Some Notes re: The Flesh Pit Videogame

I've seen a few questions and comments surrounding the recently-announced MFP Kickstarter that I wanted to address in the interest of open communication and transparency.

1. My involvement with the game project has not and will not affect my process of writing the book. My role in the game's development is such that almost all of the art and designs I will be providing are things I would have already been doing for both the book and the website. The writing process is continuing as normal, albeit I am taking a small break due to my wife and I delivering our first baby 4 weeks earlier than normal.

2. The introduction of SENOVAL should not be taken as a signal of the project changing in scope or tone. The overall project will continue to focus almost entirely on the "found objects" from the main park era as it always has.

3. Many have noted the developer's lack of prior shipped games. I am aware of this! It is a small team, but I ask that you have a little faith in my judgement on this. As is standard practice on the internet, a LOT of people have already begun  offering their critiques of the campaign details; many of them fair and valid! Of course, there is also some discussion about "details" that exist wholly in the imagination of those who post such critiques. This will not be a FPS/combat-heavy game. "Survival Horror" is a somewhat loaded term that carries many connotations. I and the team are aware of this, but still deliberately chose such a term to use in the marketing for it's concise and broad description of the game we are trying to make from a macro perspective: i.e., the overall theme and environment is generally "horrific", and the primary ludonarrative (buzzword!!) challenge will be to "survive".

4. Finally, I'd like to clarify the expectations that I have set for the project. This game has no intention of trying to be a AAA game in scope or features. This is not intended to be a tentpole for the broader Mystery Flesh Pit narrative. Some people (not all, and I understand that!) have been asking me about a Mystery Flesh Pit game since its beginning. I view this Kickstarter as an opportunity to deliver something for those people. It will not be for everyone, and it will be very far from perfect even if we accomplish everything we set out to do. The campaign budget is high, but that is what we have determined is a reasonable budget. It is very ambitious, and there is a good chance we won't get anywhere near it.

5. If we don't reach the goal, it will be alright. The Mystery Flesh Pit (and Spectral Haptics) content you have come to know and expect will continue regardless of the outcome of this Kickstarter Campaign. If we do achieve funding, I ask that you extend some patience and give the team and myself a little bit of slack. No one; not myself, nor the development team, are doing this for a paycheck. I want to make art that is novel and entertaining. I am an individual and do not have the funds nor ability to create a videogame, a tabletop rpg, a series, or a motion picture on my own. The book is my individual undertaking, but these larger projects necessarily require up-front funding to materialize. If it is not something which interests you, please do not feel any obligation to support it!

Thank you for supporting me so far, and thank you for reading this.

-Trevor