4 Best Kickstarter Video Games Funded in 2020

Video games keep on getting more and more successful on Kickstarter. While usually we focus on the more cardboard-based types of entertainment, today we’d like to talk about 4 great video game titles that achieved insane successes in 2020.

The video games category might have been a source of many controversies back in the day as a bunch of infamous projects discouraged gamers from using KS, but now the situation seems to be much, much better. People have learned to use the platform and promise things that they’re able to deliver. 

So what were the highest funded video game campaigns this year? Let’s find out.

Eiyuuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes

Let’s begin with a Japanese RPG called Eiyuuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes. The game seems to be a dream come true for many Playstation fans and all people who are in love with the entire JRPG genre. The central creator behind the project is Yoshitaka Murayama known for his cult classic Suikoden franchise, which launched back in 1995 and became popular all over the world.

Eiyuuden Chronicle, Murayama’s newest child, is a love letter to all Suikoden fans. The game will mix concepts known from cult status JRPGs with new solutions in a way slightly similar to Square Enix’s Octopath Traveler. The Kickstarter campaign mentions a combat system with 6 heroes, an ambitious plot with over 100 characters, building your own city, a restaurant chain, collecting scenarios for a local theatre and many nods to older games. The final product will be available for most platforms from PC to Nintendo Switch, Playstation 5, Xbox Series X and their older counterparts.

Murayama’s campaign has succeeded beyond his wildest expectations and collected $4,635,152. Fans of Suikoden, who spent years dreaming about a proper return of the series, were glad to support the project and allow the team to turn their idea into reality. Thanks to reaching a high number of stretch goals, the creators have promised adding new elements to the game such as additional styles for cities built during gameplay, new heroes, harder difficulty modes and brand new storylines.

Higher pledge levels also allowed access to a special Discord channel and a few gadgets related to the game.

Sea of Stars

A Canadian project called Sea of Stars is the second title on our 2020 list. The game, similarly to the previously mentioned Eiyuuden, is a nod to classic turn-based RPGs from Japan. The campaign ended with 1.6 million USD. It’s also worth mentioning that the developers of this title are responsible for a great indie RPG called The Messenger published in 2018.

The story of Sea of Stars is set in the same universe we know from The Messenger. The game itself works as a prequel to that story in a way. Players control two protagonists and then complete their team with another four characters. A fun-looking counterattack system based on dexterity will make the game quite innovative despite its high focus on going back to the roots of the genre.

As we all know, Kickstarter has always been a “tool to make dreams come true”. Creators promise new installments or spiritual successors to beloved franchises. When it comes to fulfilling these promises the situation is kind of hit and miss but the things seem to be going much better than a few years ago. Still, a beloved scenario writer or an artist might turn out to not be the best when it comes to managing a whole project. In the case of Sea of Stars though we are quite positive and hyped.

Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous

The name “Pathfinder” will sound familiar to many pen & paper RPG tabletop game players. The system, published for the first time in 2009, got wildly popular all over the world. A few years ago a new video game developer called Owlcat Games created their first title and set it in the world known from the popular franchise. 

In 2020 a new campaign took place and this time the Russian team at Owlcat will again take us to the world of Pathfinder.

Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous is an isometric RPG that looks similar to classics like Baldur’s Gate or Planescape: Torment. The game continues the ideas from the previous project but adds many new attractions. The best concept in our opinion is the idea of story routes that change a game drastically depending on what you choose early on. That includes subplots, major events and challenges that await you. 

When it comes to characters, you will be able to choose between a demon, an angel, a lich and many more. Picking each of them will strongly impact the fate of the protagonist. Additionally you will be able to choose your own class from the pool of 21, each sporting its own learnable set of spells and useful abilities.

The second game by the studio was insanely popular on Kickstarter and collected over 2 million USD so twice as much as their debut game. 

Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous will ship in summer next year. 

Wonderful 101

The campaign for The Wonderful 101 was another huge hit of 2020. The project was unusual as it wasn’t related to a new title. The game was initially released in 2013 on Wii U, a console that failed to become a huge commercial success and ended up being replaced by an insanely popular Nintendo Switch. The goal of the campaign was to make the game available for a much more players and release it for PCs and most consoles available on the market. Some new modes and story missions were added as well and certain versions got some graphic enhancements. 

Platinum Games, the studio responsible for this game, is wildly popular among fans of more complex action video games that are often quite hard to master but incredibly satisfying. This time instead of a single character players control a whole 101 of them. The action is shown mostly in an isometric view which is super unique in this genre. Characters can merge their powers and cooperate to do actions often requiring a few dozens of them to be pulled off. As for the campaign, it ended at over 2 million USD.

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