Thursday, February 28, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 20 - Kingdom Death: Monster

Kingdom Death: Monster

Completed Funding on January 7, 2013 with $2,049,721 of $35,000 Goal

What did they offer: Kingdom Death: Monster is a boutique nightmare horror cooperative board game.  It's Kickstarter is the most successful table top game by more than double it's next competitor.  Backers of the game would receive a base copy, with options for quite a few add-ons.

When was the expected delivery date:  November 2013

What did VG30 pledge for:  We won't disclose the dollar amount on this one, but VG30 backed the game, all expansions, and any add-on figure that included settlement rules.  

Status of Project:  Nothing shipped, but nobody is expecting anything for another 9 months.  

What the creator is saying:  The creator is thrilled with the response to the project, and seemed to keep realistic expectations when throwing in add-ons.  He seemed to understand the budget of both time and money to be able to make the project happen, which comes from him already creating and selling miniatures to get the game started.  Backers are being updated every couple weeks with renderings of figures, sculpting, and finished product.  

What the community is saying:  The community has died down some since the excitement of the Kickstarter, but is still actively posting feedback on models, creating groups to play when it comes out, and sharing modeling and painting tips.

What we're saying:  VG30 is very excited about this game, as evidenced by the large backing we provided on it.  While the creator seemed to know his stuff, a November ship date seems too good to be true for just the sheer number, variance, and complexity of minis that are being provided.  I think a March 2014 date is more realistic, but I can only base if off of the other Kickstarters that we've backed.  So far Adam Poots is running a great campaign full of updates, stretch goals, and freebies, so fingers crossed.


Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 19 - Guilds of Cadwollon

Guilds of Cadwallon

Completed Funding on December 21st, 2012 with $116,938 of $5,000 Goal

What did they offer: Guilds of Cadwallon is a area control game in which players place pawns between randomized locations in a city.  At the end of the round, players check how many of their pawns are around each piece, the player with the most scores the tile.  Backers could receive the game, additional pawns and tiles for more players, higher backers could receive a game board and a box to store everything in.

When was the expected delivery date:  March 2013

What did VG30 pledge for:  VG30 pledged $40 for a copy of the game and gameboard with box.

Status of Project:  CoolMiniOrNot has been quiet on the production of this game.  Nothing physical has shipped, but it's also not due for another month.  The only thing that has happened so far is backers have received links to their pledge manager.

What the creator is saying:  Whole lotta nothing.  Backers had trouble communicating with the creators on this from the get go, and only drew attention when the stretch goals were smashed so handily.

What the community is saying:  Also, not much.  Players are excited, and inventing new board layouts to add additional ways to play, and beginning to ask if March shipping is still going to happen or not.

What we're saying:  Despite the lack of communication, CMON's projects have gone off really well in the past, and are known for shipping pretty close to on schedule.  We'll know for sure in a month.



Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 18 - Dungeon Heroes

Dungeon Heroes

Completed Funding on December 2nd, 2012 with $22,302 of $15,000 Goal

What did they offer:  Dungeon Heroes is a two player board game in which one player plays as the Dungeon Keeper, and the other plays as the Heroes.  The Heroes are trying to find three treasure tiles that are randomly drawn and hidden face down amongst traps and monsters by the Dungeon Keeper.  Backers would receive copies of the game, and expansions.

When was the expected delivery date:  July 2013

What did VG30 pledge for:  VG30 pledged $40 for the game and expansions

Status of Project:  Dungeon Heroes didn't make the stretch goals that everybody wanted, which was meeples of the monsters and heroes to play with instead of chits and dice.  To make up for this, the creator launched a second Kickstarter to make those goals and was successful.  He has promised the second Kickstarter would not slow down production at all.  Backers have received a Print and Play copy, which is also available to anyone else that wants it.

What the creator is saying:  The creator says everything is going smoothly and he's just trying to merge all the data between two successful Kickstarters for essentially the same project.  There's no reason not to believe him at this point because the project is still young and July is a long way away.

What the community is saying:  The community has helped pick up some rule inconsistencies which are being fixed, but are so far happy with how everything is going.

What we're saying:  I have some concerns about how the project is going to turn out, in the demo videos the tiles are nice thick pieces and the box being presented looks much smaller.  I want something small and portable out of this with nice quality, and I hope that it doesn't become card board pieces in a hard to transport box.  We'll have to wait and see what the components turn out like, the meeples look great though.


