'Inherit the Earth 2' Kickstarter cancelled after poor reception

Wyrmkeep Entertainment, who recently launched a Kickstarter project to fund a sequel to their perennial point & click adventure, have cancelled it, admitting the campaign was insufficiently compelling to non-fans. A post-mortem of the project is underway.

The original Inherit the Earth was released in '94 for IBM-PC and Macintosh computers, and has recently been re-released for modern computing and mobile platforms. AdventureGamers awarded it four stars out of five saying that it was "One of the most enjoyable adventures to come out of the mid-1990's."

Before its cancellation, the project had raised $8,507 of its $135,000 goal from 159 backers.

The sequel was to continue a story-arc from the official webcomic, which is set directly after the first game.

The game takes place after both the original game and the webcomic story “Little Wolf Lost.” The Morph Tribes of the Known Lands continue their efforts to live with the apparent destruction of the Orb of Storms, a artifact which they once used to predict the weather. There are rumors of the Orb’s survival, but none are credible. Even Rif the Fox, who tried to retrieve the stolen Orb, discounts these rumors. But the arrival of a chieftess’ daughter, with a startling revelation, leads to Rif embarking on a new adventure.

Some of the developers and artists from the original game were on board, and they seemed to want to bring on more. There has been talk of a possible sequel for a while, perhaps first mentioned in the Furry Videogames Database interview with Lisa Jennings.

However, there were many complaints about the quality of the pledge video, insufficient details and lack of promotion:

Who am I talking to? I haven't seen a face yet. The KS video is just terrible – Sorry, I tried to watch it again now but I just can't stand it. Games need to be directed – so need convincing videos. If you can't make a short video interesting – how could you do an entire video game?

While there's nothing wrong with your pitch concept, the presentation is lacking in the sorts of details that will give fans and passerbys confidence and make them want the game.

It feels like this Kickstarter is half-baked. You really need to give the audience an idea of what the game itself will be like. Compare this Kickstarter to Barkley 2 or Sealark, two games I've also backed that were outrageously successful, and you'll find that each of them are extremely descriptive and show off exactly what prospective backers can expect from a final product.

The base pledge for the game was $15, with higher goals having features such as a soundtrack, signed art, or even having yourself inserted into the game (as a background character, or as a speaking character).

The first game can be purchased for various formats at Wyrmkeep Entertainment. Mobile versions are available on the respective app stores.

Speaking personally, the author was hoping this one would be a success, as he'd love to see some of the loose-ends tied up from the cliffhanger presented by the first game!