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Dirty Little Secrets - detective game with partners, fresh out of the oven! Ready for you.

12 replies [Last post]
Tue, 12/09/2014 - 00:14
richdurham
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Yeah, I'm calling on the BGDF community for a bit of feedback. You guys/gals have had some amazing feedback and GDS entries over the years, and now I'd like to know what you think on one of my own games. This game is done. It's ready to go. It's a free PnP at the moment, with publishing coming next year.

That's where you come in: There's still time to refine the rulebook!

What's this game?

It's a detective game called Dirty Little Secrets. Players are less than noble detectives using the same set of 8 cards as their opponents. You'll try to collect evidence (both as real information and as tokens) and eliminate opponents cards/actions while protecting your own. Combination of tactical play and deduction.

You can get the whole thing here

There's not much. 2 pages that print as 6 sheets of cards. And that assumes you're playing four player (which I recommend for the full experience).

If you're curious, here's a bit more information on this handy marketing flyer (not quite a sell sheet).

I'm looking for feedback using a googleform. That's in the READ ME document in the package, but the link is also here

I'm thankful for any and all feedback from the BGDF community. I love you. Did I say that already? I love you.

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Tue, 12/09/2014 - 00:43
#1
nomad
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Awesome

Haven't hit any of the links yet (but I will) and already the title is spot on for a detective game which is a great genre. I'm in already.

-nomad-

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Tue, 12/09/2014 - 02:41
#2
richdurham
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Thanks

Glad you're interested!

I quite like the name, too. Drop me a line when you give it a play or two.

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Tue, 12/09/2014 - 18:15
#3
richdurham
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Downloads

There have been a good number of downloads - thank you.

This leads to a bigger, more philosophical question about "marketing your game."

How comfortable are you with it?

There's a difference between marketing your own game and convincing people to play someone else's. The first feels like a plea, and the other like a stamp of approval.

How do you get over that? Or do you? I'd much rather have players who like the game be the ones spreading the word, not because it takes work off of me but because it's more honest.

You should like your own game, and want to convince others to play it, but there's always the "maybe they're deluded" factor when the words come from the designer.

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Tue, 12/09/2014 - 20:20
#4
Praxis
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This looks great dude. The

This looks great dude. The revolver and the letter with 'I know'.. I already want to play! The artwork is lovely too, nice and clean. Very inspiring, I'm downloading now.

Don't be afraid to promote, or even suggest that people who like it tell their friends. That is after all what every gamer wants to hear about... new upcoming games to get excited about!

I'm looking forward to giving this a spin.

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Wed, 12/10/2014 - 18:07
#5
richdurham
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Tell your friends!

Thanks, Praxis. Tell your friends! ;-)

I may be getting over my inhibitions there, but as a general rule, how would you rank the 'reliability' of these sources:

Word of mouth from....

  1. Designer
  2. Stranger on BGG
  3. Stranger with a video review show
  4. Stranger with a video review show that is popular
  5. A friend with whom you don't share tastes
  6. A friend with whom you do share tastes

These aren't my rankings - I'd place Designer as more reliable than strangers, as they like to whine about anything most often.

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Thu, 12/11/2014 - 17:18
#6
jamespotter
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Looks Great

I'm really excited to give this a try, as it looks to be the type of game that will go over well with my family.

My personal reliability rankings, with "1" being who I consider the most reliable:
1. A friend with whom I share tastes
2. Stranger with a video review show that is popular
3. Stranger with a video review show
4. Designer
5. Friend with whom I do not share tastes
6. Stranger on BGG

Hopefully this is some help.

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Thu, 12/11/2014 - 20:11
#7
jwarrend
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Joined: 08/03/2008
For whatever it's worth, I

For whatever it's worth, I would consider all of those to be equally unreliable; or maybe unimportant is a better word. I suspect I'm odd in this regard, but when considering whether to support a KS game, I don't ever watch the review videos or pay much attention to the shout outs they have acquired; what interests me is pretty much exclusively the ruleset and the visual presentation of the game, and whether the game appears to do something innovative or unique that doesn't already exist in my collection. For someone like me, the important thing is more to get the game on my radar screen in the first place.

Session reports and buzz are the best thing for this; you might do well to make a bunch of POD copies of the game and distribute them to groups -- any groups will do -- in exchange for their posting a tweet or session report or whatever. I think this will help create demand for the game in an organic way.

Good luck!

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Thu, 12/11/2014 - 21:45
#8
richdurham
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What about by word of mouth?

Hi Jeff, thanks for weighing in. I see your point on Kickstarters. And that is a very specific setup: a Kickstarter page. Where the elements can be visually presented, and rules explained (often with video) in a single place.

What I might do, then, is make a couple videos to explain just that and put them around the webs. 3-5 minute investment of time versus the entire rigmarole of printing it out and playing it just to find out you don't like it.

Thanks for that.

Now let me change, or at least clarify, the rules a bit. Which of those 'word of mouth' sources would you trust most in terms of "okay, I'll at least go check out the video because your pitch and/or excitement has interested me."

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Fri, 12/12/2014 - 20:22
#9
Praxis
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Is it bad that I rate

Is it bad that I rate Designer above A friend with whom I don't share tastes?

Honestly, I think that a designer will without a doubt hype up his game because it is his baby. That doesn't mean I won't fine it reliable, I just find that for the most part I have made descisions purchased games based on their reviews either in youtube or podcast. Those gameplay review impressons count a lot.

Stranger with a video review show that is popular
Stranger with a video review show
A friend with whom you do share tastes
Designer
A friend with whom you don't share tastes
Stranger on BGG

richdurham wrote:
Thanks, Praxis. Tell your friends! ;-)

I may be getting over my inhibitions there, but as a general rule, how would you rank the 'reliability' of these sources:

Word of mouth from....

1. Designer
2. Stranger on BGG
3. Stranger with a video review show
4. Stranger with a video review show that is popular
5. A friend with whom you don't share tastes
6. A friend with whom you do share tastes

These aren't my rankings - I'd place Designer as more reliable than strangers, as they like to whine about anything most often.

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Mon, 12/15/2014 - 02:51
#10
richdurham
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Tastes

I trust the opinions of friends whose tastes differ from mine - because at least I know their tastes and how they relate to mine. I can't make that call with a stranger unless they have a review show I frequently watch.

So far Dirty Little Secrets is in the hands of about 70 people. Hopefully I'll get some of that feedback from some of them and see how it appeals to various tastes.

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Mon, 12/15/2014 - 04:05
#11
kos
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First impression is good

My first impression of the game is good. The artwork ties in nicely with the theme, and the rules are easy to read with no obvious errors.

I've been holding off on providing feedback because I haven't had a chance to read the rules properly to figure out what the game will play like. I hope to get to it soon.

Regards,
kos

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Mon, 12/15/2014 - 22:47
#12
richdurham
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After the rules...

Hi Kos,

Thanks for the artwork feedback. Once you DO read through the rules, could you take about 5-10 minutes to fill out this survey? (the first part is done prior to playing, but after reading the rules)

http://goo.gl/forms/LcvkvnaVqz

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