Seven Dragon Saga - Funding Canceled

Couchpotato · March 24, 2015

In the next and final kickstarter update for Seven Dragon Saga Tactical Simulations Interactive says they have cancelled the campaign to relaunch again at a later date.

We’re postponing our Kickstarter campaign. No, TSI is NOT giving up on Seven Dragon Saga! Quite the contrary. We’ve done some serious reflection and come to the conclusion that we can’t create the level of RPG today that we know we’ll be able to create tomorrow.

Given its heritage, SDS needs to set a new standard for the RPG genre. Not a style over substance’ AAA standard. A standard that delivers a fresh, compelling and truly satisfying RPG experience. SDS deserves no less. And that goes for you too, our wonderful, loyal supporters.

We launched this campaign at "veteran difficulty" (what some call "a high funding goal") because wanted to be sure that we would do SDS justice. We knew there would be a lot of you that remembered the classics or would appreciate our efforts to build a fresh RPG, but we underestimated how much new content we'd need to show in the middle of the campaign to engage people that were less familiar with the older games.

We'd thought we could talk about core mechanics when it is clear that you want to actually see those mechanics in action. We need to show off more than we had ready right now. There came a point where it became more tell than show.

We've had incredibly positive results from this Kickstarter. The press awareness, fan response, and community feedback has been tremendous. We're taking that feedback and what we've learned to refine our work further. We'll be coming back as soon as humanly possible, with a better, more refined Kickstarter, and some code you'll actually be able to play, along with killer videos and artwork.

Once again, we are extremely grateful for all of your encouragement and support. We will continue to follow our progress by signing up for our newsletter on our website: http://www.tsi-games.com/ and by following us on social media. This way, you can hear about our Kickstarter re-launch when it happens. And it WILL happen!

More information.

Couchpotato · March 24, 2015

Nice to see they listened to backers and took feedback. So I wish them good luck when the game relaunches, and hope they do share more videos & a tech demo.

Gilliatt said:
Their videos may have been lacking, but they are experienced people who can deliver, and their game philosophy was pretty well explained in the text descriptions. I just hope it's not because people were too lazy to read and only watched the videos.

I must be lazy then as Larian spoiled me with video updates. :biggrin:

greywolf00 · March 24, 2015

Sounds like they're pulling it for a good reason. I expect a relaunched campaign could potentially pull in more money in the long run giving us a better game, and I won't complain about that. Will back them again whenever they relaunch.

Alaric · March 24, 2015

I'll also back again. I'm looking forward to seeing what they return with. Now I would love it if everyone who was pledging to this game would go support Dungeons Of Aledorn, because I think it deserves to be made.

Humanity has risen! · March 24, 2015

It was the good call. More of the game's various features and systems indeed needed to be shown.

On the other hand, it's a shame that Brian Fargo and Tim Cain can just appear on a screen and say "my awesome game will be awesome!" and show absolutely nothing but a bit of concept art (if that) and still gather millions.

crpgnut · March 24, 2015

I didn't back it because I'm a show me type of guy (Lame reference to my State's motto). I'm glad that they're going back to the drawing board and are actually going to show a game next time, hopefully. I woulda been pissed if this made it and Dungeons of Aledorn didn't. Maybe some of you SDS backers would back a project that actually has lots of real footage, hmmm?

RampantCoyote · March 24, 2015

I'm glad they are committed to relaunch it. It sounded like they were the right people with the right idea, but they didn't know how to market it well. I should know: I'm really good at marketing badly.

They need to tell a better story (about themselves and why the game will be awesome... I'm assuming the game itself will have a good story). They need to have more stuff to show off to help people catch the vision of the game. They need to cater to a wider audience. And they need to have a better progression of backer rewards.

Anyway - I'll be happy to support them with the new campaign.

Gilliatt · March 24, 2015

Well I backed them, so this is sad news to me. I don't really know what was wrong. Their videos may have been lacking, but they are experienced people who can deliver, and their game philosophy was pretty well explained in the text descriptions. I just hope it's not because people were too lazy to read and only watched the videos.

However, I agree with you Rampant Coyote (already mentioned it in another thread): the proposed tiers could be better.

And, for those who wonder, I have already backed Dungeons of Aledorn.

Carnifex · March 24, 2015

I'll be there with my wallet when they relaunch. I'm not sure it was the right call, but I respect their choice in the matter.

rune_74 · March 24, 2015

crpgnut said:
I didn't back it because I'm a show me type of guy (Lame reference to my State's motto). I'm glad that they're going back to the drawing board and are actually going to show a game next time, hopefully. I woulda been pissed if this made it and Dungeons of Aledorn didn't. Maybe some of you SDS backers would back a project that actually has lots of real footage, hmmm?

