Kickstarter and other crowdfunding platforms

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Wed Mar 03, 2021 11:33 pm

It doesn't matter because FunAgain games is the distributor for them so just add another month to whenever you think you'll be getting it.

I'm normally pretty critical of these KS projects, but they're all getting hammered with the global container shortage and whatever COVID related delays occurred last year. It'll be here soon-ish.

I have a few KS projects that are months and months overdue simply because they can't get space on boats. It's insane.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Thu Mar 04, 2021 12:03 am

Not just container shortages, locked down factories, port blockages, customs backups, and overfilled warehouses, but COVID also caused an international corrugated cardboard shortage, ie no packing boxes.

And then large swathes of the US got frozen solid.

My Level Up (launched before lockdown, due in October) is in Portland right now, and has literally been hit with every item on that list. Now it's in the FedEx backup caused by the other factors starting to ease.

baelthazar · Post by **baelthazar** » Thu Mar 04, 2021 3:19 pm

Smoove_B wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 11:33 pm It doesn't matter because FunAgain games is the distributor for them so just add another month to whenever you think you'll be getting it.

I'm normally pretty critical of these KS projects, but they're all getting hammered with the global container shortage and whatever COVID related delays occurred last year. It'll be here soon-ish.

I have a few KS projects that are months and months overdue simply because they can't get space on boats. It's insane.

My face when I know Funagain Logistics is in Indy (one day deliver time):

My face when I remember Funagain Logistics ships really slowly:

I am super excited about Middara. I wish they had gotten their US ship scheduled before CNY, but you can't blame them for the global shipping crisis currently going on.

Lordnine · Post by **Lordnine** » Thu Mar 04, 2021 11:10 pm

This may not appeal to many people here but I thought I would give it a shout out. The World of Tomorrow shorts by Don Hertzfeldt are currently on Kickstarter for a bluray release. I can't speak for the 2nd and 3rd but the first one was utterly charming and had a dark wit to it while still being fairly profound. And yes, I am saying all these nice things about literal stick figures and scribbles. Maybe worth a look if you like strange humorous things!

Montag · Post by **Montag** » Fri Mar 05, 2021 8:20 am

baelthazar wrote: Thu Mar 04, 2021 3:19 pm
Smoove_B wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 11:33 pm It doesn't matter because FunAgain games is the distributor for them so just add another month to whenever you think you'll be getting it.

I'm normally pretty critical of these KS projects, but they're all getting hammered with the global container shortage and whatever COVID related delays occurred last year. It'll be here soon-ish.

I have a few KS projects that are months and months overdue simply because they can't get space on boats. It's insane.
My face when I know Funagain Logistics is in Indy (one day deliver time):

My face when I remember Funagain Logistics ships really slowly:

I am super excited about Middara. I wish they had gotten their US ship scheduled before CNY, but you can't blame them for the global shipping crisis currently going on.

My office is 6.5 miles from the logistics site. I wouldn't mind picking it up if it wouldn't risk screwing something up.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Fri Mar 05, 2021 11:43 am

I impulse backed Silicon Saga: Wreck of the Ancients. I'm a sucker for map tile exploration combined with deck building, so it hits a few buttons for me. The rules are up and they're light but with some teeth.

Skinypupy · Post by **Skinypupy** » Sun Mar 07, 2021 1:47 am

I backed my second ever Kickstarter today, and went in for the Deluxe version of Tiny Epic Dungeons. My whole fam loves Tiny Epic Galaxies, and while Tiny Epic Zombies clunked, that was far more to do with theme than gameplay. I grabbed it on a whim, when it was "free" on a "spend $150, get $30 off" promo over last summer. I've come to realize that I simply just don't like any games - board or video - that are primarily zombie-focused.

Montag wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 11:18 pm
YellowKing wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 5:22 pm I'm sure all the Middara backers got the email, but looks like Wave 1 should be in our hands by April. North America shipments are being picked up March 5th and should be in Indiana for final fulfillment by March 31.
The link shows the ship isn't scheduled to be in China until the 11th. So timing is already borked.

