Latest from the Creator
PROJECT UPDATE
Ex Stasis Games
CREATOR
7 days ago
Project Update: The Quickstart & iPad Compatibility
Hello folks!
Superbacker saika notified me this morning that one of the header fonts in the quickstart wasn't displaying properly on iPads (and presumably other iOS devices). After some futzing around with font types, the problem's solved.
I'm still planning to update the quickstart file in a couple of weeks when I send it to print, after inputting any errata or clarifying any confusing bits. I'll fix this font issue then so there's just one reissue. If you're experiencing this problem and you want to use the quickstart now leave a comment and I will reissue much sooner!
EXPLANATION FOR NERDS (LIKE ME)
The TrueType version of the header font was fully embedded (and not subset) but simply wasn't displaying properly when the file was opened on iPads. I've never encountered this before with a commercially licensed font, and it's sort of a fun, in its way. I'm unsure if it's a compatibility issue, some weird licensing quirk (I must stress the font in question is used under commercial licence and fully embeddable!), or an unidentified third type of problem. The main thing is, switching to the OpenType version appears to have fixed it, based on the tests I've done with saika and another iPad user.
Thanks!
Chant
Superbacker saika notified me this morning that one of the header fonts in the quickstart wasn't displaying properly on iPads (and presumably other iOS devices). After some futzing around with font types, the problem's solved.
I'm still planning to update the quickstart file in a couple of weeks when I send it to print, after inputting any errata or clarifying any confusing bits. I'll fix this font issue then so there's just one reissue. If you're experiencing this problem and you want to use the quickstart now leave a comment and I will reissue much sooner!
EXPLANATION FOR NERDS (LIKE ME)
The TrueType version of the header font was fully embedded (and not subset) but simply wasn't displaying properly when the file was opened on iPads. I've never encountered this before with a commercially licensed font, and it's sort of a fun, in its way. I'm unsure if it's a compatibility issue, some weird licensing quirk (I must stress the font in question is used under commercial licence and fully embeddable!), or an unidentified third type of problem. The main thing is, switching to the OpenType version appears to have fixed it, based on the tests I've done with saika and another iPad user.
Thanks!
Chant
PROJECT UPDATE
Ex Stasis Games
CREATOR
18 days ago
Project Update: May Progress Update
What ho!
What a month it's been. I'm gradually filling up the disposable bags of meat with the choicest of cuts. Details follow, but let's start with some headlines:
What a month it's been. I'm gradually filling up the disposable bags of meat with the choicest of cuts. Details follow, but let's start with some headlines:
- Quickstart's finished
- Pledge manager's finished
- Core book writing and playtesting is ongoing
And here are those headlines, summarised in a graphic!
- TICK means it's done.
- GREEN means it's on schedule (so a tick on a green square means it got finished on schedule).
- RED means it's running behind schedule.
- GREY means this product doesn't have this stage (no writing for the dice).
PLEDGE MANAGER
I've just sent out the pledge manager smoke test, which is the last step before surveys go fully live. During the smoke test, surveys go out to 5% of backers and after a couple of days I check the data all makes sense and I've collected all the right info. Once I've made any necessary tweaks I then send out the rest of the surveys - probably this weekend.
I've added a few other Ex Stasis books to the pledge manager add-ons, by the way - some solo journalling games, two volumes of system-neutral horror scenarios, and the most ridiculous thing we've ever made: Animal Crossing X The Wicker Man. Obviously, there's no expectation that you'll pick up anything else, but if you're paying for international shipping you might as well slip another book in there.
I've added a few other Ex Stasis books to the pledge manager add-ons, by the way - some solo journalling games, two volumes of system-neutral horror scenarios, and the most ridiculous thing we've ever made: Animal Crossing X The Wicker Man. Obviously, there's no expectation that you'll pick up anything else, but if you're paying for international shipping you might as well slip another book in there.
QUICKSTART
Finished! Properly finished! Art, layout, and everything! (I know, I know, it bloody took me long enough). I'll upload it to Backerkit sometime before the main block of surveys go out, which means you'll be able to pick it up as soon as you do your survey.
The next step is printing, but I'm going to wait a few weeks on that: I hope some of you will get the quickstart to the gaming table, and I'm sure that will prompt a few questions and requests for clarification. I'm going to set up a Google form where you can report any issues, and I'll fix 'em before print (and update the PDF). There'll be a link in the quickstart itself.
