Publish

A big day...

I picked up my first copy of Hadrian’s Wall from Shem a couple of days ago. It’s become a reality! Couldn’t be more happy. Sam’s done an amazing job on the artwork, it’s all come out really well. I’ll be following Shem’s lead over the coming months regarding the marketing so I’ll be posting more as it becomes available. Exciting times!

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Great News!

So the last 6 months I’ve been working on a few different games. One that I’ve been having a lot of fun with is a new roll and write. I’m happy to say that I’ve signed up with Garphill Games this week to get it published. I can’t say too much about it at the moment but as details get released, I’ll be sure to post here.

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Other avenues...

So after licking my wounds are the campaign, I’ve spent the last few months looking at other avenues to get Mech Force published. I’ve reached out to a number of publishing companies. Some have replied, one even playtested, and although the feedback was good, they’re unfortunately not going to move forward with it. But I’m undeterred. There’s a few more companies I’m contacting, so keep your fingers crossed.

I’ve also got The Road Crew with another publisher. Hopefully I should get some feedback soon…

Cancellation

Unfortunately the Kickstarter campaign was not a success. I captured my thoughts and reflections below.

'Do you want to be a designer or a publisher? Because they are two entirely different things.' This was the question posed to me by a publisher at last year's Gencon. Although I thought I understood the question at the time, it really didn't hit home until the beginning of March this year, as I was staring at a net gain of 0 pledges on day 3 of my Kickstarter campaign... 

Consider this a gift to you and a cathartic exercise for me. Hopefully you won't make the same mistakes as I did. 

A bit of background, I've been messing around with games all my life, but I've been seriously designing for the last 3 years. I can't tell you when I decided to Kickstart 'Mech Force', but it has been my focus and goal for the last year to get it to launch. 

By the end of last year, the game was complete, the final art had been finished, and loads of playtesting had been carried out. (including a trip to the US, and into the First Exposure Playtest Hall at Gencon) So I began to prepare for launch in March. (Roughly five months away at that point.) 

I'm going to cover what I think I did wrong, and what I would do differently next time. And please note, what follows shouldn't be new information to most of you. I've read it multiple times on a number of different forums and blogs, including this one. However, it all seemed a little abstract until I started going through it myself... 

1 - The game is way too big. 

Certainly for a first timer. The amount of money I was asking for was far beyond any other kickstarter released on the same day (more on that later). 

Mech Force has a lot of dice, which weighs a box down, and one of the main problems with making a weighty game, beyond the manufacturing cost, is the shipping cost. 

I wasn't aware until very late in the day that there are 3 parts to shipping; The manufacturer to the ports, the ports to the fulfillment centres, and the fulfillment centres to the backers. (There were multiple fulfillment centres as I was planning to ship worldwide.) Those costs have to be rolled into the shipping cost or the unit pledge if I had a hope of at least coming out even. So having a weighty game, effectively pushes the cost up 3 times. Which, as I said, is a tall ask for a first timer. 

I estimated that I could shift 500 units. Bearing in mind, that most manufacturers make a minimum order of 1500, so those 'extra' unit costs need to be soaked up in the unit pledge, again making the game more expensive. 

2 - I didn't have a 'Community' 

Developing a community around a game is hard. Honestly, to make an impact, I think you need to be face-to-face with people. They need to see the game in the flesh, and see the designer too to develop a relationship. That requires going to conventions and hobby stores etc. 

Developing a community requires selling a product, and it feels far removed from designing. Being somewhat shy, this aspect has been difficult, I won't lie.

Another aspect of this is living in New Zealand. Our big cons get around 1000 people over 2 days, so building a community here is tricky.

3 - Incorrect Marketing

I spent money on Facebook ads, but I can't really say they helped. 350,000 hits do not equate to likes. Likes do not equate to page hits, and page hits do not equate to pledges. 

Facebook groups, although useful in getting the word out regarding games, can get lost in the noise of all the other games. Plus, there are a lot more gamers out there who learn about new games in completely different ways to Facebook. (websites, blogs, podcasts, videos etc.)

