My apologies if this is the wrong thread to post such ideas in, but it occurs to me that the best way to really show NCSoft that the fanbase means business - that the petitions and rallies and such have serious weight in a form about which they might care - is to create a Kickstarter or similar to raise the funds with which to make a bid to buy CoH.
Given what I understand to be the case - that CoH is not actually losing money, but may not be making it in an amount, rate, or form that NCSoft wishes to continue to invest in - a company that was formed to buy it could conceivably keep it running. I am working on such a Kickstarter proposal (and, if it gets some traction, I have at least one potential corporate partner that I hope to interest in joining the effort), but I have, admittedly, not played City of Villains in
years. I therefore no longer have a solid grasp of what is "valuable" and what is not, in order to create proper reward levels.
I also do not have the contacts at NCSoft to guarantee getting their attention, though I hope the fans' outpouring of financial pledges commensurate with their outpouring of petition signings and other earnest efforts will help show that this is a serious offer to defray any losses NCSoft might be incurring by dropping the game.
I don't like seeing people lose the things they love when they can be saved, and I see a valuable opportunity here for all involved if we can pull it off.
Here are my rough ideas for rewards; please let me know what you think and offer suggestions for others. Note that I am hesitant to promise much that would require hefty reprogramming of the game, simply due to knowledge that hiring the development staff and the programmers etc. back on and trying to keep the game running will be a massive undertaking in and of itself. Adding new promised functionality without first talking to the development team would be most unfair. That said:
- "I helped save the world and all I got was this lousy T-shirt" costume piece
- A VIP token.
- A month's subscription.
- An extra global character slot.
- Bonus Influence (hey, you saved the world)
- Lifetime VIP status
- Statue of one of your characters (of your choosing, in one of his costumes of your choice) in a special celebratory "saviors of the world" museum, with your (approved) origin story accessible on a clickable plaque and a list of your "achievements" (what missions you've done with that character).
- "Hero of the People"/"Ruler of the World" title and power: when active, nobody will go agro outside of active missions; too beloved/intimidating/awe-inspiring. Will get cheers from NPCs.
- Bonus costume slot for "secret identity." May come with a power to switch to it at will if viable/useful.
- Paragon City Savings Bonds: redeemable for paying off experience debt
- Statue as above, but in a personalized pose (very high donation level).
The actual values - and even the order - are not yet settled. Some of the above probably would be best combined. Obviously, all tiers should likely be cumulative, so the shirt costume piece, if it's (say) the $10 level, should come with all the other levels, too.
I am also not a graphic artist, and I would hate to use CoH proprietary art and have that be a reason NCSoft was offended, so any suggestions on logos that can be used are welcome. Videos of the rallies, especially edited for content, would also not be bad ideas for the final Kickstarter project.
Please, let me know what you guys think. I am seriously hoping that putting our money where our effort and mouths are will get NCSoft's attention far better than just the effort and the talk (which is already considerable, but not always persuasive to corporations).
Sincerely,
Segev Stormlord (former escapee into the Rogue Isles)
Cameron Johnson
linkedIn Profile (http://www.linkedin.com/pub/cameron-johnson/46/895/802)