Kickstarter has placed a another video game related success story of crowd funding in the video game community. Andrew Groen, video game journalist, started a Kickstarter campaign to write a book on the history of the virtual world inside the video game Eve Online. Not only does Groen write for Wired.com, but he will be the author of this unique book about Eve Online.
The book, “The History of the Great Empires of Eve Online,” had a production goal of $12,500 and Groen’s campaign managed to surpass this after a final tally of $95,729. That’s about $83,000 more than the initial goal. The 765 percent funded project is an accomplishment for Groen and the Eve Online community.
Groen says him and his team are now able to provide a hard copy for those who payed at the $50 pledge. Digital copies of the game will be given to the $10 backers and both a soft cover and digital copy for $25 backers.
In the Kickstarter video, Groen says the game is not like other online games in the market. Instead of servers separating gamers into separate online niches, Eve Online’s players share the exact same space within the online world. This means each player’s actions in the world affect the growing game’s environment. There is a cause and effect in place when people play. Even different armies and alliances can be formed. Players are coordinating the games environment so intricately that there are leaders who discuss in-game outcomes.
“[E]veryone in Eve plays in the same universe,” he says in the online video for the Kickstarter. “Which gives them the same sort of cultural history they all share.”
This unique element is mixed in with the ability to take over different regions within the game through armies battling it out in space. As of now, there are 5,431 Star Systems and 1,907 star systems. Time progressed from the initial start of the game, back in 2003, has created a rich history Groen and his team will document in the book.
Funding started in April 24 of this year and ended yesterday. No date has been set for the release of the book, but those interested in a pre-purchase can head over to the website, , and order the soft cover of the book for $25, or a hard cover for $50.