Gateway Games and the Gamerati Tour

Last night I attended the Gamerati Tour event at Gateway Games. Ed Healy had visited Yottaquest that morning, and he was pretty jet-lagged (car-lagged?) from his epic trek. Even so, he seemed to enjoy playing my game and interacting with the other people. The turn-out was fantastic--lots of players and lots of industry people! I got to run three demos of Kingdom of Solomon and even sign two copies of Revolution! (one of which was purchased during the event). Other games played included The Resistance, Ticket to Ride and Mesopotamia. And some RPG action. Here are a few pics:

GenCon Photo Wrap-Up

I made it back today from a great trip to GenCon 2011! I spent two fun-filled days working the Minion Games booth and the exhibit hall and demoing Kingdom of Solomon. The latest word is that it will be available at Essen (October) and shipped to the US soon after. Unless things come together just right (or wrong) . . .

I had some really exciting success with pitching several of my new prototypes. More news on that score to follow in the coming weeks. I also bought the 7 Wonders: Leaders expansion. We played this afternoon and had a blast! 

Here are a few picks from the show:

 

This is one of my "biggest" fans.

This is our booth, just chock-full of newly- and soon-to-be-released games and designers. I like it better when people don't look at the camera.

Some of the great (and odd) art at the show.

I finally got to meet THE Steve Jackson! He is pictured here with his trusty Bottle of Quenching.

Here I am with Tom Vasel and Eric Summerer of The Dice Tower Podcast. If you don't already listen, you should! Very cool guys . . .

Thursday evening I got to have dinner with some very special Kickstarter supporters, Jed and Ashley. They really helped us out with our funding--thanks, guys! And they're also very cool people.

Vader was in the house.

 

The softer side of Vader.

One of the biggest games at the show was Fantasy Flight's new Star Wars game, X-Wing, coming next year. Looks pretty neat--you move and fire just like in the movie!

Friday, Jed and Ashley got to play their first game of KoS, along with two other guys. All the demos seemed to go very well--we had no trouble finding extra players when needed!

This game featured the highest KoS score of the con: 171! I watched him do it, and I still don't quite understand how he pulled that off. Well done, sir.

 

 

So, that's just a sliver of my experiences this year at GenCon. Thanks to all the folks who played a demo of KoS--it was a lot of fun!

Preparing for GenCon

I've been frantically printing, gluing and cutting in anticipation of GenCon 2011. Meetings and demos have been scheduled, plans have been made, cars and hotel rooms have been borrowed. I plan to be at the con all Thursday and Friday, mainly working the Minion Games booth (#1352). Please stop in and take a look at Kingdom of Solomon. An improved demo copy will be on display. You will also be able to sign up for a full demo at various times. I even made a custom KoS T-shirt! Stop by and say hi!

I'll also be hunting down more publishers with my bag-o-prototypes. Wish me luck!

Gateway Games Grand Opening

Tonight I attended the grand opening of a new game store in Cincinnati: Gateway Games & More. It's a small store, but it's tidy and sharp-looking. I got run a few nice demos and meet lots of new people. Here is a shot of my setup:

We played two 5-player games of Revolution! with the Palace expansion. Everybody seems really into it. I also got to play about five games of Tiger Stripes with the kid from the next store over. If only his mom had been there, I'd have closed that sale . . .

 

Here's one of the more interesting patrons. I'm about 40% sure there was a costume contest going on during the grand opening. Sometimes it's hard to tell with this crowd--but I love 'em.

Several other were being played during my few hours at the store. Thanks to Todd (the owner) for letting me come and demo/pass out flyers. He sold his only copy of Revolution! and I got to sign it. :) It's amazing to me how many people have still never heard of Revolution! but end up really enjoying it. I need to hire Randy to make another nation-wide tour . . .

Beyond Monopoly at the Library

Today I had the opportunity to do a board games program at my local library (Green Township, for you locals). I'd like to thank the staff, and especially Natalie Fields, for smooth and flawless logistical support! I also need to thank my brother-in-law, Aaron and two of my daughters for their help teaching all the games. We had around twelve tweens/teens/parents for this two-hour event (called Beyond Monopoly: An Introduction to Eurogames). As you can see from the pictures, everyone had a blast.

