Funding Completed! Steam Greenlight Deadline, Stretch Goal #2 Details, and What's Next
Hi everyone!
So... wow. It's been pretty challenging to describe the feelings and thoughts we've had on this past week. Right now we're experiencing a combination of exhaustion from finishing the campaign, combined with the excitement to jump right back into development to get this game flying forward.
We didn't realize it until Rock, Paper, Shotgun (which we love, and not just because they keep writing nice things about us) mentioned us in their latest Kickstarter Katchup, but we ended up doubling our funding in less than a week. It was unbelievable, and a week we'll never forget. Thanks once again to all of you that felt for us in that final week, and did everything in your power to push us toward the goal!
It took a couple days to get our feet under us again, and we're currently doing our best to work through the flood of incoming messages and emails from everyone. The live steam on Friday was a blast, so thanks to everyone around the world that came by to celebrate the end with us! If you missed it you can watch the entire stream here.
Steam Greenlight by November 30th
We're now #29 out of 927 on the service. Getting in the top 10 by November 30th (next Friday) will allow us to be Greenlit and eventually placed on Steam!
Currently there is no other way to get on Steam, and it's going to take a lot of votes to get us there, so please go vote Yes and Favorite the game at the link below. Please also share the Greenlight page with your friends on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ since voting is free and it would be a massive help for us to launch the Alpha/Beta!
- Vote for Distance on Greenlight: bit.ly/SayYesToDistance
- Customize a tweet to help spread the word: bit.ly/ShareTheDistance
Stretch Goal #2
In terms of what we've brought in from Kickstarter and PayPal so far, here's the breakdown:
Since we've hit our stretch goal of $165,000, we're excited to announce that we'll officially be implementing random track generation! We're not sure when in the development cycle the stretch goals will be fully available, but we'll keep you up to date along the way.
Also, due to a lot of feedback we've gotten (and since we were only able to allow PayPal backers a few days to back the project), we're going to leave the PayPal page available with Kickstarter rewards for a bit longer. Once we decide on a new closing date we'll let you know.
Other Kickstarter Projects
We understand the incredible challenge of getting the word out for a Kickstarter, and we're thankful to those that went so out of their way to share our project, so we want to share a couple projects with you!
Ormr is a software project that has 9 days left with about 66% to go. It's an image editor that's focused on being able to seamlessly tweak and adjust any action you've performed in the past without redoing all subsequent work. We think it could lead to a big boost in productivity when developing any of our 2D graphics. Check out more details here: http://kck.st/Q4ecpW
Sportsfriends is another project we're excited about that's about 1/3 through its campaign. It's essentially a compilation of experimental social video games including Johann Sebastian Joust, BaraBariBall, Super Pole Riders, and Hokra. The developers are really cool guys, and we love how they're pushing the boundaries of what it means to be a video game with each project. Learn more about it here: http://kck.st/XnGQUX
What's next?
We're going to be moving these updates to the private discussion forums where we can bring together everyone from Kickstarter and PayPal, as well as make it easier for us share content. Kickstarter's update system is pretty nice, and I'm sure we'll use it a bit more, but it does have some major limitations on how information is presented.
We'll still be posting public updates on Refract's Facebook and Twitter, but backers will get behind the scenes updates and things to provide feedback on the private discussion forums. The official Distance forums are at: http://survivethedistance.com/forums, and we're currently planning on opening up a private section for backers. We admit that there's definitely some work to do to properly prepare the private community section, so once that's all set up we'll let you know. Until then come over, make an account, and say hello!
This week is largely a "catch up with the world" week for us, and we're putting together some plans for how we'll be approaching the upcoming months. As more details are established, we'll update you along the way! You can also follow us individually on Twitter since we'll be posting the most often about random stuff including what we're working on day to day.
- Jordan: @torcht
- Kyle: @kyleholdwick
- Jason: @cluh1
Keep being awesome, and stay tuned for more coming soon!
