Check out the latest production sample of Illiterati!
over 1 year ago – Wed, Sep 28, 2022 at 09:18:24 PM

Hello Librarians!

We are so excited to share the latest round of samples with you as well as update you on where we are in the pre-production process!

Production Samples & Updates

As we mentioned in the August update, we received most of the PPC (Pre-Production Copy) last month but were waiting on the 1) Embroidered Bags 2) Sand Timer and 3) Plastic Insert. These are the final 3 things that we need to perfect before signing off on mass production. 

1) Embroidered Bags
We knew embroidering the bags would give them a little extra flair, but we had no idea just how much. But wow. We LOVE how these turned out! For those of you who opted for the Deluxe Edition, both draw bags will come embroidered with the Illiterati logo as shown below. The samples we received were just perfect in terms of color, material, and stitching. Need we say more?

2) Sand Timers
Samples of the Sand Timers also arrived (Deluxe on the left, Standard on the right). While they visually accomplish what we want, there was a small problem with the accuracy of the timer. Although we know that most of you will most likely end up keeping time using your phone or some other digital timer,  we still wanted to make sure our timer worked. The issue stems from two things: the size of timer and the "thickness" of sand.  Since the timers is rated for 180 seconds, the sheer amount of sand that is packed inside gives very little room for the sand to flow. Add to the fact that since the sand is dyed a darker red, the individual grains themselves add some bulk and create situations where the sand can get stuck.  The solutions are pretty straightforward (make it bigger, use less dye) which we are currently exploring and should be able to make a decision on once we get a few more samples.

3) Plastic Insert
We are still waiting on the plastic insert but hope to receive it in the next few weeks. However, this is the component we're least worried about since we provided detailed files with precise dimensions and our inserts from Panda GM have always been sturdy and excellent.

Additionally, we had some thoughts about how we could improve the strength and durability of the Deluxe box, so we thought of a way to make that better as well.  We're happy to report that Panda GM (our manufacturer) took our feedback in stride, and the changes made have made a huge difference. 

As you can see in the pictures below, the Inner Box (the portion that slides out) is now a hair shorter on all sides than the outer box which greatly mitigates the chances of the top sinking into the middle when pressed on. Technically, the box is designed to be stored vertically (like a book), but we know many of you store games horizontally so we didn't want you to inadvertently damage the box when stacking other games on top of Illiterati. Although, let's be real: Illiterati belongs at the top of any game collection, so this probably isn't something we even need to worry about... 😉

 
Production & Fulfillment Timeline 

Thankfully, as things stand, everything mentioned above does not impact our previous estimated timeline (see August Update) as we already built in the 2-3 week delay into those projections. We are itching to press "PRINT" more than anyone, but until we are confident with every aspect of production we're going to remain patient. We appreciate your patience and support as well. Here's a brief summary of what to expect over the next few months:

Survey Incomplete? Change of Address?

Though we're now at a 99% survey completion rate (great job y'all!), there are still 66 Backers in the wind. To avoid losing your pledge and/or incurring additional shipping costs, please fill out your survey ASAP.  If you're not sure whether you completed your survey or not, click here. If you have any trouble accessing it or need to make a change, don't hesitate to reach out to us directly through Kickstarter or through our Contact Form.
 

For those who need to change your address, you can still do that as we do not lock addresses until we are gearing up to begin fulfillment. You can make this change yourselves, but as we've learned (and this primarily applies to US Backers) if you are moving to a different state, the system does not allow you to make the change thus you'll need to contact us to make the change manually for you.
 

Well, that's it for now. Thank you all for coming on this journey with us and we hope to bring you more good news soon
 

Until next time,
Rob, Jon, Gary, and Audrey

🤩FIRST LOOK🤩 at the PPC (sample), update on fulfillment, and GEN CON!
over 1 year ago – Sat, Aug 27, 2022 at 03:01:57 AM

At long last... THE PPC HAS ARRIVED!!

In case you didn't know, "PPC" stands for "Pre-Production Copy." It is the first official printing of the game done by the manufacturer, with the primary purpose of ensuring component quality and dimensional accuracy. We're still waiting to see a few minor components (bag, timer) but all the major stuff is here and we couldn't be more thrilled with the quality! Here's a sneak peak at some of the components and boxes:

As you may have noticed, we made significant changes to the graphic design of the Book and Villain cards and are really happy with how they came out. Upon reviewing the PPC, we found a few more ways that the game/production copy could be made better, so we will ask PandaGM to send us a second PPC with the following corrections (not an exhaustive list):

•  Deluxe Box: It's hard to describe, but we're basically making the inner box a hair's width smaller to improve the durability and strength of the box when closed.
•  Burn Tracker: The space between the tile slots is too thin, thus we are redesigning the layout of the card to be in portrait mode as opposed to landscape.
•  Bookmarks: We are going to make them wider (from 1.5" to 2") and have the corners rounded

