I'm sure Fred is still working on this

Galaar
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Re: I'm sure Fred is still working on this

Post by Galaar » Sun Apr 19, 2020 5:55 am

I donated at the $50 tier knowing I was likely throwing it into the void considering his work history and don't really regret it, the pencil test did show promise too, but I'm approaching it like GRRM, no expectation of ever seeing the product, but would be happy if it came along. I wouldn't suggest this if the premise wasn't something teased as the top goal, but he could do the scaled back version with some ERC mixed in.

JohnCKirk
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Re: I'm sure Fred is still working on this

Post by JohnCKirk » Mon Mar 01, 2021 7:30 pm

JohnCKirk wrote:
Fri Jan 17, 2020 6:26 pm
The last update on Kickstarter (or the VN website) was on 17th July 2017. So, today (17th Jan 2020) is officially 2½ years since we've heard anything. Next month will be 6 years after the original completion date (Feb 2014). At some point in the next month, I would like to see an update. This doesn't have to take long, in fact it could just be a single line. Either:
A) "I'm sorry, I'm officially cancelling this project."
B) "I'm sorry for all the delays so far, but the project isn't dead, and I still intend to release the VN."

[..]

If Fred goes with option B, I would like to see a minimum of one update per year. I think that's a pretty easy goal (and a low bar for project management), but it would be an improvement from what we've got now, so baby steps...
Following up on my previous post, the project is now officially 7 years past the (estimated) delivery date. There have been no new updates on Kickstarter or the VN website in the past year. I appreciate that the pandemic has been a stressful time for everyone, but I really don't think that a single line update is too much to ask.

For those who still have faith in Fred, do you honestly believe that we're going to hear anything in the next year? I'm not even talking about the game itself, just any kind of update to break the radio silence. For me personally, I fully expect to make a similar post at the "8 years overdue" mark, but I'll be delighted if he proves me wrong.

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kanman
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Re: I'm sure Fred is still working on this

Post by kanman » Tue Mar 09, 2021 2:32 pm

When this was announced I really wanted it to happen but I was quite aware of Fred's erratic output. I think Warmth would have been a more realistic goal but damn, a Megatokyo VN! I so want that!!!!! So I slapped down $215

At this point, and for the foreseeable future, Fred has three elders to look after. That is going to be physically draining in and of itself. Fred is a father and that is something that cannot be put off either. The stress must be enormous. Just trying to get enough time to decompress, let alone get back into the groove to write, is going to be a rare thing

I think the occasional sketch and the Tokyo Threat Documentation Project is what keeps him going

The Kickstarter is WAAAAY down the list of Fred's priorities and I do not expect him to put this over anything else including his well being

One day perhaps, I can wait

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GTLargo21
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Re: I'm sure Fred is still working on this

Post by GTLargo21 » Tue Apr 13, 2021 2:10 pm

Just my semi-monthly check in here to see what's up.
(Backer #3,028 - $125 reward - Includes FLASH DRIVE OF AW3SOM3 PACKAGE, the Kickstarter exclusive full-color, signed 11x14 fine art print PLUS BOTH Piro's new "B4k4^3" tshirt AND Largo's new and improved "3V1L L337" tshirt)
Hope things have been looking up lately and still enjoying the comic. I've also enjoyed the Endgame series of light(?) novels. They helped me through training in the desert (NTC), deployment and my overseas stint in Pacific Pathways.
I remember hearing about this project back in 2013 while I was in my MOS training and thinking it'd be awesome to get this stuff and re-experience the story through VN. What's done is done and I've committed to this thing... kinda like I've committed to finishing the Destiny story experience just because I'm already in this far. Sure it was a gamble, but I'll still hope and dream for progress (and hopefully completion).
Until then, back to the daily grind and Persona 5 Royal! Toodles~

Crimsonsplat
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Re: I'm sure Fred is still working on this

Post by Crimsonsplat » Fri Apr 30, 2021 2:28 pm

Anyone remember when we could count on one update a month and a front page blurb once every three years?




