Full disclosure, I took part in the crowdfunding campaign for Wasteland 3.
Wasteland is a lesser known gaming franchise, but most gamers are familiar with what it spawned. The widely popular Fallout franchise owes a lot to Wasteland, and it would never had been made without the 1988 classic. Four years ago, however, the inactive Wasteland title was revived with Wasteland 2. After a successful crowdfunding campaign, it was released to fairly positive reviews, although it was not without fault. Around a month ago, another campaign, this one for for Wasteland 3, was launched by inXile Entertainment. As of today, it concluded and Wasteland 3 has been successfully funded.
Wasteland 2 took place in Los Angeles and Arizona, while Wasteland 3 will be taking us northeastward to Colorado. In the grips of a nuclear winter, the Rangers that make up the core of the Wasteland games are given a difficult task. Carving out order in Colorado, something that is a daunting task with the vicious nature of the region. Difficult choices regarding the factions of the area must be made. New tools will be available to Rangers and players to help them do this. A base mechanic, vehicles, a more in depth combat system, dialogue trees, and allies in the form of multiplayer. The Colorado of Wasteland 3 is a brutal and unforgiving place, but it’s your home now. You need to make it tame.
The most interesting thing about the crowdfunding campaign for Wasteland 3 is that it didn’t use Kickstarter. The platform that has become the go to platform for crowdfunding. Instead, it used Fig, a company that provides both crowdfunding and publishing services. Of the over 3 million dollars raised, inXile has announced that 40% of it will be given to Fig. This money will be used to advertise the game, as well as provide distribution. Fig has had a hand in both Duskers and the beloved Hyper Light Drifter. This makes them a new platform for crowdfunding, but not entirely untested. Wasteland 3 is estimated to have a late 2019 release.