Progress check?
Wed, 05/12/2010 - 09:44
It sortof worries me. I thought the idea of such a community made city game would be awesome. But, the forum seems pretty inactive. I hope to see some kindof of project check. At least to see what members are really active right now or what sortof effort has been made.
Though, I understand how this website is only a few months old and a progress check for such an event would seem quick. The majority of John's aritcles are just the basic concepts and not just for the game but for how to organize the community and hire the development team!
So, could there be a way to track the pledges? (Completely John's descision, such information is pretty important)
Can there a rooster of current forum members?
Can John set up some profiles for the most active members? (Like team players who help organize ideas and keep the community as one)
Fri, 05/14/2010 - 11:58
#1
I wouldn't worry; it's been a deliberate choice not to publicize the site too much so far. The reason is pretty simple: at this point, more members will do more harm than good.
Let me explain that a bit further: to achieve our goals, the project will need a large membership, at the *bare* minimum 50,000 to 100,000. So really, as far as starting development, fewer members than that is all the same. But as far as managing the site, it's a big difference: if 10,000 people suddenly joined the project tomorrow, the hosting bill for the site would skyrocket and the time commitment to keep things running smoothly would quintuple (and I already have less time to work on things than I'd like). But, we would still be barely closer to our goals.
While it's hard to have to wait, the project needs to grow slowly, or it will end up imploding from disorganization. Right now, the priority is to put the framework for handling a large membership in place: finalize decisions about the project's structure and write it's charter (even if we don't officially incorporate right away) and make sure the site has all the infrastructure it needs to expand.
So, to answer your questions:
-A counter for the total pledges already exists, but the decision was made not to make the information public yet (there was a poll earlier... check the forum.) I'll say at this point that the total is not huge, but the average per member is pretty solid.
-Making a forum roster is an easy fix, if people want. I'll put it on my list.
-Team profiles is also in the works, but I have less time to work on the site than I did earlier this year (moving to a different country soon!)
Sat, 05/15/2010 - 08:27
#2
Understood, by the way, in the future if the project does pick up steam and a devloper team has been chosen, could people really invest in the game and not just donate. People would be more willing to give pretty large sums of money if they get something back. (I haven't finished high-school yet, I am not an economist)
Sat, 05/15/2010 - 12:01
#3
They would be spending $20-200 for buying the game. $20 is to get basic features eventually, $200 is to get all their desired features quickly. I personally know XML and a little C++ if that is any help for modification.
Thu, 12/22/2011 - 07:37
#4
New to this site....Wow....this site is another proof that there is a great void as far as city building games.
But my suggestion or quiry is; has anybody thought of approaching a philanthropist?
I know there's a few out there that are willing to throw money towards positive projects.
Wed, 12/28/2011 - 13:58
#5
That's certainly a possibility... although it would take some of the control out of the community's hands. But, if it was open source that wouldn't be an issue, ultimately.