Last Day! Vote #3! Guitar in the Spotlight!
about 2 years ago – Tue, Jun 21, 2022 at 03:48:06 PM

Hello Kickstarter!

It's the final 24 hours of The Gig Kickstarter, and wow, what a jump in funding! 

Could we even hit 200%?! Who can tell! 

But we've got lots to do, so let's crack on!

Vote #3 Begins!

Having already welcomed the Clarinet and Vibraphone into our ranks, it's time to commence with our third and final Guest Star vote! 

Today, the options are as follows – but vote fast, because we've only got 24 hours!

• Organ
• Congas
• Flute

To keep it simple, we've narrowed it down to the three most popular suggestions on the campaign so far. 

As always, vote with a single word (the name of the instrument you want to vote for) in the comments of this update to make sure it's counted!

I can't wait to see who you pick!

Instrument Spotlight #8: Guitar 🎸

You could say we saved the best for last – because is there any instrument solo more iconic than a guitar solo?! Well in The Gig, it’s no different!

On the surface, The Guitar is a reliable and flexible instrument that can support a number of strategies, with plenty of notation symbols, spotlights, points and multipliers on offer!

But on closer inspection, you’ll notice that when you’re playing a guitar solo, it’s not just about what you play – it’s where you play it in the song!

You see, the Guitar’s unique plectrum symbol allows it to pick one of the spaces you played a dice onto on the song and gain that symbol again! If you time it right, this is a great way to clinch a symbol majority or grab that just-one-more-spotlight you need to win over a particularly helpful audience member!

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See you all tomorrow for the grand finale!

Don't go changing!

– Lewis & Team Braincrack

Vote #2! Final Week! The Bass in the Spotlight!
over 2 years ago – Sun, Jun 19, 2022 at 07:49:55 AM

Hello Kickstarter!

It's that time again – we need your help picking our next Guest Star Instrument!

For Vote #2, we've brought back our three runners-up from the last vote, and thrown two wildcards into the mix for good measure! They are...

• Organ
• Vibraphone
• Flute
• Congas
• Violin

To vote just post a single-word comment on this update naming the instrument you want to see in the game (from the options above!)

We're excited to see what you pick...

Final Week!

As The Gig enters its final week on Kickstarter, we want to extend our thanks for your support so far! It means the world to us. 

With no stretch goals and tonnes of awesome content coming your way, you don't need to do anything but sit back and relax – but we would love it if you shared the campaign with your friends, family and gamer groups to help us get even further!

Instrument Spotlight #6 - The Bass

Speaking as a bass player, the double bass is the coolest instrument in the band – no, I won’t be explaining myself or take any questions at this time, but feel free to tell me if you think I’m wrong. I won’t listen!

If you’ve ever watched a double bass being played (at least, outside of an orchestra) you’ll know that it’s way more than just an oversized cello! The best bassists use the whole instrument, spinning, slapping, plucking and drumming and generally looking very cool while they do so.

So in The Gig, the instrument board for The Bass is all about using the length and breadth of the instrument – with bonuses for filling the widest two columns (20 points total!) and some hefty combos available up the long long neck at the top!

Ah! So cool! Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to go break out some Charles Mingus records…

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See you all in the comments!

– Lewis & Team Braincrack

We Funded! Vote #1 Begins! Vocals Spotlight!
over 2 years ago – Tue, Jun 14, 2022 at 02:55:25 PM

We did it!

Just under a week since we launched, The Gig is FULLY FUNDED! 

No stretch goals means you guys are getting EVERYTHING straight away! That's 15 songs, 11 instruments, 30 setlists, 16 custom dice, 4 dice trays, 30 audience cards, 4 pens, 3 tokens, AND an exclusive expansion! How's that for value!

Vote #1

More importantly, backing the Kickstarter gets you three instruments that nobody else will get, and that you get to create yourselves!

Now that you've all had a chance to add your suggestions, it's time to vote for the first of our three Guest Star instruments, from the most popular instrument suggestions so far! They are...

• Vibraphone
• Clarinet
• Flute
• Harmonica
• Organ

To vote just post a single-word comment on this update naming the instrument you want to see in the game (from the options above!)

On the 10th June we'll count the votes and add the most popular option to the game,  before reviewing everyone's suggestions for Vote #2 on the 14th June!

We can't wait to see what you guys pick! 

Instrument Spotlight #4: The Vocals  🎙️

With our Vocals instrument board for The Gig we were inspired by the greats – Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone, Billie Holiday – and one thing that unites them all. Their ability to harmonise seamlessly with the music around them!

But while The Gig already has a bona fide harmony mechanic, we wanted The Vocals to have something all to themselves.

As such, the unique symbol on The Vocals is a ‘duplicating’ harmony that allows the player to pick another space in the same shape and get it again – whether it’s a notation symbol, spotlight, or even points!