I haven't backed dungeons because I'm not sure of them as devs, but I did back this one…I will back again easily when they relaunch.

Gilliatt · March 24, 2015

I agree with you. Even though I backed Dungeons of Aledorn, I had more confidence in Seven Dragon Saga. I knew they could deliver, while I'm afraid DoA is too ambitious. I hope they prove me wrong.

rjshae · March 24, 2015

I think they could help themselves in the future by posting occasional progress updates, thereby generating a degree of ongoing interest.

Capt. Huggy Face · March 24, 2015

Gilliatt said:
I don't really know what was wrong. Their videos may have been lacking, but they are experienced people who can deliver, and their game philosophy was pretty well explained in the text descriptions. I just hope it's not because people were too lazy to read and only watched the videos.

I'm afraid that's it exactly.

Humanity has risen! · March 24, 2015

Capt. Huggy Face said:
I'm afraid that's it exactly.

This is why I'm afraid that Joe six pack will always win. Find a new niche like Kickstarter, and gradually the "new boss" is going to become more and more like the "old boss". At some point the stakes will become really high and it's going to be very hard to get any money if you don't have "awesome" content to easily impress onlookers.

xenocide · March 24, 2015

I'll be in for the next one, hopefully it generates a lot more excitement. These guys making this game have the potential for something special.

Obviously the kickstarter itself needs to be better. Also, they need to be in less of an incognito mode before the kickstarter launch. It seemed like they wanted to keep everything close to the vest and then let it out during the campaign. You do need to have some things for updates but you really need a strong start. Even after watching the kickstarter launch video it felt like they were trying their damnedest to not tell people about the game.

Shortly prior to the start of the next kickstarter they need to be out doing PR and interviews to build excitement so that when the launch happens lots of people are ready to go pledge right away to get the good start and build momentum.

Stingray · March 24, 2015

Humanity has risen! said:
On the other hand, it's a shame that Brian Fargo and Tim Cain can just appear on a screen and say "my awesome game will be awesome!" and show absolutely nothing but a bit of concept art (if that) and still gather millions.

Tim Cain's involved with probably the premier (western) RPG studio today, so it's not surprising in his case. Brian Fargo is running a studio that's obviously quite capable of making the games he says he's going to make, even if their recent games were pretty meh (and non-RPG). On the other hand, this "TSI" company has never made anything, and the guys involved haven't really done anything notable in decades.

That's why.

Zerotown · March 24, 2015

rune_74 said:
I haven't backed dungeons because I'm not sure of them as devs, but I did back this one…I will back again easily when they relaunch.

I did back Dungeons of Aledorn, though I can understand that sentiment. For me, the availability of a playable demo was assuring. Also, I sort of like the fact that, because of Kickstarter, teams without 'big names' can make a game I would like to play. For the small amount of money involved, I 'm willing to take the risk.

Curiously, the absence of an 'Early bird' tier is what made me not back SDS's campaign. I grew up with the Gold Box games, but nostalgia wasn't enough to instantly pull $25 or more out of my wallet.Maybe I've grown up opportunistic and cheap; )

txa1265 · March 24, 2015

I will be there to back them again when they return ... but at the same time I think they could have presented a more compelling case - like RampantCoyote says they demonstrated a mastery of bad marketing, a certain cluelessness that WE forgave because of who we are (core fans of what they are doing).

To me the difference between where they are now and when they relaunch will be very telling in how they listen and what we should expect.

Feist · March 24, 2015

A pity...I was pretty hopeful about this game.

However, I had a bad feeling about the campaign from the start. I tried mentioning the kickstarter on several different sites & forums, bringing up the whole "GoldBox-legacy" and such but almost invariably the only reaction was ignorance about SDS and/or indifference.

Hope they are successful the next time.

Gokyabgu · March 24, 2015

It's the right decision for them. From pitching video to rewards to goal this campaign did everything that musn't done in a Kickstarter campaign. For a game like this a proper Kickstarter campaign begins with a pitching video that captures that nostalgic feeling and the potential backer's hand must go to his pocket by itself (take Torment campaign for example). Even I hesitated to back this campaign.

The heydays of crowdfunding was long gone. If I were them I have consulted Brian Fargo about a successful crowdfunding pitching. It would be shame to waste this potential.

Seven Dragon Saga - Funding Canceled

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