Monthly Rambling: Kickstarter Retrospective [Part 1]
I was scrolling through Boardgamegeek’s website and noticed that it had a section titled "Crowdfunding Coutdown" which of course showcased the Kickstarter / Gamefound projects that were imminently closing as well as each project’s current status of funding. It made me think of the crowdfunding projects that I have been personally involved in and whether with 20-20 hindsight, I would be part of the process again.
Off-hand I actually cannot recall the total number of crowdfunded boardgames I have pledged for since the beginning of my hobby. After careful review, it turns out that the number is actually a surprising 16 projects which represents 18% of all my boardgame acquisitions. The surprise is mostly due to the fact that I don’t see myself as a "1 in 5 odds" kind of guy.
So for this month and next month’s rambling (I realized this was too long for a rambling so it will have to be in two parts), I am exploring all the crowdfunded boardgames I participated in and whether (a) the boardgame was as good as I expected it to be, (b) if the value has increased or decreased and (c) if I turned back the clock, would I back it again as well as the reasons why.
ALIEN FRONTIERS (2010 - $14,885)Better than expected?
Alien Frontiers still has great production quality when compared with some popular boardgames that came later (hint hint: Terraforming Mars). I was most impressed with small touches like a cutaway on the sides of the box to make it easier to lift the game board. However, the boardgame itself was merely solid, lacking excitement and was frustratingly confusing to update with expansions because of the release of many editions in a short span of time.
Kickstarter Price: RM270 & Retail Today: RM315
Backer Today?
I am going to pass on backing Alien Frontiers. It has a place in boardgaming history, being one of the first, if not the first successful boardgame on kickstarter, but most of my plays of Alien Frontiers were lacklustre with few variations in strategy.
EMINENT DOMAIN (2010 - $48,378)Better than expected?
At this point, I had both Race For The Galaxy and Eminent Domain in my collection and I struggled to see the appeal of the latter when compared with RFTG. Eminent Domain felt incomplete because it had components that were only meaningful with a later expansion. This clearly was not Glory To Rome in space.
Kickstarter Price: RM112 & Retail Today: RM175
Backer Today?
Hard pass. Even with both boardgames available on BoardGameArena now, I still gave Eminent Domain a shot but I still gravitate back to RFTG regularly for the level of complexity it gives in comparison to the time spent playing the boardgame.
KINGS OF AIR AND STEAM (2011 - $41,722)Better than expected?
Kings of Air And Steam is still the only pick up and deliver boardgame I own. I actually think I have a bit of a phobia towards the genre so it is surprising that I actually like KOAS and it is actually better than I expected it to be. The Player characters are interesting (although balance might be an issue), turns are engaging and the production quality is above average.
Kickstarter Price: RM125 & Retail Today: RM- (OOP)
Backer Today?
This is a tough one. I love the steampunk theme and the gameplay is solid. It is also inconveniently out of print so a “final reprint” at a reasonable price would be extremely appealing. But I’m not sure that this would be a “must have” boardgame for me given my current boardgame appetites. I suspect the tie breaker for me would be if they switched the current plastic airships for smaller, unique airship minis for each Player.
EUPHORIA: BUILD A BETTER DYSTOPIA (2013 - $309,495)Better than expected?
I honestly did not know what to expect of this post-apocalyptic, dice worker placement euro boardgame. And it was also honestly very confusing because my tier had extra dice and alternate art recruit cards and I did not know why at the time. So yes, Euphoria: Build A Better Dystopia was mind blowing for me. It had a theme and mechanics that were cohesive, varied resources that tied into the factions, a catch-up mechanic built into Players becoming too powerful, there was just so much packaged into a great boardgame with a great theme.
Kickstarter Price: RM191.39 & Retail Today: RM307.45
Backer Today?
So here is the rub. So much packaged into a single box was actually the undoing of Euphoria. I couldn’t bear to teach the boardgame because it was so rules heavy with so many moving bits for a boardgame whose win condition is a race to the finish. For me personally, this is an insurmountable obstacle of getting the boardgame to the table because it requires a commitment level that is not proportionate to the enjoyment I am going to derive from the boardgame. So sadly, I won’t be backing Euphoria: Build A Better Dystopia (which also needs a better name) if it were crowdfunded today.
THE AGENTS (2013 - $275,368)Better than expected?
The Agents had a few draws for me. Plastic cards! Whilst these things don’t need sleeves and are liquid proof, they slide EVERYWHERE! Not as great as expected. The purported tactics and strategy was also a letdown for me. The key feature of the boardgame was the double-edged cards, where basically you choose between abilities and victory points depending on each card’s orientation and more often than not, it ends up just being a back and forth where you try to get points and your opponent uses the ability to deny you points and vice versa. The only happy takeaway is the Ghost In The Shell cyber punk theme is really well done here.
Kickstarter Price: RM132.50 & Retail Today: RM- (OOP)
Backer Today?
I am going to say no to this chaos-fest that slides all over the table.
DUNGEON LORDS: HAPPY ANNIVERSARY (2014 - $247,502)Better than expected?
So Dungeon Lords: Happy Anniversary is a deluxe version of the base game and its expansion and not a brand new boardgame as it were. With the gameplay being the same as the retail version, it would be only fair to limit my comments to “how much better does the boardgame look now with everything blinged out”? And the answer is 100% yes. Everything screams “This is my dungeon! Heroes go away!”. My only gripe is that they decided to go with an overlay board instead of an entirely new one for playing together with the expansion. Oh, and the insert choice is extremely questionable.
Kickstarter Price: RM299 & Retail Today: RM508.67
Backer Today?
I am a diehard Dungeon Keeper (the PC game) fan so there is no universe in which I am not saying yes to a deluxified version of Dungeon Lords but in all fairness, if I were not such a fanboy, this version is actually unnecessary. I have played the retail version and not squeezed any less joy out of the experience.
HARBOUR (2014 - $143,498)Better than expected?
1 000% YES! So much goodness in so small a box for such a great price. But what Harbour really has going for it is one word – Variety. So many different character powers, abilities, strategies and a varied deck of building cards makes no play the same twice. Another aspect that surprised me was how powerful the boardgame makes you feel as the game progresses.
Kickstarter Price: RM60 & Retail Today: RM- (OOP)
Backer Today?
No brainer. I would even back multiple copies to give them away as gifts. It is THAT cheap and THAT good.
YOKOHAMA DELUXE (2018 - $431,143)Better than expected?
This is another deluxe version of a base game although I have never played the base game. Strictly as a component upgrade, I love it. Whilst some deluxe upgrades focus on just the resources and metal coins, Yokohama Deluxe changed the board art and I know it is just art but it makes such a difference to me.
Kickstarter Price: RM349 & Retail Today: RM- (OOP)
Backer Today?
I know there is no difference gameplay wise. I know it doesn’t make sense that nice components make you feel better when you’re playing the game. But it does! And they didn’t have to make the box massively bigger to pull this off. So yes, I would be a backer once again.
So out of the first seven crowdfunded boardgames I own, all of them were a surprise thought not all were pleasant ones. I suppose that is the nature of Kickstarter. Sadly though I am only 4 for 7 projects that I would back again if crowdfunded today, which represents a 43% rate of bad investment choices. Tune in next month to get part two of this kickstarter retrospective.
Until next time, keep calm and play better.
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