I'm just expecting to be pleasantly surprised when Middara eventually shows up on my doorstep at some point.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Wed Mar 10, 2021 1:26 pm

I forgot how much fun the CMON campaigns are. Between the Bernie and RBG-themed minis and a final zombie with a Rancid reference? I mean really.

YellowKing · Post by **YellowKing** » Wed Mar 10, 2021 5:09 pm

So is this western version going to use the Zombicide: 2nd Edition rules? It does mention "updated" and "streamlined" rules so that was my assumption.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Wed Mar 10, 2021 5:17 pm

Yes, that was my assumption as well - this is the first (?) themed version of the new 2nd edition rules.

I'm only at the core backer level; I can't let myself go down all the optional and exclusive buys. I'm honestly backing it for the miniatures alone. If I ever want to play a Western themed game, I'll have enough proxies to meet anything I'm looking for.

coopasonic · Post by **coopasonic** » Wed Mar 10, 2021 5:27 pm

I just need to hold out 3 more hours... I kind of want the expansion for the campaign, but that makes it more expensive than I want and all the kickstarter exclusives take up so much extra space on the shelf... but wild west... and a campaign!

coopasonic · Post by **coopasonic** » Wed Mar 10, 2021 5:51 pm

Damn you all for bringing this up at the end. I was totally fine with passing on it and now I'm in for the middle tier.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Wed Mar 10, 2021 9:33 pm

Well crap, if coop is in...

Zarathud · Post by **Zarathud** » Wed Mar 10, 2021 10:38 pm

Zombicide’s model artists are great and they have a terrific sense of humor.

I’m annoyed that this is the second themed version while I’m waiting for version 2.0 to deliver. CMON knows the market but this churn is getting ridiculous.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Wed Mar 10, 2021 10:55 pm

I just want all those minis so I can use them in Shadows of Brimstone and Dracula’s America.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Wed Mar 10, 2021 11:01 pm

hepcat wrote: Wed Mar 10, 2021 10:55 pm I just want all those minis so I can use them in Shadows of Brimstone and Dracula’s America.

I had exactly the same thoughts! I've owned Dracula's America for years, but never had proxies I felt I could use. That's going to change in a big way.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Wed Mar 10, 2021 11:16 pm

It’s what changed my mind on backing this after I realized while looking over all the minis that I could see a lot of the figures working with DA. If the zombicide rules don’t appeal to me after playing, it’s still a good purchase in my mind.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Thu Mar 11, 2021 9:36 am

Thank god Zombicide is over. That one taxed my willpower.

YellowKing · Post by **YellowKing** » Thu Mar 11, 2021 12:15 pm

Late pledge is open. It's never *too* late, Blackhawk.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Thu Mar 11, 2021 12:20 pm

YellowKing wrote: Thu Mar 11, 2021 12:15 pm Late pledge is open. It's never *too* late, Blackhawk.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Thu Mar 11, 2021 12:22 pm

I'm pretty confident it's going to be late, so if it were me I'd probably jump in the pledge manage for $1 to hold a spot and then when they announce the closing date re-evaluate what's reasonable. This assumes they're not jacking up the prices in the pledge manager for those that weren't in the KS. Worse case, you lose $1.

Lordnine · Post by **Lordnine** » Thu Mar 11, 2021 1:25 pm

Stellaris board game launched today. I am interested and Academy Games is usually reliable but ouch, that price is a little steep!

baelthazar · Post by **baelthazar** » Thu Mar 11, 2021 8:23 pm

I am really hoping they patch a solo mode into Stellaris. I backed it because I love Academy and I love Stellaris, but I will probably drop my pledge depending on the direction they go with the stretch goals (and if they announce a solo mode).

Zarathud · Post by **Zarathud** » Thu Mar 11, 2021 11:08 pm

Unimpressed by Stellaris. Each player has their own box of bits, cards and tokens and you can save an Empire's stats from game to game. But I'm struggling to see how it's different from Eclipse other than it's broken down into a seriess of mini-games and simultaneous phase selection.

