The Japanese Nintendo Switch exclusive Dorobo Kindergarten 2 is in a somewhat unique position. Following its release in May last year, the free-to-play game has topped 500,000 downloads and has been generating monthly revenue that places it in the upper 10-15% among indies. However, this “moderate” success has actually led to the developers running at a huge deficit. To make up for the losses and help fund new content for the game, unCompany Games has turned to crowdfunding.
Dorobo Kindergarten 2 is a multiplayer online game centered around “regressive play,” meant to offer adults worn out by modern life a way to regress to a childlike state – playing with building blocks and making friends. Players take on the role of “thieves” made of magical clay and compete in 3v3 matches to collect the most “treasure.” The game is free-to-play with optional in-game purchases.
Due to its quirky concept, Dorobo Kindergarten 2 had a successful launch, recording around 500,000 downloads to date. Monthly revenue sits at around $14k USD, which places the title among the top 10-15% of indie games. However, despite this, the game is in a tight spot financially. Half of the monthly revenue goes towards costs involved in running the game – including platform fees, maintenance and infrastructure costs. This means that only about $7k is left to cover labor costs (including social insurance) of its five-person development team. Not only is Dorobo Kindergarten 2 not turning a profit, but it also has its creators in the red.
The game’s monetization relies primarily on paid in-game items. While unCompany Games could probably benefit from raising item prices or increasing the variety of microtransactions, the team doesn’t want to put undue pressure on players. Instead, they’re going for the approach of growing the user base to boost overall revenue.
To this end, the developers have announced a crowdfunding campaign on Campfire to help fund further development of Dorobo Kindergarten 2. The campaign starts on May 21, with an initial target of about $7k USD.
