KickStarter Black Geyser: Couriers of Darkness - Tales of the Moon Cult expansion on the way

[Morblot]

AS A KICKSTARTER BACKER, I paid good money for this game that I then didn't even bother to ever install. I thus give my blessing to everyone that HAS played it to post reviews, whether positive or negative, on my behalf.

 

[Faarbaute]

There are no girls on the internet.

 

[Cyberarmy]

There are no girls on the internet.

GIRL = Guy In Real Life

 

[Faarbaute]

Are you trying to hook up with me, Cyberarmy?

 

[Cvilidreta]

pretty much agree with GreenMagicSpell, i think it's really sad that the score on Steam for the latest reviews is low. I'm now replaying IWD yet again with the widescreen mod and having a blast (best looking isometric rpg still imo with good encounter design) and i also enjoyed playing Black Geyser which i finished two times back in June last year (there were some balance changes in November so i haven't played the latest versions). Main thing to know is that if you have a heart for the IE games like IWD, chances are you'll enjoy Black Geyser and especially some battles in the final chapter on highest difficulty.

For review score look up GOG, the game sits there at 4/5. The latest reviews on Steam are likely from people who don't care if isometric rpg with rtwp combat gameplay as in the IE games is released or not. Black Geyser is emulating games like IWD specifically, this isn't Wizardry, Divinity or Ultima or whathaveyou. Even newer isometric rpg-s with rtwp combat are different from that since they punish movement with their stupid engagement system. Black Geyser has concise dialogue, has a good pacing and motivating story and good combat on highest difficulty. Unfortunately it's in Unity but that's how it goes nowadays, i'd wish devs would try out other software, perhaps python/pygame and blender.

So, game is on sale -40%, you might want try it..

 

[NJClaw]

Dude, you have 9 messages and only posted in this thread. I know we look dumb, but you have to try harder than this.

 

[Angthoron]

Some names are dumb, like in every other crpg (Jaheira? Jan?).

Negro please, the game is literally called Black Gay Sir. And the studio is gRape Ocean. And for a brief marvelous moment their barbarian class was called the Crushmaster. If you don't think this goes a bit beyond a funky spelling of Ian, I don't know what to tell you.

But at the end of the day, the game is basically a low-budget but not too terrible BG clone with some fresh ideas.

Yep, "crushmaster" etc is what I'm referring to here. It was amazing.

WTF, why didn't they keep Crushmaster?

Probably removed the crush mechanic, you can no longer develop a crush on your NPCs.

Or get crushed by thighs

Hey GreenMagicSpell , I bought the game, hope it's good. I'll be sure to post my impressions and choice pics once I'm playing it. Heck, maybe even do a CODEX REVIEW again.

Nice social discussion y'all are having here.

 

[Vrab]

GreenMagicSpell, you should know better than think you won't attract hostility around here for that kind of stance. You're literally pushing every button in the book to get hostile reactions on the internet, at least the part that's still not moderated and safespaced into irrelevance.

After a few days of playing it, I can say Black Geyser is kind of cool. Antiquated. Lots of area changes with irritating loadings in between. Small-buttoned, frustratingly click&menu heavy UI for using spells in combat. Pillars of Eternity style of confusing stats and connected status effects that I'm too old to memorize because what the hell really!? Weird apparently buggy ways selections made seem to reset (company commander is driving me nuts, and I don't even know if it works) or characters spawn and behave in tight corridors. Banal side quests. Main story that doesn't feel particularly engaging so far. Settlements that look bare with very little organic clutter such as we remember in Baldur's Gate (There are "villages" that are literally 3 houses next to each other with nothing else - compared to Baldur's Gate's secondary hubs such as Beregost or Friendly Arm Inn it looks like a placeholder someone forgot to replace with the real thing. And major cities aren't better, just bigger.) Time flow that's too quick out of combat and half a day passes while sorting out equipment while apparently it doesn't advance at all during travel? Or maybe I missed something, I checked once after noticing I always arrive at destination at the same time of day that I begin the trip. And day-night shift is abrupt and accompanied by an unpleasant stutter. There are lots and lots of things to say, I'm sure I forgot a fair bit.

Still I'll keep playing and finish it once at the very least because it's got charm that's hard to properly articulate. And there's enough of it to push the gauge into the "kind of cool" area despite all the clunkyness. I'm sure the devs had a learning experience making this, they must have drawn lessons from it all. Given how amateurish it seems at times, it is impressive how ambitious they went and how (relatively) well it turned out. So I'd expect they will smooth out at least some of the issues gradually, most of it is fixable.

