Button Shy
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End of year update
🕑 Added 2022-12-20 15:02:39 +0000 UTCHey everyone, it's about that time I post a little end of year update here. This one will look back a little and talk about some upcoming changes to the club as well. It sounds a bit down, and I apologize for that. Just trying to solve some problems and unfortunately they don't all have answers just yet. And I know that some of these answers take a long time to implement. We've tried a lot of things and some worked and others didn't, but the months truly pass faster than any of us would like on the back end. Here are some topics and thoughts on 2023.
Postcard Line
The first thing we did was limit the postcard line in 2022. We made the limited tiers and stopped adding new patrons to it. It was such a good idea and we are very happy with keeping it limited. It's not for everyone, and it's not our greatest strength. We look at it as more of a fun side thing, but it hasn't been very fun.
We tried out our first 6 month postcard game with Hush, which was intended to make it so a postcard game didn't wear out its welcome, but then it didn't do what the yearlong postcard games do for us... which is give us the time to sign, develop and get art for the next one. So it ended quickly and we fell behind on the postcard line immediately. We haven't solved that problem just yet but for 2023 we are not jumping into a longer postcard game just yet. We are going to do a few small single month games here and there before diving in to a longer term project. A few could become a lot because generally a longterm postcard game takes 6+ months of prep and we just aren't there right now.
What to expect for 2023: We are going to do a few small single month postcard games here and there before diving in to a longer term project. A "few" could become a lot because generally a longterm postcard game takes 6+ months of prep and we just aren't there right now. The long term games are not something that we plan to stop (trust me, I'd love to focus on other things instead of the postcard line, but the positives still outweigh the negatives), but they are definitely not ready right now.
Delivering on time
In 2022 we were still running late, but for anyone that's been around might know that it was a lot closer to on time than in previous years. Right now we are wrapping up October and starting on November, which isn't that bad. But it's still late. Ideally I want to be shipping out packages before each month ends. It's not impossible, but there are a few things that make it really hard. And fixing those things in 2023 is at the top of the list for us.
What to expect for 2023: The first thing we are doing is partially a cheat, but also something that's very helpful in resetting. We are placing the December 2022 package on hold. We did this once before as a means to catch up and it sort of worked. The problem was we were waaaaaay behind before and we aren’t that far off right now. We just have a delay with the wallet game level so we’re going to pause the whole package until it’s ready. January will be moving forward as planned and as of right now it looks to be shipping in January. It’s a Christmas miracle? No, we’re just skipping a package and enabling it to happen.
So what about that missing package? The goal is to get things in place and have it out ASAP. Whether ASAP is Jan, Feb or March just depends on the wallet game for that month. We have been evaluating a few (and we’re likely going to sign a few extras just so this doesn’t happen again), but we didn’t want to race something to print. We want to make sure we pick the right game and do it right.
Anyway, we hope that skipping the one package and getting our schedule in line will really help. Fingers crossed.
Status Updates
In 2022 George started posting weekly status updates. I think this helped keep everyone in the loop but the problem with the status updates is that they end up locking us into certain components for each month and then one piece (lets say a ruleset) ends up delayed, then the whole package is delayed. This happened with the postcard for October and we decided to swap it out at the last minute with something that was much faster to get out the door. The other problem is that things change all the time, so we just kept bumping out the dates every week, which I don't think was a good way to handle.
What to expect for 2023: We will provide status updates in some manner (which we are still trying to decide how), but we may keep the components of each package a little more flexible until they are ready to go out the door. With this in mind, we are trying to sign some backup games for each level so that we have games to swap in when something goes wrong. This usually takes a few months to have on hand, so we won't see the impact for a little bit.
Other Club Posts
This year we started the art posts, which I think have been a lot of fun. We miss a few fridays here and there when there isn't anything, or we have a convention or a covid outbreak, but overall it's been somewhat consistent.
What to expect for 2023: I'd love to not miss a week on the art posts going forward. Even if we're just sharing a single piece of art. Along with that, I'd love to start some other regular posts. Just like every other item, nothing is planned yet and it's just the most difficult time of year (Nov-Dec are just brutal every year for any retailer, and we happen to be a publisher that handles their own retail), so we hope to have some time in January to really plan it all out.
