Funding Concepts?

Hi Guys,

Where might one go for investment to take a VR concept to Reality?

PS: Every business was once an idea, we are not all Trump who was given a "small loan" of $10,000,000 to develop his idea.

Thanks

 

Hey,

There are plenty of venture capitalists (or angel investors) on standby with their wallets. The issue is not to find them but rather to convince them of your idea.

There is a plethora of articles available on "How to start a startup?".

Start by understanding the fundamentals of how to properly present your idea to an investor (Business plan, Project plan, Budget and Pitch). It is quite overwhelming if you are new to the subject, but where there is a will...

 

There's a really good Unite video on Indie funding models: link.

 

You don't need money. Development tools and resources are free. The primary investor your concept needs is yourself. Build out your concept into a working game/app and then you can pitch it via indiegogo or kickstarter.

 

What type of concept are you talking about? Is a new type of VR headset? I'd suspect you'd need something drastically better than what is out there, and a workable prototype if that's the case. For example, the Fove guys with their eye tracking headset.

If it is just a VR game, then you'll probably have your work cut out for you. It would have to be something really special and you'd need to have a solid business plan in place and proof that you can actually deliver on what you say you will deliver.

Without those things, it might be easier to go to Kickstarter. Individuals are a lot less picky about who they give their money to than investors. Investors need to be pretty close to 100% sure that you are going to make their money back for them. It's going to be hard to convince them of that without a solid idea and a solid track record to back it up.

 

It is very unjust that you don't get a personal fortune to risk on a project. But if you really want to risk someone else's capital on crowdfunding you gotta put together a damn nice presentation that shows some real promise, aka. more than just some doodles. People are getting weary of kickstarter because of people who do not deliver their goals.

 

Exactly this. Ideas are a dime a dozen, everyone has ideas for the next great thing. Instead of worry about funding, use all the free tools, and all your free time to create a proof of concept demo. When you have done everything you can do for free, and you have something that shows you know what you are talking about... THEN you start worrying about money.

 

Many countries also have government grants available for funding arts projects.

 

Get a few of your friends together, pool your money, buy a gun, and rob a bank.

Note: This plan only kinda works in America. Also, statistically, it almost never works there either.

Alternate plan: Get one of those big 5 gallon jugs and start putting your quarters in it. If you can fill one of those with quarters, it's worth roughly $5000 according to the internet.

Where do you get the quarters? Thats for you to figure out. suffice it to say it may take a while...

 

Goto the bank a file for a personal loan. Develop with that personal loan. Once it runs out move to crowdsourcing. If your not willing to invest in yourself; do you expect others too?

 

Instead of taking a loan, I'd recommend to save up the cash. That's because if you take a loan and your project fails, you will still need to pay back the loan AND the interest for that loan. Meaning that with one bad decision you can screw yourself over big time and it may take years to fix that mess.

 

I would strongly suggest obtaining funding or getting a business loan. That way you have to develop your business plan well enough to convince someone else your game is viable. If you can't pass that gate then you probably aren't ready for the business world.

 

Absolutely agreed. A personal loan for development should only be an option if you are 100% commited and actually are going to go through with it.
But saving the cash up overtime would be the best approach; less of a risk factor.

 

Personal opinion:

If your Concept is not already a reality either as a Prototype or playable Demo, don't bother with looking for funding.

Nobody invests his money in just an idea unless:
1) you find an investor who is insane (he will be out of business in no time)
2) you have a big name people recognize (like John Carmack)
3) your idea is not just good or great, it is epochal... and ideally you still have at least a prototype to prove that

Baring that (your idea might be extremly good, but you might not be able to sell it well enough), you will have to walk the walk first. Develop with your own money and time, take shortcuts where needed and possible, be scrappy.
Build something that can really wow your investors. Because you need to sell your idea to them before you get any money.
The single biggest sign that you believe in your own idea is if you have invested your own money and time first. How could an investor believe in your idea if you don't do that yourself?

 

How much work have you already put into your own "concept"? Have you already done everything you can that doesn't require investment?

Sure was. And then someone worked it and worked it and worked it, researching or building or prototyping until it wasn't just an idea any more. Then they took the results to an investor. They didn't just take an "idea".

The exception to this is generally where someone has a track record of success, and probably a prior relationship with the investor. In that case the investor may be willing to take on more risk up front in order to help speed the initial work along, based on the prior success. Again, it's not just an idea - it's an idea and a successful history.

 

Holy cow... most of the businesses on that list are within a couple of miles of me.

 

Unfortunately most people who'd invest in a game would invest based on who you are and what you know rather than an idea.

 

Ask your dad for a cool mill

 

Investors are more interested in the team behind executing the idea, than in the idea itself.

They invest in teams, not ideas.

If you have proven VR experience and completed projects in a VR portfolio, then I'd say go for it.

However, if you are just another person with an 'idea' that is looking for funding, stand in line amongst the thousands of others who want to go down that road as well.

 

I am also in a similar situation with my game, I have built a working prototype. I am looking at the crowdfunding landscape and trying to define ways to cultivate traction and interest before the kickstarter. Any ideas greatly appreciated.

 

Did you start building a community? First and last thing you need to do for both Kickstart and Steam Greenlight seems to be building and maintaining a community.

Get the message out... make people excited to see more of your project. Get them to care.

That needs time. Months, not weeks. So start as soon as possible, and be ready to invest a good portion of your time into these "marketing efforts".