Cards charged, address lockdown process begun, see you at Gen Con!
over 5 years ago – Mon, Jul 30, 2018 at 08:12:06 PM

Hi backer! I just ran all the credit cards for remaining pre-orders and add-ons. In two days, your shipping address will lock. Here are some random notes.

• Now's the time to confirm that your shipping address is correct!
• If your card got declined, please update it in BackerKit. You'll get a link in the email that told you about the declined card. 
• You'll get the address confirmation message even if you signed up for Gen Con pickup. I'm organizing Gen Con pickups outside BackerKit. Don't panic, you're on the list!
• If I refunded you any money through BackerKit in the past few months, please check to make sure BackerKit didn't decide to re-charge the refund! That shouldn't have happened, but always best to make sure.

One last note: starting tomorrow at about 9 am EDT, I will be on the road for Gen Con. From then until Tuesday, August 7, I will be very slow to respond to messages and comments. Please have patience; I will get back to you! Meanwhile, if something is urgent, please reach out to me today about it; if not, I won't be able to look at it until August 7.

If you are attending Gen Con; My schedule is hectic enough that I may not get a chance to say hi or fist-bump. Regardless, I hope you get to say hello to someone at the Formal Ferret Booth, #2770!

The games are leaving the factory!
over 5 years ago – Fri, Jul 27, 2018 at 01:20:00 AM

Hi folks! Mostly good news here, with one small bummer at the start, and closing with something important. Please read this message to the end; this is an important update!

First off: the games have (finally) left the factory, and are on the way to 4 fulfillment centers around the world! Hooray! (Note that the ship pictured above is not necessarily one of the ships that's actually carrying our stuff.)

So now we can get the small bummer out of the way: the shipping schedule is much slower than I expected, and it looks like they won't be at their destination than September. So we're now looking at fulfillment starting in early September.

This means you excellent backers will receive your games one year after you backed them! I normally don't move so slowly, but this has been a project with an enormous amount of logistics. My next project will likely have fewer stretch goals; I hate to keep you waiting this long. Thank you so much for your patience!

I will lock down all remaining BackerKit orders and charge all remaining credit cards on Monday, July 30 at 12 pm EDT. This will be your last chance to update your shipping address. Please message me directly if you need to change your address and your BackerKit survey is already locked.

If you want to pick up your games at Gen Con and you haven't already filled out the pickup form, you can fill it out here. I will close the Gen Con pickup form on Monday, July 30 at noon, at the same time as the BackerKit orders. If you will be at Gen Con and do not fill out the form, I cannot guarantee that I'll be able to give you your copy!

Replacement Network Cards - please read!

It looks like quite a few backers have ordered the Replacement Network Cards as an add-on. The thing to watch out for here is that if you backed or pre-ordered Executives, you're already getting the Replacement Network Cards! So some of you will be buying a redundant set of Replacement Network Cards for $1.

I know it's only $1, but I don't want you to spend any more money than you need to. So please do the following...

Start by looking for the link to your BackerKit survey in your email, or click here to get another one. If you can't find it at all, don't hesitate to message me, and I'll send you a direct link to your survey.

Click the "View Confirmation" button in the upper-right.

You'll see a summary of your order. Scroll down and look in the bottom-left. The "Pledge Items" section will show you what you're automatically getting, and the "Add-Ons" section shows you what you added to the pledge. If you see the Replacement Network Cards twice, as in the example below, then you're going to get two copies!

To fix this, click the "Edit Add-ons" button. You'll see a page with all your add-ons. Look on the right of the screen for something that looks like this:

See that small trash can icon I've highlighted next to the Replacement Network Card add-on? You'll want to click on that. 

Then go through the rest of the checkout process. That will confirm the removal. Once you get the thank-you screen, you've done it!

Help, I can't do this because my survey is already locked!

If this is the case, message me. I will remove the card and, if necessary, refund the $1. Note I may need to process the refund through PayPal in some cases.

Please check in and make sure you've done this by Monday, July 30 at 12 pm EDT. 

That's all the news I have for you. You will have your games very soon! :D

Announcing Gen Con Executives pickup, and a note about Telly Time
almost 6 years ago – Fri, Jul 13, 2018 at 09:04:56 PM

Hi Networks backer!

I signed off on the final proof of Executives a few days ago! This is the first mass-produced copy, so they're now being assembled and will go on the boat shortly.

I will lock surveys and charge all remaining credit cards on Monday, July 30, at about noon EDT. If you need to change your address, please do so by then! If your survey is already locked, send me a message with your new address and I will change it on my end.

The games should be well on the water by then, arriving around mid-August. You should have your game by the end of August, if all goes well and there are no logistics or customs surprises.

Gen Con pickup

If you'll be at Gen Con, you can pick up Executives, and all its associated stretch goals (More Executives and Fancy Bits), plus Telly Time if you pre-ordered it! Just fill out this form, and then come by booth 2770 before Sunday of the convention at 2 pm.

It's going to be a great Gen Con, and if you're going, I can't wait to see you there!

An apology about Telly Time communication and timing

So, I screwed up on Telly Time. When I announced pre-orders, I didn't realize that its retail availability date would turn out to be much earlier than its delivery date to pre-order customers.

I know a lot of you pre-ordered it, and then saw it on store shelves. That's a situation I can usually avoid, but this time I made a mistake, and it happened.

So: if you have not yet received your copy of Telly time, you see it on a store shelf or online, and you don't want to wait, buy it. Then let me know before Monday, July 30 at noon EDT, and I will refund your Telly Time pre-order money. No questions asked.

(Of course, you can do it in the opposite order, but my supplies will run low very soon, so you may want to secure your copy before requesting a refund!)

Again, I'm sorry the timing worked out so poorly, and that I wasn't on top of it this time. Definitely a learning experience, and I will know better for possible future pre-order campaigns.

I'll close with a tease... I have some interesting developments in the world of The Networks that you'll be hearing about in a few months... :)

Play Networks: Executives at Dice Tower Con!
almost 6 years ago – Tue, Jun 26, 2018 at 10:11:19 PM

Hi folks! This is just a quick note to let you know that I'll be at Dice Tower Con next week, with copies of Telly Time.

I'll also have my proof copy of Executives, and I'll be happy to run demos of Executives, along with playtests of my next game, High Rise.

Interested? You can sign up here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfcliQeM6B4ZZazod_x4KRhLV-b9zZjluPPJrYlxF9uIUsARA/viewform?usp=sf_link

Meanwhile, we should have Executives out of the factory and on the boat in the next couple of weeks.

Thanks!

An update about... nothing
almost 6 years ago – Sun, Jun 10, 2018 at 08:51:53 PM

Hi folks! It's been a while since you've heard from me, so I wanted to send this update let you know what's changed. Which is, of course, nothing! Everything is still going according to schedule.

In detail, the factory is currently finishing up Executives, More Executives, and On the Air. They finished the Fancy Bits expansion (all those lovely new wooden bits) some time ago, but those will ship with everything else.

We are still looking at the games leaving the factory in a couple of weeks, which means everything will be shipped out sometime in August. We're likely looking at a Gen Con pickup as well. If you pre-ordered Telly Time, you'll get it with your Executives shipment.

In other words: no change, everything is still on schedule, and nothing new has developed. Those of you who back a lot of board game Kickstarters are familiar with this; there's a whole lot of waiting involved! :)

Thanks to all of you for your support! And a special thank-you to everyone who came by my booth at UKGE to say hello. It was an amazing show!

And of course, if you'll be at Origins this coming week, come by booth 523 to say hello!