21X - Limited Edition: Late Pledge Store

December update: Merry Christmas!
25 days ago – Tue, Dec 24, 2024 at 06:48:27 AM

Ho ho ho everyone,

It’s Christmas time! I hope you're getting a chance to relax and enjoy plenty of games this festive season. Here's the latest info on shipping.

PLEASE NOTE: The dates below are not guaranteed. External shipping companies have provided them. They could change if any of the shipments encounter complications.

What’s Happening Now?:

• Asia: Hong Kong & China backers should get their games soon! Other countries in the region may need to wait a little longer into January.
• Australia/New Zealand: The shipment has reached Australia. The delivery is expected in January with New Zealand following a couple of weeks later.
• UK/Europe: The shipment is at sea and due to arrive in the UK in mid-January. It means that games would start to be delivered in the UK in January/February and follow in the EU the same month.
• United States/Canada: The shipment is at sea. Mainland US supporters should get their games in January/February, while backers in Canada, Mexico, Alaska, and Hawaii can expect their packages a few weeks afterward.

What’s Next?

Once games are landed and arrive at fulfilment centres, they’ll be sent out to you. We are almost there!

We’ll keep you updated with any important news. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions.

Thank you again for all your support. We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

See you in 2025,

Jaya

November update: All the games have left the factory!
about 2 months ago – Fri, Nov 29, 2024 at 07:23:47 AM

Hi everyone,

Some good news — 21X has officially left the factory and is on its way to our fulfillment centres! Here's a timeline breakdown for each region.

PLEASE NOTE: The dates below are not guarantees. They have been provided by external shipping companies. They could change if any of the shipments encounter complications.

What’s Happening Now?:

• Asia: The stock has arrived at the VFI fulfillment centre. Backers in China and Hong Kong should receive their games in December, while those in other Asian countries will experience a longer wait.
• Australia/New Zealand: Australian backers are expected to receive their game in December/early January, but delivery to New Zealand will take some additional time.
• UK/Europe: UK backers should receive their games before February, while EU backers will need to wait a couple of weeks longer.
• United States: Mainland US supporters should get their games in January, while backers in Canada, Mexico, Alaska, and Hawaii can expect their packages a few weeks afterward.

What’s Next?

As always, we'll keep you updated, on shipping timelines, tracking info and other news. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions.

Thank you again for your amazing support,

Jaya

October update: Production complete + final copy received
3 months ago – Thu, Oct 31, 2024 at 08:56:09 AM

Hi everyone,

We come bearing good news! Production is officially over and we've just received a final copy of the game. We are very happy to say that it looks amazing.

Production wraps up

The factory has just informed us today that they've finished assembly! So next we'll begin delivery to fulfilment centres.

The final product looks amazing

You can see for yourself. This was our original render for the Kickstarter:

And here's the finished product:

As for what's changed this time, it's mainly the game box. There were a lot of changes that had to be made. The most important of these changes is the foil colour on the box. It's been taken from slightly anemic silver to the bold gold look we always wanted:

What next? 

Once the games arrive at fulfilment centres, deliveries to you will start. Unfortunately, our estimates suggest that we’ll end up just short of Christmas delivery. We’re really, really sorry about this. Up until 2 weeks ago, all the information suggested we'd make it... but unfortunately, solving these final pre-production snags pushed us back just that bit further. That said, this does mark the end of the factory's involvement. We expect things to run more smoothly from here. As always, we'll keep you updated.

We're almost there...

All the best,

Jaya

September update: A new sample arrives
4 months ago – Thu, Oct 03, 2024 at 12:30:21 PM

Hello everyone,

Firstly, we apologise for the late post - we deliberately held this one back because we knew our latest sample would be arriving today and thought you probably wouldn't want to wait a month to see it!

New sample

We've had the latest from the factory. This one is produced from the actual mass production process - using the real printing process on the real stocks. I am glad to say, it's significantly improved! The cards are now just like we'd originally imagined. They feel thick and durable, they're well aligned and shuffle nicely. We're really happy with them and think you will be too.

The rulebook is looking great too, it's easy to read and the colours look nice. Another big win. 

It looks, however, like they've made a mistake with the box. We need to discuss this with the factory but we're currently optimistic these last issues can be overcome quickly so that goods are still ready soon. It's quite common they don't complete cut and assembly until this sample has been signed-off: exactly because of issues like this!

A change in communications

We are entering a period where advancements will change intermittently between slow and fast, we're going to change how we do our updates. Rather than one update a month, we will instead contact whenever we have major news: for example, we'll let you know as soon as it leaves the factory. Overall, we expect slightly more updates than once-per-month until fulfilment completes!

All the best,

Jaya

August update: Production has begun + cardstock
5 months ago – Fri, Aug 30, 2024 at 09:50:43 AM

Hi everyone,

Thanks again for being patient while we've been quieter. Today though, we've got some very exciting news to share with you!

Production of 21X has begun

After a considerable process of tweaks and revisions, we can gladly report the final files are now with our manufacturer and the mass production phase has finally begun!

Cardstock and proofs

As you know, it's really important to us that this deck looks and feels premium. The box we showed off in our June update looked good but the cards were not up to the same standard. First, they were flimsier than we'd have liked and the print quality was nowhere near as good as they needed to be. Second, the black card core the factory used meant the cards looked a bit grey.

Black core is standard for poker cards for good reason - they help make the cards more opaque to prevent cheating. But, of course, 21X does not need players to hide their cards and already features a dark design. So we realised our original spec didn't need this feature. Instead, we could have a more brilliant white - the right backdrop for the deliberately minimalist card designs of the game. 

We then tried a couple of different permutations, settling finally on a 350gsm, white core card with poker varnish rather than lamination (which can be slightly stickier when not paired with a linen finish). The final result was robust with a smooth feel that's great for shuffling and makes all the visuals pop.

This combined with some mistakes by our first account manager has thrown in much more delay than we would have liked. Thankfully, our new account manager has been fantastic and things are now moving a lot faster.

We're excited to be moving ahead and, as always, will keep you updated as production progresses!

All the best,

James