I should be loving the flash and organization of a 4X, but I don't see the game mechanics. This is going to be a pass until I see some "watch it played" videos.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Fri Mar 12, 2021 8:36 am

I’ll let you know if you should back it.

Lordnine · Post by **Lordnine** » Sun Mar 14, 2021 6:22 pm

Oh boy, Stellaris is doing a live playthrough right now on TTS....it's a bit of a train wreck. The game may be fine but I can't think of a worse way to represent the game. They have two people playing live on TTS that have only the barest idea of how to use TTS and the mod looks clunky as hell with things improperly sized and mixed artwork. I watched for about 10 minutes and the KS is actually losing money right now.

EzeKieL · Post by **EzeKieL** » Sun Mar 14, 2021 8:46 pm

They don't even have a rulebook yet

baelthazar · Post by **baelthazar** » Mon Mar 15, 2021 8:55 am

Lordnine wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 6:22 pm Oh boy, Stellaris is doing a live playthrough right now on TTS....it's a bit of a train wreck. The game may be fine but I can't think of a worse way to represent the game. They have two people playing live on TTS that have only the barest idea of how to use TTS and the mod looks clunky as hell with things improperly sized and mixed artwork. I watched for about 10 minutes and the KS is actually losing money right now.

So, they specifically stated that they aren't doing a solo AI for the game in this iteration and plan to make one for 2022. I'm pretty sure that I will be dropping my pledge, particularly because I jumped in at the "Complete Collection" pledge on the Everdell reprint and expansions. With its theme, Everdell is a game my wife (and at some point daughter) will play, unlike Stellaris. Also, I need to remember that, if I want a solo Stellaris fix, I should just play... Stellaris.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Tue Mar 16, 2021 10:58 am

Smoove_B wrote: Mon Sep 21, 2020 3:09 pm Since this thread isn't weird enough, I'll transfer it over from the general gaming thread.

I'd seen that the folks behind Aventuria were offering a new story arc and a bunch of additional characters, but the price turned me away (plus it's not a KS, but another crowdfunding site). I've learned that trying to get this stuff in a retail space can be difficult, but this really seemed like too much to try and get now.

But then hepcat noted:

Aventuria - Veil Dancer Hero Set - This hero set contains the hero deck of the Novadish Sharisad Karima al'Jamila and a plethora of irritating minions. In addition, with the "Orgy of Thorns" we offer you an erotic adventure that is explicitly aimed at adult players.

I knew it had to happen someday...
German erotic card-based RPG theme? I guess I'm all in now.

So there's a Kickstarter up now for the new heroes and the expansions. However, to get all the new stuff, you need to spend about 200 bucks. You can get just the new heroes for about 100 dollars, but I just want a couple of the new expansions. I may put 10 bucks into it and then see if I can a la carte it all though.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Tue Mar 16, 2021 11:01 am

It's like they are offering what would likely be a line they'd trot out slowly over an entire year, all at once for KS backers. For anyone looking to get anything Aventuria related, the are offering every prior product as an add-on as part of your pledge. I know this stuff can be very hard to get your hands on outside of a KS cycle or perfect/lucky timing with retailers, so I'm doing that crazy almost $200 pledge for now.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Tue Mar 16, 2021 1:47 pm

Now this looks interesting. Mr. B Games has a kickstarter for a game called Built for War, a WWII themed tile drafting game featuring tank warfare. You can "design, build and destroy" tanks, according to the box art. The rules are a dense 18 pages, so it appears to have some depth to it.

For 12 bucks extra, you can get a solo add on as well.

I really liked their Helionox deck building game, so I know they make good games.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Wed Mar 17, 2021 9:04 am

hepcat wrote: Fri Mar 05, 2021 11:43 am I impulse backed Silicon Saga: Wreck of the Ancients. I'm a sucker for map tile exploration combined with deck building, so it hits a few buttons for me. The rules are up and they're light but with some teeth.