Monday, February 25, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 17 - Boss Monster

Boss Monster

Completed Funding on November 18th, 2012 with $215,056 of $12,000 Goal

What did they offer: Boss Monster is a card game in which players select a 8-bit based Boss and construct a dungeon to lure adventurers to them, and then defeat them before they escape with their treasure.  Backers could receive a copy of the game, exclusive bonus cards, a mini expansion, and even naming some of the poor hapless heroes.

When was the expected delivery date:  February 2013

What did VG30 pledge for:  VG30 pledged for the game, Kickstarter exclusives, and mini expansion at the $40 level.

Status of Project:  A print and play version has been sent out to backers, as well as beta copies of the game, t-shirts, and a very comprehensive player's guide PDF. The actual finished product has been delayed until May.

What the creator is saying:  The reason for the delay is completely their fault for underestimating the time frames required for printing and shipping.  They've been very open about it, and are providing regular updates with where things are and getting out the Print and Play copies to the players.

What the community is saying:  The community is happy to have the Print and Play versions in their hands, and are excited to have the final product coming in May.  They're enjoying the game quite a bit so far.

What we're saying:  We've never been one for Print and Play versions of things, so we're holding off, but it's nice to have the option there.  Brotherwise Games put a lot of little extras into this with foiling their boss cards, adding in the mini expansion for free, and the PDF player's guide that could just as easily be a small magazine, it's turning out to be a pretty good project, even with the delay.  If it were to be pushed back again I think we'd see trouble, but we won't know that for another couple months.


Sunday, February 24, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 16 - Killer Bunnies Quest Deluxe

Killer Bunnies Quest Deluxe

Completed Funding on August 25th, 2012 with $61,611 of $10,000 Goal

What did they offer: Killer Bunnies and the Quest for the Magic Carrot came out 10 years ago and added all of the expansions over the course of several more years.  This Kickstarter collects everything that has been made for the game in one big package.  Backers could get the game, promos, and even dinner with designer Jeffrey Neil Bellinger.

When was the expected delivery date:  November 2012

What did VG30 pledge for:  VG30 already owns just about everything in this set, but wanted the collected rules and promo, so we just kicked in $10 for this one.

Status of Project:  It's tough to say exactly what's gone out, but from posts made by Playroom we can tell that the Deluxe copy of the game has been shipped out as of February 19th.  Some other nicknacks have been sent out, but we can say for certain that VG30 has not received it's Omega promo.

What the creator is saying:  Playroom was quiet for awhile on this, stating that they didn't have any updates to give us because they weren't hearing anything about progress.  They started making up good will by shipping off smaller items that they had available already, like expansion packs separate from the main game, but that quickly became too much for them to handle, as well.  They're really not talking about anything else that's supposed to be shipping out (like the promos).  We also found out from the creator that some people are receiving less than stellar copies of the deluxe edition with bending / peeling cards.

What the community is saying:  The community is unhappy with a four month delay with little information, and some are complaining quite a bit about the quality of items that are in the box, noting that more thought and care should have been placed in a $150 version of the game. 

What we're saying:  Some of the bonuses were really tempting, but we stuck with what we needed for the game.  We haven't received the promo that we backed for yet, and haven't received any word as to when those might go out.  We had been told that they were being printed with the new set, but there's nothing in their updates since. 




Friday, February 22, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 15 - Goblins Drool, Fairies Rule

Goblins Drool, Fairies Rule!

Completed Funding on June 17, 2012 with $27,127 of $5,000 Goal

What did they offer: Goblins Drool, Fairies Rule is a rhyming oversized card game with beautiful art.  Players start with Goblins and try to turn them into fairies by playing cards with names that rhyme with them.  Backers could receive a copy of the game in a tin box, with higher levels receiving puzzles, stickers, and an art book.

When was the expected delivery date:  December 2012

What did VG30 pledge for: VG30 pledged $12 (plus an unknown amount for shipping) for a copy of the game

Status of Project:  No physical items have shipped to date.  Backers have received wallpaper graphics and a Print and Play version of the game.

What the creator is saying:  The creator says this is part of normal, but never welcome, delays in the board gaming industry.  The first round of samples were not of the quality they were looking for, but have since posted proofs that they're very happy with.  They have delayed the game until March to make room for the production time increase, but there hasn't been any updates in a month to let backers know where the process is currently at. 

What the community is saying:  The backers are getting a little anxious.  Many parents backed this in June thinking they would be able to give it to their kids for a Christmas present, so the delay didn't make anybody happy.  For the most part, the community seems understanding, just disappointed.

