Can Kickstarter Fill in the Gaps for Fighting Games? - Wiggy's Blog

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Can Kickstarter Fill in the Gaps for Fighting Games? Stuck

Posted on April 8, 2013 at 03:40 PM.

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After reading about Ring Kings, a project boxing management sim that is looking for funding on Kickstarter (interview with devs forthcoming), it got me thinking about indie games and how the fighting game space can leverage crowd-sourcing to fill the gaps left by the current crop of AAA products.

Ring Kings looks to fill the gap left by the Fight Night series by providing a deep simulation management experience built around multiple fighters in a stable. The Fight Night franchise has always focused on the style of the fighters and the flash of the action and less about the minutiae of managing a career. The developers of this Kickstarter endeavour have clearly seen what they feel is a missing piece to the boxing puzzle -- something that maybe AAA games would never have the budget, time or inclination to explore.

In this way, Kickstarter (and similar ideas like Steam Greenlight and Indiegogo) provide a great chance for elements in fighting games that have been neglected or cast aside to become full-fledged ideas. By unshackling from big publishers and the demands of a large audience, smaller devs can focus on doing one thing really well, and they focus on areas of wrestling, boxing or mixed martial arts that aren't fully exploited in today's games.

An example of this also comes from Steam Greenlight's Pro Wrestling X: Uprising, which aims to bring classic N64 style (Aki engine) gameplay back into focus. It definitely is a niche to be filled, as this type of game engine isn't likely to make a mainstream comeback. The game hasn't made it past the approval process yet, but it has been released in beta form for users to try out (and donate, if they wish).

I could see a lot of intriguing products for the sports fighting game space that could be realized through crowd-sourcing. All three of the games in the genre (wrestling, boxing and MMA) are perfect for simulation games, whether that's in a booker role in wrestling or as a promoter in boxing or as a trainer in MMA. Independent games in this genre also allow for deeper creation features, since indie devs have the ultimate asset -- time -- and they aren't constrained by limited art libraries or corporate mandates.

The problem with crowd-sourcing these types of ideas, much like many other independent ventures, is that it's really hard to create a critical mass, even in a small way. When some area of wrestling, boxing or MMA games is being blown out into its own game via Kickstarer or the like, it's hard to relay that effectively to potential backers. How do you get users excited for something they've never really seen a good example of? Or if they have seen it before, how do you remind them of why they liked it? Also: how do you convince supporters that this focus is something that will actually matter in today's gaming landscape?

At the end of the day, it's good that indie developers have options for making games that wouldn't see the light of day if AAA publishers had complete control. There's always a market for products that focus on smaller, denser or less flashy aspects of sports fighting games, but the challenge comes from actually reaching those users with a message that resonates with them, either through nostalgia or uniqueness.

Comments

# 1 SHAKYR @ Apr 8

Great write up, I was communicating with one of the producers last week. I told him he has my full support. Ring Kings seem like it's going to have the depth I was pushing the Fight Night producers to add to the Fight Night series.
I think Kickstarter could be a good way to go for fighting games. It could be a win-win for fans and developers.

# 2 kingsofthevalley @ Apr 9

Sounds good, but I'd actually need the depth of management and a 3d controllable environment to match before I'd put money on it. The game wouldn't need to be as deep as what Ring King is shooting for, but have enough editing and sim aspects to pass my bar. Another Hajime no ippo 2 boxers road is all I'm looking for. It has enough sim aspects in it but also an actual game to play.

# 3 dcal @ Apr 9

I wish Kickstarter could fill the gap for football games.

# 4 believeinnow @ Apr 9

There is such a small market for Boxing games that I really don't see this getting made. They are asking for such a large sum of money for something that is unproven. The fact that a larger developer/publisher hasn't already considered this should be a telling sign. They are also asking for a lot of money (over 500,000 USD) and the fact that they haven't even done 1% of there request is a telling sign.

At least OS is reporting on a real sports kickstarter rather than a made-up one. Too bad this will never be made. Maybe they'd consider an iOS app instead.

# 5 SHAKYR @ Apr 9

@believeinnow, the market for boxing is small for boxing because fans are tired of the arcade crap companies like EA is putting out. I have done tons of research, surveys and polls I have personally sent to EA. I have spoken to various producers especially ones at EA.

Boxing game fans want what Ring Kings is advertising. Companies and developers are not listening to fans. They give you something similar to what you said arcadey-like. I sent EA a detailed 32 page document with what true fans of the sport of boxing and Fight Night fans wanted 2 years ago. One of the producers told me casual fans were a huge focus. They wanted to pull them into the Fight Night series. It didn't work. Fight Night Champion sold below expectations and they lost many fans by wasting resources on modes and gameplay for Casuals.
Fight Night should have took the NBA 2K route when providing realism and detail to the sport.