June update - part 2 of 2 - PRE-PRODUCTION UNBOXING!
10 months ago – Tue, Jun 27, 2023 at 04:34:54 PM

Greetings

This update is a biggie folks! I will be extremely brief in text, since there's over an hour of video footage below for you to enjoy (if you're interested). So without further delay, here we go!

Manufacturing Update

First and foremost, here's a quick (8-minute) video where I fully explain where this project is at. I briefly explain the manufacturing process underway, and then provide final delivery timeline estimates.

Summary:

• The component proofing is just about done - we just need to tweak a few items, such as the main box insert.
• Once we approve the final tweaks, we go into full manufacturing mode. If we (conservatively) assume that will happen over July-August, then ocean freight happens over September-October, and that means final fulfillment to backers happens over November-December. That timeline is padded at every stage, but I'd rather provide conservative estimates, so we're all looking at the worst-case scenario.
• GenCon pickup: For those who elected GenCon pickup, we're currently uncertain whether that will be possible or not. I will keep you posted as the weeks progress, but know that I am pushing hard to make this happen, if at all possible. If not, we will default back to normal shipping for those backers.

Pre-production Unboxing!!

This is simply EPIC! There is SO much stuff packed into this game and its expansions, that it took over an hour to do all the unboxings!! Granted, I probably over-explain some components as I unbox them, but I'm just so excited about the final product that I can't help myself ;)

Summary:

• Pure awesomeness, in a box! Eight boxes, to be exact :D

Like what you see? Give us a thumbs up!

With GenCon around the corner, hype is growing for a ton of new releases coming out at that convention. While we sadly won't have copies of Drop Drive there to sell, we will still be demoing it and driving pre-sales. We'd love your thumbs-up on the Drop Drive entry on the GenCon 2023 Preview list on BoardGameGeek! 

That's it for now...

Hope you enjoy watching all the components previews as much as I enjoyed recording them! What's your favorite component that you saw unboxed? Let us know in the comments!

Cheers!!

June update - part 1 of 2
11 months ago – Wed, Jun 14, 2023 at 03:00:15 PM

Hey all!

Sorry for the slight delay in getting out this latest update. I was really hoping to show you the unboxing of the pre-production components, but alas, several weeks have gone by and there continue to be daily back-and-forths with our manufacturer that ultimately translate into us not yet having the pre-production components in hand. It's all good progress, but as you know this project is complex and so we are having to tweak and approve new items daily. They indicated they will be able to send out the package this Saturday, so I am sending out this update as a very brief "part 1 of 2" and hoping that within 1-2 weeks I will be able to show you TONS of beautiful stuff, first hand. 

I would be a complete jerk if I didn't at least show you SOMETHING in this part 1 update, so here are a couple photos from our manufacturer of some of the completed components:

Remember when we said the Space Mat was going to be like the Dungeon Drop mats - a set of 2 that you would lay out back-to-back to create the full play area? Well, we moved away from that approach and went to a SINGLE piece, and added in stitched edges at no extra cost!

Keep in mind these are photos from our manufacturer, not me. So some of the lighting here is less than ideal, but you can definitely get a sense of how awesome these pieces will be on the table! 

Part 2 of 2 coming...

Clearly this update is a placeholder for the next one. I hope it will come out in just a week or two at most, when we will be able to show you a video unboxing of most of the components that should be en-route to us soon. And we will also update you on the project as a whole, fulfillment timeline, GenCon pickup, etc. 

So until then, enjoy space!! Cheers!

April update - the shipyards are hard at work!
about 1 year ago – Sun, Apr 30, 2023 at 06:29:14 AM

Happy April!

Just popping in quickly to let everyone know things remain on track! The manufacturing process is well underway, and we should be starting to receive samples soon. I already received physical samples of the nav tool links, arguably the most unique and complex part of this project, and they work precisely as intended. 

So in short, we are all systems go for Drop Drive!

Anomaly previews

Figured we'd take the opportunity to show you the final art for some of the anomalies:

These images represent just a small number of the 18 anomalies available for Drop Drive!

In other, more "Earthly" news...

Our Flutter campaign is nearing the final 48-hours, so now's the time to get in if you're interested! 

Flutter is a stunning tile-laying game for 2-5 players. If you like games such as Azul, Sagrada, Carcassonne, or Kingdomino, this one is right up your alley. 

The campaign has done super well, and many amazing stretch goals have been unlocked. We hope you'll check it out!

Thanks for tuning in - we look forward to future updates!

Cheers!

March update - CLOSING PLEDGE MANAGER
about 1 year ago – Tue, Mar 14, 2023 at 05:42:51 AM

Attention backers...

This is an important update to pay attention to, as we are about to enter the final stage of this project!

Shipping and taxes added

First and foremost, final shipping amounts and taxes have been added to the pledge manager. Details:

• You can go back into your survey now to see the final numbers, as desired. If you do not have your survey link handy, you can recover it here: https://drop-drive.backerkit.com/
• While you are in your survey, feel free to make any final adjustments to your order.
• NOTE: Most backers will see two lines for shipping charges: "Pledge Level" and "Whole Order". This is due to the way BackerKit handles shipping profiles. Pledge Level should amount to exactly $0.50 x the number of items in your pledge tier, accounting for "Pick & Pack fees," whereas the Whole Order line accounts for the actual shipment from the warehouse. All additional add-ons you've added also carry this additional $0.50, so it does not matter how you constructed your order - the final amounts are identical.
• If you see anything that looks wrong, don't hesitate to reach out to me at [email protected] and we will be happy to take a look and help you out.

