I tried and failed to launch Counter Attack on Kickstarter, the crowdfunding platform, last week. A few things got in the way of the game’s launch. Firstly, communication between me and the board game manufacturer in China had been slower than I had hoped. I don’t quite have a clear answer on delivery times and some of the additional pieces I want for the Kickstarter campaign. I’m getting to the bottom of these points now and should be ready to launch in the coming week.
However, the delay to the launch of the crowdfunding campaign also highlighted that I had more work to do in terms of finishing graphics and videos. Rachel and I have been working hard to get all of these elements finished to a high standard and we’re pretty much there now. Kickstarter campaigns tend to have a nice video to accompany the project, so I finished one of those off. You’ll get to see it when the campaign goes live…! I also made another video which walks people through some basic Counter Attack rules. Again, that will get an airing when the campaign goes live. I plan to make more videos that help people understand the rules – just short, two minutes clips that help to visually demonstrate what a manager can do in the game. Sometimes it’s easier to understand visual instructions over written instructions.
On that front, we’re also polishing off the rule book to make it as visually appealing and understandable as possible. We’ve come up with a neat idea to show how some elements of the game work…again, watch this space!
Some people have asked me what Kickstarter is, so here’s my attempt at a concise summary:
What is Kickstarter?
Kickstarter is a crowdfunding platform where someone who has an idea for a product asks an audience to commit money towards turning the idea into a reality. To start with, I need to set an overall funding goal for the project. Then I invite people to purchase the game at a price I set. If enough people pledge to purchase the game and I hit my funding goal within the 30-day period Kickstarter allows, then the funds are released to me and I can produce the game. Once it has been produced and delivered to me, I post the game to customers. If I don’t hit the goal, customers get their money back.