Zeitgeist: The Dark Horse of TCGs

Ladies and gentlemen, we may have actually found a Kickstarter TCG worth a damn. Say hello to Zeitgeist – an indie project being carried out by Ricardo Pena of Mexico City. As of September 19th, the campaign has raised more than $6,000 and is aiming for a modest funding goal of $7,500.

While Zeitgeist is comparatively a small project, I personally find it to be an example of a crowdfunding campaign done correctly. You wont find any overwhelming emphasis on flashy artwork, stretch goals, or pledge rewards. Instead you will find a focus on the actual game, the rules, and the roadmap. By contrast, Kickstarter TCGs usually sound like they are trying to sell you a timeshare in Cancun rather than a playable card game.

In fact, it becomes abundantly clear just how passionate the developer is about the game as he extensively shares the evolution of both the lore and the artwork. It is simply obvious that the developer gives a damn about the game and is eager to see his dream become reality. In the words of Michael Sampson, “invest in people, not ideas”.

Perhaps the most fascinating aspect of Zeitgeist is how the artwork actually looks like artwork. It’s not some iPad-drawn Fortnite-esque render that you would find in a game like D-Spirits. It’s much more subdued. More complex. It has a striking similarity to the pastel themes you would see in a world famous composition like The Scream

Zeitgeist’s booster boxes will follow the standard format of 32 booster packs. Each pack will contain 8 individual cards. The first set, titled Initio Dawn of Chaos, will contain 151 cards total which are broken down into 60 common, 45 uncommon, 30 rare, 12 super rare, and 4 ultimate.

It remains to be seen how such a low budget project will turn out. Low budget projects have historically ran into problems which result in them being unable to follow through with their commitments. A great example of this is Jammy’s Game – an interesting TCG based on sexual kinks. The developer raised more than $8,500 and ultimately ran out of the funds needed to bring the game into production. Eventually the cards were all uploaded to the internet and the game was instead released as a print-and-play. Talk about disappointing.

According to Zeitgeist’s roadmap, which is subject to change, the campaign is expected to end in early October and product is expected to ship in Late March of 2022. This means supporters can expect roughly a six month turnaround time from pledge to product.

Best of luck Mr. Rija