Tag Archives: Crowdfunding

Train2Game News Sinclair smashes Crowdfunding Record

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Sir Clive Sinclair Smashes His Previous Crowdfunding Record in Less than 3-days

The Vega+ comes complete with 1,000 licensed games built-in.

Sir Clive Sinclair has smashed his previous Crowdfunding record of £155,677 in less than 3 days  – having achieved his initial target of £100,000 within 48-hours, the campaign to produce a 2nd games console,  called the Vega+ now exceeds the sum raised during the entire  2-month campaign last time round to fund the original Vega console. Contributors now have a further 38 days during the current Indiegogo campaign to pledge to secure a Classic Black Vega+ or a limited edition version – available in red, white or blue, of the new pocket size, fully mobile games console or a number of other perks from as low as £5.

The Vega+ is based on his hugely successful Spectrum products of the early 1980s. The Vega+ is the only games console that exists with 1,000 licensed games already included and with an LCD for you to use on the go. This launch follows the huge public and media support of the initial Vega product last year, and is the next step in the evolution of the Vega.

The Sinclair ZX Spectrum Vega+ to give it its full name takes advantage of major advances in technology to achieve big cost savings by replacing most of the electronics in Sir Clive’s earlier computer products. Instead the Vega+ uses a low cost micro-controller and some clever software to enable the Vega+ to run all of the games, 14,000 or more of them, developed during the years when some 5 million of the original Sinclair Spectrum were being sold.

The Sinclair ZX Spectrum Vega+ is being marketed by Retro Computers Ltd, the Luton-based start-up in which Sir Clive’s company Sinclair Research Ltd is a shareholder. The development and marketing of the Vega+ is under licence from Sky In-Home Service Ltd, who inherited the intellectual property rights to the Spectrum computers from Amstrad.  Development of the product is complete, and a fully-functioning prototype is ready to go into production.

The Sinclair ZX Spectrum Vega+ is as simple to use as any of the popular games consoles, but far less expensive. It has a colour LCD so the user can play it anywhere. Additionally, it can be connected to a TV so the user does not need a computer monitor, and it comes complete with 1,000 licensed games built-in. The user will also be able to download additional games free of charge from the thousands that are available on the web, so there is no need for users to pay any more than the cost of the basic product, which will be in the region of £100 from the company’s web site and from various online retailers and High Street outlets.

The Vega+ has been developed by Chris Smith, who is the world’s leading expert on Sinclair Spectrum technology and author of the definitive technical book “The ZX Spectrum ULA: How to design a microcomputer”. The design concept of the Vega+ is by Rick Dickinson, who was responsible for the design of all of Sinclair’s ZX computers in the 1980s.

Paul Andrews, Managing Director of Retro Computers Ltd, is a lifelong fan of Sir Clive’s products, and has himself worked within the games and media publishing market for many years.

David Levy, the company’s Chairman, is President of the International Computer Games Association and has been responsible for the development of more than 100 consumer electronic products since the late 1970s.

Sir Clive Sinclair says that the success of the original Spectrum was due to the fact that: “it was adaptable, approachable, very easy to program, and simple to use”. Of the Vega+ Sir Clive says: “The present surge of interest in retro products inspired me to plan the Vega+ as a handy games console which can be played anywhere.”

Retro Computers Ltd has today launched its financing for their new product via the Indiegogo crowdfunding web site. The funding will be used for the UK manufacture of the first production run, which will be for sufficient numbers of the Vega+ consoles for all those supporters of the Indiegogo campaign who choose the Vega+ as a perk, and to prepare us for the second production run. A range of limited edition Vega+ consoles and other related exclusive items are being offered on the site, including some special edition Vega+ consoles with red, white and blue bases, which will only be available during the Indiegogo campaign.

Indiegogo: http://igg.me/at/vegaplus/x/9227470

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqXhtTYj7Oc

Train2Game News New Crowdfunding Platform

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Today Fig announces the launch of its funding platform, which provides developers a new way for their games to be financed and produced.

Fig is the first platform targeted solely at video games that offers reward-based crowdfunding as well as access to investment crowdfunding. Fig’s aim is to provide a curated experience that strikes a balance between titles from well-known independent studios and ones from up-and-coming indie teams. Investment crowdfunding is currently limited to accredited investors only, but pursuant to a recent regulatory development, Fig plans to open up investment opportunities to everyone in the near future.

“Games are one of the leading sectors in rewards-based crowdfunding and continue to evolve the whole medium; Fig’s approach is to customize our platform to what works best for games,” said Justin Bailey, CEO of Fig. “This includes supporting investment crowdfunding where the fans have the opportunity to participate in the financial success of the games they help make possible.”

Fig received seed funding for its launch from Spark Capital, a top-tier venture capital firm that has invested in many leading creative companies including Oculus, Twitter and Slack.

Fig’s advisory board – Urquhart, Fargo, and Schafer – who have created some of the most successful rewards crowdfunding campaigns and game launches, will participate in the pitch process and mentoring of the developers using the platform. They will also be using Fig to fund future titles from their studios Obsidian Entertainment, inXile Entertainment and Double Fine Productions.

