My Patreon Page...or, Fluent Begs For Money, Episode 1

Hello all!

I recently discovered Patreon, and I want to try and utilize it for my benefit. Here's the deal, I create stuff like YouTube Let's Plays, previews for the 'Watch here, reviews, retrospectives and more, and I don't currently get paid for this stuff. Ideally, I'd like to have some sort of income to justify spending every ounce of my energy, passion and love (which I do currently, completely for free!). So, if you'd like to help me live the dream and become a full-time game previewer/reviewer/Let's Player, then a monthly donation would be amazing!

I need better equipment, but I need funds to get there. I currently have no job due to some disability issues, so any money I make right now is precious and hard to come by. Therefore, I've decided to start this Patreon page in order to try to make some money to be able to pursue my dreams, which eventually I hope will lead me into the world of game design itself, to design my dream RPG. In the meantime, I want to write more reviews, do more previews, do plenty of Let's Play and do all things RPG gaming for this site, YouTube and beyond.

In order to do that, I need help, so even if you can just give a few dollars a month, it would be greatly appreciated.

I hope you decide to fund me and join this RPG dream journey of mine. Thank you for your time and feel free to comment, give me suggestions or even tell me to bugger off!

P.S. Check out my newest Let's Play for Neverwinter Nights by going to the 1st episode, here > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1UuEpFa3rs&list=PLhv3GvL8EaJEoVjHETlWCsoohGIrsO79H

You can also read my Gothic II article here on the front page of the 'Watch. May the RPG gods be with you!

Here is my Patreon page if you'd like to check it out or donate > https://www.patreon.com/fluent

Best of luck with it Fluent. I've always been tempted to do a Let's Play. One of these days maybe. I notice you mentioned Raptr. I thought it only recorded short clips but does it record as long as you like now? If so good to know.

Brian, Raptr records full length videos now, as long as you'd like, and it's the AMD equivalent of Nvidia's Shadowplay. In other words, it doesn't impact your framerate nearly at all, whereas other programs like FRAPS have a big hit on performance. Raptr's GVR service is perfect for me right now, because I can capture 60 FPS, 1080p footage, at a good quality rate. Also, since it's not lossless capture like FRAPS, the file sizes are much, much smaller and easier to work with. Encoding the videos I record with Raptr GVR takes only 20-30 minutes, compared to 2 and a half hours with similar FRAPS videos!

I should note that I was having a few crashing issues with Neverwinter Nights + Raptr GVR. It hasn't happened again, so hopefully it's fine now, and the support team was quick to answer me and open a ticket for me. But yes, it's a great little program. Not only does it track your time spent with the game, but it has all the community aspects, as well as the video recording thing. Very cool.

Also, thank you so much for your contribution! I really appreciate it. Cheers to you, my friend!

I just uploaded a new preview video of Avernum 2: Crystal Souls! I play it blindly for 40 minutes or so and talk a bit about the game and it's design aspects. I hope you'll like it!

If you like this sort of thing and want to see more of it, please consider becoming a Patron of mine. Together with your help, we can do big things! Thanks for your time and for your pledge!

I just updated my Patreon page with some new goals and thoughts, as well as a video talking about why I went to Patreon and why you should support me. Please watch the entire video, which clocks in at about 11 minutes.



Please consider telling a friend about my channel, or passing along the link to others who may be interested. I really hope you will consider a monthly pledge to me to help fund my goals.

Thanks for your consideration!

I appreciate your efforts, Fluent, but a very big part of the charm of RPGWatch is that we all contribute here on a voluntary basis.
Myrthos, Jaz, Gorath, Arhu, Corwin, ... are doing that for many years now.
IMHO we are only really independent, if we don't get paid for our hobby.

Well, I don't agree, HiddenX. I think it would be nice to be paid for our contributions, especially when that money would directly influence the quality of content that is created. I mean, a new computer, new editing software, the ability to pay people to help me, etc. New things in general would mean higher quality content for the fans and users here. And if I ever reach my huge goal of $10,000 a month, I would start my own RPG developer team and create the RPG of my dreams, for all of you to play and enjoy.