What we're saying:  We're also a little disappointed about the delay, but this was a present for my daughter who is far too young to be able to play, so I don't really mind.  I really do like the art, it's what drew me to the project to begin with.  It really reminds me of Gabe's art style from Penny Arcade fame.  More updates with where production is would help a lot of people out.


Thursday, February 21, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 14 - Tammany Hall

Tammany Hall

Completed Funding on June 15th, 2012 with $151,483 of $35,000 Goal

What did they offer:  Tammany Hall was originally released in 2007 and was limited to only a few hundred copies.  The creator of this project wanted to bring this game into stores with this project.  Backers would receive a copy of the game with upgraded components.

When was the expected delivery date:  November 2012


What did VG30 pledge for:  VG30 pledged for one copy of the game and all stretch goals

Status of Project:  The creator tells us that all of the US product is now shipped as of 2/18/13.  We received our copy on that day, so we can say this has been 100% delivered to us.  There were a LOT of problems with getting these shipped out, however.  Backer Andrew Martin does the best job of summing up what people were told:

Update #39 Dated 10-08-12 "We should be about ready for the games to ship in the next few weeks".
Update #41 Dated 10-19-12 "Which means, we're getting really close to shipping games to all of our amazing backers!".
Update #42 Dated 11-12-12 "Everyone should have their copy of Tammany Hall well in time for Christmas, but it looks like we are going to slip just past the November delivery date we had set".
Update #43 Dated 12-09-12 "Hey everyone, just wanted to let you know that we are set to start shipping out copies of Tammany Hall starting tomorrow".
Update #44 Dated 12-20-12 "Right now, Tammany Hall has not shipped to backers, and is still with customs...You will get your copy of Tammany Hall before it shows up in stores. I control the order in which games leave the fulfillment specialist and yours will leave first".
Update #45 Dated 12-27-12 "Good news, I just got news that we are expected to clear customs in the next few days. It will take a few days after that to get to our shipping wharehouse, but it means we are getting closer".
Update #46 Dated 1-4-13 "Nothing in the way of news this week, but I wanted to update everyone and let you know we are still working on clearing customs".
Update #47 Dated 1-11-13 "Just got an email that says the games should be to our warehouse on Tuesday the 15th".
Update #48 Dated 1-15-13 "Got the confirmation today. Games will hopefully start leaving sometime tomorrow, and will hopefully start to find their way into backers hands sometime next week".
Update #49 Dated 1-22-13 "Wanted to let everyone know I heard from our fulfillment specialist this morning. They are boxing the games up now and getting them all ready to ship at the same time later this week".

All of these shipping problems probably could have been easily forgiven if backers hadn't started spotting copies of the game sitting on store shelves a MONTH before all US orders had been received by backers.

What the creator is saying:  The creator "feels sick" that copies hit retail before the backers received theirs, despite repeated promises that he controls the order they go out and that backers will receive theirs before retail stores do.  In recent posts, he has said that his mistake was making too many updates and that he was unhappy with the company handling the shipping.

What the community is saying:  The community is understandably upset over this.  It's very disheartening to see a product on store shelves that you helped get created before you even get to try it out.  

What we're saying:  This project was going amazingly well right up to when the container hit customs.  Since then a string of miscommunications happened around the project that caused it to be delayed all the way until the end of February.  The community is calming down now that they're getting the game in their hands because the quality of components is nice.  Thick cardboard, solid chips and stickers, and a beautiful board await people who buy this game.  VG30 is really up in the air as to giving Pandasaurus Games another chance in the future.  The quality is great, but they need to get themselves a better shipping company.

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 13 - Zombicide

Zombicide

Completed Funding on May 6th, 2012 with $781,597 of $20,000 Goal

What did they offer: Zombicide is your typical zombie style scenario based board game with the exception that the minis and other components are high quality.  Backers could receive the game, but higher levels received tons of bonuses including more zombies, characters, dice, heroes and even a t-shirt.

When was the expected delivery date:  September 2012, Q2 2013 for bonus figures

What did VG30 pledge for:  VG30 pledged $140 for the Abomination level plus one of each additional character.

Status of Project: The game was shipped out in August 2012, making it the ONLY project that shipped early, let alone on time.   The Q2 items have not yet shipped, but aren't due for another few months.

What the creator is saying:  There's not much for them to say, so whenever they have an update or a new goodie (update to rules, or an iPad app) they post up details.  There hasn't been any updates detailing any progress being made on the extras which is a little disappointing, but that's the extent of it.

