Tips for Backing a Board Game on Kickstarter
Kickstarter gets a bad rep. I very rarely stray from the tabletop section but when I do I see cool projects I can’t afford.
I’ve had a couple but mostly I stayed within the game section of the Kickstarter supporter wedge.
Here are some tips on getting the best out of Kickstarter.
1 – Do your Research
Look into the company and the people behind it…
Do they have a plan and/or do they know what the design/testing/manufacturing/shipping process is? How they are doing it? How much they have done so far?
If it’s a game, do they have prototypes? Have they been playtesting? Are they still playtesting?
Have they had projects before? Did they deliver? What was the quality like?
If they don’t mention any of this in their description, ask them, read the comments, and Google them.
If the game has reviews, check them out. Pretty much 100% of the reviews will be positive though so, take them with a pinch of salt on the Kickstarter page.
Search Youtube and BGG for the ones they didn’t publish.
2 – Only Back a Kickstarter You Actually Want
Seems obvious, but if you pledge for that documentary on Jam Making in Westchester, New York and forget to cancel, you just bought it.
Use the ‘Remind Me’ feature which allows you to short-list projects to look at again later. This gives you some thinking time or a self-imposed ‘cool-down’ period. Yeah, you can pledge and un-pledge later but this is safer.
This also gives you an email/push notification 48 hours before the project ends as a reminder.
Also, ‘forgetting to un-pledge’ and ‘forgetting to go back and pledge’ both have pros and cons. I’d rather risk not pledging and missing out than pledging for something I don’t really want.
This brings me to the next point…
3 – Only Back What You Can Afford
It is real money and it’s easy to get carried away, like eBay. You pledge for stuff that you maybe don’t have to pay out for in 30 days’ time so make sure you have the funds.
Also, look out for what you’re getting for the money. If it’s just a basic game with nothing ‘Kickstarter Exclusive’ or at least nothing unmissable, you might be able to get it cheaper when it comes out in retail.
Sometimes, it not only comes out cheaper in retail, but it also comes out in stores before your Kickstarter is delivered.
Also, should the worse happen and the game not deliver… can you afford to lose that money?
4 – Let The People Do Their Thing
Most creators on Kickstarter have a full-time job, family and friends. On top of that, they are putting into place these massive, sometimes life-changing projects that you are backing.
Let them get on with it.
Asking for an update every day doesn’t help. Quite often they are too busy creating the project to go online to tell you they are busy creating the project!
Allow for gaps in updates and just remember that no news doesn’t mean bad news.
5 – REMEMBER WHY YOU’RE ON KICKSTARTER!
Yeah, I went full caps, big woop, wanna fight about it? 🙂
You’re supporting a project, not pre-ordering an item or even buying it outright. Yes, some big companies 100% use Kickstarter as a pre-order system.
But, the date on the project says ESTIMATED delivery, not definite.
Things go wrong and unforeseen problems occur. National holidays in China halt production, delayed shipping and customs times and even sunken container ships which actually happened once.
Recently one project was delayed due to the Instruction Book missing from the boxes. The fault of the manufacturing company, not the Kickstarter Project Manager.
These things happen, Fantasy Flight Games themselves are known for having delays, it happens, deal with it.
Having a go at people and saying it’s “Scamstarter” might make you feel better, but it isn’t going to get you anywhere. 🙂
Jesta ThaRogue
