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

Project: Age of Champagne (AoC)

Designers: Cyrille Lefranc, Christophe Pouey, Franck Rubarbe

Artist: Cyrille Lefranc

Publisher: Old Hen Games

Genre/Mechanisms: action points, champagne, collectible components, contracts, economic, environmental, farming, programmed movement, simulation, wine, worker placement

Player Count: 1-4

Solo Mode: yes

Complexity: medium-light

Risk: HIGH

Summary: “Age of Champagne puts you in the shoes of a young Cellar Master who inherits a family winery. In competitive mode, among many possible actions, you will have to make wise investments, optimize the processing of your precious grapes to meet the demands of the different markets. Three versatile workers are just waiting for your instructions to support you in your strategy. The Cellar Master at the head of the most prestigious and eco-responsible Champagne Maison at the end of the 10th harvest will be elected Cellar Master of the Decade and win the Game.”

Base Pledge: $47 + shipping (with no shipping estimates provided)

All-In: $47 + shipping, same as above (with no shipping estimates provided)

Campaign Ends: 11/9

Game Ships: Dec. 2022

Funding Status: Funded; currently at 131% with 18 days to go.

Project: Black Mold

Designers: John de Campos (Token Terrors: Battlegrounds), Phillip Doccolo (Token Terrors: Battlegrounds)

Artist: John de Campos (Micro Medusa, Token Terrors: Battlegrounds)

Publisher: Terrible Games (Token Terrors: Battlegrounds)

Genre/Mechanisms: action / dexterity, action / event, action timer, bribery, deduction, dice, dice rolling, die icon resolution, end game bonuses, exploration, hidden roles, horror, map addition, maze, player elimination, push your luck, real-time, semi-cooperative game, storytelling

Player Count: 3-5

Solo Mode: no

Complexity: medium-light

Risk: HIGH

Summary: “In Black Mold you are an escaped prisoner trying to find your way out of an abandoned subterranean prison compound. Black undulating fungal growths coat every surface of these corridors, emitting ghostly clouds that poison the air. To avoid breathing the harmful, hallucinogenic mist, you must limit your exposure and make your escape. This is simulated in the game by limiting the length of your turn to how long you’re able to physically hold your breath. A tense, ‘co-op till it’s not’ survival horror escape. Work together or don’t, there are many ways to explore, survive, interact and escape. With rasping fungal thralls lurking in the darkness, the other prisoners– you can trust them, until they die and become changed. A monochromatic nightmare that never scares you the same way twice. With 70 areas to reveal and survive, numerous items to find and craft, 6 unique prisoners to play and multiple win conditions every harrowing escape is different than the last. Whether quickly forming ‘neural paths’ to expand the compound, mitigating your asymmetric prisoner vitality track, or chucking dice to search for that essential item you need so you can craft the torch, Black Mold will challenge your body and your mind while clinging to its bleak survival horror aesthetic. A Game you play to play more than you play to win. Whether bolting for the exit alone, working together as a tight-knit team, or perishing in the fungal fog and returning to kill everyone as a Fungal Thrall – each game of Black Mold is an unfolding story that creates tense fun and harrowing moments that will stay with you, win or lose.”

Base Pledge (w/shipping): $76

All-In (w/shipping): $121

Campaign Ends: 11/11

Game Ships: Oct. 2023

Funding Status: Currently at 46% with 20 days to go.

Project: Pampero

Designer: Julián Pombo (Mercado de Lisboa)

Artist: Ian O’Toole (The Gallerist, Kanban EV, Lisboa, On Mars, Vinhos Deluxe Edition)

Publisher: APE Games (The Great Dinosaur Rush, Rolling Freight, Spirits of the Rice Paddy)

Genre/Mechanisms: action retrieval, card game, deck building, economic, end game bonuses, environmental, hand management, income, loans, point to point movement, set collection, turn order: stat based, uruguay

Player Count: 1-4

Solo Mode: yes

Complexity: heavy

Risk: medium-high

Summary: “A hand-management, card-driven action-selection game. Every player has a starting set of eight cards to be played on their own tableau, which contains two rows of spaces to activate actions on the different sectors of the board. Each turn, you have the option to play a card to the leftmost empty space of either row or to retrieve all cards from your tableau. After three actions, a special phase takes place — consolidation, during which you retrieve the rightmost card from any row, generate batteries from stored energy, collect income, and advance the game timer. The player with the most money at the end of the game wins.”

Base Pledge (w/shipping): $101

All-In (w/shipping): $101, same as above

Campaign Ends: 11/10

Game Ships: Oct. 2023

Funding Status: Funded; currently at 148% with 19 days to go.

Project: Towering Purrfection

Designer: Andrew Kuplic

Artist: Sara Jensen

Publisher: Flame Point Games

Genre/Mechanisms: animals, cats, closed drafting, end game bonuses, fantasy, puzzle, real-time, simultaneous action selection, territory building, tile placement

Player Count: 2-5

Solo Mode: no

Complexity: light

Risk: HIGH

Summary: “You have stumbled upon an abandoned warehouse overrun with playful and pleasant cats. Your task is to turn the warehouse into a sanctuary for your cats to climb and play in. You will each utilize colorful tiles and cat trees to turn the warehouse into a bright, cozy environment for your cats to climb and enjoy. You are in charge of the renovation, so each tower build is unique to its designer—but remember, these cats accept nothing but purrfection.”

Base Pledge (w/shipping): $38

All-In (w/shipping): $54

Campaign Ends: 11/14

Game Ships: June 2023

Funding Status: Currently at 59% with 24 days to go.