Long before Twitch streamers, YouTube creators, and gaming podcasts became household names, there was The Guild. Debuting in 2007, Felicia Day’s independent web series chronicled the lives of a dysfunctional MMO guild, becoming one of the first internet-first shows to capture what it actually felt like to be an online gamer. Now, nearly two decades later, the cast is assembling once again. Sometimes, logging back into an old guild is exactly what the party needs.
To celebrate the series 20th anniversary, Felicia Day has launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund a brand-new chapter of The Guild. Within hours of going live, longtime fans and MMO veterans began rallying behind the campaign, eager to revisit the online world that helped define gaming culture during the height of World of Warcraft‘s early years. Just hours after launching the Kickstarter, nearly 7,000 backers have already pledged $$1,264,000 of its $1.5mil goal.
For many players, The Guild wasn’t simply a comedy about MMORPGs. To outsiders, it looked like the stereotypical gamer nerd life. To those living in those majestic online worlds, The Guild hit home, exploring guild drama, raid schedules, awkward voice chat conversations, loot disputes, and the friendships that formed through countless hours spent together in virtual worlds.
The timing of Ren Faire’d couldn’t be more perfect. While MMORPGs have experienced rocky times in recent years, both classic and modern online worlds continue to attract dedicated communities. At the same time, nostalgia for the formative years of online gaming has never been stronger. For players who remember coordinating dungeon runs over Ventrilo or spending evenings waiting for raids to assemble, The Guild remains a surprisingly accurate snapshot of that era.
Whether you’ve been following Codex since episode one or discovered the series years later, the anniversary campaign offers fans a chance to help bring one of gaming’s most influential web series back for another adventure. But the Kickstarter doesn’t stop at just the movie. Other pledge tiers offer up a card game (Swords & Sweethearts), a TTRPG supplement, a Poopcorn bucket, Knight of Good dice set, wearables, and more. Oh, and remember how I said the Kickstarter had already reached $1.26mil? Just in the time it took me to write this up, that has risen to $1,323,230…560…780… Let’s just say that by the time you read this, the campaign has already hit its goal.