The next step is printing, but I'm going to wait a few weeks on that: I hope some of you will get the quickstart to the gaming table, and I'm sure that will prompt a few questions and requests for clarification. I'm going to set up a Google form where you can report any issues, and I'll fix 'em before print (and update the PDF). There'll be a link in the quickstart itself.
CORE BOOK
I'm going to level with you: I wrote another game this month. A completely different one that I had no intention of writing, but it got some stuff out of my system. It has slowed me down and for that I apologise.
I have not finished writing the extra Meatbags material, and I have not fit in extra playtesting and this has added 3-4 weeks to delivery. I'll see whether we can make it up later in the timeline!
I have not finished writing the extra Meatbags material, and I have not fit in extra playtesting and this has added 3-4 weeks to delivery. I'll see whether we can make it up later in the timeline!
CHARACTER SHEETS
These are done and ready to print. I'll upload the form-fillable PDFs at the same time as the quickstart.
DICE
Manufacturing's complete, and the dice are on their way to me - arriving next week. Then the stock for US orders is going on a plane and racing the next set of tariff changes to the US!
CROSS-COLLAB REWARD
Once writing's complete on the core book, I'll move on to the cross-collab reward we're making with Eerie Games. It's a two-part circus horror scenario called Carnival Obscura, and it's digital only - so it can be finished a bit later without holding up fulfilment. If you backed Eerie's Survivor Sorority, you're getting both parts of this scenario added to your pledge automatically.
WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?
Chris Farnell's made a creepy little diner microsetting for Meatbags. It's very clever, very meta, and it made me cackle out loud when I first read it. Chris is also running Meatbags on the Party Of One podcast in a couple of weeks, which is both wonderful and terrifying (what if it suddenly transforms from a fully playable game into a pile of stinking jelly? WHAT IF???). I'll send a link round when it happens.
That'll do for now, I reckon. The Meatbags manuscript is calling!
- Chant
That'll do for now, I reckon. The Meatbags manuscript is calling!
- Chant
PROJECT UPDATE
Ex Stasis Games
CREATOR
16 days ago
Project Update: Surveys out, quickstart up, dice here!
Everything's going a bit faster than expected, for once.
- Smoke test data looks good, so I've just sent out the rest of the surveys.
- Quickstart's finished and uploaded, so I think you should get a link to it as soon as you do your survey.
- The dice have arrived!!!
It's sort of mildly warm outside so there's no natural light in my house; please enjoy these very quick snaps on a phone camera in a dark room. I'll try and get some nicer ones in due course!
PROJECT UPDATE
Ex Stasis Games
CREATOR
about 2 months ago
Project Update: Time Flies. Flew. Is Flying.
It's been a week already since the campaign ended. Bloody hell. It's still sinking in.
Firstly: THANK YOU ALL! We've been making RPGs for a while now, but we're still a small studio and it always means a lot when people put their hands in their pockets to support us. There are tons of other things you could have chosen to do with your money, and we appreciate you making the (smart, savvy, discerning) choice to do this.
Extra special thanks to those of you who came here via Backerkit's Creator Backers feature. We owe a lot of Meatbags' success to Grant Howitt, Rowan Rook & Decard, and Chris Bissette. If any of you don't know these excellent people and publishers, I fervently recommend you check them out.
Now - on to a rough overview of what you can expect in the short term, and of course how new US tariffs are going to affect us (spoilers: not a lot, surprisingly).
Firstly: THANK YOU ALL! We've been making RPGs for a while now, but we're still a small studio and it always means a lot when people put their hands in their pockets to support us. There are tons of other things you could have chosen to do with your money, and we appreciate you making the (smart, savvy, discerning) choice to do this.
Extra special thanks to those of you who came here via Backerkit's Creator Backers feature. We owe a lot of Meatbags' success to Grant Howitt, Rowan Rook & Decard, and Chris Bissette. If any of you don't know these excellent people and publishers, I fervently recommend you check them out.
Now - on to a rough overview of what you can expect in the short term, and of course how new US tariffs are going to affect us (spoilers: not a lot, surprisingly).
UPDATES AND PRODUCTION
I'll aim to send you monthly updates to keep track of how production is going, but sometimes the gap between
updates will be longer: if waiting a week means I can show off some cool artwork or page designs, I'll do that.