What the community is saying:  There's a couple glitches in the community on this one.  For one, backers who didn't go to Cool Mini or Not's external pledge manager site and fill out their info did not get to be part of the first wave of shipments.  Those people had the pleasure of seeing their backed product be displayed in a giant stack at Gencon 2012 instead of on their dining room tables.  The second part is that the T-Shirts did not make it out in the first wave, which, as we hear, were also on sale at Gencon.  There's also some complaint about the difficulty level of the game.  The community is divided over it, with a "Love it or Hate it" kind of attitude.

What we're saying:  It's a bit annoying to see a product you backed months prior be played by people at a convention before you get to, just because you didn't go and confirm all the information they had already.  When it comes to dealing with CMoN make sure that you use their pledge manager or suffer the same fate as we did.

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 12 - Shadowrun Returns

Shadowrun Returns

Completed Funding on April 29, 2012 with $1,836,447 of $400,000 Goal

What did they offer:  Jordan Weisman has gotten the rights to license his old creation, Shadowrun, and wants to make it a 3/4 overhead view game, much like the old Shadowrun games on the SNES and Genesis.  Players can explore the world, create their own missions, and will be nothing like the tragedy that appeared on the Xbox.  Backers would receive the game, in game benefits, t-shirts, game boxes, and USB dog tags for higher levels.

When was the expected delivery date:  January 2013

What did VG30 pledge for:  VG30 pledged $30 for the game and in-game benefits.

Status of Project:  The game has not been released, no in game footage has been presented, and so far all we've seen are mock ups of in game assets.

What the creator is saying:  Harebrained Studios is talking a lot about coming up with abilities and making them work with each other and writing dialog, but they're not able to show us a whole lot in game, and in fact had to give some exclusive rights to screenshots to gaming publications for more buzz.  They did explain this all, and are providing updates how things are progressing, but there's not a whole lot in the way of in game footage.  They've also pushed the game to a May / June timeframe.

What the community is saying:  There is no way that this game is going to be complete by May / June, but the community is still excited about what ingame assets we have seen.

What we're saying:  Yeah, there's no way that this is going to be done by May / June, and if it is it's going to be a pale imitation of that it should be.  This is based on seeing Wasteland, a game with a goal to be completed by October, is just now putting out in-game footage and this group isn't far along enough to put up more than pre-posed screenshots.  Yeah, they look cool and give me hope for a great game, but it's just not happening in the next few months.


Monday, February 18, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 11 - Velocoraptor! Cannibalism!

Velociraptor!  Cannibalism!

Completed Funding on April 20, 2012 with $43,619 of $4,000 Goal

What did they offer:  The team making Velociraptor!  Cannibalism! (shorted to just V!C! from here) wanted to make a simple print and play game where dinosaurs ate things and got new abilities.  They offered print and play versions, a limited edition physical copy, and the higher options to create a character in the game.  Stretch goals included expansions and new characters.

When was the expected delivery date:  May - June 2012 depending on backer level

What did VG30 pledge for:  VG30 pledged $48 for The Full Cast, which is a physical copy of the game.

Status of Project:  The PDF copies have gone out as of January 3rd, and the expansion as of January 23rd.  The physical copies have not yet been sent out.

What the creator is saying:  Because the game was originally planned to be a print and play version and they didn't expect the physical copies to be in so demand, AND they didn't expect to raise 10x their goal, they weren't ready to create this game on the level that they had to.  With that said, however, they decided to take it all back and re-do all of the artwork to make it deserve the level of attention that it received.  The creators have since updated the community roughly every two weeks with updates where they are and what their next steps are.

What the community is saying:  The community is quiet on this one, but seems to be content.  The artwork upgrades are a massive improvement, and the creators have been very responsive to questions posted by backers.

What we're saying:  We're happy with the progress being made on this, despite looking like it'll be a year past it's promised release.  The artwork overhaul really is a big deal, and caused the game to get picked up by a publisher.  The consistent update schedule is what's really keeping things going.  Creators with similarly delayed projects need to see how this group is handling it to keep your fans happy.

Friday, February 15, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 10 - Mobile Frame Zero: Rapid Attack

Mobile Frame Zero: Rapid Attack

Completed Funding on April 11, 2012 with $82,499 of $9,000 Goal

What did they offer:  The creators of this project offered a new table top game that could be played with Lego pieces or another type of similar building block.  Backers could get the rules and higher levels would get garage kits of common parts used in building the pieces, decals, and even personalized units.

When was the expected delivery date:  June 2012

What did VG30 pledge for:  VG30 pledged for the rule book at the $20 pledge level

Status of Project:  A final PDF of the rules were sent to backers on January 2nd, and the books are reportedly at the press as of February 6th.

