Update - 4 March 2013
The campaign continues: We've launched on Kickstarter for a second round of funding!
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Update - 15 February 2013
We're still waiting to hear back from THQ about the process moving forward. We've also been receiving a lot of inquiries whether you can still donate to the cause. In response, we're setting up a PayPal donation button, and we will still honor all of our campaign promises for any donations that come through that button. Thanks again! Hopefully, more updates from THQ soon!
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To our generous SaveHomeworld.com supporters and fellow Homeworld fans,
We at teamPixel cannot even begin to express our grattitude to the fans for the amount of support they've shown during this campaign. In the past 2 weeks, the fans brought discussion of Homeworld's future from obscurity to the forefront of several thousand tweets, tens of thousands of YouTube views, and thousands more web pages of journalistic commentary and fan discussion.
Naturally, everyone is wondering:
What happens next?
The donations raised are actually enough to make a difference, and we will be participating in the auction process to the extent that the funds allow us.
Over the coming weeks...
1) We'll be consolidating donations to make them available for bidding as soon as possible.
1a) If you paid by PayPal, it can take up to 3 or 4 business days for the funds to become liquid for us.
1b) If you paid by credit card, it can actually take up to 15 business days for the funds to become available to us. http://support.indiegogo.com/entries/20578596-p...
2) We'll be keeping an eye out for any updates regarding THQ's upcoming auction process. The latest word came a week or so ago from THQ ex-President Jason Rubin, stating the back catalog of titles will be sold off "in the coming weeks..." http://www.vg247.com/2013/01/24/thq-rubin-says-...
3) We will participate in the auction to the extent that the raised funds allow us. Who knows what could happen, but at the very least, we hope to find out where Homeworld ends up.
4) In the event Homeworld is unavailable to teamPixel during the auction process, we will begin processing refunds of all the donations we've received.
Stay tuned for updates as they come in!
Fleet Command needs your help...
13 years ago, one of the most legendary sci-fi games was released, and the space RTS genre took a giant leap forward in innovation and fun. Yet, somehow, nearly 10 years later, fans are still waiting for the next installment of the Homeworld franchise. We here at teamPixel, LLC are tired of waiting for the next Homeworld game and would like to rally fans together to bring the franchise back. The THQ bankruptcy has given all of us a massive opportunity to put Homeworld back in the hands of gamers. teamPixel respectfully requests the support of Homeworld fans everywhere in helping us raise funds to acquire the Homeworld franchise from THQ during their bankruptcy. With the franchise in hand, we would be able to pursue 3 initiatives for reviving the series:
- Homeworld on GoG.com and Steam. Easier access for old and new fans alike!
- Homeworld Touch - A legendary game with a modernized interface!
- Homeworld 3. Enough said.
Interested? Read on to learn what we want to do for fans and how you can help out!
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Our goals for the Homeworld franchise
We believe that the Homeworld franchise should be respected as one of the major landmarks in sci-fi and RTS gaming. To us, this means preserving access to the game for fans, both old and new. As it stands, a finite number of copies of the Homeworld games are in circulation, and obtaining a copy through legal means is becoming increasingly difficult, not to mention the hassles of playing a CD-based game when nearly every entertainment medium is deprecating discs. Gamers deserve a legitimate and user-friendly way of sharing the game with friends and accessing their own library of Homeworld games. Bringing Homeworld to Steam and GoG.com means the series will no longer be confined to scratched CDs and illegal fire sharing.
Our second goal bridges the past with the future. We would like to take the classic Homeworld game and re-implement it on mobile devices with touch controls. We've been testing several prototypes, and we've found the experience to be incredibly immersive and intuitive. It's almost like the games were meant to be played this way! It also goes to show how much technology has evolved to imagine that you could be playing your favorite classic on a pocket-sized device.
Last, it's impossible to ignore that the galaxy is a big place. There are many more stories to tell and gameplay opportunities to experience in the Homeworld universe. We believe the franchise deserves a chance to tell more of its plot and to innovate its gameplay possibilities. Related games like Eve Online, Nexus: The Jupiter Incident, Sins of a Solar Empire, and many more have paved different paths for space games, but the most common reaction we hear from friends and fans is this: "I still wish there was another Homeworld game coming out..." We have BIG plans for Homeworld 3, and with you're support, we can make the 10 year wait worthwhile.
