Kickstarter board game pledge that burned me for $120

I backed this game called 'Monster Mash Manor' on Kickstarter back in March 2023. Got all hyped by the miniatures and stretch goals, paid $120 for the deluxe edition. Game finally showed up last week and the rulebook is a mess, pieces don't fit right, and the gameplay is basically just rolling dice with no strategy. Anyone else get stuck with a dud Kickstarter game that looked way cooler in the campaign?

2 comments

2 Comments

kelly_roberts5d ago

Oh man, that sucks so bad. I've noticed this thing with Kickstarter board games where they throw all this money at fancy 3D renders and mini sculpts but completely forget about, you know, actually making the game fun to play. It's like buying a car based on a cool paint job and then realizing the engine is made of cardboard. I feel like this is a pattern in a lot of areas, not just games people get sold on the packaging and the promises (the whole "what could be" fantasy) and then the actual product is just a letdown. $120 is a rough lesson, but at least you can maybe use the minis for something else or just resell the thing. Hope your next Kickstarter gamble actually works out better.

barnes.shane5d ago

@kelly_roberts you're right about the fantasy part. But nobody's talking about how these campaigns use FOMO to hide the bad gameplay. Limited time, exclusive stretch goals, all that noise. Makes you forget to ask basic questions about rules or replayability. $120 for minis you'll never paint and a game nobody wants to play twice.