What the creator is saying:  The creator's been quiet about challenges he's run into, from the updates we can tell that some of the writers did not get information to him in a timely manner, and he has apologized for not sending out custom kits in a timely manner, and has been providing these updates about once every 1.5 - 2 months.

What the community is saying:  The community wants more updates, but are placated by the various beta rules that have been posted in PDF format.  Communities have grown around the game already, and people were excited to see it at PAX last year.

What we're saying:  The lack of updates are a little annoying, but for a book like this players who want to play can easily use the PDFs that the creator has been putting out.  This once could have gone better if the editor of the project had made less mistakes, the submitters had been better writers, and the creator been more transparent about where steps were at any given moment in a more consistent format.


Thursday, February 14, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 9 - Escape ... from the Temple Curse

Escape ... from the Temple Curse (The Curse of the Temple)

Completed funding on April 13, 2012 with $58,841 of $10,000 Goal

What did they offer:  Queen games offered a real time cooperative board game in which players raced against a timer to try to escape from a temple.  Backers could receive the game (regular or foil boxed), poster, expansions, and canvas carrying bag.  Stretch goals included a copy of Roma, extra player tokens, and tiles.

When was the expected delivery date: June 2012 with the second expansion in September 2012

What did VG30 pledge for:  VG30 pledged $75 for the game, both expansions, poster, and canvas bag. 

Status of Project:  The game, first expansion, and promos started shipping on September 28th.  The second expansion and canvas bag have not yet shipped.

What the creator is saying:  When we received our packages, Queen Games included a note apologizing for the delay in getting it to us, and what they learned from the project.  With a 3 month delay this was a nice gesture.  Since then Queen has been VERY quiet offering updates about once a month with very little information.  Additionally, since this embarrassment Queen has been quiet on all of their OTHER projects as well, which are suffering from the same problem:  main game shipped, missing expansions.

What the community is saying:  The community is MAD about this one.  On January 8th, the backers were told in a post inside of an update about the bag that they were waiting on art for the second expansion, the one that was due back in September.  The community is willing to wait because of delays in production, but waiting on art means that they weren't organized enough to have it ready in time for their promises.  Additionally, the bag looks pretty bad.

What we're saying:  If this was a one-off situation for a new company, I'd consider it part of the learning process and would cut them some slack so long as they provided updates along the way.  That's not the case, Queen Games is an established name in the market, they know what it takes to make a game, and I've communicated more in this post than they have in the past 6 months.  Queen Games tried running multiple Kickstarters and it's the same story on each of them, except they're all pointing to this one as being the one that's slowing everything else down.  They've since stopped creating new projects, but I have no plans on backing any of their projects in the future.

With all of that said, it IS a fun filler game that you break out and play for maybe a half hour or 45 minutes.  If the game were terrible I think everyone would care a little less about the status of things.  Unfortunately it's a very expensive filler game, so the audience on it is going to be limited.


Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 8 - Random Dungeon Poster


Random Dungeon Generator as Dungeon Map

Completed Funding on April 6, 2012 with $27,789 of $2,000 Goal

What did they offer:  The creator of this project offered a simple poster that could be used to generate random dungeons.  After the project got bigger, he tacked on a bonus poster, a DM's handbook, a game that could be used with the poster, a computer version of that game, stickers, pdf art rewards and more

When was the expected delivery date:  April 2012

What did VG30 pledge for:  VG30 pledged $25 for the poster, bonus poster, and random monster generation cards.

Status of Project:  The posters, stickers, and cards were all shipped by May 21st.  Additional bonus items like the art PDFs and DM's handbook were done over time, but we still have not received a computer version of the "Dungeon Robber" game.

What the Creator is Saying: When the creator does an update, he does it right with lots of information as to what's going on.  Those updates have trickled off into nothing with no updates since November 19th.

What the Community is Saying:   A few are starting to ask for more updates as to what's going on, but are pretty happy with all the extras that were thrown in during and even after the Kickstarter finished.

What We're Saying:  I'm always fascinated by random dungeons, so this hangs next to my desk in a frame.  I'm a little disappointed in the lack of updates as of late, but am not worried too much as things happen and these are minor bonuses that he said would take time to do.  I'm pretty happy with how this project went and look forward to seeing it finished.


Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 7 - FTL


FTL

Completed Funding on April 1, 2012 with $200,542 of $10,000 Goal

What did they offer:  FTL is a PC Roguelike game that takes place in space.  For the uninitiated, roguelikes are a style of game that randomly creates the game you will be playing, and you only have one life, so every chance you take could be the one that ends your game.  Backers could receive an early release copy, posters, and designing their own race.

