Entry 3 : To Kickstart or not to Kickstart… That is the Question!

        As you read in the previous entry, Tang Garden was actually our third game that we backed on the crowdfunding site Kickstarter. We backed a handful of other non-board game projects in between the games such as custom-made token cards and page size prints for Magic: the Gathering from one of our favorite artists (Johannes Voss). 

            For those who maybe wondering what Kickstarter is here is what they are coming directly from them: 

“Kickstarter PBC is a funding platform for creative projects. Everything from films, games, and music to art, design, and technology. Kickstarter is full of ambitious, innovative, and imaginative ideas that are brought to life through the direct support of others. 

Everything on Kickstarter must be a project with a clear goal, like making an album, a book, or a work of art. A project will eventually be completed, and something will be produced by it. 

Kickstarter is not a store, backers pledge to projects to help them come to life and support a creative process. To thank their backers for their support, project creators offer unique rewards that speak to the spirit of what they're hoping to create.” 

        As mentioned in the last paragraph, unique rewards are often provided to backers of projects. This is true with most of the games we have backed but not all of them. Some creators have games that are solid in design and use Kickstarter to help with funding the actual production costs of the game. We are fine with this if it is from a producer who has solid successes in their product line. That being said, we do LOVE backing projects that offer stretch goals to add improvements to the production of the game or to add additional content. 

Funding & Stretch Goals 

        Projects have funding goals which typically are the minimum amount needed to produce a game with the “basic” level of quality in components. Once that goal is met, stretch goals often are set, giving things like the next level of quality upgrade in cardstock, size of parts, thickness and quality of cardboard-cores (strength), and more. Other stretch goals can include exclusive content for the game that will not be available in the retail edition. Let me go back to my favorite game to demonstrate these concepts…. Tang Garden. 

        Tang Garden has the base game, the Golden Age “expansion,” and Ghost Stories expansion. Ghost Stories is the exclusive expansion that came with the Deluxe level pledge and Golden Age box was a special stretch goal created to house all of the additional content (for the base game) that was unlocked during the campaign and will be available as an expansion post-Kickstarter fulfillment. During the Kickstarter the funding amount needed to produce the base game and Ghost Stories expansion was €30,000. 

        Once this goal was meet the additional funds raised went to upgrades to the game. There was a total of 45 stretch goals which was met. Goals included additional tiles, characters, decorations, and panoramas; upgraded quality of carboard, cardstock, designs and finishes; and as previously mentioned a new box to store all the additional items. Oh, and one last stretch goal (one of my favorites) was an original soundtrack for the game that was created by someone who I consider a dear friend (Hi, Veronica). The result of all of this was a total funding of €863,562 raised for the production of the game. 

Kickstarter Dates vs. Retail Releases 

        “Kickstarter says my game will be delivered by X date. So that is the guarantee, right?” 

        Bottom line the dates from Kickstarter are estimates. I stress that strongly because there are backers to projects think that this is a guaranteed date to have the project you backed in your hands. Because with Kickstarter you are backing and supporting the process of making a game, delays can and most often will happen throughout the whole process of making the game. 

        Using Tang Garden as an example again, it had many delays in production because ThunderGryph Games wanted to ensure that the best possible product got released. Another reason was that this project was their biggest and boldest undertaking to date. The original estimate was that the backers would have the game around January of 2019; the actual date that most backers got their games were around February/March of 2020. 

        Because games are shipped to different regions around the globe, backers in Asia & Australia usually get their games before Europe, the United States, and the rest of the world. A reason for this is because most games are manufactured in China and have to be shipped via ocean liners. Usually, after the backers receive their games is when the retail release is authorized for the FLGS (Friendly Local Gaming Store) network. This means backing a Kickstarter project provides some satisfaction of getting a copy of the game before the general public and being able to hype it up for others to preview. 

        Companies that have products fully developed and production already in progress that do not seek crowd funding help will send new games straight to retail. These companies will often announce early enough the release so people know approximately when to look for the game on store shelves. 

So why do we Kickstart? 

        Does delays and shipping times take away from the lure of backing a project? For most people the answer is no. My wife and I enjoy being part of the whole creation process of a game. We enjoy supporting our favorite publishers in bringing forth new projects. Getting regular updates, seeing the progress, and learning about the various steps that goes in the production of a game is satisfying. Some people do not like the waiting period from the end of the Kickstarter campaign until they have the actual product but as Oscar Wilde said, “If a thing is worth doing, it is worth doing well. If it is worth having, it is worth waiting for.”