This week in MMO crowdfunding news, Chronicles of Elyria caused an unintentional stir this week when Soulbound Studios posted that it still needed up to $3 million to completely finish the game. While it wasn’t exactly a secret, the revelation was still a surprise to many players as it wasn’t expressly stated in the Kickstarter earlier this year. Compounding the consternation was Soulbound’s simultaneous notice that it would not be granting refunds for Kickstarter donations. Studio boss Jeromy Walsh told Massively OP in a lengthy interview that the money raised through Kickstarter and pre-Kickstarter investment from friends and family is being used to create a minimal viable product and that while the company does plan to crowdfund using its website store, most of the remaining money will be raised through investors or publishers, not players.
Meanwhile, we offered up a checklist for how to approach MMO Kickstarting from the player end, Shroud of the Avatar launched release 34, Albion Online released its Elaine patch, HEX published three new signature decks, and on the planetary survival sandbox front, ROKH delayed its early access to next year, while Osiris: New Dawn swooped into early access and announced console launches for 2017.
Read on for more on what’s up with MMO crowdfunding this week and the roundup of all the crowdfunded MMOs we’ve got our eye on!
Osiris: New Dawn early access launch trailer
Recent MMO crowdfunding news
Interview: Chronicles of Elyria’s Jeromy Walsh on post-Kickstarter funding - Yesterday evening, following the news that indie sandbox Chronicles of Elyria hoped to raise an extra $3 million in addition to its Kickstarter funding, we reached out to Soulbound Studios…
Perfect Ten: Questions to ask before backing an MMO Kickstarter - I am not a big fan of Kickstarter in general, but I like to think that I'm not a big fan for actual reasons rather than spurious ones. Every time…
Camelot Unchained prototypes a new combat system - With PvP (and RvR) at the core of Camelot Unchained's experience, getting the combat down pat is undoubtedly essential. That's why the dev team has been working on an improved…
AdventureQuest 3D shares team projects, 360-degree box art - Ever wonder what each member of an MMO development team is doing? With AdventureQuest 3D, you won't be kept in the dark; a new post on the site listed all…
Tabletop-styled Stash enters Steam early access - Following two successful Kickstarter campaigns, turn-based MMORPG Stash went silent for the better part of a year as Frogdice worked to shape the game. It resurfaced earlier this week on Steam,…
Star Citizen’s dogfighting design is more about feeling right than being accurate - In this week's Around the Verse, Star Citizen's Chris Roberts and Sandi Gardiner tease CitizenCon -- now just a week away -- as team members from its global studios arrive…
Crowfall dives deep into the pint-sized Duelist - Good things, they say, come in small packages. If you prefer playing diminutive characters over hulking slabs of beef, then Crowfall's Guinecean Duelist might be making a play for your…
John Smedley says he exults in hands-on gamemaking with Hero’s Song - You might think that trading a position as CEO of a multi-game studio to work on a single, smaller, and most decidedly indie title would be a step down in…
City of Titans shows off fully modeled capes - Superheroes don't always wear capes at this point. There have been entire movies highlighting the need for not having capes. But it's just not a superhero game if you can't…
Shroud of the Avatar’s R34 delivers Halloween, culinary utility, and /pukeblood - Release 34 has launched for Shroud of the Avatar players as of this morning along with a large balance and polish pass for both the game's combat and its economy. Here's…
Albion Online’s ‘Elaine’ patch brings new biome and faction to beta - Albion Online might still be working its way through its final beta phase, but that hasn't stopped it from working on a content release. In fact, that content release, dubbed…
Indie sandbox The Exiled hires on a new lore writing team - If you've been thinking of The Exiled (formerly known as Das Tal) as a hardcore indie PvP sandbox where the players make the story, well, you're not entirely offbase in…
Osiris: New Dawn has launched on Steam early access - Enough slacking and lollygagging about in your humdrum life -- there's an alien planet that needs some serious colonizing, and you look just like the red shirt, er, brave adventurer to…
Mars survival sandbox ROKH delays early access to January 2017 - Fans of Mars-themed survival sandbox ROKH, I have good news and slightly bad news. Developer Darewise originally pitched a $114,803 US Kickstarter campaign back in May to hasten production of…
Chris Roberts interviews shed light on Star Citizen launch, ambition, and CitizenCon - Gamers Nexus has a lengthy set of video interviews out covering Star Citizen this week. CIG's Chris Roberts touches on alpha 3.0, which he says "will feel like a full…
Chronicles of Elyria seeks $3M more in funding - With the opening of Chronicles of Elyria's web store next week, its team is working on the next phase of the game's fundraising campaign. In a new update, Soulbound Studios…
Wild Terra adds cooking skill, Steam keys for early backers - What use is a sandbox without cooking and food? Jutvy Worlds apparently agrees, as it's adding a cooking skill to indie sandbox Wild Terra "soon." The skill will "affect the…
Grim Dawn delivers a sneak peek of its first expansion - A bonafide expansion is in the works for the multiplayer ARPG Grim Dawn, although a name and time frame have yet to be revealed. What was shown, however, is a…
Harry Potter lookalike Maguss Wand plans Indiegogo for AR MMO - Augmented reality MMOs aren't new, but we're about to see a bunch of new ones, propelled by the unexpected success of Pokemon Go. Case in point: Maguss Wand, which isn't technically…
ROKH trailer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x84rRsEeJXw
Campaigns and crowdfunded MMOs we’re watching
3001SQ (Société des Mondes Virtuels) – Kickstarter unsuccessful. Work continues.