When was the expected delivery date:  August 2012

What did VG30 pledge for:  VG30 pledged $10 for a copy of the game

Status of Project:  The game was released to backers on September 14th, making it the closest release that any of our backed projects on Kickstarter has reached us.  There's little information on art books and posters, however.

What the Creator is Saying:  The creators kept in touch with the community about once every month and a half, which is pretty quiet for a Kickstarter project.  There hasn't been any public updates since November 26th in which they say they have the poster finalized but no mention of shipping.

What the Community is Saying:  The community also isn't complaining about a lack of a poster, art book, or updates, so it's really hard for us to say if there's something happening or not at this point.  The game itself was very well received.

What We're Saying:  This is probably the best experience we've had on Kickstarter with only being 2 weeks past the promise date.  The game is hard, but fun.  I do feel that it could use more events to happen to really round it out more, but for what it is it's a great value.  




Monday, February 11, 2013

Wizkids to Release Mage Knight Resurrection

We interrupt the Kickstarter 20 for something dear to Video:


Hillside, New Jersey – February 11, 2013 – WizKids Games, a subsidiary of NECA, announced today plans to release an all-new fantasy miniatures product based upon the popular and long-lived world of MAGE KNIGHT. The first game to utilize the extremely versatile and innovative Combat Dial System game platform, MAGE KNIGHT boasts over a dozen releases, including an award-winning board game based on the property.
“MAGE KNIGHT is what started it all and we’re happy to return to the world WizKids Games created,” said Justin Ziran, president of WizKids Games. “MAGE KNIGHT is a beloved franchise, by both the fans and all of us here in the office. We’re committed to offering something that is compelling and respects MAGE KNIGHT’s long history.”
Planned for release in fall 2013, MAGE KNIGHT: RESURRECTION will be a full fantasy miniatures line utilizing the Combat Dial System game platform it pioneered. There will be 25 miniatures in the line, with content pulled from all corners of the MAGE KNIGHT universe. Each figure will incorporate SwitchClix technology, and include two dials one designed for the MAGE KNIGHT 2.0 rules, and a second HeroClix P.A.C.-compatible dial. MAGE KNIGHT: RESURRECTION will be offered in both full starter sets and collectible booster packs, two formats familiar to the collectible industry and fans of the collectible franchise.

ABOUT WIZKIDS/NECA, INC.
A wholly-owned subsidiary of the National Entertainment Collectibles Association Inc. (NECA), WizKids/NECA is a New Jersey-based game developer and publisher dedicated to creating games driven by imagination. Its HeroClix brand is the most successful collectible miniatures games on the market today, with over 250 million miniature game figures sold worldwide. For additional information, visit www.wizkidsgames.com.
CONTACT (NECA and Wizkids):
Leo Saraceni
leos@necaonline.com
908-686-3300 xt 230

Kickstarter 20 - Part 6 - Wasteland 2




Wasteland 2

Completed funding on April 17, 2012 with $2,933,252 of $900,000 Goal

What did they offer:  Wasteland is the great grand-daddy of the Fallout franchise.  When the original developers wanted to make a sequel, they couldn't get the licensing rights for it, and had to go with a new IP, Fallout.  The designers have now secured the licensing and want to make an honest to goodness sequel.  Backers can receive a copy of the game, and numerous other in-game items, including NPC characters modeled after them, and statues erected in their honor.

When was the expected delivery date: October 2013

What did VG30 pledge for: VG30 pledged $15 for the base game.  While we liked the original Fallout games, they didn't hit home runs for us.

Status of Project:  Still in development, inXile entertainment were very smart to not promise this to anybody until much later this year, giving them a year and a half to build the game they want before going over.

What the Creator is Saying:  inXile entertainment is giving Kickstarter updated 1-2 times a month, and is actively engaged with the community on their forums, even offering people the chance to design game elements like water towers and bicycle racks.  They even gave all the backers a Steam copy of The Bard's Tale as a Christmas present.

What the Community is Saying:  The community is very positive and supportive, likely because they haven't come anywhere near their promise date yet.  

What We're Saying:  They were very smart to push their release back so far to give themselves plenty of time to develop, and from the game play video this game looks further along than Shadowrun does, and that was supposed to be released in January.  We're looking forward to seeing how this team brings an old game style into a new era.