- Distance Greenlight: http://bit.ly/SayYesToDistance
- Back Distance with PayPal: http://bit.ly/DistancePayPal
- Refract Facebook: http://facebook.com/refractstudios
- Refract Twitter: http://twitter.com/refractstudios
- Jordan
4,174
Backers
$161,981
pledged of $125,000 goal
0
seconds to go
Funding period
Oct 16, 2012 -
Nov 16, 2012
- First created · 4 backed
- Has not connected Facebook
- Website: survivethedistance.com
Pledge $15 or more
2070 backers
Get access to the early BETA, the RELEASED GAME on PC or Mac, access to the private discussion community, and get your name in the credits level.
Estimated delivery: Aug 2013Pledge $25 or more
582 backers
SOUNDTRACK EDITION: Get a digital download of the SOUNDTRACK, a digital ART BOOK including concept art and production art, as well as everything from the $15 tier: the beta, the released game on PC or Mac, access to the private discussion community, and your name in the credits level.
Estimated delivery: Aug 2013Pledge $30 or more
145 backers
MULTIPLAYER MADNESS: Get 2 COPIES of everything from the $15 tier: the beta, the released game on PC or Mac, access to the private discussion community, and get 2 names in the credits level.
Estimated delivery: Aug 2013Pledge $35 or more
660 backers
SINGLE BACKER VEHICLE: Get everything from the $25 tier plus access to the special BACKER-ONLY VEHICLE: the digital download of the soundtrack, the digital art book including concept art and production art, the beta, the released game on PC or Mac, access to the private discussion community, and your name in the credits level.
Estimated delivery: Aug 2013Pledge $50 or more
230 backers
BACKER VEHICLE: Get 2 COPIES of everything from the $25 tier plus both of you get access to the special BACKER-ONLY VEHICLE: the digital download of the soundtrack, the digital art book including concept art and production art, the beta, the released game on PC or Mac, access to the private discussion community, and get 2 names in the credits level.
Estimated delivery: Aug 2013Pledge $55 or more
135 backers
SINGLE ALL DIGITAL: Access to the even earlier ALPHA, plus everything from the $35 tier: the digital download of the soundtrack, the digital art book including concept art and production art, the beta, the released game on Windows, Mac, or Linux, access to the private discussion community, your name in the credits level, plus access to the special backer-only vehicle.
Estimated delivery: May 2013Pledge $70 or more
16 backers
THE POSTER: A limited edition POSTER for Distance, only available via Kickstarter (see below for the preview)! Includes everything from the $25 tier: the beta, the released game on PC or Mac, the digital download of the soundtrack, the digital art book including concept art and production art, access to the private discussion community, your name in the credits level, plus access to the special backer-only vehicle.
Estimated delivery: Aug 2013Add $15 to ship outside the USPledge $75 or more
35 backers
DOUBLE ALL DIGITAL: Both copies get access to the even earlier ALPHA, plus everything from the $50 tier: the digital download of the soundtrack, the digital art book including concept art and production art, the beta, the released game on Windows, Mac, or Linux, access to the private discussion community, 2 names in the credits level, plus access to the special backer-only vehicle.
Estimated delivery: May 2013Pledge $85 or more
32 backers
ALPHA INSANITY: Get access to the even earlier ALPHA, plus everything from the $70 tier: the beta, the released game on PC or Mac, digital download of the soundtrack, the digital art book including concept art and production art, access to the private discussion community, your name in the credits level, the limited edition poster, plus access to the special backer-only vehicle.
Estimated delivery: May 2013Add $15 to ship outside the USPledge $100 or more
91 backers
THE T-SHIRT: Get a backer-only T-SHIRT (see below for the preview)! As well as everything from the $85 tier: the alpha, the beta, the released game on PC or Mac, digital download of the soundtrack, the digital art book including concept art and production art, access to the private discussion community, your name in the credits level, the limited edition poster, plus access to the special backer-only vehicle.
