(or here’s a list of what launched yesterday that might deserve a closer look)

Project: Bakufu: A Japanese Themed Strategic Card Game

Designer: Sam Eagers

Artist: Mary Kidd

Publisher: Nesshin Games

Genre/Mechanisms: card game, card play conflict resolution, turn order: claim action, victory points as a resource

Player Count: 2-4

Solo Mode: no

Complexity: light

Risk: HIGH

Summary: “A Japanese themed 2-4 player strategic card game, with multiple paths to victory. As a Daimyo, you will have to adapt to your enemies attempts to become Shogun before you, by making choices on which cards to buy and how to play them. War or Peace: which will you choose? Players win by either getting 3 Peace Victory Points or 3 War Victory Points. Enlightenment cards can be purchased to accumulate Peace Points, and War Points can be accumulated by successfully attacking other players with Soldier cards. Additionally, players can also boost their base/castle with building cards – or purchase and play character cards to help themselves or hinder their opponents.”

Base Pledge (w/shipping): $40

All-In (w/shipping): $40, same as above

Campaign Ends: 9/20

Game Ships: Dec. 2022

Funding Status: Currently at 13% with 27 days to go.

Project: Campus Wahala

Designer: Kenechukwu Ogbuagu

Artist: Felix Eleyi

Publisher: Nibcard Games

Genre/Mechanisms: card game, mancala, take that

Player Count: 2-6

Solo Mode: no

Complexity: light

Risk: HIGH

Summary: “A Mancala based card game set in a Nigerian university. Cards either show books (with different values) or characters (each with a unique skill). On their turn, players draw 5 cards from a stack and, starting with their own locker (tableau), place one card in each of the next four lockers (clockwise). However, the character cards interfere with this order, they can be used to jump lockers, nullify or steal other players’ books, etc. When a locker contains 5 cards, it is emptied. Books go to a personal score pile, character cards are discarded. When the pile is used up, whoever has the most valuable books is the winner.”

Base Pledge (w/shipping): $32

All-In (w/shipping): $32, same as above

Campaign Ends: 9/18

Game Ships: May 2023

Funding Status: Currently at 24% with 25 days to go.

Project: CobbleCritters

Designer: Miller Hollinger

Artist: Austin Paparousis

Publisher: Miller Hollinger

Genre/Mechanisms: 2 player only games, area majority / influence, card game, campaign / battle card driven, deck construction, deck building, drawing, hand management, variable player powers

Player Count: 2

Solo Mode: no

Complexity: light

Risk: HIGH

Summary: “Duel another Tamer for control of the Cavern, a mystical space filled with powerful Crystals. In the game, you build two decks — a Critter deck and a Special deck — and you can always choose which to draw from. Critters are your monsters while Specials are a grab-bag of tricky hijinks, trinkets, and rule-warping events. You refill your entire 6-card hand every turn, giving the game’s cardplay a fast pace. A player’s board is a grid split into two areas, the Hideout and the Cavern. Players prepare their Critters in the Hideout and then send them to the Cavern to battle for Crystals, a precious resource that functions as score. Critters have stats used for battle and a Star Rank. Critters can be upgraded from 1 to 2 and then 3 Stars to power them up. They also have card text that grants them a wide variety of combo-able powers. Strategic positioning, clever deck-building, and a pinch of luck are key to victory in the Caverns.”

Base Pledge (w/shipping): $54

All-In (w/shipping): $110

Campaign Ends: 9/22

Game Ships: May 2023

Funding Status: Currently at 8% with 29 days to go.

Project: The Comic Book Bubble

Designer: Scott Almes (Heroes of Land, Air & Sea; Tiny Epic Dinosaurs; Tiny Epic Galaxies; Tiny Epic Quest; Warp’s Edge)

Artist: Red 5 Comics

Publisher: APE Games (The Great Dinosaur Rush, Petrichor, Trickerion: Legends of Illusion)

Genre/Mechanisms: comic book / strip, commodity speculation

Player Count: 1-5

Solo Mode: yes

Complexity: medium-light

Risk: medium-low

Summary: “Invest in comics of the modern era, represented by covers of comics from publisher Red 5 Comics. Buy comics when the market is low, and sell for a profit. Each turn, players simultaneously select action cards – buy a comic, manipulate the market, or use the card’s superpower. The market is comprised of various genres that rise and fall throughout the game. Comics are bought and sold for the current market value of the genres on the card. As the game progresses, the genre variance increases – comics become worth a lot more – and less. Are you savvy enough to make money before the bubble bursts?”

Base Pledge (w/shipping): $27

All-In (w/shipping): $27, same as above

Campaign Ends: 9/13

Game Ships: Feb. 2023

Funding Status: Currently at 33% with 20 days to go.

Project: Haunt Your House: An AR-Enhanced Tabletop Game

Designer: Rick DeMott

Artist: John Rauschelbach

Publisher: MGA Games

Genre/Mechanisms: horror, memory, pick-up and deliver, zombies

Player Count: 2-4

Solo Mode: no

Complexity: medium-light

Risk: HIGH

Summary: “An AR-enhanced hybrid board game. Players take on the roles of monster hunters from the paranormal society, Invisible, Inc. Guided by your helpful and often maniacal AI assistant, Boogle, the hunters search a haunted house for the AR monsters lurking in the various rooms. It’s their mission to find the correct gear and capture three monsters first. But if the house gets overrun by Haunted Objects, the monsters escape the board and HAUNT YOUR HOUSE in a real-world AR monster hunt. On your turn, a player takes three actions from seven potential actions. Players must move through the house collecting the specific gear they need to catch the monsters hiding in the house. Using the Boogle app, players can scan the house to find the monster and ultimately catch them. But beware of Haunted Objects lurking in the house that will scare you back to the starting gate. At the end of each player’s turn, it’s the monster’s turn, having the players roll the Monster Dice, which often brings new challenges but can bring rewards, too. If three Haunted Objects are unveiled in the house or the Grand Escape icon is rolled, the house becomes unstable and the monsters escape the board in an AR monster hunting mini game. The player who blasts the most monsters in the Grand Escape is rewarded three gear tiles and the chance to rid the house of one Haunted Object. The first player to capture three monsters is the winner. The game can be played with or without the AR app.”

