C64 documentary and Planet X3 Poll
Just FYI - I've started on the long-awaited Commodore 64 documentary. I've put this off for a while because I knew it would be a huge project and take some time to make. Also I figured it may be the most important video on my channel, so I wanted to make sure I got everything right. I haven't even finished the script yet. But I have an outline with 36 topics to discuss, which by comparison most of my videos have an outline with 5 to 10 topics. This may even get split into two videos, I'm not sure yet. So don't be surprised if you don't see this for 2 weeks or more.
However, I did also want to ask for you help in deciding what goodies to offer in the final package of Planet X3. Since I want to do a kickstarter, I sort of need this decided up front so I can add different levels to the campaign. Obviously, I want to have like a basic, inexpensive version of the game. But also, to offer several choices of upgrades. I'm open to any ideas you want to suggest in the comments. But I've made a poll of some of the ideas I've already come up with and let's see how you like these.
The idea of the 7" vinyl record set is similar to the cassette soundtrack that Planet X2 came with. However, it will have a few new songs. I thought about a 12" record, but those are hard to ship. So I found I could get a 2-set of 7" singles pressed. If I went with 33 RPM, then I could get a little over 6 minutes per side, so 24 minutes total. This would come in a nice cardboard fold-out case with some artwork on it. While this would still not fit inside the game box, it could easily be shipped next to the game box inside the same shipping box.
The cassette would be just like last time, with a few new songs.
I had the idea of a comic book that could be included with some extra backstory of the game.
Another idea that as been suggested is to include the disk and manual for Planet X2 as a bonus. So I figured, what the heck, might as well put Planet X1 for the VIC-20 in there along with it. (It will fit on the same disk)
Another idea I had was a poster, although I hate the idea of having to fold it up and crease it. Maybe it could be rolled up into the box somehow.
Another idea is a T-Shirt. I wanted to offer this with Planet X2, but I had no idea which sizes to order. but if I do the kickstarter then I will know ahead of time which sizes to get.
Other people have mentioned plastic toys, but I think these might be too expensive to get made in the quantities I'm looking at. Anyway, if you have any other suggestions, please write them in the comments. I may come back later with another poll.
Oh.. One more thing. I'm starting to have reservations as to whether I can fit all of the new game on a single 360K floppy. I planned to include both a 360K and 720K disk. I'm fairly confident I can fit everything on the 720K. But, let's say that I can't. Do you think it would be logical just to leave the VGA version off of the 360K disk? How many of you have or know somebody with a DOS machine that has VGA but only 5.25" floppy drive? Also would there be any use for including 1.2MB high-density 5.25" copies?
Comments (44)
I just voted for the vinyl record set because of its truly timeless nature (it won't ever discolor, fade or demagnetize), but then noticed that line of reasoning seems to be rather rare. Ah, well. Concerning 360K, I would indeed drop VGA support.
I didn't notice the $1 no-reward pledge could be modified. Newbie here!
Hi. I'm attempting to become a $10/month Patreon but it's asking for my delivery address despite being from the UK and not eligible for the CD. Any advice?
You are probably selecting the reward... just type in $10 into the box and it shouldn't ask for an address. Either way it doesn't matter. I ship the CDs manually and if I see foreign addresses (which I regularly do) I just ignore them.
As an addition to selling boxed versions, maybe you should consider free digital downloads for your patreons and or consider development/beta releases for your patreons to test? Most of us would probably buy the game anyway, but I think we would feel a bit more included in the development, and in turn probably enjoy the game even more. Just a thought...
An other cool option would be to open source the games, after the initial sales round
I' love to get all three versions of the game... X1, X2, and X3
I've got quite a few machines from this era: IBM 5150 / CGA / 360K Floppy, Tandy 1000EX / TGA / 360K & 720K Floppy, IBM PS/2 30 / VGA / 1.44M Floppy, Clone 286 / EGA / 1.2M Floppy. CGA on 360K and VGA on 720K seems like the best compromise to me. The only machine I have with a 1.2M floppy is a 486 but it also has a 1.44M.
Another interesting thing would be 8x10 lithographs of some of the VGA art. "Suitable for framing."
I think there should be a level where the game box (or something inside) is signed by those who worked on it.
I've been tossing around the idea of doing a special edition where everyone involved signs something. But it'd have to be something small that I can mail around the world for everyone to sign.
I'm also curious as to how you'll be coding the VGA portion of the game - ie - will it run on MGCA or require actual VGA? I know there are a few tweaks that were incompatible with MGCA (multiple video pages or utilizing Mode-X tweaks). Not that I expect my Model 25 to be able to play the VGA mode well enough anyway, you can bet that I'm going to try! :P
I do have a Tandy 1200-2FD with VGA and only 360K Floppy Drives (I have a ZIP 100 drive attached though), but I am pretty darned certain that is a rare combination! I'd say that anyone in my situation could easily find a way to move it to another media type for their machine. I'd go with leaving the VGA version off the 360k disk, yet including it on the 720k. I'd say that worst case scenario, you could ship the game on 3 disks - 360k for the CGA version, 720k for the Tandy (and perhaps VGA), and a 1.44mb for all of them on one disk. Offer the different sizes as different options on kickstarter, in case someone wants all 3 disks. Digital Download should definitely be included as well.
