Smoke test sent! Surveys arriving next week!
over 2 years ago – Sun, Oct 09, 2022 at 05:10:07 AM

Hello Dodino Island!

We are happy to announce that the smoke test was sent a few minutes ago. This means that 5% of the backers of each tier (taken randomly by the platform) received the email linking to their survey in the pledge manager to complete the pledge. The smoke test is the last step in setting up the pledge manager to help us fix any issues that might be reported. If you are one of the 5% who received the survey and you spot something odd, please let us know at [email protected] so we can fix it.

The rest of the surveys will follow on Tuesday, October 11th. If you don't receive the email by Wednesday, neither on your inbox or spam folder, please send us an email to the address shared above. 

If you are new to Backerkit, you can check the previous update to see what to expect and what to do. 

Featured add-ons

You will find the featured add-ons at the top, including the newest unlocks such as the 3x mini expansion, the plushies, coloring book (digital or physical). We need your help to unlock BOTH plushies and the coloring book by achieving the minimum order quantity. We are counting on you to make these a reality! (Credit cards won't be charged until it is defined whether or not these add-ons are unlocked). 

The full avian trilogy crossover pack was also included in the top because it is one of the most popular add-ons for backers who own multiple games of the Creature Kingdoms series.

Development progress 

While Will and Pepe made great progress on the gameplay contents (taking into consideration many of your ideas) Gnomosapiens has been working on the art for your game. 

Here are some dodino idols for you to enjoy!

There has been some questions regarding the upgraded pack from War for Chicken Island. If you only pledge for that item, the cost includes the shipping and once your order is placed, you should not pay more shipping for only that reward. 

 ESSEN 2022

Pepe is having a blast at Essen playing Dodos Riding Dinos all the way! Visit us at the booth of Taverna Ludica at Hall 5 / 5A101. 

Will and Moy had a great time at SHUX'22 during last weekend, running many demos of Dodos Riding Dinos, War for Chicken Island, Kiwi Chow Down and Lords of Vaala. 

Thanks to everyone who stopped by to say hi, play the games or showing us your beautifully painted minis! We are very glad to have met our community in Vancouver!

That's all for now! Stay tuned for your Backerkit surveys next week!

ROAAAAR!

Pledge manager coming soon and miniature progress!
over 2 years ago – Thu, Sep 29, 2022 at 01:06:13 AM

Hola Dodino Island! 

Hope this update finds everyone having tons of fun and healthy, we have some exciting news to share with all of you. 

-----------------TOPICS------------

• Miniature & Art progress (and a small plushie surprise!)  
• Upcoming conventions 
• Digital fulfillment 
• Pledge manager  

-------------------------------------

Miniature & Art progress 

We have been working on the final racer miniature, and we are so happy with the result of the Dicynodont. Also, art hasn't stopped and the Megalodon with the Panda rider art is ready for you to see! 

In my previous update, we shared the art of the Kiwi and Ichthyosaurus, I mentioned placeholder names but I wasn't aware that they were already named in honor of our backer Jabb's daughter, so welcome Axelle & Gaddy!

As you remember, during the campaign we unlocked the plushies! They will be available for you in the pledge manager and we have been working with Panda to create the best Dodo-Dino plsuhies!

The plushie is still a work in progress, this were samples that were sent,  Osborn & Reynaldo will have some changes to make them even more similar to the cover art. 

The baby dodo is my personal favorite, as it is so cute and pocket size, so it goes with my tsum tsum collection. 

Also, we hear your comments and during the pledge manager, we will have a stretch goal for the physical coloring book of Dodos Riding Dinos available! If a certain amount of books are sold, we will unlock that addon and make it a reality! 

Conventions around the world 

It didn't end with GenCon and we are super excited to continue playing boardgames with you all. This year we will attend our first SHUX'22 from September 30th to October 2nd in Vancouver, Canada. If you are in the area, come and say hi at Vancouver Convention Centre Booth #504. Will and Moy will be there. 

But the fun doesn't end here, Pepe from Detestable Games will be attending Essen from the 6th through the 9th of October. Visit us at the booth of Taverna Ludica at Hall 5 / 5A101. We will have some copies for sale of Dodos Riding Dinos and demos!

