A tabletop horror experience.
Written by Matt Burns

THE BACKROOM EVENT HAS NOW CLOSED!

Welcome to Northwood!

The old folks have always told stories of Killers, beasts, and spirits that lurked in and around the Northwoods but nobody had seen or encountered them in decades until people started to go missing this past year. Something is brewing and rumors are spreading. The woods were never safe but now it seems neither are the suburbs!

 

Welcome, survivor, to the Don't Look Back backroom event! We are thrilled to be launching this new revised edition of our popular horror game written by Matt Burns.

At the core of these Backroom launches is one single goal: to launch new products and support an indie writer by giving them a platform to get their games and ideas into the world.

And this is where you come in! We launch these games WITHOUT using kickstarter and wear all the costs ourselves. This is because we believe in making sure we deliver these products in a timely and efficient manner and keeping the overall scope of the project in check. Sustainable and achievable goals are the cornerstone for our game launches. By pre-ordering these amazing products, you are helping support indie content and making sure the future of tabletop gaming is looking bright!

Our sincere thanks,
BSS Team
 

You can also come hang out in the official BSS discord here!

A note from the Author

Don’t Look Back has been a labor of love over the last three years! This was my first game and the first game I created with Black Site Studio. We didn’t have playtesters or even an editor. We were also sure that we would only sell 30 copies. Now, here we are three years later and thanks to the support of an amazing player base we are able to revisit and create a new edition of the game.

Before we go any further, if you own the original version, don’t worry! You can still use all of your original Don’t Look Back materials.

This new edition gave us the opportunity to revisit the rules and make them more clear, concise, and consistent! You will find that a few terms have changed and we have added a ton of new content! With additional core Characters from the world of Northwood, rules for vehicles, companions, new types of terrain, and more!

We wanted to make sure that we are respectful of those that have supported the game over the last few years while at the same time creating the best horror game we can.

I want to make sure that I take a moment to thank all the amazing playtesters who have helped to make Don’t Look Back and in turn, Northwood, come to life.

Whether you are a long-time fan or jumping in for the first time, THANK YOU for your support! It means the world to a small-time game writer like me. - Matt

 

Pre-order Bundles

These 3 products are the core of this backroom event.
- All tier I and II bundles will come with all physical unlocks.
- Digital Bundle will include any unlocked marked "digital"

New RulEBook

A copy of the new revised rulebook

- The DLB full hardback rule book
- Exclusive pre-order slipcase
- Free PDF of the book
- 1 FREE Killer Mini (The Judge of Hangman's Rock)

Bonus unlocks and gifts are NOT part of this tier.

Follow the link below for more info!




 

TIER I BUNDLE

- The DLB full hardback rule book
- Exclusive pre-order slipcase
- Free PDF of the book

- The Core Killer VHS Pack
- The Core Characters VHS Pack
- 1 FREE Killer Mini (The Judge of Hangman's Rock)
- 1 FREE Measuring Cleaver (MDF)


ALL bonus free physical unlocks are included.
Digital unlocks are not included

Follow the link below for more info!

ORIGINAL MSRP - $125.99

 

TIER II BUNDLE

- The DLB full hardback rule book
- Exclusive pre-order slipcase
- Free PDF of the book

- The Core Killer VHS Pack
- The Core Characters VHS Pack
- Attack of the Greys II VHS Expansion
- Blood on the Rails VHS Expansion
- Ranger Station MDF kit
- 1 FREE Killer Mini (The Judge of Hangman's Rock)
- 1 FREE Measuring Cleaver (MDF)


ALL bonus free physical unlocks are included.
Digital unlocks are not included

Follow the link below for more info!

ORIGINAL MSRP - $246.95

 

TALES FROM THE CRATE CHAPTERS

The more items we sell in the Backroom event, the more chapter boxes and extras we'll unlock!  

TIER I & TIER II UNLOCKS

Once unlocked, any products with this red tag will automatically be added into any Tier I or II orders, free of charge. These products are mostly divided up into fun chapters but will be provided as individual products upon fulfillment

DIGITAL UNLOCKS

Once Unlocked, an STL version of anything with this purple tag will automatically be available on anyone's accounts who have purchased the DIGITAL BUNDLE. At this time, these STLs can not be purchased by themselves, and is not included in any other tiers or bundles.

UNLOCKED FOR PURCHASE

Once unlocked, any products with this blue tag will be available for purchase. Anyone who has bought a tier I, II, or book can buy this product and it will be consolidated with their initial purchase for shipping free of charge.