AdventureQuest 3D (Artix Entertainment) – Raised 368k; plans October launch.
Ascent: The Space Game (Fluffy Kitten Studios) – Fully launched!
Camelot Unchained (City State) – Open donations/packages.
Caribbean Conquest (Invenio) – Kickstarter canceled (site has been taken offline).
Contested Space (Zon)
Crowfall (ArtCraft) – Open donations/packages
Chronicles of Elyria (Soulbound) – Kickstarter successful.
Citadel of Sorcery (MMO Magic, Inc.) –Â Open donations.
City of Titans (Missing Worlds Media)
Descent Underground (Descendent Studios)
Divergence Online (Stained Glass Llama)Â –Â Three campaigns; now in KS early access.
Dogma: Eternal Night (Prelude Games Factory): Kickstarter over, donor preorder packs.
Dragon of Legends (Thrive Games) – Successful Kickstarter.
Dual Universe (Novaquark) – Kickstarter live now, ends October 11.
Eco (Strange Loop Games)
Edengrad (Huckleberry Games) – Kickstarter funded June 2016; early access coming Sept.
Elite: Dangerous (Frontier Developments) – Funded and launched.
Empyrionn Online (Eleon) – Kickstarter canceled; launched on Steam early access.
Epic Space (EpicSpace.net)
Ever, Jane (3 Turn Productions) – Now in open beta.
Gloria Victis (Black Eye Games) – Open donations, no end date.
Greed Monger (Greed Monger) – Abandoned, multiple times now.
Grim Dawn (Crate Entertainment) – Funded and launched.
Guns of Icarus (Muse) – Funded and launched.
Hero’s Song (Pixelmage) – Kickstarter canceled; Indiegogo live, ends mid-October.
Infinity: Battlescape (I-Novae Studios)
HEX (HEX Entertainment) – Successful Kickstarter, now playable.
Life is Feudal (Bitbox): Indiegogo ended.
LUX (Chimera) – Kickstarter canceled.
Midair (Archetype Studios) – Kickstarter successful.
Neo’s Land (NeoJac Entertainment) –Â Open donations, no end date.
Novus AEterno (Taitale Studios)
Overpower (Hydrant Games) –Â Kickstarter unfunded; heading to early access.
Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen (Visionary Realms) –Â Open donations, no end date.
Pathfinder Online (GoblinWorks) – Doom, mostly.
Planet Nomads (Craneballs) – Successful Kickstarter.
Pixel Starships (SavySoda)
Project Gorgon (Elder Game, LLC)
Pumpkin Online (Monique)
The Realm: Reawakened (Stephen Nichols) – Ongoing GoFundMe.
The Repopulation (Above & Beyond Technologies) – In middle of engine do-over.
ROKH (Darewise) – Kickstarter canceled; early access delayed to 2017.
The Stomping Land (Alex Fundora) – Abandoned.
Sacrament (Ferocity Unbound) – Kickstarter failed; Patreon ongoing.
Shadow’s Kiss (Clockwork Throne) – Ongoing Patreon.
Shards Online (Citadel Studios)
Shroud of the Avatar (Portalarium) – Final wipe was in July 2016.
Star Citizen (Cloud Imperium) – Ongoing donations/packages.
TUG (Nerd Kingdom) – In middle of year-long revamp after funding surge.
Vigor Roads (NeuronHaze) – Kickstarter unsuccessful; early access planned for 2017.