I voted for the Vinyl record mostly because I think that would the the coolest "new" purchase but I do like the idea of Inclusion of Planet X1 and X2 in the box. Whatever you do, I am sure it will be successful.
Source code would be really nice! I don't think you risk any chinese companies selling "Planet Y3" on the Appstore.
Are you planning Roland MT-32 sound? Would be great! I never had VGA or a sound-card until the mid 90s, so this would be the perfect historical anti-pattern ;-)
edit: just seen you already mentioned digital download :thumbsup: As for extras - I always like this like pins, coin/tokens, poster/cloth world maps, signed copies of the game, stickers. Just some ideas i've had in the past with kickstarter projects.
I like the idea of having the option to get a USB stick with all 3 games on it — something we can use to make our own floppies on our own machines, or in an emulator. Make sure the USB stick can’t be erased, of course. ;-) Is it possible to put the game on *two* 360K floppies? One with the CGA version and one with the VGA version? The added cost of a 2nd 360K floppy really shouldn’t be *that* much, and peoople would, I’m sure, be willing to bear the cost of an extra 360K floppy... At least give people an option to do so, perhaps... As far as extras go — ship them separately in the shipping-carton, outside the software box. Don’t make the software box any bigger than the Planet X2 box — that was the perfect size box. It’s how software was shipped back in the day, and it was a superb design on your part. Oh — and one more thing. Mabye one tier of the Kickstarter could include beta-testing, if people want that? Maybe limit the number of people who can buy that tier — Kickstarter will let you do that. So you don’t have *everyone* beta-testing it; just a few people. Being overwhelmed with beta-tester feedback can be a bad thing — I’ve been there.
It would be amazing if there's a deluxe edition that includes boxed versions of X1 and X2. By the by, do you plan to have a big box, well, box? Or smaller format like C64 games? I wonder if there could be something really cool, like the deluxe boxes having a continuous graphic on the spine. Obviously this may be much too costly. Maybe include a making-of DVD or Blu-ray? Or VHS…
I was thinking about using the same box style as what Planet X2 shipped in, to make things simpler. I think it fits well on a shelf. A Big Box may appeal to some people, but shelf space appeals to me!
I think it would be good to have a digital-only release, not just for those who can't afford a boxed version, but those of us overseas who don't want the expense of international shipping. Ideally it would come with digital versions of the physical stuff, obviously including the game and manual, soundtrack, etc.; but also things like the box art, so we could make our own display boxes. Unless you're worried about piracy.
I have a 5150 with VGA, but I would rather see the game on a 360k disk if that means cutting out the VGA version to make room. At least this way it would work on early clones and PCjr etc that don’t have a 720k drive. Some either can’t support this drive or it’s a pain to install. Also I would rather have the C64 version included than the other goodies.
Interesting.. It's still up in the air as to whether or not a 5150 will be able to run the VGA version due to CPU speed. Jim Leonard has tested the game on a real 5150 but with CGA graphics. I haven't started coding the VGA part yet.
The digital download goes onto my dosbox. But I really would fancy 7” vinyl or a cassette. For supporters with a big wallet maybe issue the game on an computer the size of a big connector? They come with a windows license...
I don't have any vintage machines (sad face), and thus I would be just buying for how cool the package is (assuming it's like the Planet X2 package, which is about the best homebrew packaging I've ever seen). So I don't have a lot of useful input about hardware. I do think a poster would be awesome, though, especially if it was like a big infoposter, with the pixel art of the units and info about them, maps, etc. I love that kind of stuff. And a graphic novel sounds like an exciting idea, one I'd definitely be curious to see! Oh, and I'm very excited about the c64 doc!
I'm remembering the old Infocom games, and the inserts that went with them, which weren't needed for game-play, but really added to the experience . I realize that it's a -lot- of work, but, as you're asking :) I think the 360 non-VGA, 720 VGA, and maybe a USB drive with "everything" (all bells, whistles,) and image files for those who want to write an image onto their own drives, or had USB floppy emulators.
Great minds think alike. Yes, feelies was the first thing that sprung to mind for me as well.
