Beyond the Gates of Antares - new Kickstarter

Dorthonion · **Posted:** Tue Jan 01, 2013 11:11 am

This is a new game proposal designed by Rick Priestly. It aims to create the best sci-fi game using better game mechanics, a more plausible and diverse background than most 'game universes' and drawing on the ideas, likes and abilities of many artists, sculptors and the gamers themselves.

Here's a bit of the pitch on Kickstarter:

Quote:

Unlike other Kickstarter miniature projects that have done most of the work before hand, we’re here so that we can see if you are interested in not only backing us to fund the project but also if you’re interested in helping us develop the game rules, artwork, miniature range, tactical abilities, scenery, vehicles and everything else. We already know much of the initial design (well, it’s mostly in Rick’s head at the moment..) and we want to work with a unique set of enthusiasts with the vision to fund it and help us make it the best wargame experience that exists.

Rick has some very good ideas about scaleability, avoiding the pitfalls of d6 inflexibility and the endless rolls and modifiers syndromes that afflict some (many?) other similar games.

We often complain about some anomaly or inconsistency in rules - even in LotR/The Hobbit SBG and WotR, among others. This is a clean sheet design, coming from one of the greatest minds in the industry. I will be watching the Kickstarter and may even decide to dip into the Erebor Gold Reserve to become a backer. Have a nosey at the Kickstarter and the website - Warlord are involved (makers of Bolt Action, Pike & Shotte, Black Powder and Hail Caesar).

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/203 ... of-antares

http://www.darkspacecorp.com/

I think this new game will be HUGE! It is planned to be able to cope with one-to-one RPG level detail all the way up to massive engagements. It would be great to have some small hand in making it happen. I also like Game/miniature companies who will LISTEN to their customers.

SuicidalMarsbar · **Joined:** Sun Apr 24, 2011 1:14 am **Posts:** 1712

Looks sweet! I'll pledge whatever i can to get this babby rolling.

Jamros · **Posted:** Tue Jan 01, 2013 5:55 pm

Honestly, though I do like Rick Priestly and his decision to use Kickstarter, I don't care for the aesthetics.

Highlordell · **Posted:** Tue Jan 08, 2013 10:44 pm

THIS! PLEDGE! GIVE MONEY!

Yeh been tracking this for about 3 weeks now and it looks reaaaaallllllyyyy good. They've got £70,000 after about 8 days so its looking quite good.
The system look pretty innovative using D10s and whatever, constantly evolving universe and such. I think if this gets of the ground it can be a mainstream wargame for the future.
I'm excited hahaha, and the Dark Energy reward tier looks pretty good.

Dorthonion · **Posted:** Wed Jan 09, 2013 9:36 am

There are some innovative discussions and ideas floating around that intrigue me - I like the idea of breaking away from the 'power-gaming' and rigidity of the GW universes. The howls of protest that arise when WH40K gets revised or a new army book is released and suddenly invincible units become average and average units become useless and some new thing is brought in that is 'essential' but really is a marketing ploy to sell kits. All with the mandatory price hike, of course.
I expect to see more of these sci-fi and fantasy alternatives coming along - THON will be hitting Kickstarter sometime in the next few months. None of them may individually be as big as WH or WH40K but they will eat into 'market share'. Maybe GW will only appreciate that there are many attractive alternatives to their offerings when sales drop far enough. The rigid adherence to old-school thinking may be endangering other much larger companies - Microsoft among others - there are many discussions of this trend on Tech sites like The Register and Wired. War Machine, Hordes, Kings of War, traditional wargaming like Bolt Action and others - these are holding their own audience or are actually growing. I believe GW have to change their business model and that includes how rules are written, updated and expanded as well as the pricing of minis, rules and accessories such as paints.
The bottom line is that all gaming is ultimately a non-essential luxury. If disposable income is falling and job security is diminishing, people will feel less able to spend on games/minis that are too expensive or do not offer a fulfilling gaming/modelling experience. GW do not have the automatic right to anyone's money. If they leave it too long to wise up and move on, they may end up going broke.
So how does this relate to this new game and Kickstarter? Well, the point is that this is a more traditional Kickstarter than some, in that the backers, ordinary people from all over the world, can have real input into the scope and design and background of the game as it is created AND as it evolves. Whereas with GW, it feels more like take it or leave it - this is all you are getting, at our price and on our terms.
Economic history is littered with the fossils of businesses that refused to listen.

Dorthonion · **Posted:** Sat Jan 19, 2013 2:05 pm

Beasts of War interviewed Rick, Rik and John Stallard on the subject of Beyond the Gates of Antares. It is about an hour long.
http://www.beastsofwar.com/sci-fi-warga ... priestley/
The words that jump out for me are Community and living, evolving universe. So I was persuaded to become a backer. Fingers crossed!

SuicidalMarsbar · **Joined:** Sun Apr 24, 2011 1:14 am **Posts:** 1712

I watched the interview, and pledged £25

Highlordell · **Posted:** Sun Jan 20, 2013 8:55 pm

SuicidalMarsbar wrote:

I watched the interview, and pledged £25

Good man. It's a shame they've not even hit £100,000 yet. I would really hate it if they didn't reach the target. You have to wonder if they would just go ahead and do what they could to get it released anyway.

