In 2016, Osprey Games gave me my "game designer" big break and published Horizon Wars, a hard(ish) science fiction combined arms battle game, pitched for 6mm play (but playable anywhere from 2mm up to 15mm) and miniatures/setting agnostic.
The game hardly set the world on fire, but it has certainly built up a loyal and passionate following over the last three years and when I released Over the Horizon - a self-published supplement, currently available in PDF only from Wargame Vault, but with a full print-on-demand glossy hardback version to be available very shortly - I was enormously cheered by the impressive sales I achieved off the blocks (especially considering that most of the contents had been available individually either as a micro-transaction or basically free previously).
I decided it was time to get serious with Horizon Wars's true sequel - something I had planned from the start: a 28mm skirmish game (but playable anywhere from 15mm to 54mm) along the same design principles but with the granular detail you would expect from a skirmish.
Anyway, Zero Dark is now about 95% done, in terms of writing the thing. I've splashed out on Adobe InDesign and done a course to learn how to use it. But to help me get it over the line, I need some input.
Unfortunately, I've tried to get feedback on this sort of thing before by sharing open betas and soliciting opinions with little success. I've even tried paying people to give me proper feedback. Again - no joy. So I've taken the plunge and started a Patreon page.
The psychology behind this is twofold:
First, people who commit money to someething (even just a little money) are far more likely to give it their considered time and let the creator know if they want something different. Money gives participants both an incentive and a voice.
Second, I get to offset some of my costs in getting this far and even build up a little funding towards getting some good quality art done to illustrate this book.
Anyway, the book is slated for release in early 2020 (I'm aiming for "by the end of April" as an absolute latest but, as I'll be in Japan for most of April, "by the end of March" is the more likely target). If you'd like to follow along do join the Facebook group for details. And if you'd like to contribute or get early access to the beta material (which will be public access in December), you might even consider becoming a patron.
Either way, I'll post updates here as things go along.