The Ultimate Juggling Act [Preaching To The Choir]

The Realities of Product Development

Knock, Knock

Let's face it, this is not exactly what's going on in my life but you get the idea. I'm juggling a lot of projects at once and when you spread yourself too thin, very little gets done.

Who's There?

When life happens to you, such as having a large family with many problems, your personal life ends. Actually, I like to say that there's only one problem: the lack of funds. Money can surely solve 99.9 percent of our problems.

Okay, so that's the goal. Do what you love and generate the income you need to survive and thrive. Easier said than done but that's still the master plan. Meanwhile, the clock keeps ticking and the decades fly by. God knew what he was doing when he designed our limited lifespan. That's why we must use our time wisely. There needs to be more room for error.

Throw into the mix several health issues and it's pretty much a disaster in the making. Okay, boohoo, cry me a river. Nobody cares about any of that. Here's the good news.

Persevering Through The Storm

Asylum Earth® is alive and well and improving every time. I'll never give up on it because I'm obsessed with it along with four other games in the works. I'll have to work on these games for several more years until they're all finished and ready for marketing and sales. 

Monetize Your Hobby

It's a great hobby right now but when all is said and done it'll be time to sell about 8 different products. Five board games and a handful of new books. None of the products are time-sensitive so they will all establish their own trends and find an audience in due time.

At this point, I'll have to move the release dates up for most of these products including Asylum Earth.® The years go by fast so I've got my work cut out once I have fewer distractions and surprise setbacks to deal with. I can't wait to get there and I hope you'll join me.

Set Clear Goals

Life without goals is a certain death sentence. Over the years, these projects have kept me busy, kept me learning, and they have helped me escape the mundane moments we all experience in life. Without them, I would have checked out a long time ago because they give my life meaning and purpose. I am very ambitious and determined to get to the finish line soon enough.

Watch me get there.

I'd love to hear from you so now is a good time to get in touch if you have any questions. I'll see you back here soon.

Play on, folks.

Sign up for updates or email me with questions at: arios316@gmail.com

Millennium Board Game Launches in 2019!

THREE - TWO - ONE . . .

The chits about to hit the fan, P E O P L E! (Yes, I'm game-drunk again!)

Which reminds me, I have a load of chits to dream up and finish before I can call it a day. I had tested these chits as shards in my original prototype and they were horrible in two ways. They were too small and wafer thin so I'm going with the the 1" chipboard with better layouts so that should improve the quality considerably.

1" Chits

You know, that first prototype was both a revelation and a major disappointment all rolled into one. Most of the printing was way too dark so I'm being extra careful not to submit dark images. Most of the images are in PNG format and about 20% lighter than the original artwork. I had quite a few hits and misses.

Wow, it's been over a year since I started working on this game and I think it's safe to say that Millennium will officially launch in January of 2019. Hey, that's only six months away! Not so bad considering I'm a one-man-band, which is unheard of in this industry. Most board games require the involvement of dozens of people, designers, consultants, artists, etc., to put a game together and bring it to market over several years.

There are several ways to accomplish this, but for now, my main concern and focus is to design a board game that appeals to players interested in post-apocalyptic themes and stories. That's the first door I need to fling open, and from there, to introduce and present this new world with all its challenges, rewards, and stories in an exciting and engaging way. Easier said than done, of course, but you will never know unless you try.

And by trying I mean you have to be all-in. Players want to play a game that engages them in unexpected ways and holds their attention in a way that goes beyond game play. Playing a game for the sake of having fun is not a good enough reason to learn a new game. From my point of view, the real appeal of Millennium is that its main theme is totally relevant to our times.

The chits about to hit the fan, P E O P L E! 

Beyond game mechanics, the theme and world view the game represents is the most important asset to play up. By approaching the game that way, you elevate its meaning and its relevance.

At this point my main goal is to finish all the card decks (about 5 different decks) and continue to test the game beyond family and friends for more accurate feedback that will lead to a better gaming experience.

