Fleet Command needs your help...
13 years ago, one of the most legendary sci-fi games was released, and the space RTS genre took a giant leap forward in innovation and fun. Yet, somehow, nearly 10 years later, fans are still waiting for the next installment of the Homeworld franchise. We here at teamPixel, LLC are tired of waiting for the next Homeworld game and would like to rally fans together to bring the franchise back. The THQ bankruptcy has provided the unique opportunity for a new developer to license and helm the franchise and put Homeworld back in the hands of gamers.
teamPixel, LLC respectfully requests the support of Homeworld fans everywhere in helping us supplement our current company funds to license and produce 2 new entries in the Homeworld line-up as well as to revisit any legacy Homeworld games we can gain access to:
- Homeworld Touch (Android/iOS) - A remake of a legendary game with a modernized interface!
- Homeworld 3 (Win/Mac/Linux) - Indie professionals working together with the modding community to create a Homeworld that was worth the decade-long wait.
- Legacy Homeworld on GoG.com and Steam. Easier access for old and new fans alike!
Interested? Read on to learn what we want to do for fans and how you can help out!
Our goals for the Homeworld franchise
At teamPixel, our three-part plan for the Homeworld franchise involves the licensing and creative production of 2 new titles in the Homeworld line-up, Homeworld Touch on iOS/Android and Homeworld 3 on Win/Mac/Linux, as well as digital access via GoG.com/Steam to any legacy Homeworld games we're able to license as part of the production Homeworld Touch and Homeworld 3.
Homeworld Touch is a project that bridges the past with the future. We would like to take the classic Homeworld game and re-implement it on mobile devices with touch controls. We've been testing several prototypes, and we've found the experience to be incredibly immersive and intuitive. It's almost like touch controls were always meant to be available! It also goes to show how much technology has evolved to imagine that you could be playing your favorite classic on a pocket-sized device. We've experimented with Unity and Unreal for our past prototypes and are building a multi-platform framework on top of these engines that brings more innovative possibilities to a remake while still allowing us to stay true to the original game.
Next, it's impossible to ignore that the galaxy is a big place. There are many more stories to tell and gameplay opportunities to experience in the Homeworld universe. We believe the franchise deserves a chance to tell more of its plot and to innovate its gameplay possibilities. Other space games like Eve Online, Nexus: The Jupiter Incident, Sins of a Solar Empire, and many more have paved different paths for the space genre, but the most common reaction we hear from friends and fans is this: "I still wish there was another Homeworld game coming out..." Using the engine and our framework from Homeworld Touch, we would immediately follow-up with a much deeper and expansive production for Homeworld 3. We have BIG plans for this game, and in Homeworld 3 you will feel both the granduer of building an enterprising fleet and the awe of being just one part of a massive universe filled with diverse races and encounters. With you're support, we can make the 10-year-wait worthwhile.
Finally, we believe that the Homeworld franchise should be respected as one of the major landmarks in sci-fi and RTS gaming. To us, this means preserving access to the game for fans, both old and new. As it stands, a finite number of copies of the legacy Homeworld games are in circulation, and obtaining a copy through legal means is becoming increasingly difficult, not to mention the hassles of playing a CD-based game when nearly every entertainment medium is deprecating discs. Gamers deserve a legitimate and user-friendly way of sharing the game with friends and accessing their own library of Homeworld games. Bringing Homeworld to Steam and GoG.com means the series will no longer be confined to scratched CDs and illegal fire sharing.
Stretch Goals
If we can zoom past our $50,000 minimum and hit $100,000, we'll expand Homeworld Touch (iOS/Android) to become Homeworld: Remastered (Win/Mac/Linux/iOS/Android). We'll stay true to the original game, but give the graphical assets a well-deserved remake using our rendition's new multiplatform engine. How good can the game look after 13 years? One artist has an idea, but we would plan to push the game even further.
[Video by Leo Tierney who is not associated with the SaveHomeworld.com campaign.]
How you can help...
