Snippets is Shipping Soon!
about 7 years ago
– Thu, Mar 23, 2017 at 08:57:06 PM
Holy crab... that's a lot of snippets!
Hello Snippets fans!
As you may have guessed, production of the game is nearing completion and we're gearing up to start shipping!
If you got a game, you probably received an email from BackerKit yesterday with a 48-hour notice to verify your shipping address. If your address changed from when you last entered it, or if you haven't yet entered it at all, please be sure to update it before the end of the day tomorrow (Friday). After tomorrow, you won't be able to make any changes to your address, and once we start shipping, the games will go wherever they go!
If you're having trouble with BackerKit but would still like to update your address, you can always simply email [email protected].
Why so many Snippets?
During the Kickstarter campaign, all you amazing backers collectively preordered about 500 games, but as you can see from the pictures above, we're making a lot more than that! So where are all the other boxes going?
Well, as you may have read about in our previous updates, we've recently been exhibiting Snippets at various industry trade shows, including one just last week in Las Vegas. With the who's who of the country's game stores, hobby shops, and bookstores always in attendance, we've begun the journey of getting Snippets into retail!
As our early supporters, you'll of course receive your games first, but soon after we'll start fulfilling our retail purchase orders, and all those extra games will clear out fast!
Are you a retailer or know one that might be interested in carrying Snippets? Email [email protected] for more information about our retail program.
Until next time...
We're in Production!
about 7 years ago
– Wed, Mar 01, 2017 at 09:29:28 PM
Hello Snippets fans!
It's official: we're in production! All the artwork was approved last week and we've hit the Go button with the factory. Soon enough we'll have a warehouse full of games, and soon after that they'll be at your door.
It unfortunately took a little longer than anticipated to make sure everything was shipshape with the proofs, so the current estimate is that shipping will start towards the end of March. With everything in order now, though, I don't anticipate that changing again. Apologies again for the slight delay from the original estimate of February, but hey, as these projects tend to go, one month late ain't all that bad!
Since we're so close to shipping, if you ordered a game, but haven't filled out your BackerKit survey with your shipping address yet, please do so soon. Or you can always email [email protected] with your shipping address if that's more convenient.
News and Upcoming Events
Last week, Snippets exhibited at the annual New York Toy Fair at the Javitz Center, and it was quite the whirlwind! We manned booth #4500 for 4 days straight, and met some incredible people from all over the world. Inventors, game designers, reporters, shop owners, manufacturers, distributors, and major retailers were all there... don't be surprised if Snippets starts making an appearance in retail stores around the country very soon!
Snippets will be at the GAMA trade show in Las Vegas in March! GAMA is one of the largest trade shows in hobby gaming, and we're excited to have our very own booth to show off Snippets!
Until next time...
Proofs!
about 7 years ago
– Sat, Feb 11, 2017 at 11:33:53 PM
Hello Snippets fans!
Earlier this week the proofs of the game's artwork arrived, and I'm happy to report that they're looking great! There are a few small issues that need to be corrected, but hopefully that won't take more than an extra week or so. That will unfortunately push our ship date back slightly, but I think you're going to be happy with the end result! My current estimate for shipping out your games is now early March.
We're getting close! If you haven't filled out your BackerKit survey yet with your shipping information, please take a moment to do so soon. If you'd prefer, you could also always email [email protected] with your shipping address.
Why Physical Proofs?
You may be wondering why we deal with physical rather than digital proofs. After all, it takes a long time to ship them across the country, adding to the overall time and cost of the production. Couldn't the manufacturer just send a PDF instead?
The answer is actually pretty simple. Since this is a physical product that will have physically printed components, a digital proof wouldn't accurately reflect how the colors would come out. Everyone's computer is different, and depending on what program you're viewing your artwork with or what your screen's brightness and contrast settings are, the colors you see on your screen could be surprisingly different from the colors you see on printed paper.
The manufacturer therefore prints the artwork, ships it to the customer, the customer approves the colors, and -- here's the really interesting part -- the customer ships it back to the manufacturer for them to use to match the colors in the final production run.
It's all a very interesting process, and while it takes a little extra time, will certainly be worth it in the end.
Upcoming Events
Snippets will be at Toy Fair next week at the Javitz Center in New York City! Toy Fair is the largest toy and game trade show in the western hemisphere, so it's incredibly exciting that we'll have our very own booth in the entrepreneurial section of the exhibition hall. The show is unfortunately only open to industry professionals, but with all the big players there, it's sure to be a productive event. Wish us luck!
Snippets will also be at the GAMA trade show in Las Vegas in March! GAMA is one of the largest trade shows in hobby gaming, and we'll have our very own booth as well.
More updates soon!
Snippets Production is Underway!
over 7 years ago
– Thu, Jan 26, 2017 at 07:35:43 PM
Hello Snippets fans!
Big news! Just today the contract with the factory was signed and work is now underway to start producing Snippets! Soon they'll send proofs of the artwork, and once approved, it'll be full speed ahead. If all goes well, your games should start shipping out by the end of February!
If you got the game, but haven't filled out your BackerKit survey yet, please do so soon. Without your shipping address, there'd be no way to send you your game, which would be sad! If you're having trouble with the survey, you can always email [email protected] with your shipping information.
Interested in how all this came together? Let's catch you up...
The Game
Based on feedback since the Kickstarter campaign, there's been only one small change to the game itself, which you may have noticed if you received the Print-N-Play PDF: instead of a single deck of all Snippets cards, there are now easy, medium, and hard decks. Separating the cards by difficulty has proven to be a great addition to the game, opening it up even more to players of all skill levels. It also allows players to choose when they want a challenge or to just take it easy.
