Okay. I guess it's time for me to google until I find where you hid the donation button.. http://overtureinteractive.blogspot.ca/p/donate.html I think that's it.
I guess my question is why don't you just charge a little more for your work? I mean its obviously high quality and compared to some people who have the balls to charge $15 for something I wouldn't even bother rating a 1star. I'm just saying for the length of time, quality of work and features $5 really feels like a steal every time, which I guess does mean people are more willing to buy it rather than pirate but still. Regardless, hope things go well for ya.
The games are too short, I think. Stuff like Steam games are at a different price point because Steam takes a cut, whereas nobody takes a cut from the blog sales. DLsite takes a lot from their sales, which is why that version is around $10.
Yeah, I'm probably gonna have to throw in an extra 20 bucks when this game comes out. Paying only 5 bucks for Eroico is basically a crime against humanity or something.
Speaking of which, can anyone tell me how to disable the controller detection in Eroico? Whenever I have a controller plugged in, the game highlights "END" and won't let me do anything except quit the game. If I could disable the controller autodetect, I could use Joy2Key to play it...
Oh, so that's what's most likely causing it. I did have some 3rd party support stuff installed for my PS3 controller at some point, though I thought I'd uninstalled it all.
I wouldn't know where to look for remnants, so I'll have to read up and figure out where they could be, but at least now I know what to look for! Thanks.
I could also just wait until I reinstall my operating system, but unfortunately Noaika is similarly affected (keyboard doesn't work at all, and only the ABXY buttons on the controller work), so that's extra motivation to find a "cure" before then, hah.
I appreciate the notion, but there's no need. While I may not have any money, I have a credit card, and I make enough from older games every month that I'll still have enough to pay rent until the next game is finished. (And if I don't, there are always certain possessions that I can sell.)
Or, and I'd like to stress this point a bit, you could accept goodwill donations from fans that want to see you prosper. I understand that you might not want to accept donations for any number of reasons, but those reasons are pretty insubstantial when weighed against you being able to support yourself while still creating games. If we have the cash to spare, and it's ours to do with what we will, then why not let us throw some at you? Seriously, if the alternative is living in a box and selling all your stuff then us giving you money seems like a muuuuuuuuuch better option. Perhaps there is a little bi of self-serving behind my message, but I do enjoy your games and don't want to see you stop because of a lack of funds.
I agree. I mean, donations do put on the pressure to perform, but there are "too big to fail" companies that have created bigger letdowns for their fans. The games industry is rife with disappointment and we are becoming more savvy about potential failures. We want to invest in you because we believe you have a QUALITY product, and it HAS been proven.
If you run out of money before it's finished, we won't get another one. Even if you think most of us don't care about you as a person, we would still like to see the project prosper. We won't if you're not at a base level of comfort while developing (refer Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs). If you have to sell your computer, then Kyrieru will just disappear into the void.
Investment always carries risk, and investors should know that going in, whether it's on Offbeatr or Patreon. But it's also one of the oldest driving forces in capitalism because it gives the recipient an opportunity to accumulate the assets needed to reach their goals faster and more completely. If you reach your goals, then we have received a return on our investment that WE think is worth the risk (which is what really matters, as modern economics rests on subjective theories of value).
Stretch goals have the potential to generate more interest in your work (and if you don't meet them you don't have to create that content, which is the beauty of knowing what your fans are willing to invest. If you don't make any stretch goals you don't have to make that content). Making a profit not only allows you to make a living: but to expand your company, hire employees, get better equipment. Then you can make even better games with more levels and animations or even voice acting like Koooonsoft. If you have long term plans to make even more games, this will become extremely important (and like larger companies, you could use the profit from porn games to unveil the non-porn games you've shown interest in). If you don't grow, the path to those goals will be a winding mountain trail instead of a road that we would pave for you. We want to climb that mountain too.
Seriously though, I just tried the donation button and it works just fine; Kyrieru is now 20 US dollars further away from starvation, homelessness and all that bad stuff.
Wait... Kyrieru's Canadian, right? I am too, so maybe I should have sent 23 CAD instead.
