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Victory Belles Kickstarter is Live!


nautilus

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...That was...partially what I expect. So, two point I'd like clarified:

 

A: "Free-to-play", meaning advertisements, micro-transactions or both? There must be some way this game is intended to generate a return on the investment, but the page (at least from my brief Ctrl+F shenanigans) does not mention anything.

B: $600+ pledge minimum for all ingame content? At least I hope the $1000 custom one isn't limited to just the one guy who made that pledge.

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Good questions, indeed...

 

A: Victory Belles will have micro-transactions, and no advertisements.

B: There will be 120+ playable Belles available to you in-game, including the custom Belle we create from the $1000 Tier. A $600 pledge will give you access to all nine Kickstarter Exclusive Belles - Belles from $250 and up are also unlocking exclusive playable Nations: Spain, Poland, Turkey, and Netherlands.

 

We will be announcing stretch goals down the line with fun elements that will also be available to all players...it's a great time to be a Victory Belles Captain ;)

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Micro-transactions ranging what costs? And how is it assured that the game isn't going to end up being pay-to-win or freemium (I think that's the term for "technically free, but good luck getting anywhere without putting down money" - there's way too many of them!)?

 

So, yes, getting all the ingame content is going to require putting down $600 or more on the limited available Kickstarter. Of those 120+ Belles, how many will be Kickstarter exclusive outright and/or assigned to Kickstarter-only nations?

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Same here on expectations. Got to say that the dating sim portion caught me about 80% off guard, though. Not surprised, just, unexpected.

 

Kind of surprised to see the Nazi swastika flag though. Not that I'm complaining, as historically accurate is something I personally prefer, but in a dating sim using the souls of warships I have to confess I can only think of one mindset any girl waving that flag might have there. Then again,I might be confusing historical use of a national flag with modern use of a symbol which only represents a dark ideology. Anyway that's ALL I'm going to say on that, and will happily defer to anyone on the subject.

 

I am really on the fence on this game overall. I like the strategy aspect, but I'm not especially enticed by dating sims as a rule. And mixing historical accuracy with pure fantasy is a pet peeve of mine, at least on this subject as I'm an ex-sailor myself. I can tell you guys put a lot of time on this, so I hope the best, and will almost certainly check it out in greater detail when it gets funded.

 

And it will get funded, you guys mentioned plushies in the video!

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My suspicion is that this game aim for a different audience then the core of the Academagia player.

Personal I might have a look at the game once its ready to play in a browser but even that's very unsure.

Anyway as mentioned before good luck on this as it is better to have 4 different things that earn BCS money even if this sadly means the continue of the existing brands delay more.

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Well, from what I remember reading, BCS was founded to tackle games that have been largely abandoned by the AAA developers. That requires delving into niches that are not really compatible with each other.

 

I consider myself a pretty open gamer with widespread tastes. Anyone who's seen my collection of movies and games would agree. I love Mr Mosquito for crying out loud. That being said, looking objectively, even Academagia is pretty niche. It just so happens that it's a niche I adore. Of course I wasn't thrilled with Scheherazade either, but I've softened up to it enough that I will probably buy it eventually. I expect that my feelings towards this will soften too.

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Realistically, we won’t know until we finalize the server costs to give the actual range for the micro-transactions. We plan for the micro-transactions to be for cosmetics or convenience…additional skins, resources, etc. None of which will be required to play the game or complete missions. The range will definitely be similar to other games in the market.

 

The nine Kickstarter Exclusive Belles were created in addition to the 121 Belles that will be available to all players.

 

The Belles take after their namesakes. For example, Scharnhorst will have traits of her namesake, the Prussian Lt. General Gerhard von Scharnhorst. While the German Belles serve in the Kriegsmarine, some may have concerns with the course their country’s leaders are taking. Indeed, there are also some darker ships that serve under that flag. Much of it depends on how you build relationships with the Belles, as you may be instrumental in changing their perspectives.

 

The dating simulation is not a required part of the game play. Similar to Scheherazade, a friendship path with the characters will be just as valuable as a dating/romance path. The choice is up to the Captain :)

 

And yes…PLUSHIES!

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We plan for the micro-transactions to be for cosmetics or convenience…additional skins, resources, etc. None of which will be required to play the game or complete missions.

Eh, I'm fairly certain that resources are, in fact, required to play the game.

