Yep, the idea is to crowdfund in in small, deliverable sections that demonstrate progress and build confidence over time. Its actually identical to how publishers to it. Publishers pay every month or two, and only if the work has progressed to a satisfactory degree. Except now, the gamers are acting in this role.
Also its true, we have no game yet. We didn't think we'd get this far, this fast. You guys all took us by surprise. What started as a petition to gauge interest has, in less than 30 days, resulted in the community demanding and funding a website, top tier forums with mods, and full concept art for the key resource encounter (player, frame, T.H.M.P.R., alien enemy).
So now we're working on the next phase. With the demand I'm seeing, I'm happy to put another milestone of work into the game design and more concrete explanations of how we will translate the key concepts of Firefall into tangible things in Ember. This won't happen overnight, but with our step by step funding and growing of interest and the community, I'm beginning to think we can get there.