In addition to our own own private equity, lender, and investor financing, we're looking to the Kickstarter community to supplement our available funds for licensing and executing this project. Unlike a corporately-sponsored production, a teamPixel-produced Homeworld would be an indie studio undertaking which we believe will bring development closer to the gaming community than previous Homeworld productions. Our minimum goal is $50,000 to be added to our present funds, but we're hoping fans will help carry us beyond that threshold. This fundraiser is a huge opportunity for you to end the stagnation of a legendary franchise and steer the course of future games!
In addition, we're looking to the modding community for interested designers and developers to contribute to the undertaking. Along with our main staff, we already have a few modders in line to help, and together we can create a future for the franchise the fans have been waiting for while also giving the legacy games some well-deserved attention.
We are fans that love hearing from fans!
We received a lot of great feedback from fans during our IndieGogo campaign and we would like to continue soliciting ideas in addition to monetary contributions.
Facebook Us and Tweet Us (@tmPxl) to share your interest in the biggest ideas that have stood out to us so far:
What Homeworld products are you interested in?
Legacy Homeworld Re-releases
Homeworld HD Remake
Homeworld Touch
Homeworld 3
What platforms would you like to see Homeworld on?
PC/Mac
Xbox/Playstation/Wii
Handheld
Phone
Tablet
Ouya
Feel free to share any other feedback you may have!
Money-Back Guarantee
What's in it for you? Well, in addition to the rewards listed, we're offering every contributor a refund guarantee: If we are unable to license and produce the project, we will refund your donation. teamPixel will even cover any campaign fees so you don't have to.
Rewards and Perks!
Be sure to check out our unique Kickstarter rewards and perks listed on the side of our Kickstarter campaign. (Remember our Indiegogo perks listed on our Indiegogo campaign and our first pitch video only applied to our contributors during the Indiegogo campaign. These do not apply to Kickstarter contributors.)
To our existing supporters from IndieGogo
(Our IndieGogo campaign is separate and those rewards do not apply to Kickstarter contributors. See the new rewards!)
First, a huge thank you to nearly 500 contributors so far who have already raised $14,000+ during and after our original IndieGogo campaign last month! To this day, we're still receiving above-average donations from fans of that campaign!
http://www.indiegogo.com/save-homeworld
We've been working every single day during and after the IndieGogo campaign to continue raising company, lender, and investor funds. We expect to be a major player in licensing Homeworld for future productions.
Despite coming in below its financial goal, our IndieGogo campaign was still an unexpected success given the rushed circumstances: It generated several thousand tweets, over 25,000 YouTube views (with 100+ likes and ~75 comments), over 260,000 distinct Google Page Results of journalistic and fan commentary/discussion specifically about our campaign, and nearly 500 donations. These combined with countless messages from fans illustrate the multi-cultural impact Homeworld has had and the global backing from our contributors around the world!
All of our IndieGogo contributors will automatically be enrolled in the appropriate rewards tier in this Kickstarter campaign. If multiple rewards are applicable, we'll contact you for your choice when the time comes for fulfillment. The IndieGogo rewards do NOT apply to Kickstarter contributors. If you're donating again to reach a higher reward, we'll put out a survey to aggregate your contribution with your IndieGogo donation.
Our IndieGogo campaign was set to Flexible Funding because that gave us the option of adjusting its End Date based on the THQ auction. Unfortunately, an auction date wasn't announced in time, so we allowed that campaign to expire, but we're back with a more defined path forward.
Risks and challenges Learn about accountability on Kickstarter
We've done everything we can to shield contributors from any financial risk in this campaign (See our money-back guarantee above). While teamPixel is already deep in production of gameplay prototypes, Homeworld and its history pose a unique legal landscape which may complicate license acquisitions and access to some legacy Homeworld materials. Subsequently, the degree to which we can execute some of our goals also depends on THQ's legal ability to assign us the rights to do so given that the franchise has been handled by no fewer than 5 separate companies in its history. For example, while one challenge is licensing the right to make future games, we may have to renegotiate with a separate entity regarding reusing older game assets (i.e., due to music licensing, etc.) Rest assured, that we have been as involved as possible in Homeworld's legal situation and will keep fans apprised of any complications and our solutions should they arise.
FAQ
Have a question? If the info above doesn't help, you can ask the project creator directly.
