So the Psychonauts 2 crowdfunding campaign raised $3.8 million in January, and it’s a pretty big deal.

The first Psychonauts originally garnered modest sales in 2005 but went on to become a PC classic. The game is lauded for its writing, level design, and quirky atmosphere; it’s often placed on best-of-all-time lists. After I finished it, I probably spent about an hour scouring Internet forums for sequel rumors. Eventually I relented and gave the whole situation a rating of probably not gonna happen. But it’s happening.

It isn’t going to happen right away. $3.8 million isn’t enough to make a new Psychonauts game; DoubleFine will also be gathering money from an external partner. And once the game is finally done? “We will take to the streets wearing festive party hats to join the hoards [sic] of fans who have been patiently waiting outside our office for the game to be done,” reads the game info page on Fig.

I’m psyched. It’s incredible to think that a cult classic can be resurrected with enough fan momentum. As I followed the Psychonauts campaign, however, I couldn’t help but remember how crowdfunded games can go wrong. So very wrong.

One dramatic case study is Yogventures, an sandbox adventure game that backers Kickstarted for over half a million dollars in 2012. The title was to be based on Yogscast, a popular British YouTube gaming and commentary channel. Their Kickstarter looked professional, and the fanbase pledged money without hesitation. It soon became obvious, however, that what started out as optimistic sales pitch and 500k had turned to chaos. Polygon published a story detailing the incident here. Developer Winterkewl Games was too small and inexperienced, the scope of the project simply too ambitious. After much suspense, Yogscast officially announced the game’s cancellation by e-mail in 2014. They did not refund their backers. Instead, the Yogscast team made a few vague promises and gave out some consolation prizes (namely Steam keys for a game called TUG), a move which disappointment many fans.

For some crowdfunded games, the final product is completed but met with a mixed reception. For others, backers are left in limbo. Take the Homestuck Game Kickstarter — I’ve been following this one since the beginning. Similar story: a devoted fanbase raised cratefuls of cash for their beautifully nerdy pastime of choice. In this case, a webcomic. The final funds came to almost $2.5 million, shattering Kickstarter records at the time. Many of my own friends pledged to the project. As tier rewards arrived at their doorsteps, I remember a general positive vibe. I wanted to believe that the project would chug along right on schedule and result in an awesome final product.

While the game — titled Hiveswap — has not been canceled, there’s certainly been some drama. First, I recall that (unsubstantiated) rumors began to surface among fans that money had been stolen from the project in some complex legal kerfuffle. Even when one disregards all the conjecture and fan hysteria, however, the future is still cloudy for Hiveswap. We’ve long since passed the original projected release date of mid-2015, and new changes keep coming: recently, project leader Andrew Hussie announced that the game would switch from 3D to 2D point-and-click, presumably scrapping all the assets featured in last year’s trailer. It was disheartening to see such a huge change occurring so far in the development process. Will Hiveswap‘s small in-house developer, What Pumpkin, be able to make a game to satisfy fans despite the setbacks? Time will tell.

There is a fairly large difference between these two projects and Psychonauts 2. Hiveswap and Yogventures were/are the brainchildren of creative people with relatively little experience in big-budget game design. In contrast, Psychonauts 2 will be developed under the guidance of industry veteran Tim Schaefer and DoubleFine, which makes for a safer bet.

Ultimately, however, websites like Kickstarter or Fig ask for an investment, not a pre-order. A key component of investment is risk. As fans, it’s important remember that even our favorite creators are fallible, and to do a bit of research before putting money down. My final thoughts? I love crowdfunding and the opportunities it provides for creators. But when I gamble on a game, I don’t bet anything I’m not willing to lose.