Same poster as above. Another food for thought: think of Kickstarter, Offbeatr, Patreon, and other investment platforms as stock markets for plebs who can't afford to legally incorporate. If you want to survive in the marketplace, you really need to think more like a business. Being charitable as you have been is a great ethical standpoint, but it's not going to help any of us if you're suffering. In the same way, our technological society is only possible because corporations that make it possible (including the government) are hellbent on survival.
Profit is not evil. It is a tool that depends on the hold of its owner to act.
It's not a matter of price or profit, it's the fact that I started and abandoned 4 projects since Eroico. If I had sold any game in that time, even a mediocre one, I would not be in financial trouble the way I am now.
Needless to say, I don't plan on repeating that mistake once I'm financially stable again. At the very least, though, screwing up this much kind of showed me that all the projects that I thought would take too long probably could have been completed in the time I had -__-
That's actually fairly normal. Most small businesses aren't an instant success the first try. You have to reiterate until the planets align (ex: many of the resources implemented in Alpha versions of Minecraft were from Notch's failed game Legend of the Chambered. Even as they were raking in millions of dollars they cancelled 2 games). The important thing is that you learned from it and you show us you've learned from it.
What I'm trying to say is that it SEEMS like denying funding is slowing your development process. If that causes you to produce an underwhelming product, it will reduce trust in future releases and you will lose your ability to make a living from it. Having the money to eat well, in itself, will increase brain activity enough to make the work easier. Maybe you need a new tablet? There's a piece of software that will dramatically increase quality? People can pay for that if they think it's worth getting your work in exchange.
Do you have roadmaps? Then tell people and let them fund branches of the project that they're interested in. Do you have timetables for feature releases? Then tell people and let them fund what portions they'd like to see implemented in a more reasonable timeframe. You already explain yourself thoroughly in blog posts. Explain why conflicts might make some features more harder to implement than others, and let people know about your priorities. That's how you increase trust in your investors.
If you're afraid that - even with funding - the final result will be underwhelming, then you're working against yourself. It will become a self-fulfilling prophecy as you wear yourself down. Being able to criticize your work is great for rooting out problems, but if you have zero faith in your craft then you will never become financially stable.
I'm just saying that irresponsibility on my part is not an excuse to charge people more money for each game. When it comes down to it, I can live comfortably so long as I develop at least one game per year. If I hadn't abandoned previous projects this year, I would probably have completed two by now.
The thing is, the more games I complete, the faster development becomes. Both because I become more skilled over time, and because each time I make a game, I'll have more code to fall back on or use as a template. My passive income will also increase as my back-catalogue of games increases, making long term projects or hiring artists more viable.
..This can all be done at a $5 price point, and even then I can make far more money than the time I put into it was worth. So I see no reason to increase the price of my games.
I had a rather large reply typed up. But I guess I'm just trying to say that I'm concerned. I want you to be successful because I have seen how much your skill has grown. Your determination, altruism, and patience are admirable, but I can't help but feel that the balance they rest on is fragile. I hope the $5 plan works out for you. I would offer to buy a copy of Noaika for $15-20 if the option were available.
Also, try to break your dependence on credit cards. I know it seems fairly innocuous now, but if you don't have much in your bank account then it can potentially become very dangerous. Limits on interest rates have been deregulated, so missing a single payment can dramatically change how they and any other credit company will handle your account in the future.
Honestly they don't seem to be that bad. As for a loan, I don't see that happening, since I'd have to explain in depth what my business entails. Not so sure I'd want to do that.
iWarning!: Possibly a very long and boring story unless you read it through, ?semi good humor?(depends on yourself) and more interesting to Kyri and 5 to 9 other people!
-BM(Bank manager):"So what do you do for a living, that is so badly paid?" -K(yrieru):"I make computer games." -BM:"..." -K:"..." -BM:"... Oooookkkkk, what kind of games?" -K:"Do you want the detailed and indev programing version, or the normal people version?" -BM:"Normal people, please" -K:"I make shooty and jumpy games! :3[<--Make that face]" -BM:"How many people envol" -K:"Only me" -BM:"How much are you as" -K:"500$" -BM:"How much do" -K:"5 per sale, a blog, minor heart\breathing problems, sometimes hire people, ?3? years, single and poppies!" -BM:"Ok then, were's your loan, and have a nice day."
