The Founding has arrived! The folks at NeocoreGames have seen fit to bless alpha players for their upcoming game, with the option to through even more money at this unfinished game.

In a parody of Kickstarter backer rewards, Neocore have set out their Supporters, Devotees, Collectors and Enthusiasts packs, all at prices fit for an emperor! £40, £80, £300, and £1000. With the £1000 option offering the exclusive benefit of all future DLC for FREE!

This is either some outrageous optimism on behalf of Neocore, or their copying the Games Workshop pricing model. It’s true that Neocore are not the only company to price gouge on this level. Many free to play or subscription based games, are notorious for having heavy DLC pricing, however they rely on whales, or return customers gradually spending this amount over a matter of years.

Kickstarter Rewards are a closer model to what Neocore are doing, but that brings me back to the DLC issue…why leave this to the highest tier only? Surely nobody thinks that spending £1000 is a cost effective way of buying the DLC? What about the definitive or Special editions that certain people (like me) prefer to wait for so they can buy the entire game in one package? Are they happy to alienate customers like myself? Or are they happy to just insult their premium backers by making their investment moot when these complete editions are released?

I apologize for not talking more about the game itself, but I was literally dumbfounded at Neocores’ approach here. Perhaps in their next press release we’ll discover that the more you pay for this game, the more gold inlaid in-game items you can use.