Path of Exile: Crowdfunding That Isn’t Following the Kickstarter Crowd

VentureBeat is offering an article-style interview with Grinding Gear Games’ Chris Wilson on Path of Exile’s crowdfunding campaign which helped fund the continued development of the free-to-play hack’n’slash. Here’s a snip:

Slowly, Grinding Gear sold Path of Exile. Wilson said fans pledged $2 million in April alone. But as Grinding Gear processed the numbers, Wilson said he and his cohorts noticed something interesting while 60 percent of donors were in the $10 range, the (diamond tier,) in which someone commits to $1,000 or more, was drawing plenty of interest. (We had 183 people pledge at this level,) Wilson said.

And the perk for these four-figure financiers? Custom items, like a sword that turns monsters into stone. Granted, this happens when the monster dies this sword wouldn’t turn the monster into stone on first contact but instead of the corpse falling to the ground, it would become a hunk of rock. It has no effect on the gameplay. It’s all cosmetic.

(The big thing is that people are please players with our game,) Wilson said. (Ninety percent get it for free. The $10 people have gotten their money’s worth. Now it’s about making it worthwhile for those who pledged $1,000 or more.)

([The diamond tier] people are paying to show off. We’re selling the free audience to them to show off to,) Rogers said.