52 species. One small island. Build off your friends' carefully laid plans in this fast-paced, bird-based spatial puzzle.
Latest Updates from Our Project:
Mini Update 002: 📈 Surveys Are In Progress!! 📈
4 months ago
– Sat, Dec 13, 2025 at 11:44:25 PM
Hi everybody,
Happy Sunday!
We wanted to drop a quick update to keep you up to date with the surveys. At time of writing, more than half of you have submitted your completed surveys, which is wonderful to see. Thank you to everybody who's written in with questions and queries too, both directly and via BackerKit's support link. We've received all of your queries, and should have responses to you along with this update.
We also wanted to make sure you're all aware that our cutoff date for submitting your name for our rulebook is December 15th - tomorrow night.
If you're happy for us to use your Kickstarter account name, then you've got plenty of time to complete the survey (until January 10th, 2026).
However, if you do want to change your name, or opt out of the rulebook credit, you've got until tomorrow evening to complete the survey. This is just to ensure that we get the final copy of the rulebook to the printers as soon as possible so that mass production can begin.
Thank you so much for your understanding, and as always, if you're having any troubles with the survey, or can't access your link, please reach out to us directly, or via BackerKit's support link.
It's fantastic to see such a rapid response to the surveys - you're all amazing, and we can't wait to get this next stage of the project rolling!
Kind regards, Daniel and Juno 🪶
Post-Campaign Update 002: ✨Surveys Are Live! ✨
4 months ago
– Thu, Dec 11, 2025 at 10:11:28 PM
Post-Campaign Update 002: ✨Surveys Are Live! ✨
YOU GET A SURVEY! AND YOU GET A SURVEY! 🫸📋📋📋📋📋
Hello folks!
As you may be able to tell from the title of this update, THE BACKERKIT SURVEYS HAVE (finally) GONE OUT!
Thank you all for your patience! As you know from our previous update, life has been a bit more hectic than we were expecting, however, we're back in action and incredibly excited to get this next step underway.
For those of you who may not be familiar with BackerKit, this survey is the last remaining step before the manufacturing stage begins. This is an email survey that lets us gather all the data we need to make sure your order is delivered straight to you. It also allows you to add on any cheeky extras you may have missed out on during the campaign.
Just a couple of notes:
RULEBOOK ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
As we mentioned in our previous update, we've added a question at the start of the survey asking how you would prefer to be named in the 'Special Thanks' section of the rulebook. This is important to us, as we want to make sure each and every one of our wonderful backers are acknowledged in the name that they are most comfortable with. We've also added the choice to opt out if you would prefer not to be credited in the rulebook.
When you first created your Kickstarter account, you would have had the option to add an account name. By default, you'll be credited in the rulebook by your account name. For example, if your account name was 'Daniel Galbraith', then you'd be credited as 'Daniel Galbraith'. This does also mean that an account named 'dAnIeL g4LBRAITH' would also be credited verbatim. You can check your account name by logging into Kickstarter and clicking the 'Profile' button in the top-right corner.
Clicking 'Profile' will show your Kickstarter display name. In this case, 'Daniel Galbraith'
As updating everybody's names affects the text of the rulebook itself, this means we've got a limited timeframe in which to receive these survey responses without impacting manufacturing timelines. If you're happy for us to use your Kickstarter username as-is, then there's no rush at all: the survey can be completed any time from now until January 1st, 2026.
However, if you are someone who wishes to go by a name that differs from their Kickstarter account name, we would kindly ask that you complete this survey as soon as possible.
The final rulebook copy needs to be submitted to GameLand on December 15th, so any name changes or omissions must be in by then.
If you're not able to complete the survey by then, or encounter any issues at all, please reach out to us directly and we'll get things sorted for you! We can be contacted through the Direct Message function within Kickstarter itself, or by email at [email protected]. In a pinch, Instagram direct message will also work, but email or Kickstarter DM are the most reliable ways to reach us.
