Barons Of The Galaxy's Kickstarter Is Now Live
Barons of the Galaxy's previously-previewed Kickstarter campaign is now live, as previously announced. The Kickstarter goal is a mere $6000 and the game is mostly complete. This Kickstarter is being run in order to fund improved art assets—they've even found an artist they want to hire already!
As for the game, Barons of the Galaxy is a free-to-play MMORTS with an optional subscription instead of a cash shop. It focuses on the economic and political aspects of the genre. Players found a corporation and begin to enter various industries by building factories and other buildings in cities that they share with other players.
From what I can see on the Kickstarter page, the developers pride themselves on allowing players with both big and small empires to have an impact. Larger corporations will see "more resistance [...] from the game mechanics." Players that have a strong suit in a certain line of production will be given more influence when deciding how to handle various random events. As the Kickstarter puts it, "players voting power for an event is determined by their particular industry which can make small players with the right product suddenly the focus of a system wide event and giving them incredible leverage over even the players who rule the star system."
The optional subscription will unlock "a few small limitations." The primary limitation is that players that don't pay for the subscription can't hold positions in government.
There are some stretch goals, such as "Commanders and Character Dynasties" at $10,000 and "a competitive team based capital ship strategic action game for PC based on the Barons of the Galaxy units and universe called 'Heroes of the Armada'" at $100,000, but I get the feeling that the higher stretch goals are not goals they expect to hit based on a note saying "starting to get REALLY optimistic at this point" that is placed on the line above the $100,000 goal.
If successfully funded, the game will launch sometime in the next few months. Backing for even $2 will grant you a month of subscription at launch. Backing for $10 will net you "a small but permanent bonus to your corporate headquarters." Beta access is granted at $25 or higher. A silver and blue coin will be sent to players who back to the tune of $50, while $100 will net you a black and gold coin instead. The rewards are a bit lighter than some other Kickstarters, but the goal is low, as well.
For more information, check out the Kickstarter page or the official website.
