Bicycle Synthesis - Live on Kickstarter

[CBJ]

Hey guys,

I received a message from Erik about their new Albino Dragon release...

"Hey Jason,
  Thought you might be interested in some exclusive pics of our next deck coming out tomorrow. It's call Synthesis and is inspired by our love of all things Cyberpunk:"


It will be launching tomorrow morning on Kickstarter.  I don't have a launch time.












I'm really liking this one!

CBJ

[Michael]

Oh wow I'm not a fan of cyberpunk decks at all. But this one has captured me with the courts. That king has an amazing amount of detail! I still don't really like these types of designs but man is this a cool looking deck.

[Don Boyer]

I loved cyberpunk as a literary genre in its heyday, and it's a refreshing switch from all the blasted steampunk that's been making the rounds lately.  I'd pledge for this, I think.

[MrMollusk]

Albino Dragon seems to be refining their designs as they go along. This one looks lie it's fully in color, and the last one had a better layout and design elements than their first deck.
It looks sweet!

EDIT: As their experience with design increases, so does their boldness in regards to prices. Whoa, mama.

[Collector]

Cyberpunk  My appeal was heard by a talented team. I like the court card. I think the tuck case and the back can be improved.

[sway]

I really liked all their decks so far, but kind of unsure on this one.

That back design is perhaps what is pushing me away. I hope that isn't final and they somehow improve it (maybe still using the idea of the Ouroboros). Thinner borders would also be desirable.

Edit: Yeah, I just noticed it's $15 for a deck PLUS some high INTL shipping rates. I'm out.

[Pacis]

I do love the deck, but it is difficult to pledge for even one.
No early birds, International shipping is really high, and the deck itself is not cheap at all.

[KPopFever605]

The deck reminds me of the Grid deck and Tron...two cultural aspects I adore greatly. I also like the idea and theme of the deck. However, that $15 price tag doesn't sit right with me.

Anyway, it great the deck was funded in less than a day.

[Don Boyer]

To me it's more reminiscent of the scene in "Blade Runner" where the spinner car lands on the roof of the Tyrell Corporation.  That, and the RPG "Cyberpunk v 2.0.2.0"  I hear someone's working on reviving that game.  Version one was set in 2013 (remember, the game was made in the '80s), version two was set in 2020, the "Cyber Generation" sequel game was in 2027 and I'm not sure how far forward the the new game will be or whether it's a reboot, a spinoff or a continuation of the existing storyline (with a bit of creative retconning to make it look "real" to today's audience).

$15 a deck?  Whoa.  I guess Albino Dragon thinks their past success justifies the price.

Since no one seems to have included it yet...

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1460165270/albino-dragons-synthesis-playing-cards

[Yin]

$15 a deck?  Whoa.  I guess Albino Dragon thinks their past success justifies the price.

Yes Don, I did like the deck a lot. Shane is an amazing artist and I really like the cards. But $15 and $10 for international shipping is $25 for a deck of cards
They seems to be increasing the price per deck. Cthulhu was $7, then White Rabbit $11 and now $15. Sigh...

[MrMollusk]

Since no one's posted them,





I really like how they're venturing out of the deck designing comfort zone.
The deck's style and court card layout just seem so... new.

[Michael]

I agree! The design is very much something we haven't seen before but I like it a lot. The more I see of this deck, the more disappointing it is that they feel they must charge $15 a deck. Those spot cards are really cool and futuristic looking! I love it

[Don Boyer]

I'm finding it disappointing that SO MANY OTHER projects are also charging significantly higher prices.  What gives with that?

[Michael]

I think design is a huge factor in whether or not I back a project (if the printing is claimed to be with a decent company). But after that, the biggest factor for me is the price. Money no longer grows on a tree at the moment so I can't be buying all nice looking decks. I am completely dumbfounded to why many decks on Kickstarter cost at the upwards of $12-$15. I guess $12 isn't tooooo bad but what happen to decks that cost $8-$10 including shipping???