“Feargus, Tim and I have all experienced the many challenges of bringing our games to market and nurturing great talent along the way,” said Brian Fargo, CEO of inXile. “We’re proud to be creating an ecosystem that better supports developers and their fans in the quest to bring their passion projects to life—and we believe Fig will become the best option to get games funded in the future.”

For Fig, funding is just the start – plans are in place to support developers through the entire life cycle of their games. The company has already started filling its pipeline with prospective titles for 2015.

Fig’s first campaign, Outer Wilds, won the 2015 Independent Games Festival (IGF) Awards Grand Prize and Excellence in Design. Created by Alex Beachum, the title will be developed by Masi Oka’s (of Heroes’ and Hawaii-Five-O fame) Mobius Digital studio. Outer Wilds’ funding goal of $125,000 will give the team the tools to upgrade the artwork, polish the game systems, and bring much more content to the experience. For more information on Outer Wilds or to contribute, click here.

“We’re excited about this opportunity because, as indie developers, creative control and IP ownership are critical,” said Masi Oka. “Having a crowdfunding platform specifically targeted to games also allows us to reach and focus our marketing to the gaming community.”

Train2Game News Queen of Code Funding

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Female game developers and creators from across England have launched individual Crowdfunder projects to gain funding to make their great ideas a reality as part of Creative England’s Queen of Code campaign.

Jaspal Sohal, Head of Games & Digital at Creative England, said: “England’s creative industries are some of the best in the world, and we work to nurture this exciting home grown talent. Our partnership with Crowdfunder reflects this with initiatives such as Queen of Code taking centre stage.

“A widely reported 49% of gamers in the UK are women but only 12% of people making games are female. With this partnership we aim to put the spotlight on the creative talent of the female counterpart of the industry.

“We are incredibly impressed with the breadth of expertise shown by the Queen of Code campaigns, and this is really exciting for the games industry as a whole.”

Phil Geraghty, MD of Crowdfunder said: “We are delighted with the response Queen Of Code has received and the wealth of talent that has emerged from female game developers in England.

“Creative England has shown real innovation by embracing crowdfunding to distribute funds and reach out to new audiences. Queen of Code is a great example of how Crowdfunder is revolutionising fund allocation across the UK.”

The five projects to gain the most pledges and backers via their Crowdfunder campaigns will each receive £3k match funding from Creative England, a not-for-profit organisation investing and nurturing the country’s richly diverse games, TV, film and digital media industries.

It’s excellent to see deserving games designers get the recognition they deserve.

Train2Game News: SpecialEffect’s first Crowd Funding Project

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SpecialEffect SpecialEffect, the charity that enables people with disabilities to play games through adapted technology, have today appealed to all gamers to support their first ever crowdfunding project, codenamed PLAYING WITH YOUR EYES.

SpecialEffect aims to raise £5950/€6955/$9190 in order to purchase one new specialist Eye Control unit. This equipment will help many people with severe disabilities to enjoy and play games, levelling the playing field and creating a better quality of life. If they raise double the amount, SpecialEffect will buy two of these amazing pieces of equipment. Eye Control technology can be particularly helpful for those suffering from locked-in syndrome, motor neurone disease, muscular dystrophy and cerebral palsy amongst many others conditions. Together with the technical and medical expertise of the SpecialEffect team, Eye Control technology can not only enable people to access and play games, but assist with rehabilitation, build self-esteem and help create a better quality of life through playing games.

But it’s not all one way. In return for the pledges made by supporters, apart from the amazing reward of knowing that your pledge will help many people with disabilities to enjoy games, SpecialEffect have designed a range of rewards. Whether it’s being included on the ‘Roll of Honour’, being featured in the ‘Video Credits’, or a place on the ‘Virtual Plaque’, there are unique rewards available for all supporters. At the top of the list is being invited to visit for a full day at the SpecialEffect National Accessible Games Centre’ where supporters get to meet the team and see the fantastic work they do.

And here’s what a difference this campaign can make – “The look on Henry’s face when he first used the eye-gaze to control something on screen was indescribable… for the first time he could play with something completely on his own. It was a landmark moment for us as a family.” Rob, Henry’s Dad.

CEO of SpecialEffect, Dr Mick Donegan commented – “We set up, create, lend and support the use of specialist games controllers from our library of equipment. Everyone we work with is different. Some of the people we work with find it difficult or impossible to control parts of their body other than their eyes. In these instances we use computers which are controlled just by moving your eyes.

“The demand for this work is growing all the time, so we are asking the gaming community, who have always been enormously supportive of our work, to help SpecialEffect through crowdfunding. The PLAYING WITH YOUR EYES project will help us meet this growing demand and enable us to purchase this very special piece of eye-controlled equipment in order to reach and help more and more people with disabilities to play games”

The crowdfunding project PLAYING WITH YOUR EYES launches on Gambitious at 10am on 13th September 2013 and will run for 30 days until Saturday 12th October 2013 and you can watch the video and pledge your support here –www.gambitious.com/projects/3576

To meet the team and see with your own eyes the amazing work that SpecialEffect do and to try out Eye Control game playing for yourself, please visit the SpecialEffect team at The EuroGamer Expo between 26th September to 29th September at Earl’s Court, London.