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Latest Updates from Our Project:
More Sample, Update on Manufacturing
almost 4 years ago
– Tue, May 19, 2020 at 01:03:11 AM
Hey Paleontologists,
We hope that this update finds you well and healthy. For anyone that Covid-19 has directly affected, our thoughts and hearts are with you.
Today I'm coming to you with more photos of the production sample, as well as a manufacturing update. While everything continues to roll, it is seeming like we are cutting our August shipping date close. We still believe that we're going to be done manufacturing by then. However, fulfillment and shipping worldwide has been erratic. So, we want you to know that we are trying to make the best arrangements to get this game to you as close to the August deadline as possible. We will continue to update you about this situation as we get closer to shipping.
Stunning Photos of the Game
We have made it almost to the end of the sampling process. This game has required a lot of attention to detail, including making sure that each and every measurement is perfect, and that our board is sturdy and ready for thousands of plays! Check it out:
The stunning tray top in the correct colour
The board that the bones will sit in
The inside of the lid
The side grip for the board (for easy picking up and shaking)
The stunning Amber pieces - first player marker
The stunning scorpion
And finally ...
These bones are out of control! I wish you could see them in real life right now!!
The only things we have left to see are the completed tiles and the cardboard items (cards, etc.). We should be getting these within the next week or so. Once we do and we see that everything works properly, we're going to hit the "go" button.
Life in the forest is a lot of fun, at least while the sun is shining and the leaves are on the trees. Those days don’t last forever though, and long before the weather starts to change, the wise animals start to harvest for the long cold winter ahead. You will spend many months tucked into your burrow and you want to make it as cozy as possible. A nice bowl of soup, a comfortable rocking chair, and some toys and games will go a long way to make those dark winter days pass by quickly.
During the Spring, Summer, and Fall in Creature Comforts, you will gather different goods from the forest and spend them to collect items that will make your home more inviting while the world outside is covered in a layer of snow. Each round you will send family members out to various locations in an attempt to gain supplies. If they fall short of their goal, they’ll learn a lesson and be better prepared next time. The family that has created the most comfortable den wins the game.
Creature Comforts was designed by Roberta Taylor and includes stunning art by one of our favourite artists, Shawna JC Tenney. Creature Comforts is our first ever COZY game. What does that mean? Well, sometimes when you play games with your family, you don't want to have direct competition with them. Your moves in this game are very low-risk, making this game gentle for players. Stay tuned for more info about this amazing game throughout the summer months.
CREATURE COMFORTS HITS KICKSTARTER THIS FALL, OF COURSE!!
You are all amazing, and we are so lucky that you chose to be with us for Fossilis!
Until next time Paleontologists ...
Helaina and the Fossilis Team
Samples and Timelines
about 4 years ago
– Fri, Apr 17, 2020 at 12:34:21 AM
Hey Paleontologists,
We hope that this update finds you well and healthy. For anyone that Covid-19 has directly affected, our thoughts and hearts are with you.
This is our second update this week. We wanted to provide you with images of the sample, and update you on where we are with manufacturing this game.
The Sample
We have been waiting quite some time to get these components out of China. The sample is not complete yet, but our manufacturer wanted to send us the components that take the longest to prepare (the moulds for the Game Trayz board/cover, the bones, etc. take over a month to make).
The final board cover will be grey
The original board and cover you saw a couple of weeks ago needed some measurements tweaking. So, while it looked great in photos, we needed to resize some of it after we saw it in real life. We also realized that it wasn't so easy to lift the board off of the table to shake. So, we added a spot to lift it, as you can see below. This is the second iteration of the board, which is perfect now.
Side of the board with room to lift it off of the table - final colour will be brown
You can also see the shape of the Sand, Clay, and Stone tiles on top of the board. They will be their corresponding colours as well. While we're on the topic of tiles, our manufacturer sent us the film for the heat transfers that will be on the tiles. The colours and positioning are perfect. We'll be able to see all of these efforts in the final sample that they will send us once this has been approved (we have already approved everything you see here today).
Heat transfer images for the Sand, Clay, and Stone tiles
The Paleontologist Meeples are AMAZING!
Amazing Plaster pieces - they look so great in a pile!
Ammonite Player Markers for the Score Track - It was really difficult to capture just how stunning these are
We do not yet have the box sample or any of the other cardboard materials. Those are the components that are less difficult to produce a sample for. Since we have confirmed all of these components already, they will begin working on the final Sample immediately. We will send you more photos once we get it.
