The Contractors – Website, Concept Art & 3D Models

Hello,

My name is John. Artist, designer, and developer.I am trying to raise funding for a video game I designed. I have spent 3 years working on the final design and final concept arts, and now need help funding. Here is the description:

The Contractors is an immersive, grand-scale role-playing game set in a war-torn future of super-soldiers, giant mechs, and vanishing humanity.

Because of its size, we’re developing the game in stages. For this fund goal, we are focusing on:

• Finalized concept art for environments, characters, vehicles, and weapons
• Fully built 3D models, including textures and animations for each
• Establishing a forum-equipped website for our supporters and hosting it for a year
• Create “sandbox” test environment

We’re also offering our backers a potential revenue-share opportunity through the sales of any skins they help us develop which are made available in our in-game store! (See Rewards and Perks for more information about this.)

"Breaker" Suit | Standard Issue Body Armor

Our Vision

Think about the games you love and what you love most about them.

Is it driving around a huge cityscape in a sweet ride of your choosing, whether it’s got four wheels or spinning blades, chasing glory while sunset eases in the night?

Is it the adrenaline rush of raining gunfire as you tactically take out waves of enemy soldiers with a kick-ass arsenal of weapons you’ve level grinded to obtain?

Is it mastering the skills and upgrades of your multi-class character as you send them through an epic, seamless, and reactive story?

Well, we love all those things, too. That’s why we want to fuse together all the best parts of all our favorite games and make something awesome – and we want to bring you in on it.

We understand that’s an ambitious goal. We’re an ambitious people. But we’re also being realistic about it. Building something like this is going to take time, a clear and flexible plan, and lots of hard work. So, we’re planning to get the engine running one phase at a time.

We’re hoping you’ll join us while we realise our dream game. It’s still early days, but if you stick with us, your ideas can become a reality too.

The Story

In The Contractors, the world has advanced through unimaginable technological marvels in the game of war. So much so, that our drives of greed and ambition ran unencumbered by limitation and consumed the world like a wildfire. Now we are spared one thing: desperation.

We’ve come full circle. It’s a dog-eat-dog world but instead of claws and fangs, we have guns loaded with more ammo than there are human lives left.

The cities are hollow. Our armies draw strength from living steel. In some measures, machines are the dominant species of the world’s ravaged ecosystem, and the masters they answer to are ones who will never stop fighting.

Because, after all, isn’t there always something to fight for?

Gameplay

A lot of what we have planned for The Contractors is still being refined and tested, while other aspects are still being designed. What we can share for sure now is our design goals:

• Open-world exploration
• Seamless storyline with interwoven missions
• Gorgeously rendered environments
• Third- and first-person interchangeable POV
• Elegant, world-appropriate interfaces

Want some more details? Here are some features we have planned:

• Powered mech-suits
• Drivable vehicles to explore with
• RPG-style experience levelling
• Real-time encounters of waves of enemies in the open world (no transitions here!)
• Gun fights with elements of cover-based combat
• Item loot drops and a robust inventory system
• Customisable weapon upgrades

Technology

CRYENGINE offers us a great system for rendering, lighting, animation, and particle effects,.

With the amazing, purpose built real-time environment, we can create a beautiful open world realizing triple AAA graphics.

Sample test environment. Realistic rendering. Realistic textures.

What We Will Achieve In This Phase

To tackle such a big project, we’re adopting an old strategy: “How do you take down a hydra? One head at a time.” We’re applying this approach to our funding, where we’ll be breaking up the games funding and development into discrete, deliverable milestones.

For this stage of funding, we’ll be focusing on creating finalised concept art and game-ready 3D models for all assets needed in The Contractors. This includes, as mentioned above: environments, characters, vehicles, and weapons.

In addition, we’ll be creating a simple “whitebox” test environment, in which you’ll be able to play as some of our characters, with some of our weapons. Backers even at the lowest tier will receive this test environment as a playable executable file (.exe).

Where We Are Now

Below are some of the key concepts we’ve developed so far which, with your help, will be taken to a final and polished state. Note that these are initial concepts and do not reflect the final quality we’ll be taking them to by the end of this fund goal’s development stage.

Current Concepts: Characters

Current Concepts: 3D Models

"Breaker" suit 3D model progress.

Current Concepts: Vehicles

Current Concepts: Weapons

These are blueprints, called "orthographics" that our 3D modelers use to turn concept art into real game assets.

Why Crowdfunding

Getting to this point in pre-production hasn’t been easy. As an indie developer, I personally have tapped into my own funds to create the initial concept art and models, as well as devote my time to work on building this game. To date, it’s been 3 years – and there’s been no inkling to slow down.

To continue with building this game, we need some support. The funds which you, our beloved backers, generate will be used to fund the creation of high-end assets made by some very talented artists – and they don’t come cheap. That’s why we need you.

