What is with all the deck reboots?

[Rob Wright]

I've noticed a lot of decks being rebooted as a new color or 2nd edition. Most only have a few minor design changes, if any. Some with just color changes. There are some good designers doing this. I think over all it's just lazy. I would like to see them come up with something new.

[xela]

$

[Paul Carpenter]

Lol. Truth ^

The card market is big now. People have designs and want more product out there to take advantage of people buying anything and everything. Nothing is easier than playing with colors for a few hours and then hyping away...

[Alex Willis]

Funny you should mention this... I am actually considering rebooting my Zombie Origin deck (no gasps please).  The reason being is that out of the gate I used a non-USPCC printer and only got a midling response from the market.  The art is good however.  The other reason in rebooting is that I thought about the Zombie flip of the court cards too late into the project which inhibits game play on certain types of newer card games.  So, my reboot will have modified each court cards to include a zombie and a non-zombie on opposite ends.  Also, It will be offered through USPCC as a Bicycle brand instead of the no-name brand.

[Rob Wright]

Alex, I should disclose that I have backed a couple of the reboots. Only because I wasn't around for the first round, and really liked the designs. I didn't back your Origin deck, partially because not using USPCC, and I thought the $15 pledge was a little high for a non branded deck. With a little rework on the design, Bicycle branding, and lower price. It may be worth looking at again.
Before everyone yells at me for bitching about something I've backed. I'll just say I get a continuation of a project like Jackson is doing with the Fed 52 project. My gripe is with a couple designs that were just a basic change of color on the card, and nothing else.

[Don Boyer]

Funny you should mention this... I am actually considering rebooting my Zombie Origin deck (no gasps please).  The reason being is that out of the gate I used a non-USPCC printer and only got a midling response from the market.  The art is good however.  The other reason in rebooting is that I thought about the Zombie flip of the court cards too late into the project which inhibits game play on certain types of newer card games.  So, my reboot will have modified each court cards to include a zombie and a non-zombie on opposite ends.  Also, It will be offered through USPCC as a Bicycle brand instead of the no-name brand.

See, now that's more of a true reboot.  If you just change a few sliders on the color palette and call it a day, that's lazy.

I liked your deck a lot - but I did feel the art needed a little upgrading.  Something about it, hard to put my finger on.

[BiggerDee]

Even though there are always complaints, people buy them. If re-colors were ignored by the buying public, no one would do them. I personally don't have any problem with them, I may like one color more than another. I always vote on reboots with my wallet. There's a demand, so there's a supply. If I like or love a design, a new color provides a bit of change without taking away the design elements that I loved in the first place.


As a curious/rhetorical question, ponder this...

What would be less offensive reboot/re-color/re-release wise...for a different color (same design) deck to come out every 9-12 months, or for 4 colors of the same deck to be released at once?
Take NOC for example. 5 colors at once and everyone is happy, but if they just released a new color, with the same design, every 9 or so months, would people complain about laziness?

I don't personally care either way, I just think that's an interesting question to think about.

[Rob Wright]

When I found KS, the Postumo deck was the first I had saw. It had already been funded, so I don't know if he started the project with 3 colors or not. I really liked the idea of a 3 color set. I thought to my self. that's what I want to do. Then I found out how many decks had to be ordered. When I get my project out there. I'm going to add 2 colors as stretch goals. I figure if there is not enough interest in it to reach the stretch goals the first time- then no since in bringing them back. I already have an Idea for a second design(if the first does well), and it does tie in with the first. While it would be along the same theme. It would be a completely different design. I don't think having multiple colors in one project is a problem. When you buy a double deck of Bicycle cards. You get 1 red-1 blue. I think bringing it back as a second-third project is only about making money- witch I do not think is in the spirit of what KS is about.

[Don Boyer]

Even though there are always complaints, people buy them. If re-colors were ignored by the buying public, no one would do them. I personally don't have any problem with them, I may like one color more than another. I always vote on reboots with my wallet. There's a demand, so there's a supply. If I like or love a design, a new color provides a bit of change without taking away the design elements that I loved in the first place.


