The Colony 2174 - A Board Game

Comments

  • No worries, I was just wondering if there were some manufacturing quirks that they have that might result in things not fitting as intended :)
  • Tuism said:
    No worries, I was just wondering if there were some manufacturing quirks that they have that might result in things not fitting as intended :)
    No manufacturing quirks that I can see ... the cards all measure exactly as the site says they will and they all match 100%. The chits (tokens) are the same as is the rule book.

    They do say that some items may print slightly offset ... but I have not noticed it and I have gone through the game with a very critical eye and a ruler. Obviously seeing the physical card in your hand has shown me a few little tweaks that I need to make ... but pretty much as I uploaded the source image is how it printed for me.
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    Sorry ... hate posting after my posts ... but I had to share this: https://boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/204992/item/4454200#item4454200

    The quote from the guy is the best: "I Know There's A Bio-dome But You Can Relax: Pauly Shore will not be appearing anywhere in this game."

    Now I am definitely going to create a special Pauly Shore event card. 8-}
    Thanked by 2Tuism dammit
  • It looks superb!
    Thanked by 1quintond
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    Tuism said:
    No worries, I was just wondering if there were some manufacturing quirks that they have that might result in things not fitting as intended :)
    I did find the first manufacturing quirk last night ... it has to do with the double sided printing of the tokens/chits ... the back image can sometimes go out of alignment ... I have changed mine to just have the Novinium crystal on the back now (i.e. removed the text and the hex from the back of the token/chit).

    dammit said:
    It looks superb!
    Thanks man. 8-}
  • Yeah sounds like pretty standard affair as far as on-demand printing goes. Registration (lining up) back and front is tough one without quite a lot of work, and I suspect that files for these guys is better produced like a regular PNP where people wouldn't be expected to get the registration perfect. That means using more patterns on the back side and staying away from edges (which you should do anyway, some drift in cutting is normal. Usually things must be at least 3mm away from edges to ensure they don't get cut off.
  • @Tuism: The Game Crafter does have some pretty good templates for their components and they have sufficient bleed and safe print lines for all of them.

    I didn't notice any drift on the cards or if there was it was very minor and most of the token sheets were fine ... it was just one in particular that was really out of wack ... but anyway ... they do warn you about drift on the site ... so it is all good.
  • Sorry ... I couldn't resist after the quote on BGG.

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    I might actually make this one of the extra event cards that you get in the Deluxe version of the game. Just need to get permission to use the image first ... 8-}
    Thanked by 1karl182
  • @Tuism: This is a sample of the print and play version ... opinions please.

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    I have a few interested parties who are requesting a Print and Play version ... so I decided to go with your idea.
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  • @quintond If it's important that players know what "colour" a structure card is, would it be a good idea to change the border of the card (or the graphic) to make it possible to identify the colour grouping at a glance?
  • dislekcia said:
    @quintond If it's important that players know what "colour" a structure card is, would it be a good idea to change the border of the card (or the graphic) to make it possible to identify the colour grouping at a glance?
    It is not that important ... it is just how the rules refer to some of the cards as an extra indicator. This card is a structure card as are the blue, red, and green ... so theoretically they can all be one colour.
  • Here is a final example of the Print and Play version for the Colony Structures. A4 Landscape, 300dpi, Black and White.
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    Thanked by 2dammit karl182
  • Looks better yeah, though it might be good to cut out so much heavy black (the building's silhouette), but it's already better than before :)

    Dunno why you have the name of the game on top of each card. That's distracting to fist time players, and I'm of the opinion that any unnecessary distraction in an environment where people are supposed to be facilitated to learn the game is bad.

    Instead of saying "Purple structure card" I think it might be better to make an icon to categorise the stuff needing categorising, and put it somewhere... Maybe top left. Or if it's not important that it's known as "purple" then just leave it out. The "Print & Play" also seems unnecessary, if you really want it in have it SMALL. Like tiny. Definitely not bold. Maybe run it vertical instead of horizontal. Let people miss it. The word "card" is also unnecessary. A structure is a structure. "Card" is wasted in this context.
    Thanked by 2dislekcia dammit
  • edited
    The recent Board Game Evening was a huge success and I got some good feedback that will definitely improve the game. Here are some pictures from the evening.

