Launching today on Kickstarter, the first “official” IDW Game is now live in the form of “Kill Shakespeare,” the game. IDW has had some of their comics turned into various other things before, including card games (like “Locke & Key”), but this is the first big board game adaptation.
The game’s mechanics aren’t really explained too well in the Kickstarter, but from what I can glean, it appears to be a Shakespeare-inspired Risk-esque endeavor, where players have to battle for control of the realm via card-issued quests surrounding various Shakespeare plays, all with the goal of defeating King Richard and Lady Macbeth. And if you remember either plays, let alone the comic series, you’ll know that they’re quite formidable and manipulative.
It’s an interesting concept for a game, though. It made for an interesting comic, sure, but mixing up all of the Shakespeare plays into a board game is the kind of idea that you have to ask, well, why didn’t someone do this sooner? And it opens up a lot of fun options for you and your friends to sit around at home and argue, “No, I get to be Rosencratz and you can be Guildenstern!” while someone sits off in the corner wondering about what it’d be like to be dead, lying in a box with a lid on it. But it’s silly to be depressed by it.
Now, I know a lot of people are wary about Kickstarter, especially after the recent (supposedly issue-free hack), but I think the game looks like fun. And I have some fond memories of the comic, so that certainly helps my interest. That and I like playing games. And Shakespeare. And– Shit, this is kind of tailor made for a sucker like me, isn’t it?
Check out the “Kill Shakespeare” game on Kickstarter now. There are about 300 early bird discounts available, if you get in while the getting’s good!
For the full press release, please see below.
IDW Press Release
Today, IDW Games in cooperation with Pandasaurus Games launched a Kickstarter campaign for their first joint venture, Kill Shakespeare. The campaign’s goal is $25,000, and there will be a series of stretch goals in place that will make incremental improvements to the game for each milestone hit. With an amazing creative team in place and two world-class artists delivering the box and game art, this campaign is poised to be a huge success!
“We’re excited to give fans – both old and new – this early-bird opportunity to check out the board game,” said Anthony Del Col, co-creator of the Kill Shakespeare comic series. “This is the first game from IDW Games, and we’re blown away by how amazing it’s shaping up to be – they’ve done a fantastic job of adding to our already-expansive world. We’re glad that this Kickstarter campaign will allow audiences to get copies before anyone else, and we look forward to hearing back from everyone throughout the campaign.”
The first 250 people to back the Kill Shakespeare campaign will secure copies of the game at the deepest discount available. No matter when fans pledge during the campaign, the game will be offered $10 under suggested retail price with free or discounted shipping around the globe!
This campaign offers fans the chance to pick up additional content ranging from comics to lithographs to a set of custom dice. Stretch goals are in place to improve the quality of the game components as well as expanding game content to include more characters and quests.
“Kickstarter offers us a platform to truly connect with the fans,” said IDW Games Director, Jerry Bennington. “What’s being done on the site is amazing, and we’re proud to bring our project to the community. We invite backers to take an in-depth look at the game we’re delivering and to comment on what we can do to deliver the best possible tabletop gaming experiences. With this project, IDW will continue its history of delivering unparalleled quality, and I, for one, am excited to see what kind of stretch goals end up in the final box!”
The campaign is live now, and you can make your pledge at: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/idwgames/kill-shakespeare
About Pandasaurus
Pandasaurus Games is a start-up independent publisher of hobby board and card games based in Austin, TX. Our goal is to help great games make it to gamers’ tables. We believe board games are a great way to get together with friends and family and foster a sense of community that many forms of entertainment stifle.
