Kickstarter/Steam Early Access Games - What do you think?

[Black64]

I am curious what fellow OCCers think about games on Kickstarter and Steam Early Access games?

 

I funded Planetary Annihilation, I really enjoyed playing it and still do. However I felt for the first 5 months that I bought a broken game with lots of bugs and after it started to almost get complete, they ended work on it to start another game.   While it's not really a big deal, it's just not fun to play full of bugs and incomplete. I just hope we don't see the majority of games starting to move to this "fund me or it won't happen" selling approach. I no longer like to fund these "in the works" games because it feels like a gamble how good the game will be and if it ever will be finished.

 

Curious about anyone's thoughts?

[Waco]

I paid for Planetary Annihilation too...same feelings.

 

However, I have gotten a few other indie games that I've loved. Reassembly in particular is damn fun and in a current Humbe Bundle!

[bp9801]

Same on PA. Been doing a lot better lately, which is nice.

 

Wasteland 2 had its share of bugs, but inXile fixed them all pretty quick and were fast to respond to any problems customers had/have. Now we're going to be getting a Director's Cut upgrade for free to all current owners that adds a ton of new content, as well as upgrades the engine from Unity 4.5 to Unity 5. Stellar sequel to the grandfather of post-apocalyptic games, with a great story that is ripe for replayability.

 

Pillars of Eternity had some bugs at launch, but those were fixed quickly, too. Fantastic spiritual successor to the Baldur's Gate games, and it's the closest thing to a remake of the first Baldur's Gate that we'll ever have, imo. Huge story that does require you to actually read, has some tough choices to make, a variety of classes that can be tailored any which way you want, and some pretty damn nice visuals.

 

Dyscourse launched without a hitch, and is a pretty fun game full of different choices and consequences based on those choices. Helps to make a different game each time you play.

 

Grim Dawn has taken its time, but seeing as it's a huge action-RPG, it's understandable. Good time with what's been in there, and the full game is nearly ready to go.

 

Defense Grid 2 is just like its predecessor, but on a much bigger stage.

 

Olympia Rising is kind of like the older Castlevania games, with an easy-to-grasp control scheme that really opens up the more you use it. Fun platformer that's definitely a throwback to games I played growing up.

 

 

Several others are in various forms of betas or alphas, with some nearing release (like STASIS). I'm waiting on a couple for PS4 even, like Amplitude and possibly Dragon Fin Soup.

[Black64]

I paid for Planetary Annihilation too...same feelings.

 

However, I have gotten a few other indie games that I've loved. Reassembly in particular is damn fun and in a current Humbe Bundle!

 

Honestly, what would have saved it for me would be a single player mission. It really needs a good single player something. Did you ever get LAN to work? I haven't tried it but I would like to.

[Black64]

Same on PA. Been doing a lot better lately, which is nice.

 

Wasteland 2 had its share of bugs, but inXile fixed them all pretty quick and were fast to respond to any problems customers had/have. Now we're going to be getting a Director's Cut upgrade for free to all current owners that adds a ton of new content, as well as upgrades the engine from Unity 4.5 to Unity 5. Stellar sequel to the grandfather of post-apocalyptic games, with a great story that is ripe for replayability.

 

Pillars of Eternity had some bugs at launch, but those were fixed quickly, too. Fantastic spiritual successor to the Baldur's Gate games, and it's the closest thing to a remake of the first Baldur's Gate that we'll ever have, imo. Huge story that does require you to actually read, has some tough choices to make, a variety of classes that can be tailored any which way you want, and some pretty damn nice visuals.

 

Dyscourse launched without a hitch, and is a pretty fun game full of different choices and consequences based on those choices. Helps to make a different game each time you play.

 

Grim Dawn has taken its time, but seeing as it's a huge action-RPG, it's understandable. Good time with what's been in there, and the full game is nearly ready to go.

 

Defense Grid 2 is just like its predecessor, but on a much bigger stage.

 

Olympia Rising is kind of like the older Castlevania games, with an easy-to-grasp control scheme that really opens up the more you use it. Fun platformer that's definitely a throwback to games I played growing up.

 

 

Several others are in various forms of betas or alphas, with some nearing release (like STASIS). I'm waiting on a couple for PS4 even, like Amplitude and possibly Dragon Fin Soup.