I was more scared that you had died, or were hospitalized; a bit brutal, but given your ?old? health problems, that could have very well been the case.
Living off a credit card doesn't sound like a good idea honestly. I've heard about quite a few people getting into trouble because they relied on it so much...
:(
ReplyDeletechier !
ReplyDeleteWHELP, that's better to hear than the obvious.
ReplyDeleteneed a donation?
ReplyDeleteOmg, he lives! +_+
ReplyDeleteI hear prostitution is in high demand on the East coast.
ReplyDeleteAnd Cod. Mostly Cod.
Hmmm, I don't know if Kyrieru looks cute but I sure would have sex with him. He has a nice character and is pretty cuddly for sure.
DeleteHooray, I was starting to think you actually died.
ReplyDeleteWould seriously would love to see a Kuro skin in the new game as a bonus/reward
ReplyDeleteLiving off a credit card are you?
ReplyDeleteCredit card, and the fact that I still make money from previous games.
DeleteI've lived off a credit card before. It gets depressing when you see the balances rise. Good luck, can't wait to play your games.
DeleteAt least you are alive! That's a start!
ReplyDeleteOkay. I guess it's time for me to google until I find where you hid the donation button..
ReplyDeletehttp://overtureinteractive.blogspot.ca/p/donate.html
I think that's it.
I guess my question is why don't you just charge a little more for your work? I mean its obviously high quality and compared to some people who have the balls to charge $15 for something I wouldn't even bother rating a 1star. I'm just saying for the length of time, quality of work and features $5 really feels like a steal every time, which I guess does mean people are more willing to buy it rather than pirate but still. Regardless, hope things go well for ya.
ReplyDeleteI charge what I think they're worth. Honestly, I don't think that any of my games have been worth more than $5 thus far.
DeleteYou're insane.
DeleteI'd give 10 dollars for your stuff.
You do all the stuff at such high quality (maybe game design slightly less, but the art, it's fantastic) I'm amazed you don't charge it.
Aren't you like the leader of action h-games? Don't be afraid to charge it!
The games are too short, I think. Stuff like Steam games are at a different price point because Steam takes a cut, whereas nobody takes a cut from the blog sales. DLsite takes a lot from their sales, which is why that version is around $10.
DeleteHow much do you still make off of them?
DeleteYeah, I'm probably gonna have to throw in an extra 20 bucks when this game comes out. Paying only 5 bucks for Eroico is basically a crime against humanity or something.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of which, can anyone tell me how to disable the controller detection in Eroico? Whenever I have a controller plugged in, the game highlights "END" and won't let me do anything except quit the game. If I could disable the controller autodetect, I could use Joy2Key to play it...
Try disabling any controller emulator programs. Some of them mess with it.
DeleteOh, so that's what's most likely causing it. I did have some 3rd party support stuff installed for my PS3 controller at some point, though I thought I'd uninstalled it all.
DeleteI wouldn't know where to look for remnants, so I'll have to read up and figure out where they could be, but at least now I know what to look for! Thanks.
I could also just wait until I reinstall my operating system, but unfortunately Noaika is similarly affected (keyboard doesn't work at all, and only the ABXY buttons on the controller work), so that's extra motivation to find a "cure" before then, hah.
Oddly enough, Kurovadis works just fine!
BEST IDEA:
ReplyDeleteLet's buy Kyrierus old games again so he has enough money to live
彼が生きるのに十分なお金を持っているように、もう一度Kyrierus前のゲームを買いましょう
I know that you have many japanes fans so I write
もう一度彼のゲームを買ってください
I appreciate the notion, but there's no need. While I may not have any money, I have a credit card, and I make enough from older games every month that I'll still have enough to pay rent until the next game is finished. (And if I don't, there are always certain possessions that I can sell.)
