Stonemaier Games founder Jamey Stegmaier says he is pitching a partnership to Gamefound that would run a second printing preorder on Gamefound at the same time as a ready to ship first printing launch on Stonemaier’s own Shopify stores, after readers left more than 800 comments on his crowdfunding versus ready to ship article.
Key facts
- Company: Stonemaier Games
- Proposal: Second printing preorders on Gamefound, launched alongside first printing ready to ship sales on Stonemaier’s Shopify stores
- Status: A pitch from Stegmaier, not a confirmed partnership
- Prompt: More than 800 comments on Stegmaier’s ready to ship launches versus crowdfunding article
- Link: Stonemaier Games, Top 7 Big Conclusions from Your 800+ Comments
What exactly is Stonemaier pitching to Gamefound?
The pitch is a split launch: Champions, early adopters and retailers would be served from the first printing through Stonemaier’s own stores, while a Gamefound preorder for the second printing runs at the same time. Stegmaier says a significant number of commenters browse Kickstarter and Gamefound regularly to discover new games, and that discovery is what Stonemaier’s own store launches miss. He is clear that this is a pitch to Gamefound, not an announced deal, and Stonemaier still plans to invest in its games up front so they are ready to ship soon after customers pay.
What else is changing after the 800 comments?
Stegmaier published seven conclusions in total. The reader response also exposed a discovery problem for the company’s newest game: many commenters said they were only hearing about Braided Skies for the first time from the article itself, even after a month of posts, newsletters and showcases from 10 content creators. Braided Skies has started shipping in the US and Canada, with Australia and Europe to follow over the next two weeks.
| Change | What Stegmaier says |
|---|---|
| Gamefound pitch | Second printing preorders on Gamefound alongside ready to ship first printing launches |
| Early adopters | More small free extras at launch, with no exclusives, and each extra also purchasable after launch |
| Advertising | Higher ad spend than the current $1,000 or less, boosted posts, and experiments with vertical video |
| Player input | Surveys on key decisions before production, plus teasers at the PPC and MPC stages |
| Product pages | Pages rebuilt to scroll more like crowdfunding project pages, starting with Braided Skies |
Why does this matter for Stonemaier?
Stonemaier has sold its games through ready to ship launches for years instead of crowdfunding, and our earlier coverage found that only about 5 percent of a new game’s units sell during its launch window. A Gamefound presence would put Stonemaier in front of the browsers who fund many of the campaigns in our Top 10 Gamefound campaigns roundup, without giving up the ready to ship model Stegmaier says serves customers best. Whether Gamefound accepts the pitch is unconfirmed.
Source: Stonemaier Games blog, Top 7 Big Conclusions from Your 800+ Comments
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