 This was my first group. We played 7 Wonders twice, and the girl in the red won both times (and I was playing in the second game)! They loved it!

 These girls had just finished a spirited game of Carcassonne. They really got into it.

 Aaron led a game of Revolution!, losing pretty badly to one of the little girls pictured (he did come in second, but I couldn't resist the dig)! This game was also a big hit.

 My group then moved on to The Settlers of Catan. They caught on almost immediately and just ate it up. While they didn't quite finish this one, they all said they really enjoyed it.

 Another group formed to tackle Forbidden Island. Amazon currently has this for 13.00--what a steal! This game also didn't get finished, which was probably good. Things were not looking good for our intrepid explorers!

Finally, Isabel got in quite a few plays of her Tiger Stripes game. She even made a sale to one of the librarians! BTW, Isabel is now officially past the break-even point and into the black! Sweet success!

We just had an amazing time introducing these wonderful games to a very enthusiastic group of library patrons. Perhaps more of these opportunities will show up in the future . . . For those interested, here are a few more fantastic games we didn't get a chance to try: Tobago, Dominion, Pandemic & Ticket to Ride.

Kingdom of Solomon Tops $10K on Kickstarter!

The Kickstarter campaign has come to an end. What an amazing adventure! All the pledges more than doubled our original goal of $5,000. We ended at $10,020. Thanks to all the many people who made this possible! Now to get it to the printer and into the hands of gamers.

In case you didn't make it into the KS, you can still preorder Kingdom of Solomon from the Minion Games website. By doing so, you'll be getting one of the first games available--faster than your FLGS or other retailers. Thanks for your support!

Game Presentation Next Week

Next Thursday I am scheduled to do a game-related presentation at my local library. If you live in the area, it will be at the Green Township Branch from 2:00-4:00. I will introduce modern eurogames and then we'll play some of the games. And I got to do a cool display in the lobby!

I'm also making some arrangements to attend the grand opening of a new local game store near Eastgate Mall called Gateway Games. Great name! I believe there will be prizes. Maybe I can get in a few demos of Revolution! and Kingdom of Solomon.

Last, but not least, Kingdom of Solomon will soon be wrapping up its stint on Kickstarter. In fact, only a few hours remain! Sign up while you still can to be first in line for shipping and get the promo card and other bonuses--all for less than retail!

Origins Recap

 

Origins Game Fair 2011 has come and gone! I had a great time again this year. I took my brother-in-law Aaron (his first con!). I think he had an okay time. This is a shot of the Minion Games booth where Kingdom of Solomon was on display. I got to explain the game to lots of convention-goers and hand out many of my Kickstarter flyers. More on that later . . .

One of the highlights of the con was meeting Chris Kirkman of Dice Hate Me and his buddy Shawn. They played Kingdom of Solomon and seemed to enjoy it--despite my utter inability to resist crushing newbies. After that, we cracked open Revolution! with The Palace expansion. A few more people got to jump in this one, including John Moller of Cartrunk. David from Clever Mojo Games even played a round or two while Chris briefly stepped away. I had a blast hanging out with these guys!

Of course, one of the main reasons I attended was to pitch some new prototypes to publishers. This turned out very well. I got some significant interest in four of the five games I brought. More announcements to follow--I hope!

I also spent some time at the Jolly Roger Games booth. They had my Family Vacation game on display. We put some final touches on the contact for this. It's looking like we will be doing a Kickstarter campaign to get this one going in the near future.

While at Origins, I bought two games: Dominion: Cornucopia and Alien Frontiers. I've played just a little of both and am very happy with my purchases! All in all, it was a great con!

One final note: Kingdom of Solomon is still up on Kickstarter for 6 MORE DAYS. So far, we have over 100 backers and have raised over $7,300 (nearly 150% of the original goal)! Thanks to all my supporters. There's still a little more time for you to climb aboard. Pledging on our Kickstarter will ensure that your copy arrives much sooner than anyone else, and you'll also get the promo card and have access to some other cool rewards. Don't miss your chance!