We have been trying our very best to make this a surprise, but due to the obvious concern people have shown we wanted to tackle the subject of donations.
First off, Dain and I cannot thank you enough for your contributions. Believe it or not, the donations have helped us quite a bit in times when we hardly had money to eat. Consider your money as an investment in a company who really cares about the games they put out. Now it’s time for us to give you that return on investment.
For everyone who donated $5 or above, you will be able to redeem your donation for a full copy of the game. ( [edit] At this time we have closed donations. ) On top of that, we will also be sending out a full audio track for the song Autumn. It seems many donators did not click the ‘back to site’ button which would have given them the track at that time. If you donated you will be receiving an email late next week before our release with instructions on how to receive your copy. It should be a pretty simple streamlined process.
Seriously though, we love you guys. Thanks so much.
January 20th, 2009 at 11:40 am
Will and Dain,
Thanks for updating us on this matter. I’m very happy to have contributed to the development of this amazing project, and I cannot wait to play the full version. I also look forward to downloading “Autumn”
Best wishes, and keep up the great work!
January 20th, 2009 at 11:47 am
Will people that wish to donate now but haven’t been able to as of yet be eligible for this offer or was there a cut off date for this?
January 20th, 2009 at 11:59 am
Same as Donnie, I have been thinking of donating recently, (and really, for something like Auditorium, it’d be well worth it.) Is the offer still open to late-comers, or was there a cut off date?
January 20th, 2009 at 12:05 pm
Sorry guys, we cut the donations off today.
January 20th, 2009 at 12:05 pm
Count me among those who did not click the “back to site” link. Or the link didn’t work, or something like that.
Thanks for doing this, as a donator I appreciate the kind gesture.
Looking forward to it.
January 20th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
This is great news! I guess I was one of those who did not click the “back to site” link. I’m really looking forward to playing the full version of the game (and listening to the full version of Autumn too). I’m very grateful that you guys decided to do this
January 20th, 2009 at 2:26 pm
Oh man, I helped contribute to this and I get a free copy of the game? Awesome. You guys are super cool.
January 20th, 2009 at 2:33 pm
I like my artists starving. Keeps ‘em motivated
JK guys. I’m glad you pulled through and are showing your fanbase that you appreciate them. Respect your fanbase and they’ll respect you back.
(on a side note, I didn’t donate, but will certainly be purchasing the game, and showing it to friends to encourage them to purchase it)
January 20th, 2009 at 6:45 pm
Curse my philanthropic procrastination! Oh well, I’ll just as happily pay full price.
January 20th, 2009 at 6:45 pm
Ok so basically if i donated 5 dollars i get a five dollar coupon to buy the full game? Awesome! Also i love the winter track is there a way to get it ? Thanks
January 20th, 2009 at 6:49 pm
Oh and if we didn’t clicked the back to site button is there a way to do it after?
thanks
January 20th, 2009 at 8:26 pm
I seriously wasn’t expecting anything at all when I donated to Auditorium. I just thought that this idea was so great and innovative that I believe it deserves to be developed to the best possible way for all people to enjoy. I really can’t believe I that can actually get a copy of the game. this is just too cool!!!! thank you so much
January 20th, 2009 at 11:10 pm
REALLY amazing game you have here… I loved it so much that I’m going to share it with my friends, family, strangers, ANYONE who will listen to me rant on and on …!!
I’m soooo sorry that I didn’t donate, but I WILL buy a full copy to support you guys !!! Grats on all the success!!
January 21st, 2009 at 12:26 am
Haha thanks will! I AM STOKED!
January 21st, 2009 at 3:16 am
Sweet news
cant wait !
January 21st, 2009 at 8:16 am
I’m with Paul in that I didn’t donate but will definitely be buying and encouraging others to buy the game. As someone in the game dev biz I wanted to say this is a very nice tip or the hat to your fans. Congrats on putting this all together. I know how big (and expensive) the process can be.
Counting the days until release.
January 21st, 2009 at 6:14 pm
The demo was fun!!! looking forward to the full game alright
I didnt press the back to sight button lol… was playing in another tab in firefox
Oh well. looking forward to it anyhow
:D
GunnerElite.
January 21st, 2009 at 7:41 pm
Will the full soundtrack be available for purchase?
January 21st, 2009 at 8:35 pm
Heh, that would be my luck. I was waiting for my paycheck to come in this week in order to donate to you guys. I guess now I can just buy the full game.
Really looking forward to it, guys.
January 21st, 2009 at 9:02 pm
Ditto,Chun. Thanks so much guys. Truly looking forward to playing the full version! It will beat job hunting!