Important notes for specific regions:

• US: Your orders will be fulfilled by Bridge Distribution. We expect fulfillment over July-August 2023 timeframe. You may also want to check out the GenCon pickup option detailed below...
• Canada: Your orders will be fulfilled by Lion Rampant. It takes a bit longer for the inventory to reach the Canadian warehouse, so we expect your fulfillment over August-September 2023. 
• Europe, including UK: Your orders will be fulfilled by Fulfillment-Europe. We expect fulfillment over July-August 2023 timeframe.
• Asia: Your orders will be fulfilled by VFI Asia. We expect fulfillment over July-October 2023 timeframe, depending on which country you are in. Note: If you are getting ONLY the Shipping Shenanigans pack (meaning, no other Drop Drive or Dungeon Drop products), the shipping amount shown in your pledge manager is incorrectly calculated. HOWEVER, I have already gone in to your orders and credited your account so that the final shipping charged is just $9 for those small packages.
• Brazil and South Africa: Your orders will be fulfilled by VFI Asia. We expect fulfillment over September-November 2023 timeframe, depending on hub shipment consolidation schedules on VFI Asia's end. 
• Australia and New Zealand: Your orders will be fulfilled by VR Distribution. We expect fulfillment over August-September 2023. 
• Rest of World: Your orders will be fulfilled by Fulfillment-Europe. We expect fulfillment over August-September 2023 timeframe.

If you need to recover your pledge manager survey link, go here: https://drop-drive.backerkit.com/

Locking orders and charging cards

You have about a week to make any final changes you want to your orders, and then we will lock all orders and charge your credit cards on file during the week of March 20th. 

IMPORTANT: A lot of time has passed since you first completed your pledge manager survey, so please make sure your credit card information is up to date.

GenCon pickup

You have the option for GenCon pickup, if you wish!

If you want to elect GenCon pickup, you must select the LOCAL PICKUP option in the COUNTRY drop-down, and then fill out the rest of the form with "N/A". Note that selecting this option will add a flat $5 to your order to account for additional freight and logistics charges.

Closing

It feels so good to finally be at this stage! We look forward to showing you progress pictures from our manufacturer over the next couple months, and of course we now anticipate the final arrival of your orders. Thanks so much for being with us on this journey!! 

If you want to check out our next project, which launches on Gamefound next Tuesday (March 21st, 2023), click the image below:

That's it for now...  Cheers!

February update - time to finish your pledge manager surveys!
about 1 year ago – Mon, Feb 13, 2023 at 10:40:53 AM

Happy February!

Ok, the time has finally come - we are now asking you to complete your pledge manager surveys, if you haven't already, so we can gear up to finalize the orders and related plans to ship you your games!

Here's a brief timeline of what you can expect at this point:

•  ASAP: You should finalize your pledge manager surveys, getting your carts exactly the way you want them.
•  BEGINNING OF MARCH: We will load actual shipping rates to the pledge manager, and then give you time to review those rates.
•  MIDDLE OF MARCH: We will announce final cart locking, and then actually charge your credit cards accordingly.
•  APRIL/MAY/JUNE: Unbearable anticipation (on ALL our parts!)...
•  JULY/AUGUST: We will fulfill orders!! There is still a lot that can affect this timeframe, but we will ASSUME we won't have any major shipping crisis or other unforeseen circumstances. Of course, if there are, then we reserve the right to reset this timeframe.

Here's some important FAQ for you:

•  How can I re-access my pledge manager survey? If you have the original survey link, you can use that. If not, you can recover your survey link here: https://drop-drive.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders 
•  How close will the shipping charges be to what was estimated during the campaign? Based on initial estimates we received from fulfillment houses, you can expect final shipping rates to be about 60% higher than what we estimated during the campaign (differing region to region), and here's why: If you have been following our updates, you know that we improved this product SUBSTANTIALLY from what was originally advertised during the campaign, both in terms of gameplay and packaging. Not only is there materially more gameplay and content included in this game, such that your base game pledge that paid $27 for will actually retail for either $45 or 50, but the box size has also expanded from the small cube (a la Dungeon Drop) to a full King of Tokyo size box. Likewise, the 8-pack of anomalies that were originally planned to be sold as 8 mini expansions in zip-lock bags are now packaged as a full expansion, with another large box. So, in no uncertain terms, you are getting MUCH MORE game than you originally expected (or paid for). While you don't need to pay any extra for the improved gameplay and components we added, we cannot avoid that the shipping costs are a bit higher than original estimates explicitly due to these box sizes. 
•  What happens if there is some new shipping crisis between March and August? While we have indicated right along that freight costs have LOWERED over the past 12 months, we cannot predict what exactly will happen over the next 4. IF there is a MATERIAL change in either freight or shipping costs, we reserve the right to assess an additional charge. This will not be exercised if pricing differences are in the $1-3 range, so unless something major happens, you should not need to worry about this. 
•  Can I get my order fulfilled at GenCon to save money on shipping? Phase Shift Games will have a booth at GenCon, so this is something we are considering. There are many logistical challenges with this approach, and there are still costs associated for shipping to the con and storage at the con (though this would be way less than actual postal shipping). So what I want to know is this - if this is something you would be interested in, please let me know in the comments so we have a sense of how widely this option would be leveraged. 
•  Are you telling us absolutely everything?? Probably not! But we are telling you absolutely everything that we know and reasonably expect of the coming months. We have never sugar coating things with our backers, nor held back hard realities or bad news (as seldom as that has come up). So, to the best of our knowledge, we're confident in the above decisions and details.

Let me know if there are any other questions that I can add to this. As always, we are happy to be 100% transparent with you all - that's the only way we continue to build your trust, and we value that trust and your continued support above all else. Cheers!