DeleteOr, and I'd like to stress this point a bit, you could accept goodwill donations from fans that want to see you prosper. I understand that you might not want to accept donations for any number of reasons, but those reasons are pretty insubstantial when weighed against you being able to support yourself while still creating games. If we have the cash to spare, and it's ours to do with what we will, then why not let us throw some at you? Seriously, if the alternative is living in a box and selling all your stuff then us giving you money seems like a muuuuuuuuuch better option. Perhaps there is a little bi of self-serving behind my message, but I do enjoy your games and don't want to see you stop because of a lack of funds.
DeleteI agree. I mean, donations do put on the pressure to perform, but there are "too big to fail" companies that have created bigger letdowns for their fans. The games industry is rife with disappointment and we are becoming more savvy about potential failures. We want to invest in you because we believe you have a QUALITY product, and it HAS been proven.
DeleteIf you run out of money before it's finished, we won't get another one. Even if you think most of us don't care about you as a person, we would still like to see the project prosper. We won't if you're not at a base level of comfort while developing (refer Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs). If you have to sell your computer, then Kyrieru will just disappear into the void.
Investment always carries risk, and investors should know that going in, whether it's on Offbeatr or Patreon. But it's also one of the oldest driving forces in capitalism because it gives the recipient an opportunity to accumulate the assets needed to reach their goals faster and more completely. If you reach your goals, then we have received a return on our investment that WE think is worth the risk (which is what really matters, as modern economics rests on subjective theories of value).
Stretch goals have the potential to generate more interest in your work (and if you don't meet them you don't have to create that content, which is the beauty of knowing what your fans are willing to invest. If you don't make any stretch goals you don't have to make that content). Making a profit not only allows you to make a living: but to expand your company, hire employees, get better equipment. Then you can make even better games with more levels and animations or even voice acting like Koooonsoft. If you have long term plans to make even more games, this will become extremely important (and like larger companies, you could use the profit from porn games to unveil the non-porn games you've shown interest in). If you don't grow, the path to those goals will be a winding mountain trail instead of a road that we would pave for you. We want to climb that mountain too.
tl;dr version: "Shut up and take our money!"
DeleteSeriously though, I just tried the donation button and it works just fine; Kyrieru is now 20 US dollars further away from starvation, homelessness and all that bad stuff.
Wait... Kyrieru's Canadian, right? I am too, so maybe I should have sent 23 CAD instead.
Same poster as above. Another food for thought: think of Kickstarter, Offbeatr, Patreon, and other investment platforms as stock markets for plebs who can't afford to legally incorporate. If you want to survive in the marketplace, you really need to think more like a business. Being charitable as you have been is a great ethical standpoint, but it's not going to help any of us if you're suffering. In the same way, our technological society is only possible because corporations that make it possible (including the government) are hellbent on survival.
DeleteProfit is not evil. It is a tool that depends on the hold of its owner to act.
It's not a matter of price or profit, it's the fact that I started and abandoned 4 projects since Eroico. If I had sold any game in that time, even a mediocre one, I would not be in financial trouble the way I am now.
DeleteNeedless to say, I don't plan on repeating that mistake once I'm financially stable again. At the very least, though, screwing up this much kind of showed me that all the projects that I thought would take too long probably could have been completed in the time I had -__-
That's actually fairly normal. Most small businesses aren't an instant success the first try. You have to reiterate until the planets align (ex: many of the resources implemented in Alpha versions of Minecraft were from Notch's failed game Legend of the Chambered. Even as they were raking in millions of dollars they cancelled 2 games). The important thing is that you learned from it and you show us you've learned from it.
DeleteWhat I'm trying to say is that it SEEMS like denying funding is slowing your development process. If that causes you to produce an underwhelming product, it will reduce trust in future releases and you will lose your ability to make a living from it. Having the money to eat well, in itself, will increase brain activity enough to make the work easier. Maybe you need a new tablet? There's a piece of software that will dramatically increase quality? People can pay for that if they think it's worth getting your work in exchange.
Do you have roadmaps? Then tell people and let them fund branches of the project that they're interested in. Do you have timetables for feature releases? Then tell people and let them fund what portions they'd like to see implemented in a more reasonable timeframe. You already explain yourself thoroughly in blog posts. Explain why conflicts might make some features more harder to implement than others, and let people know about your priorities. That's how you increase trust in your investors.
