Double Fine launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for creating prototypes
At the same time, they promised to make Brutal Legend 2 if they manage to raise 100 million dollars.
At the beginning of summer, Double Fine broke free from XBOX's control after Microsoft announced a new round of layoffs. The studio managed to regain not only its independence but also the rights to its entire game library, including Psychonauts, Kiln, and Brutal Legend.
It was also reported that Double Fine received initial funding while they search for an investor or publisher. The exact amount provided by Microsoft is unknown; however, by July, the studio announced layoffs due to shifting into a savings mode.
And now, in September, it becomes known that Double Fine itself apparently lacks the resources for creating new projects, so it plans to involve the community in selecting a suitable concept, which will then be put into production.
The gist is this: Double Fine presented 30 pitches to the audience, from which backers are to select the four they find most interesting. The studio will prepare prototypes based on these. Then, the prototype declared the winner by the audience will proceed to full production.
For this whole "movement" within the Kickstarter campaign, the developers are asking for 400 thousand dollars. At the time of writing, the amount has not yet been gathered, but it's a matter of a few hours, if not less.
It’s reported that regardless of the project chosen, it will be a small one and will be published under the studio's new publishing label — Double Fine Action Labs, intended for "weird little games."
However, if they manage to raise 100 million dollars, Double Fine promises to tackle Brutal Legend 2. The latter is likely a joke, as such amounts have never been raised via Kickstarter before.
The most successful campaign in the platform’s history brought in 46 million dollars — for developing the 3D printer eufyMake E1. Among game projects, the absolute leader remains Shenmue 3, which raised about 6 million dollars.