Generally, people back Kickstarters to get something out of it. Since the tier that usually gets the most traffic is the tier that would get you the game itself, this is immediately sort of nullified by the fact that the game will be free anyway. HOWEVER, it's not impossible to get a free game backed.marionettas wrote:Okay, is making a kickstarter for a free game bad? I'm honestly curious. Since this is my first game I thought that more people would play it if I made it free and the KS is only really there so I can get back the money I spent on commissions. I was planning to give away rewards like wallpapers, keychains and OST, but if that's still a really bad idea, then I wouldn't mind charging a little bit I guess.
I'm going to use Cinderella Phenomenon as an example. (I do apologize for linking another project in your thread, but these guys are pretty much a perfect example of Kickstarting a free VN done right.) It seems like there are two key things to their very successful campaign.
1. They had a previous following. Not necessarily a huge one, but their previous free game, Locked Heart, was pretty well received. This meant that they hadn't just come up out of the blue - they had a reputation for good products already and people who would be willing to support them financially.
2. They had desirable rewards. The most popular reward was similar to what would normally be the "game" tier - the $15 (12 pounds) tier gave each backer the fandisk, which will be sold for $10, in addition to HD wallpapers, their names in the credits, and a digital thank-you card. This tier had a total of 75 backers. Some of their higher tiers also included things like a digital art book, early game access, and a key chain set.
In the end, it all comes down to your marketing and planning your rewards. Even if your game isn't going to be free, a good Kickstarter needs lot of exposure and good incentives. The problem with Kickstarting a free game is that the second point is a little tougher to do.
I hope that was helpful! ^_^