***Update 1 – 2017-04-26 – 18:55 CEST***

I (Robin Ek, TGG) was rather surprised to find not one, but two e-mails from Greg Pabich (the creator of the “Cheetahmen II: The Lost Levels” Kickstarter campaign) in my mailbox today. Why? Because it’s been years since “Cheetahmen II: The Lost Levels” was released (the game is said to have been released back in December, 2012). Nevertheless, Pabich claims that pretty much everything that I (and others) have stated about “Cheetahmen II” is false (the scam part). So I’m going to let you guys and girls decide for yourself what to think about this matter. So here’s what Pabich told me per e-mail today:

E-mail #1:

“You may be surprised to learn that your information about the CHEETAHMAN ll game being a suspended Kickstarter project is 100% incorrect If your intention is to publish accurate info to your readers you should know thatat no time was the project suspended. It ran full cycle, exceeded its goal and if you go to the comments section you will find that every single backer received their reward AND I don’t recall anyone who received their game complaining about the timeliness of shipping or the quality of the game. You do a great disservice to the gaming world by publishing and leaving up this totally erroneous info. “ – Greg Pabich

E-mail #2:

“Thanks for the quick response.

As you well know , the Internet allows for spurious information to become both “NEWS” and the “TRUTH” quite easily. And as you pointed out, “I’ve never heard this part of the story before”- well I too had never before seen your post, so no prior response from me either ( the Internet IS big.)

The project was fully funded September 6 with over 1,122 backers( I can show you the Kickstarter page attesting to that. )plus we had other orders from the website for backers who couldn’t use Amazons Payment Plan which pushed the total to almost 1,300 paid backers., most of whom selected the two game” Deal” . Unlike the notable fulfillment failures on Kickstarter, we started shipping the rewards almost immediately ( in mid December) and had generally 99% of them out the door at the end of January (almost 2,500 games and related items to 1,300 backers in the US and 27 other countries worldwide)

Were there a couple of lost in shipping, wrong addresses and shipping returns? – sure there were. No one can be perfect, although we worked hard to address any mistakes. Did some people lie and say they didn’t get their game -sure; did some break the game a month or two later and then claim it arrived broken-sure; did some people claim loud and strong they never received the game only to find out they never responded to the Kickstarter Poll to get their shipping address- sure. but all in all, I am proud to say that all the hard work allowed for an almost near perfect shipping exercise.

Now let’s also get real. Did we have a LOT of trolls, people who never bought the game, people who never emailed me to say they had an issue but ALL of whom complained, griped and accused me of all manner of things on the Net? SURE WE DID. IT WAS CONTROVERSIAL FROM THE BEGINNING AND MANY WERE ACTUALLY GRIPING ABOUT THE AVGN”s INVOLVEMENT IN THE PROJECT, ESPECIALLY THE LUNATIC ON YOU TUBE YOU CITE. (although I cannot fathom why, other than he and James have had a long running feud for years)

In the end, if you are being fair, a critical review of the Facts show a total lack of any REAL evidence. It all gets reduced to Trolling and a massive case of Internet Hysteria. “I heard, my friend said, some mysterious person contacted me, I don’t like the AVGN anymore, I run a You Tube site and need to create controversy to drive traffic, I never received the game (but I really never even bought it, I didn’t respond to the shipping Poll or I just enjoy screwing with people on the Net)” and on and on.

I even went so far as to publish an exact breakdown, to the penny of every expense it took to make a game.

In the end, WHERE’S THE PROOF?- WHERE’S THE EVIDENCE?- WHERE IS THE LIST OF THE 1,300 PEOPLE WHO DIDNT GET THEIR REWARDS?( don’t you think the net would be FILLED with an angry mob of people?. No, instead there are a couple of people (who have tried to poison the well- it happens on every project……

and buying up all the copies of CHEETAHMEN ll? What lamebrain could even believe that?” – Greg Pabich

So there you have it, and with that said. What’s your take on this matter? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section down below!

Source:
Kickstarter
Reddit
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I (Robin Ek, TGG) have had some rather mixed feelings about crowdfunding as of lately, and rightfully so. As it’s come to my attention that there have been quite a few video game campaigns which have never been finished (as in “never released”), and yes, I’m fully aware of the fact that there exists more than one crowdfunding platform nowadays (indiegogo, Tim Schafer’s Fig, Kickstarter with others). Nevertheless, it appears as if Kickstarter is still the favorite platform for a lot of game developers (especially indie devs) . So naturally, that will lead to more fishy business practices on that particular platform (more project creators = A higher risk of scams, canceled projects or half-done releases). That’s also why I’ve decided to focus mainly on Kickstarter and the risks of backing games on that platform.