We're also still waiting for physical samples of the following, which is why they're not pictured above:

•  Embroidered Bags 
•  Sand Timer 
•  Plastic Insert (component organizer)

Production & Fulfillment Timeline

So what does this all mean? Getting a second PPC does add 2-3 weeks to our timeline, but our first priority is to putting out the absolute best quality product we can, so we hope you understand (and thank you for your continued patience). Once everything is up to the Gap Closer code, we will be able to give PandaGM the green light to begin mass production. We realize waiting longer is never ideal, but we're confident you'll appreciate these changes when you receive your pledge. At this time, most of the work is effectively out of our hands and while we don't expect there to be much to report over the next few months, we still plan to send out monthly updates to keep you informed of where we are in the process. Here's a brief summary of what to expect over the next few months: 

Sea Freight* varies by destination, and can has historically range anywhere from 4 weeks to 8 weeks. In all honesty, this is the step we anticipate being the most unpredictable and ask you be patient with us as information around freight can be complicated. Oftentimes it's not the actual time it takes for the boat to travel from point A to point B that is the issue, but rather the time it can take for containers to get on and get off the boats.

Likewise, Pick & Pack and Fulfillment varies by fulfillment center and just how many projects are ahead of us when our games arrive regionally. We'll provide more details about this as we get closer, but the plan is to freight inventory to multiple regions (North America, Europe, Australia and Asia) and fulfill locally through individual "hubs". Given the number of moving pieces involved in this process, it is likely that certain regions will start and end before others, though we will do our best to keep overall fulfillment as close together as possible.

Gen Con

Words cannot describe just how massive Gen Con really is! Spread across the Indiana Convention Center,  the Westin, the Hyatt Regency, the Embassy Suites, the Marriott, the JW Marriott and THE LUCAS OIL STADIUM,  50,000 attendees graced the halls for an extended weekend of play! But what mattered to us were the players (some of them, you, backers) who we got to engage with and play a game or two. Thank you to those who came up to say hello and make us feel welcome. Though this was one of our shorter convention trips to date, it was an absolute blast!

As always, if you're not sure whether you completed your survey or not, click here. If you have any trouble accessing it or need to make a change, don't hesitate to reach out to us directly through Kickstarter or through our Contact Form. Can't Find Your Survey? Click Here

Until next time,

Rob, Jon, Gary, and Audrey

Sitting, waiting, wishing... 😪 (but at least Gen Con is coming up)!
over 1 year ago – Thu, Jul 28, 2022 at 01:21:47 AM

Pre-Production Copy Is En Route

No one likes waiting... especially us. (Just look at the two games we've published--Illiterati and Rival Restaurants--both have real-time, no-waiting mechanisms!) 

We were hoping to have the pre-production copy in-hand by the time we published this update, but it looks like we won't have it for another week or two.  Just as a reminder, we've already approved all the digital files (yay! 🥳) and just need to sign off on the physical printing of all the components and cards. The August update should have some nice shots of everything along with any notes on adjustments we may need to make, but until then...still waiting.

Gen Con - Indianapolis, IN - August 4th - 7th

That's right! For the first time ever, Gap Closer Games will be attending Gen Con! In case you didn't know, Gen Con is the largest and longest-running gaming convention in North America. It attracts tens of thousands of attendees from around the world for The Best Four Days in Gaming™. If you plan to attend and can't wait to play your copy of Illiterati, or just want to see us, we're happy to share we'll be running demos in the First Exposure Playtest Hall during the following slots (all times EST). 

• Friday, August 5th, Noon - 2PM 
• Friday, August 5th, 4PM- 6PM 
• Saturday, August 6th, Noon - 2PM 
• Saturday, August 6th, 2PM - 4PM

Registration for these slots is free, but please note it does not guarantee you a slot for Illiterati, but rather a seat to one of the many games available. It's our first time doing this, so we don't 100% understand how it works from the participant side of things, so we appreciate your patience. Either way, it's going to be a blast getting together and playing games so be sure to stop by if you're there!

Pinned Comments and Alt Text

Per Kickstarter's recent announcement Pinned Comments and Alt Text are now features available to help us communicate better with all of you. You'll feel the impact of the former right away, while the latter will be more useful in future campaigns (since we don't use as much imagery in updates). You can read about each update in greater detail on the announcement, but here is how we plan to utilize them:

•  Pinned Comments: Now that we are able to pin comments (up to 5) to the top of the comment section, we'll use that as "mini updates" to share news as they come in. This will be especially helpful once we enter the fulfillment phase and different regions are on different schedules.
•  Alt Text: The ability to add alternative text to images may not seem like a big deal to some, but for those with visual impairments who rely on screen readers, this change vastly increases accessibility. 

Change of Address? 

