UPDATED 16:15 EDT / NOVEMBER 24 2015

NEWS

Fig turns game crowdfunding backers into actual investors with equity

Participating in a successful video game crowdfunding campaign can be exciting for backers, but aside from big-ticket bonuses like studio tours or getting their likenesses added to the game, the backers who give the most money to a campaign are not treated much differently than the backers who give the least.

That is about to change thanks to a crowdfunding startup called Fig (owned by Loose Tooth Industries Inc), which allows backers to not only receive the usual crowdfunding bonuses like tshirts and posters, but also to become actual investors in the finished product, with all of the monetary rewards that entails.

Fig had already allowed accredited investors to take part in its crowdfunding campaigns and receive equity in the games, but now thanks to recent changes in laws regarding online investment in small businesses, Fig is able to allow non-accredited investors (ie anyone) to back campaigns and receive equity.

Specifically, Fig is using Regulation A+ of the JOBS Act, which allows small businesses to raise up to $50 million in funding from the general public online in what some analysts have called a “mini IPO.”

“We believe that fans, in addition to having the opportunity to participate in the rewards-only tiers, should also have the opportunity to buy shares and participate in the financial success of a title,”  Fig CEO Justin Bailey said in a statement. “This is important because we don’t feel that there should be a class distinction between fans and investors. Our belief is that fans and investors are one in the same — they are individuals who lend financial support to make a project possible, and they should all have an opportunity to participate financially. Now they can.”

While theoretically anyone can become investors in Fig’s campaigns, there are a few restrictions on just how much money individual non-accredited investors can give. Backers cannot give more than 10 percent of their annual income or net-worth, and each of Fig’s campaigns have their own self-imposed limitations, such as a minimum and maximum investment amount.

Users who donate below the minimum investment amount can still take part in the campaign and receive the usual crowdfunding bonuses, but they will not receive equity in the final product.

So far, Fig lists only one successfully completed crowdfunding campaign for a game called Outer Wilds, which raised over $75,000 from investors alone.

Image via Outer Wilds | Fig

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