kickstarter and other sites, this a massive undertaking. I will be thankful for any and all help -- if you'd like to see a game you're interested in be highlighted, by all means post a reply asking me to do so.

The first three posts of this thread will be very barren for the first week or so. Because of the focus I want to give to each individual project, it will take some time before the actual 'database' truly begins to take shape.

As I want the first post to be all about the games, this second post will serve as an explanation and FAQ for the thread.

(reserved for later content)

A Vampyre Story: Year One

Current Funding: $70,000 / $200,000
Time Remaining: Less than 36 Hours
Developer: Autumn Moon Entertainment

About the Game:

A Vampyre Story: Year One is described as an episodic-length prequel to the 2008 PC game A Vampyre Story. The developer likens the gameplay to older Lucas Arts adventure games, especially The Curse of Monkey Island, and claims that about 5 hours of content are planned. According to the Kickstarter video, the funds will be used to create a new game engine for Year One and future Autumn Moon projects. Options for German, French, and Spanish subtitles are planned.

The game itself can be obtained from a relatively small donation of $8.

About the Developer:

The lead developer on the project is William Tiller, the founder of Autumn Moon, a former member of Lucas Arts, and the lead background artist for The Curse of Monkey Island.

Platforms:

Base funding will only cover the PC release. On other versions, Autumn Moon has this to say: "We estimate it will cost $40,000 to $50,000 to convert the PC version to Mac and Linux based on past experience, but we are upgrading our PC game engine and that may (hopefully) lower the cost of conversion substantially."

If old-school adventure games are your thing, look into the first game; maybe you'll see something you like. If you're not interested, the least you can do is spread the word.

The Kickstarter has ended, and Autumn Moon failed to meet their goal. However, Bill Tiller promises that he and his team will push forward and complete the game in spite of their failure.

Harvest

Current Funding: $11,400 / $10,000
Time Remaining: Less than 30 Hours
Developer: GondeFire Productions

About the Game:

Harvest is described as a graphic adventure set in a future in which 99% of the human population of Earth has been rendered infertile by chemical war. When the critical 1% begins disappearing, the player takes the role of a detective out to solve the case and prevent the extinction of the human race. The game boasts fully-voiced characters and appears to play like a typical graphic novel along the lines of the Ace Attorney series, although the developer claims that there will be some "action sequences" during the game.

About the Developer:

GondeFire is the developer of Castle Dracula, released for PC, Mac, and iOS earlier this year. However, most of the team working on Harvest seems to be new members, with the founder of the company being the only holdover.

Platforms:

Harvest has already been funded and will be released on PC, Mac, and Linux. It is currently just over $2000 away from a stretch goal that will bring the game to Wii U and PS Vita. The final stretch goal, at $20,000, promises Spanish, French, and German text translations.

The game is technically already funded, but it has a chance to reach those stretch goals if you want to get on board. Those looking at Castle Dracula dubiously, bear in mind it was made on a budget much smaller than the one Harvest has already raised.

GoD Factory: Wingmen

Current Funding: $26,000 / $70,000
Time Remaining: 4 Days
Developer: Nine Dots Studio

About the Game:

Remember the space battles in Star Wars Battlefront 2? GoD Factory: Wingmen sounds a lot like that, with 4vs4 online multiplayer, customizable ships, and some deeper mechanics. Technically, it is described as "a competitive 4vs4 space combat simulator in which you build your ships part by part." You use credits you earn by playing online to buy parts, which you can mix-and-match to create your own customized spaceship. The goal of each match is to coordinate your attack with your team mates to take down the enemy team's carrier while defending your own. When an important part of a carrier is destroyed, negative consequences will be inflicted upon that carrier's team -- for instance, destroy your enemy's radar and their team's radars will become weaker.

Pretty straightforward, with a few twists. In particular, the game places a heavy emphasis on teamwork. The carriers' shields are very powerful -- so powerful that it will be very difficult to break through them by yourself. You'll have to concentrate your fire with the rest of your squad to make meaningful progress in battle. Every weapon also has a designated "damage type," and you can use weapons of different damage types together to create "chain reactions" -- basically making combos for bonus effects or more damage, placing further emphasis on coordinating with your team.

About the Developer:

Nine Dots is a team of 7 and the developer of Brand, released on XBLIG in 2012. They have been working on GoD Factory for roughly a year with no funds, and have created a solid alpha build which was playable at PAX.

Platforms:

GoD Factory is primarily a PC title. A Mac version is planned, but "might not be available at launch." Consoles and Linux are mentioned as possibilities, but are not planned for release at this time. Most interestingly, the team plans to make the game Oculus Rift-compatible at launch. They also promise that GoD Factory will not require high-tech, expensive hardware, and will support "a wide range of PCs."

The game is being built with Unity engine, so porting to other platforms would be relatively easy if Nine Dots decides to do that!

According to the developers, they will need much more than their $70,000 Kickstarter goal to make their full vision a reality, but plan to use what they can raise to create a polished alpha build for a "soft launch."

I highly recommend checking out the Kickstarter video. They have a lot of gameplay in there from the alpha version, and it looks really nice.

lol when i first read harvest i thought it would be another farming game.

Haha. Not exactly I guess. The story sounds a lot like Children of Men. The game got funded, so I guess we'll find out -- maybe it actually is about farming! That's the twist.