Should we Kickstart the Past?

[Jason]

I'm all for crowd funding but I feel as though there needs to be more regulation of the whole system. Good thing can happen with it but it can be taken advantage of leaving the donators with not much to do in regards to a lack luster or even outright flawed end product... be it game, new egg cooking method, a solar powered shovel or what have you.

Taking a look at the current example of the new Bloodstained game... that's made its money in near record time, if not record time. At this point... we (the funders) are now at the mercy of the developers to give us the product promised.

Now, I am not suggesting that in this instance we're going to get taken for a ride.... but where's the incentive to take that B grade product and make it an A grade once you've taken in more money in the funding stage than most games make in their entire life time?

Say this new Avengers film (as an example mind you) cost $10 million to make, and they took it to the intertubes to get crowd funded so we could have our names in the credits, posters, soundtracks, bonus dvd footage and potentially even a spot as a Stan Lee lookalike in the film. But in that crowd funding event they bring in $70 million dollars. That's a lots o cash... but when we're comparing it to things like Mighty #9 and Bloodstains the percentage is really much bigger there. Now say anticipated take at the box office was only $30 million.

So you've make $70 mill and the movie hasn't even been made yet. You spend the $10 to make it and you got $60 left over. Who cares at that point how well it does at the ol' Multiplex.

Is that a common occurrence on the ol' crowd funding thing? I don't think so. Can it happen? Sure. Does it? Absolutely. The Ouya I think is a great example of that. The product fell well short of the promised product... but the money was made and all support from the developers blew out in the wind like so many Benjamin Franklins.

Not even to mention the infamous sandwich incident.

However... I do see a reason for it and I do appreciate it... and I even use it to an extent with my music stuff, hirts and coffee mugs and things like that. I think the burden has to go to the programs that run the funding like Kickstarter and indiegogo and now patreon being the big one.

I think a great method for that would be to cut off allowed donations (through the provider) at Goal +X%.

If I wanna raise $28 for dinner, I'm allowed to get $28 + 15% for a grand total of $32 and change. Anything after that I ever have to make a new campaign (30 days after) or just take donations via another source like PayPal or Dwolla or whatever.

Anyway... them's my thoughts. It's a good idea, but the people running the party need to keep a better eye on things.