I managed to get 2 previews for the KS page from respected review sites. One of them was released nearly a week before. The reviewer did mention that next time, it would be better to release the video at the start of the campaign so interested viewers had something to see, otherwise it would fade from memory quickly. However, without sorting out problem 2, (see above) I don't think it would have made a huge difference.

One video I had to write one off due to the quality. Although I didn't pay for that one, shipping, time and one of my prototypes was chewed up in the process. 

It's not that the number of videos on the Kickstarter page give the campaign credence, it's the audiences that those review sites bring. Good ones (generally) cost money and they have a queue so I should have started the 'contact' process out a lot sooner. 

Also, there were around 30 games released on the same day, and an 'event' game released the following day. That's a lot of games vying for attention. I should have possibly checked the release schedule and chosen a different date. However, this industry of ours isn't getting any smaller so every week brings new goodies.

4 - Trying to do everything by myself

If this process has taught me one thing, is that I cannot do everything. I have limitations and I may have to face the fact I am not a publisher. Indeed, in the last 5 months, although I've learned a lot, I haven't done any design work at all, and that's been one of my biggest concerns. 

So coming back full circle; am I a designer, or am I a publisher? Probably the former. 

Board games are an art form, and like all art, they're best shared. However, the process of sharing beyond workshops and gaming groups may be a task for someone else. 

However, that doesn't mean I've given up on Mech Force. It's a great game. There may be other means of getting it to tables, and that's what I'm working on now. And I'm sure that will bring its own set of challenges... 

The (Proper) Countdown has begun...

Invariably, the busier I get, the less I tend to update this blog. And the last few months have been no exception. It’s been a long road to get to this point, but I’m finally going live with Mech Force on March 5th.

Publishing has been a completely different experience to designing. I’ve has to learn a lot more of the Adobe suite for one thing. Making a Kickstarter video has been rewarding but taken a while, as has the Kickstarter page itself. Again, Shem has been an absolute legend. It’s been amazing to have a mate who’s a KS ‘veteran’ close by to bounce questions and concerns off of.

So 3 weeks to go, and fingers crossed. Everything seems to be moving along okay. I have a few outstanding things to take care off, namely review sites and confirming pricing for the logistics, but it’s happening. It’s really happening…

Slow progress, but progress none the less...

Wow, I said to myself a year ago, I would try to update my blog once a week. How slack I’ve been. It’s not due to laziness. On the contrary, the total opposite. Focus has been elsewhere…

I’ve been in contact with Longpack a lot. We’ve been back and forth, trying to get the unit cost down. Another piece of invaluable advice from Shem was to stage the campaign. Going with a minimum viable product and then build up to the ‘perfect’ game, so that’s what I’ve done. Start with cutting down on some of the pieces. Go with cardboard tokens instead of wooden. Printed dice instead of engraved etc.

I think I’ve got a reasonable handle on the amount I’ll be charging per box, as well as the stretch goals I need to put in place.

Panda have still yet to get back to me…

For my own piece of mind, I’ve gone to another couple of companies to get a comparison cost. Hopefully they should be getting back to me within the next week.

What’s next?

1 - there’s some final pieces of art to come from Eddie: The new Kaiju set, the card backing for the personal goals and the new skill card pictures. That (he said) should be it on the artwork front.

Kaiju 3 Tuberos.jpg

2 - Review of the rulebook. It’s taken about 6 weeks to get a version which I’m happy with. A friend from across the pond, Ben, reviewed it without ever playing the game which was so helpful. The game has been part of me for over 2 years now, so perspective can be a problem. He gave me 11 pages of notes! Legend.

3 - I need playtesting of the blind variety to play the game when I’m not in the room. This will be a true test of how good the rulebook is. I have a mate who’s putting his hand up for that. (Thanks Sam) I’ll be looking for some more random strangers too before…

4 - I need reviews of some kind which is going to be a little more difficult. I’ve ordered some more parts to make a couple more prototypes to be able to send round. Back to printing and sticking.