Aaaannnndddd this one was just cancelled. They only got about halfway to their goal. Looks like they'll be relaunching again someday though. That's too bad as I liked what I saw (the rules were posted so it wasn't a blind sell) and they seemed to be decent folks.

coopasonic · Post by **coopasonic** » Wed Mar 17, 2021 10:20 am

It did not take long for me to decide I shouldn't have backed Zombicide. I am weak. I guess I'll dump the one I have (space one, can't be bothered to see what it was called) and hopefully not lose any net shelf space to this monstrosity. I'd ask if anyone here wants it, but shipping would be more than it's worth (in my eyes anyway).

baelthazar · Post by **baelthazar** » Wed Mar 17, 2021 10:31 am

coopasonic wrote: Wed Mar 17, 2021 10:20 am It did not take long for me to decide I shouldn't have backed Zombicide. I am weak. I guess I'll dump the one I have (space one, can't be bothered to see what it was called) and hopefully not lose any net shelf space to this monstrosity. I'd ask if anyone here wants it, but shipping would be more than it's worth (in my eyes anyway).

Some Kickstarters offer full refunds if requested within a set window of time. You might check to see.

Malificent · Post by **Malificent** » Wed Mar 17, 2021 10:37 am

baelthazar wrote: Wed Mar 17, 2021 10:31 am
coopasonic wrote: Wed Mar 17, 2021 10:20 am It did not take long for me to decide I shouldn't have backed Zombicide. I am weak. I guess I'll dump the one I have (space one, can't be bothered to see what it was called) and hopefully not lose any net shelf space to this monstrosity. I'd ask if anyone here wants it, but shipping would be more than it's worth (in my eyes anyway).
Some Kickstarters offer full refunds if requested within a set window of time. You might check to see.

And I think you can sell pledges...or at least I've seen people doing that. But no idea how that works.

EzeKieL · Post by **EzeKieL** » Thu Mar 18, 2021 7:54 pm

Received my Master Gorinto pledge last night and immediately got an unboxing up. Can't wait to try this one

Spoiler:

coopasonic · Post by **coopasonic** » Fri Mar 19, 2021 9:57 am

Malificent wrote: Wed Mar 17, 2021 10:37 am
baelthazar wrote: Wed Mar 17, 2021 10:31 am
coopasonic wrote: Wed Mar 17, 2021 10:20 am It did not take long for me to decide I shouldn't have backed Zombicide. I am weak. I guess I'll dump the one I have (space one, can't be bothered to see what it was called) and hopefully not lose any net shelf space to this monstrosity. I'd ask if anyone here wants it, but shipping would be more than it's worth (in my eyes anyway).
Some Kickstarters offer full refunds if requested within a set window of time. You might check to see.
And I think you can sell pledges...or at least I've seen people doing that. But no idea how that works.

Thanks both for your input. I think I'll keep the new one and sell the space one and *really* not buy any more this time.

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Mon Mar 22, 2021 8:50 pm

The Kickstarter for Cole Wehrle's second edition of John Company is going live on March 30.

In John Company players represent ambitious 18th and 19th century British families who compete and collaborate for status during the career of the East India Company, a state-sponsored private monopoly in India that embodies all the vices of European imperialism and unfettered capitalism. The game is usually reviewed as being not only fun but also starkly educational.

The second edition is a revision rather than a simple reprint.

Cole Wehrle also designed the award-winning Pax Pamir and Root boardgames.

AWS260 · Post by **AWS260** » Mon Mar 22, 2021 9:52 pm

coopasonic wrote: Fri Mar 19, 2021 9:57 am and *really* not buy any more this time.

coopasonic · Post by **coopasonic** » Fri Mar 26, 2021 10:39 am

Burgle Bros 2 showed up yesterday. Hoping to trick at least one of my kids into trying it out with me. I generally make it a bet where we play pool or ping pong and if I win we play a board game. With the 14yo that strategy is starting to become far less successful. I still have a decent advantage at pool, but he now wins like 70% of the time at ping pong. I need to get back into the office so I can practice against some of the really good players to up my game.

Only 3 outstanding kickstarters left!