Larian Studios boss Swen Vincke said in September that despite the success of Divinity: Original Sin on Kickstarter, the studio probably wouldn't crowdfund its next game. His reasoning was simple enough, and generous, too: Larian had its kick at the can, and now it's time to get out of the way and let other, smaller developers have their shot at it. But now he's having second thoughts.
In a new blog post, Vincke wrote that a number of people responded to his "no more crowdfunding" decision by explaining that successful projects like Divinity: Original Sin don't draw funds away from other developers, but actually benefit them by attracting more people to the crowdfunding scene. He also noted that the recent report documenting the dramatic fall-off in Kickstarter funding from 2013 to 2014 mentions that "halo effect" and suggests that the difference may be accounted for, in part or in full, by the absence of big-name projects—21 Kickstarters earned more than $500,000 in 2013, compared to just three so far in 2014.
Vincke clarified that this doesn't mean Larian is going to crowdfund its next game, simply that he's now open to the possibility. "The main reason that we’re not doing a new campaign is that we don’t want to be seen as abusing the system," he wrote. "If it indeed is the case that a return to crowd funding by past success stories helps boost the scene then I’m all pro. Only fools and dead men don’t change their minds."