Rewards and Perks

One of the unique aspects of our crowdfunding efforts is including any potential backer into the development process. Have you ever wanted to design a weapon or vehicle, and then see it fully realised in a game? Well this is your chance!

For a limited number of backers at certain reward tiers, we’re offering a chance to work together with our art team to design a custom exclusive skin for a weapon, vehicle, or character (whichever you choose) which will then be posted in our game store. We’ll also involve you in the pricing of your custom developed skin. For each sale that this skin makes, you will be paid a certain percentage for it! We are offering our backers potential of revenue share, gaining secondary income stream through sales of different skins in our in-game store.

Please note: final percentage and pricing will be determined at a later date, and skin will be subject to EULA and age rating limits, and it will only be deliverable if the final game is fully funded and shipped.

We’ve made this opportunity exclusive to some of the higher-end reward tiers. Please see our reward perks full descriptions below for more details:

Digital Game (Early Bird)

• Game at launch (PC Digital)
• Thanks in the credits as early backer
• 1 character skin
• 1 weapon skin
• 1 weapon sticker

Digital Plus

• Game at launch (PC Digital)
• Thanks in the credits as early backer
• 5 character skins
• 5 weapon skins
• 5 weapon stickers

Digital Extreme

• Game at launch (PC Digital)
• Thanks in the credits as early backer
• 10 character skins
• 10 weapon skins
• 10 weapon stickers
• Have an NPC named after a handle of your choosing in the game (if game is developed)
• Design and submit 10 weapon stickers and have it posted to the in-game store. You will then be able to set price of each of your custom designs and you will be paid a percentage for each sale. (Final percentage pricing will be determined later. Subject to EULA and age rating limits and deliverable only if final game is funded and shipped).

Character Modder

• Game at launch (PC Digital)
• Thanks in the credits as early backer
• 10 character skins
• 10 weapon skins
• 10 weapon stickers
• Have an NPC named after a handle of your choosing in the game (if game is developed)
• Work together with our concept artists and design a custom EXCLUSIVE Character skin and have it posted to the in-game store. You will then be able to set price of your custom skin design and you will be paid a percentage for each sale. (Final percentage pricing will be determined later. Subject to EULA and age rating limits and deliverable only if final game is funded and shipped).

Weapon Modder

• Game at launch (PC Digital)
• Thanks in the credits as early backer
• 10 character skins
• 10 weapon skins
• 10 weapon stickers
• Have an NPC named after a handle of your choosing in the game (if game is developed)
• Work together with our concept artists and design a custom EXCLUSIVE weapon skin and have it posted to the in-game store. You will then be able to set the price of your custom skin design and you will be paid a percentage for each sale. (Final percentage pricing will be determined later. Subject to EULA and age rating limits and deliverable only if final game is funded and shipped).

Weapon Designer

• Game at launch (PC Digital)
• Thanks in the credits as early backer
• 10 character skins
• 10 weapon skins
• 10 weapon stickers
• Have an NPC named after a handle of your choosing in the game (if game is developed)
• Work together with our concept artists and design a custom EXCLUSIVE weapon (named after a handle of your choosing) , and 7 weapon skins. Weapon skins will then be posted to the in-game store. You will then be able to set the price of your custom skin design and you will be paid a percentage for each sale. (Final percentage pricing will be determined later. Subject to EULA and age rating limits and deliverable only if final game is funded and shipped).

Vehicle Modder

• Game at launch (PC Digital)
• Thanks in the credits as early backer
• 10 character skins
• 10 weapon skins
• 10 weapon stickers
• Have an NPC named after a handle of your choosing in the game (if game is developed)
• Work together with our concept artists and design a custom EXCLUSIVE Vehicle skin and have it posted to the in-game store You will then be able to set price of your custom skin design and you will be paid a percentage for each sale. (Final percentage pricing will be determined later. Subject to EULA and age rating limits and deliverable only if final game is funded and shipped).

Vehicle Designer

• Game at launch (PC Digital)
• Thanks in the credits as early backer
• 10 character skins
• 10 weapon skins
• 10 weapon stickers
• Have an NPC named after a handle of your choosing in the game (if game is developed)
• Work together with our concept artists and design a custom EXCLUSIVE vehicle (named after a handle of your choosing) , and 7 vehicle skins. Vehicle skins will then be posted to the in-game store. You will then be able to set the price of your custom skin design and you will be paid a percentage for each sale. (Final percentage pricing will be determined later. Subject to EULA and age rating limits and deliverable only if final game is funded and shipped).

Other Ways You Can Help

Whether you can contribute as a backer or not, you can always help by sharing the game with people you know. So please don’t hesitate to spread the word if you want to see the game get made! Any of our promotional art or videos – anything at all – are free to be shared on social media, forums, or what-have-you.

Thank you for your support!