Kickstarter: Kingdoms of a New World Playing Cards

Created by Nathanael Mortensen in collaboration with illustrator Jonas Akerlund, Kingdoms of a New World is a beautifully illustrated deck of playing cards inspired by the world of Fantasy Sci-Fi. The artwork and style used in popular Customisable Card Games have been thoughtfully replicated in this deck. 

Currently a Kickstarter campaign, the project is seeking $18k in funding and there is no doubt the goal will be met in the next few days. A lot of hard work has been put into the design and illustration of the deck.



For example, each suit represents a different kingdom: Spades - Spirit, Clubs - Nature, Diamonds - Technology and Hearts - Sky. The intricate design of the borders are illustrated beautifully to represent each court cards' kingdom. Having said that, each of the court cards are custom and unique to each kingdom which exemplify the uniqueness of this deck.



The backs are beautifully designed with the four kingdom being represented in each corner of the card. As a result of the design, the backs are more one-way and might turn some cardists off. However, due to the subtle design of the back and the beautiful illustrations on the face cards, doubt anyone will notice.

No images for the tuck case or aces have been published yet. With more than 20 days remaining in the project, I am certain the creator will update backers as the campaign progresses.

The deck will be printed by the United States Playing Card Company and will be Bicycle branded. There are three decks on offer to backers- One red and one blue unlimited decks and one limited deck with a mysterious black and gold back. Pledge starts from $11.

The first deck is due out to the backers by July 2014.

Kickstarter: GOLD Bicycle Playing Cards

From Elite Playing Cards- the producers of Ritual, Majestic, Divine and Evolution, all successful Kickstarter projects, comes another classy looking deck- The Gold Bicycle. The Gold Bicycle is the first deck on Elite's Premium Collection series. A meticulously crafted and elegantly refined deck.

The Gold Bicycle designs especially the pips and the suits are of baroque influence. From the images, it looks like the faces are also laced by gold metallic accents. Absolutely love the meticulous details on each of the Aces.

No word on the court cards at the moment but of the listed features of the deck is that it will be 100% custom art. Meanwhile the intricate enchanting backs that resemble gold foil, are printed in a deep gold metallic ink. Stunning!

Finally, the tuck case leatherette design adds a touch of luxury and elegance. One can only wonder if the case will be embossed. Having said that, the case will be made with highly reflective gold foil once the stretch goal has been met. The deck will be printed by the quality, durable Bicycle stock with custom finish.

There are various levels of pledges available for this project. The most notable are the limited edition gold plated aluminium ace of spades made from anodised aluminium. Will definitely look good on your collection.

The first deck is due out to backers on March 2014.

News: Albino Dragon Launches The Princess Bride Playing Cards; Reaches Goal in Less Than 24 Hours

From Albino Dragon, the game studio that brought you the most successful playing card deck to grace Kickstarter, comes a playing card project that is trending toward being an even larger project - a deck themed after the 80's cult classic The Princess Bride. Launched earlier today, The Princess Bride themed playing card project has already surpassed the initial goal of $10,000 and is currently over 160% funded. Because of the earlier project's success, Albino Dragon was able to secure the licensing to the highly popular 1987 romantic-comedy/fantasy film that starred Christopher Guest, Cary Elwes and Robin Wright. The movie was an adaptation of the novel by William Goldman.

The playing card deck will feature similar artwork as Albino Dragon's previous projects with 100% custom illustrative designs.  While a lot of the artwork is still under lock in key or yet to be produced, Shane Tyree, Albino Dragon's creative director on past projects including The Name Of The Wind, will not be involved in this project. Shane left Albino Dragon a little less than a month ago after a difference in opinion with Albino Dragon's CEO Erik Dahlman. This will be Albino Dragon's first project without Shane but after today's success it looks like they are off to a good start without him. However, we will miss you Shane and you can follow his future projects here.

The project will fund for another 35 days when it will cease funding on November 26, 2013. The decks will be printed by The United States Playing Card Company. Do you think this will be bigger than Albino Dragon's previous project?

Here is a look at the artwork courtesy of the project's Kickstarter page:

Bohemia Playing Cards

Bohemia is the second deck in a six deck series by Uusi, the design company established by Peter Dunham and Linnea Gits. A successful Kickstarter project, Bohemia's artwork was inspired by the fusion of 17th-century Baroque style with contemporary, urban street art.

The tuck case design itself is very artistic. It is incorporates a unique divergent artistic influences, with the Bohemia logo written in traditional calligraphy on the front. The back meanwhile shows the back design of the cards. It is eye-catching and has an organic feel to it.

The deck is really impressive. All imagery in the deck is hand-painted. Every.Single.Card.  For example, the pips and indices are painted in varying shades of luminous blue for the dark suits of Spades and Clubs and lushly romantic red for the light suits of Hearts and Diamonds.

The court cards are the highlight of this deck. The Queen of Spades, for instance, is depicted as having voluminous, Marie Antoinette-style hair and an undulating silhouette, her dainty hands holding the traditional bedpost-like sceptre, while the one-eyed Jacks (Spades and Hearts) resemble knights or even gentlemen of the royal court, as they’re pictured riding horses and holding either a sword or a lance. Amazing details!

The deck is made with the traditional Bicycle stock with the standard Air-Cushion finish. Needless to say, handling is pretty darn good for all your flourishing needs but IMHO, these cards would look better in your collection.

This is another must have deck for any card collector. The design from the tuck case to each individual card is amazing. Each card could stand on it's own as an art piece. Also, this is a limited edition deck (only 3,500 produced) so try and get your hands on one.

Pros: 
- Elegant and unique tuck case
- Beautiful artwork on each individual card
- Very detailed custom court cards
- Eye-catching back design.

Cons:
- None

Overall: 
- 5/5

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