Planet PostModerna - Q&A with the Founder

After Yirrk's Question.. I have a question.

Why be a planet partner at all ? What's stopping you from creating your own RCE MMORPG.. and competing? We all know that MA needs competition, and personaly i hope Afterworld sort their gfx out, sooner rather than later !

But should someone come along, and create a game similar to Entropia, with a dramatic cut to the cost of play, i'm sure alot of EU's playerbase would transfer !

 

Hiya Sev,

Believe me, that had crossed my mind on more than "many" an occasion. It is a serious consideration. I am keeping my options open and lot really depends on the project as it develops (eg. development, finance, etc). Also, it depends a lot on how the Partner Planet program develops.

I hope that makes sense.

A

 

Was my question conveniently ignored?

 

Hiya Oleg,

Actually that was not my intent. :) Sorry if I missed that.

As far as the question is concerned, this is initially a volunteer project. Long-term that way? No. I keep track of all the time people put in and that will be converted to either ownership or monetary value at the completion of the project. Also, contributors will be recognized in the game in a sort of Hall of Recognition and Gratitude.

I look primarily for people that are serious and committed for the long haul but many just want to be part of a project like this for the experience and for a reference on their resumes.

All in all, it is a win-win for everyone.

I hope that makes sense.

Again, sorry for missing your question.

 

OK, so it's a deferred payment model.

I have to say that using deferred payments doesn't fill me with confidence in your plan. I've been involved with many projects using a similar template in the film industry, and most of the time the film never gets finished. If it does get finished, it is almost inevitably terrible (typically because people who work for free are usually unqualified, inexperienced, or just useless). In the very rare cases that the film gets completed and released, usually the people who have worked on it get screwed and never receive the benefits they were promised. I have been involved in films where the people who worked on it didn't even get a copy of the finished film.

Another common thing is the old "work on this one for free and it will lead to better, paid projects" - in these cases usually the director/producer changes their mind about that promise if they ever get given any cash.

Of course in every one of these cases, the director/producer is 100% certain to begin with that their film is going to win the Best Picture Oscar and will catapult everyone involved to superstardom.

So forgive me if I am cynical about the "win-win" situation you describe.

 

I think Oleg has a point and fits in with my experience. I worked on a magazine once writing some articles and doing some layout work etc. I did it as a hobby as my main job in real life was completely different, I like the arts and have a creative side that I wanted to explore.

It was fun, exciting and I enjoyed it very much. They had used a deferred payment model type thing as well but personally I wasn't really doing it for the money so it didn't bother me. Anyway after a few issues were done and sales were pretty atrocious the magazine was shut down.

It's basically a least risk approach for the person running it in terms of funds. If the project fails they don't loose anything. It's also prone to below standard results. It's the old saying you get what you paid for.

Having said that the magazine we came out with was pretty good quality and an interesting read but it's demise was the marketing. There was no effective marketing plan and without sales it was doomed to fail. If the owner had invested something into marketing it could have got somewhere...

 

In the case of plaent postmoderna I think the coorect approach should be as follows:

- Business plans
- Concept art (rough sketches and drawings are sufficient), storyboard and notes on how the game works.

Once you have the above:
- Search for investors willing to fund the project
- Loan(s) to start work on planet



So in conclusion doing these models and stuff while it keeps you busy and the project alive is a bit of a misdirection. What you should be concentrating your efforts on is finding loans, and investors. What these people will want is business plans, and maybe concept work on the planet. In the business the concept work is called a "treaty" i think but no matter what it's called it's just a method of communicating your idea on what the project is. So if you have the idea and a business plan then that's all you need to attract funding.

 

Hiya Oleg,

I understand your cynicism. There really is not deferred payment and no false promises are being made. This is an investment in time that translates into potential for money, ownership, etc down the road. There are no guarantees. It is no different than starting a business. I merely am using a business model that we can at least base compensation on.

"My plan", is no different than one that has risk that takes place when one person or a team embarks on a venture. There is always the risk that it will not happen but, those that stay the course usually win.

This is why I shared what I did. Also, a lot of people have helped on the project just to say they were part of it or just to help. It is an experience and veryone can list it on their resumes for school and in their professional areas.

The model you mention below is not the picture I want to paint. I know how those instances happen. I have seen ventures like that. In ours, no promises are made that any money will come of this. Everyone that wants to stick it out will likely see something come of it or at least grow more in their craft.

It really is a win-win. Especially if everyone is on the same page.

