I’ve been watching and doing a lot of research about Kickstarter, and I’ve been fascinated at how many great projects there are out there.
So, in order to get a few of them some more exposure, and to help you spend more of your hard earned money on games, I’m to be compiling lists of projects that I find interesting, and worth funding. Here’s a couple I know our readers would like to hear about.
I myself may not fund all the projects I discover, but this article series will focus on the ones that have piqued my interest, and might find an audience with some of our readership.
By clicking on the title of the game, it will open a link to the Kickstarter project page.
The past few weeks have seen a glut of great-looking projects crop up on Kickstarter, so expect to see more frequent articles in this series for the next bit. In addition, I have received my pledges from Krosmaster Arena, and Zombicide Season 2. I’ll have to figure out some time to get those two projects reviewed for readers of this article series.
Mars Attacks!
Mantic’s latest offering on Kickstarter is the first project from this company that I’ve been watching fascinating interest. This is their ‘most-board-game-like’ project to date, and as far as I’m concerned, this project really feels that way; a complete game for 2 players in one box.
These guys are pretty good at running a campaign, making the buy-in not too steep, yet very enticing. They also have a limited offer that ran for a couple of weeks for a bonus alternate sculpt Martian Leader. Speaking of the Martians, those clear helmets are just plain awesome.
The miniatures look exactly like they should (based on the artwork), and the boxed set has enough miniatures, a game mat, terrain, tokens, and everything else needed to play. In addition to the game, all pledges receive a certain number of dollars (the bigger the pledge, the more add-ons you get for free) to add extra minis, expansions, and more. The highest pledge levels are the best deals by far; the highest tier currently has enough add-ons equal to the pledge itself, which means you’re getting the base game ($75 value) for free.
My personal favorite is the clear helmets on all the Martians. I’ve only seen this done in one miniature line from many years ago – Cobalt. The scenery will also serve many uses across a multitude of genres. There’s much one can use in the box if all you’re looking at is the miniatures and accessories rather than the game.
You only have until this Sunday (Nov. 10, 2013) to get in on this project, which features the next free unlock at $500k and isn’t very far off. Giant Bugs. The concept looks great, as do all of the vehicles.
If you’re a fan of the IP, I really feel Mantic has nailed it with this project. They’ve incorporated the old campy style with the newer comics, and cards for a nice mix of the franchise across the many years it’s been around.
It’s a really large amount of stuff you get for your pledge, and if you don’t want to think about what add-ons you want, or if it’s confusing (I have to be honest here – the Kickstarter was more complex and convoluted that it really needed to be), the one-click pledge is for you. Back for $150 (plus a negligible amount for shipping – US and UK get it for free), and you get all of the above. There’s been a number of pledges dropped, so there is still a fairly good chance you get in on an early bird and save a few bucks.
This looks to be the best project by Mantic so far, and is definitely worth your dollars.
Journey: Wrath of Demons
Ancient China is overrun with demons. In order to stop them, the players (Pilgrims) have to travel across and search the land to locate the ancient Sutras to send them ‘back from whence they came’.
Yeah. An Ancient Chinese dungeon-crawler. I have to say I love the sound of that.
Here we have a very original take on a genre that has been dominated by fantasy pretty much since the dungeon-crawler co-operative genre was established. This is like a breath of fresh air, and man are those minis huge, detailed, and simply fantastic. These models are just begging for paint!
Marrow has come out of nowhere with this game and miniatures. But despite that, these figures (not to mention the game) are jaw-droppingly good. These guys have employed the best talent for this project, put in a ton of work and money before launch, and it shows in how amazing this project looks.
Marrow looks to be fully prepared, and ready to tackle this project to the ground. Since they are based in China backers can feel pretty confident that they will utilize only the best manufacturers and will likely ship on time due to no communication lag in regards to production proofs and such. Even though they’re a brand new company, simply based on how polished and professional this project looks already, I have complete confidence that Marrow will produce an amazing product. And based on the success of the Kickstarter so far, I doubt we’ve seen the last of these guys.
A large number of the figures are already sculpted, and there are many which painters and collector’s can get in resin. The game itself will be produced with plastic miniatures, you can either add-on selected resin sculpts or go for the more expensive Collector’s pledge which has a number of resin models included, and more being unlocked as the campaign progresses. I said above that the models were huge. But this photo here really puts it in perspective, and those Bull Demons are definitely good for a multitude of gaming uses.
There is quite a few different pledge levels, which should satisfy painters, collector’s and gamers alike. The best bang for your buck is the standard $100 pledge ($30 extra for us folks outside the US) with more free stretch goals, and boxed game upgrades being unlocked every day or two. Marrow Production is communicative, and posts frequent updates. So, backers can have some assurance that they’ll be listened to.
The fact that this is a brand new company that has presented such a refined, and polished Kickstarter (not even counting the number of sculpts already complete – let’s face it, even some of the largest game/miniature companies don’t have this amount of their miniatures past concept), Marrow has now set the bar. Beware anyone choosing to Kickstart a game after these guys! They’ll have some large shoes to fill. Small companies take note; Marrow has done it right….might I be even so bold as to say…the best?
Marrow is tied for best run Kickstarter – this campaign looks as good as Myth. Yeah. I said it.
If you want to help support a new game company that’s going to be producing a uniquely themed game, mind-blowing miniatures, and amazing artwork, then spend some money on Journey: Wrath of Demons. You have a little less than 2 weeks to do-so, and the campaign already has a pile of free figures unlocked, and some great-looking add-ons for your pledge.
The post Kickstarter: Demons, Devils, Dungeoncrawling and….Martians!? appeared first on Hand Cannon Online.