 

[Cvilidreta]

you might look dumb, but you're not! You'll realize this game comes closer to IWD then PoE ever managed.

Dude, you have 9 messages and only posted in this thread. I know we look dumb, but you have to try harder than this.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Some names are dumb, like in every other crpg (Jaheira? Jan?).

Negro please, the game is literally called Black Gay Sir. And the studio is gRape Ocean. And for a brief marvelous moment their barbarian class was called the Crushmaster. If you don't think this goes a bit beyond a funky spelling of Ian, I don't know what to tell you.

But at the end of the day, the game is basically a low-budget but not too terrible BG clone with some fresh ideas.

Yep, "crushmaster" etc is what I'm referring to here. It was amazing.

WTF, why didn't they keep Crushmaster?

Probably removed the crush mechanic, you can no longer develop a crush on your NPCs.

Or get crushed by thighs

Hey GreenMagicSpell , I bought the game, hope it's good. I'll be sure to post my impressions and choice pics once I'm playing it. Heck, maybe even do a CODEX REVIEW again.

Nice social discussion y'all are having here.

Inb4

Spoiler

Black geyser has heart, Black Geyser has soul. If it played the blues, you may not have it in you to tell it that the instrument's not plugged un.

 

[Angthoron]

Some names are dumb, like in every other crpg (Jaheira? Jan?).

Negro please, the game is literally called Black Gay Sir. And the studio is gRape Ocean. And for a brief marvelous moment their barbarian class was called the Crushmaster. If you don't think this goes a bit beyond a funky spelling of Ian, I don't know what to tell you.

But at the end of the day, the game is basically a low-budget but not too terrible BG clone with some fresh ideas.

Yep, "crushmaster" etc is what I'm referring to here. It was amazing.

WTF, why didn't they keep Crushmaster?

Probably removed the crush mechanic, you can no longer develop a crush on your NPCs.

Or get crushed by thighs

Hey GreenMagicSpell , I bought the game, hope it's good. I'll be sure to post my impressions and choice pics once I'm playing it. Heck, maybe even do a CODEX REVIEW again.

Nice social discussion y'all are having here.

Inb4

Spoiler

Black geyser has heart, Black Geyser has soul. If it played the blues, you may not have it in you to tell it that the instrument's not plugged un.

But is it better than

Spoiler

Pillars of Eternity

 

[Dadd]

Cool thread.

 

[Ladonna]

Pillars of Eternity style of confusing stats and connected status effects that I'm too old to memorize because what the hell really!?

Yeah, I agree with this one. It's ok, but sometimes I wish some of these devs would just rip off the old AD&D/D&D v1 ruleset wholesale and put it in. I mean you are making a BG clone, even using "BG" as your initials for the game. Might as well go the whole way.

 

[Kedar]

I mean you are making a BG clone, even using "BG" as your initials for the game.

Holy shit, how did I miss that?

 

[GreenMagicSpell]

some friends of mine never played rpgs but they bought the game for its porn aspect.

GEYSER. So just look at the puking woman fountain in the very first scene, or the table inside the noble manor at the initial map of the game.

 

[The_Mask]

some friends of mine never played rpgs but they bought the game for its porn aspect.

You need better friends.

 

[Adolf Shitler]

some friends of mine never played rpgs but they bought the game for its porn aspect.

GEYSER. So just look at the puking woman fountain in the very first scene, or the table inside the noble manor at the initial map of the game.

Please explain in greater detail.

 

[Morblot]

some friends of mine never played rpgs but they bought the game for its porn aspect.

You need better friends.

They kind of sound like the friends a gypsy mattress deserves.

 

[GreenMagicSpell]

okay. they probably pur chased it also to please me as their friend.

some friends of mine never played rpgs but they bought the game for its porn aspect.

GEYSER. So just look at the puking woman fountain in the very first scene, or the table inside the noble manor at the initial map of the game.

Please explain in greater detail.

you see those things if you purchase the game. the shape of the table for ex ample

 

[Maxie]

they sent me some backer item via email. apparently

To receive your backer item, copy gebi.txt into the installation directory of Black Geyser: Couriers of Darkness!

The item will be added to your inventory upon starting a new game, or loading any of your save files.

the contents of gebi.txt

KICKSTARTER_ONLY_ITEM

 

[mediocrepoet]

they sent me some backer item via email. apparently

To receive your backer item, copy gebi.txt into the installation directory of Black Geyser: Couriers of Darkness!

