Recession Buster! Micro Funding.
By Laurene Wells
There’s a new game in town and everyone’s a winner! Laurene Wells from Oregon and her Visions staff at Heaven’s Blessings Tiny Zoo are leaping at the chance and invite everyone to join them. They are creating a family friendly online game called Visions with an entirely volunteer team. The entire production has been created out of pocket after hours, often working late into the night, and the team collaborates over the internet from all over the world. As they approach their first beta testing release date however, they face some larger expenses, but they have found a new opportunity to raise the funds needed. It’s called Kickstarter, an online micro funding opportunity, and you can find their project here:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1799801709/visions-a-christian-mmorpg
There are a few unique concepts employed in this opportunity. The reward system gives everyone a chance to obtain a “piece of the pie” even at the smallest contribution level. The Visions project is offering such enticing things as extra game downloads, authentic ancient Roman coins (not replicas!), and even an opportunity to write a quest that will be included in the upcoming beta test release! The project only gets funded if they reach their goal, and the pledges are only collected if the project gets funded, but if they reach their goal everyone wins! The pledges get their rewards and the project gets it’s funding, and everyone goes home happy. There are no surprises, all the rewards are stated specifically on the page, so each person will know exactly what they are getting before they pledge their donation.
This opportunity seems a little bit like the Boy Scouts fundraising sales, only at a professional level. It is inviting the community to participate in the creation of something new and innovative that otherwise might not reach it’s completion. Supporters can pledge any amount, and they get something special in return that they can’t get anywhere else, something that is only available through this project. And they also experience that warm feeling inside when they know they have helped someone else achieve their dreams, that philanthropic gratification.
People who launch a Kickstarter project are participating in an opportunity to defeat the recession on a massive scale. Where every other business funding strategy depends on big corporations, with deep pockets, restrictive guidelines, and frightening gatekeepers; this funding opportunity is open to everyone with internet access and capitalizes on the grand scale of consumer interest. Traditional funding depends on corporate investors, and large banks. Kickstarter funding depends on individuals, regular citizens, to vote for their favorite projects with their pledges. Not unlike the scene in the movie “Ants” when they realized that they didn’t have to be ruled by the big grasshoppers anymore, that by sheer numbers they could conquer the grasshoppers and take over their home by themselves despite their small size, this micro funding opportunity works much the same where a bunch of people with a little bit of input can accomplish great things.
The Visions project is targeting their project to gamers who are interested in more meaningful content, and families who are looking for positive alternatives to the other games available on the market. Because the content Laurene is designing in Visions is such a groundbreaking concept in the game industry, and because the game is being produced by a Homeschooling Mom and a volunteer team, the traditional industry investors won’t even talk to her. But she and her team of developers are absolutely convinced that the game they are making is in demand by an untapped market of families, and Christians, and people who are interested in history or education, that they press on every day to bring this new online game to the public. The first public beta test is scheduled for March, 2010 which is right around the corner. But to achieve that goal they need funding for cluster servers, office supplies, and marketing expenses, which is where the Kickstarter project comes in to save the day. And the best part is, pledges have the opportunity to become involved in the project as well!
Visions is a family friendly Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) set in the ancient Roman empire, starting on the island of Cyprus. As development continues the terrain will be expanded to include more of the holy land as well. Visions gives players the chance to experience history. They will go back to 100 AD during the reign of emperor Trajan, experience the political climate, and learn a trade to support themselves. A great deal of research has gone into the design of the game in an effort to create a more realistic environment that will have educational value while the players are having fun. Visions is a quest and skill based game, meaning that the focus is on learning and improving skills as opposed to killing things to gain experience based levels. Their slogan is “A different kind of game for a different kind of gamer” which they believe there are a lot of people out there who would enjoy playing games with their family or friends, if the focus was taken off of killing and redirected to more meaningful interactions. There will still be enemies to conquer, possessions to defend, prizes to be won, and challenges to overcome, but the focus will be on achieving goals, not slaughtering monsters. The hope is that families and friends will find a common ground to play together, to strengthen relationships, and make the world a better place as a result.
The Visions project deadline for Kickstarter is the end of November. So anyone who wishes to participate in this opportunity, maybe use the pledge rewards for Christmas presents, needs to log in and act fast. Time is almost up!
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Laurene Wells is the Producer of Visions and owner of Heaven’s Blessings Tiny Zoo. She resides in Oregon with her husband and four homeschooled children. Her development team is located all across the United States, Canada and around the world, and they meet online via the internet. Anyone who is interested in contributing to the project as a volunteer developer can apply online or learn more about the game at www.visionsgame.com
Team Huck