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Thank you for your patience waiting for these surveys, and for your understanding around the short timeframe; manufacturing preparations tend to come in all at once. However, this is the big one: once the surveys are in and the names locked, we're full steam ahead with manufacturing!
You should all receive email invitations to complete the survey the moment this update goes live; if you don't see any emails from BackerKit, first check your spam folder, then reach out to us directly and we'll get you sorted!
There's also the offical FAQ from BackerKit which has some simple troubleshooting steps, and details to contact their tech support directly.
Thank you for your understanding, and we hope you're having a lovely end of the year, and that you're all getting some time to relax in amongst the chaos of the holidays.
Kind regards,
Daniel and Juno 🪶
Post-Campaign Update 002: Mass Production Proofs, Brand-New Rulebook, Surveys Are Coming!
4 months ago
– Fri, Dec 05, 2025 at 09:32:19 PM
Post-Campaign Update 002: Mass Production Proofs, Brand-New Rulebook, Surveys Are Coming!
Hi everybody!
We hope you're all having a lovely weekend, and that the leadup to Christmas has moments of rest in amongst all of the running around. First of all, we wanted to thank you for your patience and understanding over the last three weeks, as the updates we had planned for ended up being delayed. We intended to make multiple updates, but as you'll see below, each of these elements directly feed into one another, meaning we had to wait until they were *all* ready to confirm details.
Also, it's been a quite dramatic couple of weeks outside of 'Isle of Feathers': one of our very silly orange cats has developed a UTI (don't worry, he's fine!), Daniel just started a new job, and our hometown of Brisbane has been repeatedly hit with severe hailstorms. All in all, it's been a chaotic three weeks, and we're happy to be back at it.
Thanks again for bearing with us, and thank you also to everybody who wrote in. We'd recommend popping on a cup of tea, because this update is a big one.
So, without further ado, here's what we've been up to!
🏭 Mass Production & Factory Prepress
First up, some very exciting news: all mass-production assets are completed and approved, and 'Isle of Feathers' is in prepress! For those unfamiliar, this is the process where printed assets (cards, boxes, wooden meeples, etc) are prepared and standardised according to the chosen factory's manufacturing standards, then set up in a format that their machines can use during mass production.
This is a very involved process, and includes considerations like colour calibration for the different kinds of inks used in printing, fine-grain adjustments to diecut schematics for components that need to be cut and folded, and even adjusting the layout of our box insert so it can more easily be assembled on the manufacturing line. Prepress for mass production is a very different beast to prepress for the preproduction samples you've seen in the campaign to date, and it's been a fascinating, but very time-consuming process. The good news, is that our 'bit' of the process is done! All of the artwork, layout, and manufacturing schematics (diecut patterns, spot UV masks, Pantone colour swatches, etc) have been submitted to Gameland and approved. Gameland then took our assets and turned them into 'Soft proofs' (digital mockups of the final assets to double-check everything's good to go), which got the tick of approval from us. They're now in the process of creating 'Hard proofs', which are a small number of the final, physical assets to confirm the machines are calibrated correctly. Once we receive the hard proofs and confirm there aren't any more changes needed, they're all systems go to begin mass-producing our board game!
We don't have any glamourous images to go along with this, but we think being at this stage is very exciting :D Soon as the hard proofs are complete and approved, we'll be able to make a dedicated update with our finalised manufacturing and shipping timeline.
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📖 Rulebook v2.0!
We absolutely owe you all an explanation about the rulebook, as our 'v1.01' rulebook update ended up morphing into a complete overhaul of the rulebook. Our original plan was to make minor, incremental adjustments, but we received so much great feedback and references to other games to look at, it became obvious this would need to be a far more substantial job.
Our swanky new cover, featuring a new and improved Shoebill Stork!
The result of the last several weeks of iteration, is a ground-up redesign of the rulebook that aims to both address the specific feedback we've received, and better match the standard conventions of rulebooks found elsewhere.
