Kickstarter Live for 3 Step Studio!

#1 woohoo! coincidentally saw this and became... first backer! :)

Wish I had more cash laying around.

#2 Thanks, Charlie!

#3 Definitely backing this. I'll post an article about it on my website.

#4 What, no TorqueScript?
It's the Devil's work! ;)

#5 @Steve: Lots of TorqueScript. It's just written already, and hidden behind MAKE GAME buttons ;)

#6 I've just pledged. Good luck!

#7 @Ronny - Exactly :-)

#8 Thanks for your support, guys!

#9 I see "Ships within the US only" on all the physical reward tiers. No hope for the civilised world?

#10 Yeah, it tripped me up as well. I wasn't really sure what I was supposed to do as it wouldn't let me proceed being in the UK.

Figured it out in the end.

#11 3 Step Studio sounds kinda cool, and I'm no expert in the crowd-funding phenom so I may be missing something, but I can't help but feel like these campaigns are not serious; $500,000 in 30 days is quite unlikely to happen. 5% of that may even be a stretch.

#12 Tweeted, with comedy comment :P

#13 Out of interest it there (or planned) an upgrade route from 3 Step to Torque? The way I see it you can very quickly prototype games with it however could then move to Torque for more flexability.

Need to back, will sort it out shortly as think it's a great idea regardless but you do need to sort out this US only business :)

#14 I will chip in if I can get these questions answered...

Looking at the descriptionI assume it's like iTorque, but not to assume does it make TRUE native apps for iOS or is this another HTML5 creator?

If it creates native apps, I would assume publishing to iOS needs Macs with xcode (not a problem for me, but want this answered for everyone else)

And will it allow users to put ads ie iAds in the created games?

If it doesn't have ad support and it outputs to xcode project, I assume we could put ads in at that level. Just started iOS side of things, been using other engines for Android.

#15 It is built on top of the new T2D update, which publishes native iOS, Windows, and OS X apps. No HTML5 converter. Yes, to deploy to an iOS device you will need a Mac with Xcode installed. Out of the box it does not have iAd support. A competent programmer can add iAds, but it's not not a process we would expect the typical 3SS user to understand.

#16 @Gavin - 3SS is built on top of T2D, so they share the same engine base, scripting language, and output formats. The two are only separated at what we call "the product level." To be more technical, the MIT T2D and 3SS will have different modules.

#17 Wow! Lofty goals! I hope you guys have some major PR planned otherwise you are not going to hit your numbers. IMHO the prizes are a bit on the weak side to hit such high goals. T-Shirt is a good prize, but should be at the $25-$35 level and you should show a screenshot of it to entice people. Beta access is a good goal for $25. Name in credits should be at the $10 level. The Art pack and Music pack are not good prizes IMO. That is not to say that they are not of value, but not things that I would pay money for at this early stage of 3SS. You also don't show screen shots of any of the prizes which makes people less likely to back your KS (especially the art pack). The hoodie should be its own prize (maybe $50). You guys are supposed to be shifting towards more of a service-based business model so why are you not giving away some of your services for the platinum level tiers? 3 days of the GG team working on my personal project might be something I'd consider shelling out some cash for. Maybe its a brainstorming session, maybe its a day of Melv fixing all of my bugs :) You get the point.

#18 Well... if we are giving advice! :P

@Bruno has some good points. But you have to be careful with the cost of giveaways. A shirt, after shipping costs and Kickstarter fees and Amazon fees, can eat into any profit. You'll have only good will.

Also, the video tends to need to really play up the fact that you need the public. Typically, the pitch is "because the publisher's won't fund such a subversive or niche product."

Finally, some of the more successful kickstarters have given talks, and they tend to say you really need that PR push and built-in audience. You might even need to game it a bit, somehow someway. :)

#19 Ummm, isn't this electronic plagiarism? You're giving people the ability to make what is already made and just change the graphics. It's no different then taking someone's essay and changing some words to make it your own.
I mean, i'm all for people being able to make their own games, but to me this is as bad as music these days. O_o
Oh well, hope it goes good for you. I love seeing indie developers succeed.

#20 @foestar,

Not to discount your opinion but, really? Plagiarism? I have struggled with this many times, many of my art techniques are based on work done by others. Heck, most of the stuff I do for T3D is based around Crytek developments. Additionally, I have had to submit what I thought was my 'original' work to sites like "TurnItIn" when it comes to school, just to find that I am not the FIRST to make the 'logical' connections.

If you think about it, most game styles that are out today are based on at least one tech or another. There is very little that is totally different. CoD is really nothing more than an advanced Doom clone, many 2D games are nothing more than Mario clones. Art and Story are the defining factors, these will always be what separates a 'good game' from the rest. I am not wanting to start a dialog/debate concerning this topic because it is one of those that can go on forever. (thus subjective) I am just stating that which I believe is a fact. If Garage Games wants to open the door for more indie developers to get a leg up, I say go for it. It can do nothing but get more people involved and by result, more stories to tell.

Maybe, perhaps, indie will no longer mean 'struggle' or 'broke'. Anything that let's someone tell their story is good. Once they complete a 3Step Studio project, they may even move on to more advanced engines, like T3D or T2D. I say support this, it's important to each of us.

This is just my opinion.

Ron