Brawl in the Family Ultimate Edition + Dededoll!

Final Week and Final Stretch Goal: New Comics!
about 1 year ago – Wed, Jan 08, 2025 at 08:33:53 AM

This is is, everyone! The last few days of the BitF: Ultimate Edition KS, and I've made a video to celebrate and sum up our great stretch goal journey:

The manic-sounding disembodied voice there tells the truth--the last stretch goal is indeed new comics!

LEVEL 9: 200k+ - NEW BRAWL IN THE FAMILY COMICS!

It's been a hot minute, but I'm thinking still have a few new BitF comics left in me, especially since there've been three Smash game releases (among others) since the comic ended! The "Back in the Family" comics from the Waluigi book total 27, so we'll see how many more I can put together before the deadline. That's right, there's no limit to this one, hence the "200k+"! The higher the KS campaign goes during this last mad dash, the more extra comics you get in the book!

So as always, let your buddies and favorite game journalists know during these exciting final days!

There's a new tier as well for those asking for it: a simple one with just the playing cards. And I've begun working on the book's extra features and have a month-by-month plan to ensure I can send them out before December. I'll be keeping you posted on the progress, so until next time, thanks again!

-Matthew

140k goal met! New stretch goals and Add-On coming!
about 1 year ago – Mon, Dec 30, 2024 at 08:14:22 AM

We're halfway through the campaign now and it's been going great! With 140k reached, there'll now be a BitMusical chapter included in the book, so let's take a look at what's next...

LEVEL 7: 160k - WALUIGI SONGS FOR ALL BACKERS + WALUIGI SINGS SECTION OF THE BOOK!

Waluigi's definitely carved out his own little niche of BitF history, so this stretch goal will make sure everyone gets plenty of the purple weirdo's contributions. Most of the Waluigi Sings songs actually came about after the end of the comic, so I'll be adding a section to the book that contains art from each song. Of course, you'll get the full Waluigi Sings experience in MP3 format as well--all fifteen songs in gloriously nasal harmony!

LEVEL 8: 180k - NINTENDO FORCE COMICS SECTION!

I was thinking about how to put any BitF-adjacent material in the book as bonuses, and some of you asked about my full-page, full-color comic contributions to NF Magazine. Now, I can't feasibly put every one of the 60+ comics I've done in this book, but I will pick a selection of the most BitF-esque ones! Several of these are jokes about various newcomers in Smash that were added after BitF ended, and there's even a comic where Dedede and Kirby are discussing Satoru Iwata. I'm thinking maybe 8 pages total or so for this section so you can see some of the stuff I've been up to since BitF wrapped.

Lastly, I've gone ahead and added another Add-On for anyone interested: the digital version of Gamemaster Classified! This is a book I illustrated and co-wrote with Nintendo's own Howard Phillips, with plenty of stories about working at NOA in the 1980s. Contains lots of illustrations, reviews, and comics too! Sadly, we don't have any physical copies of this one left, but we have plenty of PDFs!

That's all for now! Don't forget to keep letting your buddies know about this campaign!

-Matthew

All backers getting BitF song/video pack!
about 1 year ago – Mon, Dec 23, 2024 at 06:59:26 AM

Wahay, the next Stretch Goal has been conquered giving digital freebies to all! These songs and videos will make the perfect companion to the book and doll. Let's see what's next:

LEVEL 6: 140k - BITMUSICAL CHAPTER!

More pages coming our way! I just wrapped up work on BitMusical, the BitF spinoff where every entry was a musical comic. You can see the entirety of this series on YouTube, including remakes of BitF comics 200 (Ode to Minions) & 400 (The History of Nintendo).

This stretch goal will add a dozen or so more pages to the Ultimate Edition, with each one featuring art and a description of a different BitMusical song. While it's not technically Brawl in the Family, it's close enough for me to consider it valid content for the book, and will fit nicely in the comprehensive BitF timeline that's already going to be part of it.