As they say, less is more, and so I've tried to keep the flow of events as simple and as intuitive as possible while maintaining a level of interest that keeps players engaged in a personal way. While one of the main objectives of the game is to rescue survivors, teamwork is important but not necessary to win the game. In light of that, I've made another change to my cover image.

My previous box cover featured Andrea rescuing a young boy, which highlighted the main objective of the game, however, after some thought, I changed the image to Andrea alongside her sidekick, a Bull Terrier named, Apollo. (BTW, she's packing a 9mm Glock)

Overall, I think this is a more interesting snapshot and it doesn't repeat what we already know. The design on the back of the box is also locked-in to juxtaposed imagery that adds depth to the game's themes. Namely, the past and the future.

I'm a sucker for the 1800s or any era in the past for that matter. (I'm sure my high school history teacher would be baffled by this.) And so I've added plenty of references to the Civil War, The Roaring Twenties, and so on. (See one of the video links under the EXTRAS column on the right.)

There's so much I can add to make this game even more interesting but that will hopefully come in a second edition. I realize this initial game is just a proof of concept that needs fine-tuning along the way but for now, I must include bits and pieces, as it were, of the bigger picture. I want to give players a taste of what's to come in a much bigger form if this game catches on.

Something tells me it's going to be a popular game if I can deliver all the elements I have in mind in a way that's a little familiar but at the same time, very different than any game of its kind.

That still remains to be seen and so time will tell. My lack of gaming knowledge can either serve me as a disadvantage or as an advantage because I'm not tempted to mirror any other games. So far, I've tried to put together a fun and exciting game with my own twist on a theme I enjoy playing but could not find on the market.

Once I get this next prototype locked-in and ready for sale to the general public, then I can think about presenting it to a major publisher to see if they are interested. At this point I still need to send out several boxes to reviewers and continue testing the game with various groups.

If I can generate enough interest and excitement about it, then that's a good start. I have to build momentum and follow that up with effective publicity in all the right places. On top of that, you have your marketing mix of ads and promos and blog mentions, etc. It's a marathon of things that need to fall into place around the same time for a good launch. (I know, I'm getting a bit ahead of myself.)

"I think it's easier to read the rules

by scrolling or clicking instead of turning pages . . ."

The new Rules Booklet is now available to download off the The Game Crafter.com website, and you can also view it (and Andrea's Journal) from this Millennium Blog. Eventually the rules, journal, more video links, and more about the game will be available via a standalone App.

I think it's easier to read the rules by scrolling or clicking instead of turning pages. This way, everyone can read the rules on their phone, which, in turn, makes the video links and the Millennium blog more accessible.

I've said way too much and this post has gone on far too long. There's a whole book of information I can distill about this game and about marketing your product but that will come in due time.

"Right now, I have to sign off before the 

attention-span police lock me up."

Right now, I have to sign off before the attention-span police lock me up.

There's so much more to talk about folks. Stay tuned for more insights and highlights coming soon. Best thing is to subscribe to this blog so you don't miss anything. I don't usually post on a regular basis (a big no-no) but when I do, I really spill the beans.

Hey, I'm juggling dozens of projects at the same time. Hard to keep track of it all.

Come on back for my next post where I'll talk about the final stretch to finish up all the artwork and hopefully add some new video links and maybe a new promo trailer, which is already in the works.

No worries, I have 20 hours a day to work, 7 days a week. I just need to make better use of all that time.

Game on!

Re-Boot, Re-boot, Re-Boot - A Breakthrough With The Millennium Board Game

Sound the alarms! Baaaaack it up! Beep, beep, beep...

Scratch the vinyl record right here folks!

Stop the presses!

WTF!?

Okay, okay, enough with all the bad cliches. Let's get down to the real reason why I'm being so ridiculous. No, I've not been hitting the bourbon bottle. (Hmm, maybe I should be.)

I'm back with a bunch of changes to Millennium. All for the better, mind you, no steps backwards, ever. I had a change of heart on the East Coast and West Coast versions of the game. As good as that was in theory, I figured why re-invent the wheel?

No, I've not been hitting the bourbon bottle.

