Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Kickstarter

I was a bit late to catch on to Kickstarter, it sounded like a good idea but I was worried about the end results and whether or not things would actually be produced.

A few games came and went, notably Eminent Domain, Flashpoint and Alien Frontiers. Games I have played, enjoyed and own although I bought them from retail and not from Kickstarter. I felt like I was missing out on teh buzz generated by Kickstarter and as more and more games were being plugged decided to take the plunge.

I have since helped fund, For the Win, Flashpoint Urban Structure, Day of the Dead, Farmageddon and Zombies at your heels. Most of these are card games, mainly due to the cost. I have no problem in throwing in $10-20 for a game including shipping. But when its going to cost $40 for the game, plus shipping and then the possibility of being hit by a customs charge I just have to say No.
My first experience was For the Win, its not a bad game. It's like Hive but with Ninjas, Pirates, Aliens and other pop culture items. I ordered 6 copies with the view of selling them to cover the cost of one copy. The trouble was I was stung by customs for about half the price of the games. Not ideal, but you live and learn.
Since then its been mainly card games, where the international delivery is more reasonable. These haven't disapointed. Zombies at the Heels is quite a fun Zombire race game. Trying to get your band of survivors to teh bunker before they are "Nom'd" by the hoard. I have played it a few times now and am happy with it, plus some of the money raised went to charity which is always a good thing.
Farmageddon looks great and its another fun card game to play. I haven't given it enough plays yet but am happy with the end result.

Day of the Dead came in a nice tin, unfortunately I think the postal services had used the box for some football practice. The tin has taken a beating, but the components inside are fine. The card stock is a little thinner than I would have expected but I bought this mainly for the artwork. I am yet to play this as its a 2 player game.

Flashpoint Urban Structures hasn't arrived yet, this is probably the biggest purchase and I expect to be hit by customs again. I bought 3 copies but they are all accounted for, with the costs being split so I am happy with that. Neither has Avalon, the Resistance remake which looks really nice.

So, Kickstarter has been a mixed bag for me. Some hits and some misses but the experience has been a ride. I wouldn't dismiss Kickstarter and I think its going to be here for quite a while. It has its good points and bad. It's good that designers can get there games made, but sometimes you have to wonder if Kickstarting is the last resort. If your design has been turned down should it really be made?
I also think think that existing publishers are using it to gauge the reaction to some games, Queen games seem to be using Kickstarter to fund designs when I am sure they could just publish them themselves. How much of a hit do they take in Kickstarter fees?