I’ve been spending money on a lot of projects last week, and I thought it might be interesting to briefly talk about why I’m crowdfunding those specific projects. I have a pretty specific set of standards when it comes to crowdfunding, and so far, they’ve (mostly!) kept me from being burned. They’re also a little different between video games and board games. So what are they?
The Rules
Obviously, I have to want the project to succeed. But even then, I tend to run it past these small internal checks first.
- The developer or publisher has delivered another project.
This doesn’t have be another game in the same genre, or even another fully produced project on their own. It doesn’t even have to be the same scope. For example, when I backed TemTem, I suspected it was likely to fail (or at least not quite meet the hype). But Crema Games had released Immortal Redneck, so risking $20 wasn’t too big a gamble. - If they haven’t released anything, there must be a fairly extensive demo, or playable prototype.
This is more common for board games than for video games. Usually, by the time a board game gets to the crowdfunding stage, there was a “playtesting it on Tabletop Simulator or Screentop” phase. But if possible, I want to play the game before backing it.
Why these standards?
Rule number one is designed to filter out two groups of people: scammers and dreamers. Scammers are simple enough to understand: if something is too good to be true, it probably is. Dreamers are a more complicated group. Being good at marketing and pitching (the skills crowdfunding rewards!) is absolutely not the same as being good at game development. Or working with manufacturing partners. Or managing international shipping regulations. Or any of the other dozens of things that need to happen behind the scenes to actually get a board game to your door.
Rule two actually serves a bit of a different purpose.
I buy things because I want to have fun. The goal is to exchange money for enjoyment. That said, I’m not too picky about the order in which that exchange happens. If a game developer makes a fun game I can play in Tabletop Simulator and I have fun playing it, I’m willing to give them some money.
The Projects I backed
So now that I’ve set out these little rules, let’s look at all the projects I backed, and see how well they align.
Pond by Brother Ming
This one is entirely a “previous projects” back. Brother Ming has a strong track record of consistently delivering, and I’ve really enjoyed some of his game designs. As such, it’s the sort of thing I’m willing to take a chance on, even if I haven’t played the game myself yet.
Space Lion 2: Leon Strife
Just like Pond, this sort of a legacy back. I very much enjoyed Space Lion, I spent a lot of time playing it with friends on Tabletop Simulator before it released, and Solis Game Studio successfully delivered it.
Super Battle Mon – Ranger Packs
This last one is a little bit more on hopes and dreams. I backed the original Super Battle Mon campaign. The cards came in recently, I played it, and it was a ton of fun, so I’m putting up some money for the expansion. I’m optimistic it’ll fund at a reasonable price-point, but I mostly just want to see some more Super Battle Mon cards.
So all these projects are going to succeed?
I have no idea. I sure hope so!
To be frank, I have some worries about all of them.
Pond looks excellent, but has a high number of components and additional pieces, all of which could drive the cost up significantly if the current tariffs stick around. Space Lion was a bit of a niche game in the first place, and hasn’t hit its funding goal yet. Super Battle Mon has hit its funding goal, but is still sitting at a wildly low amount of money for custom printing of a TCG.
In short: None of these projects is a given. That’s the risk of crowdfunding. But for all of them, I want them to succeed, and I’m optimistic that they can, and will.