Kickstarter has raised over $500 million for games. Over half a billion dollars. I still remember the before time—2010, when crowdfunding was asking your mates to chip in for one last pint.
An infographic released by Kickstarter to mark the occasion reveals that $265m went on tabletop games, kicked off by the infamous Cards Against Humanity. £49 million was given to 'other' gaming projects, leaving $186 million for videogames.
I'd forgotten how many massive games had their start in the pockets of the people: Elite Dangerous, Shadowrun Returns, Broken Age and Pillars of Eternity to name very few.
The question is, now that crowdfunding isn't a novelty in itself, how long will the next $500m take? And when it comes, will the honour roll be be awash with innovative indies or dominated by the same big names?
Gabe Newell's cult of personality is intense, but a Valve exec who worked with him says his superpower is how he 'delighted in people on the team just being really good at what they did'
One of Valve's original executives shares a very simple secret to its success: 'You can't use up your credibility' by trying to make bad games work
