Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/501315
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 26 APRIL 2015 16 MALTESE game developers Mighty Box once had a dream: to fund a humble 1,000-copy run of their dystopian board game Posthu- man through the popular crowd- funding platform Kickstarter. They teamed up with American game publisher Mr B. Games to help get the ball rolling, and set a $27,000 funding target over a one-month period. But at the time of writing, that dream has not only been fulfilled, it has surpassed the small team's wildest expectations, raking in over 5,000 backers who collectively contributed over $325,000 to the Kickstarter campaign – which was launched on March 25 and officially ended last Friday. A table-top board game, Posthu- man's interface challenges players to navigate through a post-apocalyptic landscape, where they would have to keep an eye out for food and medical supplies while warding off attacks from their 'evolved' counterparts – genetically modified humans who have mushroomed during this pre- carious period for planet earth. As players progress through the game – which operates on a system of cards and dice – they will most likely have to choose whether or not to persist News Meet Malta's Kickstarter kings Game developers Mighty Box have struck gold. Originally aiming for a $27,000 crowdfunding drive on Kickstarter for their dystopian board game Posthuman, the small team eventually garnered over $325,000. TEODOR RELJIC attempts to coax the company's secret ingredient out of Mighty Box CEO Marvin Zammit Mighty Box, left to right: Fabrizio Cali, Mark Casha, David Chircop and Thom Cuschieri. Top: Marvin Zammit PHOTOGRAPHY BY RAY ATTARD What is Posthuman? In Posthuman you play as one of the last human survivors in a world where nature is reclaiming the planet and our mutated offspring are working to eradicate us. Will you resist mutation and survive, or give in to the inevitable and join the mutants? In the game, players start off as humans on a solitary journey to a rumored fortress harbouring a community of humans. To reach the fortress the players need to complete ten zones successfully. These zones are found on tiles of varying terrain that are drawn by the players as they explore the world. On their travels the players have the opportunity to meet other human players to trade items and use beneficial skills on each other. They will also encounter randomly drawn mutant adversaries and be assailed by players who have switched to the mutant side. Encounters with mutants may inflict scars, and the more scars players have, the closer they will be to mutating and switching sides. Will they strive to cling to their humanity and make a run for the fortress, thus winning the game? Or will they give in to the ever more tempting mutation, join the mutants, and deny the win from the rest of the humans?