Me neither. Fred needs to quit kidding himself and put the strip on indefinite hiatus until his life calms down. If it ever does.

Kezu
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Re: I'm sure Fred is still working on this

Post by Kezu » Fri Jun 25, 2021 9:57 pm

Well, I stopped supporting Fred on Paetron because he's already got enough of my money. and truly I don't see anything happening here but all of us complaining to each other, which is truly sad. Ah well, back to my little corner of life, and everyone keep on hoping.

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Orriens
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Re: I'm sure Fred is still working on this

Post by Orriens » Sun Jun 27, 2021 6:53 am

paarfi wrote:
Wed Mar 27, 2019 8:57 am
[...]long post[/...]
Why doesn't this get posted on the front page? I mean, the last update posted there is from 3 years ago.

JoeX111
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Re: I'm sure Fred is still working on this

Post by JoeX111 » Fri Dec 31, 2021 6:27 pm

You know, I don't mind that this project failed. There is risk inherent in everything. Sometimes things just don't work out. I get that. From what I can tell searching here and elsewhere, Fred overpromised and life threw him a few curveballs. That's rough. Most people can understand that. I certainly do.

But what I can't forgive is the silence. The five years with no updates, no posts, no accountability whatsoever. I shouldn't have to sift through forum posts looking for answers. Failing is fine. On a long enough timeline, we all fail eventually. It's what we do in response to that failure that shows our true caliber. What Fred has done is run away and hide. Maybe not out of cowardice. Maybe he genuinely believes, if he works hard enough, he can one day bring this project back to life.

But then, why not tell people that? Why not say something? Why not say literally anything to the people who gave him $299,000? Yeah, I know. It's hard to stand in front of people and eat crow. But he owes us that much. I don't expect the game. I don't expect my money back. Even if I could have it? I'd say, keep the money. It sounds like life dealt you a bad hand, you need it more than me.

But being frank and honest with us? That's the absolute least you could do. If you won't do that, Fred, then that tells me everything I need to know about you. I can't speak for others, but I used to be such a fan of your comic. Now I can't even enjoy it anymore.

Sure hope it was worth it.

Galaar
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Re: I'm sure Fred is still working on this

Post by Galaar » Thu Jan 06, 2022 8:57 pm

The lack of communication is what bothers me most about it. Side note, I wonder how out of date the banner on the main site will get, it's still celebrating MT's 10 year anniversary from 11 years ago.

Hashbrown Potatoes
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Re: I'm sure Fred is still working on this

Post by Hashbrown Potatoes » Sun Jan 09, 2022 6:05 pm

I think the project hasn't officially been declared failed simply due to the legal ramifications it would cause with Kickstarter.

JohnCKirk
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Re: I'm sure Fred is still working on this

Post by JohnCKirk » Tue Mar 01, 2022 6:03 pm

JohnCKirk wrote:
Mon Mar 01, 2021 7:30 pm
For those who still have faith in Fred, do you honestly believe that we're going to hear anything in the next year? I'm not even talking about the game itself, just any kind of update to break the radio silence. For me personally, I fully expect to make a similar post at the "8 years overdue" mark, but I'll be delighted if he proves me wrong.
Well, here we are again. The estimated delivery date was Feb 2014 and it's now Mar 2022, so the project is officially 8 years late. The last update on Kickstarter or the VN site was in July 2017 (4½ years ago).

At this point, it is blindingly obvious that we're never going to get the VN or a refund. However, what Fred can do is something that he's uniquely qualified for: he can document where the money went and how much work has actually been done. (Just to reiterate what I said in a previous comment, it's fine to just say "the company paid Fred $X,000 in salary"; what Fred personally spent his salary on is none of our business.) I don't expect Fred to do a business analysis; there are other people who can do that once they've got the raw data. I genuinely believe that this would be useful as a case study of a failed Kickstarter project, so that other crowdfunding efforts can learn from what went wrong.

I think it would also be good for Fred to draw a line under this, rather than having it hanging over him. I recently left a company where I'd worked for 2 years, and it was quite cathartic to go through all my leftover tasks in my final week. For each task, I either had to finish it myself, hand it over to someone else, or abandon it. Either way, it was no longer my problem once I'd left, so it enabled me to clear the decks ready for other tasks.

