The Kickstarter MMO is Dead | OGR

mmorpg.com:

Kickstarted MMORPGs are dead. There, I said it. And honestly, it's about time that people accept the harsh reality that crowdfunding just isn't a viable option for indie studios anymore. Sure, we can argue that there have been some successes in crowdfunding in the past, but when compared to the vast number of pipe-dream MMORPGs that step up to the proverbial plate and completely strike out, they are few and far between, and the failures have been numerous and spectacular.

It feels as though time moves forward for MMORPGs at an ever accelerating pace. The new, flashy fads are shorter, and less impactful, and that also seems to go for the way games are being funded. Traditional development funding will always be the most prominent for MMORPGs, because persistent online games that are actually worth playing take millions of dollars to make. Over the years, smaller development studios have tried to utilize crowdfunding through Kickstarter campaigns as they attempt to make their MMO dreams come true. However, it’s taken just over a decade of Kickstarter — much less in the way of consistent crowdfunded MMO failures — for gamers to learn that backing a Kickstarter MMO is about as good a use of their money as a slot machine.

Let's take a look at some of the most highly funded Kickstarter MMORPGs in recent years. Crowfall, for example, raised over $1.7 million from backers, and their Kickstarter campaign started in March of 2015. It eventually went through a lengthy early access phase, and it's safe to say that when it finally launched in July of 2021, it did not live up to expectations. It was riddled with bugs, the gameplay was lackluster, and it just wasn’t that appealing even to their core audience. Crowfall was eventually sold