Keiji Inafune Shows Complete Lack of Respect for Backers
When a developer runs a game through Kickstarter there has to be a sense of responsibility to provide the best possible product for the backers who go out of their way to support you. They are taking a risk with their hard earned cash in the hopes that the developer will pour every penny, along with their heart and soul to bring them the experience they are being pitched. In the case of the just released Mighty No. 9 the hopes were high, and the final product less than was expected. You know what? That happens. It’s not the desired outcome, but sometimes a developer’s ultimate vision doesn’t necessarily align with the hopes of the gamers who clamored for the final product. What isn’t ok is when a developer shows no regard for the original backer’s support. Such is the case with Keiji Inafune.
If it wasn’t archived for all to see, this is perhaps a quote that no one would believe. In a recent Mighty No. 9 launch broadcast (available HERE on Twitch), the game’s creator, Keiji Inafune was quoted (via a translator) as saying that while the game isn’t necessarily perfect, “it’s better than nothing”. Excuse me?
A statement like this makes a clear case that Inafune holds little to no regard for those who supported him. It shows us that the almost $4 million he raised to make the game was taken without pride, but with greed. It is an insult of the highest order to those who pledged (and believed in) his game. From a dollar to 200 dollars, every penny he took in was on the back’s of believers and that statement just walks all over them, turning them black and blue. It’s no question that the final game isn’t as good as we’d all hoped it would be, but such is life. Comments like that however, are unacceptable.
That’s not all of course, as Inafune continued to show a complete lack of responsibility to his supporters during the stream. For example, when Mighty No. 9 was around 70% finished he took off to work on other projects and played zero part in porting the game to all the other promised platforms. Your game, your passion (apparently), and you just walked away from it?
Many might say that this is a reason to avoid Kickstarter, but that’s not really fair to the droves of developers out there who do it properly. Keiji Inafune not only disrespected his backers, but he disrespected the fact that Kickstarter can be a vital piece of the puzzle for teams who need a little help gettiing over the edge in funding.