If any of the mods here are in touch with Fred, please can you stage some kind of intervention, for his own sake. Failing that, I'll see you all next year for the 9th anniversary of the missed deadline.

JohnCKirk
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Re: I'm sure Fred is still working on this

Post by JohnCKirk » Wed Mar 01, 2023 6:34 am

So, another year, and nothing to show for it. The project is now officially 9 years late, and it's been more than 5 years since the last update.

Last year, I did a project management course (for the CompTIA Project+ exam) and it occurred to me that Fred could really do with a PM to actually organise this, e.g. tracking the deliverables and dependencies. However, the staff page for the VN says that he already has one!
Project management - Jeremy Wagner-Kaiser [aka Kalium].
http://vn.megatokyo.com/staff/
Is that person still involved with the project? Did they ever produce anything that can be shared with backers? (My first post here has some suggestions about what I'd like to see, e.g. how many illustrations were required in total vs how many have been completed so far.)

Putting that another way, if some/all of the team have moved on, I'd suggest updating the staff page. (If I was in Jeremy's position, I'd be embarrassed to be publicly associated with this project, and I wouldn't want it on my CV.)

Meanwhile, I see that Kickstarter have added a new option to their pages: "Would you like to anonymously request an update?" I'd advise anyone reading this to go to the page for the VN and click "Yes"; Kickstarter will then notify the creator.

As for Fred, I'll go back to what I said before. I have one simple request for the upcoming year (before the project is 10 years overdue): please post a single update, which either says "The project is officially dead" or "I'm still working on this". Any extra information would be great, but that should be an attainable goal.

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GouryG
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Re: I'm sure Fred is still working on this

Post by GouryG » Sun Mar 19, 2023 1:34 pm

Well if you read some of the other threads you know that Fred is currently dealing with some family related issues that is taking lots of his free time. The main comic hasn't had a new installment since the beginning of January (though he is currently working on the next one) and the TTDP comic just saw it's first update in months. He doing the best he can considering the situation. The VN project has seen several setbacks due to losing part of the team that Fred had working with him. He is currently a one man show. Hopefully once things settle down he can once more dedicate time to this side project.
No Matter Where You Go, There You Are

JohnCKirk
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Re: I'm sure Fred is still working on this

Post by JohnCKirk » Fri Mar 01, 2024 3:27 pm

Well, here we are again. The estimated delivery date for the VN was Feb 2014, so we've now passed the 10th anniversary of that date. Maybe someone should bake a cake...

Meanwhile, the last update on the VN site and the Kickstarter page was in July 2017, almost 7 years ago.

Interestingly, Fred's creator page on Kickstarter says that he last logged in on 1st Jan 2024.

Realistically, I don't think we're ever going to get the VN or a refund, and I'm ok with that. All I want is for Fred to admit it. Even if he could just post a single sentence ("Still working on it" or "Never going to happen"), that would be something.

A year ago, I sent a project update request (by clicking a button on the Kickstarter campaign page). Looking at their support page:
https://help.kickstarter.com/hc/en-us/a ... te-Request
While we expect and encourage creators to post an update once a month until they have finished fulfilling rewards, finding the time to write updates alongside managing a project can be difficult, especially in instances where the creator is doing everything on their own. Each creator will approach this in a different way and a lack of communication doesn’t mean that the creator has given up.

After requesting an update we recommend giving the creator at least a week or two before attempting any other means of requesting an update, such as sending them a direct message through Kickstarter. The creator may be receiving a lot of requests which may mean they are taking longer to get back to everyone.
"once a month"? I'd settle for once a year!

For now, I've followed the advice in that article, and sent Fred a direct message through Kickstarter. I've also contacted Kickstarter support, asking them to reach out to him. I'd encourage anyone else reading this to do the same.

I'm sure that some people will say "No, no, don't spam the poor man. Be patient!" However, it's been years, and that approach clearly isn't working, so it's time to try something else.

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