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    Thanks to all that attended ... we have another event scheduled for next week Tuesday ... I will post details shortly.
  • The professional quality of the print and having a box really make a difference to presentation and I'm sure that helps to get people on board to playing :) (Not saying you would have had problems in this regard, though!)
    Thanked by 1quintond
  • dammit said:
    The professional quality of the print and having a box really make a difference to presentation and I'm sure that helps to get people on board to playing :) (Not saying you would have had problems in this regard, though!)
    I agree with you 100% and that is why I wanted to have a visually appealing product before taking it to a public games night like this. 8-}
  • Man the board game evening looks like it was a lot of fun!
    I am glad it was a success!
    My wife and I have been wanting to go to our local Battle Wizard shop's board game evening for a while now, but we are a bit scared of being complete noobs and not knowing anyone.
    One of these days we will build up the courage and go! :)

    Well done man!

    Karl
  • @karl182 ... these game evenings are there to help players learn new games or experience new games. Obviously I don't know the shop in question but I am assuming their goals are the same. Go ... it will definitely be worthwhile.
    Thanked by 1karl182
  • @quinton yeah i think the aim is the same and all the people at the shop are really nice. I guess we're just shy haha.
    But we must get over it and go! :)
  • quintond said:
    I agree with you 100% and that is why I wanted to have a visually appealing product before taking it to a public games night like this. 8-}
    I actually love the opposite! It's always good fun bringing a really scribbly looking prototype to a public event and feeling free to add new cards/rules as you watch players dealing with things. As long as I have magic cards + sleeves to make USING the game easy, that's an important point, trying to shuffle random pieces of paper just isn't fun.
  • @dislekcia: I can see your point, the problem was that this was a public board game evening and I have never really attended any of the evenings before. I also knew that there were some hardcore gamers there and I wanted to make sure I could pull them in with the artwork.

    My thinking was: "Hey look that is a game I don't recognise ... let me go check it out."

    I have now been invited back to the the next event and this time I will be taking with a couple of Print and Play versions as well as some packs of Print and Play versions that I will hand out.

    I have never just shown up with a Print and Play version of a draft version so I can't comment on whether it would have worked or not, but last night worked out great for me with the printed version I had. 8-}
    Thanked by 1dammit
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    @quintond: I think I'm just more confident in people's curiosity ;) I can guarantee that if you go to a boardgame meetup/event and shout "I have a boardgame prototype that I've been working on, who wants to try it?!" you'll get pretty much the same response to a paper + pencil version, let alone PnP. I mean, you should be shouting that anyway when you have a neat-looking version with you, but my point is the interest comes before they've even seen the game.

    Hardcore players in my experience love seeing and learning new games, if you give them a chance to really influence a game in progress, it often gets hard to get them to stop giving you ideas (no matter how impractical/implausible they might be). I guess I'm just trying to let you know that you don't need to jump through hoops to test things, mostly because I don't want to see people NOT testing things (especially for reasons that are just assumed to be true).

    And you can always learn the first steps of your marketing by seeing which shouts get the best reactions: "I've got a boardgame prototype where you play something EXACTLY UNLIKE cricket with asymmetric card decks, dice and swearing! Who wants to play?!" works pretty well :)
    Thanked by 1quintond
  • @dislekcia: Thanks for the advice. The next project will definitely be done with a prototype first at the same venue and I will not be doing a color prototype so early.

    My aim was to show the people at the event that I was serious and I actually didn't play any games. I let my sister (who has only played about 3 games) play as the player who knows the rules and watched the new players discover the game.

    I was nearby to answer to questions and at the end of it I asked for everyone's opinions and took notes. We spent a good hour in total after both games discussing some changes and querying why things worked the way they do and should they change.

    So their feedback is definitely going in the final product ... my aim with the color prototype was to maybe earn myself some street cred with the crowd how I pretty much met for the first time last night. To be honest, I have the social skills of a Garden Gnome and the color prototype kind of gave me a topic of conversation and allowed me to sell the game and hook people in.

    I have definitely learnt from the experience and the future games will definitely go the route you and @Tuism suggested. 8-}
  • Man the game looks incredible in those photos
    Thanked by 1quintond
  • The Print and Play version is now ready ... https://goo.gl/1CG7sx

    I did listen to advice and used what I thought worked with my project and what I am trying to portray with the Print and Play version. Thanks for all the comments and advice. 8-}
    Thanked by 1dammit
  • Yeah, I have to say that as a very casual board-gamer, having the really nice printed version makes it seem more approachable.
    Thanked by 1dammit
  • The great promotional drive has begun ... we are pushing this on every conceivable (okay maybe not) Social Media channel we can think of ... including pages belonging to The Game Crafter. At this point in time it is more about awareness than sales.

