Yeah, because it is a valid alternative to publishers, investors or loans. Size of studio is irrelevant—if they want to make a game without having to deal with a publisher's bullshit then this should not bother you in any way.

Yes, irresponsible studios are seeing crowdfunding as this—that should not assume the worst intentions from any studio that does it. And do you think a well-received title matters in this equation? Well-received or not, it's not an infinite well of money that will constantly bring them profits years after its release. Do you expect them to pay the team a pittance in the meantime? Don't assume a studio's size means they automatically have the income to develop a thing there and then, and don't assume it's not just gonna run out within the game's development (which is usually several years).

There's a difference between not putting money on a crowdfunded project because you can't afford the risk, and calling crowdfunding a scam. And as I said in the above post, it's all because you (and in case anyone's confused and thinking I'm targeting one person, this is the plural "you" I'm using) focus on the few spectacular negatives instead of the many more positives—which won't be discussed anywhere anyway because the fact that they fulfilled all promises automatically makes them uninteresting to journalists who will keep posting about the few failures since it makes for a better story, making it seem as though they were the norm. That's what pisses me off about this whole discussion, and I wouldn't be so pissed off if it wasn't so prevalent that it drowns out all discussion about the titles that are trying to get money to develop a game in the first place.

Also, "I'm happy that you're happy"? Don't go condescendingly-implying I'm just posting this 'cause I like the game, this is several years' worth of BS comments from people around the gaming sites building up and leading me to finally get it off my chest and hope people finally notice how they're sounding like (regardless of futility). All I want is for people to quit accusing developers (ANY developers, regardless of size) of shadiness just because they're using crowdfunding. Look at a dev's history and make assumptions based on that—NOT the method itself.

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Okay, I'm gonna be the contrarian here and say I'll support them. I pledged for Wasteland 2, they were timely, they send everything they promised and more and as such they've earned my trust.

Seriously, I keep seeing this nonsensical, childish vitriol regarding crowdfunding in every single gaming site. I've pledged on a crapton of projects and almost all of 'em delivered: Banner Saga, Broken Age, Wasteland 2, Freedom Planet, Detective Grimoire, Undertale—and those are just the videogame-related ones! With as many books, comics, board games and the like that I've pledged to since 2012 (and even more that I couldn't pledge to but still succeeded in their goals and delivered in a timely manner) I have no reason to call ANY of these projects a "scam". And you should all be ashamed of adopting that mentality just because of a couple bad eggs.

Go see a doctor for that tunnel vision you developed—not even the majority of projects have issues. It's just that we only get news of the big bombs like Mighty No. 9 and its ilk.

For fuck's sake, people.

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I got Tiny & Big: Grandpa's Leftovers [External Link] on a sale at Itch (came on a bundle with another game [External Link] and a neat comic [External Link]. It's really good, and it even runs beautifully on my HD 7770 with the open-source drivers (it's rare for me to find a 3D game that can do that). Also comes with a Steam key in case you prefer playing it there.

If you haven't tried it yet I highly recommend getting it from Itch. And buy the rest of their stuff as well, while you're at it.

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Well, since you asked for suggestions I have a few (huge fan of what Itch is doing so I browse it a lot).

First, a game to keep an eye on:
https://darkfalzx.itch.io/mystik-belle [External Link]

The game's already on Linux for both Steam and the Humble Store (I have a copy due to supporting the Legend of Iya Kickstarter - dev gave everyone free copies of that and Ultionus [External Link] as an apology for taking so long), but the Itch version's delayed until he can figure out how to use Linux since he doesn't want to upload the old version there while the shiny new Windows version's in display. In my opinion it's a must-buy once the Linux version's uploaded there as well (though you can always buy now and use the Steam key to play it there, but that's up to you), and I'll probably be buying it a second time from there just to support the guy.

If you want a game you can play now, though, try GLADIABOTS:
https://gfx47.itch.io/gladiabots [External Link]

You'll need to start it with "-force-opengl" for now due to an Unity bug that's plaguing a crapton of games there (some of which have too many glitches with that on to recommend right now, like Lieve Oma [External Link] - keep an eye on that one in case it's fixed, btw). That said, it's a neat concept: program AIs to do stuff with a node-based system. It's in alpha stage, though, so make sure to post suggestions and report bugs if/when you find 'em.

And finally, I've yet to test this one with the Itch client but it's a neat HTML5 game:
https://naka.itch.io/tofu-tower [External Link]

Roguelike dungeon crawler with collectible card elements. A bit rougher around the edges compared to the other games I mentioned here, but still pretty fun, in my opinion.

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A couple more good games on Itch:

https://midboss.itch.io/rom [External Link]
https://kiririn51.itch.io/valhalla-bar [External Link]
https://woofycakes.itch.io/blue-revolver-v05 [External Link]
https://w84death.itch.io/tanks-of-freedom [External Link]
https://nihilocrat.itch.io/sky-rogue [External Link]

These all work, but for Blue Revolver you'll want to download the experimental one since the Itch client doesn't deal with .love files correctly.

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Does this release finally fix the issue where the desktop locks up if you're using it with the open source AMD driver? 'Cause it's been well over a year since that bug was introduced and the only time someone mentioned it on the forums [External Link] their response was basically "not our fault".

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Note: The game's also on Itch, where it's been available for preorder for over a year now:
https://kiririn51.itch.io/valhalla-bar [External Link]

Don't know about the GOG or Steam versions, but this page also has the original Prologue version from the preorders. It's pretty much a prototype made with an older version of Unity (doesn't display on fullscreen properly, sprites are different, etc) but it also explains what happens the weekend before the game starts so I'd say it's worth trying out. This version also comes with a Steam key and the Prologue's soundtrack, so if you prefer buying from Steam I'd recommend getting this version (assuming the Prologue isn't there as well).

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