We have been right at the cusp of publishing Manifold TCG for years.
We thought we had finally procured our funding in September of 2024, but our backers pulled out of the project, and in fact out of the country in light of the results of the presidential election. Then we found another investor around March of 2025. We put together a plan and thought we could have Manifold on the shelves by July 18th. Then the tariffs were announced, far higher than anyone expected, and we needed to go back to the drawing board to figure out exactly how (and at what price point) we could move forward with the game. The July 18th stopped sound reasonable, and I started saying ‘Q4, 2025’ or ‘November’, depending on who asked.
Getting all the graphical files finalized was a slog. The work required to get packs randomized within a case took multiple weekends of burning a candle at both ends. Finally, all the files were sent off on May 22nd. A couple issues were pointed out, then promptly resolved (like the difference between ‘black’ and ‘rich black’), and then a week later we had the digital proofs. There was some miscommunication about how the packs were organized, which the proofs revealed, but those were promptly resolved. Then the manufacturer (Whatz Games, who has been excellent all through this process) prepared some physical proofs for us. We got the tracking number for the proofs on June 22nd. I had no idea how long it would take for the proofs to arrive. I assume weeks.
I assumed wrong. The physical proofs arrived on June 25th. I was certain in manufacturing had already started, I had used some language like ‘trying to hurry to beat the tariff reprieve’, and wasn’t sure if Whatz had interpreted that as ‘get started after approving the digital proofs’. If shipping only took 3 days, though, and we were already a couple weeks into manufacturing, products could be here as early as mid-august! Eileen and I excitedly looked through the physical proofs, and a few things were suboptimal, but ultimately probably fine. Some white text on launch box was a little thin, but who cares?
Then, disaster. The magnification on the cards was slightly different than on our Angel Copy printings. This meant the outer black border was thin, that’s fine. It also meant that the card backs were not identical. That is not fine. Additionally, our launch box bottom was a little shorter than our cards, which means after players disassembled the product, if they tried to use it as a deckbox, it would eventually damage their cards.
For a moment, I selfishly hoped that we had already started mass production, and that it was too late to resolve these issues, and what we saw is what we would get. I messaged Whatz, asking where we were in the process. I was assured production had not started yet, being told ‘you need to approve white samples and color proofs to arrange mass production’. Of course, Whatz is professional.
So now we need to redo all the card faces, and rework our process so that they are made properly going forward. Then we need to reseed all of our expansion packs, which will mean another weekend of burning the midnight oil. It’s hard work creating a quality product.
But let me tell you, this is going to be a quality product. It’s everything we dreamed of, and we’re so close to realizing it. Thanks again to everyone who has been involved in this project at any point in the last 5 years. You kept us going.
And we’re getting ready to launch.
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