Well unfortunately the "The Game Crafter" (TGC) Crowd Sale is DOWN. This is because of an URGENT Change Request that required that we "restart" our Crowd Sale... No worries I am fully confident that we will get the copies to the people who want copies of the game.
- Most of the sales are pre-orders, complimentary copies and Family & Friends.
- Three (3) sales are from Designer friends on BGDF - I will contact you once the sale is back online.
- One (1) sale is from an anonymous buyer. I will contact him directly
Sorry for the inconvenience - 4 people will need to resubmit their orders. It's for the greater good - the Change Request affects both the "Tradewars" Scenario and one (1) page in the Rulebook. It is a very important change to make the flow of the game smoother.
Oddly none of the playtesters brought this problem to my attention. It's only by playtesting the scenario MYSELF on the "Tuesday Board Game Night" that made me realize that the goal was too high and unlocking should also be corrected to better reflect the NEW Victory Condition.
Hopefully we should have everything back up to speed by tomorrow.
Thank you for your patience and patronage!
Cheers.
Comments
Update: Edits are DONE!
So it looks like the game has been "unblocked" and I have managed to make my changes to the Scenario Card and Rulebook Page! TGC must have had someone look into the problem (overtime)...
To TGC Staff: I thank you for all your patience and assistance! You ROCK!
To the gamers: We should be up and running with the Crowd Sale by the end of tomorrow... So tomorrow night.
Who knows ... maybe earlier. I'm hoping the earlier the better!
Thanks again.
Missing Red d6s: SOLVED IT!
Well although there are still no Red d6s to be bought at TGC, I have created a copy of the game and removed all parts. I have a couple of Game Sets from the batch of REVIEWERS that were remaining... So I'll just borrow the parts from those two (2) boxes! ;)
Production should be completed in Early August and I should be able to get the games by the Mini-CON!
You've really got to be "flexible" if you want to make it "smooth sailing"... Because the waters are a little *bumpy*!!!
This should have our event back on TRACK!
Cheers.
We are BACK ONLINE!
Sorry if some orders needed to be re-submitted... Don't worry you will NOT be billed twice. The previous orders were deleted. In all actuality, all of the Crowd Sale buyer information was also LOST.
It's good I kept the e-mails from TGC state WHO had purchased copies of the game.
This has allowed me to contact all our customers and encourage them to resubmit their orders.
No worries - the sale will continue as I wait patiently for more orders!
Thanks again.
I guess I should post the LINK!
Please VISIT the following page to learn more about "Tradewars - Homeworld":
http://www.tradewarshomeworld.com
This will bring you to the TGC page where you can watch our video and view the many accolades earned by the game including a 94% Art Test Score!
If you are interested in purchasing a Game Set or two, thank you very much for your support and patronage!
Cheers.
Saddly we have LOST...
Three (3) earlier customers have NOT reserved their copy of "Tradewars - Homeworld". This means we have LOST three (3) sales due to our technical difficulties.
I have contacted two (2) of the personally (Private Messages - PM) and we shall see IF they order AGAIN their copies of the game.
It's not much - but it put us OVER the 33% mark - in terms of overall sales. I don't think we will get many more sales. However we may get a few others pending the weeks of holidays. My guess is that two (2) customers are probably on holidays since they are designers on BGDF and I have not heard/seen any messages from them this last week.
In any event, I am dissatisfied with the current results of the Crowd Sale. My goal really was 100 - 250 copies sold. But since this is an "Early Edition", people getting their copies before the masses, it's okay I guess... 30+ copies is better than 2, 5 or 10.
Sincerely.
On the POSITIVE side of things
We have had several more "downloads" of the game's rulebook.
This is very positive - because it means people are *curious* about the game. This may translate to some additional sales ... if people like what they read, they may decide to buy the game.
Keeping you all posted!
Again more rulebook downloads!
Wishing some of the those rulebook downloads would convert to SALES! :P
We will be heading into our FINAL week of the SALE in just three (3) days... I doubt it will have a big effect on the results of the sale - it's not like 100 sales will mysteriously occur! :(
At least some more people will get to play our FUN game.
And I say that with all honesty. It feels good to have a perfected product. Going through the iterations and doing more playtests, being personally invited to a CON - we'll see where all this leads me!
Cheers everybody.
Ok as a REMINDER!
IF you have PURCHASED a copy of "Tradewars - Homeworld", please be advised that we had to RESET the sale and apply the pre-orders to our count. But some orders were LOST... As such IF you *bought* your copy(ies) of the game,
You will NEED to ORDER AGAIN! Here is the link:
http://www.tradewarshomeworld.com
Please to everyone concerned - I still have missing orders from before the RESET.
Not too many but a few and also some I cannot reach. So I am posting this as general information for all gamers (or designers) who have bought the game.
(Note: Some of you might still be on Holidays... I have not gotten a response to some message orders and have not seen those designers around lately).