Our updated rulebook contains the following major features that differentiate it from the version you've seen to date:
Completely Reworked Copy
Every section of the rulebook has had its text substantially reworked, removing superfluous sentences, reducing verbosity, and rewording for clarity. Language used to describe systems and mechanics have been completely standardised, with game-specific terminology given a consistent treatment. We've taken a lot of cues in the way we present mechanics from 'Plan B Games' approach to rules layouts (specifically Century: Golem, shout out to Matt Stow!), and we think the result is a substantial improvement over the original.
Extensive Diagrams & Placement Examples
The most dramatic change to the rulebook is the addition of supporting diagrams.
An example of two new diagrams for placing Cliff tiles.
Every mechanic in the updated rulebook is now accompanied by diagrams explicitly demonstrating their use, and every existing graphic has been substantially reworked for clarity.
We've also added multiple 'expanded' graphics of the game in action, including multiple placement examples for birds, and a full-spread graphic demonstrating each type of Special Ability in use.
Navigation Aid & Tab Bar
Next up, we've added a navigation aid to each page that lets you easily look up sections as needed. The coloured ribbons and standardised icons allow you to rapidly flick through the book, and the .pdf version is marked up with hyperlink anchors so it can be directly navigated like a tab view by clicking the icons.
Check out the navigation in action!
Updated Reference Sheet
And finally, we've improved and updated our player reference sheet, so players can reacquaint themselves with the game at a glance. The reference sheet now covers game set up, the turn structure, placement rules for all components, and updated explanations for each Special Ability.
We Want Your Feedback!
As with the original rulebook, we'd love your input and feedback on the updated version. The rulebook is available online as a 'flippable' booklet view at the link below:
The Miro board has also been updated to include the new spreads, and we'd love to invite everybody to read through the rulebook, and leave any feedback and notes in Miro. Just like last time, we read every comment, and we're hopeful that this new version addresses the shortcomings of our original rulebook. Thank you again for all of your feedback and input, and we can't wait for you to get your hands on the new version!
Several people have written in to ask when the Pledge Manager is going to open, and when the backer surveys are going to be sent. With manufacturing prepress underway, we are now ready to collect everybody's shipping details via BackerKit. Notwithstanding any acts of god or unexpected roadblocks (such as blackout-inducing hailstorms :P ), you will receive email invitations to activate the Pledge Manager over the coming week.
This will take the form of a survey, which asks for postage details and any extra info we need to get your copy of 'Isle of Feathers' to you. This is where you'll select your choice of addons (for example, choosing which pin or hat designs you want included with your copy of the game), and have the option to add extras before your order is finalised.
One important thing we'd like to note is that in the survey, we'll ask you what name you'd like to be credited under in our rulebook (along with the option to opt out if you'd prefer not to be listed). Just so you're aware, we're trying to gather up responses to that particular question ASAP so that we can finalise the rulebook. If you know you would prefer to be addressed by a name that differs from your name Kickstarter, or if you'd prefer not to be included at all, we would kindly ask that you let us know via the BackerKit survey as soon as you can.
We'll post a dedicated update when the surveys go out so nobody misses the notification, but keep an eye on your inboxes!
A Note On Shipping
Our fulfilment numbers are now confirmed and shipping prices locked, but this warrants its own dedicated update which we aim to post as soon as possible.
Thank you for bearing with this massive update, and thank you again for all your kind words and support since the campaign wrapped. This has been an incredible whirlwind adventure, and we cannot wait to get the game into your hands!
Kind regards,
Daniel and Juno 🪶
Post-Campaign Update 001: Pledge Collection, BackerKit, and Next Steps 🪶
5 months ago
– Wed, Nov 12, 2025 at 01:51:20 AM
Hello Everyone!
We hope you are all going well! Juno and I have finally emerged from our post-campaign hibernation, and we're ready to crack on with next steps. To that end, we're posting this little update just to keep you all posted on the things we're tackling next, and to give you a heads up about pledge collection and BackerKit.
