Dread Ball Kickstarter...a few days to go.

Dread Ball. A Science Fiction board game based on a high velocity ball game. Scale 28mm.

Mantic have created a Kickstarter package for further development of Dread Ball and it does not have long to go. It is going really well and for backers (those who pledge money) the rewards are getting bigger and bigger as more and more money keeps rolling in. The basic game looks as though it has been fully developed but is yet to be released so kickstarter seems to be a way for them to generate pre-sales prior to it's release in December 2012. However the large amount of cash that kickstarter is generating for them is going towards product development for sculpts for new teams for the next set of releases (2nd Season). So far 4 teams are completed for the first season. Humans, Maruaders (Sc-Fi Orcs and Goblins), Forgefathers (Sc-Fi Dwarves) and, Verr-Mynn (Sci-Fi Rat like humanoids). I have been following the recent announcements that they make when they reach a new level of funding and it has been very interesting and creative with new team developments such as Robots, a Human all Female team, Alien teams with one being very insectoid looking. Mantic also appears to be interested in feed back and opinions from gamers. Makes it feel a little collaborative.
What is appealing about this game is the way that the basic rules of the game have been described. That it is fairly easy to pick up and play however discussion has also been around how this simplicity in no way avoids complex tactical play. In other words being clever. Reminds me of the Mantic Kings of War rules...simple and easy but this open ups more thinking about tactics as there is no "I got you" clause that super duper special rules that are very tiny and easily overlooked.......you probably know what I mean.
Of course many will compare it to Blood Bowl and why wouldn't you. But this game has many points of difference such as the board does not get reset after each time a player scores. It may well be a faster turn based game. One aspect of Blood Bowl that I must say I found a turn off was the observation of the players at my club who would report very low scores. eg. 1- 0 or 3-1. Turns out Dread Ball has a point of difference here with the score really being about the difference in goals. eg. you score 7 points I score 6.....we are separated by 1 point. A further point of difference is squares vs a hex based board. I am not hanging negative vibes on Blood Bowl at all because I know a lot of gamers who love it and have done so for many years and will probably continue to do so. However Dread Ball, while it may have some time to go before it reaches the crevices of every game club in the world may be very interesting for players as it continues to expand with League play and more teams with a big tactical variety and even cheer leaders and coach figures that have an actual in-game effect.

I consider myself a War Gamer first and foremost. I like stuff blowing up. I like armys not footballs. If I want to see sports I try and see a game of Rugby (go All Blacks). However I have taken the plunge and backed Dread Ball. It is certainly a great way to get more bang for your dollars. Will I play the game enough? Not really sure....I have enough games to play at the moment. What I will do though is enjoy painting something different to my usual toys (Flames of War and Saga). Perhaps I will sell the teams to fund future hobby purchases for a small profit. Perhaps I can start a new Kickstarter to get me finances to attend some interstate tournaments. That would be cool. :)

Anyway you don't have long to back Dread Ball if you are on the fence about it.
Cheers and happy gaming from Brendon (The Kiwi).
AYou Tube Dread Ball link...

http://youtu.be/1KiAepXe4mw