[Don Boyer]

I think design is a huge factor in whether or not I back a project (if the printing is claimed to be with a decent company). But after that, the biggest factor for me is the price. Money no longer grows on a tree at the moment so I can't be buying all nice looking decks. I am completely dumbfounded to why many decks on Kickstarter cost at the upwards of $12-$15. I guess $12 isn't tooooo bad but what happen to decks that cost $8-$10 including shipping???

I'm guessing the artists realized all the work involved in postage, packaging and shipping and decided they wanted to be better paid.  This is a trend which can't last, not as long as the bigger companies can make great decks for less and Standard Bikes can be had cheaply.  When your deck costs as much as four (in the New York area) to twelve (from a big box store) times what a basic deck costs, people start to realize it's just too much, even with the cool design and all.

The Legends deck was a small run - and yet most retailers sold them for around $7-$8 when they were still at retail prices and not yet sold out.  It makes it hard to justify buying a $15 deck, even with factoring in the shipping.  It's like comparing regular store-bought clothes (Standard Bikes) to the fancier stuff in a good department store (most company-made custom decks) to haute couture, stuff that all artsy and high fashion but largely not practical to wear anywhere else but a catwalk (these costly KS decks).

The art might sway me to invest in this, having said all that.  I can't say the same is true for all the other costly KS decks out there.

[Michael]

Work put into a design does not always translate directly into cost. Usually, but not always.i think it's more so up to the consumer if something is worth more, not the designer. Especially if you're somewhat new in the market.

The Legends were attractive to me not only in it's price but it's novelty. The fact that it was so affordable in comparison to most custom decks out there is amazing.i like the design of this deck even though I'm not a fan of cyberpunk. I would've backed it if the cost of the deck was just $3-$4 lower.

[Don Boyer]

Work put into a design does not always translate directly into cost. Usually, but not always.i think it's more so up to the consumer if something is worth more, not the designer. Especially if you're somewhat new in the market.

The Legends were attractive to me not only in it's price but it's novelty. The fact that it was so affordable in comparison to most custom decks out there is amazing.i like the design of this deck even though I'm not a fan of cyberpunk. I would've backed it if the cost of the deck was just $3-$4 lower.

It appears the success of previous Albino Dragon projects means they have enough of a following to continue making these decks at a higher cost to the investor, and they may lose some investors but perhaps take on a few new ones, enough to more than make up the difference.  Perhaps they feel it's better to have customers who can afford more expensive things in the first place, as well! 

[AlbinoDragon]

Hey guys,
  I tried replying to this awhile ago but apparently I am a robot and could never figure out the letters I needed to verify the account.

  I wanted to talk about the pricing of the deck because a lot of people seem to be upset about it. There are a few factors for it that don't seem to be addressed any where and I believe that it's my fault for not being more clear on the Kickstarter about why the price is so much higher.

  The increase in price is directly tied to two things: the rise in cost from USPCC printing and the production costs of the tuck box.

  We went all out on this deck to make it the coolest one that we've ever done. Starting with the tuck box:

• Embossed
• Foil

  These two things are very costly. You can see where the Necronomicon deck was $14 and that was just for the foil alone. We've added the embossing on top of that (which also adds to our costs when dealing with Bicycle's graphic design department). To give you an idea, we're looking at spending more for the tuck box than on the deck itself but we feel this deck's theme really deserves the extra touches that make it pop.

  In addition, we're also doing this deck in full color this time. And, we're adding in some metallic inks on all of the cards! This also increases the cost per deck, but not nearly as much as the tuck box.

  It was a tough decision because of the increase in price we've had to pass down to you guys, but we hope that you'll appreciate the extra effort that went into making this deck the best that it could be. Many believe that if they wait, they'll get the deck for less money later. That's not going to happen because we don't sell our decks to retailers. We make the production run that we can afford based on backing, and then we sell the rest on Amazon and at conventions until they are gone.

  We're also working on ways to bring down shipping costs, especially for international shipping. We only started in distribution a few months ago, so we're still learning, but I believe we are learning quickly.