So, let’s get the show on the road shall we? Well, right off the bat, it’s worth pointing out that even though if a Kickstarter project gets fully funded and ends up being released as promised. There is still no guarantee whatsoever that the game (s) in question will live up to the promises which the game developer (s) has made during the game development process (not to mention all the hype). In other words, you might just have invested your money into the next “Daikatana” game project (just take a look at “Psychonauts 2“, “Mighty N0.9” and “Yooka-Laylee“…). So it’s always a good idea to look out for warning signs BEFORE you toss any of your money into the Kickstarter snakepit.

Warning signs such as:
1. Very little to no information about the people behind the project in question
2. Questionable Kickstarter goals (for example, when devs are asking for much more money than they actually need)
3. Shady and fishy Kickstarter videos and Kickstarter pages (use your gut feelings and common sense)
4. No (or very few) project updates via Kickstarter
5. Dead silence from the game developer in question (no new trailers, blog posts, tweets or video updates whatsoever)
6. No playable demos throughout the whole Kickstarter campaign
7. The game developer keeps on asking for more money even though the project in question has already been fully funded (Tim Schafer’s “Broken Age” *cough cough*)
8. Peter Molyneux-like game developers (talks a lot, promises a lot, keeps very little)

Other than that, I would recommend people to check out kickscammed.com. As most Kickstarter scams get reported via that page. It’s also a wise idea to always do background checks on the people behind the project that you intend to back with your money on Kickstarter (do they have a history of breaking promises and deadlines? What games have they worked on before? And so on). Well, I think you get the idea. So let’s take a look at some recent examples of some rather fishy Kickstarter campaigns in the world of games:

But I love you – A dating simulator game by Gorshatastic! (+43,000 USD)

As seen in the pictures above, Gorshatastic’s dating simulator “But I love You” collected over 43,000 USD via Kickstarter, and the game should have been released back in 2015 (February). However, the game is nowhere to be seen…And the latest game updated was posted in May last year (2016). Furthermore, there are quite a few unhappy and angry backers of the game out there… And by the looks of the comments between the backers and the developers, I have to say that things don’t exactly look very promising for “But I love You”:

“For those of you who want to get in touch with her through other social platforms, there are a number of results here: https://www.google.com/#q=Mel+Gorsha
I don’t use social networks (apart from LinkedIn), so this is not an avenue for me. But it might be useful to let others who might back or hire her know what they are getting into. She has another game – http://www.novellagaming.com/geed/ – which she solicited funds for through GoFundMe. Also never completed or delivered.

It appears that “Mel Gorsha” is the stage name for Melissa Korkuc, who is the project creator here and elsewhere. So you may have luck with that name as well.
It’s one thing to promise and not deliver on your first effort. It’s quite another thing to do so in serial fashion.” – Howard Kistler (Super backer)

Scale – A  FPS reality manipulation game by Steve Swink (+100,000 USD)

Then we got Steve Swink’s FPS reality manipulation game “Scale“, which cashed in over 100,000 USD on Kickstarter in 2013 (November). Well, the game should have been released in December 2014. In other words, the game is almost three years behind in its original release schedule…And there seems to be an conflict of interest case involved between Steve Swink (the game developer behind “Scale”) and Jessica Conditt (Engadget Senior Reporter) as well. Furthermore, Scale’s latest updated was published back in December last year (2016). So I fully understand the backers concern and anger, and speaking of which. The backers of “Scale” sure showed their anger in the comment section on Scale’s Kickstarter page:

“Lots of overly nasty comments here, but I have to say, this is probably the worst Kickstarter fulfillment I’ve ever seen. And the first project I ever backed was Exploding Rabbit’s Super Retro Squad, which raised $30,000 only for the developers to promptly lease a house with it (purportedly so the development team could both live and work together). The project tanked because they grossly underestimated the work it took to make a full game, their only pedigree being a few Flash games, the most famous of which relied entirely on assets from existing games. Eventually, it became a one-man project, the game’s concept completely changed, and tons of backers got refunds. But you know what? They COMMUNICATED WITH THEIR BACKERS. When they made mistakes, they ADMITTED them. They had to refund thousands of dollars, but they COMPLIED WITH KICKSTARTER POLICY.

