Kickstarter Deal-Breakers (Poll)

[overgeeked]

My #1 reason for not backing a Kicksterter wasn’t listed, so add another “other” as I’d already voted for a bunch and don’t want to redo all the answers.

My #1 reason is: I won’t actually use the book. There are dozens of Kickstarters I really wanted that looked absolutely amazing and fit all my other criteria, but I passed on because the chances of me ever actually using the book at the table were either nil or so close to nil as to be indistinguishable. I made one exception and I’m glad I did, but no more. I backed one book for a game I love but the chances of me ever actually playing that game again dropped to zero, so I’m now “eagerly” awaiting yet another overpriced surface that will collect dust on my shelf.

 

[CleverNickName]

Top Five Dealbreakers (as of Day 2):

#5: AI generated images (41 votes)
#4: AI generated text (44 votes)
#3: Creator's personal reputation (53 votes)
#2: Product information page (57 votes)
#1: Product fulfillment history (61 votes)

The top two options ("Fulfillment history" and "Product info page") have traded places, but all others in the Top Five haven't changed position.

Bottom Five Dealbreakers:

#5, #4, #3: Product isn't exclusively 5E (3 votes), Lack of add-ons (3 votes), Don't do crowdfunding at all (3 votes)
#2, #1: Funding goal already met (2 votes), Not enough stretch goals (2 votes)

New Voting Options (collected from the comments):

• The product is for a system/game/edition that I don't like
• The quality of other products by the same creator
• The product isn't made by one of the specific creators/companies that I support
• Unrelated stretch goals (like hats and stickers being offered for a book project)
• The product is of no use to me.

 

[Longspeak]

Honestly... All of these can be factors, especially when there's more than one. But here's the reddest flags for me...

The crowdfunding page is slapdash or poorly-written.​

Right or wrong, if the page looks bad, or the writing is poor, or not proofed well... it informs my opinion about the project.

The shipping costs for the project.​

I won't pay Overseas shipping anymore. There must be a US hub, and it must be clearly stated for a European-based project.

The use of AI artwork.​

I've done some, but I look harder at other factors.

The use of AI writing.​

To help clean up writing? Maybe. To Write? Hard No.

Other, I'll explain below.​

Special Dice I Can Only Get Through This Project. - Pass.​

Overproduced Crowdfunding Page - I know I'm probably alone on this... but it it looks like all their effort went into the KS... I question how much they had left for the project.​

Certain Crowdfunding Sites - Pass​

Certain Fulfillment Sites - Pass​

​

​

As for the rest... There's a couple worth noting that work on me the other way sometimes.

Creator Rep? Some creators, all I need to see is the name and I'm in.
Struggling? If it's a worthwhile endeavor, and the price isn't onerous, I'll back a struggling project because it's struggling

 

[Clint_L]

I voted "Other" because I'm reluctant to back a kickstarter that has "unrelated" stretch goals. Such as, if you back a project to make a book, you'll also get miniatures, or other accessories. OK, I'll trust you to write a book - but do you really know anything about supplying this other stuff?

I'm pretty much indifferent to shipping dates - most kickstarters I've backed have been late anyway, and I don't need any of this stuff within a set timeframe (or need it at all, really ).

I literally just backed Reaper’s KS where they were offering a new RPG book, with miniatures.

Mind you, I only backed for the miniatures.

 

[General_Tangent]

I also won't back a project for a different set of dice. Back in the day I pledged for the Pulse FATE dice but cancelled my pledge as another project needed extra shipping.

Looks like I dodged a bullet there.

 

[Willie the Duck]

The poll title states deal-breaker and not red flags, so I answered that question and then also the 'explain below' option. My deal breakers are: AI*, creator personal reputation**, and products for which I have no use.
*At least at this point and the foreseeable future. I do not see a way to get 'ethical AI' and the direction the industry is taking is not looking like it will foster it in the future. It is still a rapidly evolving technology and marketplace, so who knows what things will look like in 5 years.
**All RPG material is optional luxury items, and I do not need a product (particularly one I just discovered existed and was doing fine without before) so much as to financially support people who violate my personal positions or sense of decency or the like.

As for red flags, there are a few. Excessive stretch goals or accessories tell me that the main product might not be as grand as hoped. There's no reason that a product shouldn't have an OCR-ed and indexed pdf version in this day and age. Schedules are a concern (too long, but also too short in that is might suggest unrealistic performance expectations on the developers part). Errors on the kickstarter page itself are not directly indicative of competence at writing game books (and I do not know how user-friendly KS pages are/how much the garble your existing formatting, etc.), but anything that speaks to 'I do not know how to form a sentence' are concerning.

An interesting option is track record with previous products. This one, in general, is the reddest of flags and overrides many others (a great product idea from someone I strongly favor means nothing if I don't think they will be able to deliver). However, if the creator acknowledges the previous failure, has an explanation (that is not a responsibility-dodge), and lays our a credible course of action they are intending to take for this next project that should (hopefully) mean a different outcome, I am willing to entertain the possibility of another chance. We want people to be able to learn and grow, after all. However, my default selection with Kickstarter is not-to-fund, so I do need a strong argument to sell me on a second chance.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Just saw this one today: Your PDF preview should not be "what is a roleplaying game," but actually show some mechanics.

 

[Gradine]

Me, seeing this thread get revived: Oh hey, I remember that one. Blast from the past!

Me, seeing this thread is only two and a half months old:

 

[dead]

I might not back a kickstarter because they’ve already achieved their funding and it would be cheaper for me to wait for the printed product to hit the retail store rather than buy it on the kickstarter. You pay full retail price for the product on the kickstarter (unless you got in at some early bird special) and shipping can be expensive so there’s not much incentive. I would rather wait and get it cheaper later (unless of course it's a bespoke publication not going to retail stores).

Also, when it’s a printed product, it’s important for me that the books are a proper offset print run and not just print-on-demand. Offset printed hardcovers are better quality with section-sewn binding and are more collectable. PoDs are just a digital run with cheaper perfect bound binding. You can buy these all day long from drivethrurpg. So if a project only offers PoDs, and has reached its funding, I would rather wait and grab it off drivethrurpg when I’m ready.

 

[delericho]

The truth is I don't have dealbreakers so much as I'm looking for specific dealmakers - if they're absent then it doesn't matter what else is on offer.

So it needs to be from a company with a track record of delivering quality, and of doing so promptly (I don't need the instant delivery @Morrus provides, but it certainly is nice!). It almost certainly needs to be from a company I've backed previously, which is a really short list. And these days it needs to include a PDF offering (and it does need to be PDF specifically).

That no doubt means I'm missing out on some real gems. On the other hand, it does mean I've never regretted backing a project.