Sunday, February 10, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 5 - Agents of Smersh


Agents of Smersh

Completed Funding on 3/19/2012 with $101,507 of $20,000 Goal

What did they offer: Agents of Smersh offered a new board game that followed the likes of Tales of the Arabian Nights, a game we reviewed positively some time ago.  Backers were promised extra characters, a new travel die that added a spin on movement, and a poker chip expansion as exclusives.

When was the expected delivery date: August 2012

What did VG30 pledge for: VG30 pledged $70 for the game, encounter book, and KS exclusive character card.

Status of Project: As of December 8th, everything was shipped out with most people receiving it fairly quickly after that, and International shipping arriving sometime in January 2013. 

What the Creator is Saying: The creator kept the community updated every few weeks with where everything was.  They were still writing the Book of Encounters well into June, but had manufacturing working on the game at the same time.  It's clearly a first endeavor for the creator, but the communication helped the community through it.

What the Community is Saying:  The community is happy with the game, but very disappointed in the mish-mash of rules that were included in the box.  They didn't flow very well, and didn't explain how situations work.  The included rule cards helped guide game play, but wasn't enough.  Since then, others have taken a shot at rewriting the rules over on Board Game Geek. 

What We're Saying:  The rule book is pretty bad and actually took a few games to figure out everything we were doing wrong.  The game is a lot of fun, however, and the Book of Encounters feels so much better written than the Tales of the Arabian Nights game.  We are a little disappointed that we paid $70 and could have snagged it just as quickly from Cool Stuff Inc for $52, meaning we paid $18 for a die, a poker chip, and a couple extra characters.  Our last big disappointment with this one was at Gencon we had actually signed up for one of the demos, arrived 2 minutes early, waited 5 minutes after, and watched the creator perform a demo for a group of players who happened to sit down before the demo started.  That one kind of rubbed us the wrong way, but the quality of the game is good enough to make us set it aside.


Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 4 - Double Fine Adventure

Double Fine Adventure

Completed Funding on March 13, 2012 with $3,336,371 of $400,000

What did they offer:  Double Fine offered the world a new way to create a main stream title through crowd sourcing instead of going through publishers.  Backers could receive the game and larger backers could get the game boxed, art books, and a variety of other items.

When was the expected delivery date:  October 2012

What did VG30 pledge for: We made a basic pledge for just the game on this one at $15.

Status of Project:  Our first incomplete project, the game has been projected to be done by April 2013 but that has gone to the wayside as of their latest (December) update and now looks as they're trying to operate through September 2013, almost a full year after the expected delivery date.

What the creator is saying:  There hasn't been a Kickstarter update since December 21st, but from it we can tell that the game has gone past what they expected to do and didn't want to turn away from.  They became the poster child for Kickstarter successes and if they botch this it won't only be a massive blow to Double Fine, but Kickstarter as well.

What the community is saying:  This one is hard to judge because there's 87,000 backers, and many of them got swept up in the excitement of funding something so big.  The little bits that I can piece together from the comments reflect a silent, confused, and slightly irritated community.  Some people think that the game they were funding is The Cave which just appeared on Steam, but no, the game they're looking for is Red, which just goes to show you that they're not even paying attention to the (30 minute long) video updates.

What we're saying:  Clearly this exceeded their expectations and from that they wanted to create a game that was worthy of being thrown so much money at.  I don't know how to call this one just yet, I believe in the Double Fine team being able to pull this off, because if they can't do it the repercussions are something that Kickstarter and the gaming industry can't deal with.



Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 3 - Viva Java



Viva Java

Completed Funding on February 29, 2012 with $56,052 of $15,000


What did they offer:  Viva Java offered a Eurostyle board game that was tailored to a large gaming group (such as ours).  In addition to the game, backers could get a "Geek-Spansion" consisting of geeky coffee types like "Lord of the Beans", as well as additional wooden figures, bags, and a travel cup with the logo on it.  

When was the expected delivery date: August 2012

What did VG30 Pledge for:  We pledged for the game and the Geek-Spansion for $60

Status of Project:  All packages were shipped out by Mid-October, leaving about a month and a half delay.  

What the creator is saying:  They apologized for the delays, citing a normal production delay as well as being stuck in customs for about a week.  The delay took 3 weeks, which means shipping took longer than they expected.

What the community is saying:  The community was very understanding, and were ok with the delays, likely due to the regular updates provided by Dice Hate Me.