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How you can help...
We are raising some private funds of our own. (We're pulling all the strings we can whether it be equity funding, credit, and even the pocket change of our staff). However, the truth is, as an independent studio, we don't stand a chance against big corporations like EA and Ubisoft without support from fans. The purpose of this particular fundraiser is primarily to raise funds for acquiring the rights to the Homeworld franchise. Our minimum goal is $50,000, but we're hoping to fly way past that (see the rewards below). Any leftover funds for development after this campaign would be a bonus, so we will probably need to hold pre-order campaigns to help fund the production of future titles. With that in mind, this is where everything begins, and this fundraiser is a huge opportunity for you to revive a legendary franchise and steer the course of future games.
Money-Back Guarantee
What's in it for you? Well in addition to the rewards listed below, we're offering every contributor a refund guarantee: If we are unable to secure the rights to the Homeworld franchise during the THQ bankruptcy auction or through negotiations with the auction winner, we will refund your donation. teamPixel will cover any campaign fees so you don't have to. Without the Homeworld franchise, we have no way to act on our ideas, and so you deserve your money back.
Rewards and Perks!
![Campaign Rewards]()
Normally, crowdfunding campaigns like these offer certain perks to donors based on their generosity. (We're still thinking of generosity-based perks, so stay tuned for more info.) At the moment we have rewards that will be offered to EVERY contributor if we can all hit certain stretch goals as a team. So, please, tell your friends!:
- $50,000 - Our minimum goal. To us, this is only the beginning of our mission together.
- $100,000 - We'll release Homeworld, Homeworld: Cataclysm, and Homeworld 2 on GoG.com and Steam for free. FREE! This means no one else on the planet will have an excuse for never having played the series!
- $250,000 - Homeworld Classic on Touch Devices will show up on the Apple App Store and Google Play Marketplace for free for the first month. We'll e-mail all of our contributors when it's available, so you can all snag it at no charge.
- $500,000 - Still want more Homeworld before the next big game? We'll begin exploring bringing Homeworld: Cataclysm and Homeworld 2 to mobile devices just like Homeworld Classic.
- $750,000 - Thank you, thank you, thank you! If we can reach this goal, we will have proven to the industry that the series is definitely alive and well. Every contributor to this campaign will receive a copy of Homeworld 3 when it is completed!
(All of these are contingent on us actually raising enough money to acquire the Homeworld franchise in the first place.)
Who is teamPixel?
So who...or what...is teamPixel? teamPixel is an interactive media company, and for over 8 years we have specialized in web design, web development, desktop software, and mobile applications. Yes, this means we are relatively new to the gaming industry (we actually have made games on commission for local companies), but entering the video game industry for ourselves was always a goal for the company. All of our work in other interactive mediums has been preparation for this. To us, everything is gameplay design and development, whether it be the menus in a program or the buttons on a website.
Didn't THQ already auction their properties?
Yes and no. As soon as THQ announced their bankruptcy proceedings, we committed to taking any action we could to rescue the Homeworld franchise from publisher/corporate limbo. Our original target was the bankruptcy auction on January 22nd, but when we began filing the paperwork to get involved, we were told by bankers involved in the proceedings that there was simply too many assets to cover in one single auction. Inactive properties such Homeworld were to be sold off at a future auction. We need your help to increase our chances at this next auction!
When is this auction? The banker we talked to was not able to give us a specific date, nor was he certain that his bank would still be involved in future proceedings. This means we may even have less time for fundraising than the currently listed date. So please, help and spread the word early!
Risks and challenges
We've done everything we can to shield contributors from any financial risk in this campaign (See our money-back guarantee above). Overall, our ability to act on any of the goals listed in this campaign is contingent on teamPixel actually acquiring the rights to the Homeworld franchise. Subsequently, the degree to which we can execute our goals also depends on THQ's contractual ability to assign us the rights to do so. For example, while we may gain the right to make future games, we may have to negotiate with a separate entity regarding distribution of the older games (i.e., due to music licensing, etc.) Because of the open-ended nature of auctions and the volatility surrounding bankruptcy proceedings, a variety of court rulings could make it easier or harder for teamPixel to participate in acquisition motions, not limited to financial requirements and timing changes. We can promise you that we want to bring this franchise back just as much as any other fan, so we will do everything in our power to be involved with securing the future of the franchise.