Also, I do Let's Play videos and lots of content on my YouTube channel. While I enjoy doing it immensely, it's a lot of time, effort and love I put into my work. The same can be said about my RPGWatch articles. I put my heart and soul into this stuff, and it would be nice to be monetarily rewarded for doing so.

Don't get me wrong. I love doing what I do, and would do it even without donations and monetary compensation. But I can't act like a steady influx of donations would not help me greatly. It would.

After all, my dream is to live a good life where I write articles, make videos, make music and play RPG games all the time. Why not support me to help make this possible? You will be the one benefiting in the end with higher quality and more content, and you'd be have the added bonus of knowing that you helped me immensely with your contribution.

I appreciate your input, though. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

I don't see anything wrong with asking for a donation at all, and I'm happy to donate to things that have value to me - when I feel I can spare something. I don't really watch "let's play" videos at all though, so… I much prefer playing games to watching other people play them.

I agree with Hidden about the Watch being great partially because it's voluntary - but I don't really see your videos as "Watch" property, so to speak. Maybe because I haven't been following them, sorry

Thanks for the comment, DArt!

I don't only do Let's Plays, though. I also do game previews, such as my recent preview of Avernum 2: Crystal Souls. I also plan on covering new games as they come out, such as I did for Raven's Cry a bit. My goal is to learn the games more, then make a detailed video displaying some of the design bits of the game. I made the Raven's Cry videos and showed off some gameplay elements and talked a bit about the design, etc.

I also do reviews, and plan on doing video reviews in the future. I also write articles on this site, I write reviews, retrospectives, as well as make mood music that I wish would be used for video games, television and film.

So, I do lots of things! I find it hard to find time for everything, but I focus on what I'm interested in at the moment and let nature take its course.

If you know of anyone who would be interested in what I do, please feel free to pass them the link to my Patreon page. http://www.patreon.com/fluent

Cheers (of the non-alcoholic type), DArt!

Fluent said:

Thanks for the comment, DArt!

I don't only do Let's Plays, though. I also do game previews, such as my recent preview of Avernum 2: Crystal Souls. I also plan on covering new games as they come out, such as I did for Raven's Cry a bit. My goal is to learn the games more, then make a detailed video displaying some of the design bits of the game. I made the Raven's Cry videos and showed off some gameplay elements and talked a bit about the design, etc.

I also do reviews, and plan on doing video reviews in the future. I also write articles on this site, I write reviews, retrospectives, as well as make mood music that I wish would be used for video games, television and film.

So, I do lots of things! I find it hard to find time for everything, but I focus on what I'm interested in at the moment and let nature take its course.

If you know of anyone who would be interested in what I do, please feel free to pass them the link to my Patreon page. http://www.patreon.com/fluent

Cheers (of the non-alcoholic type), DArt!

Click to expand...

Sure, I'll mention it around

Personally, I find I don't have the patience for video reviews/previews. I tend to read those - where I can skip to what matters to me.

I'm just too old for the whole YT craze, I guess.

But it's nice that you've found something you love doing, that people appreciate. If people want to donate - I find that to be an excellent arrangement for all involved.

I certainly wouldn't want to discourage it.

Thank you so much for the positive energy, DArt! You rock!

I totally understand when you say you prefer to read. I find that I am that way a lot of times as well, but sometimes I love watching a nice review video or something that talks about a game I'm interested in.

Take care, buddy! And thanks for passing the link on.

Well, another day and more content is being uploaded to my channel! But I wonder, what should I write an article about next? Would you guys like to hear about any of the games I'm currently playing?

Gothic II (already did a retrospective on this)
Neverwinter Nights - Saleron's Gambit Module (this would make an interesting article!)
OR, my secret game I'm playing next as well (this is an oldie but a goodie)

Or, would you like to hear about recent games? Maybe I can do some previews for upcoming games like I did for Raven's Cry. I'm open to all suggestions of what you guys would like to see, hear, read, etc. I'm open for anything so fire away!