Base Pledge (w/shipping): $43

All-In (w/shipping): $92

Campaign Ends: 9/15

Game Ships: May 2023

Funding Status: Currently at 10% with 29 days to go.

Project: Sea of Legends: Vengeance of the Empires

Designers: Michael Kindt Dalzen (Sea of Legends), Zach Weisman (Got ‘Em!, Menu Masters, Sea of Legends)

Artist: Ekaterina Chesalova (Sea of Legends)

Publisher: Guildhall Studios (Sea of Legends)

Genre/Mechanisms: adventure, dice rolling, die icon resolution, expansion, fantasy, narrative choice / paragraph, nautical, pirates, solo / solitaire game, storytelling

Player Count: 1-5

Solo Mode: yes

Complexity: medium-heavy

Risk: medium-high

Summary: “War amongst the Great Powers of Europe has engulfed the Americas. The Spanish Empire’s hold over the Caribbean has been slipping for decades as they compete with rival empires. Now the Spanish Empire looks to reestablish their hold over their colonies to bolster their efforts in Europe. France has marshaled their forces to expand their own presence to ensure their access to the goods and resources of the Americas. But older and stranger forces have also awoken in the murky depths of these ancient waters. Sailors tell tall tales of a haunted ship, the Flying Dutchman, and its ghostly crew. There are also whispered warnings about the mighty Kraken, rising from the depths to hunt those that dare to sail upon the waters. The Great Powers are gathering on the seas, seizing control of the ports, and punishing all rivals. Is the Golden Age of Piracy at an end? Or will you make deals, manipulate events to your advantage, and become the greatest pirate of them all? Hold fast, gather your crew, ready your cannons and muskets, and prepare for the Vengeance of the Empires.

Sea of Legends is a narrative-driven, open-world tabletop game. Swashbuckle and swindle your way to victory as one of four unique captains. Raid ports, bury treasure, fall in love, and defeat your nemesis, as you compete to become the most legendary pirate on the open sea. Your decisions will make waves throughout the Caribbean as each player takes part in shared adventures woven together by our companion app. Choose wisely. In Sea of Legends, the fickle winds of fate can fill your sails or turn against you at any moment. Navigate the shifting tides as you pursue multiple paths to victory and forge your own tale.”

Base Pledge (w/shipping): $100

All-In (w/shipping): $272

Campaign Ends: 9/14

Game Ships: May 2024

Funding Status: Funded; currently at 190% with 21 days to go.

Project: Space Lion

Designer: Chris Solis (Temporal Odyssey, Terrene Odyssey)

Artists: Andres Blanco, Jessica Solis, Alex Tantraz [OuKinoSama]

Publisher: Solis Game Studio (Frenemy Pastry Party, Pocket Paragons)

Genre/Mechanisms: card game, hand management, science fiction

Player Count: 2-4

Solo Mode: no

Complexity: light

Risk: HIGH

Summary: “There are alien armies on all fronts. Take command of one of four asymmetric armies in a huge battle and deploy your units strategically and carefully. You can’t possibly win all the fights on the battlefield. Choose which battles to resolve in which order but weigh in on how it may affect your units and other battles. In Space Lion, you are managing an army of 7 cards. Each round, you will decide where to deploy cards to battle. Use your battle effects with careful timing to win the battle in as many lanes as possible. You can’t win them all. The player with the highest Strength in a lane wins, causing damage to the towers or bases of other players connected to that lane. Destroy all enemy bases to win. Choose between 4 different asymmetrical armies each with their own unique systems and concerns on the battlefield. Then choose a hero for your army. Each army has 7 heroes to choose from which warp your strategy even further.”

Base Pledge (w/shipping): $41

All-In (w/shipping): $71

Campaign Ends: 9/13

Game Ships: May 2023

Funding Status: Currently at 49% with 20 days to go.

Project: Tail Story : A Reverse Deck Building Game

Designer: Poj Santivatr

Artists: Glutbox

Publisher: Tail Story Games

Genre/Mechanisms: acting, action points, action queue, action / event, animals, card game, card play conflict resolution, command card, deck building, deck construction, hand management, once-per-game abilities, print & play, race, role-playing, trading, turn order: random, variable phase order

Player Count: 2-4

Solo Mode: no

Complexity: medium-light

Risk: HIGH

Summary: “A reverse deck building game: build your deck using other players’ discard piles to force your unused cards on them. Each player takes the role of a pet from 1 of the 3 types: Canine, Feline or Rodent & Friends, to collect achievements and win the game. Players take turns and draw cards from their own deck as fast as they can to complete 4 achievements and win the game. Each player is dealt 15 Event cards to make their own deck at the start of the game. Every time a player runs out of cards in their deck, the player shuffles all the cards in their discard pile to make a deck again. They then choose 1 card from their hand and put it face-down in front of them. This is called an Achievement. The first player to collect their 4th Achievement is the winner.”

Base Pledge (w/shipping): $37

All-In (w/shipping): $127

Campaign Ends: 9/20

Game Ships: Aug. 2023

Funding Status: Currently at 22% with 27 days to go.