I love your comment about the producers and the Oscar-winning movies. I can see that. I on the other hand, am not looking for the next World of Warcraft or Avatar. I am taking this one day at a time. I know that if nothing comes of this, it will have been a great learning experience. I do however, believe in persistence, loyalty and dedication and as a result, I am not giving up until it really is apparent it won't happen. I am going to finish this project even if it is by myself. :)

Again, I thank you and everyone for paying attention to the project.

 

Hiya George,

You are right-on there on many points. So far the only risk has been to me. I have heard many times from team members that they were not in it for the money. However, one thing that is very important to me is to never forget those that help me. If ever I have the opportunity to repay someone for loyalty and dedication I will do it.

Marketing, is huge. Most companies fail for that very reason. A lot of money doesn't have to be invested in it, but something does. That can be word of mouth as well.

In my RL job that's what I do full-time. If there is anything I bring to this project, that experience is it.

I too, have a huge creative side. This project is my outlet and I love learning what I have so far. I never want this project to be a "job" for me. I already have a FT job. I want it to stay fun. I do understand, that there are some huge responsibilities that I have on this project. I also know, I only have so much time in my life between work, family, other personal items and this project. I have to maintain balance. I am not going to beat myself up about team members not finishing what they start or dropping off or money not being there or, things taking longer than I would like. I am going to take it one day at a time..maybe slow, but steady. :)

 

Hiya George,

I have tried that route already. That is why I have started the construction a demo.

I believe in showing. Maybe this approach might not work but perhaps any cynicism that I don't have what it takes to pull something like this off or a lack of experience, etc. You know the drill. It sounds like you are familiar.

Perhaps too, maybe I just need to prove to myself I can do it as well.:)

Nonetheless, this is the approach I have taken. It works based on the resources I have (or general lack of) :) to put into this.

If you really are curious about what we have so far in storyboard, concept, etc visit our dev forums or read the blog. There is a lot already done.

However, as I shared in the past George, this is a organic project as well. It has a life of its own and develops over time. You would be shock to see how many project develop that way.

Even James Cameron, Steven Speilberg, and George Lucas have admitted that many of their projects evolved and were not entirely laid out. The story is in their head. It fleshes out as they work on the project.

 

But if someone spends a lot of time on this, and it never comes to fruition, it what sense is their side of the supposed "win-win" a win?

 

They get to work on something they want as a hobby. The experience may lead them to bigger and greater things, hopefully paid work in the field...

It's basically voluntary work type of thing.

 

Thanks to both of you for your comments, Oleg and George.

I might add too that any business venture has risk and to all that are involved. I am the only one so far that has put money into this or worked to get the sponsorships. I stand to risk the most on this project.

That doesn't matter to me since I understand the risk. Everyone else just risks their time. Again, that is the same as in any business. You could work for years on something and nothing comes of it. However, it has been my experience--both personally and by watching others in various enterprises--that most ventures (not all) that are worked by very loyal and dedicated people--actually do succeed from persistence alone.

I hope I put that in the right way and that I don't start sounding defensive. Not my intent. :)

 

So presumably everyone working on the project retains all rights to and ownership of the work they do, e.g. code, artwork, concepts, etc, and would therefore be free to use them in other projects in the future or to re-license them to other organisations or developers, yes?

 

That is a good question Oleg. Truth be told, this project owns the rights to everything under a Creative Commons license. If written consent is given for use of an asset or idea elsewhere, then an asset or idea can be used. Only then. However, every project team-member signs a NDA to prevent such said "sharing." What use would it be to come up with an idea and see it exploited by someone else with deep pockets that would unfairly profit from something they should not have any right to?

Still you talk about something that really should not be an issue to anyone that understands how start-up businesses or ventures work. You did read my explaination about that didn't you? All ventures have risk and up until this point I am the only one risking anything. No one is asking anyone to help out on this project in order to lose something. No one has a gun pointed at their head. They either want to help or not. That is their choice.

We are building this project on a very limited budget, limited time and limited assets. Am I letting that stop us? No, why should I? A dream without action is just a pipe-dream. So we fail, at least we can't say we didn't try. But...for me, failure is not an option. :)

Best,

Flap

 

Thanks for the answers :)

I'm aware that it may seem like I'm giving you a hard time about this but I do think these are important issues which is why I brought them up. I hope it's helped people learn more about what you're doing and perhaps it's also made you think about some things in more depth.

I don't have any more hard questions for now but if I think of anything I'll let you know :D

 

Hiya Oleg,

Actually I don't think you were giving me a hard time at all. I appreciate your questions and those are all points and issues I have thought about many times.

Thanks for your interest and do continue to keep an eye on us. :D