Now that pledges are locked, a few of you have inquired about address changes and we just wanted to make a general announcement to ease any confusion: YES, you can update your address up until the moment we start shipping out. In fact, we will send a reminder to everyone once we get to that stage. Changing your address can be done directly through BackerKit, or by sending us a quick message. NOTE - If your address change involves moving to another country, odds are you will either have an underpayment or overpayment on shipping that will have to be resolved.

As always, if you're not sure whether you completed your survey or not, click here. If you have any trouble accessing it or need to make a change, don't hesitate to reach out to us directly through Kickstarter or through our Contact Form.

Can't Find Your Survey? Click Here

Thanks again everyone and have a great rest of July!

Until next time,

Rob, Jon, Gary, and Audrey

Pre-production is underway!! (And psst! The pledge manager closes June 30th. Fill out your survey NOW if you haven't already.)
almost 2 years ago – Mon, Jun 27, 2022 at 03:01:06 PM

Are you in the last 10% to fill out the survey?

In most cases, 90% would be considered a job well done. After all, an A's an A, right? WRONG. At Gap Closer Games, we strive for only the best. Thus, even though 90% of you have already filled out your BackerKit surveys, we cannot and will not rest until the last 10% of you have done the same. After all, if you don't fill out your survey, we can't get you your stuff. No survey = No stuff. And what is Kickstarter without being able to get really cool stuff (or in this case, Illiterati)? 

Unless you don't mind losing your pledge and/or incurring additional shipping costs, you need to fill out your survey ASAP or by June 30th at the absolute latest since that's when the pledge manager will close. 

If you're not sure whether you completed your survey or not, click here. If you have any trouble accessing it or need to make a change, don't hesitate to reach out to us directly through Kickstarter or through our Contact Form.

Can't Find Your Survey? Click Here: https://illiterati.backerkit.com/

Pre-Production In Progress

Now that the files have been approved, and our deposit has cleared ($$$), PandaGM (our manufacturer) is in the process of printing what's called the PPC (Pre-Production Copy).  The purpose of this step is to make sure everything comes out as intended (both in quantity and quality), and to make any changes as needed. Personally we're extra excited to receive the PPC as it will be the first time we get to hold Illiterati in a box (all of our prototypes are currently in 1-Gallon Ziploc bags) 😅. We're not positive how long this step will take (we're forecasting 2-3 weeks, but may be longer if we have to get a second PPC) and are hopeful we'll have pictures to share in the July update. 

Design Update - Box Design

And last but not least, as mentioned in the last update, the last major design pending was the Box (Front and Back), and we're happy to report the work is complete! Here's a sneak peak (digital rendering) of the finalized design (Deluxe Edition Front and Back). 

Until next month,

Rob, Jon, Gary, and Audrey

Production Update: Files Sent to Manufacturing
almost 2 years ago – Thu, May 26, 2022 at 01:04:08 AM

Production Update - Rulebook

Our priority this month was to get the rulebook cleaned up and finalized and we did just that! Editing a rulebook is a balance between accessibility, clarity and brevity, so we tend to go through multiple drafts before committing to a final version. The rulebook will still undergo an additional round of proofing before we go to print, so if you find any typos, we'd love a heads up! Here's a sneak peek of the updated rulebook:

Letter Count Distribution

The balance of a game can make it or break it, and this is especially true with word games.  Due to the nature of how tiles are used in Illiterati, we knew we'll need more tiles that traditional word games, so getting the letter distribution just right is as much an art as it is a science. Add to the fact that most of the letters are "symbolled", having equal distribution of symbols was also critical. While we haven't changed the distribution in some months, we realized we never actually shared this chart (a card that will be included in every copy of Illiterati) - so here it is:

File Prep

At this point we have finalized the text and graphic design of all the major components (Tiles, Cards & Rulebook), and all that remains is the "back of box design" which proved to be more difficult than we anticipated.  Trying to essentially condense an entire Kickstarter page onto an 8.5" x 11" surface is no small ask, but we are confident we'll get this wrapped up in the coming weeks. In the meanwhile, we've sent over the first round of digital proofs to PandaGM (our manufacturer) for approval and have received initial feedback. Here's an example of the Marketing Flyer and their commentary:

Issue found - Content in the Margin: Make sure that there is at least 3mm of space between the die-lines and any text or pertinent artwork to avoid it being printed too close to the edge or possibly getting cut off. The area that exists within the green dotted line of our templates is what we call the “safe zone”. Only background art should extend past this line.

BackerKit Pledge Manager Update

To those of you who have completed your survey early - THANK YOU! We are now at ~85% complete which gives us enough information to forecast the size of the print-run and allocate copies to each region accordingly. And if you're part of the 15% that have yet to complete your survey, please make sure to do so before the June 30, 2022 deadline. If you have any trouble accessing it or need to make a change don't hesitate to reach out to us directly through Kickstarter or through our Contact Form.

Can't Find Your Survey? Click Here: https://illiterati.backerkit.com/

Until next month,

Rob, Jon, Gary, and Audrey