In late 2008, I started looking for volunteers to help on the project. I only knew a little about 3D Design. Most of what I learned came from online tutorials and books about Blender, a popular free 3D design application. Sketchup was also pretty popular at the time. Although Autodesk had set the game design industry standard, most indie developers used applications such as Blender and Sketchup. As many 3D modelers know by now, Blender and Sketchup have evolved a lot over the years, and today they are some pretty good contenders to Autodesk’s 3DSMAX and Maya.
Recruiting
All I had to offer any volunteers was credit and experience on the project and possible future benefits. I searched many online boards as well as freelance sites. I found quite a few artists that were interested in helping out. I knew conceptually what I wanted to start with as far as a potential demo. “Shooting from the hip,” was given a new meaning for me. I drew on the story ideas from the Advent, which as I mentioned earlier in the 1980s and 90s. I even and sketched out basic scenes and characters. That story still needed to be fleshed out more for this game world concept. In the years that followed, The Advent and Planet Postmoderna took on a life of its own.
Over the course of several years, I met a lot of talented people. Some were experienced 2D and 3D artists and others were as new to game design as I was. I knew I needed to build a team in order to get anyone to invest in the Postmoderna concept for Entropia Universe. And the people I recruited over the years came from places that ranged from Australia to Serbia and the US to the UK.
A shortlist of those to send heartfelt thanks
As I mentioned, I met a lot of people and received a lot of help in the area of short-term software sponsorships. I may not be able to thank everyone (mostly, since I may not currently remember everyone) but I promise to add to this list as I do. One person, I need to really give a shout out for is Vladimir Milosevic. He is a really talented artist and 3D designer. He donated very long hours and assets. The project logo is even his doing. I also appreciate everyone on the list below for they help and time and for the companies that help sponsor software licenses (if only for a short time).
- Vladimir Milosevic, Artist
- John Zercher, Concept
- Andrei Betlen, 3D Modeler
- Jefferey Schreuders, Modeler
- Ray Allen, Modeler
- Tanja Wooten, Concept Artist
- Bruce Joy, Vastpark
- Autodesk (3DS Max) — — software in the beginning years
- Paul Gaboury, Pixologic, (ZBrush) — software in the beginning years
- Wix –website in early years
- Matt Campbell, Concept Artist
- Matic Mirnik, 3D Modeler (early concept)
- David Genoshe, 3D Modeler and Concept Artist
- Mark Barnes, GDD help
- Joe Lombardi
- Jitse Akse, 3D Modeler and Concept Artist
- Patrick Hamilton, Consulting
- Brian “Agamemnon” Hoadley, Multiverse Ubuntu Programming Support
Early Concept Sketches and Models
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Later Concept Sketches
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Later Concept Renders and Tests
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Pitching Planet Postmoderna
In order to raise money and find investors in the project, I plugged into local and national investment networks. I posted on Angel List (and, I am surprised my profile is still on the site after all these years) and other sites. I even presented to a local Venture Capital Group (Peak Venture Group) in Colorado Springs on several occasions. I even created a marketing location within Second Life. After-all, why not promote a virtual world effort inside a virtual world?
In spite of all my efforts, I was not able to get too far in the area of funding. The concept of virtual economies and virtual world games was too new for some investors and my lack of experience did not help. The price tag that Mindark was looking for was too high for most of them. We were trying to raise a fund of $2 million USD. I was not even trying to get the full amount. I was striving for a seed fund of $200,000 so we could build a really good demo and fund the initial stages. Regardless, that part definitely never worked out.
Samples of some of the presentations I did between 2009 and 2014.
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So what happened after all of this?
Read more about that in the next installment of the History of the Planet Postmoderna Project. Read Part 4
