Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes developer blames "misinformation" for unexpected shipping costs
"We are still investigating."
A number of Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes Kickstarter backers have been met with unexpected shipping costs, which in some cases have nearly doubled the amount people will pay.
On the game's Kickstarter page, supporters have called out developer Rabbit and Bear for its "ridiculous" shipping fees. "Mine's $54 to Malaysia (PC Steam). I backed the game for $60...," one supporter said, with another adding: "$14 for shipping a game, (Standard EU Shipping, not even sure there [is] any insurance fee in that), never saw a shipping price like this."
Another questioned the developer's choice to ship to Oceania from Germany rather than Japan. "Why would you quadruple the distance and prices for us? Since the very beginning you promised shipping would be from the nearest fulfilment centre, so why was all of Oceania (and many Asian countries, too) swapped away from shipping from Japan," they wrote.
"If it's too late to swap shipping centres now, I hope you can get yourselves organised and actually use the nearest/cheapest shipping routes and centres for additional rewards! You've broken explicit promises about shipping/fulfilment."
One commenter noted that supporters can ask the developer to send everything from their pledge in one go, to avoid multiple shipping costs. "That's actually really great to hear because I wasn't about to drop $20+ for a small cardboard sleeve with a plastic box and a piece of paper in it," came a reply. But even so, the user said the developer should have been more upfront about this solution, "instead of saying 'all will be sent one by one as per manufacturing'."
In an update on the Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes Kickstarter, Rabbit and Bear said the team was sorry supporters had been surprised by the additional shipping costs, but that it was always planned these would be extra.
"At the beginning of the campaign, we stated that shipping would be calculated later as an additional cost. It was difficult to determine shipping costs during the 2020 campaign, and our policy was always to determine shipping costs at the time of actual shipping," it wrote.
The developer said it was trying to "keep shipping costs at the lowest possible level", but there have been "issues with the shipping source and the arrangements to ensure delivery before the release".
Rabbit and Bear acknowledged much of the confusion likely stemmed from a Discord message that said Rabbit and Bear would cover shipping costs. "This was misinformation," it said. "We are still investigating where this information came from."
Rabbit and Bear subsequently laid out its shipping costs, before once again apologising for the confusion. "Lastly, we would like to express our sincere apologies for the inconveniences caused by the lack of explanation, and appreciate your understanding and cooperation."
Eurogamer has asked Rabbit and Bear for further comment on these shipping costs for the Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes Kickstarter. We wull update when we hear more.