Estimated delivery: May 2013Add $25 to ship outside the USPledge $150 or more
38 backers
THE PHYSICAL BOX: You get a limited edition, backer-only, physical version of the game on a DVD and in a BOX! As well as everything from the $85 tier: the alpha, the beta, the released game on PC or Mac, digital download of the soundtrack, the digital art book including concept art and production art, access to the private discussion community, your name in the credits level, the limited edition poster, plus access to the special backer-only vehicle.
Estimated delivery: May 2013Add $25 to ship outside the USPledge $250 or more
19 backers
SIGNATURE EDITION: You get the backer-only T-SHIRT, the limited edition POSTER, and the limited edition physical version of the game on a DVD and in a BOX all signed by the team at Refract Studios! You will also get everything at the $85 tier.
Estimated delivery: May 2013Add $25 to ship outside the USPledge $500 or more
4 backers
FOUNDING MODDERS: The maps you design will be MARKED with a special GLYPH so they'll be highlighted and easy to identify, and we will provide you with early access to the level editor and other customization tools. You will also get everything at the $250 tier.
Estimated delivery: May 2013Add $25 to ship outside the USPledge $750 or more
1 backer Limited (24 of 25 left)
FEATURED BILLBOARD: We'll work with you to create a CUSTOM BILLBOARD that will be place somewhere in the city of the game. You will also get everything at the $500 tier.
Estimated delivery: May 2013Add $25 to ship outside the USPledge $1,000 or more
7 backers Limited (3 of 10 left)
MONUMENTAL AWESOMENESS: We'll work with you to come up with a SPECIAL MONUMENT that is placed in the city of Distance. It will have your name engraved in it and will stand the test of time. Your name will be featured prominently in the game and you get everything at the $500 tier.
Estimated delivery: May 2013Add $25 to ship outside the USPledge $1,500 or more
2 backers Limited (3 of 5 left)
STUNTS MAKE YOU COOL: We'll work with you to come up with a SPECIAL STUNT NAMED BY YOU that can be performed in the game. Vehicles in Distance can do all kinds of tricks and this one will be designed by you. You will also get everything at the $500 tier.
Estimated delivery: May 2013Add $25 to ship outside the USPledge $2,500 or more
0 backers Limited (5 of 5 left)
DAY WITH THE DEVS: You get to hang out with the devs at Refract Studios for a day! You'll be able to playtest the game in an early state and give us your feedback. We'll get some lunch and show you a good time in the beautiful city of Seattle. Backers must be local or able to travel to the Seattle/Redmond area. Your name will be featured prominently in the game and you get everything at the $500 tier.
Estimated delivery: May 2013Add $25 to ship outside the USPledge $5,000 or more
1 backer Limited (4 of 5 left)
CUSTOM VEHICLE: We'll work with you to create a completely custom vehicle of your design, and put it in the game! Your name will be featured prominently in the game and you get everything at the $500 tier.
Estimated delivery: May 2013Add $25 to ship outside the USPledge $10,000 or more
2 backers Limited (1 of 3 left)
FULL TILT ARCADE MACHINE: We'll build you a one-of-a-kind arcade cabinet for the game! This cabinet will be specially built to handle the unique controls for the game (see image near the bottom of the page)! Your name will also be featured the most prominently in the game and you get everything at the $500 tier.
Estimated delivery: May 2013Ships within the US only
Comments
Creator Jomskylark on November 20, 2012
My concern with shifting the announcements over to a private forum is that these changes usually cannot be pushed to an e-mail address. Would you kindly consider adding a subscription or RSS feature? I don't want to have to constantly remember to check the forums for updates when I can just have it sent via e-mail.
Thanks!
Creator Marsell on November 20, 2012
I agree with Atarun.
Creator Atarun on November 20, 2012
I understand project creators' desire to move their updates away from Kickstarter, but when you've backed as many projects as me, it essentially means that one more project falls under the radar. It is entirely impractical for me to sign up and watch every freaking third-party site, forum, blog out there...
So, for the big announcements, I hope you'll still paste them here for people like me.
Creator Damien1P on November 19, 2012
Backed ormr already. Hoping it gets funded.