Kickstarter Campaign Round Up – Part 3
They just keep on coming … and going
A short follow up to the last set of campaigns I shared in part 2. Another set of well appreciated campaigns that had fallen well short of the mark. Trust me, it’s not like I’m ONLY picking on the campaigns that have failed, but statistically speaking there is a large percentage of campaigns that just don’t make it. I’m only picking out the campaigns that interest me based on their name and snippet. I don’t intend to cover all tabletop game results. The 3 presented here in this snapshot review are just examples of campaigns with huge expectations (by the creators) that received very little ROI. Any who, rolling along.
Senet: Priests
CANCELLED!
Is there anything more boring than a remake of an old game with new rules? Well, an old game with old rules. I feel that is a massive understatement for this project. And for most who have no idea about Senet, they may feel exactly that way. I love Senet. I found out about the ancient game a couple years back and instantly enjoyed it’s simplicity and ease of play. Strategy based on chance, my favourite type of games, and the design of the boards, then and now, are just inspired. Custom and creative materials and finishes have been construct by many game and crafting enthusiasts. Personally I’d like to build my own board. I have a basic print’n’play one that I use on occasion. Hand carved and painted pieces would make it a great center piece in any office, den or living room space. Shelf it or play it or both. You can’t go wrong. Hell, it even inspired me to create an ancient-style, race to the finish style game called Summit: The Great Race. But enough about me. This is a digital remake with a twist. He’s added spells to the game. Cards that you can use to cast spells to create a more competitive race. I think that’s a great idea and if this was a hand crafted game for $60 I’d back it, honestly.
Normally this wouldn’t be on this list of tabletop game snapshot reviews, but I feel even if it was he would be hard pressed. The design work is top notch, his presentation and information is grade A. Everything is right about this campaign but it just failed to gain momentum. This guy was looking for massive money for this project for music and sound effects. But again, just like some others it’s his first campaign and he may not have planned for such a slow uptake. This goes back to my opening statement; remake of an old game with new rules may be boring. It might have been marketing, it might have been general interest. It might have been backers realizing there are a ton of other games out there like this. Too many speculations to put a finger on any one cause. Unfortunately, he just scratched the 1% mark. It’s an unfortunate bust, but I hope the best for the designer in the future. Senet is a pretty cool game and the artwork and merch collateral is impressive for this campaign. I would have loved to play this.
Grid-Hammer
CANCELLED!
Go my man! What’s better than Chess X Football??? I like the idea of this game. The look, the presentation, the everything. It all feels good. The funding however… *sigh* They need a lot of dough and I can see why. Game with injection or cast moulding will always be leagues ahead in cost than any tabletop card game. I’ve looked into injection moulded components for my game NUPUGA and it gets really pricey. And because it’s an all plastic board game, $20K sound about right. They failed to meet that mark cresting just over 10%, so instead of catching a fail, they opted to bow out for now. It’s all good though. Good things come to those who wait, watch, and work successfully. Good luck in the future dude.
ZOMBIE ATTACK
FAILED!
Hard FAIL!! I thought Fallen Gods was bad? I don’t know what these people think. Just put it up on KS and people are going to back it? Sometimes I feel that seems to be the case for a lot of these types of campaigns. Yes you have a video (thought this guy doesn’t). Yes you have content (barely). Yes you have a playable demo (but not shown). BUT that’s not all it is. Communities fund these games so you have to get your game into the community to fund the game. SHIT MAN!! It’s not rocket science. Hell, it’s not even Gr.10 science. It’s Go-Fish. Follow the rules, better your hand, have a plan. He has no video (I can see past that one), no game play, no images, no details on campaign, no enthusiasm, no assurance to the backer, no, no, no! Anger and sadness courses through my blood when I think about poor effort like this. Poor effort in ways of the campaign presentation, not the game. We will never know how cool (or boring) the game actually is. Just like zombies, this campaign seems drab and lifeless.
Closing Notes
Hm. Not really sure what to make of these. 2 of the 3 I really liked. Zombie Attack had an idea… and I feel that’s all it was. An idea that fizzled into a constructed concept with no depth or division. It was just “another zombie game” that dared not be different in any way. Senet: Priests was my favourite as you can probably tell based on the write up, and Grid-Hammer had all the right elements for a fun (and eventually loud) evening with the guys at a BBQ or basement party. All met an unfortunate end of the line, but that’s common place among the crowd funding community. Next time boys, next time!
If you’ve missed the earlier posts for the KS Campaign Round Up, I suggest you continue your read on this and other KS related posts here today at ADLi.