January 22nd, 2009 at 4:51 am
I didn’t donate, but I’ll sure buy a full game
looking forward to it !
You guys are cool
January 22nd, 2009 at 4:51 pm
Thanks guys, you’re pretty cool!
January 22nd, 2009 at 7:02 pm
This is an awesome way to reward your fans. Good luck with the release. You guys deserve it.
Didn’t click back link ++
January 22nd, 2009 at 10:44 pm
I love this game, it’s so innovative and clever. I didn’t donate, but I will definitely be purchasing the game, if I can get it with Paypal, that is. A friend of mine linked me to the game, and he is also planning on buying it. So excited!
January 23rd, 2009 at 1:46 am
Ahh, bummed that I didn’t donate before. You’ve inspired me to donate to other indie developers I admire though, so I think your decision to close donations may be good for indie games overall.
Anyway, I’ll definitely be picking up a full game.
January 23rd, 2009 at 10:36 am
I was happy to donate - I can’t wait to get the full version of this game, and am looking forward to your email. Is there a way we can contact you if we don’t hear from you in the near future?
January 24th, 2009 at 9:32 am
Glad to have helped out along the way. I look forward to playing the full version and will tell everybody about it!
January 24th, 2009 at 6:47 pm
Stumbled upon this, very nice game. Hats off to you
January 24th, 2009 at 9:11 pm
Maybe I liked the demo more than everyone else, or maybe my Scrooge McDuck-like mountains of wealth make me insensitive to the OUTRAGEOUS SUM of $11, but I got $11 worth of fun just out of the demo, and will be delighted to throw down some bills for the full version.
I am willing to bet they want it browser-only as an antipiracy measure; if they use AIR or a SWF->EXE program, they’re just gonna see a lot of pass-around and BitTorrent sharing, whereas if they make an online SWF that requires authentication, someone at least has to decompile it and try to rip out the auth code (which can get to be a duel of wits if they’re serious about it).
On the other hand, I would argue that anyone who would pirate it is someone who wouldn’t be willing to pay $11 anyway. Companies who release without any antipiracy measures don’t seem to see any worse outcomes — see Stardock. A standalone version would be appreciated.
Or, here’s my suggestion — make a standalone which requires occasional authentication, but give the auth a one-month expiration, renewed each time it successfully logs in. Trivial in AIR. Problem solved?
January 25th, 2009 at 9:36 am
I’d also really like an offline version; if it is for anti-piracy reasons (though most of the indie games I have don’t bother and have done fine without them) then at least make it an offline thing that checks periodically to authenticate as mentioned above, please! Being trapped in an online browser really sucks for gaming.
Also interested in a soundtrack! Every time I finish a level I keep wishing I could just sit there for a bit instead of automatically moving on to the next level.
January 26th, 2009 at 2:52 am
Had to look back to see how much I donated since I forgot… but I am really excited for this. Great job guys, and can’t wait to get my hands on the full version!
January 26th, 2009 at 5:30 pm
I’m definitely looking forward to the full version of the game. It would be awesome if that purchase included the soundtrack - I would love to listen to the music elsewhere.
I’m hoping you can release this through Steam. I’ve made nearly all of my recent game purchases through it and I appreciate not having to worry about “losing” something I’ve bought.
Great work folks! I’ll keep getting my friends addicted…
January 26th, 2009 at 5:31 pm
Hey, really dig the new wormhole icons in Preview. You guys keep improving upon fantastic. Looking forward to the release!
January 26th, 2009 at 5:38 pm
I don’t know if I was asleep before, but now I’m noticing a whole lot of different things… the control/force handles now represent what that force is when the handle is condensed. The music does change at 1:5… :-/ And yes, the wormholes are 1000% better! (If anything I didn’t like about the game before, I thought the wormholes could be represented better.) Plus, I see on the new “more info” area that some controls/forces will be color sensitive… an interesting twist!
On top of that, the troubles I’ve had switching to full screen (the full-screen window not getting the focus) and bringing up the right-click menu are now history. Fantastic!
Only a few more days, can hardly wait.
January 26th, 2009 at 5:44 pm
Also… the new “more info” states that wormholes only work in one direction. But the “new” ones in the preview are definitely working both ways. (Or might that apply to angle of incidence?) And I spoke a bit too soon, had a spot of trouble with the menus still. (XP-SP3 FF 3.0.1 Flash 10)
January 27th, 2009 at 10:52 pm
yay! i should be getting my full copy and song soon!
thanks guys, great game
keep up the good work
January 28th, 2009 at 8:48 pm
Woohoo! Yeah, I didn’t click the “back to site” link either. I was actually coming to the blog today to get an email address to inquire about the whole donation thing and then saw this post!