What we're saying:  We had a couple gripes with this, one in that one of the delays was because the brown and red beans looked too alike so they had to go back and re-do them.  That's fine, but they're still too close of the same color when looking at them in a bag.  Otherwise the component quality is great.  We also had a small issue with them underestimating the length of time their demos were running at Gencon, meaning that when we showed up we didn't actually have any time to play the game.  They did offer to refund, but they should know how long their game lasts a bit better than that.  The delay, the overbooking at Gencon, and the red/brown bean problem leave us with less than a 100% satisfactory transaction, but still one of the better ones.


Monday, February 4, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 2 - Seven Sisters


Seven Sisters

Completed Funding on March 11, 2012 with $12,000 of $8,000 goal

What did they offer:  Wishing Tree games offered backers a copy of the game and upgraded it for Kickstarters with wooden pieces instead of cardboard.  Higher backers could receive portraits of the sisters and T-Shirts.

What did VG30 pledge for:  VG30 pledged $45 for a copy of the game with promo cards

Status of Project:  All items have been shipped out with no complaints on the comments for backers not receiving anything as of December 29th.  The goal for shipping out was July 2012, and we received ours in August at Gencon.  The promo cards didn't make the cut and a second shipment made it out in October.

What the creator is saying:  Unfortunately our shipment of promo cards was also many other people's shipment of the game and the t-shirts didn't make it until November.  They were very good about keeping everybody up to date up to their Gencon debut, but fell off the map shortly after that with updates coming once a month, which still isn't that bad.

What the community is saying:  This was a small Kickstarter, so there wasn't a lot of discontent here.  The general consensus is that it's a fun game, and people liked the extra wooden bits and such.

What we're saying:  The game is fun, but ours had a small problem with the cardboard insert.  It was pretty mangled when we opened it and after a little bit of fiddling found that whomever was folding the cardboard into the box actually ended up tearing up our insert.  I needed to get some scissors and cut up the insert to make it work properly.  Otherwise with only a month delay on the game and a few months on the promos, this one delivered pretty close to it's goals.


Saturday, February 2, 2013

Kickstarter 20 - Part 1 - Order of the Stick Reprint



Order of the Stick Reprint Drive

Completed Funding on February 21, 2012 with $1,254,120 of $57,750 goal

What did they offer:  The OotS Reprint Drive offered backers a large assortment of items as shown by this chart given to people to help plan their backer packages:





What did VG30 Pledge for: VG30 pledged for the $25 Cast picture and all the bonus goodies that came from that tier, as well as additional payment for the OotS Game expansion and the Patch.  The expected delivery date was to be April 2012. 

Status of Project:  We've received all physical items, but almost none of the additional digital rewards, as evidenced by Rich's latest "Workometer".  Backers have yet to receive their "Patience" items which were expected by December, and we didn't receive our items until late August / early September.  At best, 3 months off of original projections.


What the creator is saying: The creator of the comic, Rich Burlew, had an extremely unfortunate accident in September in which he lost the ability to use his right hand for holding a pen, let alone drawing.  Because of this, many rewards were pushed back considerably.

What the community is saying:  Rich has an extremely supportive community that just want him to get better, to let his wounds heal, and get back to it when he's good and ready to.  

What we're saying:  We agree with the community on this one.  Rich has given us years of free entertainment and allowed us to share in his story.  We've got our physical items in hand, and are looking forward to the many MANY digital items that Rich has promised us.  Rich has since begun updating the comic again, which gives many of us hope for more in the near future.


Friday, February 1, 2013

The Kickstarter 20

Happy February gamers!  This month we're going to do something a little different.  For the past year VideoGamingAt30.com has been Kickstarting new tabletop and PC games (as well as one comic) over on Kickstarter.  Twenty of them to be exact.  And even as we begin to reach the one year anniversary of our campaign, I find that only a small fraction have been 100% fulfilled to myself, let alone in it's entirety to backers that went a little more above and beyond than what I did.

This month we're going to do a series of 20 (!) articles that share in the experiences that we, as well as other backers have had with these projects.  I stated in The 30's! that we have not had a 100% positive experience with any project yet, and this will be a good way to showcase what backers regularly go through while waiting for their rewards to arrive.  These articles aren't going to be very long, but they'll consist of at least these core items:

  • A title and link to the original Kickstarter project
  • What level we pledged for and any extras that cost more
  • The total package that was offered to us for backing
  • The status of the project in relation to items received
  • What the creator is saying
  • What the community is saying
  • What we're saying
By the end of the month only a handful of project that we've backed (less than 20%) will still be within their originally proposed delivery dates, so it'll be an interesting project for sure.  We'll be kicking things off shortly with our first project, The Order of the Stick Reprint Drive.