Let me repeat myself. You do not have the slightest understanding of the WEG market unless you understand capital.
What does it take to make a "polished" first release?
Art/Renders
User Interface
Sound/Music
Gameplay Design
Writing
Coding
Can you do all six of those? I don't know many people who can. You can fudge it in some areas. Pick up free music via public domain.
Renders seem easier at first glance, but they can quite hard, and even harder if you don't have an expensive rig for them.
A polished demo with one hour of gameplay? The kind you're decrying the lack of? That can run you anywhere from 5k-20k easily, depending on how much of the above skillset you have.
Also no, most folks can't write polished porn stories either. It's a skillset that takes years to develop.
Truth is, the way that most people "show their skills" isn't by themselves. It takes a team. And a team takes capital.
Now, you suggested kickstarter? But, how much do you think you'll bring in via kickstarter without a demo? Without lots of sample art? Without name brand recognition?
Do you think you could slap together a Kickstarter right now and make 5k overnight? I'm an experienced game writer and designer with a half-decade of industry contacts, and the prospect of a Kickstarter is one I find challenging.
Oh, and don't forget marketing and production skills. Do you have the technologic and filmographic skills to make an enticing game trailer? How about marketing it?
Of course not. That's *nonsense*.
Game development in the modern era is almost entirely a team sport. And teams take capital. Capital we can't raise easily on the front end.
So, what most folks who want to get started do is they make a crappy, low quality, alpha. They don't spend a lot. They use whatever pre-existing skill base they have.
...AND THAT'S THE TEST. Can they market that Alpha? Are people interested in what they can do? If so, then they'll slowly build up a Patreon following over time so they can develop those resources. To build and pay a team.
That's why there are so many "crappy" alphas. Because they aren't really a full game at all. They're a pitch to the consumer.
