A 2-player version of the tabletop board game The Networks.
Latest Updates from Our Project:
Thank you!
about 4 years ago
– Sat, Feb 15, 2020 at 01:24:45 AM
And, this Kickstarter is a wrap!
Finishing at 200% funding, gathering over 1,000 backers... I'm very happy with these results. You help me accomplish my dream of making games independently, and I will never stop being grateful for it.
So, what now?
I'm spending tomorrow playtesting (as I do almost every Saturday!). We're going to test Documentaries & Game Shows for the next few weeks, and make sure that's all ready to go.
If you backed at a premium level, start thinking about your submission! I'll send you a message by Monday telling you exactly what I need.
The BackerKit campaign will open in about 2 weeks. At that point, you will be able to buy additional copies of the game, as well as the On the Air mini-expansion.
We did not hit the $45k stretch goal, but there were a lot of people asking about Telly Time. I'm going to look into ways that I can offer it as an add-on. It may not be available, and if it is, it may not be available immediately. But I'll do my best to offer it without threatening delivery!
Thank you again! You are the best backer a creator can ask for.
Less than 12 hours left, and almost at $40k!
about 4 years ago
– Fri, Feb 14, 2020 at 09:06:35 PM
Hi Rival Networks backer!
Today is the last day of the campaign, and as I write this, we are almost at $40k - 200% of our goal!
Thank you for believing in my games. It means a lot to me that you, and over a thousand other people, let me continue to follow my dreams as an independent designer/publisher.
$45k is possible; it's not impossible that we'll get a late surge and hit it! Please keep telling your friends, family, and dental hygenists about our game.
I'll send another message as we get closer to the campaign close!
Almost at the magical 72-hour mark!
about 4 years ago
– Tue, Feb 11, 2020 at 06:54:56 PM
Hi Rival Networks backer!
At about midnight EST tonight, we will hit the 72 hours remaining mark on this campaign. You'll start seeing ads on BGG pointing people here, and you'll see some more backers start coming in.
We're very close to hitting the $35k goal. I'm pretty confident that we can hit $40k before the campaign concludes. So here's the $45k stretch goal!
These wood remotes will look similar to the wood remotes that come in the Fancy Bits add-on for The Networks base game. They will be a little smaller, though.
The remotes will not come with retail versions of the game, but it will be available online and at conventions after the game comes out.
Also, you will be able to add the Telly Time expansion to your order when the BackerKit opens! This mini-expansion for the original Networks game adds shows with a decidedly British flavor, as well as a new way to score Genre Bonuses.
Now, if we get close to $45k, it's possible (not guaranteed) that I may make Telly Time available for pre-order anyway, if enough backers are interested in it. But we will need to hit $45k for the wood remotes, though!
Listen to me talk Kickstarter and The Rival Networks!
A lot of you know me from the Ludology podcast. But I guested on Wes Woodbury's podcast Kickstarter Journeys this week, and the episode turned out really well! You can listen here for all sorts of tales of Kickstarter success and failure that I've lived through.
Watch me play Rival Networks on Vorpal Board!
If you weren't able to watch me play Rival Networks on Vorpal Board last week, here's the video! It's a whopping 1 hour 48 minutes, but 50% of that is James and I talking and 50% is us actually playing the game. It turns out that I get sidetracked easily!
Look at these houses!
My friend Daniel Newman (you may know him from his game Dead Man's Cabal) mocked up the punchboard houses. They look great! And I'm happy to report that they do not easily tip over when hit, so they're very easy to play with.
Of course, these are still prototypes, and the final look of the houses will likely be a bit different. But I think this is an excellent preview!
Our next step is to try to arrange the game box so that it can fit sleeved cards and assembled houses. I will say that this is a goal, not a guarantee, but we're working to make it happen.
Keep spreading the word!
New pledge levels open!
about 4 years ago
– Thu, Feb 06, 2020 at 05:04:59 PM
Hi Rival Networks backer!
Want to get on a card, but missed your chance? Now's your opportunity!
I've just unlocked 5 additional Celebrity slots and 2 new Pilot Season Star slots!
Note that the Pilot Season Stars tend to be self-deprecating, so be sure to suggest something humble!
All submissions subject to approval by Formal Ferret Games.
Vorpal Board playthrough
Also, tonight at 9 pm EST, I will be doing a live playthrough of The Rival Networks on Twitch with the folks at Vorpal Board. Vorpal Board is a new technology that lets players play remotely, but uses your mobile device's camera on a table you set up, and can use another mobile device to secretly scan cards from a draw deck and send them to other players so only they can see it.
It's a really interesting approach to letting people play remotely, and I'm very excited to try it with The Rival Networks. You can learn more here.
I hope to see you all tonight!
Executives unlocked! New premium pledge levels opening! And live playthrough this week!
about 4 years ago
– Wed, Feb 05, 2020 at 12:19:18 AM
Hi Executives backer! Lots of news to share with you today.
First off, we have unlocked the Executives!
This is a module that offers variable player powers at the start of each game. Check out update #2 for details on how these cards work.
I'm really excited that these were unlocked; I'm including them in the retail game, because I think once you've played the base game a couple of times, you'll really like what these add to the experience.
And now, let's check out the next two stretch goals:
At $35k, the 5 Time Slot Cards will not be tarot-sized cards; instead, they'll be pieces of punchboard!
We'll also replace the plastic tokens with full-art punchboard Viewer tokens, which will look much nicer.
These upgrades will be available in the retail version of the game.
The Documentaries and Game Shows module will only work with Rival Networks. It will consist of 8 new Shows - 4 Documentaries and 4 Game Shows - with new art and different Genre Bonuses than the other Shows. This module will not come with retail versions of the game, but it will be available online and at conventions after the game comes out.
Also, you will be able to add the On the Air expansion to your order when the BackerKit opens!
Been waiting for the long-promised Documentaries and Game Show expansion for the original Networks game? Stay tuned!
Once we hit the $35k goal, I will announce the $45k goal!
New premium pledge levels!
This campaign offered several premium pledge levels. Right now, we still have 4 Advertiser levels (where you get to come up with an Ad), but the other premium pledge levels vanished on the first day.
On Thursday, February 6, at about 4 pm EST, I will open up 5 new CELEBRITY pledge levels, at $150 USD each. That's 5 more people who will get Stars drawn of themselves by Travis Kinchy, our artist.
I'll also open 2 brand new PILOT SEASON STAR pledge levels at that time, at $300 USD each. These will put you on one of the two Pilot Season Star cards, which are the Stars that each player starts with. So everyone is guaranteed to see your lovely face every game!
That's 7 new premium spots opening up at 4 pm EST on Thursday, February 6! They are likely to go quickly, so make sure you'll be there to participate.
Vorpal Board playthrough
Also on Thursday, February 6, at 9 pm EST, I will be doing a live playthrough of The Rival Networks on Twitch with the folks at Vorpal Board. Vorpal Board is a new technology that lets players play remotely, but uses your mobile device's camera on a table you set up, and can use another mobile device to secretly scan cards from a draw deck and send them to other players so only they can see it.
