Not so long ago Gameware Europe opened a Kickstarter campaign for a new James Pond game, an attempt to revive a franchise popular in the '90s. Although not a full time member of the team when launched, the original creator Chris Sorrell was also set to be involved in the project; he even explained to us that he was hopeful of bringing the new title to Wii U and 3DS.
Unfortunately those that hoped for a new James Pond game — aside from the Codename Robocot reboot — will be disappointed, as the struggling campaign has now been closed. Gameware took the decision after it had reached just £16,000 of its £100,000 target with much of the fundraising period having already passed; with momentum being vital in crowdfunding campaigns, it was unsurprising.
We've been in touch with Project Manager and Producer PJ Belcher, who admitted disappointment but insisted that all hope is not lost.
We accepted there were some issues with the campaign that meant it wasn't going to achieve the funding level we had hoped for. We're aware of what these problems are, some out of our control, most our own fault, but all we plan on addressing all of them and returning with a stronger campaign.
If there's one thing we have learnt though, it is that there are still a lot of Pond fans out there and a lot of love for a 4th game, so we are not giving up!
On its own campaign page one of the issues highlighted was a lack of game footage or proof of concept, so perhaps that'll be an area improved before seeking funding once again.
Are you disappointed in this news, and do you feel a stronger campaign in the future will fare any better?
[source kickstarter.com]
Comments 19
A little disappointing though I really have no idea who James Pond is or what his games are so I need to look that up first.
Good. The last Pond game was in 2011 so to me it shouldn't have had a kick starter.
Never heard of this series before the kickstarted started and even then it looks like something that got stuck in the 90's.
'Robocot'?
Mah, it's really of a different time. Don't think it would work now as a platformer.
It's a bit like the failed Kickstarter to make a new Dizzy game.
Some games are best left in the past.
Also, a lot of these failed Kickstarters seem to be people saying "So yeah, we made a cult classic back in the 80s, and we've not programmed anything since, but give us your money!"
They raise a bit of money from a few fans of the original games, who still fondly remember the hours they spent in front of their Spectrums, C64s, Amigas, and Atari STs when they were young, but everyone else has moved on.
@eza I think you can get 'new' Dizzy games on ios.
I hope they cancelled this kickstarter to make a more worthwhile reboot: Silent Service
@Nintenjoe64 I remember that came out at the same time as F15 strike eagle, and I could only get one and went for the plane over the sub
strike eagle was good, but a few years later I got F19 stealth fighter which I remember being far better...
James Pond 2 was good, but I do not like James Pond 3. James Pond 2 had a Christmas theme in it and it was memorable. James Pond was a pretty unique game with plenty of explorations.
@NintendoLee The last Pond game wasn't even made by these people and was obviously created by someone who knew very little about the series and had even less love for it.
Well no kidding, it's James Pond.
I had this game as a kid....got it for a birthday I think. It was just flat out weird. I can't remember much except it was just a mash-up of ideas from better platformers...and the controls were very "slippery".
There are a lot of games on Kickstarter right now that are sadly probably not going to reach their original goal or Wii U goal, but let's stay optimistic!
Im sorry guys,but it was a deeply average platformer about a secret agent FISH! Hardly the stuff of legend! I mean what next? A fat italian plumber jumping on turtles heads?! Madness!...oh
Isn't there another James Pond reboot being made, too, though? Am I nuts or did I actually read two NintendoLife articles within a short time span about James Pond, one being the kickstarted game and the other by a more financially sufficient developer?
They came at the wrong time, personally. There are too many good video game Kickstarters happening at the moment. I gave 80 bucks to Mighty Number 9.
"Learnt"?
Even with the chance of repeating myself over and over: I would love to support all those campaigns but it's always the same. Wii U and 3DS are always just Stretch Goals and the Rewards are usually just download codes for a PC version. I don't think Pond would have made it anyway but most of these campaigns would look a lot different if they'd promise 3DS right away.
@WiiLovePeace The games were pretty decent, taking into account what was available at the time, outside of Mario and Sonic. The console versions were somehow lesser games compared to the home computer versions (Commodore Amiga and Atari ST) but still okay for the most part.
Here's some footage of the various James Pond games on the Amiga (best versions in my humble opinion):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oj2xpPAA4ds - James Pond: Underwater Agent (the least interesting one, imho)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edDHDZl7dOY - James Pond 2: Operation Robocod
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mm9n3xBeQUo - The Aquatic Games
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GwL0OiV0gE - James Pond 3: Operation Starfish
@cornishlee Glad I'm not the only one who noticed...
@nocode Fish in general are. Slippery that is...
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