COVID-19 at the Gaming Table: Delays, Cancellations, Retailer Support, and Free RPGs

We're introducing a new program for retail stores where if a consumer places an order on http://habausa.com and enters a store's coupon code at check out (coupon codes given to opted-in retailers), the retailer will earn 20% of that order. We will either credit a retailer's HABA account, or send them a rebate check. The first checks will be sent April 15th.

If you are a retailer partner and would like to opt-in to this program with your existing HABA account information, please let me know. If you are not an existing HABA customer and would like to place a qualifying order of $250 to join the program, please let me know.

The program allows game stores to sell select Atlas Games products to their customers at a store cost of 25% off suggested retail price. Atlas Games will then dropship the products from their warehouse directly to the store's customers. The Friendly Local Game Drop program is designed to let stores retain their customers and sales without having to manage mail-order and delivery logistics during a time of widespread social distancing.

The current Friendly Local Game Drop product list includes Atlas Games' best-selling titles, including Gloom, Once Upon a Time, and Godsforge. Additional products will be added to the program in the coming days and weeks.

If you buy any products currently in stock on our website right now, we will donate 50% of whatever you spend to the Friendly Local Game Store of your choice. No matter where you live, be it America, Australia, Europe, or the Moon, we will donate 50% of your order to a store of your choice.

Place an order today, and in the comments of your order, tell us what store you want to support. We will contact that store and PayPal them 50% of your order. Consider this a wholesale order placed directly through that store, and this is our way of bringing a sale to that store, to bring them a little bit of income.

I know there is a lot of legitimate concern about the future right now, as we all try to find the best way forward as businesses, as players, and as people.

To that end, Luma Imports is announcing that we are postponing all new releases indefinitely. There are many retailers that are closing either their event space or their entire retail space temporarily to deal with the Covid-19 situation. We would sooner halt our releases and have them at the ready when these restrictions begin to ease up to encourage customers to come back to their welcoming spaces.

Folks, this is the largest and most striking example of a co-operative game being played out in my lifetime, and likely many of yours. I do not say that glibly. Remember those gameplay lessons: play safely, play responsibly, and play with the rest of your extended team in mind.

In order to accommodate this new date, we will not have access to the ballroom until 7pm on Thursday 8/20. We are looking for alternatives to allow those arriving on Thursday the chance to begin playtesting as soon as possible.

As you know, Unpub is a small organization and we knew there was risk of potential fees when we began to discuss adjusting the date with our venue. While we would have no issue covering these additional costs to ensure everyone in our organization (including you) was as safe as possible, we are very grateful that Marriott worked with us. They not only provided multiple options but also waived all fees associated with these changes. We have been very lucky that they are working with us so that we do not have to outright cancel.

In addition to the date changes, the hotel has provided all of us a lower nightly rate than originally quoted.

This global crisis has necessitated that our French partners completely cancel their planned release of King of Tokyo: Dark Edition for the foreseeable future. The plans we have made for a worldwide release of the game are no longer viable, and the current situation requires each of us to adapt.

King of Tokyo: Dark Edition is in our warehouses in Fort Wayne, where our small warehouse staff continues to work diligently and in the safest possible conditions to fill orders taken at GAMA Expo and to make sure our distributors continue to receive the stock they need. With the cancellation of our planned worldwide release, and with the importance of entertainment in this trying time, we have made the decision to ship King of Tokyo: Dark Edition to our distribution partners immediately and allow retailers to sell this product as soon as you receive it.

Brick & mortar retailers may sell King of Tokyo: Dark Edition as soon as you receive it through your local methods (in-store, curbside pickup, local delivery, your STORE website). Online sales of King of Tokyo: Dark Edition, through third-party sales platforms like Amazon, will be release-day gated until 13 APR, allowing brick and mortar retailers at least two weeks to sell without online competition, as we do for all of our titles.