When comparing Kickstarter vs IndieDB, the Slant community recommends Kickstarter for most people. In the question“What are the best ways to promote an indie game?” Kickstarter is ranked 2nd while IndieDB is ranked 3rd. The most important reason people chose Kickstarter is:
Knowing that there is enough funding will allow long-term budget planning. Knowing that there's *not* funding allows users to move on.
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro All-or-nothing model allows commitment with certainty
Knowing that there is enough funding will allow long-term budget planning. Knowing that there's not funding allows users to move on.
Pro Helps to promote projects
Potential pledgers are encouraged to browse Kickstarter much like Pinterest. While most of the funds will be generated by personal effort, Kickstarted certainly offers a good boost for those who need it.
Pro Popular site
Kickstarter is one of the most well known crowdfunding site. Over $1.2 billion has been pledged so far, with 10 million monthly visitors to the site.
Pro Explicit site mission is to connect indie devs with players
IndieDB isn't just a place where you can build hype for your game: it aims to be the definitive place where you should. Everything about the site's features and interface are designed to help devs present themselves, and to kindle user interest in new games.
Pro Large overlap with Desura userbase
Desura and IndieDB were initially both operated by Desura Group, and shared a single user database. Linden Labs obtained Desura (only) in January 2014 and the sites' user bases are now split, but extensive crossover remains. Interest built through IndieDB can translate directly to sales on Desura.
Pro Easy for journalists to look up
People from IndieStatik, Kotaku, etc will check IndieDB for info on new games.
Pro Indie cred
Lots of games and developers on here.
Cons
Con 5% fee is applied to successful funding
Any successful crowdfunding operation run on Kickstarter will have a 5% fee. The payment processor will take an additional 3-5%.
Con Poor metrics for popularity tracking
Your game on IndieDB has a popularity ranking, but it considers only the past 24 hours, making it only good for noticing spikes in attention. Individual pages have hit counters, which can provide a more lasting record of interest but must be tracked and compared manually.