 Digital Fulfillment 

By today, all backers from War for Chicken Island should have received an email from DrivethruRPG with the updated rulebook and cards from the base game. You can also find the rulebook here. 

Regarding the Print&Plays from Dodos Riding Dinos, War for Chicken Island and Kiwi Chow Down, along with the expansions, they were delivered via MMF a few days ago with the STLs. If you are missing the link, please send an email to [email protected] and Ana will send the redeem link. 

For the Dodo Dash - Print&Play, we are still working on the game, this one will be delivered around December once we finish the game and start translations. 

 Pledge Manager 

We have sent everything to Backerkit for revision and once we have their approval, the smoke test will be sent to some of you and 24 hours later, the rest of the surveys will follow. We hope to send the smoke test by the end of the week. 

We know must of you are already familiar with Backerkit but for those who are new to our family, here's a step by step:

1. You'll receive an email asking you to fill your survey, the email will take you to this first tab that will ask for your general shipping details - country and state/region. 

2. Once the country and state/region is confirmed, you will be asked a few questions regarding Draco Studios and the project. Here is where you will choose your preferred language. If you pledged for more than one game, you will need to choose the language for each one. 

3. The favorite part for most of our backers, the addons! You will be able to pick any extra item you missed from the campaign. On this section, you will be able to add the plushies and the crossover miniature pack that was unlocked during the campaign. Also, if you have any extra credit, it will be shown here. The physical coloring book will be available here too. 

IMPORTANT NOTE - shipping will be adjusted in the next step once you add the proper shipping address. 

**Loyalty reward for returning backers will appear once placing the order, please do not add it yourself. If it is not showing in your pledge, please send an email to [email protected] 

4. Once your order is confirmed, you will be asked to add your shipping address (here is where your shipping fee will be modified at the payment). If you are picking up your pledge directly in Mexico City or Guadalajara, please add the preferred city and in Country choose "Local Pick Up". 

5. Once your shipping address is confirmed, your balance will be updated and you will need to add your payment method. Once you add the info, click on "Place my order", your card will not be charged immediately, but once we lock orders. 

6. Sit and relax, we are pouring our heart into our projects and you will just need to wait for your game (or games) to arrive! 

ROAAAAAR!

Art and miniature's progress!
over 2 years ago – Wed, Aug 31, 2022 at 05:44:24 AM

Hola Dodos and Dinos! 

Our team is working super fast to send the surveys in around 2-3 weeks from now so you can choose your preferred language, add your shipping address and add any extras you would like in the pledge manager, like the unlocked add-ons during the campaign! No action needed from your side until the surveys arrive. 

In the meantime, just relax and enjoy the new fun art we have been working on:

We have been considering this name because of how the Dicynodont was discovered. 

The first description of dicynodonts in 1845 was made by Andrew Geddes Bain. He described these fossils in a 1845 letter published in Transactions of the Geological Society of London, calling them "bidentals" for their two prominent tusks. In that same year, the English paleontologist Richard Owen named two species of dicynodonts from South Africa: Dicynodon lacerticeps and Dicynodon bainii. Bain was preoccupied as a supervisor for the construction of military roads with the Corps of Royal Engineers, and he wanted Owen to describe his fossils more extensively. In 1859, Owen named the group Dicynodontia. In his Descriptive and Illustrated Catalogue, Owen honored Bain by erecting Bidentalia as a replacement name for his Dicynodontia, but the name quickly fell out of use in the following years, replaced by popularity of Owen's Dicynodontia.

As for the Kiwi with the Ichthyosaurus, we were thinking about the possible name of "Anning & Mary", the names are after the discoverers of the Ichthyosaurus: Mary and Joseph Anning (siblings), who in the early 19th century, discovered the first complete fossil in England. Everything is a suggestion at the moment, so feel free to drop your ideas for them in the comment section! 

The 8th racer was won by the Proceratosaurus (shared already in the previous update), and was first discovered by F. Lewis Bradley during excavation for a reservoir at Minchinhampton, a town in the Cotswolds in Gloucestershire, England. The dino name comes from the creator of Naruto (which we took inspiration from to create the peculiar running style and colors) Masashi Kisimoto. 

