Additional game copies, add-ons, an international shipping update, and the free kittens
almost 7 years ago – Wed, Jun 21, 2017 at 12:08:03 AM

Holy smokes, folks! 3,000+ backers and getting close to $300,000! This is absolutely amazing.

Let's get down to business.

How to order additional game copies  

Many of you have asked how you can order additional copies of Turing Tumble. For example, maybe you ordered the base version of Turing Tumble and would like an additional copy of Turing Tumble++, or maybe you already ordered Turing Tumble Complete and would like a second one. We’ve finally got a good answer for you. To order additional copies of the game:  

1. Add the cost of each additional game copy.

• Turing Tumble: $60
• Turing Tumble++: $70
• Turing Tumble Complete: $100

2. Add shipping for each additional game copy.

• US shipping: $5 
• Canada shipping: $6 
• Shipping to the rest of world: $15

3. Edit your pledge, and add the total to your existing pledge. 

(Remember, these prices only apply to additional copies. You must have already backed at one of the reward levels that include a copy of the game.) 

So, for example, let’s say you already pledged for a copy of Turing Tumble++, but now you want to add a copy of Turing Tumble Complete. Here’s how you’d calculate your total pledge: Since you started with Turing Tumble++, your current pledge would be $70 plus $12 (US shipping). To add Turing Tumble Complete, you’d add $100 for the game and another $5 for shipping. Your new total would be $70 + $12 + $100 + $5 = $187. 

So if you pledge $187, how will we know what you want to get? About 3 weeks after the Kickstarter campaign is over, you’ll get an email asking you to complete a survey where you can tell us how you’d like to allocate the extra money you pledged. 

Additional items

Many backers have also asked for additional items to purchase alongside your game(s). We can do that the same way as above. Just add the cost of the additional item to your pledge, but for these, there are no shipping charges. Here are the add-ons and their cost: 

• $15 – Turing Tumble T-shirt 
• $10 – Extra parts: 8 more gear bits and 4 more gears 
• $20 – One additional complete set of parts 
• $10 – Extra balls: a complete set of 20 red balls and 20 blue balls 
• $15 – Puzzle Booklet 
• $15 – Digital copy of the puzzle book and 3D CAD files of all parts 

International shipping update 

International backers rejoice! Since we had way, WAY more international backers than we ever imagined, we can offer your shipping now for $25. Unfortunately, Kickstarter doesn’t allow us to alter shipping levels once a campaign is running, so we can’t give that money back directly. But we can give you that $10 to put towards additional items/games. When the survey comes out 3 weeks after the campaign, you’ll have a choice of how you want to spend that money. 

The free kittens 

And finally, I know that many of you were hoping for a stretch goal that included free kittens. While the thought of 3,000 adorable kittens meowing and frolicking around our house as we prepare to send them to loving new homes all around the world was almost too enticing to pass up, sadly, it just won’t work out. :(

However, we were hoping you could help us all experience some of that joy. We want to see your kittens. Send us pictures of yourself with as many kittens as you can. Grown-up kittens count, too! Post the pictures to our Facebook page and tweet them to our Twitter page.

We've said it before, and we'll say it again: you guys are truly the best backers EVER. Thank you, thank you, thank you for your enthusiasm and support.

Paul and Alyssa

A Turing Tumble Emulator!
almost 7 years ago – Sat, Jun 17, 2017 at 12:14:53 AM

First of all, thank you for your great ideas! I spent a good chunk of the day following up on them and sending off emails. We'd love to hear any more ideas you have on promotion, too. They've been very, very helpful.

Ok, now for the main event. This is the definition of cool. Lode Vandevenne is a backer from Europe who told us he was excited about Turing Tumble, so he created a web-based emulator so he could start playing with it before his physical version arrives. You can try the emulator out at his website: http://lodev.org/jstumble/.

As if that wasn't enough, Lode programmed it to recreate the 1960's toy, Dr. Nim. If you're not familiar with Dr. Nim, here's a video that explains it. You can find a button to load Lode's version of Dr. Nim all the way at the bottom of the list of buttons.

Lode also added the ability to share computers you make with a simple web address (click the "URL" button). So if you're playing around and you end up making something neat - maybe a computer that does something interesting or a puzzle for others to solve, share the URL in the comments section. I know I'd like to try it out. :)

As a side note: Keep in mind that there's a learning curve to building these marble computers. So if you look at the emulator or some of the examples and feel completely overwhelmed, don't be discouraged, you're not alone. The puzzle book will help lead you through one step at a time.

Awesome work, Lode!

Paul

Remember what happens at $250,000?
almost 7 years ago – Fri, Jun 16, 2017 at 07:42:24 PM

I'll give you a hint. :)

Wow, we can't thank you enough. Before the Kickstarter, I was asking for quotes on 500 assemblies. Today, I asked for quotes on 5,000 assemblies. It felt SO good. 

This has been an adventure like nothing else. Alyssa and I are getting a quick education in all sorts of new things. Last Friday, for instance, we were interviewed on live TV for a show on TPT called "Almanac". I can't even begin to tell you how fast-paced, nerve wracking, and fun it was!

We're also getting a crash course in marketing. This is where we've put a good fraction of our time the last couple months, and we'll try to keep it up until the end of the campaign (though we're both getting a little worn out). We've had some great luck finding top-notch journalists and bloggers interested in writing stories on the project. It's also been exciting to see the story get picked up by other publications without even knowing about it. We've had success with some other angles, too, including Facebook, Reddit, and the Minneapolis Maker Faire. We dabbled in paid advertisements on Facebook, but didn't get much return and stopped. Our budget for advertising has been really small.

If you don't mind us asking, we'd like to put this question out to you: With 13 days left on the clock, where would be a good place for us to tell people about Turing Tumble? Is there a particular publication, event, forum, or corner of the internet where people would be especially interested to learn of its existence? We'd love to hear your ideas in the comments section, or message us directly!

Thanks again,

Paul

T-shirt Design
almost 7 years ago – Fri, Jun 16, 2017 at 01:06:44 PM

We have had some people ask what the t-shirt will look like, so here are photos of the front and back. The back IS a real puzzle solution, but you will have to figure out which one. Not guaranteeing you will look as cute as our 3 year old!

$200,000 stretch goal unlocked!
almost 7 years ago – Mon, Jun 12, 2017 at 07:09:55 PM

*Click* 

That's the satisfying sound of your sturdy Turing Tumble magnetic box closing in your future. We reached our second stretch goal! This is wonderful!

We added a set of 4 new stretch goals, and it looks as though these will indeed be a stretch:

Stretch goal #3 ($250,000): Sometimes you just need a little extra help. We'll put hints to each of the puzzles online. This is in addition to the solutions that are already in the back of the book.  

Stretch goal #4 ($300,000): Four extra red balls and four extra blue balls in every copy. By now, we've probably got a full set of balls hiding under our fridge. And our couch.

Stretch goal #5 ($350,000): Stand upgrade! We'll give the stand adjustable tilt so you can speed up or slow down your computer. Might need to add a CPU cooling fan if you get it going too fast. :)  

Stretch goal #6 ($400,000): This is the big one. Can we reach it? If we can hit this stretch goal, I'll create *9* more puzzles – up to 60! We'll also make an educator’s version of the puzzle book online, and we'll create a website where you can share your own puzzles/creations.

Thanks again for your enthusiasm and support! We just can't thank you enough.