I hope this update finds you well and that you had a warm and festive holiday season, filled with joy and laughter. Whether you were celebrating Thanksgiving, Christmas, or ringing in the New Year, I trust it was a time of happiness and reflection.
Last week, I hosted a live stream on YouTube providing an update for everything so far. Unfortunately, a glitch in the streaming software kept the live stream going even after I ended it and I wasn't able to get back to my computer to shut it down until it was too long for YouTube to archive it. So here we go again!
Over the holidays, I cherished the opportunity to spend quality time with my son, which recharged my batteries for an exciting year ahead at High Noon.
We kicked off the season with a blast at Holiday Matsuri in Orlando, where we welcomed new faces into our posse and secured several pre-orders for our eagerly awaited new posses. Your enthusiasm fuels our journey, and we're thrilled to grow our community with each event. This weekend, we were honored to present High Noon at Dice + Diversions in Atlanta, an incredible 3-day gaming convention run by the awesome folks behind our flagship convention: Southern Fried Gaming Expo. We ran our first weekend-long tournament, using the same tournament rules as we did for the crowdfund as a dry-run for how we hope to run all tournaments and it was a rousing success with many attendees forsaking all other games, all weekend long to play round-after-round of High Noon from sun-up to sun-down to sun-up again! In the end, the winner of the tournament was a bright, young 14 year old who racked up 100 gold points! Yes that's $100 of my money he just took (ok...won fair and square) from me!
New Pre-Orders Live!
You asked for them and now I’m pleased to announce that Sitting Bear and the Bounty Missions are now available in the pre-order store!
We've introduced a new rule for the First Player Token, rigorously play-tested across our events. This token alters the gameplay dynamic significantly, compelling players to strategize several moves in advance, much like Chess. While we admit it's likely not going to be for everyone, we believe it will add a profound new layer to your High Noon experience and one you should try at least twice.
Because it's not as simple as passing the first turn on to the next player, the token will come with a simple rule card to explain exactly how it will work. Here's what that card will look like. Feel free to familiarize yourself with these rules, as well as playtesting the mechanic yourself with a placeholder "token" for now to get the hang of things before your shiny brass star arrives!
Project Updates
Clock Tower: Prototyping is complete. The factory has sent over several videos and images throughout the process and we are now currently undergoing Quality Control.
Bank and Jail: Prototyping is nearing completion. The factory has finalized the puzzle pieces and we are just wrapping up the artwork. What was shown in the trailer and in the photos on the campaign are actually older images based on the original artwork design of the starter set. The final artwork will be consistent with the new art style of the expansions and it's all looking gorgeous! Here's just a sneak peak at the front of the Jail building.
The barred walls of the jail cells, as well as the teller wall in the bank will be constructed of acrylic similar to Father Franklin's attack cone. I'm going to try and render out a mock-up with the new artwork as soon as it's all finished.
Purgatory Tiles: Now in manufacturing! We had a small issue with the resolution of the files sent to the factory but we identified the issue, got it sorted and the tiles are back on track getting printing.
First Player Token: Production finished and ready for action!
Now for the less-than-thrilling news...
Despite the progress, we are quickly approaching the Chinese New Year. This could potentially delay the projected completion date as all factories shut down for a few weeks to celebrate their holiday. If you're familiar with crowdfunding campaigns, you're likely already familiar with this common situation. If there's one thing I've learned in my experience with overseas manufacturing, it's how hard and diligent these people work throughout the year. So just sit tight as the factory staff enjoys their much-deserved annual recharge.
I'll still keep you updated with progress as it comes and there's still much to do in the meantime.
Here's to an exciting year ahead with all of you. As always, thank you for your continued support and passion for High Noon!
