There’s Gold with CMON’s Gods of Egypt

It’s not Ankh-expected that CMON’s Gods of Egypt is exceeding expectations amongst board gamers to be a Kickstarter success.

Ankh: Gods of Egypt

It’s not Ankh-expected that CMON’s Gods of Egypt is exceeding expectations amongst board gamers to be a Kickstarter success. That said, just what miniatures enthusiasts and wargamers can expect is finally revealed. This crowdfunding campaign began a week ago and hit six times the amount (at the time of writing) required to get this game into production! They are very close to unlocking all the stretch goals, and this is particularly exciting for me, it’s cheaper to buy this game than to collect the giant-sized knock-offs from a local Arabian shop to display. The difference between those touristy items and the product here is that I can play with them!

Here, the story is simple: Play an Egyptian god or goddess hoping to stay strong–worshipped by the devout as they provide the only means for survival as monotheism crawls closer. Only can survive whilst the others will fall.

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Kickstarting OMG! Horror & Interviewing Tone Rodriguez!

Tone Rodriguez and OMG! Horror AnthologyOMG! Is an upcoming horror anthology set to arrive on Kickstarter at the end of April. This series will be published by indie Aequitas Comics and Editor-in-chief Tone Rodriguez would have been championing this baby at a lot more conventions if only the world is not in lockdown. Fortunately, he was able to get a start at shows like Fan Expo Vancouver.

The Emerald City Comic Convention ashcan teaser edition has been “cancelled” and appropriately enough, is selling online for those wanting an advance teaser.

This series differs from others such that it draws from urban legends from all around the world, and leaves the finer details up to the imaginations of the writers and artists. The talent pool is huge, and Rodriguez hinted at having not only well-established talents but also newcomers contributing. I had the opportunity to chat with him briefly about this when he was in Canada, and correspond further to see what the plans are given the current situation that’s affecting many an industry.

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Ruby Roundup! An Organic Card Game on Kickstarter!

Ruby Roundup Card Game Box DesignBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Dan Spiller is a name in the Downtown Victoria gaming and nerd scene. He has high hopes Ruby Roundup! a game he made will set a new standard for what card games can offer to gamers and it is on Kickstarter for those who want to help bring it to a larger market. He’s the creative mind behind the newly minted, Always Gold Games. It’s one part board game and two parts random draw. It’s been in development for a few years, and the goal is to accumulate treasure to win. It’s kind of like the days of hunting for gold; stake your claim and dig up as much mineral as you can to get a lot of money. This product had been getting test demos at local events, and according to this game designer, it is not like other card games currently in the market.

His experience in development stems from not only his passion for this subculture but also in being a lifelong enthusiast. He is one of the principal operators of Yellowjacket Games and Comics here in this city. This store is one of five hubs in the capital region to host Magic the Gathering events. When the staff is just as enthusiastic playing these games as they are in making them, it’s a good sign anything they like to create will have that passion behind it too!

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[Electronic Bungalow] Sleep Tech Japanese Style!

Sleep Tech Japanese Style!By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

Anyone looking for a new way to fall asleep does not have to buy into those late-night scams they see on television. MyPillow is very dubious at best. I’m fairly sure I put my head on one during one hotel stay in the States and I believe getting into that zone to achieving REM sleep requires more than comfort for the head, but also in how much physical activity an individual had during the day (regular exercise is recommended), setting in the bedroom and mood.

Enter Sleepion 2, a piece of technology created in Japan combining sound and light therapy with aromatherapy to crafting an environment to help people reach a state where one alternative approach can not. It’s a sleep aid that’s supposed to be able to help folks reprogram their natural biorhythms. I have used the smell of lavender, changed the light bulbs to use red light and binaural sounds before to help me on those difficult nights. Though they do not always work on its own, perhaps combining each of these alternative methods can do a better job, since sleeping pills never work for me.

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Transformers Prime: Galvatron’s Revenge Rolls Out with a Teaser

To follow the latest talk about this continuation of Transformers Prime, please visit tfw2005.com’s message boards.

Transformers Prime Galvatron's Revenge Teaser Movie PosterAlthough Transformers Prime: Galvatron’s Revenge is a failed Kickstarter project from 2015, props has to go to the team still working on bringing this fan film to life. They are making it as a labour of love. On TFW2005’s message boards, the hope is to bring this one-off movie in 2017. The modelling for all the main characters are done, test animations made and render of the introduction sequence posted on YouTube (see below). What’s presented feels more like 1.5

The pacing follows in the style created in the original product, and all it needs is further finessing. Add some more phong shading, patina and some battle scars to these mechs, and this product can roll out.

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Crowdfunding Paradox Girl, a Lesson in Time-Travel — an Interview

While most of the content is lighthearted and whimsical, we’ll see what it’s like for Paradox Girl to struggle with timelessness and the lack of consequence. Loss, identity and regret are underlying themes of the character and while juggling that whimsy, we’ll deal with some of those deeper concepts.

Paradox Girl Comic Book CoverCayti Bourquin is the writer/creator of a new kind of heroine, codenamed: Paradox Girl, illustrated by Yishan Li. Together, both this duo and and Peter Bensley, editor of Hana Comics, are taking to crowdfunding on Kickstarter to help this comic book take off. They are well past their goal, and the team believes there’s a market for this special kind of independent hit.

This character is very different from the normal type of heroes found in print and the story looks at a problem found with stories involving time-travel — just how do you deal with altering anyone’s personal time stream? The television series Doctor Who dodges the issue and CW’s Legends of Tomorrow has yet to consider the bigger picture. The pilot episode already altered the timeline with how Professor Boardman passed on — or was the incident meant to be? Even in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the 2012 animated series, the heroes in the half-shell went back in time to pretend they are Yokai only to save their sensei. The most craziest of situations was explored in Futurama, Bender’s Big Score. Just how these other properties addresses the issue of altering time-lines makes for great story-telling and Bourquin has a plan in mind for her Paradox Girl (PG). She may seem to be an ordinary hero, but there’s more to her than meets the eye, especially when she has to live with all her future selves.

At least the hit here is that issue #2 will happen. There’s still two weeks left to this campaign. Readers might want to take note of possible convention appearances as they get announced by Bensley. Artist Yishan Li will be attending Europen conventions with this product. Although shy, perhaps Cayti Bourquin can be encouraged to appear for autograph signings in a tour at shows in North America.

Otakunoculture spoke with Bensley and Bourquin about this product:

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