"Beyond the Gates of Antares Playtest" Topic

I did a quick solo game to test out the outlines rules for Beyond the Gates of Antares, which was pretty interesting. You can check out my battle report, and my observations on how the game plays, here:

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Ta for that. Some of the in-game reactions already give me hope that it's not just 40K's red-headed stepbrother, but I agree that some of whatever uniqueness it has could shine through a bit more. I guess I should go take a look at the downloads myself.

Though in your opinion, is the Kickstarter worth a punt, even if just for the future rulebook?

It definitely doesn't play anything like a game of Warhammer 40K. Much more interactive. And there are more types of reactions that I didn't really use, like running for cover. Doesn't feel at all like 40K with different background. Even at this very early stage of development, it clearly shows signs of being a fast flowing game with some interesting tactical decisions to make. And I like the background I've read so far.

I think the Kickstarter is worth it, certainly at least at the rulebook level. If you haven't used Kickstarter before, they only charge you the money when, and if, the project is successfully funded. So you don't lose anything if they don't get funded. And the guys doing this project have been in the industry a long time, so I have no doubt they can deliver what they say they can. I'm sure the rulebook will cost at least as much or more when it is out for general release, but you get the free Hansa figure and access to the Alpha and Beta rules for playtesting.

The higher levels, like the Feeder Box, also seem like a really good deal. Kind of hard to tell at a glance, since you are paying for "credits" which you can use to get whatever models you want, but there is a list in one of the updates of the models they are going to make if the kickstarter funds, and how many credits each is. But the feeder box should be at least enough for two forces, each composed of 20 of the plastic wardrones and 10-12 metal figures. So that seems like a good deal, the downside being they don't have all the models sculpted yet, so you can't be sure exactly how they'll look. They should have a few more models done before the kickstarter ends, but not all of them. So you get a good deal in exchange for the risk of not liking some of the miniatures. But they have said that they will have most or all of them sculpted before you have to decide what you want to spend your credits on.

Thanks for posting this, I'm still debating this KS.

Oh! Er… It's a bit too late, now. :(

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Unfortunately, the funding had pretty much leveled off and it didn't look like there was any chance of them reaching their goal, and the Kickstarter has been cancelled. Sounds like they are still moving forward with the project, it just may take longer to get there. It's too bad, because I think the rules and background have a lot of potential, but I will keep following developments and hopefully buy the rulebook when it eventually comes out.