Thanks again for all the support, and remember to keep letting people know about this KS. I anticipate this week will be particularly slow due to all the festivities, so until next time, Merry Christmas and happy holidays!

-Matthew

BitF Playing Cards Now Available as an Add-On! But Waluigi Books Almost Gone
about 1 year ago – Wed, Dec 18, 2024 at 11:31:41 AM

Holy wow, I can barely keep up! We just trounced the next two Stretch Goals: the BitF Through the Years section will be added as an additional chapter in every copy of the book, and the Playing Cards are now available as an Add-On! You should be able to select them when editing your order, but please let me know if you have difficulty.

However, I have to point out that we've almost run out of the TOO BAD. WALUIGI TIME books. I didn't expect the KS to make it this far so I apologize, but reordering more is simply not a feasible option. As such, I'll soon be closing the tiers that have it (and the book itself as an Add-On) after the next few dozen have been spoken for. But rest assured that everyone who's already chosen a tier/Add-On that contains this book will be getting it!

Now then, let's see what's next:

It's a digital freebie for every backer, and the perfect companion to the book! See, there are some things even books can't quite do, so I've got you covered there. Everyone will receive a digital bundle containing all 14 Brawl in the Family videos alongside 15 high-quality Brawl in the Family audio files, so you can sing along to your heart's content. These are all the BitF songs you know and love, from You're a Mean King through One Final Song, plus obscure bonuses like the Eario video, Eario Jingle, and the Super Smash Carol medley. It's all here and it's all yours at the 120k benchmark!

Thanks again, and don't forget to add the Playing Cards (and/or Waluigi book) if you want 'em. And keep telling your buds!

-Matthew

Stretch Goal time! And two have already been met!
about 1 year ago – Mon, Dec 16, 2024 at 08:28:49 AM

What a great weekend! As promised, I've begun working on the Stretch Goal ideas. Take a look!

LEVEL 1: 50k - BOOK + PLUSH FUNDED! Cleared!

Thanks to your support and enthusiasm, in only 28 hours the Brawl in the Family Ultimate Edition and the Dededoll were fully funded! Wahey! Let's see what's next...

LEVEL 2: 65k - SMASH CAST ARTWORK! Cleared!

Would you look at that, Level 2 already got conquered as well. Longtime fans may remember the big double-page artwork in Volume One of all the Smash Bros characters up to SSB Brawl. Then Volume Three contained all the characters from SSB For 3DS/Wii U (minus the DLC guys who hadn't been released yet). The incompleteness of these pages is bothering me, so let's fix it! Now, I'll add a final page to complete the spread, containing the remaining newcomers from SSB3DS/WU as well as all the fresh faces from SSB Ultimate!

LEVEL 3: 80k - BitF THROUGH THE YEARS!

I read a lot of great suggestions for stretch goals here but there was a mention a BitF Timeline of sorts which really got me thinking. When hit, this goal will add a new chapter to the book: a full year-by-year rundown of the comic's history! It should bring in a fresh 8-10 pages complete with plenty of commentary and art, highlights and lowlights and maybe even a few comments from fans at the time. I'm excited to document this stuff while it's still fresh in my brain, a veritable History of Brawl in the Family!

LEVEL 4: 100k - BitF PLAYING CARDS RETURN!

Ahh, the Brawl in the Family Playing Cards, one of my favorite bits of merch from the comic! Initially I wanted to have this Kickstarter include these as well but was worried it'd be too many things and I'd stretch myself too thin. But heck with it, if we can get to 100k, I'll officially include these as an Add-On and get to reordering them alongside the Dededoll! They'll be available to any physical order for a flat rate of $15...and since they're included with the physcial orders, there'll be no extra shipping cost! Woo!

The cards themselves are high-quality and I wanted them to be extra playable, so I decided to keep all the main numbers and icons visible for 2-10, so each has its own character behind the suit icons. The Jack (Meta Knight), Queen (Adeleine), King (Dedede), and Ace (Kirby) all have unique color art for every suit.

That's all for now! Keep spreading the word so we can hit these goals!

-Matthew