Backer Update: 1/17/17
over 6 years ago
– Wed, Jan 17, 2018 at 06:05:34 PM
Hi Everyone!
Short but sweet update today:
We just sent out the Steam keys for THE NEST and THE THRILL OF THE FIGHT via BackerKit for everyone who added a Game Bundle to their pledge!
If that's you, you should be receiving an email from BackerKit with all of the information and instructions. If you don't receive it by tomorrow, please email us at [email protected] and we'll get it sorted out for you right away.
We're waiting on some supplies, but we should be starting to send out your t-shirts this week or next, as well. We'll send out another update when those start leaving the office.
And we're still working on putting together some cool new rewards to thank everyone for their patience and understanding throughout this whole process.
Thanks!
The Hardlight Team
Regarding the Recent Price Drop
over 6 years ago
– Wed, Jan 03, 2018 at 10:20:57 PM
Hello Hardlight Backers,
We wanted to reach out directly to you with a message and some clarification regarding the preorder price of the Hardlight Suit dropping. One of our goals from the conception of what would become the Hardlight Suit was to bring a high-quality, affordable haptic suit to VR. We wanted the Hardlight Suit to be the cheapest part of your VR setup.
As we learned more about manufacturing, parts sourcing, and our design needs, our hopes to have that previous statement be true within the next year or two looked more and more unlikely. When it comes to hardware manufacturing as a startup, the first runs are always the most expensive, as there are a number of setup and prototyping costs that add to the overall expense of actually making the suits. When we set about pricing the suits for Kickstarter tiers, we had to build in a certain amount of padding to account for manufacturing costs like molds, tooling, electronics, etc.
Dropping the price just as the first Kickstarter suits were beginning to ship was not a decision we took lightly. We want the Hardlight Suit to be around for a long time, and part of how we can make that happen is to get more suits out into the world. This also allows us to continue building a strong base and forging relationships with arcades, game developers, and other partners that will allow us to keep your Hardlight Suits viable, growing platforms for a long time to come.
We want to make it crystal clear that we couldn’t be doing any of this without the support of our Kickstarter backers. Because of your faith and support, we were able to get the Hardlight through the prototyping process and turn it into a real thing that we can actually manufacture with only a 6 person team. It wouldn’t exist without your support. You’ve given us your trust, and you’ve done a remarkable job of bearing with us through unexpected delays and growing pains. We’re doing everything we can to make sure this relationship is a fruitful, longlasting one, and we hope you’ll continue to follow us into the future.
Some of the first suits have already shipped to backers, and more will be on their way from our warehouse in the next few business days. We’re also working on putting together some bonuses for our backers for being so patient and understanding as we navigate the wild world of making VR hardware.
As always, you have our thanks,
Morgan and the Hardlight VR team
Shipping Update: 12/1
over 6 years ago
– Fri, Dec 01, 2017 at 04:44:19 PM
Hello Hardlight Backers!
We wanted to give y’all another update. Our textile manufacturer hit us with a series of delays over the last few weeks, but our first run of 100 suits is now on track to ship to our fulfillment warehouse by the end of next week and ship out to backers shortly thereafter.
As we’ve said before one of the main purposes behind this small initial run is quality control. We’re working with these manufacturers for the first time, and the Hardlight Suit is a complex piece of equipment to assemble.
Above all else, our primary goal in this whole process is to ensure that the suits we end up shipping out to you, our backers and pre-order customers are worthy of the money you’ve spent and the trust you’ve placed in us to deliver. Neither of those are things we take at all lightly, so while we’re extremely frustrated by the delays, we believe they’ll ultimately be well worth it.
From this initial run of 100 suits, a portion will go to our backers, and many will go to our developer partners. This will help further our goal of quality assurance, as the suits will be put through their paces, and it will also allow us to continue to grow the library of completely Hardlight-integrated games for you all to enjoy.
The second batch, which will be for 500 suits, and clear all Kickstarter, BackerKit, and online store orders, will be put in shortly, and is expected to ship in January.
As always, if you have a question or concern about your order, we urge you to contact us directly at [email protected] and we’ll do our best to get you an immediate answer or solution.
Thank you,
Morgan and the Hardlight Team
Shipping Update: 11/18
over 6 years ago
– Sat, Nov 18, 2017 at 10:49:26 PM
Hello Hardlight Backers,
We wanted to provide you with a quick shipping update. We have confirmation now that the first run of 100 suits will be finished and headed to the fulfillment warehouse in Hong Kong on Monday, November 20th. From there, the suits will ship out across the globe next week.
While this small run will not satisfy all of our backer orders, it will allow us to make certain the suits are up to the high standard we've set for ourselves and for our backers. We're working with our manufacturer for the first time, and while everything coming off the production line so far has looked great, we want to make sure you're getting what was promised and what you paid for.
So, once the quality of this first run is verified, we're going to be doing a second run of 500 suits, which will satisfy all outstanding orders for Kickstarter backers, BackerKit customers, and preorders from our online store.
We hope this clears up some concerns about shipping and we appreciate everyone bearing with us.
Thank you,
Morgan and the Hardlight Team
Shipping Update
over 6 years ago
– Fri, Oct 20, 2017 at 12:42:27 PM
Hello Hardlight Fans and Backers,
As it’s mid-October, we’ve been receiving a lot of inquiries about the shipping status of your Hardlight Suits. We apologize for not making a statement sooner, but we were holding off until we had more specific information to give you.
The first thing we want to be very, very clear about is that manufacturing has been lined up and production has started. Though we’ve encountered a series of minor delays, you will be receiving your Hardlight Suit!
We were hoping to avoid any delays or staggering when it came time to manufacture and ship your suits, but, as we’ll detail in the rest of this message, it happened and we’re working out the best possible plan possible to get everyone their Hardlight Suits as quickly as possible.
The first delay occurred when a shipment of critical parts failed to make it to the factory in time to arrive before Chinese Golden Week commenced. Then, another crucial shipment of parts was held up in customs. These things happen, and we regret not bringing it to everyone’s attention sooner, but wanted to make sure we had the most accurate information and not alarm everyone that’s already been so patient with the delay from late September to mid-October.
Our original hope was to be able to ship everyone’s suits simultaneously, but with the delays, it’s become clear that the quickest route to being able to start shipping out suits will be to stagger the production and ship the finished suits in batches.
What this means is that we’re now going to be ordering which suits go out by when they were originally backed or pre-ordered. That order will look something like this:
Super Early Bird Kickstarter Backers
Early Bird Kickstarter Backers
Standard Kickstarter Backers
Backerkit Backers
Online Store Orders
We expect to be shipping the first batch on November 17th, and we’ll be doing everything in our power to get the rest shipped in sequence as soon as possible afterward. Keep an eye out for more specific updates to the timeline as the first suits ship.
We’re going to make concerted efforts to continue keep everyone apprised of how things are progressing as manufacturing commences. Jordan, our Head of Product, is actually going to be heading to the factory in China to see the first suits off the line and give the community a glimpse into the process.
Additionally, we’re working on cooking up some special gifts for everyone who’s ordered a Hardlight Suit. Your patience has been noticed and it’s something we will be rewarding. More details on that front will be coming very soon.
As always, if you have questions or concerns about your order or anything else Hardlight-related, please reach out to us directly at [email protected].
Thank you,
Morgan and the Hardlight VR Team