I am psyched to be getting my own copy of the game plus the song. Thank you very much for taking the effort to produce what promises to be an excellent game.
Looking forward to seeing your email soon. : )
January 28th, 2009 at 11:07 pm
the donations have helped us quite a bit in times when we hardly had money to eat
Well, there’s the problem right there. You shouldn’t be eating the money, you should be using it to buy food.
January 30th, 2009 at 6:13 am
Hey,
I dont know if the release date is now? its the 30th in australia D:
Just enquiring just incase i missed the email from my donation
CANT WAIT GUYS!!!!!!!!!
Rick
January 30th, 2009 at 2:33 pm
Hang in there guys. We are doing our best to make the transition as seamless as possible. I would expect to see the new site up this evening with an email from the mailing list and a new blog post.
January 30th, 2009 at 2:48 pm
Will we also receive the email from the donation?
Thanks
January 30th, 2009 at 2:55 pm
You sure will be!
January 30th, 2009 at 2:58 pm
Thanks a lot! So looking forward to it! thanks again guys for such a beautiful game!
January 30th, 2009 at 3:04 pm
Awesome awesome awesome! I can hardly wait ’til this evening!
January 30th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
If we still want the full version and soundtrack we have to pay right. But I just found out about the game and I still want to donate
January 30th, 2009 at 6:01 pm
Hello,
first of all sorry for the faults, I am French and I cannot speak well English.
Then, I thank you really much for Auditorium.
I find this play more pationnant, more poetic, more marvellous than the majority of what we can find on Internet.
I hope that the play will leave soon, I will make all my possible to have it in full version …..
Good continuation, I support you madly!
N.
January 30th, 2009 at 6:07 pm
I’m not the only french guy finding this game poetic and moving, well that’s good to know!
January 30th, 2009 at 9:10 pm
I’ve created an Auditorium Facebook group if anyone has Facebook and would like to join:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=46490042502&ref=ts
January 31st, 2009 at 2:22 am
@ Kendra
Awesome! I’m joining!
January 31st, 2009 at 8:09 am
I joined too… Guys, fans all over the world are waiting for auditorium to be released. It’s amazing what you both did! I really can’t wait
January 31st, 2009 at 6:06 pm
Site has been down for hours - can we at least get a status update with why the release is taking so long and when we can expect it to be up? :/
January 31st, 2009 at 7:56 pm
Just be patient, all… software development and deployment is not an exact science. Things happen, always when you least expect it. And it’s mostly just two guys…a lot on their shoulders at the moment but the advantage of no large, corporate bureaucracy to wade through, either. So I wouldn’t worry about some never-ending delay. I’d rather they get it right, than rushed and ruined.
The site is surely down for the changeover, and we wouldn’t all be drooling so much if the waiting wouldn’t be worth it.
I’d also guess they’d rather devote their time to getting things finished than to responding to the blog and/or providing hour-by-hour updates.
January 31st, 2009 at 8:36 pm
well said Jovet
January 31st, 2009 at 10:34 pm
Here here!
January 31st, 2009 at 10:40 pm
*cries* It’s already February, thought the site would be down for a few hours, not for 10+ hours.
February 1st, 2009 at 7:36 am
If I could donate to help them, I may do it.
The game is worth it ! It’s so beautiful, and full of poetry..
Very good job to both the two men working on it. I try to wait until the game comes back, but it’s hard !
February 1st, 2009 at 3:32 pm
Evidently, if you go to “http://www.playauditorium.com/test”, you can see the new site. Although the game doesn’t load and any attempts to redeem your donation doesn’t work.
Interesting finding, to say the least.
February 1st, 2009 at 4:20 pm
Hmmm, I used that site, and was able to pay for something using PayPal. I’m really getting impatient.
February 1st, 2009 at 6:04 pm
Yeah guys… it’s ok if you need more time… just let us know what’s going on and when we can expect it up…
February 1st, 2009 at 6:49 pm
Seems they patched the “/test” address
Actually, if you enter anything after playauditorium.com/, you’ll get the site (e.g. /test2, /lololololol, etc), but, again, no game. And if you go to the original “/test” address, and click the Auditorium logo, you’ll be redirected to “/sexy.” And personally, that’s what it is :D.
January 30th, 2010 at 6:46 pm
I have learned a lot reading your site. Thanks for posting.