Poll: Kickstarter and Board Games

[RiffRaff]

Anyone else here play table top games too? I'm a huge gamer as far as board games go and needed to get some ramblings down on board games and kickstarter

1 - Just wondering your guys' thoughts on Kickstarter. Looking out there I see a lot of the big dollar amounts being raised for miniature games (or at least games with miniatures). Then after the game is released it turns out the gameplay kind of stinks. So what's the appeal with these? the latest game I backed was Noble Treachery and it's just slowly climbing, but may not even fund. The game is actually fun (had a chance to try it out). What am I missing?

2 - Tasty Minstrel Games has moved to a Pay What you Want method for their games. So far they've tested it out on two small games/expansions and both were wildly successful. The difference between the 'suggested' price and what was actually paid per copy wasn't that much different. Of course these were $5 items they were selling for $2. Is this a good idea or is this going to back fire when they go to a bigger game Pay what you Want is $20 when the game would actually go for $50? Thoughts?

3 - Anyone here try to kickstart a game. I'd be curious to look at your kickstarter and learn some "why it succeeded" or "why it failed" stories.

Thanks for letting me ramble and I look forward to some responses.

 

[Launcelot111]

My favorite game (Alien Frontiers) was a Kickstarter game among plenty of other quality kickstarter releases, but at the same time, I usually have to play a game before I would even consider buying it. I'm dubious of most Kickstarters, but when I only have a concept, I'm especially dubious about board games.

I don't know how well a pay what you want scheme would work because, unlike the Humble Bundle or whatever, board games have serious material costs, and margins seem slim enough for most board game makers already. If it works, bully for them, but I don't expect too much success from a financial perspective unless they go the Cheap Ass Gamer print-your-own-game route.

 

[RiffRaff]

I'd agree that most Kickstarters I'm also dubious of. Most of them seem high on art/minis/story/etc. and low on a good game. I've supported projects put out by Days of Wonder and Tasty Minstrel but only two 'unknowns' so far. I always think it's a big help when they post rules. I think the quality of most games can be gleaned from the rules, but playing it is always best.

I also wonder if the Pay What You Want is a move to distribute your own games and may be harmful to game stores. Why would I ever pay MSRP if I can just pay what I want (read: the bare minimum)? I think the online game store discounts is already hurting them. Perhaps there's still a way around that with good partnership with the game store!? We'll see...

 

[go-10]

I backed Shantae and Mighty No.9 simply because I trust the creative teams behind them
but most of the projects I back are comic book or art related