  The biggest takeaway I hope to leave you with is that we aren't simply raising prices to gouge our loyal supporters because we think we can. There are very real production costs associated with this deck that demanded the price increase.

  I hope that you guys will help spread the word and let others know why the deck is more expensive this time around. And I hope that you agree that it was well worth it when it joins your collection.

[Michael]

Hey guys,
  I tried replying to this awhile ago but apparently I am a robot and could never figure out the letters I needed to verify the account.

  I wanted to talk about the pricing of the deck because a lot of people seem to be upset about it. There are a few factors for it that don't seem to be addressed any where and I believe that it's my fault for not being more clear on the Kickstarter about why the price is so much higher.

  The increase in price is directly tied to two things: the rise in cost from USPCC printing and the production costs of the tuck box.

  We went all out on this deck to make it the coolest one that we've ever done. Starting with the tuck box:

• Embossed
• Foil

  These two things are very costly. You can see where the Necronomicon deck was $14 and that was just for the foil alone. We've added the embossing on top of that (which also adds to our costs when dealing with Bicycle's graphic design department). To give you an idea, we're looking at spending more for the tuck box than on the deck itself but we feel this deck's theme really deserves the extra touches that make it pop.

  In addition, we're also doing this deck in full color this time. And, we're adding in some metallic inks on all of the cards! This also increases the cost per deck, but not nearly as much as the tuck box.

  It was a tough decision because of the increase in price we've had to pass down to you guys, but we hope that you'll appreciate the extra effort that went into making this deck the best that it could be. Many believe that if they wait, they'll get the deck for less money later. That's not going to happen because we don't sell our decks to retailers. We make the production run that we can afford based on backing, and then we sell the rest on Amazon and at conventions until they are gone.

  We're also working on ways to bring down shipping costs, especially for international shipping. We only started in distribution a few months ago, so we're still learning, but I believe we are learning quickly.

  The biggest takeaway I hope to leave you with is that we aren't simply raising prices to gouge our loyal supporters because we think we can. There are very real production costs associated with this deck that demanded the price increase.

  I hope that you guys will help spread the word and let others know why the deck is more expensive this time around. And I hope that you agree that it was well worth it when it joins your collection.

Thanks for checking in with us here! It's good to hear from the project's owner. But I did assume that the price was high "just cause" and that's my fault. Now knowing that the tuck will be embossed and foil accents added and metallic inks used on the cards makes more sense. These do raise the price and it is only natural the price gets passed down to us, the consumers. Thank you very much for checking in here and letting us know!

[magnacat]

i just wanted to let everyone know that the synthesis decks are being sent out now, as i received mine yesterday. the extra time spent on this deck with the coloring of the custom courts, the unique spot cards, and the designs of the aces and pips with great colors contributes, along with the awesome foil and embossed tuck, to making this deck worth the money it was sold for. additionally, it reached a stretch goal where everyone who had pledged for the normal deck received lenticular kings for each suit, which had to cost them a bit, as well, and look great. (these are not included in the red alternate deck) i was also happy to find that the normal kings were included as well, and not simply replaced by the lenticular designs, but as the normal ones come in the tuck, there was no room for the extra kings, so they are found inside the shipping envelope- just so no one almost throws them away, as i did, i thought i would mention this. it's too bad they didn't reach the strech for the other lenticular cards, but even without those, the ones included are a nice bonus. though not a huge deal, they also included a card naming all the characters they had come up with for the courts, which i find is very rare when dealing with cards depicting creations that are new to the buyers. i'm not the best person to rate the handling, so i'll leave that to someone else, but otherwise, both the original, and the red tucks are very nice, and all the cards included are different and fit the theme quite well. i wish i had some way of uploading pics for you guys, as i feel without them i leave this description somewhat incomplete. if anyone has pics, please add them here, as i'm sure they would be a great addition for those interested in this deck. albino dragon really seems to know what they are doing with the designs of each deck they release, and seeing this one following the single-color decks shows me that they are not confined to that approach, and are quite talented at producing color decks, as well.