Hey, everyone. In May, our Kickstarter campaign for Angels - Michael's War ended, and we successfully funded! In somewhat a celebration, and to help spread the word, we are going to Gen Con 2014 and hosting some Learn 'n' Tourneys about the game. What is a Learn 'n' Tourney? Basically, we are hosting 3 chances for people to learn the game and then play in a tournament for fabulous prizes. Alan, our main artist, is putting together some prints for prizes of some of our favorite Angels in the game. We may have other things, too... because we can. So, if you are going to Gen Con this year, please, get tickets to one of the tournaments or just stop by and say "hi!"
So, we (A'n'SR -entertainments) like to play games and make games. Along the way, there are some pretty cool experiences you can have in the process of making your masterpiece. Below are a list of the top 5 feelings (in no particular order) you get during the game-making process.
Here's hoping all of us who make games get to experience all of these at one point or another. Every year, we set goals for ourselves as a company (small as we are), and then see if we can make those goals happen. 2013 was no different. in fact, 2013 had our biggest goal ever: Publish 26 books in one year. That was more books that we have done since we started this little company back in 2009 altogether. So how did we do? Let's see. The Goals and AccomplishmentsBelow are the goals we set for 2013, and how we did on them.
Overall Rating: B+Having 5.5 of 7 goals completed and 1 important stretch goal (biggest year of sales ever) met is a pretty good year. 2013 had a lot of expectations, and we met a good portion of them. Look for our more philosophical recap of the year, and our 2014 plans coming soon.
Aaron from A'n'SR here. When I think of games, I think of cards, and dice, and boards, and books, and all sorts of little bits. I think of mechanics, and turns, and theme, and pricing. Today I was re-schooled by my 3 and a half year old.
The Friday before Father's Day, I take the day off, keep the kiddo out of school, and we go to the St. Louis Science Center. This is the second year we have done this, and he loves it. As we were leaving the Science Center, we stopped by the gift shop, which includes tons of really cool science games, smooth rocks, dinosaurs, books, clothes, and candy. My son wanted rocks. We bought some. Then I saw Rubik's 2x2 Cube. It was the little brother to the Rubik's Cube. I knew he would like it, so I bought that for him, too. On the way home, I let him have the Rubik's Cube so that he would be sure to stay awake in the car-ride home. It was about half-way home when he told me he liked his new game. He called it a game. I mean, sure it was sold around some of the other games, but it was more of a puzzle, thing, right? Not to him. He lumped it together with the dice games and Candyland, and Mad Rush Rally we played. It was a game. To him, it was not a toy he could make talk, or a book he could read, or a movie to watch. To him, it was an entertainment. To him, it was a fun way to spend his time and use his brain. It was a game. And he played his game of moving colored squares around he cube to make different color combinations all the way home. Thanks, son, for reminding me what a game is; that was a very nice Father's Day gift. Micro Games. Those are those little games that are, like, 40 cards or less and pack a big whallop for the price. They are a fascinating puzzle for a game designer: minimal product, maximum fun. We've taken the challenge and are making one.
The key to a good micro game is to either cram a lot into a little space or have other factors, like social interaction, help fill in the gap. We're playtesting one now that has the latter. If it works, be on the lookout for artwork and more. Now, if only we can make it an RPG game with cards, too. One of our big goals is to get all of our 2014 games done, playtested, scheduled, and written. So what are we working on? Well, we can't tell you all of it, but here are some quotes heard around the house lately. Maybe there's a clue or two in there.
You know the problem with making card backgrounds for games? choosing the right colors. I mean, it is easy to say "red card". But which shade of red? The one that looks like blood, or the one on the bashful rose side? Thank goodness we will be selling the source files for these card backgrounds so someone else can feel the same... er... fun.Card backgrounds coming soon from A'n'SR!
Thanks to a terrible story from a fellow game designer losing his card game layouts, we are starting a new line of products. We are going to offer downloadable card layouts for you to use in your game. For $2.00 you get some PNGs. For $10.00 you get PNGs plus a GIMP file with all the layers needed to make it your own.Hopefully, this will help that 1 poor game designer and many others. Just give us some credit, don't repackage as yours, and they are yours. Each image works with DriveThruCards.com and TheGameCrafter.com poker card layouts. Each image has a "hole" in it for you to put your own artwork in. Look for our first card set soon.
2013 is slated to be our best year ever. Why? Because we have 21 books, and 3 new game lines coming out. That's huge for a company that releases, on average, 5 books a year. So what's coming out? See below. Authorials - the collectible ebook game. Using your favorite e-reader, smartphone (with reading app), computer, notebook, netbook, or tablet device, you can now battle each other with Authorials. The idea is each player chooses an ebook from their collection and faces of against an opponent who's done the same. The first person forced to their end of their ebook loses the game. It is fun, fast, and each ebook has a theme to it that actually has the bare bones of a story in it. We are releasing Authorials on the One Book Shelf suite of sites as well as (for the first time) Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble's Nook website (at least, that's the plan). The first Authorials set is 13 books long. Books 1 and 2 will be Free in January, and will release along-side books 3, 4, and 5 at $1.99 each. After that, each month sees a new ebook come out until September, with some specials offers in the meantime. Emperor of the World. In February 2013, we release a brand new dice and card game on the GameCrafter.com. Emperor of the World has 2 to 6 players vying for control of the world. Each player is trying to accomplish their goals before anyone else can in spite of the pesky Rebels that keep interfering. It is a fun, light game that lets everyone who loses to you call you Emperor. -U- Settings. -U- the Game of Stories have been our bread and butter since we began. We are pleased to announce that 2013 will see the release of a new line of -U- books called -U- Settings. Each -U- Setting book contains a complete Setting for your games of -U-, some Story ideas, and -U- Essentials pages to help you get started playing, even if you don't have the core rule book. Think of it as a cheap, new game, ready to play for $1.99 or $2.99. The first book comes out in March and the last book hits digital book shelves in August. Angels ...from Hell. Our last book of the year comes out in October 2013, just in time for Halloween. Angels ...from Hell is the follow-up to 2012's Angels ...from Heaven. In the new release, we look at 12 Fallen Angels, their stats, their motives, and their stories. Each Fallen Angel reveals a little more about the world of Angels, and is a great set of adversaries for Main Character players to take on.
We have been busy planning our 2013 launches, and we are happy to report that we have a lot of stuff coming out in the next year. In fact, 2013 will be notable for a few reasons.
A lot of work has gone into making 2013 our best year yet. If not from a sales point of view, then at least creatively. We're finalizing the complete release schedule now, so check back with us for the full list of game titles, concepts, and release dates. |
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