5 - Marketing. Now there’s a black hole…

So, if I look behind me, I’ve traveled further than what’s in front of me, but the journey is not over by a long shot.

Onward!

Finding out the damage...

So it’s begun. I’ve started to contact the manufacturers to get an idea of unit cost. Longpack have been pretty good so far; 3 emails today. Panda have yet to get in contact but it was a Chinese holiday last week so that’s to be expected. It’s going to be interesting. Frankly, I’m a little worried about the cost of the dice, but we’ll have to see what they come back with. Fingers crossed, it’s not too pricey….

Dice

So I've realised that if only the Publish Blog is being read, it's really only telling half the story regarding IMDL! There's a lot more detail on the Design Blog regarding my trails and tribulations but in summary, I've managed to find a workable solution to my design problem. That being multiple dice (each mod gives the player 1 or 2 customised dice instead of a configurable face).

This has involved a fair amount of rework with the mech mods and enemy cards, mostly around the balancing. Play testing continues but it certainly captures the original feel.

Customisable dice are a lot easier to come by so I'm happy I can continue! If you're interested in the journey, click over to the Design Blog.

I exist!

...In Boardgamegeek that is. My name, publishing name and IMDL! have been approved. It's a little step on a long road but I kind of feel validated now, seeing that 'Game Designer' stamp underneath my name. It's the small things...

Now I've got figure out how to get my logo and gaming pictures on there.

In other news, replacement parts have been sent. Hopefully 2 weeks away and I'll be able to do a full test.

Stumbling in the Dark...

Okay, so what do I need to set up a publishing machine?

  • An awesome name.

  • A cool logo and some willing artist to design it for me.

  • A limited company using my awesome name.

  • A website.

That's a start. I already had the name in mind. The Motherlode had a nice double meaning, and it was the name me and a few of my friends used in our other creative enterprises. Never with 'Games' slapped at the end of it though.

I also had a logo design, so I scoured Deviant Art for an artist who I liked the look of, and was available. I came across Taylor Schmidt's page. I liked his nice clean style and he did logos which was a bonus.

Just over a week later, he had my idea nailed.

(Incidentally, I asked him if was interested in doing the artwork for IMDL!, but after writing down a 'shopping list' of art required, he said he didn't have the time.)

Choices...

So about a month ago, I found myself at a crossroads. As far as I could see it (and I may be wrong in this assumption), I had 2 options:

  1. Rest on my laurels until next year, make my way to one of the events that Rio Grande (or Asmodee/Libellud) attend, and then go on the charm offensive.

  2. Try and publish this beast myself.

As I'm horribly impatient, option 1 was tough to stomach. Option 2 seemed to be an insurmountable task.

However, the idea of building something for myself was an extremely appealing idea (even if it was daunting). And really, there was nothing to lose in at least trying.

So, the first big question was, where does one start?

Things I have learnt #1 (of many)

Board game publishers aren't really interested in seeing you game in an email, no matter how funky your sell sheet looks. Generally, they won't even look at a game unless they can see it with their own eyes in person. And the place to do this is at event/convention they're attending. And you need make an appointment with them beforehand. No wandering up to strangers with pieces of folded card. No sir, that is not a good look.

Here in lies my first, and quite large, problem. I live at the bottom of the world, quite some distance away from most major conventions...

I'm probably being quite naive...

14 months in and I think I've got something. The last playtest at the Wellington Designer's Workshop went well, as had the last two run-throughs prior. The players enjoyed it, I gave them the option to dive out half way but they want to keep playing. A good sign. Minor things were raised at the end, more suggestions than issues but, dare i say it, I've got a playable game on my hands.

I had set myself a goal that if the response was positive at the workshop, I'd take it the next, larger, more monumental step, and see if I could actually get IMDL! published.

This blog is to keep a journal of how, when or if it indeed happens.