This project has been incredibly time consuming, as you can imagine. From getting all of the Dinosaur facts accurate, to the precise measurements of the Board, Tiles, and wooden bits, we have been working tirelessly to make this game perfect for you. I wanted to thank Gameland (our manufacturer), first and foremost, for being so dedicated to helping us perfect Fossilis' components. I also wanted to take this opportunity to thank our very own Josh Cappel, who has been working day and night to create a stunning project. It has been really awesome to watch him work through all of this.
Fósiles españolas - Spanish Fossilis
Gen X Games nuestros socios españoles han completado la traducción de Fossilis. En este momento, estamos creando archivos de impresión para que Gameland trabaje con ellos. Estamos muy contentos de asociarnos con una empresa tan maravillosa que, a través de todo lo que está sucediendo en España (y en todo el mundo), trabajó para que esta traducción se realice a tiempo. ¡Estamos muy contentos de trabajar con ellos! (Traducido por Google Translate)
Gen X Games, our Spanish partners, have completed the translation for Fossilis. At the moment, we are creating print files for Gameland to work with. We are so happy to be partnering with such a wonderful company, who, through everything that is going on in Spain (and around the world), worked to make this translation happen on time. We're really glad to be working with them!
Timeline
For the longest time, we've had this project running like a well oiled machine. Of course, recent world events have put a wrench in every step of the process since February. Add in the fact that we had to do some tweaking here and there, and you get delays. Now, at the moment, we are still on time to have Fossilis complete and on a ship for the middle of July (which is actually later than we'd like it to be). That would mean that fulfillment around the world would likely begin at the beginning-to-the-middle-of-August. At the moment, worldwide logistics have been flipped completely upside down. So even if these games are completed on time, we have no idea if we will be able to have the games shipped in August, as they were promised to be. That being said, we are doing everything to keep up with which logistics companies are working, and which are shut down. We will do everything in our power to make fulfillment happen on time.
Our Initiatives During the Pandemic
Paleontologists, during this very difficult time all over the world, we know that many of us are having a hard time. If you or your family have been affected by Covid-19 directly, our thoughts are with you. While China is back to work (thankfully it seems as if they are past the worst of this), the rest of the world is social distancing. Many businesses are affected by this. But one of the businesses feeling it the worst are the Hobby game retailers. We continue to sell games from our web store. But in order to support brick and mortar retailers we have developed a Retailer Aid program to assist your FLGS during this time of uncertainty.
We recognize the importance of brick and mortar retail stores to our hobby. They are the lifeblood of the industry and the places many of us became board game fans. From now until future notice, we will be donating 20% of the proceeds earned from games sold on our web shop to your FLGS. Simply include the name and address of your store in the notes sections at checkout. This is how we keep the industry strong. Stay safe and happy gaming. www.kidstablebg.com
Again, thank you all so much for your continued patience in this time of uncertainty.
You are all amazing, and we are so lucky that you chose to be with us for Fossilis!
Until next time Paleontologists ...
Helaina and the Fossilis Team
A Short Update
about 4 years ago
– Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 11:08:24 PM
Hey Paleontologists,
We hope that this update finds you well and healthy. For anyone that Covid-19 has directly hit, our thoughts and hearts are with you.
This is a very brief update to report that there is a more detailed update hopefully coming this week. We wanted to have photos of all of the final samples to you by Friday of last week, but they haven't made it to us yet. The few things that we do have can wait to be sent in one big update.
So, for now, the only thing we have to report is that there is a report coming very soon. Thank you so much for your continued patience in this time of uncertainty.
You are all amazing, and we are so lucky that you chose to be with us for Fossilis!
Until next time Paleontologists ...
Helaina and the Fossilis Team
A Fossilis Update - Things Are Looking Up
about 4 years ago
– Fri, Mar 13, 2020 at 01:30:51 AM
Hey Paleontologists,
We wanted to update you on our Fossilis status so that you can get a sense of where we are on this project.
Obviously you all know that China was shut down for some time. It is only recently that people have been getting back to work. Our thoughts and hearts have been with those who have been affected by Covid-19. During this difficult time, we have continued our communication with our manufacturer on a daily basis.
Amazingly, almost everyone is back to work at this point. They have been back to work all week this week. Their priority is really trying their best to keep this project moving. So, without further ado, here are some photos that were sent to me this morning from China. These are the very preliminary samples of the 3D board and the lid for Fossilis.