And Jay occasionally still sends backers (the ones who stuck around) updates on the new game, which obviously isn’t going to be what we paid for, but at least it’s something. Steve, I have no doubt you care about this game, but you HAVE to communicate with us. I suspect it’s out of fear that we’ll be upset with your progress, but someone literally said down there that he wished you were dead in a ditch somewhere. Whatever response we have can’t be worse than that. This radio silence is making people think you decided to take the money and run, and while I have faith that you aren’t that awful, you’re not giving much solid evidence to the contrary.” – Luke Fowler, a Kickstarter backer

So only time will tell how this Kickstarter story will end.

“Grapple Knight” – A 2D platformer by Red Knight Games (+12,000 AUD)

Then last, but not least. We got Red Knight Games 2D platformer “Grapple Knight”, a game that collected 12,000 AUD via Kickstarter back in December, 2013. Well, the game should have been released for over three years ago (2013, December). So the game appears to be stuck in limbo, and the lack of new updates by the developer just makes the matter even worse. I also found this rather worrisome comment by  Red Knight Games themselves (it’s dated to the 15th of August, 2014):

“Thanks for the comments guys! We haven’t been able to follow-up on an update as planned since development hasn’t been going as smooth as we’d like. Currently dealing with personal and financial issues that some of our team members are undergoing. However we do have an update cooking and hope to have it out by the next week :)” – Red Knight Games – Dated August 15th, 2014

And as if that wasn’t enough, I also stumbled up on this comment by a rather upset “Grapple Knight” backer:

“Dear project creator, I would like to invoke my legal rights under Kickstarter’s Terms of Use: https://www.kickstarter.com/terms-of-use/oct2012
“Project Creators are required to fulfill all rewards of their successful fundraising campaigns or refund any Backer whose reward they do not or cannot fulfill.”
Please provide a refund for my pledge amount.”– Steven Bodnar, a Kickstarter backer

So by the looks of it, some backers of “Grapple Knight” have already requested a full refund via Kickstarter. On a personal level, I totally understand that decision with no doubt. As I would have done the same exact thing myself. However, I’m not quite sure how Kickstarter’s refund policy work. Simply put, it’s hard to tell if any of the backers will get any of their backer money back (I sure hope so though). I’m also not quite certain how cases like this have turned out in the past (I will have to look into it some more). One thing is for sure though, Kickstarter won’t pay back a cent to those who have been scammed out of their money:

“Kickstarter doesn’t offer refunds. Responsibility for finishing a project lies entirely with the project creator. Kickstarter doesn’t hold funds on creators’ behalf, cannot guarantee creators’ work, and does not offer refunds.” – Kickstarter

Nevertheless, I hope that I have given you guys and girls some good advice on how to spot Kickstarter scams, and how to avoid being ripped off. So be smart, stay sharp and pay close attention to what’s going down with the Kickstarter project (s) that your backing with your hard-earned money (the same advice goes for other crowdfunding platforms as well, of course).

And with that said, what’s your take on this matter? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section down below!

Credit:
Just Lyle

Source:
Kickscammed
Case: Journo friends promoting kickstarter (Steve Swink appears to be friends with Jessica Conditt)
Kickstarter for the game Scale, by CubeHeart/Steve Swink raised $108,020
But I love you
Grapple Knight
Scale
12 Successful Kickstarters That Never Delivered

***Disclaimer***
This is a personal opinion of the writer, and it doesn’t necessarily represent the other writers (nor The Gaming Ground´s) opinions.

Robin “V-Act” Ek
Editor in chief
The Gaming Ground
Twitter: @TheGamingGround

More by Robin Ek:

• “Project Warlock II: Reworked Chapter 1” has just kicked-off its open playtest for PC
• The hardcore arcade racing game “DEATHSPRINT 66” is coming to PC via Steam in 2024
• The immersive fishing & Boating sim “Ships At Sea” is coming to PC via Steam EA on May 9th, 2024
• “Final Fantasy VII Rebirth” is now available for the PS5 worldwide
• The charming golf adventure game “Golfinite” is now available for the Nintendo Switch

Tags: But I love you, Grapple Knight, Indie games, Kickstarter, Scale