Sleeping Gods’ sequel board game Distant Skies will build on the success of the original
Gamefound crowdfunding campaign has already surpassed $1,000,000
The board game follow-up to Red Raven Games’ Sleeping Gods has successfully crowdfunded and expects to hit retail in August of Next year. Sleeping Gods: Distant Skies will keep the formula that garnered the original so much acclaim and refine combat systems for a smoother experience across new unknown horizons.
Set in the late 1930s, Distant Skies follows several adventurers whose cargo plane is drawn through a weird storm that strands them in a fantastical world full of creatures and cultures that will both help and hinder players on their journey home. Players will use a spiral-bound book of maps instead of a board, exploring gridded sections of the wilderness, gathering resources, equipping tools and fighting foes along the way.
At the same time, their cargo plane can fly to a number of far-off destinations and bring back supplies that might prove crucial to overcoming the challenges ahead. Turns will be spent rationing each day’s time travelling between locations, repairing equipment, resting at camp and performing other tasks. Quests provide smaller challenges within the overarching campaign, and creator Ryan Laukat said on the campaign page that Distant Skies will tell a more interconnected personal tale using the decisions made on these quests.
The cast of characters seeking their escape will grow stronger over the course of the campaign, reflected by permanent ability cards that might boost stats or grant access to a special action. It’s not all wandering through valleys and across snow capped mountains, though. Dangers lurk in the shadows, and the group will eventually have to fight for their survival. Combat has been overhauled to use a deck of action cards instead of weapons - also, your characters now always hit with the removal of the accuracy mechanic.
Red Raven Games was founded by Laukat and his spouse, and the team is responsible for several award winning games - the Above and Below series, Roam and Haven are all in their creative stable. Sleeping Gods released this year after successfully crowdfunding on Kickstarter, raising $1,142,511. Distant Skies will be the first campaign run on Gamefound, where it has already garnered more financial support than the first title in the series - the total sits at $1,080,975 as of time of writing.
The amount is pretty notable, even if both the popularity of Sleeping Gods and board game-centric audience of Gamefound primed it for success. Distant Skies is narrative-focused title without a bevy of plastic miniatures and already promised expansions. Its tiers of rewards still feels like an echo of Kickstarter’s influence on the industry, but any competitor’s success shows some weakening of crowdfunding’s walled gardens.
The Gamefound campaign for Sleeping Gods: Distant Skies will run through May 10th. Backers can secure a box for $85, and Red Raven Games expects copies to begin fulfilling in March 2023.