Thanks to the people who have commented and supported me thus far. You all mean a lot to me! Thanks.

Hello all.

This is my daily entry into this topic. I'd like to talk a bit more about myself and why you should pledge.

At a young age, I was diagnosed with ADHD. I had a severe case, causing all sorts of trouble for my family and home life, as well as school life. I had an IQ that was very high (I can't remember the exact number, but it was certainly the highest in my fairly large school, and probably one of the highest in the country at the time), so I did well in school, but I always suffered from hyperactivity and attention span issues.

Anyway, these issues continued into my adult life, and even now I have some severe issues relating to attention span and hyperactivity. Not only do I have ADHD, but I have severe panic and anxiety that comes and goes, making it nearly impossible to hold down a normal job. I have panic attacks and severe anxiety around people I don't know, in public places and so on, so interacting in a normal job without heavy medication is an issue for me.

So, working at home is my best bet. My entire life I've loved computers, role-playing games and video games, and I want to try to make it a career. At least, up until the point that I can. I have recently filed for Disability benefits and am hoping to hear back from that soon, but ideally, if I could work at home and survive this way, it would be great for me. That's where you lovely people come in, to help me realize my dream and help me by supporting me by becoming a Patron of mine.

I don't want anyone to support me based on pity, though. That's not the point of me telling you all this. The point of this is just to show why I chose Patreon and the internet as my means of travel, as it were, and it's not just someone looking for a quick buck, but someone actually trying to build something great with the help of many.

Also, I have great visions for things in the future that I can do. I'd like to buy a good video camera and make web-shows in the vein of Matt Chat with Matt Barton and such, all based on RPGs. I'd like to have fireside chats where I wax poetic about various games and all things RPG design-related. I'd like to buy a new computer with the latest technology to make full HD (and beyond) videos at 60 FPS that look and sound amazing for you. With a new microphone and headset, this can be achieved. You guys who support me will be the big winners when I continue pouring all of my energy, passion and donated money into this pursuit of mine.

I'm just an RPG lover who wants to make a life doing what I love. With your guys' support, I can do that, and everyone will win.

Also, I have dreams of creating my own RPGs. If you guys know me a small bit based on my articles here, then you will know I have a very keen eye for game design. I have already started thoroughly designing my dream RPG, which would be a mix of Morrowind, Baldur's Gate, Gothic and more. I have taken ideas from all the classic, highly regarded RPGs I have played and synthesized something new from them. I could probably write a very, very long post on some of my design ideas, but suffice it to say that what I'm planning has not really been done yet, and I believe it is very doable with a small team of dedicated developers. I would lead the team, and I believe a goal of $10,000 a month would be enough to make the RPG of my dreams with nothing missing from my design goals.

So, this is another reason to support me. I hope to do big things with my RPG development ideas and create something new that we can all have fun with.

I'm going to stop rambling here and hope that this inspires some of you to donate to me. My Patreon page link is in my signature. Thanks for taking the time to read this and I truly appreciate every single on you. Even if you don't donate, and you just leave me a comment, or a Like, it's all appreciated.

Love,

Fluent

Fluent, just one question, not to steal your thread or anything. But these days there is some really good medication, that'll make life a lot easier if you have ADHD, did you try it ? I know quite some people who has ADHD and the difference when they started taking the medicine is huge, sometimes one cannot really tell they had it at all.

I fully understand where you're coming from Fluent, my wife developed panic and anxiety attacks out of nowhere about five years ago in her late thirty's.
Since then she has had to leave a great job working for a recreational boating company as a customer service/rep, and has now qualified for disability benefits which is less than a quarter of what she made working, needless to say it's all been very stressful(thank God for gaming).

She has tried several different med's but so far none have really helped much at all, we keep hoping though.

