Blade Runner: The Next Million Dollar Kickstarter?

Free League's Blade Runner Kickstarter has just launched, and is tearing through stretch goals after funding in just 3 minutes. It looks very likely that this will be the company's second million dollar Kickstarter (following last year's The One Ring campaign, which raised over $2M). It will also be the third million dollar Kickstarter in the last month, following Matt Colville's Flee Mortals!, and Monte Cook Games' Old Gods of Appalachia.

Blade Runner was voted the Most Anticipated TTRPG of 2022 by readers of EN World right here.

Free League's other million dollar Kickstarter, The One Ring, did $521K on the first day and finished with $2M. Compared to the other million dollar campaigns in the last few weeks --

• Flee Mortals! did $788K on the first day.
• Old Gods of Appalachia did $679K on the first day.
• Only one campaign has done $1M+ on day 1, and that was Avatar Legends with $1.15M on the first day.

Check Out These Bladerunner RPG Previews

Free League has shared some previews of its Bladerunner RPG, which comes to Kickstarter next week on May 3rd and looks very likely to be the third million dollar Kickstarter in the last month.

www.enworld.org

BLADE RUNNER – The Roleplaying Game

Walk the neon-noir streets of Los Angeles 2037 in the official BLADE RUNNER RPG from Free League Publishing and Alcon Entertainment.

www.kickstarter.com

 

[Morrus]

I mentioned this in another thread, but I'd be curious to know how much of that million goes to licensing. Between production/marketing/shipping costs, that 1 mil goes way down, so I wonder if they needed to hit a million just to make any sort of profit once you consider licensing as well. It always strikes me funny when someone says someone on KS became a millionaire because net profits are just a fraction.

10% is a common figure. Plus an advance on royalties (which won't be all that much, I wouldn't have thought; maybe $20K? Maybe not that much). But we can but guess.

Note that this total doesn't include shipping, which will be charged afterwards. For campaigns which include shipping in the actual pledge process, that can be 20-30% of the funds. That doesn't apply to this campaign though.

And of course Kickstarter takes 5%, and you lose 5% to failed pledges.

So yeah, it adds up.

 

[Grendel_Khan]

They crossed the 10M SEK mark. Here's hoping someone's working late in Sweden to toss up the next batch of stretch goals.

 

[Scribe]

Dark and Existential themes you say?

Sold.

 

[schneeland]

Seems like the next update will only come tomorrow morning.
Personally, I would like to see Simon Stalenhag do a full soundtrack. But it doesn't seem like something that's too popular among backers based on the comments I saw.

 

[Grendel_Khan]

Seems like the next update will only come tomorrow morning.
Personally, I would like to see Simon Stalenhag do a full soundtrack. But it doesn't seem like something that's too popular among backers based on the comments I saw.

I'd love that!

But don't pay too much attention to the backer comments. I recognize a lot of the names, and many are the same dice goblins and doodad seekers that show up to other big campaigns. Give em a GM screen and they want a bigger one. Give em an origami unicorn that would destroy the project's margins and they'll want a spinner plushie, too. They're a tiny slice with an outsize voice on that platform, and they're always going to ask for more random dice bags, trays, shirts and other "I was there" exclusive treats.

 

[payn]

I'd love that!

But don't pay too much attention to the backer comments. I recognize a lot of the names, and many are the same dice goblins and doodad seekers that show up to other big campaigns. Give em a GM screen and they want a bigger one. Give em an origami unicorn that would destroy the project's margins and they'll want a spinner plushie, too. They're a tiny slice with an outsize voice on that platform, and they're always going to ask for more random dice bags, trays, shirts and other "I was there" exclusive treats.

I dont know why comments are even allowed. Its just a bunch of jackals mad that they don't get to meet Harrison Ford as a stretch goal for their 89 dollar backing.

 

[Urriak Uruk]

Well wow-ie, I'm impressed. Surprised too, considering the goal was $10,000 and it's done almost 100 times that in one day.

Not bashing, genuine curiosity, but how is this doing so well? I understand Blade Runner is a cult film with a following, but I would never have expected this to be more popular than The One Ring. I also saw that Free League's Bladerunner is the most anticipated TTRPG release.

So what's getting folks so excited? Is it Bladerunner, Free League's excited record, something else?

 

[Reynard]

Well wow-ie, I'm impressed. Surprised too, considering the goal was $10,000 and it's done almost 100 times that in one day.

Not bashing, genuine curiosity, but how is this doing so well? I understand Blade Runner is a cult film with a following, but I would never have expected this to be more popular than The One Ring. I also saw that Free League's Bladerunner is the most anticipated TTRPG release.

So what's getting folks so excited? Is it Bladerunner, Free League's excited record, something else?

My guess is it is part of the deep nostalgia well we are stuck in, pop culture wise. Everything is 80s/90s referenced and Gen X is eating it up because we (I am among that cohort) are getting old and realizing our best years are a couple decades behind us -- like every other generation. Giove it 10 or 15 years and Millenial Harry Potter nostalgia will put our cash outflow to shame.

 

[Scribe]

Someone said it best, and I think it was here.

"Nobody went broke, selling their childhood back to middle aged white dudes."

On a personal note, that grungy existential cyberpunk vibe is about as close to perfect as it gets. Cyberpunk 2077 had a ton of hype as well even if the game was (still is?) a disaster.

There is a market for this stuff.

 

[Grendel_Khan]

Not bashing, genuine curiosity, but how is this doing so well? I understand Blade Runner is a cult film with a following, but I would never have expected this to be more popular than The One Ring. I also saw that Free League's Bladerunner is the most anticipated TTRPG release.

So what's getting folks so excited? Is it Bladerunner, Free League's excited record, something else?

I think Free League has a ton of momentum within the hobby, and this kind of product really taps into that collector's urge to own a piece of the thing, whether you play it or not (and especially if it's for something like Blade Runner, an IP with so few things to buy). Even if this just sits on someone's shelf as an art book, that's money well spent for a lot of folks. I mean, that art is just killer...