2023 Preview
It hasn't happened yet, but we have so much lined up. 12 Wallet Games and 6 Role Playing Games. A bunch of little things.
What to expect for 2023: The 2023 Preview should come in early 2023. :)
Here's a small sneak peek:
-More Battlecrest
-Something new from Elizabeth Hargrave
-Steven Aramini's two solo games that were planned for 2022
-Scott Almes Simply Solo #4 and #5
-Something old from Daniel Solis
-SpaceShipped but not really
-More contest winners and entries of new and old
-Role playing games about weird parties, constellations, running from the man, heavy metal, your heart's desires, and our first big roleplaying system.
I feel like that's just about everything. I'm overall pretty exhausted from these last two months, a little defeated from not having immediate answers, but ultimately it's because I want this club to be amazing. We have a few things that we are holding onto that make it really difficult, but I do keep trying to adapt first instead of giving up on anything. I hope to solve all of our issues in early 2023 and then have them behind us once and for all. Fingers crossed once again.
Happy holidays everyone and I can't thank you enough for another year of support here. It's really incredible and rare to have this amount of passion from a fanbase. I feel the same way about everyone here and it's so important to me that we give back at the same level.
Comments
NANCY M SILVA
Thanks for the self-evql & thought process on self-improvement & growth. Keep it up!
Erin Dean
Thank you so much for the update, your transparency is appreciated! I can't wait to see what next year brings. Happy Holidays :D
temp_anon
Thanks for the update, hopefully everything goes more smoothly from here out.
braigoPN
Is the delay in catching up on each moth just the fact that you want to send out month A before you send out month B. For instance, you wouldn't be sending out January until you send out December? So that's why you're skipping December? If that's the case, then try to do it in chronological order, but if the current month is held up on a component or two and the next month is ready to go, then just send out the next month on time or even early. Stick a little note in the envelope that the previous month is delayed and will be sent out as soon as it is ready. No sense in killing yourselves to maintain some strict chronology while feverishly trying to play catch up all the time. I'm pretty sure most patrons won't care in what order they receive packages, only that they do receive them. Just a thought.
Button Shy
Sorry for the confusion. December was already paid for on Dec 1. We just don't have everything ready for it yet and will send January as planned without December impacting it. December will come when everything is here and ready.
Seth
You all are doing a great job! There are bound to be bumps and bruises along the way but I, for one, love being a part of the BGOTM! I get excited when I get an email about a Patreon update was well as an email that something has shipped from Button Shy. Having been apart of the BGOTM for a few years now, I understand the may be delays but that doesn't upset me. I know you'll get things shipped when you have what you need. Just keep sitting and don't give up!! 🙂
Chris Matchett
I don’t understand what December being put on hold means. Is there one month that Patreon doesn’t charge the subscription? Do you send out two months worth in a single batch?
FTP
Thanks for the update! I can only imagine how tough it is keeping so many plates spinning at once! I'm sure you've considered all the options and are choosing what is best for all of your constraints. I, for one, would be more than ok with sort of a running horse race announcer approach -- these are the next few games on the docket and here is their current status.... So it looks like "Game A" is most likely to be next, but if there is a problem then "Game B" is the second most likely option. I realize that some people try to swap in and out of the Patreon level based on what is coming next, but my understanding is that is not the intended use. So I don't think you should need to feel locked into a specific game for a specific month until you send out the "choose your game" announcement. This is simply my $.02 as someone who obviously does not know the ins and outs of your needs, but who supports trying to reduce the stress of this as much as possible to help everyone focus on the fun, Button Shy staff included. Thank you all for everything you do!!
Justin Antezana
You all are awesome! Excited for the new year and totally cool with changes as needed. Rest up and enjoy the holiday time between all the catching up! Much love y’all.
Deborah Gard
Excellent update. No matter if you are behind you will have my support, top tier rpg level. The games are always worth the wait. It's always a good surprise to get a BGOTMC content in the mail.