As a curious/rhetorical question, ponder this...

What would be less offensive reboot/re-color/re-release wise...for a different color (same design) deck to come out every 9-12 months, or for 4 colors of the same deck to be released at once?
Take NOC for example. 5 colors at once and everyone is happy, but if they just released a new color, with the same design, every 9 or so months, would people complain about laziness?

I don't personally care either way, I just think that's an interesting question to think about.

Releasing all the colors together to me is better.  Designers can move on and pursue something new.

But on the other hand, people still desire different colors of the same deck at times.

I think it's more a matter of finding that happy balance - giving people what they want while at the same time not resting on your laurels.

When I found KS, the Postumo deck was the first I had saw. It had already been funded, so I don't know if he started the project with 3 colors or not. I really liked the idea of a 3 color set. I thought to my self. that's what I want to do. Then I found out how many decks had to be ordered. When I get my project out there. I'm going to add 2 colors as stretch goals. I figure if there is not enough interest in it to reach the stretch goals the first time- then no since in bringing them back. I already have an Idea for a second design(if the first does well), and it does tie in with the first. While it would be along the same theme. It would be a completely different design. I don't think having multiple colors in one project is a problem. When you buy a double deck of Bicycle cards. You get 1 red-1 blue. I think bringing it back as a second-third project is only about making money- witch I do not think is in the spirit of what KS is about.

Some projects work best as a single color - but again, if you're going to do colors and we're talking about Kickstarter, home of the one-shot print, then yes, most often it's best to do it all at once.  It's a bit different if you're self-funding and running a card company, something altogether different if you're still coming back to the well, asking the public to back you, but you keep coming up with different variations of the same idea, over and over.

[Rob Wright]

Being fairly new to this. The question was really coming from the prospective of a Kickstarter backer. Anyone that does this for a living, and funding their own decks. Please by all means bring your decks out in every color imaginable. If that is selling for you-great. An example I'll use on KS is TPX is just finishing the Allure White reboot, and  the opposite-Elite just finished their new Majestic project on KS, and at the same time rebooted there Ritual deck with out KS funding. Hopefully that made since.

[Don Boyer]

Being fairly new to this. The question was really coming from the prospective of a Kickstarter backer. Anyone that does this for a living, and funding their own decks. Please by all means bring your decks out in every color imaginable. If that is selling for you-great. An example I'll use on KS is TPX is just finishing the Allure White reboot, and  the opposite-Elite just finished their new Majestic project on KS, and at the same time rebooted there Ritual deck with out KS funding. Hopefully that made since.

"Made since?"  No.  Made SENSE?  Maybe... 

If a Kickstarter does it, especially if the deck was popular, people don't fuss so much.  The simple fact is that if people don't like it, it doesn't get made, period.  It's when some other company recolors a deck and calls it new and innovative, or worse, slaps two old deck ideas together into one deck and calls it mana from heaven...  A color change is one thing, a color change treated like the second coming of everyone's favorite deities is totally bogus.

[Collector]

$

+ ₤ now.

[xela]

$

+ ₤ now.

Ha, yeah.

Reboots defeat the purpose of collecting in my opinion.

[BiggerDee]

I like all colors being released simultaneously as well, but while I'm by no means rich, I don't have an upper budget for card purchases, and sometimes the price of some of my carts or KS backings from one campaign take even me a bit aback. If a campaign had 4 colors, and each one was $13, that's $52 for one set. Not chump change, and that's only for one set. For collectors, we often like to have multiples. Three sets at $52 is $156, and that would get anyone's attention, and be completely out of the realm for many buyers.

I bought so many of the Federal 52 editions that I was more than happy to see the next deck in a new campaign. I'll get a bunch of those too, but it will be weeks./months later, and that's easier to digest. Deck reboots spread out give many more folks the opportunity to buy without having to give up rent or food, so I get it from that perspective! I usually get in, on average, about 6-8 decks a week. If I bought a decent quantity of a limited time (like a KS deck with no after-campaign sales available) deck, I would probably think twice (or more!) on backing/buying some others just to keep from getting (more?) out of control. I can see it being a better option for many.