Great video and a great conversation to have. Kickstarter is tricky. For the publisher, its nice to have people sign up, pay you to make the game, and use that hype as a clear call to action. Without using Kickstarter, Id be wary of the risk to make 1000 copies and end up with only 100 people order it when its available and frieghted to the proper areas.
My reasons are that at least in Canada, you end up paying more than at retail, promos are never worth it, and you get it later than retail. I've moved to only buying games that make it to the top 100 games of all time list on a dice tower or games that have won the spiel or Kenner spiel
Thanks for the explanation. There are a few kickstarter games I want , but I will put them up in my wishlist and maybe try cheaper games with same mechanics to check what I like.
through the lens of a backer and creator on KS There's some good info in here - a great topic to be sure (though this title is a tad click baity) a few things - yall kind of muddy the waters here while touching on stretch goals VS exclusives/ FOMO. Maybe worth being clear about how stretch goals work and why they're done VS KS exclusive content and why those are done - the two subjects were kind of glossed over and have 2 distinct goals that are fairly separate from each other and have some divisive views surrounding them both. I really think that part of becoming a board game hobbyist is about experimenting with KS and diving into the online communities that inform backing and not backing certain games. Building taste and curating a collection through established publications from big studios AND lifting up a first-time creator who has a great idea and is passionate about making great games and everything in between - that experience I think is a great part of the journey. Kickstarter is a mainstay in the industry and so many huge studios who do giant games that are in the BGG top 10 and sold tens of thousands of copies got their start on KS. it's a fixture at this point. On shipping - the current freight costs are anomalous and will go down - as yall stated - these are games shipping in a year or more from the campaign. One of the main reasons to charge shipping in the pledge manager is to ensure the shipping rates are as up to date as possible. the larger point of "buyer beware" because of unforeseen costs in relation to shipping can be applied to nearly all exports atm so just be wary of the pre-order model in general I guess? Good content all in all. =)
I've become VERY wary of backing certain Kickstarter games, because of the "looks cool, plays less than cool" thing. However, I'm glad to say that I'm at the point where I only back something if I know it's going to be something I'll enjoy. The investment and length of time it takes for something to be produced has been a good barometer for me to determine whether I'm going to be interested in the game once it's done. And usually, I am. The games I lose interest in are the giveaways I've won (that I might not have otherwise backed), or the impulse-purchase games that are only $15 or $20 that I can pick up anywhere. I've bought and gotten rid of more of those games than I can count.
Many of us get sucked into Kickstarter or even buying a lot of games early on. I did. However I back a lot less now. Not zero but fewer. And I am way more informed and also do a lot more reasearch. There are only 2 known games I backed that are never going to fulfill. Out of like 150 over last many years.
I keep underestimating how much 'extra' you have to pay besides your pledge. I recently backed Marvel United: X-men (all-in) which was already crazy expensive but totally underestimated the shipping costs to the Netherlands, taxes, etc.. I should look into that more with future Kickstarters
Sometimes games hit NZ shores way late and Kickstarters come far sooner and often same price delivered. For me, I always check out the costs and think whether it will make it to retail. We will possibly be using Kickstarter or Gamefound to make our game. I think it’s totally buyer beware 😊
I mostly skip Kickstarter. The big Online stores are backing almost everything. And fomo doesn’t hit me in anyway as I’ve been collecting for awhile and can wait for a reprint. Good overview.
Say FOMO. Say it a lot. It is of course a central issue to the snowballing of everything whether it's KS or watching GoT, to getting the new eePhone (that Evil Empire Phone for the uninitiated ;-) etc. etc. FOMO is the thing!
Great video and a great conversation to have. Kickstarter is tricky. For the publisher, its nice to have people sign up, pay you to make the game, and use that hype as a clear call to action. Without using Kickstarter, Id be wary of the risk to make 1000 copies and end up with only 100 people order it when its available and frieghted to the proper areas.
My reasons are that at least in Canada, you end up paying more than at retail, promos are never worth it, and you get it later than retail. I've moved to only buying games that make it to the top 100 games of all time list on a dice tower or games that have won the spiel or Kenner spiel
Yeah, being in the states we haven't experienced that ourselves but we've definitely heard it from others.
I was just looking at how many KS games I am waiting on and I’m like…I have zero shelf space for those games 😂😅
Great video! I’m currently working on my first kickstarter campaign and received a lot of helpful information.
Glad it was helpful, good luck with your campaign!
Thanks for the explanation. There are a few kickstarter games I want , but I will put them up in my wishlist and maybe try cheaper games with same mechanics to check what I like.
through the lens of a backer and creator on KS
There's some good info in here - a great topic to be sure (though this title is a tad click baity) a few things - yall kind of muddy the waters here while touching on stretch goals VS exclusives/ FOMO. Maybe worth being clear about how stretch goals work and why they're done VS KS exclusive content and why those are done - the two subjects were kind of glossed over and have 2 distinct goals that are fairly separate from each other and have some divisive views surrounding them both.
I really think that part of becoming a board game hobbyist is about experimenting with KS and diving into the online communities that inform backing and not backing certain games. Building taste and curating a collection through established publications from big studios AND lifting up a first-time creator who has a great idea and is passionate about making great games and everything in between - that experience I think is a great part of the journey. Kickstarter is a mainstay in the industry and so many huge studios who do giant games that are in the BGG top 10 and sold tens of thousands of copies got their start on KS. it's a fixture at this point.
On shipping - the current freight costs are anomalous and will go down - as yall stated - these are games shipping in a year or more from the campaign. One of the main reasons to charge shipping in the pledge manager is to ensure the shipping rates are as up to date as possible. the larger point of "buyer beware" because of unforeseen costs in relation to shipping can be applied to nearly all exports atm so just be wary of the pre-order model in general I guess?
Good content all in all. =)
I've become VERY wary of backing certain Kickstarter games, because of the "looks cool, plays less than cool" thing. However, I'm glad to say that I'm at the point where I only back something if I know it's going to be something I'll enjoy. The investment and length of time it takes for something to be produced has been a good barometer for me to determine whether I'm going to be interested in the game once it's done. And usually, I am. The games I lose interest in are the giveaways I've won (that I might not have otherwise backed), or the impulse-purchase games that are only $15 or $20 that I can pick up anywhere. I've bought and gotten rid of more of those games than I can count.
Many of us get sucked into Kickstarter or even buying a lot of games early on. I did. However I back a lot less now. Not zero but fewer. And I am way more informed and also do a lot more reasearch. There are only 2 known games I backed that are never going to fulfill. Out of like 150 over last many years.
I keep underestimating how much 'extra' you have to pay besides your pledge. I recently backed Marvel United: X-men (all-in) which was already crazy expensive but totally underestimated the shipping costs to the Netherlands, taxes, etc.. I should look into that more with future Kickstarters
Sometimes games hit NZ shores way late and Kickstarters come far sooner and often same price delivered. For me, I always check out the costs and think whether it will make it to retail. We will possibly be using Kickstarter or Gamefound to make our game. I think it’s totally buyer beware 😊
I am so curious about your backdrop. Did you make it/buy it?
I built it! Each hexagon has its own led’s so we can make patterns, we just never get around to messing with that, and the blue shows up on camera.
I mostly skip Kickstarter. The big Online stores are backing almost everything. And fomo doesn’t hit me in anyway as I’ve been collecting for awhile and can wait for a reprint. Good overview.
Say FOMO. Say it a lot. It is of course a central issue to the snowballing of everything whether it's KS or watching GoT, to getting the new eePhone (that Evil Empire Phone for the uninitiated ;-) etc. etc. FOMO is the thing!