Originally published in 1989 Heroquest still retains a strong following both online and on the tabletop. So the announcement of a Hasbro launching a crowdfunding campaign for Heroquest on their proprietary crowdfunding site HasbroPulse stirred the internet. At the time of this writing, Hasbro has already exceeded the original goal and is digging into the stretch goals.
So, what made Heroquest so special to so many people? While there had been other dungeon crawlers, TSR’s Dungeon springs immediately to mind, Heroquest was a Milton Bradley game with tons of miniatures sculpted by Games Workshop. Milton Bradley’s board game experience produced a simple, robust, and fast playing design. Meanwhile the early Games Workshop miniatures and constructible terrain brought a level of immersion formerly lacking from simple game pawns and tokens. That combination led many fans into the greater world of hobby games from RPGs to miniature wargames.
Out of print for decades complete copies of the core game sold for hundreds of dollars and expansions easily breached a hundred dollars by themselves. The high prices commanded online indicated a strong, unmet demand. Hasbro’s crowdfunding effort fulfills that demand at a price point unmatched by the secondary market.
HasbroPulse lists two tiers for Heroquest. Entry to the Heroic Tier costs $99.99. For that price, you’ll receive a complete core game with 71 character, monster, and furniture miniatures plus 4 opposite sex sculpts of the main characters and a limited edition Sir Ragnar. For $50.00 more, or $149.99, the Mythic Tier unlocks. Mythic includes the Heroic Tier plus two expansions; Return of the Witch Lord and Kellar’s Keep. In addition to the expansions, backers receive exclusive miniatures of Mentor with Wizard Hero Card and the Witch Lord itself. Finally, Mythic backers also receive all unlocked stretch goals ranging from a Warlock Hero, additional dice and figures, to a new Quest Book written by original designer Stephen Baker.
As for the campaign, the initial goal was 1 million dollars. Hasbro passed that on the first day. Stretch goals unlock at 1.2 (already hit it), 1.4, 1.6, 1.8, and 2 million dollars. Whether they can get there remains to be seen, but Hasbro is off to a very strong start. As I write this, they have 43 days remaining in their campaign. While they might not reach Gloomhaven levels, they look good hit their top goal.
Lets take a closer look at upgraded and resculpted components
Pledge on HasbroPulse before November 6, 2020.