The item will be added to your inventory upon starting a new game, or loading any of your save files.

the contents of gebi.txt

KICKSTARTER_ONLY_ITEM

Maybe it's a rootkit that streams gay porn to your desktop.

 

[Maxie]

they sent me some backer item via email. apparently

To receive your backer item, copy gebi.txt into the installation directory of Black Geyser: Couriers of Darkness!

The item will be added to your inventory upon starting a new game, or loading any of your save files.

the contents of gebi.txt

KICKSTARTER_ONLY_ITEM

Maybe it's a rootkit that streams gay porn to your desktop.

the game is called black gaysir

 

[MajorMace]

some friends of mine never played rpgs but they bought the game for its porn aspect.

You need better friends.

and better porn.

 

[Roguey]

they sent me some backer item via email. apparently

To receive your backer item, copy gebi.txt into the installation directory of Black Geyser: Couriers of Darkness!

The item will be added to your inventory upon starting a new game, or loading any of your save files.

the contents of gebi.txt

KICKSTARTER_ONLY_ITEM

Did it work?

 

[cyborgboy95]

Asking Your Genuine Feedback

Ho there, adventurers!

Sadly, we don't have good news today. We were truly happy on 8th January when Black Geyser won the Bronze Medal in the "Game of the Year Awards 2022 - Best RPG" category on RPGWatch, but now, darkness approaches.

If you have no time now to read further, please skip directly to our short Google survey[forms.gle].

We reached a point where we just can't keep going in these circumstances. We hoped that the Steam Autumn Sale and Winter Sale would turn the tide, but they didn't. Our studio will need to close soon, unless we are able to make a successful Kickstarter soon to help finish our DLC for Black Geyser. This DLC would be released around August, giving a major boost for Black Geyser sales as well. We already have substantial content finished for this DLC, so its development won't happen from scratch.

Our revenue is currently unable to support even the daily operation of the team in the current economic situation in Europe. We reduced team size to a minimum, and optimized all aspects of operation. It wasn't enough. The game still has more than 80,000 wishlists, but these haven't produced substantial sales yet. Players might be waiting for a bigger discount (e.g. 50%), but this is nothing more than an assumption (the 40% discount applied so far didn't make a real difference in sales).

Once we run out of reserves, we will have to split up and shut down the studio. However, this will not endanger the delivery of crowdfunding rewards and localizations to players (such as the boxed editions and the Italian translation). We have got these covered from our reserves.

Why Kickstarter is Necessary

A successful Kickstarter allows us to complete the development of a brand-new DLC for Black Geyser (take a look at planned DLC features[forums.grapeocean.com]). Once released, the DLC will automatically improve Black Geyser sales as well. (Existing backers who already pre-ordered the Black Geyser DLC add-on before will be offered another cool reward for their support in the new Kickstarter.)

Finishing the DLC development helps us to overcome difficulties and survive this temporary period of darkness. Local economic forecasts for the 2nd half of 2023 are now carefully optimistic, but without your support for the DLC, there is no way we can survive till then. Your support in Kickstarter is a win-win situation, because it allows you to pre-order the DLC at a discounted price.

As a part of the DLC development, a free Fixpack will also be created for Black Geyser (with long-awaited features such as strongholds, dual-wielding, more romances, or the option to travel directly to questgivers from the journal menu - see complete list[forums.grapeocean.com]). When the DLC is released, this standalone Fixpack update will be delivered automatically to all owners of the base game. Players who don't own the DLC will also receive this free update on Steam and GOG.

After creating the DLC and Fixpack, we are planning to re-use the Black Geyser game engine to create a Black Geyser sequel and other brand-new games.

We have created a FAQ below, and there is a Google survey [forms.gle]as well that we ask you to answer. Your feedback in this survey will decide if the team can stay together or splits up permanently.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Does this difficult situation affect the Kickstarter rewards (boxes, books, keychains etc.) that have not been delivered yet?

A: No, they are not affected. All Kickstarter rewards will be delivered to backers. We have dedicated reserves to ensure this.

Q: I don't know much about you. Could you tell me about yourself?

A: We are a very small indie team, and Black Geyser has always been a community effort. Without the support of backers and fans, it wouldn't exist at all. Sometimes we receive feedback where disappointed players seem to believe we are a mid-size indie company. We are not, and it's definitely our mistake if we have set exaggerated expectations with Black Geyser for some players. Having said that, we sincerely believed in every single objective that we ever set for Black Geyser. It is our very first videogame product, and we learnt really a lot from this project.