We also saw some new entries when the campaign was coming to an end and we wanted to share with all of you how our collage ended up: 

There's an active campaign in MMF with the digital files for this campaign, we will hurry up to fulfill the STLs and print&plays from the previous games (Dodos Riding Dinos, Kiwi Chow Down and War for Chicken Island). You can pledge if you missed a digital file that you would like and we have a 10% off code for backers, please us: Dodos_Riding10

We are still working in the final details for the upgraded rulebook of War for Chicken Island, but our goal is to finish it by Friday. 

We are in the last two days for possible cancellations, please send an email to [email protected]. 

ROAAAR! 

And remember... 

Thank you for an amazing race!
over 2 years ago – Sun, Aug 21, 2022 at 06:21:21 AM

Thank you Dodino Island! Thank you for a delightful ride! 

31 Stretch goals unlocked, 4,864 backers and tons of fun! Definitely you made the campaign possible, but most important, you addded all the fun! I love my job and big part of that is thanks to you! Thank you for your active and constant participation in the comments, for the answers and guesses on the puzzles, for all the emails asking for the product, for your interest, for your trust & support and simply for being here with us on this ride! Remember that I'm just one comment or email away. Feel free to reach me out at [email protected](either me or Ana will be back to you). 

We had a livestream when wrapping up the campaign, unfortunately we had audio difficulties so you might be able to read our lips (ROAAAAR!) !! just kidding, at minute 11:30 the audio was back, and we tried to recap what we have said and cover all the topics. It was a different livestream because the team joined the call! At minute 4:19 you can see the countdown with the team. 

Now, let's take a look at what we unlocked in the final minutes. We were able to reach 31 Stretch Goals. Thank you so much for your support and comprehension with the last update, we truly treasure your trust and we are confident that the results on the game will amaze you. Will is really committed to deliver an outstanding game and nothing escapes from his eye. 

Final stretch goals 

You were on fire at the end and the 9th racer was unlocked! Followed by thicker trap tokens (335K) a more deluxify board (345K) and even we didn't reach the 350K, we decided to unlocked the 6 extra cards! 

Unlocked racers and winners for the 8th and 9th racer! 

• 5th racer - Sternberg & Alberta 
• 6th racer - Sarah & Dianne
• 7th racer - Sharov, Arya & Paula 
• 8th racer - The proceratosaurus! 
• 9th racer - the dicynodont! 

Any name suggestions for the 8th and 9th racers? 

Even though we didn't post an update immediately, development hasn't stopped and once we had the final results from the poll, we started working on the 8th racer. Look at this progress: 

And of course here's a progress on the mini: 

 Also we did a small adjustment to the Longisquamas because they looked to small compared to the other racers, they'll be running up that hill! 

 
Plushie winners

As you may see, we had the giveaway winners in the livestream. Thank you for your participation and congratulations to @Esteban, @Jaime Heintz and @Janie Théoret. As for the puzzles, as mentioned previously, the 3 winners were Zach Hitzeroth, Kyle P, and VJ. Once the pledge manager opens, you will be able to choose between "Osborn&Reynaldo" or the "Baby Dodo" plushies! 

Draco reunion

After the rush of the campaign, we were able to get together (after travelling some hours) with part of the team and play some games! Of course, Creature Kingdoms was present with all the games and we couldn't had more fun! 

Next steps

We are honored to have so many new backers in the campaign, welcome all to our Creature Kingdoms' universe! Fasten your seat belts cause the fun is just starting! For those who are not familiar with Kickstarter, here's what you should do or expect in the next weeks: 

•  Kickstarter will process payments this week and will deposit funds to our account in 2 weeks. Backers with errored pledges must fix their payment (more about that below) within the next 7 days (Thursday 25th is the last day).
• We will finish setting up Backerkit (our pledge manager) to send your surveys in around 8 weeks. Here, you will be able to add extra items such as the Crossover miniatures pack and the plushies. You may also upgrade your pledge level and pay for shipping fees, as well as letting us know your mailing address. We will accept late pledges for a short time in here (in case you know someone who missed the campaign) but of course, our backers always get the best deals, so late pledges might not have the same price or bundles than the reward tiers but rather, they will be separate items for late pledges.

