No, I’m not making fun of Kickstarter. A small company in France called Little Worlds Studios have launched a site called Kickfailer to try to keep themselves alive. Their game, Mana Crusher, is a free to play game that can be finished without spending a dime, but they are urging fans to support them with an in-game purchase as donations to keep their doors open. Their ask is pretty simple – download the game and try it out. If you like it, show it. It’s the purest form of support with the product being essentially try before you buy. Here’s the long-form from the developers themselves:
We’re not going to lie – after 10 years of producing cool games and apps for all kinds of platforms, things are tough at Little Worlds Studio. The fate of our 13 staff is hanging in the balance, and every download of our charming and addictive new title, Mana Crusher counts. Available now for free on iPhone, iPad and Android, the hundred plus levels of Mana Crusher take players on a journey through a fantastic universe with a combination of logic, puzzles and card collecting. Our studio has launched #Kickfailer in a bid to keep the wheels turning via the optional in-app purchases. Every penny counts – download and donate today via http://kickfailer.com/
“Mana Crusher is free and you can finish the game without spending anything, but if you want to support us, you can buy something in game,” said David Chomard, studio founder. “Kickfailer is kind of like Kickstarter, but for a game that you can already play and judge for yourself. We’ve put our hearts into our studio and into Mana Crusher and the first reviews of players are excellent!”
Established 10 years ago with our proud white wolf logo, our studio is fighting to survive, and we are calling on players to download Mana Crusher and help the cause by making in-game purchases. In a bid to energize our players and fans, Little Worlds Studio has launched the revolutionary #Kickfailer initiative to encourage donations in the form of in-game purchases.
Who are you helping by supporting kickfailer?
Meet Dave. Dave founded Little Worlds 10 years ago. He has a wife and 3 kids. He is joined by Aurélie, Paul-Henri, Alex who has been with the team for 10 years and Raf, PC, Lio, Pascal for 8 years, and 4 young talents to bring a fresh, youthful element to the team. Together we have celebrated 3 weddings (including 2 employees who married each other) and the birth of 5 babies. We are a family and we would like to stick together!!
Each time we hit a new target we will do something fun to thank the players:
– 1,000 Downloads: the 13 developers will go out for a filling and nutritious meal at their nearest fast food restaurant (a kind of “Last Supper”).
– 10,000 Downloads: every player account will be credited with 10,000 Clovers.
– 100,000 Downloads: a new character will appear in the game: the Little Worlds white wolf.
– 1,000,000 Downloads: the game artists will create 10 new in-game characters based on requests from players.
– 10,000,000 Downloads: the studio will host a big costume party with everyone dressed in cosplay based on the game’s characters. Everyone who donated is welcome to attend.
– 100,000,000 Downloads: the developers will spend a night in prison on your behalf
Want to support Little Worlds? Hit up their site http://www.kickfailer.com and download, or nab it here on the Android store, or here for iOS devices. C’mon folks – let’s send these folks to prison!
Ron Burke is the Editor in Chief for Gaming Trend. Currently living in Fort Worth, Texas, Ron is an old-school gamer who enjoys CRPGs, action/adventure, platformers, music games, and has recently gotten into tabletop gaming.
Ron is also a fourth degree black belt, with a Master's rank in Matsumura Seito Shōrin-ryū, Moo Duk Kwan Tang Soo Do, Universal Tang Soo Do Alliance, and International Tang Soo Do Federation. He also holds ranks in several other styles in his search to be a well-rounded fighter.
Ron has been married to Gaming Trend Editor, Laura Burke, for 28 years. They have three dogs - Pazuzu (Irish Terrier), Atë, and Calliope (both Australian Kelpie/Pit Bull mixes), and an Axolotl named Dagon!
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