Now. This book's been... a bit more successful than I thought it would be. There are more stretch goals to add. I'm adding a character advancement system and that's going to need playtesting. I am no longer entirely sure I can get all the revisions done in April. I mean, I could, but they wouldn't be my best work. So I am extending the timeline to:
Now. This book's been... a bit more successful than I thought it would be. There are more stretch goals to add. I'm adding a character advancement system and that's going to need playtesting. I am no longer entirely sure I can get all the revisions done in April. I mean, I could, but they wouldn't be my best work. So I am extending the timeline to:
- April: Get the quickstart PDF out to you (Brian has finished the map; I just need to sort out layout)
- April and May: finish writing stretch goal content; Lore starts on art
- June: editing; get the quickstart and character sheets printed; order dice
- July: more art; layout
- August: PDF release; errata; files to print
- September: Fulfilment starts
- October: Fulfilment complete
TARIFFS
At the risk of immediately cursing this entire endeavour, we've been pretty fortunate in the unfolding US tariff situation. It looks like books will be exempt (though I am watching the situation closely over the next few weeks), and almost all our materials are being produced in the UK and EU, where tariffs are... not as bad as they could be. Currently. Who knows how long that will hold up.
We have been lucky so far. I don't think there's a single TTRPG creator confidently predicting our good fortune will last. But as things stand now, at time of writing, the tariff situation doesn't affect our plans. The horrors persist, but so do I, etc.
We have been lucky so far. I don't think there's a single TTRPG creator confidently predicting our good fortune will last. But as things stand now, at time of writing, the tariff situation doesn't affect our plans. The horrors persist, but so do I, etc.
OH! YES! LUXURY FINISHES!
I never told you what that luxury book treatment stretch goal was going to turn into, did I? I'm still not going to, but I am at least going to hint.
It's green and it glows.
Bye for now.
Chant
It's green and it glows.
Bye for now.
Chant
PROJECT UPDATE
Ex Stasis Games
CREATOR
2 months ago
Project Update: Bonus Meatbags
Oh blimey, we've got less than a week to go. That snuck up fast. Two bits of good news today:
FERMEATBAGS
If you're a fan of very average people barely keeping it together in outrageously challenging circumstances (of course you are, you're here, backing Meatbags), it's very likely you'd enjoy Chris Farnell's Fermi's Wake series. The books follow the ragtag (shit, that's putting it lightly) crew of the spaceship Fermi, which is both the fastest ship and the deadliest weapon in the universe.
Join the crew as they visit, and then inevitably destroy, a series of bone-chillingly wrong planets, making terrible choices and living to regret them. Then play the crew in Every Which Way is West, a micro-setting by Chris Farnell for Meatbags that takes the crew to a desert world inhabited by plant monsters in definitely not cowboy hats, to encounter a lone gunman on a quest for vengeance.
When you pick up the latest Fermi's Wake novel, Graveyard Orbit, or the season pass from Scarlet Ferret, you'll get Every Which Way is West FREE and IMMEDIATELY.
Join the crew as they visit, and then inevitably destroy, a series of bone-chillingly wrong planets, making terrible choices and living to regret them. Then play the crew in Every Which Way is West, a micro-setting by Chris Farnell for Meatbags that takes the crew to a desert world inhabited by plant monsters in definitely not cowboy hats, to encounter a lone gunman on a quest for vengeance.
When you pick up the latest Fermi's Wake novel, Graveyard Orbit, or the season pass from Scarlet Ferret, you'll get Every Which Way is West FREE and IMMEDIATELY.
METABAGS
We're so happy with what Chris gave us for Every Which Way is West that we immediately asked him to write something for Meatbags backers too. We've just received a pitch about a roadside diner and some distinctly metatextual scares. We're extremely on board, and wildly excited to get it to you as both a PDF and a printed pamphlet we'll ship with the hardback book.
This is in addition to the stretch goals and book content already announced, by the way. Working with Chris is fun and we just wanted an excuse to do more of it.
This is in addition to the stretch goals and book content already announced, by the way. Working with Chris is fun and we just wanted an excuse to do more of it.
NEXT UPDATE
We haven't forgotten about a poll on other micro-settings and an update on luxury print elements. More news coming over the weekend!
More soon!
Chant & Lore