Errored pledges

If you had issues from Kickstarter charging your credit or debit card, (you can tell if you received an e-mail about it) follow this steps:

• Identify the source of the problem and provide the solution: 1. Your card has no funds: Transfer funds to it.  2. Another Kickstarter project you backed ended on the same day: Your bank blocked the card for security by thinking it was a duplicated charge.  3. Your card is incompatible with Kickstarter US charge hub: Try using a different card (yours or from a friend).
• On a web browser (not in the app) go to https://www.kickstarter.com/ and log into your account.
• You will see a red banner at the top of the website saying you have an errored pledge. Click on "Fix Payment" 
• Try again with the proper card (see the first step: Identify the source of the problem). 

There is a bug on which Kickstarter states you have successfully fixed your pledge even though it might haven't worked. The best way to confirm is to refresh the page and not having the red banner on the top; alternatively try looking in your mail for the proper confirmation. Backers with errored pledges have 7 days to fix it and Kickstarter will automatically retry at the end of the 7-day window. If you are not able to fix it within that time, your pledge will be automatically marked as dropped. Don't worry, you will still have 2 opportunities to fix it:

• The first will be when we send the surveys (in about 5 weeks). We may be able to charge your card properly in our platform.
• The next will be some months after the surveys are sent, we will be able to enable PayPal payments.

We will be here to provide support. But rest assured that your pledge info is still on record and you will have some opportunities to fix payment in the future. However, it is better to fix the payment in Kickstarter so that you still receive the project updates directly. Having said all of this, your last resource is to ask someone else (a friend or family member) for their card so you can try different cards Visa, American Express, Master Card until the payment is successful.
 

 On behalf of everyone at Draco Studios and Detestable Games, thank you again for joining us and trusting us on this new adventure to El Dodorado! Let's keep up with this new stage in the race! 

ROAAAR!

Last 2 meters! (ok, hours)
over 2 years ago – Thu, Aug 18, 2022 at 11:15:42 PM

ROAAAAAR - HOLAAAA Dodino Island!   

What a way to start the day, with great news, with a lot of messages from Pepe and with a bathroom water-leak that took us by surprise (all fixed). We had a morning meeting to review what we had planned and what you want and we ended up in the middle with a change of plans.  

Our plans were to make a big revelation in today's livestream (starting 5 minutes before the end of the campaign) but at this point and now that the puzzles have been solved (yay!) we feel it is necessary to disclose some announcements.

The answers for the puzzles:

DODOSAURUS EGG... WILL HATCH... IT IS NOT AN IDLE THRONE!

Congratulations to everyone who guessed any of these right and thanks everyone who joined in this activity! We had a lot of fun creating the puzzles and reading your comments – even if they were solved a lot faster than what we expected. 

Special congratulations for Zach Hitzeroth, Kyle P, and VJ who were the first backers to guess correctly the respective puzzle! 

So... in the original game the one-shot RPG adventure revealed a map that lead to the entrance of El DoDorado! 

Now the 2nd game takes place in El Dodorado and everything is pointing towards a last mystery related to the Dodosaurus Egg-Throne:

That means something BIG!!!! HUGE!!! HUMONGOUS!!!

DODOS RIDING DINOS IS GETTING A THIRD AND FINAL EXPANSION ON 2024!

This is how our release schedule for Creature Kingdoms look like:

• Winter 2022 - Fulfillment of Kiwi Chow Down
• Spring 2023 - Fulfillment of Dodo Dash (this campaign)
• Summer 2023 - Launch of Party Panda Pirates (inspired on the most popular party video game)
• Spring 2024 - Fulfillment of Party Panda Pirates
• Summer 2024 - Launch of Dodosaurus expansion

With that, we will wrap up our vision for Dodos Riding Dinos narrative. Our plan is for that semi-cooperative expansion to include a very large mini of the Dodosaurus who chase players across more boards and introducing more dinos (Carnotaurus, we will eventually meet you!), even the highly acclaimed feathered dinosaurs. 

But that seems very far away from now, so what does it mean for the present?