UNLOCKED PRODUCTS

Here you'll find a selection of terrain, game accessories, and other items that you can use to enhance your games of Don't Look Back, Please make sure the items you are ordering are not already included in your bundle!

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OTHER PRODUCTS & TERRAIN

Here you'll find a selection of terrain, game accessories, and other items that you can use to enhance your games of Don't Look Back, Please make sure the items you are ordering are not already included in your bundle!

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New TERRAIN!

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Retail bundles!

Are you an FLGS? Want to carry this amazing book in your store? We've got an excellent retail ready pre-order for you right here! You'll need to submit some information before we ship the product, so double check the details for this product before you jump in.

 

Retail ready bundle

Want to get a head start on growing a local scene for DLB? We've put together the ideal retail ready bundle.

– 5 Copies of the DLB rulebook ready to go onto the shelves.
- 5 FREE Bonus killer miniatures to hand out to customers.
- 5 FREE Special store scenario cards to hand out!

(Proof of business will be required before product ships, this order does not include any bonus unlocks)

 

THE DLB FAQ

Nothing about pre-ordering this product should be scary or daunting. We are always available to answer any questions you may have via our Contact page. However, we've compiled a bit of info for you here of some questions we ancitipate. If you don't see an answer, let us know and we may add the response below as well as clarify anything we can to you directly!

What is a Backroom event?

Black Site Backroom events are a launch event for some of our bigger products. While we have unlockable goals that will be added to tier I and II for free during this event, all the products are in our scope for production regardless of the success. The main goal of a backroom is to build a solid foundation of a player base, allow the community to push the product into an even greater state, and celebrate a new release from an often new and independent game writer.

What about a PDF?

We're happy to tell you that Don't Look Back will come with a full PDF with every purchase of a rulebook. We also have a 'Digital Only' option for folks outside of the USA or for people who want to pick up STL files alongside their physical tier. At this time we are not selling the PDF version of the rulebook as a standalone product.

We are not able to sell every product digitally at this time.

When will this be shipping?

We pride ourselves in shipping our backroom projects as quickly and efficiently as possible. Violent Dark, Lunar, and YAFSIGA were out our doors within 7 months of the end of the event. All items ordered during a backroom event will be consolidated and shipped in as few packages as possible once the components are made and books are arriving.

This re-launch of Don't Look Back is a bit of a new step for us. Hardback books take longer to get proofs and print, so total fulfillment of this project may take longer than the previous ones. Our current goal based on all the information we know is to have total fulfillment done in early October 2023. We'll keep you guys updated and in the loop! We want you to have all of these products in time for Halloween!

DIGITAL PDF
We'll be finalizing and editing up the book, cards and other assets after the close of the backroom event. Currently, we are expecting to have the PDFs ready for backers by Late June/Early July. Bonus digital unlock content will be delivered in early October.

What are the free items?

Throughout the backroom event, we'll be unlocking free and paid products. Anyone who orders within the first 24 hours (8am CST Mar 21st - 7:59am CST March 22nd) will receive the mutant Degraw mini free! This is a hard line, so don't miss it!

Any BOOK ONLY orders will also receive the bonus killer mini for free.
Any tier I and II orders will receive the bonus killer and any free unlocked goals. Check the unlocked goals for the details on what's what.
Any digital bundle orders will receive STL versions of any free unlocked items.

Will I be charged immediately?

Yes. Our backroom projects do not rely on customer funding to actually come to fruition so any orders placed during this backroom event are considered preorders. Many of the components and products are already in production, with any unlocks or last minute additions added to the queue before the end of the event.

Refunds

We are generally more than happy to offer refunds after the backroom event closes. But, once products are in production and things are getting close to shipping we may choose, at our discretion, to deny refund requests.

What are the risks with this project?

The Lunar, Violent Dark, and YAFSIGA projects went very well. While we've done our due diligence for this project, there are some new product frontiers for us. DLB will be our third premium hardcover book. While we tried to find a US printer, the quickest and more certain fulfillment method we could find is based out of China. After months of talking to every US printer we could... this is just the reality. (for more rants on this matter, tune into our streams at twitch.tv/bssterrain). The process of printing our first hardcover book went swimmingly, so we're anticipating the second to go even better.

We have recently brought our resin miniature casting in-house, and while we're confident in our manufacturing ability, this does introduce an unknown variable. We'll keep everyone updated through multiple platforms and pride ourselves on our transparency during these projects.