Awaken Realms has released the next official update!

This update includes information on the various language translations plus more notes regarding the English 1st Wave Shipping!

=> Official Update #49 (Translations & English 1st Wave Shipping Update #5)

Highlights and Summary are below this image:

Highlights and Summary:

1st Wave Shipping:

Shipping is still ongoing but the hubs are nearly finished. However, note that there are still over 800 packages that have not yet been delivered, mostly in the USA, Asia, UK and Europe. So, no need to worry if you are still waiting for your parcel to arrive. Most hubs will have shipped all the parcels out within a week or two (ie, by November 16).

[Len’s note: however, if you chose Single Wave shipping, you will not be getting a package during Wave 1 deliveries … Single Wave means waiting until the 2nd Stretch Goal campaign is completed and ready. Then you get everything (Core Box plus Stretch Goal campaign) all at one time during Wave 2 shipping. A quick way to check if you chose Single or Split Shipping is at the end of this article.]

Rate ISS Vanguard on BGG:

You can go to the ISS Vanguard section of Board Game Geek and rate the game.

=> ISS Vanguard (on BGG)

Len’s Note: Look in the black background area at the top for the place where you click on how many stars you would rate the game remember that you are rating the game, not how well it met it’s initial estimated timeline :) For me, it was a no brainer – as my favorite game of course I clicked a 10 star rating! Here is how the top part of the page will look (so you know you are in the right place):

Language Translations:

1st Wave LANG (other than English) status!

Once the English files are completed and sent to the factory, the files also are sent to the translators. They wait until the final because any changes made at the end also must be included in the translations. Awaken Realms wanted the translations to be as accurate as possible. Here is how they put it… ISS Vanguard is:

A huuuge campaign board game with hundreds of thousands of words, even a tiny mistranslation or misinterpretation of a single sentence can tell you a totally different story and break your experience. Not to mention that the wording has to be very consistent once you “travel” from one log to another, so you don’t get confused if the exact words are translated differently. This eventually also excludes the option of having too many different translators working on the same language, as that would cause the extra need to double-check the correctness and consistency of each part of the translation. 

At this point, the translators (in the FIVE languages) have generally completed the rulebook and many of the cards. Note that these translations next have to be checked for typos or errors during final proofreading, but these might help anyone who received the 1st Wave English game but has friends who prefer one of the FIVE translated languages!

Here are the almost final rulebooks in the five languages:

1. => French rulebook (not proofread yet)
   Livret de Regles
2. => German rulebook (not proofread yet)
   Regelbuch
3. => Polish rulebook (not proofread yet)
   Instrukcja
4. => Spanish rulebook (not proofread yet)
   Reglamento
5. => Italian rulebook (not proofread yet)
   Regolamento

Timeline for 1st LANG Wave:

Right now they are a bit more than half way through the translation process. Having moved the Personnel Files into Wave 1 rather than part of Wave 2 as initially planned meant a large amount of extra translation not included in the initial timeline estimates. The estimate now is that most files will be ready in the second half of January 2023. Then they want to have each language play tested for a month to be sure that the immersive experience will be the best Sci-Fi journey possible! Next they will look at the feedback from all the play testers and incorporate changes and fixes as needed. Then there will be one final check before sending everything to the factory. [Len’s note: if I recall, they will have the factory produce all five languages at the same time, so all five will need to be completed, tested and checked]

If all goes as planned, delivery of 1st LANG versions will be in the third quarter of 2023. Here is their graphic depiction of the 1st Wave LANG timeline (open it in a new  tab and it can be zoomed larger):

Awaken Realms apologized for the delays and explained it this way:

Adding more scope to the first wave content like Personnel Files and being willing to have the language version fully play tested is our conscious decision that we take full responsibility for. It’s always possible to cut down some work to speed up a few processes, but we definitely do not plan that to happen. Our top priority is keeping the highest quality and providing you with the best possible version of ISS. Of course, we know that no delay is ever welcome, and we are sorry that you will have to wait longer for your games to arrive.

Pledge Manager and Late Pledge is still open!

Remember that you still have time to order your own copy of ISS Vanguard right now to be delivered to you during Wave 2 Shipping:

=> Your Pledge (you can add to your order as well as modify it)
=> Late Pledge (for those who did not back the initial campaign)

How to Check if You Chose Single or Split shipping:

These notes are from Len (not from the official update):

To check if you chose Single or Split shipping, go to the ISS Vanguard Gamefound page, click on Your Pledge then scroll down just below the summary of all items in your order to see what it says for Shipping.

=> ISS Vanguard => Your Pledge

Here are step by step examples from my Chromebook Browser:

=> ISS Vanguard (Gamefound Page)

Next, look just below the main banner header on the page to see this menu bar:

Click on the second item in the menu bar (Your Pledge) and end up here:

Scroll down past the summary of everything that you “ordered”. Right after the Subtotal, Shipping and Total will be two blue buttons (ignore them) and your Order Status and your Shipping Choice. Here is how mine looks (yours will most likely differ based on what you ordered):

This is where you check on what you chose for the shipping option. Look just under the word Shipping:

If your order does NOT specify SPLIT Shipping, you will not be receiving a package at this time. Single Shipment orders all go out in Wave 2.