3D Board Lid - lid will be grey, not white as pictured here
Top of the 3D Board - will be brown, not white
If you zoom in on this one really tightly you can see that we've added small ridges between the cavities, so that the terrain tiles don't move around too much. However these ridges are low enough so that when the tiles are being moved, a great deal of force is not required.
We are so excited about how the board has turned out! It is shaping up to be such a fantastic design. We couldn't do it without the amazing direction of Josh Cappel as well as the design work of Noah Adelman from Game Trayz. We also wanted to mention the incredible team at Gameland (led by the fantastic Amo), which has been dedicated to making this game happen. Go team! I should be receiving these samples in the mail within the next week or so.
Timeline
Paleontologists, this is still up in the air. Amo tells me that it will take up to 45 days to create the moulds for the bones. We are into the first week of that. Once the moulds are complete, they will create a sample of the bones and send them to us. This will take up to another 15 days (taking us to the middle of May). We will make all necessary changes to them and go right into manufacturing from there (that should be the same day they are received). At the moment, we are looking at beginning manufacturing in the middle of May. It will also take up to 45 days for manufacturing. July seems to be the time we are going to begin shipping to the different regions of the world. This period can take up to 30 days. Believe it or not, we are still on target to begin fulfillment in August. I think it will, instead, be September at this point. You will likely have your games by the early Fall.
Conventions
At the time of writing this update we are still attending the following conventions with Fossilis, so come see it in real life if you are attending:
BreakOut Con - Toronto, March 20-22
The Gathering of Friends - Niagara Falls (NY), April 10-19
Origins Game Fair - Columbus, June 17-21
Gen Con - Indianapolis, July 30-August 2
Essen Spiel - Essen, Germany, October 22-25
PAX Unplugged - Philadelphia, November 20-22
Obviously, we are hoping for the best. But this is it for now.
What We're Backing
Today I came across this amazing little game called Bold Made. I was struck by the fantastic illustration at first. But then, in researching it a bit I came to learn that this game was created by Leslie (mom) and Alex (9 years old). This impressed us because we also make games with our kids. So, we did a bit more research and what we learned blew us away.
Bold Made is a new and improved twist on the classic card game Old Maid. This game is about winning by collecting a team of bold women past and present. Each woman in the deck has made important contributions to their society and to the world at large. The game is a powerful way to help kids find fantastic female role models [Hot Taco Enterprises].
You are all amazing, and we are so lucky that you chose to be with us for Fossilis!
Until next time Paleontologists ...
Helaina and the Fossilis Team
Manufacturing and BGG's 20 Most Anticipated Games
about 4 years ago
– Thu, Feb 20, 2020 at 02:20:13 AM
Hey Palenotologists,
We wanted to update you with our progress on manufacturing Fossilis, in light of China's shutdown on account of the Coronavirus. We are still thinking of all of those who have been effected by it, and wishing everyone good health.
Manufacturing Update
We have been in touch with Gameland over the last couple of weeks, getting regular updates from them. Apparently they will be back to work next week. This is the plan for now, but it could change at any time.
Once they are back, they will be putting together the Fossilis sample and sending it out to us at KTBG Headquarters. This process should take a couple of weeks. Meanwhile, Gen X Games, our Spanish partner, will be working on the translation of Fossilis into Spanish. We are hoping that by the time we are ready to print the game Gen X will have completed the translation.
Manufacturing will take about 45 days. This will bring us to the middle of May. We will try to get your games on a ship as fast as we can. Freight to the different regions of the world can take up to 5 weeks. This will bring us to the end of June. If we are lucky, we will be able to get fulfillment going at the beginning of July. This means that most of the world will have their games by the end of July. Believe it or not, this will still keep us on target for getting your games to you on time (actually, 1 month early).
But we really can't make any promises at this point. We actually have no statement from Gameland saying that they will be able to complete production within our timeline. We'll continue to keep you informed every step of the way.
Thank you all for your patience and understanding through this very difficult time.
BGG's Top 20 Games of 2020
Your thumbs pushed Fossilis to the Most Anticipated list. Now's your time to vote for it! We mentioned that we'd need your push again once Fossilis made it to the finals. Now, here we are!
Just to have been nominated was a HUGE deal to us. But to win in 1 or more of the categories would be STUPENDOUS! Your vote will mean the world to us, so please vote here.
Address Changes
Even though BackerKit won't allow you to add anything new to your order, you can still change your address. You'll be able to change your address up until we are ready to ship your games. You can do this through your BackerKit survey. If you don't have your link, please don't hesitate to contact us through DM.