Let's hope we hear from them NEXT week! :)
More rulebook downloads
We've gotten a bunch of rulebook downloads - maybe more people further interested in our game... Since we've entered into our LAST WEEK for the Crowd Sale - maybe we might get some last minute sales as there has been some people that have set reminders (to hopefully purchase the game).
Promotion
Out of interest, what have you been doing to promote this sale, other than posting these updates here?
Not much...
The Facebook page has proven to generate no sales... I had leads of people who said they really LIKED the game - but those did not translate to actual sales - which is unfortunate.
But with anything, you need to be patient. We'll take our 30+ sales and deliver the product and see what those people think about the game.
Next I have a CON in late August where I have been asked to demo the game. It's at a *NEW* FLGS local to my area (They've been open since early July).
Afterwards I intend to approach a couple of publishers.
Once that is done - I will know if I should or should not put up a BGG page for the game. This will depend on if I have a relationship with a Publisher or not... If not, well then I will post on BGG and will have people review the game and tell us what they think.
All this is baby steps: one step at a time.
I tried to build as large of a community (over 60+ people) and if those people (on Facebook) would have translated to sales... well we would have had just over 100 people for the sale (our goal).
I could have Kickstarted but...
Then it would be impossible to submit my game to Publishers. See I think TGC sales are just the initial reaction to the game, people who are willing to try something "NEW"!
And some Publishers would run a jointly-initiated KS campaign as partners. Others refuse games IF they have been Kickstarted...
But NOBODY seems to mind if the game has been sold on TGC. On the contrary, it seems like TGC games do get picked up. I know of one such example, I met the designer in person, he was from Ontario and a french company in Montreal published his game.
His BGG page still says "Published by The Game Crafter" + his new publisher.
So there is HOPE after TGC... Where as there is NO CHANCE after a solo KS campaign...
Food for thought...
Self-Publishing
Kris,
There's always the self-publishing route. There are a great many benefits, but you also assume the lion's portion of risk and work associated with the endeavor.
I've worked with Jamey Stegmaier on a few of his games and as one who has self-published, he'll be the first to tell you that it's a lot of work. Now, as a published designer working with Outer Limit Games, Mike and I have a standing Skype session to discuss files, graphic art ideas, rules, etc. with the focus of moving the project forward.
When you self publish, you have to be ready for the heavy lifting of contacting manufacturers, retailers, distribution points, fulfillment centers...your avocation (designing board games) becomes a vocation (that to which you commit many professional hours of your time).
This is why Jamey didn't "quit his day job" until it proved a sustainable enterprise...which it is now, after several successful games.
Anyway, more food for thought.
Cheers,
Joe
The Professor wrote:There's
I don't want to "self publish" unless it is ABSOLUTELY necessary. I'd much rather prefer to find a publisher with whom I can either partner for a Kickstarter (would be interesting, we can share in the profits) or someone who will directly distribute the game to local stores.
I have a couple publishers lined up. One is interested in partnering with Designers in regards to their product(s). The other is more of a distribution type of deal since they have distribution of their own games to local stores. The first one can offer to partner on a Kickstarter and then get the game into stores. The second one is focused on distribution only (no joint KS campaign).
At this point in time, I am going to see what I can negotiate with the second publisher. Why? Because they are local to my area and have an elaborate setup in regards to their operation. If I can't convince them to produce and resell my game, well then I will approach the first publisher who is in the USA. With them it will be possible to setup a joint-venture KS and let them manage fulfillment. And there is also the possibility to resell to local game stores too.
We'll see how things progress - I'm moving slowly... But it may take a couple of months before we have a definite answer as to which way we will be headed.
Cheers.
Our NEWS article is in...
Here is a brief but to the point article from our Developer's perspective.
http://news.thegamecrafter.com/
Thanks to Tavis & team for helping us get out the word for the last few remaining days of the TGC Crowd Sale.
We've got a few people who have set BUY "reminders"... This is the time to buy the game before it goes back to the regular price of $29.99. Currently you can save over 20%+ off from the regular price.
I unfortunately don't know who the "reminders" are FROM - so in case it is people linked to BGDF (Designer or Friend/Family) I just want to be sure to ask you to click that BUY link soon - before it's too late!
New idea for a Scenario
It's called "Rebel Empire"! Oooohh!
Based on a familiar "traitor" mechanic, one (1) player is a "Rebel Supporter" while the other are trying to rid themselves of this player. But nobody knows who is the "Rebel Supporter" as such you must defeat the right player...
It's just one of several ideas...
I thought it had a "Star Wars"-feel to it and it might appeal to "Star Wars" fans!... It's all about forming links, directly or indirectly, with your audience. That gives more immersion to the game.
Update: It could mesh well with "The Privateer" scenario. Instead of it being hidden - one player plays the "Rebels" using the "Pirate Starships". We shall see...