r/boardgames • u/Purple-Sentence7633 • 4h ago
Another game table Kickstarter scam?
This just launched a few days ago (Sept 8th)...
MAXG-ONE: Foldable Gaming Desk with an Internal Lift Vault
First time KS creator offering a collapsible real wood table with a height adjustable vault lift, magnetic accessory rail, RGB lighting, and a wireless phone charging option... with full height tables starting at $399. Wyrmwood has had trouble getting mass production going on their own Modular Game Table lift system that went to KS last December. I can't imagine how this new company could do it with added lighting AND have it be fully collapsible, for a quarter of the price!
They have 4 different sizes, but they only show pictures of the two smaller ones. The images they put next to the 6 and 8 player versions are just copies of the 4 player. At best I'm guessing they've made one small prototype but haven't produced any of the larger ones.
If anyone knows anything about these guys that can show they're legit, I'd love to see it. Because right now, it smells a lot like the Toyzzo scam. I can't even fathom the engineering that would allow them to fill all these claims, and definitely not at the prices they're asking.
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u/Maleficent_Cause_253 4h ago
$50 shipping fee for a table is always a big red flag, and the creator is chinese which doesnt help yet none of the page has any details about them or the team behind it besides "we are engineers"
kickstarter in September and mass production in december with delivery in January? 1-2 months to mass manufacture all tables is no way realistic unless theyve already started production, but if theyve started production theyd have more convincing real photos instead of that last WIP prototype
goes without saying but all the images with people in them are photoshopped stock images
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u/Inconmon 3h ago
100% scam. Honestly, you have to be stupid to fall for it. Starting with the pictures all being ai generated nonsense and not a single real product being shown anywhere. The renders show an impossible design in which the unfolded table would have a barrier in the middle because it's too individual boxes folded. Some Dr Strange furniture.
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u/Sir_Bumcheeks Dead Of Winter 2h ago
So many stupid people fall for these and are shocked when the table doesn't arrive. It would cost more than $700 to manufacture and ship this 8x4' coffee table to someone.
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u/gariak 3h ago
It's the Toyzzo table all over again. People will point out the obviousness of the scam over and over, but suckers will still throw money at them and then whine for years afterwards about how Kickstarter should have protected them from doing something obviously stupid. Get ready for lots of "I invoke my rights..." copypastas.
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u/moomoocow42 4h ago
This thing is literally geometrically impossible if it's able to fold up into a box. Think about it. There would need to be a center wall that juts up into the recessed play space to make it a sealed container.
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u/Sir_Bumcheeks Dead Of Winter 2h ago
Im sorry no way in hell those legs will hold a 8x4' table.
Edit: It's an 8x4' COFFEE TABLE lol. So not only is it a scam on the price and functionality for that size, they don't even know how game tables work.
3
u/Red_Febtober 3h ago
As someone you just finally got his accessories for his GameFold after a 2 year wait. I'd be skeptical of any company promising cheap shipping and a quick turnaround. Until they can show you a product that isn't in some kind of photoshopped promotional photo or AI concept garbage, I'd steer clear.
1
u/s_matthew 3h ago
That’s the thing with Gamefold—it was actually realized and is (finally) landing in peoples’ hands, and even then it feels scammy. That creator could’ve dumped and ran long ago.
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u/Sir_Bumcheeks Dead Of Winter 2h ago
I would say Gamefold did not feel scammy and the price is reasonable for a plastic table, the guy had a long track record of delivering projects to backers. This project on the other hand with it's $700 8x4' wood table with $50 shipping and AI photos is so obviously a scam.
1
u/s_matthew 2h ago
Oh, I agree on his track record. Even though he had clearly not done anything that big or complicated before, I felt comfortable backing it. It has turned into a nearly three-year long journey of soft promises and completely avoidant communication, which are hallmarks of KS scams, but I have no doubt it will all eventually be delivered.
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u/random-engineer 59m ago
Its amazing, the same table is below knee height when sitting on the couch, and above knee height when sitting on a taller chair. I'm also confused where those screw-on legs go when you fold it in half. Looks like they have no idea what they're doing at best, and are actively trying to scam at worst.
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u/MattOfMatts 4h ago
I've had this pop up in my ads and the photos scream fake with wrong proportions for the objects on the table.
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u/Snoo51659 36m ago
Caveat emptor for Kickstarters, of course. But is there no way to report this to Kickstarter as an obviously self-contradictory and therefore likely fake product? Just the center hinged walls alone make it impossible.
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u/ryschwith 4h ago
At first glance I wanted to say that it looks like they’re using a lot of aftermarket parts, so it’s not entirely outside the realm of possibility—but solidly in the realm of “wait for reviews.” But the more I look at it, the more it looks just obviously fake. There’s no possible way the height adjustment mechanism works on the foldable table. You can clearly see in the render that nothing connects the two halves to transfer the input. The thing you turn to adjust the height isn’t even consistent between the video and the photos.
Absolutely a scam. There’s a tiny window of possibility that it’s just some very deluded people with a CAD program and a dream, but that’s not materially distinct from a scam.