    The Game Crafter Featured Page -- https://www.thegamecrafter.com/search#_sort_by=Most+Accolades&featured=1&game_type=Game

    The Game Crafter Hottest Page -- https://www.thegamecrafter.com/search#game_type=Game&_sort_by=Hottest

    The Game Crafter Facebook Page -- https://www.facebook.com/thegamecrafter/?fref=nf

    Gobbo Games Instagram Page -- https://www.instagram.com/gobbogames/

    ... and then of course the normal Facebook and Twitter pages. I have roped in the help of my Sister in Law who does SEO and Digital Marketing for Jellyfish ... so she is leading the charge on this front.

    Every week now I have two or three game evenings scheduled and at those evenings we Instagram our butt off while the game is being played. After each game I ask the players for feedback and if I am not actually playing myself I am watching and learning.

    Who thought making your own board game could be so much fun. 8-}
    Thanked by 3dammit karl182 Sash
  • edited
    Some photos from the Make Games SA Durban meet ... thanks to @roguecode for hosting and for taking the photos. I managed to introduce a serious flaw in the game that I have since rectified ... sorry for the half games guys. 8-{

    Photos Removed

    Remember the game is going up to the Board Games Night - 1st March (Hillcrest, Durban) tomorrow ... if you are in the area come and join us. There will be more games than just The Colony. 8-}
    Thanked by 2dammit roguecode
  • So last night we tested 7 players playing The Colony 2174 at once ... and I am happy to say that it worked. Obviously the game length extended but it actually wasn't that bad. Normally 4 players will take about 45 minutes ... last night 7 players took just under 90 minutes to play.

    The game was very close and at the end I needed 3 more Novinium to win before another player could beat me ... it all came down to me rolling a 5 to get it ... rolled a 6 ... lost by one Novinium.

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    It was a lot of fun and I can't wait to try again with a proper printed version.
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  • It was interesting how close it came at the end. As far as I remember, I had 10 Novinium left and one 16n structure to activate. I was before you in the clockwise order, meaning that if something had caused the other player to not win, I could have taken it with a lucky roll.
    Basically, 3 players were each one round away from winning.
    Thanked by 1quintond
  • @roguecode: Yeah, I was hoping that someone would pick up an event card that could have been used against Nadine ... because if you didn't take it then I would have.

    The game was very close ... my 13s let me down ... 8-{
  • Thought I would check in and find out how this project is going?
  • edited
    @dammit: Game is going well. I have made a few tweaks to the game and added some new mechanics in the form of Influence cards that definitely change the dynamics of the game.

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    It is still getting played quite regularly by some of the local groups here in Durban and I have finally gotten to a stage with a printer that I will be able to get it in to stores this year.

    Unfortunately my negotiations with Skycastle never happened because they sat on their a@#$% with a demo copy of the game for almost 9 months and did nothing with it. Every time I asked them what was happening or called them ... I got: "Things are hectic because of the merger." ... personally I would have preferred we don't like your game or some kind of honest answer from them ... but anyway.

    So I will have to try and distribute and print it on my own and see what happens.

    The website has recently been updated and the card colors have been made brighter.

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    Thanked by 2dammit roguecode
  • That's really great to hear (that you've organised printers and the like). Have you been in contact with Big Box in Cape Town? They'd probably be happy to take on that demo copy :)
  • dammit said:
    That's really great to hear (that you've organised printers and the like). Have you been in contact with Big Box in Cape Town? They'd probably be happy to take on that demo copy :)
    No ... who are they. My head has been buried in getting Riders of Asgard ready, so I have been out of the loop a little.
  • quintond said:
    dammit said:
    That's really great to hear (that you've organised printers and the like). Have you been in contact with Big Box in Cape Town? They'd probably be happy to take on that demo copy :)
    No ... who are they. My head has been buried in getting Riders of Asgard ready, so I have been out of the loop a little.
    http://www.thebigbox.co.za :) Friendly people setting up board game shops around here. They've said before to us that they're super happy to have any demo copies to let patrons play.

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