One of my schoolmates from the 80s still has a PC with VGA and 1.2mb floppy drive only (12MHz 286 CPU, 1MB RAM, 40MB HDD), It is a Packard Bell machine, but from the German market. As far as I know the germans were a bit slower in moving to 3,5" drives/floppies. The case has definitely a slot for a 3,5" drive, but until now this vertical slot was never in use. I think the combination of 360kb (not 1.2mb) and VGA should be even rarer. Looking back at my own "career" as PC owner, my first PC from 1987 had 2x 720kb and no 5,25" drive (what always resulted in extra work for other guys if the named schoolmate and myself were trying to share data ;-)). It was just a small Schneider PC, nothing expensive. Better PCs from the parents of my friends from that time all had 2 drives installed, but my memories of this time is limited to the years starting at 1986. As VGA was ((in Germany) the much more expensive Standard, there were a lot of CGA and EGA sold in those days. It would be much easier to find a CGA machine with 3,5"/720kb only than a VGA machine with 5,25"/360kb,
Just my opinion, but I'd assume most of the people buying the game are buying it to support the channel and to have a cool collectable and will never actually play the game from disk. Maybe there is some research you can do on what you've sold already to find out what the breakdown is, but I think only the most hard core will actually be playing it on hold hardware - most will just use the digital copy and DosBox. For me the extra I'd love to see is tier where you can get the PX2 C64 version of the game in something close to the original packaging, so for whatever you cost you get boxed games - I'm still kicking myself for not instantly getting the C64 boxed version as I was waiting a few days, by then it had sold out.
My votes for "extras" were all along the lines of what a released game of the era would normally include: Graphic novel, poster, cassette. As for disk space, you know my vote (leave VGA off of the 5.25" disk). Also, there's no need to pursue 1.2MB floppies -- you'd be hard-pressed to find any systems in the wild with only a 1.2MB drive that didn't also have a 3.5" drive.
My list: 1. I'd like a sticker, sort of like a NASA sticker, that can be affixed to anything. 2. A weird alien copy protection wheel for nostalgia purposes 3. A map or landscape of a strange world suitable for framing 4. Larger disk options should simply include more maps and music. 5. An alien ornament like a keychain. 6. Also regarding the dev blog, I would really like a more in-depth look at code and coding tools.
You could have an option for a higher tier to allow the pledger(s) to name / design something for the game. Perhaps. Personally, I'm tempted to pledge when it goes live, but I'd be happier paying towards it if there was a C64 version of the previous X2 game... or if there was some kind of more in-depth analysis (manual) of the assembler code used (I'd love to try coding something in assembler - coded in most other languages but never got to grips with it)
I have thought about offering a reward level where people get to contribute something. But I haven't been able to come up with much at this point that would be up for grabs. So far the only thing I've thought of would be allowing somebody to name the ship that delivers the colonists to Planet X3, and possibly a name for the actual planet (the storyline goes that the colonists are supposed to name the planet after they arrive).
I no longer have a working 5.25" drive anywhere, my last one was disassembled by my son to steal motors out of it. I can still get a 3.5" drive though.
Depending on my financial status when the Kickstarter goes live, I'll be doing what I can to support it, at the minimum level at least, but the T-Shirt and Poster are two of my personal favorites from that list. As far as the Physical Media goes, the only way I can play this at present would be with a 3.5" drive, over USB, or on my Windows 98 Machine, which may be to new to work properly. Will you be offering some sort of digital download for use with DOSBox?
That's fine. I'm just trying to get an idea of what concepts would be most popular at the moment. So that's exactly what I needed to know. A digital download will be offered as standard with any release, even the cheapest one. That's how I did it with Planet X2.
I'd leave the VGA option off the 360K disk. On one hand, most retro collectors have a machine like that, that most likely does have a VGA card. However, if going period accurate, the guy at home rolling with an 8088 and a 5.25" drive likely didn't have a VGA card since they didn't exist quite yet, or if they did were astronomically expensive compared to CGA and EGA options.
From what I remember of that era, it would be highly unusual for a PC to have VGA graphics but only a 5.25” 360K floppy drive. The 3.5” drive was already in common use by the time VGA was introduced in 1987, as was the high-density version of the 5.25” drive. And since VGA was exclusive to the IBM PS/2 at introduction, it would have taken at least a year or two more for it to become the dominant standard it ultimately became, making that combo even more unlikely.
I do have a VGA machine with a 5.25" drive (It's an original IBM PC!) but I'm weird, so I don't think you should count me in. I think leaving VGA off the 5.25" is a perfectly reasonable option, yeah. As for 1.2mb, I'd recommend against that. I recently sent out a bunch of floppies of various user-selected densities, and it was by far the LEAST requested (I think people were more likely to upgrade to 3.5" rather than high-density 5.25) and the hardest to find disks for. I don't think it'd make sense from a cost/benefit perspective.
I think it would be logical to leave the VGA off the smaller disk, people with the hardware that can only use those disks would likely not have VGA on that hardware
To widen the target audience to those who don’t have the vintage hardware, how about a DOSBox’d version on a USB thumb drive.
Well, that will be offered as a digital download, so I don't think a USB stick would be that useful.
You might have a look over at Indiebox for ideas. My daughter got their Freedom Planet box set which included a game-branded purse and a poster that was made of fabric. Looks nice on the wall.
I would prefer VGA [pixel art] poster over "full color"... unless that's what behind "full color poster" poll option :)