Ludocene Game Finder Kickstarter LaunchesLudocene Game Finder Kickstarter Launches

Family Gaming Database :

Press Release:


London 2025: New game discovery tool Kickstarter launches from the team behind Family Gaming Database, with expert game curators on board including Simon Parkin, Christian Donlan, Rachel Watts, Brian Crecente, Josh Boykin and Mairi Nolan.

Kickstarter launches Tues 18th February 2pm GMT / EST 9am / PST 6am : 
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ludocene/ludocene-game-discovery-from-people-you-trust
 

Kickstarter Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRkvfG-1et8
Demo of Prototype: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdyh0Mc9TXg



With games media changing and social media fragmenting, game discovery is broken. We need a reliable way to discover games that match our tastes. Somewhere that's around for the long haul, is independent in the true meaning of the word and pays experts for their knowledge.


Ludocene is a new way to find your next game. It uses rich human-researched data to build you a unique catalogue of games you'll love in three playful steps:

 

Each game is represented by a card that you can interact with - click to view a game trailer and flip to view more details and the best prices on storefronts.



Like a dating app, you are offered a stream of games and swipe to build your deck of games that represent your taste. Every choice refines the stream of games offered as you hunt for your next game.



It feels like you're playing a game, where winning is discovering video games that perfectly match your tastes. 



The biggest coup of our project is the amazing video game experts who are supporting us. We pay experts to set themselves up on the site so that you can select their Expert card and immediately have your game suggestions tailored to their tastes.

We've worked to find experts from all corners of the gaming world already: streamers, developers, journalists, podcasters. But this is just the tip of the iceberg and we're sure you'll have some great suggestions of people for us to add.

Simon Parkin (New Yorker), Lucy Bundell (Videoverse, Kinmoku Games), Alexander Donaldson (RPG Site), Christian Donlan (Eurogamer), Matt Lees (Shut Up And Sit Down), Dominic Tarason (Rock Paper Shotgun, PC Gamer), Rachel Watts (LostInCult, GamesRadar), Susan Arendt (Previously The Escapist), Brian Crecente (founded Kotaku, co-founded Polygon), Matthew Castle (Backpage Podcast), Josh Boykin (Intelligames Streamer), Nick Suttner (Panic, Eggplant Podcast), James Batchelor (GamesIndustry.Biz), Chris Schilling (Previously Edge), Mairi Nolan (Escape Room Championships), Joseph Mansfield (Thinky Games), Angela Hickman (Education and Healthcare), John Rogers (Gaming In The Wild), Cath Knibbs (Game Therapist).



Every expert on Ludocene will be paid for their time and expertease on setting up a profile and adding new games they find. There is a sizeable portion of our funding budget dedicated to this. But the more we fund the more amazing experts we can add.



We have a small team with a track record of delivering tailored experiences like this to millions of users. We are an independent family-owned company based in Devon, England.

We have developed a custom game discovery dataset over the past 5 years, through human-researched details and connections. Every day we add two new games to the database.

We are independent and in a position to ensure Ludocene stays in the hands of the community and grows all it can be. We have run other projects like this, including the Family Gaming Database which has grown without adverts or "enshitification" to offer an ongoing resource enjoyed by millions of families every month.
 


We don't want a corporate backer. We want Ludocene to be free to use. But we also want to pay experts for their curation with an up-front payment for their time and then a share of any profits.

Kickstarter backing will set us up to keep Ludocene independent. We will be able to make the right decisions for how it develops and grows. We will be able to be led by the gaming community and our users rather than advertises or big business.

As well as the money, Kickstarter is a great way for us to hear from you. We want to build a community and grant those people a say in how things evolve. Kickstarter is a great way to start that ongoing conversation. 
All Tiers Get Early Access: Backing Ludeocene enables us to keep it free, reward experts and not limit the game data or suggestions in any way. All backers get immediate access to the Ludocene Prototype. Although only placeholder visual design, the data and suggestions are all fully functional. This is a great chance to try the concept out and, if you wish, input into the final design.

Higher Tiers Get One Year's Subscription: Backing at a higher tier grants additional benefits including one year's subscription. We are committed to delivering a free experience that is fully functional and without limits on game data. To build towards a sustainable product and continue paying experts we have an optional £3/month subscription that provides additional features, larger decks and special card packs. For example, there are some special cards we have been thinking about:
 

As you can see in our budget, the money from the Kickstarter will cover the project for the work we need to do to make Ludocene the best version it can be. But we are excited about how far we can take this if we exceed our initial funding goals. There are loads of additional features we’d love to deliver: