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SKEPTICS Board Game

Created by Usiak Games and Designs

SKEPTICS is a cooperative, dice rolling game, where players explore potentially haunted locations to prove the existence of ghosts. 1-4 players take on the role of Investigators gathering evidence of the paranormal. Investigators race against the clock exploring rooms and rolling dice to match icon sets to Search, Reveal, and Solve Clues. Each Clue will lead Investigators one step closer to revealing the Ghost. Environment Cards are drawn every hour, which may have hazards and conditions that will impede the Investigators’ progress. Investigators win if the existence of the Ghost can be proven in time, but Investigators fail if time runs out.

Latest Updates from Our Project:

Stretch Goals...What's Next?
over 2 years ago – Wed, Jun 23, 2021 at 03:05:01 PM

Sorry for the incoming wordy update; lots to discuss.


So many of you may be wondering, “What is the next stretch goal for SKEPTICS now that we have unlocked the last visible goal?” To be honest, we didn’t expect to unlock everything half way through the campaign and didn’t plan beyond the current stretch goals. When we first brought SKEPTICS to Kickstarter last October with the goal of 25k and failed to get even 13k, we knew we needed to focus on marketing more and that is what we did. We (and the former backers) all seemed very happy with the game and what was offered. However, we did create the Story Book mode and focused on the improved insert tray since we had time on our hands.


So now that we have unlocked all of the content-based additions, we are now looking and quality upgrades. We are already using 290gsm Grey Core for the cards, but we could do a Stretch Goals to move to 310 gsm Black Core cards. We are looking at other quality upgrades as well, but we don’t have any set-in stone yet. We are considering creating an Extra Dice add-on so those wanting extra sets of dice could add those to their order. Let us know if any of those things would be of interest to you as our community. We are also looking into alternate language options for the game; we will have more on that later this week.


While I know it may be disappointing that we don’t have another map at this time, our focus is ensuring that we have the game ready to send to the manufacturer shortly after the campaign ends, and if we were to try to add in new content, that would only push the game back. We do plan on working on the first SKEPTICS expansion that will add another map board, new ghosts, new investigators, items, and a few other surprises. I also plan to push that all of this new content will fit into the existing box because, as a gamer, that is something important to me. We have many of these ideas sketched out for the next two expansions, but they will require playtesting and balancing. We believe by the time this game is reaching you, we will be already deep into playtest the expansion (maybe with your help).


What we have provided in this Kickstarter is two maps, eight ghosts, and a variety of special items that can be swapped in as your three “tools” in each game. The ghost and board alone provides 16 unique experiences, and even more combinations when you factor in the items, the random board setup, and the order the rooms are revealed. We have the story mode that creates a mini-campaign that can be played in whatever order after the first playthrough, and this mode added in Investigator abilities, which was highly requested in the last Kickstarter Campaign.


Also, we realized this may not have been obvious on the Kickstarter page since it was only in a single sentence, but by being the first to support the creation of the SKEPTICS universe, you are receiving the 10-card promo pack (which have been slowing revealing themselves in the components section) and the first Ghost expansion pack (Entity and TWiiNS) with your pledge. These are things that will not be offered in the base game box during print runs after the first. The Ghost expansion will be a separate purchase, and the promo pack may not get printed again unless we decide to do it for a special occasion.


We are excited that so many of you are looking forward to this game, and we can’t wait to see your posts on social media telling us about your experience when you receive and enjoy the game with friends and family.


Let us know what you think about the component quality upgrades as Stretch Goals.


Also, I have been hearing rumors about a dark entity lurking around a local asylum; we may need to send some investigators to look into that here real soon…

Stretch Goal #5 - INSERT TRAY UNLOCKED!
over 2 years ago – Wed, Jun 23, 2021 at 04:15:55 AM

Wow, we have managed to unlock all five stretch goals in just 15 days! The Insert Tray is the fifth Stretch Goal to Unlock!

As the two Ghost expansions were being developed we wanted a tray that would hold the components better. We had an original design that did accommodate for the extra components (which you see in the unboxing video), however there were a few things that were in the way. The Ghost Cards were covering the Card Compartments leaving little room for stacking and we were not using the space wisely.

So with the new design,  Our amazing Tray designer, MATT HEALEY, worked with us to push the Investigators down, slide the Ghost Cards over, widen the two outside compartments for sleeved cards, and gave a bit more room from the top of the tray to the box cover for a future expansion board.


We hope this new addition is a satisfying stretch goal and may all your components rest properly in Peace :)



Thank you to everyone for the continued support! We would NOT have been this far without you!

Jon Usiak and Brian Moats

Usiak Games and Designs

Social Promotion for the SKEPTICS give away!
over 2 years ago – Tue, Jun 22, 2021 at 04:34:31 PM

Today the Kickstarter campaign for SKEPTICS is half over at 141% funded and we are still going Strong! 

If you have not pledged yet you still have plenty of time to get your copy of the game including all of the unlocked stretch goals and Promo Cards!!!  


Remember that you can still Subscribe or like any of the following to be part of the give-away during the Kickstarter run! ALL the Details are in the Facebook page link below. You can also follow the linktree link in the profile!


Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/skepticsgame


Site link: Usiakgames.com


Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/usiakart/


Promotion Page: https://www.backerkit.com/call_to_action/c088d4f0-0a4b-436b-bb85-c2806e05c87b/landing


Also, if you are a Fan of the game you can go to Board Game Geek and like the page: 


https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/199418/skeptics


Liking this page will help create that buzz!


Thank you again everyone!

Jon Usiak and Brian Moats

Usiak Games and Designs

Stretch Goal #4 - The Storybook UNLOCKED
over 2 years ago – Mon, Jun 21, 2021 at 11:27:03 PM

We just unlocked the Fourth Stretch goal - The Storybook! The Storybook is a small expansion that is used with the Core game of SKEPTICS and adds another level of replay-ability. The Storybook will guide you through each Ghost that comes with base game, including the TWiiNS and Entity expansion Ghosts! 


In Storybook mode, you will begin your investigation with the easiest Ghost (the Child) and work your way up to the most difficult (the Apparition). As you complete each Ghost your team will be rewarded one Perk. This Perk can be used during each investigation moving forward. These Perks are tracked on the Character Cards which will also come with this expansion. Each Character will also have a unique ability that they may use during Storybook mode, or even during the Core Game!


We hope you enjoy this addition to the game!


Thank you everyone for the continued support and making this game become a reality!



Jon Usiak


Usiak Games and Designs

Stretch Goal #3 - The TWiiNS UNLOCKED
over 2 years ago – Sun, Jun 20, 2021 at 05:32:22 PM

We just unlocked the Third Stretch goal! The TWiiNS (Yes Two i's). This is a bonus expansion Ghost to the Core game of SKEPTICS. You can check out a quick How to Play Demo at this link: https://youtu.be/LDvxVcn3fSQ

The Twins (TWiiNS) Idea did not come from the Shining, as everyone may be thinking. Yes, maybe it popped in my head. But the real Idea is based on my Twin daughters. We were in a hotel one night and they wouldn't go to sleep. They were being very noisy. Immediately the thought came to me to make them a Ghost team, or dual Ghost, in the game! 

When they finally fell asleep, I stayed up until 3am working on the idea and design for the game! Several playtests later, the TWiiNS were developed :)


Thank you everyone, again, for all the support! Still not even half way there yet!


Jon Usiak

Usiak Games and Designs