Wow some of those games sound awesome! Got any more new names of games you recently played? Would love to play some this weekend.

[bp9801]

Olympia Rising and Dyscourse are certainly ones to check out (can buy them on Steam, $5 for Olympia, $15 for Dyscourse). Olympia features pixel graphics, spells, combat, and stuff like that, while Dyscourse is more about getting to know the group of survivors and hopefully keeping them alive. There's no real good or bad way to finish the game, and with all the different possible outcomes, no two playthroughs will ever quite be the same.

 

STASIS is a 2D isometric horror, point & click adventure game set on an abandoned spaceship. Well, maybe abandoned. Just have to find out and see. Arrives on August 31, so will be able to tell more about it then. Launch trailer below.

 

 

Paradise Lost: First Contact is another one with pixel graphics, but has you controlling a plant-like alien that has to escape from a base. Guards patrol above you as you work your way through air ducts, alarms need to be avoided, computers can be hacked, people can be impersonated to open up new areas, and plenty more. Definitely a Metroidvania title. An older trailer is below, animations, alerts, and AI states have all been tweaked in the meantime.

 

 

Savage: Shard of Gosen is another Metroidvania title, but one inspired by the likes of Conan and 80s barbarian movies. Pixel graphics, melee combat, some RPG elements, weapons to collect, procedurally-generated overworlds, day/night cycle, and more. Has been in a Greenlight bundle on Groupees before, and you can check out a public alpha at the site (from roughly a year ago). Being made by just one guy. Older trailer below.

 

 

 

Have several others, but they're further out. Savage and Paradise Lost have an unknown launch date yet, hopefully before the year ends.

[WhenKittensATK]

I don't have much experience with Steam Early Access, but the game should be pretty dang playable when it hits early access like Killing Floor 2 and Prison Architect. You aren't hiring me as a QA tester, so I see them as let me play what you got so far that isn't super buggy.

 

As for Kickstarters, I see any money put into that as a donation and not to get a final product. Only 1 of 5 of my backed projects actually completed their game/media content (going back to 2012).

[bp9801]

Stasis is out now on both Steam and GOG, with all backers able to redeem their copy on platform of choice. It's a 3GB install, so not a ton of space is needed. It's currently 20% off for the remainder of this week, putting its price at $19.99 instead of $24.99. A Digital Deluxe version is also available, 20% off again, so just $31.99 instead of $39.99 to get an art book, 4K res wallpapers, and the game's soundtrack in both MP3 and FLAC formats.

[CheeseMan42]

I bought Killing Floor 2 as soon as it was available on Early Access, but I loved the first game. Felt like a complete game to me from the start and I haven't noticed any bugs while playing.

[bp9801]

Dragon Fin Soup is arriving on Tuesday on all PS4, PS3, PS Vita, and PC, with Mac and Linux scheduled for later. It's even being released as a PS+ game for the month of November, which should get even more interest in the turn-based roguelike RPG.

 

 

 

Amplitude is scheduled for launch on the PS4 in January, with the early access version in December. The PS3 version will arrive later on. A total of 30 songs are included in the game, up from around 16 that were initially promised.

 

Savage: Shard of Gosen has a Steam page now, but no solid release date just yet. Hopefully soon.

 

 

Still no release date for Paradise Lost: First Contact, but the devs are looking at something around this time next year. A level editor and preview build is going to be ready before too long and sent to eligible backers.

[El_Capitan]

I tried a few Kickstarter and early access Steam games, and a few that I like still haven't evolved past the Alpha or Beta stage, yet. The others I haven't played again, since I didn't like them during the stage of development that I tried them. There's pro's and cons to them, but in the end, I like paying little or nothing for them (like Minecraft when it was in alpha stage for free), or paying what amount I want to help them reach their goal to have enough funds to complete their game.

 

No way I'd pay more than $20 for these games, though. Maybe $5.

Edited November 2, 2015 by El_Capitan

[bp9801]

Dragon Fin Soup is now out on Steam, PSN, and DRM-free. It's a 1.4GB download on PC.

 

 

 

 

@Cap, supporting indie devs is always nice, even if you don't feel like it's worth it. The vast majority of Kickstarter games I've backed are $20 or less. Wasteland 2 is a $40 game, but $15 could have netted you a copy. Pillars of Eternity is $45, but $20 on Kickstarter was all it asked.