Howdy!
I'm Patrick Rodriguez. I'm a game designer in Boston, Massachusetts. I was the lead designer on
Movers and Shakers and
Robotany while at the MIT Game Lab, and now I'm making educational games on the North Shore. I also frequently participate in game jams, during which I have worked on games such as
Unicorn Joust and
Lesbian Cat Wars.
Last May, I participated in a board game jam hosted at MIT. During that jam, I made a storytelling game called Legends of Beforia. It turned out that people liked the concept and enjoyed playing the prototype, so I decided to continue working on it and publish it!
That is NOT what this Indiegogo campaign is about.
A couple months ago, I submitted my prototype to a few game festivals, one of which being the Boston Festival of Indie Games. My prototype sadly didn't make the cut (it was in its early stages when I submitted, it's improved a lot since then!), but I can still purchase an indie developer table and demo my game! Unfortunately, the cost is a little beyond my budget at this particular time.
I think Boston FIG would be a great opportunity for me to show my game to a wide audience, generate hype for the eventual release (early 2015), and most importantly, get people playing and receive feedback!
What is Legends of Beforia?
If you haven't seen the game yet, it is a simple storytelling game for three players where the core mechanic is telling myths and legends. Players draw "Myth template cards" which are then filled in with random creatures, verbs, adjectives, and the like. One player starts off by telling a story based on their randomized prompt, for example, "Sneaky owl creates the world with a magical slingshot". Other players then have to draw and replace one word in the myth template, and make up a variation of the myth. The original player chooses their favorite variation to become the new canonical myth, and play continues, with players telling variations on the new version. It's a fun party-style game where in order to win, you have to convince others that you are the best storyteller.
You can read more about the game here.
Creating the art for Legends of Beforia is Illustrator and Dyscourse artist Carrie Witt. Together, we are creating a visual aesthetic to the game that is humorous and lighthearted, with some touches of traditional Mexican culture and imagery (with the game originally having been inspired by a scary Mexican legend, and the importance of the oral tradition in this culture). What we're currently crafting behind the scenes is something akin to a mix between the art styles of Guacamelee and Grim Fandango.
Here's the Sitch
An indie dev table at Boston FIG costs $200. I'm told I can use my submission fee to offset the cost, lowering this amount to just $190! That's not enough, though.
I also need to bring a copy of the game to demo! I have been using The Game Crafter to print copies of the first prototype. The first prototype cost $10 to produce. The second prototype which we are currently working on (due to be finished by the end of the month) has 33% more cards (80 different cards) and comes in a bigger box, and is estimated to cost $12-15 to produce. If I want to bring two copies to demo, and one backup, that's $45 max.
In addition, I'll need some promo materials, printing a little sign, designing some business cards, fliers, etc. The game doesn't have a logo yet, but I'm going to publish the game under the name Patchwork Games, which does have a logo. The website (patchworkgam.es) currently redirects to my blog, but I plan on implementing a proper website in the next couple months. I estimate the cost of these items (minus website) to be ~$30.
That puts the total at $265. The minimum amount you can run an Indiegogo campaign is $500. What will I do with the excess should I be fortunate enough to receive that much? I'll explain below.
What This Means To Me
I am really proud of Legends of Beforia. It is the first of my games without any complex systems or tricky numbers, which is saying something. It is a design that is very simple and organic, and plays upon a person's basic need to tell a story. It's also really fun to watch people laugh and giggle over the stories they end up telling with friends.
I want Legends of Beforia to be the best game it can be, which means I need to show it to lots of people and get good feedback! That is why it's important that I take advantage of every opportunity to have new players try it out.
If you also think Legends of Beforia is worth playing and would like to help me show it off and make it better, I would appreciate anything you are willing and able to contribute.
In addition, I've submitted the game to this year's IndieCade. I'm still waiting to hear back from them, but regardless of whether I get in, by submitting the game I've obtained a ticket to the festival. So either way I plan on going to LA and showing people Legends of Beforia somehow. To that end, I intend on using whatever surplus money I receive to help towards purchasing a plane ticket to the IndieCade festival in October (~$500).
Risks & Challenges
I am told that there is no hard deadline for getting a table, but that they are filling up fast, so in the event that I am unable to acquire a table, all funds will be used instead to acquire a plane ticket to IndieCade, to make sure the game is seen there.
I've scheduled the campaign so that there is at least two and a half weeks between the end of the campaign and Boston FIG (I received my notification from them last Friday). In event that I am unable to acquire printed prototypes by that time, I do have copies of the first prototype that I will be willing to demo in its place. However, printing and shipping times have been really good with The Game Crafter (less than a week from order to delivery), and we plan to have all the art for the second prototype by the end of the month.
What's In It For You?
I have set up some rewards for people who are able to contribute. For $1, you get my thanks. I truly appreciate your help.
For $15, you'll get your name in the special thanks section of the final release of the game, currently scheduled for Spring 2015.
For $25, you'll get a copy of the prototype being demo'd at Boston FIG, as well as your name in the special thanks. I can send you the game (probably only US, sorry), or you can pick it up from me at Boston FIG. If the latter, I can even sign it for you!
And for $50, you'll get a copy of the prototype and I'll write you a short personalized poem in a meter of your choosing (or you can specify my choosing, I like double dactyls and limericks, for example). You'll also get your name in the special thanks.
If You Can't Contribute
That's perfectly fine! I completely understand. If you'd still like to help, though, you can spread around the campaign on social media and such! It's only a week long, so I'll need all the help I can get.
Additionally, if you want to keep updated on the game and its development, follow @PatchworkGames on Twitter!
I'm looking forward to showing people my game and hopefully getting a bunch of new players interested and helping to make the game better. Thanks for reading!
If you have any questions, you can email me at patrick@patchworkgam.es.