• Dodo Dash, the 2nd title of Dodos Riding Dinos was developed keeping in mind the price point requested by distributors with an MSRP of $50 USD (our KS backers getting it for $39 USD). 
• To accomplish that, this time the Kickstarter version of the game (and the copies in the pledge manager in case you decide to upgrade) will include more content than the mass distribution copies (which will just have 6 minis). Retailer backers: As part of the Kickstarter you get the Kickstarter version with all 9 minis. 
• It is important for us that all new content fits in the expansion box, that way you can keep everything (including promo racers) organized in the core boxes, easier to transport.
• At this stage we are not releasing a big box of holding because we plan for that to be available with the third and final expansion so you can hold all titles of Dodos Riding Dinos in a collector's big box. 
• We can assure you the wait will be worthwhile, because we plan to include more boards in the 3rd expansion (which won't be as tied with target price/cost as Dodo Dash) and we have plans for some promo game boards available for special occasions. Once we have everything lock down, that big box will be able to hold all of it. We also plan to do a slipcase if you want to hold different configurations of Creature Kingdoms games together, such as War for Chicken Island, Kiwi Chow Down and Party Panda Pirates.

Storing solutions is of paramount importance to me as a gamer and as creator. You can learn more about my focus in this update from the original Dodos Riding Dinos.

Final Stretch Goal

So, as Pam mentioned in the comments, we are making a change of plans because we are hearing your requests.

• Since the beginning the scope of this release was 10 minis (including Servit & Aureus) but we have included the crossover pack with 3 more. At this stage the issue here is not the price because tooling is spread across thousands of copies and material cost is not much. But adding another miniature might jeopardize the goal of making all the new content fit in the Dodo Dash box. 

Once again, you have reached and exceeded our expectations! Just as it happened in the original Dodos Riding Dinos campaign! 

So here's what's on our minds for the last stretch goal:

• Personally, I wanted to deluxify even more the Kickstarter version. I talked yesterday with our manufacturer and I believe we can add even more special treatments to the temple board to make it even more beautiful and impressive. Or upgrading the tokens to 3mm thick so they feel chunkier. Or adding golden gilded edges to the dodo idol cards (or even holofoil finish). With the projected funding we could include any 2 special finishes to the Kickstarter version. I think this is the best option and while they do not add gameplay value, many of you have already found the delight of playing with a beautifully-crafted game. 
• We drafted at this stage to have a new projectile (which we were saving for the Dodosaurus expansion because it has not been playtested yet, it is just a concept). There's medium risk here in rushing its development or having to extend timeline due to it and the associated cards to the new projectile.
•  New gameboard is the most complex one. It would require us to change the box size and would definitely change the development time to lock down the dynamics and art with all the associated playtesting and brainstorming time. It is also the most expensive not just because of the material but also for the extra weight in containers and parcels. With all my publishing experience I do not recommend this. Shipping, freight, production, and development wise this alternative is the riskier one to lead us into complications because we did not plan to include 2 boards in this set to stick with the MSRP objective requested by our distributors. On the bright side, I can share that we have plans for multiple boards in the future (the third expansion and some promo boards that you will be able to get).

I always love to see familiar faces (avatars + username?) in our new campaigns, so many of you already know that I ALWAYS VALUE YOUR INPUT IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF OUR GAMES. For those of you who don't know me, I'm very grateful for meeting you in this campaign, I want you to know that I believe Kickstarter is built around trust, and it goes both ways. So here we are sharing with full transparency our plans and the current scenarios. While we have had delays in the past, but we have fulfilled more than 20 Kickstarters already. As the campaign's end approaches, I wanted to hear what you all think about the final stretch goal, the timeline, and the future opportunities to get more boards and miniatures to complete the Dodos Riding Dinos trilogy.

Please let us know your thoughts! You are part of this project development and we are thankful that you chose to join us at this stage of the project, on Kickstarter. ROAAAAAAAR!

Crossover miniatures 

The unlocked add-on when reaching the 4,228 backers will become available in the pledge manager, along with the plushies and coloring pages, not in the campaign.

And thanks to @Temo, who pointed out a mistake we have with the Panda, the correct name is Megalodon, not Megalosaurus (Will and I had been watching Dinosaurs and we get stuck with the might megalosaurus, Earl Sinclair). 

Livestream

Join us at 1:55pm CT (in about 2 hrs) via Facebook or Youtube in the final countdown to end what has been a delightful race with you all! We will also announce the winner from the giveaway!