With the aid of a custom-made computer program as well as some real user testing, a lot of time, care, and effort has been put into categorizing each snippet as easy, medium, or hard, and each deck has even been put in a specific order. If you progress sequentially through the cards in the order they arrive, it will gradually ease you into the game, then quickly turn you into a word-smithing, Snippets master.
The Surprises!
As stated during the Kickstarter campaign, there were only going to be 250 cards in the box. But as a special THANK YOU to everyone who has made this game possible, there will now be a whopping 300 cards in each game! With 100 easy, 100 medium, and 100 hard cards, it should keep you going for quite a while!
And... drumroll please...
...there is now a Snippets timer app! The original plan was to only build an app if we reached our most ambitious stretch goal during the campaign, but what the heck, you earned it! Featuring the same beautiful artwork from the game itself, this app aims to supplement the old school sand timer with a much more engaging experience. You can get it for iPhone or Android now and start using it with your Print-n-Play games!
The Artwork
All of the artwork for the game has been finalized and is now ready for printing! Almost everything has remained as you saw it during the Kickstarter campaign, but here are a few interesting highlights of what's changed:
Our list of Snippets Heroes has been added to the back cover of the Instructions booklet! Looks great with all those wonderful names, doesn't it? Thank you once again to our Snippets Heroes, and to everyone who has made this game possible.
Based on your feedback, the answer pad has also been modified slightly, with a place to write the round's snippet at top and a handy scoring worksheet at bottom. It's intuitive, easy to use, and keeps things moving!
The Factory
Before the Snippets Kickstarter even launched, we had reached out to numerous board game manufacturers for quotes in order to correctly price the game at each reward tier. Quality, speed, and domestic manufacturing were the top priorities, and while there were a lot of good options, in the end we chose to go with DeLano Service out of Battle Creek, Michigan. They've printed some well known titles such as the hit card game, Fluxx, as well as one of the most funded board games in Kickstarter history, Robot Turtles. So they're sure to do a great job!
The Materials
Most of the past month was actually spent deciding on all the nitty gritty details of the game's physical production. DeLano sent over some sample games and components, and after extensive prototyping and testing, everything from paper thicknesses and coatings for the cards and booklets to the type of binding on the answer pad and design of the box insert have all been chosen.
The box insert was particularly interesting to work on, as it went through numerous design iterations, eventually landing on the design at right. The final design has three convenient compartments at left for the easy, medium, and hard cards, and a larger compartment at right for the pads, instructions, pencil and timer. The dimensions of each section were carefully chosen to allow you to comfortably grab and remove each of the components. How luxurious!
Upcoming Events
In NYC? Want to check out Snippets before it ships? Come say Hi at the Snippets booth at the Playcrafting Winter Expo, TONIGHT, January 26th, from 6 - 9pm at the Microsoft offices in Times Square. There'll be lots of great indie developers from the New York area showing off all sorts of games, so it should be a blast! Tickets are just $8.
Snippets was accepted to exhibit at this year's Toy Fair in February at the Javitz Center in NYC! Toy Fair is the largest toy and game trade show in the western hemisphere, so it's incredibly exciting that we'll have our very own booth in the entrepreneurial section of the exhibition hall. The show is unfortunately only open to industry professionals, but with all the big players there, it's sure to be a productive event. Wish us luck!
Snippets will also be at the GAMA trade show in Las Vegas in March! GAMA is one of the largest trade shows in hobby gaming, and we'll have our very own booth as well.
That's all for now... More updates to come soon!
Some Rewards for You! (Part 2)
over 7 years ago
– Mon, Dec 19, 2016 at 08:22:01 AM
Hello Snippets fans!
The holidays are just around the corner, so I thought I'd give you a present... your next two rewards! This week I'll be sending out our snazzy, limited-edition Snippets buttons as well as download links to the Snippets Print n' Play PDF. See below for details!
After these rewards are sent out, that only leaves getting you backers the full Snippets game itself, which is still on track to be manufactured and delivered by February 2017.
As always, if you have any questions, you can email me at [email protected].
Anyone who pledged at the "Art Lover" reward tier on Kickstarter will be receiving FIVE limited edition Snippets buttons featuring Snippy the Crab up to his usual shenanigans. Keep an eye on your (physical) mailbox for these beauties. Wear them around town and show off your Snippets pride!
Snippets Print N' Play PDF
Make your very own Snippets game at home with the official Print n' Play PDF! Just bring the file to your local print shop, print out the cards, and cut 'em up. The PDF comes with 252 double-sided cards, two scoring cheat sheets, and a set of instructions for added convenience. You just supply the pads of paper, pencils, timer, and some friends!
Anyone who pledged at the $10 tier or higher on Kickstarter will be receiving the download link via an email from BackerKit. Have some fun with a DIY project this winter and get a taste for Snippets before the full game ships in February!
News and Events
Snippets was nominated this year for Best Tabletop Game at Playcrafting's 2016 Bit Awards! Our friends over at the wonderfully nerdy Killer Snails took home the gold, but it was an amazing event, and given that we haven't even shipped a game yet, a huge honor just to be nominated!
Last week, Snippets was included on Edo's Game Reviews' list of Top 10 Games of 2016 alongside some powerhouses like Mysterium and Dr. Eureka! Thank you Edo! The video linked here begins where Snippets is mentioned, but you can always start from the beginning to understand why he's also eating hot wings.
Snippets was accepted to exhibit at this year's Toy Fair in February at the Javitz Center in NYC! Toy Fair is the largest toy and game trade show in the western hemisphere, so it's incredibly exciting that we'll have our very own booth in the entrepreneurial section of the exhibition hall. The show is unfortunately only open to industry professionals, but with all the big players there, it's sure to be a productive event. Wish us luck!
Thanks all! More to come soon!
