Double Fine helped change the industry, and itself, when it launched its phenomenally successful Kickstarter this year. For Tim Schafer, the experience was eye-opening and changed the way he looks at game making.
“It made me unafraid of being open. I come from a background at LucasArts, the most closed company of all,” said Schafer. “It’s like Willy Wonka when the doors are closed. Lucas is a very secretive company because of all the crazed Star Wars fans out there. And the regular game development is like, ‘keep everything a secret and release it when you’re polished and ready’.”
“The Kickstarter thing and the documentary that we’re doing with the Kickstarter has just taught me that there’s nothing to be afraid of. You release your stuff, you show a piece of concept art that may or may not be in the game,” he added. “It doesn’t matter. People are just like, ‘Oh, that’s cool!’ People get on your side more, not get on your side less. The fear is that if it’s not perfect, you can’t show it to people because they’ll freak out. The fact is, they just feel more bought in. They feel like they’re part of the development team.”