If you're afraid that - even with funding - the final result will be underwhelming, then you're working against yourself. It will become a self-fulfilling prophecy as you wear yourself down. Being able to criticize your work is great for rooting out problems, but if you have zero faith in your craft then you will never become financially stable.
I'm just saying that irresponsibility on my part is not an excuse to charge people more money for each game. When it comes down to it, I can live comfortably so long as I develop at least one game per year. If I hadn't abandoned previous projects this year, I would probably have completed two by now.
DeleteThe thing is, the more games I complete, the faster development becomes. Both because I become more skilled over time, and because each time I make a game, I'll have more code to fall back on or use as a template. My passive income will also increase as my back-catalogue of games increases, making long term projects or hiring artists more viable.
..This can all be done at a $5 price point, and even then I can make far more money than the time I put into it was worth. So I see no reason to increase the price of my games.
I had a rather large reply typed up. But I guess I'm just trying to say that I'm concerned. I want you to be successful because I have seen how much your skill has grown. Your determination, altruism, and patience are admirable, but I can't help but feel that the balance they rest on is fragile. I hope the $5 plan works out for you. I would offer to buy a copy of Noaika for $15-20 if the option were available.
DeleteAlso, try to break your dependence on credit cards. I know it seems fairly innocuous now, but if you don't have much in your bank account then it can potentially become very dangerous. Limits on interest rates have been deregulated, so missing a single payment can dramatically change how they and any other credit company will handle your account in the future.
Good luck.
Gosh dammit, Kyrieru, you really oughta put the donate button back up.
ReplyDeleteKuro looks so KAWAII~~! <3
ReplyDeleteBut for realsies, could you finish the game soon? KKTHNXBAI!
I was actually worried when you deleted some blog posts. I was relieved to see you were still active on ulmf. XD
ReplyDeletei'm surprised you can even use that website. it says its down every time i try going on there
DeleteWas just about to email younactually was worried my fave creator had vanished xD
ReplyDeleteThat was an insane amount of comments on the last post, I couldn't even load them all ;)
ReplyDeleteGood to hear you're still alive, now LET ME PRE-BUY YOUR GAME ALREADY!! Nice poster by the way.
Dead. RIP.
ReplyDeleteEww, coffee. Anyway, hang in there.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't a fan.
DeleteTry a bit of Baileys in it, or other coffee whitener or "whitener" :D
DeleteHmm, a credit card's interest rates are pretty bad, if you're going into the red for awhile, you should really look at other options like bank loans.
ReplyDeleteHonestly they don't seem to be that bad. As for a loan, I don't see that happening, since I'd have to explain in depth what my business entails. Not so sure I'd want to do that.
Deletelol
DeleteWhat if they're secretly into it? ;P
I'd say the chances are pretty low for that. xD
DeleteiWarning!: Possibly a very long and boring story unless you read it through, ?semi good humor?(depends on yourself) and more interesting to Kyri and 5 to 9 other people!
Delete-BM(Bank manager):"So what do you do for a living, that is so badly paid?"
-K(yrieru):"I make computer games."
-BM:"..."
-K:"..."
-BM:"... Oooookkkkk, what kind of games?"
-K:"Do you want the detailed and indev programing version, or the normal people version?"
-BM:"Normal people, please"
-K:"I make shooty and jumpy games! :3[<--Make that face]"
-BM:"How many people envol"
-K:"Only me"
-BM:"How much are you as"
-K:"500$"
-BM:"How much do"
-K:"5 per sale, a blog, minor heart\breathing problems, sometimes hire people, ?3? years, single and poppies!"
-BM:"Ok then, were's your loan, and have a nice day."
I was more scared that you had died, or were hospitalized; a bit brutal, but given your ?old? health problems, that could have very well been the case.
ReplyDeleteYeah... thought the same.
DeleteLiving off a credit card doesn't sound like a good idea honestly. I've heard about quite a few people getting into trouble because they relied on it so much...
ReplyDeleteBoom. Pre-ordered. I played the demo and i was sold. Went for the highest buy option :) Can't wait till it's done.
ReplyDelete