I like what you do and hope it works out for you, and if I'm able in the next little while would like to help sponsor you in some small way, at the very least I will pass on your Patreon page link at other forums I visit.

Warmark, I am truly humbled to hear that you will try to sponsor me. Thank you SO MUCH! It's people like you that are going to make a huge difference in my life. Not only will you just be helping me monetarily, but you're helping me make the steps towards making gaming and RPG-related activities a career of mine. Thank you!

As for the anxiety, I feel for your wife. It's very nasty stuff, and I'm in the same boat - none of the meds I'm on really help it much. I've been prescribed quite a bit of stuff over the past year and it's just sort of a "try it and see if it works" approach. Thus far, no real help. I still have paralyzing anxiety in public, panic attacks and general anxiety that is so bad that it basically makes working a 'regular' job out of the question. So, I am sorry to hear about your wife and I understand how this is.

All I can say is that she should keep trying meds and hopefully she will find something that eventually works. Everyone is different, so you never know what medicine is going to work for you. Your wife should remain hopeful and keep trying.

Gothic, I haven't tried any modern meds for my ADHD yet. I tried everything as a child and always had some severe side effects, so nothing really ever worked well for me. However, as an adult, it's been difficult keeping my appointments and getting treated for my ADHD due to my anxiety. I often have panic attacks when I know I have to go to appointments, etc., so it's a bit rough. However, I am going to make an appointment tomorrow for ADHD treatment and hopefully I will be able to keep it. Thanks for the words and suggestions.

Now, that aside, here is my newest video on my channel, and another example of content I will make that may be worth something to some of you.

It's a Gothic 2 video that shows off the new alpha version of the Direct3D11 enhancement mod, which takes Gothic 2 and updates it to the DirectX11 engine (is engine the right word here? Not sure). Anyway, I show off some graphical enhancements and talk about the potential of this mod going further. Check it out, and if you like little, random videos like this, then please consider becoming a Patron of mine, because I will be adding many more videos like this going forward, and they will almost ALWAYS be about RPGs, with the odd strategy or 4x game thrown in (but mostly RPGs ). Thanks!

Well, I certainly wish you luck at creating a body of work that people will wish to sponsor.

Since you describe your difficulties, I can say that I have personal experience with similar problems, and I have also worked with several people in comparable situations. My suggestion, for what it's worth, is that it would be a bad idea to create a totally insular existence, even if you can earn a living that way. It is essential to put yourself in social and work situations that challenge your difficulties.

Anxiety can be exhausting, and you have to allow yourself respite - you can't just plunge into a 9 to 5 from where you are. But I would recommend perhaps a low stress part time job, and devote perhaps fifty percent of your time to your creative ambitions. Removing yourself to a domain entirely your own is likely to worsen your situation in the long run.

Another day, another entry into this thread. Here's what I have to say about things today.

Perhaps you guys are into mood music...? Well, this is another reason to sponsor me and become a Patron; I make music. I am a completely self-taught electronic musician. I used to use vintage analog equipment, but since I have a lack of space (and money) nowadays, I do everything on a laptop. It works well for me, but more money and sponsorship would mean more avenues to use to produce my music.

I am heavily inspired by classic console RPG music. I strive to make music that game developers would like to hear in their own RPGs. I am influenced by everyone from Nobuo Uematsu to Jeremy Soule. However, I like to think that I have a somewhat unique style that focuses heavily on pleasant sounding melody and harmony.

Here is an example of a simple piece I created in my last heavy music creation period. I work in periods of incredible 'hotness' where I create track after track, day after day of full-blown focus on music. This is a track from that time period.



If you like this style of music and would like to hear more, please sponsor me by becoming a Patron of mine today with a gift of $10 or more per month. It would mean a lot. The more money I make, the better the resources available for me to craft things like this, and less stress on me overall to find a way to support myself. One less mental burden means more of a free mind for endeavors like this. Thank you.

I agree with Ripper, and wish you the best of luck with your endeavours.