Kickstarter has been a great launching pad for a number of physical and digital board games and for some titles…both.
Last week saw the launch of the fantastic iOS release of White Wizard Games’ deckbuilder Star Realms (the physical version of which was successfully Kickstarted). Despite a failed Kickstarter last year, the digital release of The Manhattan Project also arrived on iOS last week as well.
Last Monday, Harebrained Schemes released their successfully Kickstarted hybrid miniatures game, Golem Arcana, into friendly local gaming stores. The innovative looking game combines miniatures with mobile technology.
Finally, in a couple of weeks, at PAX Prime, Crash Games will be launching an iOS version of their Kickstarted card game Yardmaster and Laboratory will also be debuting the iOS release of their successfully Kickstarted micro worker placement game, Province.
It is a great time for iOS board gaming with loads of creative ideas coming from both established and new publishers launching digital versions of fun titles from the recent and not-so-recent past. There are several active digital board game projects which are in need a little support and attention if they are going to meet their funding goals and I just wanted to mention those here.
Key to the Kingdom: Legacy
Key to the Kingdom is a fantasy/adventure board-game that was published in the early 90s by Waddingtons Games.
I am not at all familiar with this game, but according to BoardGameGeek, players travelled around the board trying to find the “Key treasure card” and one additional treasure card which allowed them to escape the kingdom.
Along the way you can steal treasures from other players and use your eight different equipment cards to “pass traps or defeat monsters. The board is in 6 parts, connected with roads in many combinations, and the only way of reaching two of the parts is by jumping into one of the whirlpools in the middle of the board, this causes the board to fold in or out, expanding the kingdom you can explore.”
Out of print, the physical version can be expensive when found on eBay. While the game has its champions, the review scores of the game on BGG are decidedly average, which might explain why despite being a Kickstarter staff pick, the campaign seems to be struggling a bit at just 6% of its $22,000 goal with about 15 days to go.
If Key to the Kingdom: Legacy sounds interesting to you, you can back a copy of the game for as little as $10 and it is slated to deliver in November of this year.
Hopefully they can reach their funding goal, for more info about the game and rewards, visit the campaign page.
Fish Cook: Digital Edition
Cat Duo is working with designer James Ernest of Cheapass Games to launch a digital version of a board game he released last Summer called Fish Cook.
As you may have surmised from the title, it is a strategy game about cooking fish. It is the year 1909 and players are French chefs, competing to be the best in the country by “cooking exquisite fish recipes, earning money and gaining prestige”. The strategical elements of the game are based around spending your money wisely and managing risk.
What is really neat about this new digital release is that it is designed to be played using multiple devices, but only a single person needs to actually purchase the Fish Cooks app. This is accomplished using Cat Duo’s free Jovios Game Controller app. An iPad (or other supported platform) running the Fish Cooks game app acts as the board and the controller app allows you to view your own hidden-hand information and review playable actions on your iPhone or iPod Touch while other chefs are taking their turns. It looks like a really neat setup.
At the cheapest $5 pledge level you get a copy of the game on the platform of your choice (iOS, OS X, Android, Windows) plus the Kickstarter exclusive chef avatars. Additional pledge levels get you other goodies like beta access, a collectible coin and physical version of the game.
The campaign is currently at 58% of its $15,000 goal with 18 more days to go. For additional details, screenshots you can visit the campaign page.
Boss Monster: Dungeon-Building Card Game For iOS
Back in 2012 Brotherwise Games ran a HUGELY successful campaign to launch the Boss Monster: Dungeon-Building Card Game. It hit $215,056 in pledges (a whopping 1,792% of its $12,000 funding goal).
Inspired by NES-era video games, Boss Monster challenges players to “become a villain, build side-scrolling dungeons, lure adventurers, and destroy them.” Players compete to see who can lure and destroy the most adventurers.
The game has been really successful in local gaming shops as well and spawned at least one expansion. Brotherwise is now Kickstarting the digital version of the game for both iOS and Android platforms. This new digital version mimics all the game play of tabletop version, but also takes advantage of the digital format to enhance the experience with added features like AI opponents for solo play and online opponents so you can play against anyone in the world. Plus it handles all of the math for you.
There are a TON of pledge levels and as someone who has never played the original game, I am finding the choices a bit overwhelming as to exactly which one to choose. However, it looks like if you want the whole shebang (digitally), the $12 pledge level is the way to go, not a bad deal considering the physical release of just the base game is currently just under $20 on Amazon.com and the Tools of Hero-Kind expansion is about $10.
- $5 Key To The Dungeon – you receive a copy of the base version of Digital Boss Monster (the full 155 card version of Boss Monster) for less than what it will cost at launch.
- $7 Player’s Choice – you get the 155 card base game plus an 11-card digital mini-expansion that includes seven Boss cards, three challenging Epic Heroes, and a game-changing Spell. These cards will never be printed again, so these digital versions are the only way to play with them if you weren’t able to get the physical versions during the original Kickstarter! “You also get access to exclusive downloads during the campaign, including print-and-play preview cards from Boss Monster 2”.
- $9 Power-Up – you get everything in the Player’s Choice tier plus early access to the POWER-UP PACK, a second digital mini-expansion of 12 cards. It includes 5 more promo cards, PLUS a set of 7 never-before-seen cards designed specifically for digital play!
- $12 Extra-Life – you get everything in the Power-Up tier plus access to the digital version of Tools of Hero-Kind. This is a digital conversion of the 26-card expansion which makes heroes doubly dangerous with magical items and weapons. At this level, you get EVERYTHING currently available for the tabletop and digital versions of the game.
- $16 Paper and Pixels – you get everything in the Extra-Life tier plus early access to hard copies of the new digitally enhanced cards being made specifically for Digital Boss Monster. You will be shipped a physical pack of 12 cards: two copies of four Room cards, two Boss cards, and one Spell. These cards are optimized for digital play, so the paper versions will require the use of tokens and dice.
There are a few more pledge levels for multiple copies and others that add-on physical copies of the original game as well as a physical copy of the expansion.
The campaign is currently at 51% of its hefty $85,000 funding goal with 25 days to go. If you want more details about the Boss Monster Digital or to watch a demo of a prototype of the app , visit the campaign page.