What this means is that the Vocals is versatile! If you’re a player who’s good at paying attention to the competition, this is the instrument for you to try and master!

To boot, the Vocals also have a few combos that can net you up to 20 points in a single turn like a glass-shattering acappella you’ve never heard before!

Solo Mode Preview

If that wasn't enough, here's a preview of The Gig's solo mode by Not Bored Gaming!

Until next time!

– Lewis & Team Braincrack

Vote #1 Results! Solo Mode Released! Trumpet Spotlight!
over 2 years ago – Sun, Jun 12, 2022 at 07:44:57 PM

Hello Kickstarter! 

We've got a bumper update for you today so let's get stuck right in!

Guest Star #1 Revealed! 

We've counted all your votes, and the winner of our first Guest Star vote (by a landslide, I might add!) is the Clarinet!

This Kickstarter Exclusive instrument board will now be given FREE to every backer of The Gig!

What special power or scoring ability do you think the Clarinet should have? Let us know in the comments! And let us know which instruments you'd like to be included in Vote #2! 

Bonus Dice in Dice Set

In related news, we've decided to include a set of dice for each of our Guest Star instruments in our Extra Dice Sets Add-On – that's 12 extra dice, free of charge!

What colours would you like to see included in the extra dice sets? Let us know in the comments!

Solo Mode

For those of you who enjoy a bit of solitaire soloing (not a euphemism) the solo mode designed for The Gig by none other than David Turczi has now been added to our preview rulebook, here!

If you can't wait to try it out, remember that The Gig is available to play now on Tabletop Simulator!

Instrument Spotlight #5: The Trumpet! 🎺 

Everytime I think I’ve already told you about the coolest instrument in the game, I remember the next one!

When it comes to iconic jazz instruments, the Trumpet is near the top of the list – so the pressure was on to give it a cool ability. And not to toot our own horn (pun intended) we think we’ve managed just that!

The Trumpet’s instrument board is all about one thing – a big finish, just like the kind you hear at the end of a song where the whole brass section goes crazy, with the trumpet leading the charge.

The unique symbols on this board (the three at the top) act as multipliers for the scores in the final column – so if you circle all three of them, and manage to circle every space in the final column, that’s 33 points! But that’s a big if!

A missing space in the middle of the instrument board add an extra layer of challenge to the proceedings, making the Trumpet a tricky one to master – but oh so satisfying if you can pull it off!

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That's all from me for now – see you all soon for Vote #2!

– Lewis & Team Braincrack

£1000 left! Guest Stars! UKGE Highlights! The Keys! Sunday Stream!
over 2 years ago – Sun, Jun 12, 2022 at 11:49:41 AM

Hello Kickstarter!

Day 5 of the campaign and we're only £1000 / $1250 away from funding! Not long to go now and we'll have made The Gig happen – and it's all thanks to you! 

Guest Star Suggestions

We're still collecting suggestions for our Guest Star instruments, ahead of our first vote on the 7th – here's the running order so far:

• Vibraphone +6
• Clarinet +6
• Harmonica +5
• Flute +4
• Organ +3
• Accordion +1
• Violin +1
• Cowbell +1
• Composer / Bandleader
• Scat Singer
• Harp
• Tuba 

On the 7th we'll pick the top three to vote on. Remember you can +1 your favourites in the comments to move them up the list, or make suggestions for instruments that aren't on the list already! 

But only suggestions made in the comments will count!

UKGE Highlights

Today is the last day of UKGE and we've already had a blast playing The Gig with you all! Here are some highlights:

We'll be around again to day, drop us a message on Twitter (@BraincrackGames) if you fancy a play! 

Instrument Spotlight #3: The Keys 🎹

Last time we looked at the Drums – and while they’re equally a heavy hitter in the solo stakes, the Keys offer a very different play experience indeed!

The fragmented piano shape of the Keys offers a variety of different scoring opportunities, and it’s up to the player to keep one eye on the songbook to figure out which solo shapes to use when!

But more important (key, even, if you’ll pardon the pun) to your success with the Keys is their unique symbol – one that when circled will give you a choice of any of the four Notation symbols!

This can give you a big advantage in endgame Majorities for the various Notation symbols – that is, if you don’t spend them to alter your dice in the meantime! Are you feeling lucky?

If you caught our Heavy Cardboard livestream of The Gig, you will have seen Jess using the Keys special ability to grab a big win over the Drums and Sax! So you know… louder isn’t always better!

Sunday Livestream

Having a relaxing day? Want some gigging action to keep you entertained? 

Then check out this fantastic playthrough of The Gig by The Charity Boardgamer! 

We hope you all have a wonderful day, however you choose to spend it!

Talk soon!

–  Lewis & Team Braincrack