Freddie Wong’s crowdfunding campaign for a third seasons of the web film series Video Game High School is off to a good start. The Indiegogo campaign has raised $170,296 out of its goal of $750,000 after one day.
The results so far suggest that the campaign will be successful, but it still needs to show steady sustained contributions for the next 29 days. The campaign is a test as to how much traction Wong’s web films have gotten to date. The episodic series has more than 64 million views after two seasons, and Wong raised more than $1 million last year fund his campaigns.
Wong, who co-creates the series with Matt Arnold through their company Rocket Jump, has become a YouTube celebrity with his funny game-savvy web shows. Video Game High School is a long-form web series about a high school where students study only video games. Like Felicia Day, Wong is one of gaming’s home-grown celebrities. The two of them are co-hosting the D.I.C.E. Awards, the Oscars of games, in February in Las Vegas.
“VGHS has only been possible because of your support,” Wong said in a video. “Together we’ve made something that is truly groundbreaking.”
Past campaigns were held on Kickstarter, but with the switch to Indiegogo, the series is aiming for a global funding audience. The show is now distributed via Blu-ray, DVD, iTunes, Netflix, Microsoft Xbox Live, and Sony’s PlayStation Network. Variety magazine named it the “best web series of 2013.” Game designer Cliff Bleszinski and Spider-Man creator Stan Lee have made cameos in the series.
The school is set in an alternate reality where professional video gaming is the biggest spectator sport. It follows Brian D, a pro gamer who attends VGHS. The third season will have six episodes and finish the series. If the funding reaches its goal, the new show will have an orchestral score, 5.1 surround sound, and a computer-generated effects like a “troll monster.”
Above: VGHS final season
“We wanted to make the final season of VGHS our biggest season yet and wanted to have flexibility and reach in terms of potential backers” said Freddie Wong. “Indiegogo’s integration with PayPal as well as the ability to run the campaign off our own site made it an obvious choice for the optimal crowd funding platform of this project.”
Wong promises VGHS will go out in an “epic blaze of glory.” Arnold and the writers have worked on the script for the last six months.
“We’ve worked with many of the top talents on YouTube, like SMOSH and Hannah Hart, to get their projects funded,” said Marc Hofstatter, Indiegogo vertical director, film. “We are beyond thrilled to welcome Freddie Wong and Video Game High School to our Indiegogo family as we continue to be a destination for top YouTube creators to fund their creative endeavors.”