 

M;

 

Well, to be fair, I personally think the premise is very significantly different in actuals, but that may be me. :)

I'm afraid I couldn't tell you. Thinking about it I'm certain that what I'm thinking of is (or is being mistaken for) a manga of some kind that I came across back when TVTropes' random button would still link to actual stuff's pages rather than just it's titular tropes. As well as before it got a bad case of the Ugly, so I've not hit that button in years. I sure as heck can't imagine how else I'd have found it, and as for finding it again...I got nothing. I'll try, but I got nothing.

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Fair enough, being able to buy additional resources is nevertheless indicative of Pay-2-Win and/or a Freemium system.

 

I couldn't tell you what I'm thinking off other than a mess of garbled memories filed away somewhere in the very large "file-and-forget" cabinet labelled "Japan". I'm still looking, though I make no promises of finding it again.

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Hahaha! I'll pm. :)

 

I don't *personally* think it is P2W, but you are right: if you choose to buy additional resources, you can pull ahead of other players in that sense.

 

Usually, when I think of freemium I think of games which require me to spend in order to defeat normal content, or allow me to buy equipment that has a huge impact on gameplay. There are some good candidates on my iPhone for that right now! :)

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I don't think there's formal dictionary definitions of the terms -_-. Personally I define P2W as the ability to purchase any manner of advantage, no matter how large or small, and Freemium as the ability to purchase your way past grindy aspects which otherwise leaves you on equal footing with someone that has the time and patience of a stone. Purely cosmetic items I don't classify as either, but it's nevertheless a great way to scare away old-school gamers who grew up during the days when such costumes had to be unlocked through skilled gameplay, not inputting credit card information. All in all I'm sure that Schwarzbart is right - this game isn't targeted at the same audience as Academagia's.

 

As for the maybe-manga thing, I got nothing and, to be honest, not a whole lot to motivation to keep looking. Suffice to say that seeing what some people decide to create is damaging my sanity, which incidentally is also the reason why I'll pointedly ignore the question of "why has the Legate apparently heard about it?"

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An IOS/Web strategy/dating sim with WWII-era battleship souls presented as anime girls...yeah, that'd better be right up there. To think that the craziest game I've actually played is...what, Rune Factory 3? I'm a few years out of date when it comes to insanity standards.

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Hmm...

 

Obscure doesn't really bother me. I do have concerns that BCS shouldn't overextend itself on games with microtransactions and mobile based gaming. I realize that the market does seem to be heading in that direction, but I tend to find such attempts woefully depressing. Online mainstream social gaming is to old style gaming, what a spoiled, snobby princess is to an actual human being. Perhaps that's the main reason why I like Academagia. It's Text based, and that is as old school as you can get.

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Now we're getting really off topic, but did you see Aviary Attorney? Because that's obscure. :)

No, but the bird thing reminds me of Hatoful Boyfriend. Which is not a happy comparison because that game is just...*shudder*

 

Hmm...

 

Obscure doesn't really bother me. I do have concerns that BCS shouldn't overextend itself on games with microtransactions and mobile based gaming. I realize that the market does seem to be heading in that direction, but I tend to find such attempts woefully depressing. Online mainstream social gaming is to old style gaming, what a spoiled, snobby princess is to an actual human being. Perhaps that's the main reason why I like Academagia. It's Text based, and that is as old school as you can get.

"Let them eat micro-transactions cake!" I believe the phrase goes. I personally don't think the market is shifting in that direction so much as it's being shifted in that direction, and people are just expected to go along with it or be left behind. Personally? Give me Daggerfall over some generic throwaway IOS game of "do you have daddy's credit card?" any day. I'll be the last person to call myself a financial expert, but I'm clever enough to avoid micros.

 

That I don't even have a bog-standard "use this to call people" cellphone probably helps.

 

Hahaha! Well, as analogies go...you can't beat that one. :)

 

Personally, I feel there is room for both, but they don't *belong* together: Academagia isn't, and won't ever be, a social game, for instance.

I feel like I should make a screenshot of that quote for the possible eventuality that Y3 is announces as an IOS Freemium game. Buy your own adventure for only $0.99, except the Kickstart adventures available only to backers that pledged $500.

 

I've seen worse.

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Hahaha! If you pledge $650, you get a gold foil signed invitation from Orso Orsi and an in-game BattleMace figurine that gives you +99 to win BattleMace tournies!

 

...yeah, that's not going to happen. :)

 

Fortunately, if there was an iota of desire to port, we couldn't: iOS can't handle a db of Academagia's magnitude...and cloud storage is much too expensive.

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