Jamros · **Posted:** Sun Jan 20, 2013 10:12 pm

I've gone back and had several additional glances. The ideology behind the game is admirable--serious player involvement most of all--and I want to support Mr. Priestley in his efforts to make a game he can develop and call his own. But I just don't find anything compelling about the universe, except maybe the individualistic, free-thinking Revers (who I would rather see in a different universe instead). For me, the most important aspect of science fictions tend to be the visuals and the background, and this really isn't offering much good in either category (imo, of course). Fanticide, also, looks just absolutely horrible. I think both of these games would have to change drastically to get me interested (though it's not like I matter much!).

I actually feel pretty bad criticizing or not liking something by Rick Priestley though.

That said, even if he isn't too enthusiastic about them, the historical rules Priestley has written since leaving GW (Black Powder, Hail Caesar, Bolt Action) have been successful and are popular and I am really keen on giving them a go. I hope to pick up Hail Caesar soon actually.

Highlordell · **Posted:** Mon Jan 21, 2013 7:41 am

Gonna have to agree with you Jamros. I've read all the fluff, and nothing leaped out at me. I was more interested in the fresh perspective they seem to be usig, and I was hoping once they'd fleshed it all out a bit I'd develop an interest in one of the faction. It doesn't help help that the NuHu's appear to be absolute *cats*.

But yeh seriously give Hail Caesar a go, if you're intersted in any early history then you're gonna enjoy it, and trhe game mechanics are simple and promote a relaxied, laid-back game. Much bettter than 40k anyway.
Best of all the models are very nice sculpted and cost about 1/4 of GW's prices. I got 40 beautiful Macedonian Phalangites for £18.

Jamros · **Posted:** Mon Jan 21, 2013 5:05 pm

http://pinsofwar.com/rick-priestleys-kickstarter-fail/

There's an interesting column, but perhaps most interesting is the quote in it from Rick. GoA seems to be his "it." That's really the only thing that would make me want to support it.

And for historicals, I go 1/72--it doesn't get cheaper. Zvezda and Italeri turn out some great stuff too.

Dorthonion · **Posted:** Mon Jan 21, 2013 7:28 pm

Pinsofwar has made some very valid points. These and similar remarks have already appeared in the KS comments and in the Dark Space Corporation forums for BtGOA. Maybe Rick (and Rik and the rest) felt that they needed to give this a try a little earlier than optimal as there are other sci-fi projects coming along soon (THON for example). I cannot forecast the outcome as a small shift in the speed with which greens, artwork and other information are forthcoming might up the pledge rate enough to get to the funded level.
I read reviews of Hail Caesar and many commented on the great playability, and how easily new people were able to get into a game. Maybe BtGOA will appear anyway, just a year or two later than KS would have permitted.

Dorthonion · **Posted:** Sat Feb 02, 2013 4:43 pm

This appears to have stalled temporarily on Kickstarter - it is taking a long time to get past the £100K mark (only 1/3 of the way to being successful) and more than half the alloted time has passed. Warlord Games have been looking for sculpters urgently - they put up an advert on their site. The DSC forums are very active. Some more information on the campaign side of all this and evolutionary side of a 'universe' that is shaped by the effects of players has been given some more detail. But still little in the way of art or WIP greens, and that is upsetting some backers, including myself. I may choose to sit this one out, ultimately - and it may not even make the KS target of £300K on current trends, though the guys behind it say that they will work on at it anyway - it will just take longer to produce.

Jamros · **Posted:** Sat Feb 02, 2013 11:00 pm

Well, now that it has stalled, what is it about this Kickstarter that is causing it to fail? The same criticisms I had about GoA I also have for Dreadball, Kings of War, Kingdom Death and many others--poor aesthetic style and unappealing universe--but those were all very successful. Maybe I just happened to have agreed with more people on GoA.

Or maybe it has more to do with giving the people too much control--both in the Kickstarter and with GoA itself. There's nothing compelling to get behind.

Dorthonion · **Posted:** Wed Feb 13, 2013 2:26 pm

The Kickstarter has been cancelled - there was no prospect of meeting the goal. Rick Priestley has stated that they intend to proceed with the game but in some other way and probably on a longer timescale.

Dagorlad · **Posted:** Sat Feb 16, 2013 1:07 pm

That's a kick in the teeth then! I was looking forward to seeing where this goes. If anyone could do a "40K Killer" it would be Rick Priestly.

Jamros · **Posted:** Sat Feb 16, 2013 4:39 pm

It looks like Priestley was interviewed about it by Warren on BoW, but it's a "Backstage" video, so I can't watch it.

Dorthonion · **Posted:** Sat Feb 16, 2013 6:57 pm

Ditto. From what Warren said on the Weekender video, it wasn't an interview just about BtGoA but going right back to how Rick got into gaming in the first instance. Apparently BoW want to do more of these with other games developeers. The name Matt Ward was bandied about and an invitation made.

Dagorlad · **Posted:** Sun Feb 17, 2013 4:25 am

An interview with Mad Wart*? That'd be entertaining, not.

I'd much prefer to hear from Adam Troke, Alessio Cavatore or Andy Chambers, since these guys have some decent rules-smithing under their belts.

*

Click to: Show

Dorthonion · **Posted:** Mon Feb 18, 2013 1:49 pm

I think Master Warren was implying that he would be in his best pitbull Paxman mode (for those who do not know, Paxman is famous for interrogating politicians on BBC).

Beyond the Gates of Antares - new Kickstarter

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