Instead, I'm switching to a six-fold game board, a new 9 x 12 tall box so everything fits nicely and I've ditched the black box design for a more traditional and thematic cover with Andrea rescuing an injured boy. She's also looking towards the front as opposed to giving her back to the viewer. Not sure what I was thinking other than trying to create a reveal but that just works in the movies.

Although, the biggest change is that Millennium is now a cooperative game. Other than all that, it's the same frickin' game. Go figure.

Call me crazy, but that's what I should've started out with from the beginning. It is an Apocalyptic story and so teamwork is a natural fit where everyone looks out for each other as opposed to every person for themselves. I am trying to make this a positive game with an edge as opposed to a "winner take all" POV where mayhem, pessimism, and greed rule the day.

Yes, going against the grain is always a risk.
But doing what you believe in can also have its rewards. It's about looking at the glass half full.

I think there's enough dark news to go around and I want Millennium to be different. I want it to come across as a hopeful game where Earth still has a bright future ahead of it, despite the grim outlook just because of a handful of tyrants around the globe.

Talk about a whole new feel to the game, this really narrows down the theme because it's all about rescuing as many survivors as possible in order to win the game as a team. There's just much more at stake this way and the game is more engaging and more fun.

Here's a preview of the new box:

Updated Box Cover

It's come a long way and I just might change this scene and show Andrea running from an explosion with the boy to make it more exciting and more dynamic. Although, I do like this scene or where she's waiting for the train. There are just so many choices to make and settling for one is never easy. But as you go along, the game develops into something different and if it's a better idea, you just have to go with it.

Once I get all the main events and cards in place, it'll be all about small details and how the game plays out, step by step. It has to feel just right. The pacing should be smooth but brisk without too much lag time between players.

Here's where playtesting with different groups comes in handy because every person will have their own experience with the game and hopefully they can offer suggestions to improve it.  I know that if I can get this game to the point where it plays out with plenty of tension and adventure, it will be a terrific game to play.

"Quite a longshot to launch a board game that way ..."

At that point, I'll have to try to find a publisher willing to take a chance with it and if that doesn't work, I'm on my own. Quite a longshot to launch a board game that way but you know, that's part of the appeal of designing your own games. It's a heck of a challenge to succeed at any level but especially rewarding if you can jumpstart one on your own and get it rolling at a steady pace.

It all remains to be seen, but I do have good expectations even though I realize that Apocalyptic themes are not exactly a rage these days, but I'm counting on Millennium to change all that. That's the dream and it's not impossible so in that case, I'm already in deep so no turning back at this point.

"Idealogy is king but trinkets are a close second."

My take on this theme may be just what board games need to kickstart a trend. You never know and the only way to find out is to be all-in. You can't put out a half-ass game, book, or anything else. You have to go for broke.

This board game is no small feat for one person, but if I can get Millennium out there as I envision it, I think it will succeed. If it does, it's all gravy from there because all my other games in development are much simpler and faster to finish.

It's a marathon, to say the least. Hey, it's either this or watching re-runs of Star-Trek. (My secret is that I can do both at the same time.)

Bottom of Box

Here's a sneak peek at the bottom or back of the box. I could write a whole book about this but in my next Post I'll try to tackle all the elements it takes to design a good back for your box. As you can see here, it's very cluttered but that's almost a given. I could organize it a bit more but there's just so much you need to include that it's always difficult to fit everything in a comprehensive way.

I'm also using a loss leader because I need all the advantages I can get. I'll get into that too and discuss a bit about sales gimmicks and how to make good use of them without seeming like a carnival barker.

You can see some of the bells and whistles here and let me say that regardless of your amazing plot and themes and your overall concept, players always love trinkets. That's what I call them and I'm not far off describing some of these game pieces. Other than an emotional angle, you also need tanglible objects. Idealogy is king but trinkets are a close second. Yes, grown-ups like toys too.

Enough said for now, I could go on and on but this article is already too long. Attention spans are not what they used to be.

Stay tuned for much more about the latest developments with Millennium and how I'm tackling each phase of this game from start to finish.

It's turning out to be a Master Class in package design and board game marketing and hopefully you'll find a digital version on Amazon after I finish this game.

Voila!