I’m was all set for the Mint Tin Mini Apocalypse Kickstarter and the game itself has been ready for months.
I got obsessed with offering a “deluxe” reward of a mini game mat and a boxtopping-style score journal and those were ready for July 14th and for reviewers (albeit they’d only get it 2 weeks before the Kickstarter) but now I’m pushing that into August.
So why the delay?
I blame serendipity and passionate game video blogger ExcalibursZone. =p
I’ve not been 100% happy with the mini game mat design and was tweeting about it yesterday to which Excalibur tweeted back
@subquark If you did multiple mats as stretch goals, each with different objectives/missions/rules/etc. based on the environment.
Creating full-on missions and rules for this now would mean pushing the KS back a few months because new missions and rules would need lots of playtesting. It’s a phenomenal idea and one I’d like to pursue (and maybe the game community will come up with their own too).
However, a tiny change to the game mat graphics could move the game mat from being a “deluxe” thematic element to being a true expansion. As an expansion, the core game doesn’t need to be modified (lots of playtesting has led to the base game being simple yet fun while allowing for different strategies).
Plus, Nick Shaw has really fun solo, 3 player, and 4 player variants already created (to which I’m doing soundtracks to support Nick’s timed variants).
Making a small change to the mat extends the game now, and in the future, creating more playability. Win-win!
But . . . the Imitable Kate chimed in at dinner last night and said “what about adding a coin?”
She knows I’m obsessed with these US-minted brass tokens. =)
Within a few minutes, we came up with the coin being a manhole cover and part of the expansion.
Mint Tin Mini Apocalypse Manhole Expansion!*
The $19 US reward doesn’t go up in price but it now adds the coin as a modest stretch goal.
More importantly, the “deluxe” level becomes a true expansion and adds real game value.
This means adding (and editing) the expansion rules to the score journal and designing the coin, thus pushing the KS back. A benefit is that it also gives reviewers more time.
The last 18 hours have seen an awesome “value add” worthy of a new Kickstarter date of August 11th. =)
* – LOL, I’m such a little kid that I leave “cover” out of the name to be sophomoric! derr! =D
While the mat doesn’t fit in the tin, the coin actually does! \o/ for serendipity! =)