TGO Daily | August 31, 2020 | Eiyuden Chronicle Successfully Kickstarted
plus demons standing alone
How do you fund a video game? It’s a question that thousands have attempted to answer ever since development companies began to establish themselves. Today, we see two companies that are attempting to answer that question once again, both benefiting from the lightning quick transition to digital spending that consumers have taken in the last 10 years.
I’ll let you decide for yourself whether or not they’re taking the best approach.
Until tomorrow,
Adrian
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Eiyuden Chronicle successfully funded on Kickstarter
The Kickstarter for the Suikoden spiritual successor, Eiyuden Chronicle, has been successfully funded, raising $4.5 million USD — far above the $500,000 target. This makes it the third most successful video game ever funded on Kickstarter (behind Shenmue 3 and Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night). Also, of the top 10 games, it has the second best average dollars spent per backer, only falling behind the MMO Ashes of Creation.
The final stretch goal that was met for their campaign was the promise to make an entirely new companion game, which will be a “town creation RPG.” This concept is familiar to those who backed Bloodstained, with Curse of the Moon being an 8-bit companion platformer to the main game.
“…this companion game will release before the main game (‘which will hopefully hold you over during the excruciatingly long two-and-a-half year wait’), and includes different lifestyle mini-games that let you gather different materials to build up your house. The idea is these materials will transfer over to Eiyuden Chronicle, ‘allowing you a head-start at crafting some of the different items/armor/etc in the game.’”
The companion game will require an extra charge on top of the initial pledge by backers, due to the costs of development.
Eiyuden Chronicle is being developed by a number of the original creators of Suikoden, and is slated for release on most platforms in 2022.
Marvel’s Avengers monetization detailed
From a lackluster presentation to egregious marketing decisions, Marvel’s Avengers has not started on a great foot. This weekend, we received word of how they plan on monetizing the game. They have previously announced that new characters and playable stories/missions will be entirely free to those who purchase the game. This means that the only real-money purchase that can be made is towards new cosmetics.
Obtaining cosmetics are primarily done through the “Hero Challenge Card” system, which is essentially a battle-pass for individual superheroes. Each card will cost 1000 “credits” ($10 USD), will never be rotated or expired like other GaaS titles, and can be fast-tracked by purchasing “skips.”
Thus, if you want additional outfits or emotes for your heroes, you need to spend $10 and play through the game with that hero to earn XP towards the card. If you fully complete a card, you will eventually earn back the 1000 credits — meaning you technically only need to ever buy a single card, if you are willing to put in the time.
Feel free to judge this system as you choose. My only advice to you is to hold off on purchasing the game until people have had the chance to experience it in-depth.
Doom Eternal’s DLC will have a standalone option
The first DLC for Doom: Eternal is called “The Ancient Gods, Part One,” and it will be a standalone title from the main game. This means you can experience it without owning or completing the main campaign.
Game director Hugo Martin explains why:
“Most people would associate DLC with being of smaller scope – it’s kind of like the made for TV version of the movie, and the movie was the main game,” Hugo continues. “For us, this is very much like a two-part film – this is every bit as grand as the main game was.”
How they’ve structured this content is something rare for the industry, as most standalone expansions are standalone-only. Presenting this as a continuation for people who love the game, while opening up a cheaper option for those who haven’t played it, is something I’m surprised we don’t see more often.
The “Year One Pass” for the game can be purchased for around $30, which includes both DLC planned for the game.
Also In The News
Ubisoft promotes alt-right Black Lives Matter conspiracy theories…why did this happen?
Hitman and the Shadowrun collection are both free on Epic Games Store right now. Very good games, pick them up!
More From TGO
Interested in longer-form podcasts? Every week my friend Kato and I go live with the TGO Podcast, where we talk about the week’s news and the video games we’ve been playing. Take a listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any other podcast host.
This week, we cover Gamescom, the new Batman games, and CoD: Cold War. Check it out!
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