Q: I understand that the worst outcome is the irreversible shutdown of the Black Geyser team and studio. What is the best outcome if you get the necessary support from me in your upcoming Kickstarters?

A: If you decide to support us, the short-term and long-term outcome would include the following:

• Brand-new DLC for Black Geyser + free Fixpack of long-awaited features and improvements
• A much better sequel to Black Geyser, taking into account the lessons we learnt
• A unique sci-fi/post-apocalyptic style RPG (story and world basics already exist)

Q: I'm sure you gained much experience, but the above plans are very ambitious. What makes you believe you can make it if I support you now?

A: We learnt several lessons from Black Geyser. Including design and management mistakes we won't make again. We just need your help to bootstrap the process by backing the DLC on Kickstarter or PayPal. This brand-new DLC will give a strong push and press coverage to the Black Geyser project again, and its revenue will allow the team to design the sequel (and then prepare another Kickstarter for the sequel). There is a saying that success breeds success. While nobody cares about old or failed projects, a truly successful Black Geyser sequel will enable additional projects (including a unique sci-fi/post-apocalyptic style RPG). On the other hand, without a Kickstarter for a DLC now, bootstrapping and survival are impossible, which means we will be forced to close permanently. It's an all-or-nothing, now-or-never thing. There is no middle ground.

Q: You just mentioned that you want to make a Kickstarter for the DLC now, and then another Kickstarter later for the Black Geyser sequel. Why is that?

A: The Kickstarter for the DLC enables us to complete the DLC's development and release the DLC. The DLC's Kickstarter establishes a fresh and active backer base, which will be handy for the sequel's Kickstarter as well. Developing the DLC also gives us valuable experience that we can use for the sequel.

Q: I'm not satisfied with a number of things in Black Geyser. These include loading times, QoL things, lacking depth of characters, too few romances, empty and boring maps, unsatisfying epilogue, and way too many fetch quests. How come you didn't you get these right?

A: The issues you listed were known by us even at the release of the game in 2022. Getting these right would have required a much bigger budget or a longer development time with a bigger team (the two are interchangeable). This was not predictible in 2018 when we planned the original budget. Since Black Geyser is our first videogame, we certainly made mistakes during its development and learnt several lessons, but 80% of Black Geyser's biggest issues are still the result of insufficient budget. RTwP games are very expensive to develop from scratch, and we had to face several unexpected happenings (such as the pandemic). Nothing is more frustating than having the skills to do something but lacking the necessary budget at the end of the day.

Q: Will the DLC address 100% of the issues mentioned in the previous question?

A: The DLC primarily focuses on new content and on the delivery of long-awaited features (in its free Fixpack). You can read the complete list of planned features[forums.grapeocean.com]. While we do our best to improve as many features as possible in Black Geyser, remastering global stuff like fetch quests or character depth is impossible with a DLC budget. What you are asking is the main objective of the Black Geyser sequel instead. We are convinced that we can address all major issues of Black Geyser 1 in its sequel, and create a much better game, but to do that, we will have to to raise a significant budget for the sequel. This cannot be done in a single step, especially not now. The first step is the DLC. The second step is the sequel.

Q: What makes you think that you can raise enough money to fund more memorable characters, engaging side quests, interesting maps and an overall smoother experience for the Black Geyser sequel?

A: For Black Geyser 1, we had to build a real-time-with-pause (RTwP) game engine from scratch, based on the Unity core engine. Contrary to the common misbelief, it isn't possible to license an existing RTwP RPG engine from other studios, as their engines are not available for licensing. Creating our own engine used up more than 70% of the total project budget. Since we have now the Black Geyser 1 engine in place and ready to use, we will only have to optimize it and improve it for a sequel. Which is no little work either, but it is much, much, much less expensive than creating an engine from scratch. Therefore, most of the sequel budget can be spent for in-depth system and content design (QoL features, memorable characters, engaging quests and maps etc.). This was not possible for Black Geyser 1. Moreover, since we learnt from our mistakes, we will not only have more money to spend on production quality, but will also be able use this money more efficiently.

Q: You mentioned that your revenue is not enough to support your daily operation. So how would these Kickstarters really fund new products when you have issues with your daily operation even?

