Cthulhu help me, I'm planning on launching the Black Ice beta this weekend. That's right, this Saturday, March 15, I'm planning on going live on itch.io and Steam Greenlight. (links not live yet)
Changes are coming, so here's the rundown for the beta launch:
- The game will cost $5. This is less than a good cup of coffee!
- Everyone who buys it will get free updates forever
- I will not ever use microtransactions or DRM
- The price of the game will go up over time as I add more features
- Multiplayer!
- Steam Key when Black Ice makes it through Greenlight
I will still be offering a free version of the game, with the following changes:
- Player level will be restricted to level 4
- Multiplayer will not be available on the demo
Does $5 seem like a steal to you, and you want to give me more money? Well, I love you, but I'm not going to just take your money. I'm planning on kickstarter-style rewards. Here are my current ideas:
- For $10, you'll get a copy of the game, plus I'll put your name in it somewhere, like as a random hacker, or a corporation.
- For $15, I'll give you four copies of the game, because I know you have friends you want to play with.
- For $20, you'll get a copy of the game and you can help me create an original unique item, or class of normal items. Want to create 's B.F. Ion Cannon? Let me know!
I'm terrified about this launch, but also super excited. If you have suggestions or just encouragement, please leave it below, or email me - blackicethegame [at] gmail.
What am I going to use the money on? Two things:
- Paying for the multiplayer server hosting
- Buying Unity Pro, so that I can make the game better
For the $10 and $20 tiers, your name or item might be part of a big list of randomly generated items or names, and therefore not be seen often. The game is procedurally generated, after all. If you make an item, I will provide you with a cheat code to give you the item, which you could keep private if you wanted. Also, please keep in mind it may take me a bit of time to get these implemented (especially for items).
