Twisty Little Passages at 90%! Puzzle 1-3 (Abandoned Hub) unlocked!
almost 7 years ago – Thu, May 23, 2019 at 12:48:31 AM

I'm pleased to share that Twisty Little Passages is now at 90% of being funded.  A big thank you!

Puzzle 1-3: Abandoned Hub

One might argue that no self-respecting dungeon crawl lacks neat weapons and armor.  Puzzle 1-2 found Ren in an underground cave network, filled with treacherous slimes, giving you some experience with combat, making good use of keys, and avoiding enemies.

Now, in puzzle 1-3, Abandoned Hub, there's an opportunity to pick up some armor.  You may need it too, because there are some deadly dungeon roaches ahead.  Roaches are a staple enemy in the Deadly Rooms of Death (DROD) puzzle games (as a fitting enemy for a professional dungeon exterminator to clear out of the king's infested dungeon basement) and we pay homage to them here.

This puzzle will test your puzzle solving skills in deciding if and when would be a good time to equip a wooden shield lying in a remote corner.  The shield will reduce the damage you take from enemies, but can you spare the key required to reach it?

This introductory puzzle may feel a bit more challenging than 1-2, as the encroaching roaches are relentless in their search for prey and you will need to plan your strategy carefully.

You can download and play puzzle 1-3 now from the TLP campaign page.

Armor Poll

Share what types of armor you'd like to see featured in Twisty Little Passages, be it standard, exotic or bizarre!

Survey link

Twisty Little Passages - Week 2: 86% funded! Reduced shipping for CAN and AUS backers!
almost 7 years ago – Tue, May 21, 2019 at 11:39:15 PM

We've entered the second week of the campaign and Twisty Little Passages has passed 86% funded!  We're seeing steady progress and I'm anticipating that very soon TLP will hit the 90% mark, at which point the third demo puzzle will be revealed and you can start voting on additional stretch goals.

Again, a big thank you to backers new and old.  I'm working to create the best product and experience possible, and that experience includes good pricing and shipping rates.

One of my main goals is to keep costs as low for you, as a backer, as possible.  As you can see in the rewards section, Kickstarter copies of TLP are being offered at a substantial discount off MSRP.  That is to acknowledge your support as an early backer and give something back to you in addition to the great puzzle book you'll receive.

Shipping is another part of the equation. I've been reaching out to many highly-rated and recommended fulfillment companies who can function as shipping hubs in various countries and regions across the globe.  Fulfillment companies that are set up to ship locally are often able to provide better rates than shipping from abroad. For the TLP campaign, these savings will get passed on directly to you in turn.  As you may know, the process of minimizing cost internationally is not trivial and can turn out a bit differently for every game produced.

So, I am pleased to share some good news for backers in Canada and Australia.  I've found some good fulfillment companies in CAN and AUS that will enable us to reduce the shipping estimates initially quoted on the campaign page for these countries by 20%.  That's a solid reduction.  I'm continuing my search for improved options in all regions, but I wanted to share this piece of good news now and be transparent up front about my priority and focus to pass along any better shipping rates that become available while I continue working on it in the background.

If you are an interested individual in Canada or Australia and have been on the fence about backing Twisty Little Passages, now might be a good time to revisit.  Another reason for this is that as more individuals in a given country back TLP, the more efficient shipping can become as volume scales up.  From a practical standpoint, reduced shipping price is essentially another form of stretch goal that gets unlocked as the number of backers in a region increases beyond a certain count.  That probably sounds rather abstract, and I'm not planning to track this formally during the campaign, but the point is that I'd like you to know I'm committed to passing on all available shipping efficiencies directly to you as a backer.

Feedback is welcome!  What are the factors in how a campaign is put together that can either make or break the experience for you?

- Mike

Twisty Little Passages has 500 backers! Approaching 80% funded!
almost 7 years ago – Mon, May 20, 2019 at 12:26:41 AM

Hi!

Twisty Little Passages has hit the milestone of having 500 backers!  I'm humbled by the support for the campaign.  Thank you.

I'm also excited to share we're closing in on 80% funded!  When the campaign reaches 90%, another demo puzzle will be unlocked for you to play, and I'm looking forward to sharing it.

Also, at the 90% mark, a backer-only vote will be made available for you to give your input on what next stretch goals you would like revealed at the point the campaign hits 100%.

Here's to a successful upcoming week!

Twisty Little Passages is 75% funded! Puzzle 1-2 (Underground Caverns) unlocked!
almost 7 years ago – Sun, May 19, 2019 at 01:42:42 AM

Welcome, red warrior!

We passed the 75% funded milestone today!  I'm excited to be at this point and wish to thank you once again for backing Twisty Little Passages, supporting the campaign, and sharing it with someone who might be interested in it.  It's that word of mouth that makes Kickstarters really move and can help us reach those stretch goals that get you a better finished product.

To commemorate the occasion, I'm celebrating by unlocking the second demo puzzle on the campaign page (1-2, Underground Caverns).  It's a combat tutorial to help you ease in to fighting baddies and learn how to choose when to fight and when to heal up.  If you haven't seen it played or tried it yet, I invite you to scroll down the main page and take a look.  For those that found puzzle 1-1 very simple and easy, you will see that 1-2 is still rather easy, but it starts expecting you to pay attention to a few more things, make more choices and think ahead a bit.  This is only a taste of things to come!

Puzzle 1-2 features some slime monsters for you to fight.  In a comment, share what your favorite slime monsters are from games you have played!

Twisty Little Passages is 70% funded! Bonus puzzle #1 feedback.
almost 7 years ago – Fri, May 17, 2019 at 12:13:12 AM

Hi!

The TLP campaign has seen steady progress since launch.  On the third day, TLP has reached 70% funded.  A big thank you for supporting the campaign!

Flash funding status

The first flash funding goal was met just in time in the first twenty-four hours of the campaign.

Though the second flash goal of thicker paper was not met in time, fear not, brave adventurer! You may choose to revive it by voting for adding it as an additional stretch goal once the campaign hits its 100% funding goal.

Sharing TLP with someone who enjoys puzzle games, dungeon crawls or mazes is a good way to help TLP move toward funding and the first stretch goal.

First stretch goal poll results

Today, over 100 individuals have spoken as to what they'd like to see featured in a bonus puzzle.

For bonus level #1, the choice of adding a new puzzle featuring a unique special item is currently in the lead, closely trailed by an area topology puzzle.  I believe these two have been switching off for first place, so if you haven't voted, you have the potential to champion a new leader.

The three most popular locales are forest, fortress and jungle.  We will definitely be featuring these!

And there are many great ideas for a level boss, including dragons, giants, yetis, and some rather creative suggestions like a Rumplestiltskin-type character, a goblin trickster, and an evil barracks chef (at least, I assume they'd be evil...or at least really surly, I guess).  There are already too many interesting ideas to list them all here, so please don't be upset if I didn't list something you shared, because this is just a very small sampling.  I liked so much of what you've listed. Please go check out the results to see for yourself what others have suggested!

Taking the top choices into consideration, I've come up with an idea for a brand new puzzle. It will feature some magical ingredients that you can acquire, which you can either use immediately to boost your stats in various ways or you can save and combine them in various combinations for more potent effects.  Looking forward to hitting that first stretch goal so I can flesh out this puzzle!

If you haven't voted yet, please share your ideas.  Your input is the spark of creativity!