PLEDGE COLLECTION
Now that the campaign has wrapped up, Kickstarter has begun the process of collecting all the pledge amounts from backers. We're happy to report that the vast majority of pledges have already been collected, with only a small number of pledges having registered as 'dropped', or failing to process correctly. If you think you may fall into this latter category or you have any questions about this process, please feel free to reach out so we can sort out your pledge ASAP! We know a few of our backers had to change bank accounts and pledge tiers during the campaign and we want to make sure that everyone's requests are being honoured.
BACKERKIT
In around 2-3 weeks everybody who's backed the game will receive an email from BackerKit. We're sure most of you savvy folks are already very aware of this process, but for those of you who may be new to BackerKit, this is the service we're using for Pledge Management, and to keep track of shipping.
The email from BackerKit will prompt you to fill out a survey where you can finalise your postal details, the name you'd like to be credited by, and any other info we need for shipping purposes. This is also where you'll be able to select the add-ons you've chosen. We'll make sure to post an update once we've sent that out so you know to check your inbox, and if you've got any questions about the BackerKit process, please reach out!
UPDATE: SHIPPING ZONES
Thanks for the excellent question Alessandro!
The EU is split into two zones according to the way VATs are processed during the import process (Delivered Duty Unpaid, vs Delivered with Duties Paid). This won't affect the way you receive the game (we'll handle everything our end), but it does affect regional shipping prices.
We used a footnote in the shipping table to list all the countries in Zone B (the regions with slightly more complex VATs processes), but we could absolutely have made the separation clearer!
Here's a breakdown of the two zones:
Zone A:
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden
Zone B:
Bosnia, Iceland, Monaco, San Marino, Serbia, Switzerland, Türkiye, Ukraine, Andorra, Gibraltar, Albania, Belarus, Kosovo, Macedonia, Maldova, Montenegro
SO, WHAT'S NEXT?
Well, we make the game! HUZZAH!
In all seriousness, the next few weeks are going to be quite busy but exciting ones for us. We'll discuss this more in our next update (coming in the next 1-2 days), but we've got some fantastic news regarding shipping estimates particularly for those in the APAC region. To that end, it's time now for us to finalise any 'Isle of Feathers' components that need to be polished (such as our rulebook), send those designs to Gameland, and the begin manufacturing. Adjacent to that, we also need to finalise shipping details with the three fulfilment companies we've been in discussions with so that the picking up and transferring of palettes goes as smoothly as possible. There's also a bunch of logistics tasks we've been researching like how to calculate US tariffs, registering for a VAT number, etc. Lots to do, but it's all very exciting stuff, and we'll keep you up to date every step of the way!
Thank you again for all of your support.
Kind regards,
Daniel and Juno 🪶
We Did It!!!!
5 months ago
– Fri, Nov 07, 2025 at 12:38:03 AM
And that's a wrap! We have officially concluded our Kickstarter Campaign for 'Isle of Feathers', and we couldn't be more chuffed with how these past 40 days have turned out.
To everyone who engaged with our Kickstarter, whether it was backing the project, providing feedback on the campaign, chatting with u at events, or even sharing our content amongst friends and family, thank you so very much for all of your support. We could not have achieved what we have without you folks, and we sincerely hope that 'Isle of Feathers' gives you the same happiness we had whilst making it.
We also want to give a massive shout out to @wrenegadedan and Ibrahim from Wrenegade Crowdfunding who are responsible for managing our Kickstarter advertisements. It was a pleasure working with the both of you, and we can't thank you two enough for your invaluable assistance and generosity.
To the Meanjin/Aussie boardgame community and beyond, we are incredibly grateful for all of the kindness and unwavering support you have shown us over the past few years. We are so very proud to be a part of such a talented group of people.
What's next from here? We're going to have a big sleep over the weekend, then we'll jump right into the next adventure of manufacturing and fulfilment! We can't wait to have you all along for the ride :)