A: They are interrelated. Income means you have work, and vice versa. Imagine a carpenter who makes a living creating wooden staircases. Now, if the carpenter no longer gets any new jobs at all, and is asked to repair their existing works only, their income won't be enough to make a living. The carpenter's tools and workshop have fixed overhead, regardless of the amount of work they get. We have a talented team and a functional game engine, but our costs are no longer sustainable without new projects in the current economic situation. Imagine an architect who designs buildings. They cannot make a living by designing a single building whole their life.

Q: What happens if the funds raised on Kickstarter won't be enough to develop the DLC and the team cannot stay afloat after all? I don't want to risk even $15 for an uncertain thing.

A: This cannot happen, because we will set a Kickstarter funding goal that fully covers the DLC development costs and release. Any funds raised above this will serve as a safety reserve, and will be used eventually to improve the game. Moreover, as already mentioned before, the local economic situation is predicted to improve by the end of this year. Without your support for the DLC, however, we cannot survive financially till then.

Q: My Kickstarter rewards are still not delivered. Why is that? Are you asking support without delivering rewards to your existing backers?

A: Digital rewards (soundtrack, lorebook PDF etc.) were already delivered - if you haven't received yours in BackerKit, please contact us and we will look into it. Regarding the physical rewards (boxes, hardcover books, collector editions, mousepads etc.), we are grateful for your patience. All physical rewards will be delivered to everyone before we launch any Kickstarter or crowdfunding. Sadly, the delivery prices we estimated in 2018 skyrocketed since then. Having said that, we do have the budget to get all physical rewards delivered even now, but then we would risk the daily operation of the team by using up our last reserves. Before starting the delivery, we want to see what funds (if any) we can expect in the future for the DLC. Of course, your rewards will be delivered to you no matter what, but we want to see our future first before scheduling delivery costs.

Q: I enjoy classic-style RPGs, but some features of Black Geyser were too old-school for me (example: per-character inventory). Are you planning to introduce well-established RPG concepts into the sequel, such as stash i.e. shared inventory?

A: Certainly. The sequel will place a big emphasis on QoL, and will no longer insist on very old-school features that restrict User Experience.

Q: If the sequel is successful financially, would you consider implementing major improvements retroactively to Black Geyser 1?

A: Yes, if the sequel is financially very successful, we will definitely consider improving some major aspects of Black Geyser 1. One example is reworking fetch quests to make them more complex and engaging, with more interesting choices. Another example would be adding engaging content to the locations that are currently quite empty. We would also love to improve character movement and combat animations.

Q: I've never participated in a Kickstarter or crowdfunding before. How does it work? Do I get the full DLC later for free if I back the project financially on Kickstarter?

A: Yes, if you choose the appropriate reward tier in the Kickstarter campaign, you will get the DLC for free when it's released. You can consider your Kickstarter support as a DLC pre-order at a discounted price. Kickstarter is a platform for reward-based crowdfunding. Each project has a financial goal. 50,000 USD, for example. If the funding goal is not reached for the project, your credit card will not be charged at all. So it's an all-or-nothing platform. If the goal is 50,000 USD, it isn't possible for the project creator to raise 45,000 USD for example.

Q: So you are basically asking advance payment for developing a brand-new DLC, aren't you? You did the same in 2018 with your Kickstarter. You had no track record of released products that time, and used crowdfunding to develop and release your first game, Black Geyser.

A: Exactly. Using Kickstarter is like a carpenter asking an advance payment for the staircase they are going to create. The Black Geyser DLC would be our second product, so our experience enables us to use the new Kickstarter funds more efficiently than before. Once the DLC is released, we will focus all our efforts and knowledge on the Black Geyser sequel - our third product.

Q: Since you already delivered a full project to the market (Black Geyser 1), I trust that you can develop, release and support a videogame from scratch. I believe you learnt from your mistakes, and will do your best in the DLC and then deliver a great sequel to Black Geyser. What is the next step, how can I help?

A: Preparing a Kickstarter campaign requires significant costs. We want to start preparations only if we are convinced that the funding goal of the DLC Kickstarter will be reached. Otherwise, we will be set up to fail, and all Kickstarter costs will be wasted money. Therefore, we ask you to fill out this short survey[forms.gle] (it takes a minute or two).

Q: I don't do Kickstarters. Can I use PayPal to support your campaigns instead?

A: Yes. PayPal pledging usually opens on the last day of Kickstarter campaigns.

Q: When should the Kickstarter launch for the DLC & Fixpack?

A: This depends on several factors, but we would like to launch it in April.

Q: What was the survey link again?

A: This is the Google Forms survey[forms.gle]. Feel free to share it with others. Thank you for your time.

The Black Geyser Team